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nashibirne · 3 years

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Against All Odds - 19

Today we have to say goodbye to Anna and Henry, this is the last chapter of "Against All Odds".

I'm really a little sad and melancholic. This was my first story here on Tumblr and it has been quite a ride. But it's time to let go and give them the happy ending they deserve. I initially planned to leave it to pure fluff and exclude smut but somehow my hand slipped...it just came over me...and them. So lots of fluff and some smut ahead. Enjoy!

Pairing: Henry Cavill x OFC (Anna) Warnings: Lots of fluff, some smut, NSFW, 18 +, sex, dry humping, masturbation, thigh riding, slight daddy kink / male dom, choking, public sex, unprotected sex. Unbeta'ed! English is not my first language, so consider yourself warned, there might be bad grammar and wrong spelling ahead.

All previous parts can be found here: Masterlist

Likes, reblogs and comments are very welcome.

Tags: @lunedelorient @hell1129-blog @willkatfanfromasia @inlovewithhisblueeyes @mis-lil-red @agniavateira @omgkatinka @legendarywizarddetective

So here we go...let the grand finale begin...

~~~~~~~

When Henry looked out of the window after his morning routine almost three month after the encounter with Lestat he cursed internally. The weather was really shitty. It was raining lightly and fog was swirling above the woods and meadows that surrounded his farm. He could only hope that the forecast was right and the sun would show soon. He needed this day to be perfect and sunny weather was only a little part of a bigger plan.

It turned out he was lucky. When Anna and Henry walked the dogs together in the afternoon the sun was shining bright from a cloudless blue sky. It was warm for this time of the year and there was a light breeze that rustled through the trees.

"Why don't we take another route today, princess?" Henry looked at Anna with a smile.

"Sure, where do you want to go?"

"This way." Henry pointed to the left and Anna seemed to be not too enthusiastic about his idea.

"Is that even a regular path? It looks quite overgrown. The dogs will be full of ticks again and we're going to rip our clothes. I'm wearing a brand new jacket." She looked at him with a frown.

Shit.

This was so typical for Anna. She was a practical person, always reasonable, and he loved it that she was so down to earth but today he needed her to take this god damn path. Otherwise his surprise wouldn't work.

"I just want to discover new places, Baby. Expand our horizons. It's going to be fun." Henry said before he brought up the big guns. It was time for poetry.

"Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference."

Henry recited with a grin.

"Wow...Robert Frost… I'm impressed." Anna laughed. "Don't be. You made me watch 'Dead Poets Society' three times. I know every single poem that was quoted in that very good movie." Henry pulled her into a hug and kissed her on the forehead tenderly. "Come on." "Fine. I'm willing to follow you anywhere. Oh Captain, my Captain." Smiling, she gave him a peck on the cheek. "Captain. I like the sound of that." Henry smirked and took her by the hand.

They followed the path for a while and it turned out that Anna was right. It was overgrown, almost jungle-like in some areas, so they had to climb over some trunks and bushes and squeeze through a thorny bramble hedge but Anna didn't complain. On the contrary. She loved the picturesque atmosphere and took dozens of pictures with her mobile.

"This is really lovely, Henry. I'm glad we chose this path. It was a good idea to try something new." She beamed and kissed him happily. He chuckled. "Are you saying I was right?" "I wouldn't go that far." Anna grinned before she took another series of photos.

After half an hour and a lot of stumbling through the undergrowth they reached the regular path, that led to a large meadow, that was surrounded by hedges and a low stonewall. Anna took a look around with a frown. "I know this place…" "Yeah, you should." Henry winked and it dawned on her. "This is the place where we first met. Oh my god, Henry. I crouched over a fly agaric over there when Kal knocked me over." "Yes. And I came to your rescue and fell for you almost instantly." He took her in his arms and pulled her close. "That was exactly one year ago." His voice was soft and full of love. "Really? I totally forgot about the date. I'm so unromantic...sorry, Baby." "Don't worry, princess. You have other qualities." Henry smirked before kissing her. He let his hands slide to her ass, giving it a squezze which made Anna moan. "Behave, Cavill." She gave him a sexy smile. "No way." He kissed her again, passionately this time and she returned the kiss with the same vigour. When he finally pulled away he left her panting for breath. "Wow...this keeps getting better and better." "Oh...just wait for it." Henry walked over to a large lime tree and reached behind the trunk. When he turned around again he held a basket in his hands. "Picnic!" Anna cheered. "Oh Darling...this is such a great surprise. And you know I hate surprises...normally." "But not today." "No, today I love it."

Henry smiled and started flattening a checkered blanket right under the lime. He sat down and patted on the free spot beside him. "Come on, princess. Sit down and let me show you what I've got for you." "There's nothing I'd rather do." Anna plopped down on the blanket, watching Henry unpack the basket. He placed two plates, cutlery, two glasses and a bottle of rosemary water on the blanket. To Anna's big surprise he even raked out the little Bluetooth speaker that normally stood in his kitchen. He connected it to his mobile and started his 80s rock playlist.

"Wow, you've thought of everything. But what about food?" "Mylady wishes for food, mylady shall have food." Henry grinned and got various boxes out of the basket, opening them he started to explain what he had prepared for them. "We have different kinds of cheese, grapes, olives, cherry tomatoes, nuts and raisins, Belgian filled Chocolates plus...and I can proudly say in advance that this is homemade by me...a loaf of delicious freshly baked bread." Anna clapped her hands, beaming all over her face. "Henry...this looks heavenly." "Let's eat then, my love."

Anna was right, the food was delicious and they enjoyed their little picnic very much, taking their time to taste all the things Henry had prepared, chatting and laughing, watching the dogs play and just savouring this carefree time of togetherness. When they were done with eating they cleared the blanket and stuffed everything except the speaker back into the basket.

Anna cuddled up in Henry's arms. He was sitting under the lime tree now, his back leaning against the trunk.

"Thank you so much, Baby. This was such a perfect surprise and such a lovely picnic." "Oh we're not done yet...I have another surprise for you." Henry cleared his throat and was about to get up but Anna was faster. She straddled his lap before Henry realized what she was up to.

"Really, Mr. Cavill? Another surprise?" She whispered in his ear. "Is it big?" She looked at him with a smirk before she kissed him. Henry grabbed her by the waist, pulling her closer to deepen the kiss. It got hot and erotic very fast. Anna started to rub her pussy against the bulge in his jeans slowly, she felt his hard on through the woolen fabric of the leggings she wore under her denim skirt.

"Oohh...it is big. Huge even." she said, still riding him. "That's not what I meant when I said I had another surprise, babe." Henry moaned. His hands were under her shirt now, stroking her full breasts through her bra. "Do you want to stop?" Anna moved her body away from his lap, straddling one of his thick thighs now. She let her hands slide over his crotch, massaging his dick through his trousers, looking at him innocently. "Princess…." he growled, grabbing her hips, making her move on his thigh. Anna let out a muffled moan. The friction between his massive leg and her sensitive pussy was pure pleasure even though there were three layers of fabric between his skin and hers. "Henry…" Anna started riding his thigh looking at him. She sighed and licked her lips. "...we have to be quiet and very discreet." "Don't worry, baby girl. This is private property. Nobody's here except us." "I know...just in case…" Anna was already out of breath because she had picked up speed, rubbing against Henry in a faster rhythm now. Her moans were getting louder. "Do you like it, baby? Riding my thigh like a cheap little slut?" Henry hissed through clenched teeth. His hard-on was throbbing in his jeans painfully. "Rubbing your tight little pussy over me?" Anna just sighed and leaned in to kiss him but Henry stopped her. "Answer me, princess." "Yes...yes, Daddy. I love it." She groaned, feeling her orgasm coming closer and closer. "Good girl. I'm going to reward you." Henry slapped her ass before he started fumbling with the buttons of his jeans. Anna stopped moving, watching him agape with big eyes. "Keep moving, baby." Henry ordered and Anna obeyed but her eyes never left his hands that were now getting out his rock hard dick. He started stroking himself, letting out a long moan. "Yeah...that's it." He said, locking eyes with Anna. "That's it, princess. Watch me, watch me touching my big cock. Look at me and come for me." "Oh, god...I love your dick, Daddy. It's so thick…" Anna whispered in a sweet voice, panting and moaning while she rode his thigh harder. "No talking, princess." Henry slapped her ass again with his free hand, the other hand pumping his dick that was glistening with pre cum. "But Daddy…" Anna shrieked when she felt the hand that had just slapped her ass on her throat. "No talking…." Henry growled. "Just come for me." The way he squeezed her throat with well measured pressure, giving her the feeling of being completely at his mercy, combined with the sight of his big hand jerking himself off was enough to send her over the edge. Her orgasm was long and intense and she rode it out devouring the sensation. "Good girl." Henry sighed and it took him just another few thrusts into his hand to cum too. Anna leaned forward, resting her forehead on his. "Wow...Baby….that was something. I've never had sex fully dressed before." She grinned at him and gave him a tender kiss. "Yeah, it was great…even though it wasn't part of my plan." Henry smirked, grabbing a napkin to clean up the mess his cum had left on his jeans and Anna's jacket. Anna laughed and got up, straightening her clothes. "So what was your plan? What's the other surprise you have for me?"

Henry looked at her with a frown, getting up too. "You really want to know?"

"Of course."

"Okay. Then...let's dance." He winked at her with a sly smile and grabbed his phone. He started searching through the playlist and stopped it before playing a certain song.

"May I ask for this dance?" He held out his hand to her and Anna gladly took it.

"Sure." She said and Henry pulled her close and they started to sway their bodies to the music. It was "Forever" by Kiss that was playing. A beautiful ballad Anna and Henry liked a lot. They had made slow, sensual love to this song countless times.

I see my future when I look in your eyes

It took your love to make my heart come alive

'Cause I lived my life believing all love is blind

But everything about you is telling me this time...

Anna looked at Henry and he kissed her. It was a tender kiss, full of love and devotion.

...it's forever, this time I know

And there's no doubt in my mind

Forever, until my life is through

Girl I'll be loving you forever.

When the song was over Henry took a step back, reaching into his pocket, getting out a little box. He had planned this for so long, had played it through in his head again and again but now he was a nervous wreck all of the sudden. He took a deep breath before getting down on one knee opening the box, presenting her a beautiful engagement ring.

Anna gasped when she realized what was happening. She bit her lip, holding her breath.

"Anna, my love. I know it's only been a year since we met and 9 months that we're together but though this is quite a short span of time it has been the most wonderful and happy time in all my life. You complete me, Darling. You make me whole, you are my home, my heart, my soul, my everything. I love you more than I could ever say and therefore I'm kneeling here, asking you if you want to spend the rest of your life with me. Anna Wagner...do you want to marry me?"

Anna let out a deep breath, beaming with joy.

"Yes...oh my god...yes, Henry. Of course I want to marry you." She took his hands, dragged him up and pulled him into a tight embrace before kissing him tenderly.

"I love you, Cavill."

"I love you, princess."

******

Three years later

When Anna came back from her appointment in town to Old Johnson's Farm in the afternoon she found Henry sleeping on the couch peacefully. Their little boy Peter -they had named him after Anna's late father- was sleeping on Henry's broad chest, snoring softly, Kal was lying at Henry's feet, snoring not quite so softly.

Anna couldn't help but smile like a love-struck fool. This was all she'd ever wanted. A loyal man, who truly loved and respected her, a home, a family. And now that she had it, it was even better than she could have ever imagined. Henry was a perfect husband and a fantastic father - loving, caring, patient and still the dorky nerd, she had fallen for four years ago.

After Peter had been born Henry had stepped back from work for a year to spend as much time as possible with them and to have Anna's back who had started to work again part-time after three months. Henry had done a lot of audio books over the last sixth month -it was work he could easily do at home- and he really liked it. Of course it had been a huge success. Henry didn't really get why but Anna knew every time she heard his deep, dark voice that felt like velvet in her ears.

Pete was 14 months old now and from next week on Henry would be away for a while to shoot the next Witcher season. She was a little scared of the times that were awaiting her. It would be the first time for them to be apart for so long and the first time for Anna to face the fact that her husband was going to shoot sex scenes with attractive young women like Anya Chalotra. But she knew she would be able to deal with it. It was already decided that she and Peter would visit Henry on set to meet his co-stars and to get a feeling for his work and the process of acting.

Her thoughts were interrupted by Peter's babbling. She took him from Henry's chest into her arms and hugged him gently. "Shush...little pea...we don't want to wake daddy." She whispered in his ear before kissing his soft, chubby cheeks several times.

Henry seemed to realize that Peter's weight on his chest was missing and he mumbled something incomprehensible before he turned around, but he didn't wake up. Anna knew he was exhausted. He had been up all night to calm down Pete who was teething. Anna wanted to take turns but Henry wouldn't let her because she had to get up early for work.

"Come on, pumpkin. Let's go feed the horses and let daddy and Kal get some sleep. You wore them out last night."

She smiled when she took another look at the man she loved. "It's really good that your dad has such a broad chest." She said softly to her son with a happy smile on her face. "With a little luck there will be two little pumpkins sleeping on it in seven months' time."

THE END

#henry cavill #henry cavill fanfic #cavillry #henry cavill x ofc #slow burn #friends to lovers #smut

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aion-rsa · 3 years

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The Incredible Hulk’s Diminished Legacy in the Marvel Cinematic Universe

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Love it or hate it, one of the things that makes the Marvel Cinematic Universe work is the long term synergy. With Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame, over a decade of movies came together to pull off one of the most entertaining spectacles of our time. It’s a universe that, for the most part, feels consistent and it builds on itself as each movie feels like an essential cog in a larger machine.

Some cogs are bigger than the others, though, and when it comes to “the others,” one can’t help but notice that 2008’s Incredible Hulk is something of a black sheep in the Marvel movie roster. These days, they’re just starting to dust it off as a property with the return of Tim Roth’s Abomination in She-Hulk and William Hurt’s General Ross’ gradually increasing role in the universe itself (he’ll appear in Black Widow and possibly other projects soon enough).

Now, there are plenty of reasons why Incredible Hulk is the green-skinned stepchild of the MCU. It made the least amount of money (about $42 million less than Captain America: The First Avenger, which was the second worst showing), the lead actor was recast afterwards, and its status as a Universal co-production meant that it would be the only movie in the first three Marvel phases that would not get its own sequel, no matter how popular Hulk was in the Avengers movies and Thor: Ragnarok.

It’s not like the MCU acted like Incredible Hulk never happened, but the creators definitely had a tendency to shove it into the corner and be somewhat vague about its existence. It became easier as the MCU became rich with more and more properties, but early on, it was very much the rage-filled elephant in the room.

The Hulk Design

There were a couple of ads for Avengers: Endgame that included shots from all the previous MCU movies in chronological order. For one, when it came to Incredible Hulk, all it had to show for it was Hulk’s fist bursting through the wall. In another, they just used shots from later movies and hoped nobody would notice. That’s because CGI or not, Ed Norton’s Hulk and Mark Ruffalo’s Hulk were two very different beasts. Not only did they roughly resemble their actors, but Norton’s Hulk was more of a giant, angry bodybuilder with green skin while Ruffalo’s came off as more Cro-Magnon, like a shaved gorilla.

It means that while they could talk about Hulk’s exploits, they could never really show any flashbacks, as it would just look awkward. Similarly, Incredible Hulk filmed a cut opening where Banner tried to shoot himself, but the Hulk wouldn’t allow it. While it was a bit too extreme to show, Banner at least got to talk about it happening in Avengers.

The Effect on the World of the MCU

When you look at the events of Incredible Hulk, it keeps things focused on the characters and not the world at large. Sure, it would have been bigger news if the Abomination defeated the Hulk and went on an even bigger rampage, but that problem was nipped in the bud. If you’re a citizen of Marvel Earth, all there is to know is that some soda has been recalled and there was a monster fight in Harlem.

In the movies themselves, the only time the Harlem fight is brought up is in the background of Iron Man 2, where Nick Fury’s map signals it as a place of interest.

With the exception of the Hulk straight-up existing, the most lip service his movie got early on was the scene in Captain America: The First Avenger where Steve gave blood for further study. They needed something to give Emil Blonsky down the line and turn him into an angry Ninja Turtle.

Speaking of…

Whatever Happened to the Abomination?

Of Marvel’s Phase 1 villains, one died, a couple vanished confusingly into space only to come back later, and three were taken into custody. Ending up in custody means you’ll be back soon enough because prisons usually can’t hold the type of enemies who can throw down with the Avengers. Usually.

In other words, it’s pretty damn impressive that the Abomination has been kept off the grid since the Hulk choked him out in Harlem. She-Hulk will be his first real appearance since then, but his name has been on the tongue of Phil Coulson on Agents of SHIELD a few times.

The scene of Tony Stark appearing at the end of Incredible Hulk to confront General Ross is something that came off as a big deal at the time, but afterwards didn’t make too much sense. Piggybacking off the Iron Man post-credits scene, Stark was seemingly trying to recruit the Hulk into the Avengers. That didn’t exactly jibe with what they were going for afterwards, so they released a short film to make sense out of everything.

The Consultant featured Agent Coulson and Agent Sitwell discussing the unfortunate decision by the World Security Council to demand the Abomination join the team. After all, Blonsky is a decorated veteran and the Harlem incident could easily be blamed on Banner. Fury wasn’t in a position to refuse the Council, so the only hope was that General Ross – the guy in charge of Blonsky’s captivity – turned them down. And so, they sent Tony Stark. That final scene in Incredible Hulk was reframed as Tony Stark obnoxiously asking for the keys to Abomination for the Avengers and Ross being so annoyed by his antics that he straight-up refused.

Afterwards, Abomination was namedropped a couple of times in Agents of SHIELD, which is par for the course considering early Agents of SHIELD was about reminding us about stuff that happened in the movies and saying, “We’re part of all that!” According to the show, Abomination was kept in a special prison in Alaska that only a select few know about. There was an episode where SHIELD’s main prison lost power and one of the writers realized that they probably needed to note that Abomination wasn’t going to be an issue in this situation.

But hey, at least he finished his story. The Leader on the other hand…

Samuel Sterns and the Fate of the Leader

At the time, it was the right play. Tim Blake Nelson played the kind of surprise villain you’d find in your average CGI animated Disney movie. As Mr. Blue, he existed as Bruce Banner’s potential salvation, only to be revealed to be kind of over-the-line and sinister in terms of his gamma experiments. After turning Blonsky into the Abomination, Sterns was knocked to the floor and a sample of Banner’s irradiated blood dripped into the open wound on his head. Sterns seemed especially jazzed with a crazed expression as his head started throbbing and increasing in size.

And then…nothing! Not even a mention in a different movie or Agents of SHIELD. That’s what happens when you set up a villain for a sequel and then have legal reasons keeping you from making that sequel. That said, there is a follow-up to what the hell happened with Sterns.

Back in 2012, a prequel comic was released to coincide with the first Avengers movie. The Avengers Prelude: Fury’s Big Week showed that the events of Iron Man 2, Thor, and Incredible Hulk all happened over the course of a few days. We got to see those storylines from the perspective of SHIELD, especially a very overwhelmed and fatigued Nick Fury. That makes sense for the stuff with Tony Stark in Iron Man 2 as well as Mjolnir and the Destroyer in Thor, but what of Incredible Hulk?

As shown in this story, Black Widow was in the background of its events, keeping an eye on everything and realizing that she was way in over her head. She played clean-up on the Sterns situation by coming across his giant, mutated head in the aftermath. Sterns was quick to figure out her homeland from traces of her accent and thought to bribe her in some way, but she stonewalled him with a couple of bullets to the legs.

A year later, Sterns was shown floating in a tank, unconscious, as various SHIELD scientists studied him.

Will we ever see the Leader pop up in the MCU? I can’t imagine Tim Blake Nelson is too busy to appear on She-Hulk at some point.

Betty Ross

Bruce Banner’s old flame is now nothing but a footnote. Considering Banner moved on to another relationship and then another planet, there was never a reason to reintroduce Betty. The only nods to her were Tony Stark naming his Hulkbuster armor “Veronica” (get it?) and the Russo Brothers saying in an interview that Betty was one of those turned to dust by Thanos.

Maybe one day we’ll see Red She-Hulk. Don’t hold your breath, though.

Thunderbolt Ross

General Thaddeus Ross does the heavy lifting for keeping Incredible Hulk relevant. The guy came back for Captain America: Civil War, a movie that didn’t even have the Hulk in it! But it did give him the Henry Gyrich role in a time when Gyrich was probably off-limits since he was considered part of the X-Men corner of Marvel (he already had a very minor role in the first X-Men movie). A familiar face, Ross got to be the government liaison type who spoke with logic, but came off as an antagonistic killjoy.

Right or wrong, Ross’ insistence that the Avengers sign with the Sokovia Accords ruined the team in the face of Thanos’ rampage against the cosmos. He still got to show his respects as Tony Stark’s funeral at the end of Endgame.

Yet, that’s not the last we’ll see of him. In Black Widow, Ross is shown in the trailers. We don’t know his role quite yet, but there’s a lot of fan speculation that Ross might tie into the next roster of the Avengers. Maybe a team that’s government sanctioned and controlled. Maybe a team that’s an awful lot like the Thunderbolts.

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It does seem that as the MCU reaches further and further outward, it looks back more and more on the events of Incredible Hulk. Then again, I doubt we’ll be seeing Ty Burrell’s Leonard Samson turn into a gamma-irradiated psychiatrist with long, luxurious hair any time soon.

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limejuicer1862 · 4 years

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Wombwell Rainbow Interviews

I am honoured and privileged that the following writers local, national and international have agreed to be interviewed by me. I gave the writers two options: an emailed list of questions or a more fluid interview via messenger.

The usual ground is covered about motivation, daily routines and work ethic, but some surprises too. Some of these poets you may know, others may be new to you. I hope you enjoy the experience as much as I do.

Julene Tripp Weaver

is a psychotherapist and writer in Seattle. She has three poetry books: truth be bold—Serenading Life & Death in the Age of AIDS, No Father Can Save Her, and a chapbook, Case Walking: An AIDS Case Manager Wails Her Blues.

She is widely published in journals and anthologies. A few online sites where her work can be found include: Riverbabble, River & South Review, The Seattle Review of Books, HIV Here & Now, Mad Swirl, Anti-Heroin Chic, Writing in a Woman’s Voice and in the Stonewall Legacy Anthology.

Find her online at http://www.julenetrippweaver.com/

or Twitter @trippweavepoet.

The Interview

1. What inspired you to write poetry?

After my father’s death, before I turned twelve, I started to record my dreams and write in a journal. Writing helped during this difficult time, I was bereft. In my fantasy life poets were cool and I longed to be around people who were different. After my mother moved us to the city, I signed up for an evening poetry class at a local college in Queens. I was barely a teenager, and had to depend on my uncle to drive me. He had a bias against poets, the whole way there he yelled about beatniks sitting on floors, saying he worked hard to provide chairs for his family to sit on. I had a poem in my pocket and was terrified. The adult poets talked about poets I didn’t know. I felt like an outsider and realized I needed to understand more. Because of the lack of support, I didn’t go back to that group. Getting back to poetry took a long time, I had to move away from my family and become financially independent.

2. Who introduced you to poetry?

When I was finally living on my own, I started investigating the writing world. Living in Manhattan I found classes at the Y and signed up. I read Peter Elbow’s books on writing. Finding other writers was helpful, I joined a group of women poets for feedback. Then I joined a local chapter of the Feminist Writers’ Guild; we brought in May Sarton to read, and they sponsored me to travel to a conference in Chicago where I gave my first public reading. Judy Grahn’s poetry inspired me, I wanted to write feminist poetry to change the world. Audre Lorde was well known and I learned she taught at Hunter College. I applied to CUNY so I could study with her and got a Bachelor degree with a double major of Creative Writing and Women’s Studies. I’d say Judy Grahn’s book, The Work of a Common Woman, had the most influence, she was such a strong lesbian feminist and I was in that community.

3. How aware were you of the dominating presence of older poets?

When I started my journey as a poet I was unaware of the cannon. Audre started us out with an e.e. cummings poem, but she didn’t teach the older poets. She had us writing and workshopping our poems, reading and going to readings and journaling our impressions. I’ve done much catch-up. A few of the older male poets I admire include William Carlos Williams, William Stafford, Charles Simic, James Tate, Russell Edison, Richard Hugo. A generation in between when poetry was already moving away from rhyme to free verse. And with some of these it is their books about writing poetry that I love. I’ve read Gerard Manley Hopkins, Shakespeare sonnets, and some of the older poets, but I’m not drawn to their work.

4. What is your daily writing routine?

I do not have a routine. Writing means a lot of things; writing new work, editing work, sending out work, composing collections, writing about the work (as in this interview), taking time to do nothing, applying to programs, residencies, grants. There is so much it’s overwhelming. And I easily get overwhelmed. So I’ve learned to be not too hard on myself for what I could be doing at any given moment. I spend far too much time on social media. But I keep a journal that I then cull work from. Plus, I write other genres: memoir and essays, for a few years I wrote articles for a health corner column in a newsletter.

5. What motivates you to write?

It’s a drive to the page, there were periods I did not have that drive and I just existed, lived life, worked and had fun with friends or a partner. Then there are periods where my writing ramps up: I take a class, begin to focus on a particular project, get excited about a call or networking. The newest thing I’ve done with a friend is to start a reading series at a local café once a month. It’s been more stressful than I anticipated. When my last poetry book was published I dedicated over three years to promote it.

6. What is your work ethic?

My first career as a laboratory technician lasted fourteen years; I worked at one lab for over eight years. Then I went back to school and had odd jobs that included my own business cleaning apartments in New York City. After that I did secretarial work, moved to Seattle and went back to school for a Masters in counselling. With that degree I worked for twenty-one years in AIDS services, eighteen of those years for the same agency in different capacities. I work hard and steady. I write hard, too, when I write. Semi-retired now, I have a small private therapy practice and my goal is to devote more time to writing, but I’m also the president of my condo Board. Responsibility and service are a big part of my work ethic, as is doing work from love, which I did working in AIDS services for twenty-one years. When I worked where they had a union I was a rep, and I’ve been part of two union negotiations.

7. How did the writers you read when you were young influence you today?

This is impossible to answer because I’m not sure how the books I loved as a child influenced my writing today. I read Heidi eight times, and all the Nancy Drew mystery novels.

8. Who of today’s writers do you admire the most and why?

There are so many excellent authors! I have to say two I’ve worked with: Louise DeSalvo, I found her when I started Hunter College. She taught a different literature class each semester and I took every class of hers I could. She was a brilliant Virginia Wolf scholar with a PhD in the Deconstruction of Literature. Generous and supportive of her students she bestowed confidence. She constantly had new books coming out in different genres,. Two of her books I keep ready at my fingertips: Writing as a Way of Healing : How Telling Our Stories Transforms our Lives, and The Art of Slow Writing: Reflections on Time, Craft, and Creativity. She also has several memoirs, academic books, fiction and an anthology she edited of Italian American women. She died in October 2018. The other writer is Tom Spanbauer, he trademarked Dangerous Writing. I love his book The Man Who Fell in Love with the Moon, so when I heard he was in Portland teaching Dangerous Writing workshops I wanted to study with him. For a year I went back and forth to Portland for several workshops and love his way of teaching. He is open and vulnerable, providing a safe space to write dangerous things that are hard to get onto the page. I’ve read each of his novels, and from him learned even though I am not a fiction writer, what I write has value. There are many other excellent poets and writers I admire.

9. Why do you write, as opposed to doing anything else?

Well I consider myself an artist, and have called myself a health artist. Of all the arts, writing is what I’ve spent the most time to develop. I’ve taken art classes and I practice movement work. I discovered Continuum in 1988 and it has changed my life several times. For ten years, from 1997 to 2007, I ran workshops that combined Continuum movement and writing after taking Emilie Conrad and Rebecca Mark’s Poetry in Motion Intensive. Emilie was the founder of Continuum Movement, she died in 2014. In my workshop we experimented with breath, audible breath and movement that perturbed our interior world, then listened and allowed hand-to-page exploration. From my first Poetry in Motion I started what became a large body of writing about my work in HIV/AIDS.

10. What would you say to someone who asked you “How do you become a writer?”

The best advice is to read a lot of poetry. There is so much good poetry available and you learn by the process of reading a wide range. Also, take classes and find a group where you get together and read your work out loud, then exchange feedback. Or find a group where you use a prompt, write for a timed period then go around and read what was written, either with no feedback or only positive. You’ll begin to get more fluid putting pen to page. It’s best to read it right away without worrying or thinking about it too much. If you have good mentors along the way and the right support I don’t think an MFA is so important.

11. Tell me about the writing projects you have on at the moment.

I’m working on a hybrid memoir and searching for publishers that will answer directly to an author as a first step. As a hybrid form it includes journal excerpts and dreams. I hope to have a my early health essays included in an addendum.

On my to-do list is to develop my next poetry manuscript and start sending it out. But first I need to form an arc from my many poems written in the past several years. Each book birth takes a lot of energy and my last book promotion has been slowly winding down; although I will be on a panel at AWP2020 in San Antonio related to that book reading my poetry.

Wombwell Rainbow Interviews: Julene Tripp Weaver Wombwell Rainbow Interviews I am honoured and privileged that the following writers local, national and international have agreed to be interviewed by me.

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thisdaynews · 5 years

Text

Why Trump’s Stonewalling Legal Strategy Will Keep Failing.

New Post has been published on https://thebiafrastar.com/why-trumps-stonewalling-legal-strategy-will-keep-failing/

Why Trump’s Stonewalling Legal Strategy Will Keep Failing.

In the space of three days this week, two federal judges ruled decisively in favor of Congress’ right to subpoena President Trump’s personal financial and business records. The speed of the decisions—unusual in complex federal litigation—demonstrates a significant flaw in the administration’s “fight all the subpoenas” strategy. More importantly, it suggests that Trump’s strategy of categorically fighting all Congressional subpoenas will undermine his ability to stonewall Congress in subsequent cases.

Already, one of the rulings has been appealed by the Trump administration and the three-judge panel is scheduled to hear the case in July. In the meantime, however, we are witnessing profound legal decisions in defense of Congressional power. If Trump’s stonewalling strategy was intended to run out the clock by forcing Democrats into interminable court fights, it appears so far to be having the exact opposite effect—almost like a little league game that gets called early because one team is scoring too many unanswered runs.

Story Continued Below

On Monday, federal judge Amit Mehta issued a sweeping decision rejecting Trump’s personal challenge to a House Oversight Committee subpoena of his financial records from an accounting firm he used. The main argument Trump advanced was that there was no legislative purpose for the subpoena.

Judge Mehta made quick work of that argument, noting that courts have long held that they must presume Congress is acting to legislate. But Trump’s argument went further, claiming that Congress is engaging in “law enforcement” and that corrupt behavior by the president is not a “proper subject of investigation.” Mehta cited Watergate as an obvious rebuttal.

Trump’s argument is doomed to fail in the courts because the constitution gives the House the “full Power of Impeachment” and it could not exercise that authority without investigating presidential wrongdoing. Judge Mehta found that it is “simply not fathomable” that “a constitution that grants Congress the power to remove a president for reasons including criminal behavior would deny Congress the power to investigate him for unlawful conduct—past or present—even without formally opening an impeachment inquiry.”

Wednesday’s ruling by Judge Edgardo Ramos made equally quick work of Trump’s argument that subpoenas to Deutsche Bank and Capitol One for his records lacked a “legitimate legislative purpose.” He found that argument “unpersuasive,” finding that it was “not the role of the judicial branch to question [Congress’s] motives.” He denied every one of Trump’s requests.

What is remarkable about these sweeping rulings is not the results, which were expected, but the speed with which they were issued. Judge Mehta issued his 41-page ruling just seven days after hearing arguments.

If Trump’s team is not alarmed by the speed and sweeping nature (not to mention the almost dismissive tone) of the two judgments against the president, it should be. Trump’s strategy on a variety of fronts has been to take extreme positions denying Congressional authority to investigate the presidency. On Monday, for example, the Office of Legal Counsel concluded that the President’s senior advisors are absolutely immune from subpoena to testify about their official duties. Buried on page nine of the memo was an admission that the only court to consider this issue had ruled to the contrary. Hiding an unfavorable precedent in this manner might work on a first-year law student, but it won’t fool a federal judge.

Last week, White House Counsel Pat Cipollone, arguing against having to produce the full Mueller Report and underlying materials, said the House Judiciary Committee lacked any “legislative purpose” for investigating Trump’s conduct as detailed in the Mueller report. He accused the House Judiciary of conducting a “pseudo law enforcement investigation.” Sound familiar?

The Achilles heel of Trump’s strategy is that his extreme positions are not fact-specific or nuanced and are easily disposed of as legally groundless. Judge Mehta specifically noted that the “legal issues presented do not require the court to resolve any fact contests because the material facts are not in dispute.” Because Trump challenged the very right of Congress to investigate these matters, the only facts the court needed to consider were basic facts that no one could possibly dispute.

That stands in stark contrast to prior disputes between the executive branch and Congress. For example, the dispute over certain materials subpoenaed by Congress in its investigation of Operation Fast and Furious resulted in litigation that took eight years to resolve. But the Obama administration did not take the categorical, aggressive approach that Trump has. Obama’s Justice Department produced some witnesses and documents and fought over other documents over which it claimed privilege.

If Trump continues down this path—over former White House counsel Don McGahn’s refusal to appear before the House Judiciary, for example—expect to see more swift rulings swatting down his legal arguments in the coming weeks and months. No court is going to rule that the Executive Branch can categorically refuse to produce evidence and witnesses from a criminal investigation of the president of the United States from the House of Representatives.

Trump’s team no doubt believes that once their initial arguments fail, they will advance more nuanced arguments that seek to protect only a limited subset of material from disclosure. But as any experienced litigator knows, a judge’s impression of a party’s position is influenced by the history of the litigation. Because Trump’s lawyers have not even paid lip service to our constitutional system at the outset, judges will be less inclined to take seriously their arguments later on. In addition, the decisions issued by judges denying Trump’s challenges will influence other judges who consider similar challenges brought by Trump to other Congressional subpoenas.

Trump has appointed hundreds of federal judges, many of whom undoubtedly share his expansive view of executive power. (One of his appointees, Neomi Rao, sits on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals that will hear the Mehta ruling.) But Trump has made it difficult for judges to show him the deference that courts might otherwise show the president.

For that reason, a savvy litigator would not roll the dice with the risky legal strategy Trump has advanced. A more sophisticated approach would be to make limited accommodations to Congress and advance very fact-specific objections to Congressional subpoenas that would require a court to engage in a time-consuming inquiry to parse through. Trump’s current strategy lacks that sophistication.

As a result, his strategy is not only generating adverse results quickly, but it could very well convince a court that he is acting in bad faith. If that happens, the House could get the courts to do what it is ill-equipped to do itself—enforce compliance with Congressional subpoenas. That could get Congressional investigations, or even an impeachment inquiry, off the ground.

#Failing #Foreign #Politics #strategy

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massthetics-blog · 7 years

Text

New Post has been published on MASSthetics

New Post has been published on http://massthetics.net/man-camp/

What I Learned From Hanging Out With 30 Men For Three Days

To properly frame what you’re about to read, you need to grab your clock, and rewind it back to September 16th, 2016.

Otherwise known as the day I touched down in Austin, Texas for the inaugural Man Camp.

Helmed by two of the finest gentlemen in the land, John Romaniello and David Dellanave, Man Camp is best described as being exactly what it sounds like. Which happens to be precisely how I explained it to everyone who asked why I was going to Austin.

If the first thoughts that jumped to your head at the words “Man Camp” included a group of men rolling 30 deep lifting weights, devouring BBQ, sampling some of the finest bourbons and whiskeys, shooting guns, exploring our relationships, discussing empathy, and coming to understand as presentee, best-selling author and (self-professed) semi-retired asshole Tucker Max stated; what’s your fucking problem?

First of all, I’d be damn impressed at your intuition. Second, you’d be bang on the money.

Man Camp came at a curious time in my life

Man Camp fell upon the weekend preceding my 23rd birthday (happy birthday to me).

I also happened to be three weeks removed from parting ways with my girlfriend of the prior two and a half years, whom I’d been living with for nearly two of those years, and in another three weeks I was due to embark upon a three month long solo adventure to Greece.

At the time, MASSthetics was slowly and steadily growing, I had a strong circle of friends I could turn to (even though they’re scattered across North America and various parts of the globe), I had no ties to any one person or place, and I was preparing to spend three months in the country where half of my bloodline flows from. Despite lacking any semblance of stability (financial, emotional, location), I considered my life to be “pretty good.”

Yet, I knew I wanted more, could achieve more, and to say I was close to satisfied with where my life was at would be a massive understatement.

Despite the momentus mental shifts that Man Camp catalyzed in me, it wasn’t until the time of writing that I came to realize how impactful those three days were.

Thanks to the ever-helpful gift of hindsight, attending Man Camp set the stage for a cascade of changes that were to soon occur in my way of thinking, approach to relationships, and outlook on life itself.

Kicking off #ManCamp by crushing legs with @chriscoulsonfitness and @joeypercia. Many weights were harmed in the achievement of our leg pumps. #needmeat #mancampgains

A post shared by MASSthetics l Alex Mullan (@alexmullan13) on Sep 16, 2016 at 3:53pm PDT

The story I’d been telling myself for years is that I lack depth and breadth of experience, and don’t have a place in conversation

Curiously enough, I had little hesitation about attending Man Camp itself. None. Zip. Zero.

After becoming friends with Roman and Dave over the preceding year, there was no doubt that any event those two cooked up together would be worth my time, money, and attention.

However, I did face a mountain of hesitation and resistance when it came to engaging in many of the conversations and topics that surfaced over the course of the weekend.

Here’s what I mean:

I’d be remiss not to admit that this article is coming approximately 8 months past when I intended to publish a piece on the subject of Man Camp. But for whatever reason, every time I sat down and put pen to paper, I would encounter a massive, looming wall of mental resistance that kept me from opening my heart, and spilling my soul onto the page.

Yet, as I’m finally hitting publish on this tale, I’m able to clearly see where the resistance that stonewalled me time and time again came from.

My hesitancy and struggle to pen my thoughts on the special world that was Man Camp seeped from the same place that held me back from engaging deeply in some of the most meaningful conversation that I’ve ever been involved in.

Why?

When Dr. Jade Teta took to the front of the room to discuss the connection between your mindset, testosterone levels, and the landscape of your life, he unearthed a subject of which I’d previously read some of his writing on.

The stories that you tell yourself about who and what you are will quite literally shape your life to fit that story arc.

As I reminisce and muse upon the catalyst that Man Camp was, I can clearly see the falsehood of the story arc I was hell-bent on telling to myself, and following.

The true value of attending events, being a part of Mastermind groups, and travelling doesn't lie in the information learned. # It's the experiences had and relationships you're able to forge that make it all worth the price of admission. # @joeypercia and I stumbled upon this #speakeasy bar tucked away in one of Austin's parkades. And aside from being one of the best drinks I've ever had, it's the truthful conversations, ideas hatched, and bonds forged that come together to create a unique, unforgettable experience. #Austin, until next time. #garage #indiansummer #braingains #allofthetacos #bbq

A post shared by MASSthetics l Alex Mullan (@alexmullan13) on Sep 21, 2016 at 7:36pm PDT

Age is but a number

While I don’t know the exact ages of each man in attendance, I can safely bet that I was the youngest by at least 4 or 5 years.

By all accounts, I did not have a rough childhood. Not that everything was handed to me on a platter or that I didn’t have to work for what I had, but in comparison to the upbringings of the men around me, my childhood and teenage years were a walk in the park.

In contrast to the men I flew across the country to surround myself with, I realized that I’m but a child.

And therein lies the problem.

It’s the same problem that occurs when you scroll through social media, see all your friends *seemingly* living incredible, exciting, fulfilling lives, while you’re stuck stocking shelves at 7-11. You compare your day-to-day life to the highlight reels of every single person you’ve ever connected with.

Call it jealousy, comparison bias, or whatever you believe fits the bill. It’s a pervasive problem in today’s current social media landscape of likes, shares, and endless emojis.

Amidst the conversations held at Man Camp, I found myself comparing the relative ease of my youth to the emotional and physical abuse, broken homes, addiction, debt, and business failures that nearly everyone around me seemed to have struggled through.

As a result, this false self-comparison that had me holding my tongue, and feeling out of place.

With a dose of irony, I now see the fact that I’m able to reconcile with how I felt about myself, understand where that false narrative came from, and now finding the will to write this very post speaks to the impact and lasting changes that Man Camp impressed upon me.

In truth, I’ve travelled, more than many will in their lifetime, and lived abroad in 3 unique countries, all vastly different from the Great Land of Canadia, from which I hail.

I’ve built a fully mobile business that allows me to live life on my own terms.

I’ve competed in bodybuilding competitions twice (soon to be 3).

I’ve been in relationships spanning from 1 month to over 2.5 years of all different levels.

I’ve dropped out out of college to chase what many would call a crazy dream.

I’ve had the world hand me my ass, forcing me back to live with my parents while I sorted my shit out multiple times.

I’ve been miserable with my day-to-day life, and I’ve been incomparably happy with the same.

That’s all happened in the past 4 years.

The story I should have been telling myself is that everyone has a unique perspective to share, and can be of benefit to others.

While it’s taken nigh on 8 months for this lesson to sink in, it has not only altered the landscape of my life, but it’s helped me help others as well, on a deeper level that I could have ever imagined.

Come now; step into a new world

At the end of the weekend, buried amongst the piles of BBQ, muttered between sips of bourbon, and plucked from the car ride conversations between activities, there was one sentence, one phrase, one nugget of utter gold I wrote down that stood above all the rest.

Even though I’d heard it many times over. When it comes to changing your life, achieving a goal, or simply taking one step forward…

Everything comes back to taking fucking action.

Talk is cheap, action is rare.

If you aren’t happy with any facet of your life, begin by chipping away at writing yourself a new story about who and what you are. The more feverishly and assuredly you tell yourself that story, the more your actions will begin to align with the direction you want to head, and who you want to become.

You’ll tell yourself that there is always more time.

But the thing with time is that it never stops moving.

Suddenly, you turn around and the time you thought would always be there, is gone.

Because time waits for no man.

Get moving.

And, get your ass to Man Camp 2017 (it’s in Philly, and there’s no website for it, yet) – because if it has even half the impact on you that it did on my life, that’s well worth it.

I hope to see you there.

PS. 4 out of 5 lifters will let their rationalization hamster run wild. Convincing themselves they’re making progress…yet you build no muscle, and burn no fat. The 5th lifter joined the MASSthetics Clan and put the information within the (free) Hypertrophy Handbook to good use. He no longer has to rationalize his progress. It simply happens. Click here to become the 5th lifter, and let me know where to send the prestigious Hypertrophy Handbook.

#Man Camp #MASSthetics #Mindset

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celticnoise · 7 years

Link

Today I’ve written two highly critical articles on the Scottish media; one on the report about a Belgian no-mark criticising the inclusion of Dedryck Boyata in the national team and the other about some French academic wading in to our business and urging our club to promote the ghastly and noxious Old Firm lie.

Neither of those was a news story; no-one in Scottish football gives a toss what a former footballer turned hack in a foreign land thinks of one of our players and we care even less what’s in some guys utterly useless research thesis.

I understand the media’s need to fill column inches, but they have an entire sport to cover and there are actual stories out there. That they would rather write this garbage makes you wonder what their priorities are, when those other issues go unexplored.

Sevco has just appointed a rookie manager, who appears to have had a single interview, and he has yet to exchange a single word with the guy who’s supposed to be running the club. A massive news story, and not a single article has explored it.

King himself is on the verge of leaving under an enormous black cloud with the Takeover Panel judgement last week which virtually annihilates his credibility and asks serious questions about not only his conduct but his ability to take the club forward in the future. Massive story. No-one’s gone near it. A single media report – two whole minutes worth on STV News – revealed that his South African company has just been fined for breaching stock market rules over there? Massive story. Do they care?

The UEFA licensing deadline is in eleven days. Do they qualify for a license, and will the SFA ask for special dispensation for them, or wave them through regardless? Massive story, with knock-on consequences for other clubs. Anyone interested, except for the bloggers? Nope.

Three directors have chucked it at the key Sevco fan organisation; this is amidst rumours of major fallings out, conflicts of interest and the compromising of their “independence” and ability to properly scrutinise what’s going on inside the club. Massive story, and one that confirms what this blog wrote when the amalgamation of the supporters groups took place; that it was recipe for disaster and one that would limit their ability to hold their board to account. Does anyone in the media want to properly look into it? Hell, no.

You’ll have noticed what these four enormous stories have in common. The silence over them is thus explained, as well as the media’s need to fill their publications with Anything But, especially when they can spin anti-Celtic angles out of it.

You know what? Aside from the issue with the licensing, none of those matters are really anybody else’s business. They are indicative of a club in crisis, run in secrecy and mired in scandal but they are for the people inside Ibrox to confront and resolve. The licensing story is different, for obvious reasons, and it’s shocking that the media hasn’t tackled that.

But they are all dwarfed by the story, which Rangers Tax Case broke this week on Twitter, about how the SFA was served with a “Section 30 notice” in relation to the tax case over there. That raises serious, damaging, dangerous questions … or it would if anyone was asking them.

The SFA will stonewall everything the bloggers bring up.

Regan’s disdain for us is legendary; he may well be the most arrogant individual ever to hold high office there and that’s saying something when you consider who some of his predecessors were. He has no respect whatsoever for any of us and doesn’t give a damn that we know it. He doesn’t recognise our role in covering the sport we love, and he doesn’t believe our voices are legitimate.

It cuts both ways. Regan is a contemptible individual, and I do not use those words lightly.

I absolutely believe it, knowing what I do.

He has presided over scandal and venality. If he’d simply done nothing about it that would be bad enough, considering that part of his job is to keep the game clean.

But Regan made a contribution to all of it.

He was involved in it. He knew what Whyte was up to and exactly what he intended to do at Ibrox at a time when the club was still doing business with a lot of people and companies who were under the impression they would get paid for providing goods and services. The SFA knew they were being conned, that none of them would ever see the money, and if Whyte is ever found guilty of defrauding those people then I regard Stewart Regan, personally, as an accessory after the fact at best, and at worst a co-conspirator.

His comments, on the eve of the SFL vote in 2012, about “social unrest” were absolutely appalling. It was a director of a member club who stood on the steps of Hampden and called the behaviour of the association – and by virtue of that Regan himself – corrupt.

This guy shouldn’t be near our game, and every now and again someone in the media steps up and writes that. But it doesn’t seem to do any good, because the issues they’ve chosen to focus on have been low-bar nonsense. Cancelling a meeting with Sevco? The way he voted in the UEFA Presidential election? These are the concerns over which he should resign?

Absolutely terrifying stuff.

Earth-shaking matters.

Thank God these people aren’t responsible for keeping Trump in line.

For those amongst their number who do believe this guy should be turned out his job and that he has been a disaster for the association, there are other issues they could examine. Amongst the matters outstanding, this Section 38 business looms large. Because if HMRC did, indeed, send a Section 38 warning to the SFA – and I’m sure they did exactly that – then Regan is one of only two guys who was in the frame for when that took place.

EBT’s were ruled as illegal in 2004, but HMRC had no reason to suspect that Rangers were involved in using them until 2007, when the club was raided as part of the Stevens Inquiry into bungs and dodgy transfer deals in England. Their reason for raiding Ibrox was that they were investigating the Jean Alain Boumsong transfer, where Souness had paid £8 million to the player after he’d spent only a few months at Ibrox after arriving on a free.

They found no evidence of that, but deep in the files they took out of Ibrox was one compromising link; Rangers had paid Souness an EBT years after he’d left the club. Not evidence of a bung … but of something else. Is that what started the ball rolling?

Whatever it was, the Fraud Office and the London Met turned the files they’d taken over to HMRC and that was when the tax man started looking at the club.

The Section 38 notice – informing the SFA that they were investigating the tax affairs of Rangers, asking them for information, and probably drawing their attention to the “side letters” – could not have been sent before then, so that absolves David Taylor of any responsibility in this as he left in 2007, before the investigation into Rangers tax affairs ever got underway.

George Peat was President then.

One of his Vice President’s was Campbell Ogilvie.

And who was Chief Executive from 2007 until Regan arrived?

It was Gordon Smith.

Which is where the first questions arise.

Smith was appointed with no experience whatsoever in such a role.

Regan’s own CV was unarguable in comparison.

Smith’s hiring was, and remains, a mystery to many people, as were the reasons for his eventual resignation. Whilst he was there, a book was published with a chapter he wrote, in which he alleged that the SFA was biased against his former club.

We’ve never known by what means Smith got that job, but he would have been the recipient of HMRC’s letter if they sent it between his appointment and departure in 2010.

It is not unreasonable to ponder what his response to a Section 38 warning regarding Rangers might have been, or to wonder what he’d have done about it, especially when you consider that he later went to work for Craig Whyte, and was there at Ibrox when the plug was pulled.

Regan would have known everything that had come over Smith’s desk within a very short time of his taking over the job, and he’ll have watched Whyte ascend the Marble Staircase, to be followed by Smith a short time later. Was the SFA in receipt of that letter then? Was Stewart Regan convinced that Smith’s tenure had been kosher? Did they discuss it?

If that letter arrived in 2008, the club was still paying EBT’s.

They would continue to until 2010.

Is it unreasonable to ask if the SFA itself co-operated fully with HMRC or did they plead ignorance?

They must have known rules were being broken, and had been being broken for years. Let’s not forget that they used the “ignorance excuse” to exonerate the club in front of the Lord Nimmo Smith inquiry, when they said that because they hadn’t discovered the scheme until it was in the public domain that all the games played during it were valid … a rationale which still stands as the most absurd defence of wrong-doing ever offered in Scotland.

One of the issues that automatically arises here is that we still don’t know how “total” their ignorance of this scheme actually was.

Let’s not forget too that Regan and Smith will have shared a boss; Campbell Ogilvie, who had been at Ibrox in the EBT years and was the author of the Discounted Options Scheme which haunts Regan and his association to this day in the way it ties into the scandal we call Resolution 12.

He went on to become chairman of the SFA when Peat departed in 2011, just in time to catch the Craig Whyte show.

There is no doubt whatsoever that Regan and Smith will have worked together on Project Charlotte – Whyte’s plan to flush his club down the pan. It stretches credibility to the snapping point to think they hadn’t. Whyte planned that in detail and the document outlining it all laid out what the SFA’s role in it was to be.

Regan and his association are forever bound to all this, come what may, by the Gordon Smith connection.

It stands out a mile, and I am astonished that it’s been left to fester this long.

But if the Section 38 notice reached the offices at Hampden whilst Regan himself was in the post the questions he has to answer are even more threatening.

The SFA has dodged so many bullets over these issues that it might seem pointless to start picking over them now, but Regan’s career ought to be hanging by a thread.

The things that didn’t happen on his watch were a major contributory factor in what happened during it, and there ought to have been an inquiry – wide ranging, unfettered, truly independent, run by a judge, with the power to question people under oath – into all of it.

The issues outstanding over the tax case aren’t going away just because Rangers did.

Some of the people who were involved in that had their fingerprints all over later decisions and some of them are things our game still struggles with today.

If the Supreme Court finds in favour of HMRC then title stripping is the least of the issues the governing body will be confronted with; people will, rightly, want to know whether the association itself was complicit in hiding evidence from the tribunals and of burying the truth about Rangers’ non-disclosure years before it was public.

Those are questions that can’t simply be left unanswered; they are enormous.

Under normal circumstances myself and others would raise those questions and hammer them for a few days and see what developed.

There’s no point to that and I am not going to write this and then kid myself on about it.

Regan’s backside will not so much as quiver at the prospect of articles like this.

The Section 38 question has been hanging there for half a week and I’d be amazed if it caused him a moments concern far less a sleepless night. But it’s a killing weight above what’s left of his tenure because of where it might lead.

We, the bloggers, are not going to get this done.

Only the mainstream media stands a chance of getting to the bottom of this morass.

What did the SFA do on receipt of the Section 38 warning from HMRC that one of the member clubs in their association might be concealing a tax fraud, and withholding documents? What action did the SFA take? Did they get it whilst the club was still paying EBT’s and did they act immediately, or simply let it die? Did they co-operate with the tax man or were they obstructive? Was Regan told about this stuff upon taking his job, and if not why not? Or was he in the job himself when that letter arrived? What action did he subsequently take? If this preceded him and he knew of it, was he concerned when Smith went to work at Ibrox? Did no alarm bells ring when Whyte told him the club was circling the drain, but that any administration had to be planned in advance first? Was Gordon Smith the link-man between the two organisations?

These are some of the questions the media could be focussed on, if they cared enough to drag these issues into the light.

I know, and so do some of the hacks, that Regan’s hands were not clean in all this, and Gordon Smith’s sure as Hell weren’t.

If they need a proper motivation, let me give them this one;

Stewart Regan and Gordon Smith helped Craig Whyte destroy Rangers.

That’s not speculation, it is a statement of fact.

The media has always known this; for all some of them clearly have affection for the Ibrox club, they bottled it when it came to holding some of the guilty to account, and if they really wanted to blow Regan out they could do so, and probably easily, by going over that period and putting issues relating to in the public domain.

Once those issues are there, they could ask the chairmen of the member clubs, on the record, how they felt about these issues and whether they warrant investigation. That would start the ball rolling, although where it would end up is anybody’s guess.

That should not be a barrier to getting it done.

And I want them to take this up.

I want them to do the job that quite clearly needs to be done.

Because it’s not that none of us will do it, it’s that none of us really can.

For all they sneer at the guys in the blogosphere we know what it is we do, and we know what it is that we don’t do.

We don’t have the muscle for a task like this.

This is not about title-stripping or any of that stuff.

This isn’t a club specific issue.

This is about the conduct of the people who run the game here, and whether or not they were involved in something that goes beyond simply trying to protect a club for its own excessive behaviour. This isn’t about satisfying a blood-lust amongst rival fans or any of the other guff we bloggers stand accused of.

Are the people running Scottish football honest men, fit for purpose?

Were their predecessors?

How many decisions, whose consequences we live with today, were made in pursuit of concealment in matters far bigger than mere success or failure on the pitch?

These are issues of trust.

That used to be the media’s stock in trade.

There have to be people in the job here in Scotland who still get it, who understand that, who chafe at seeing their honourable profession turned into a repository for PR guff.

This is their chance to be heard, and if they ask the right questions and there’s nothing to see then none of us can have any cause for complaint, because that’s all we want to know and all we’ve ever wanted them to do.

Do any of them dare do it?

Because if not then they – all of them – are a waste of space and those offices they go to every day might as well house call centres.

If their role is no longer to find out things that the public needs to know then what the Hell is it they do, and what the Hell is their profession actually for?

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#CelticNoise #Celtic #CelticFC #TheCelticBlog #News

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jamieclawhorn · 7 years

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Why this small cap can double by year-end

When a company raises funds via way of a placing, and investors are willing to pay a premium to participate in the fundraising, it’s a big deal.

Indeed, most placings are conducted at a discount to a company’s prevailing share price, as that’s the only way managers can get investors to stump up more cash. It’s rare that a company completes a placing at a premium.

Kromek (LSE: KMK) was able to accomplish this goal a few days ago. The company announced on January 25 that management was looking to raise £21m via way of a placing and open offer. The firm placed 100m ordinary shares at a price of 20 per share, the closing middle market price on 24 January. What’s even more impressive is that, at the time of writing, Kromek’s market value is only £33.2m, so the company was able to get away with tapping shareholders for three-quarters of its market value in cash without offering any substantial discount.

Impressed with the company

The very fact that investors were willing to commit to such a significant capital raise without demanding a discount shows that Kromek’s key institutional investors trust the company and its management, and believe Kromek has a bright future ahead.

Kromek’s three primary markets — medical, security and nuclear detection — are all worth many multiples of the company’s current market capitalisation, presenting a tremendous opportunity for the group. Management is already working hard to capitalise on the opportunities available, but has apparently been stonewalled by some customers because of the company’s lack of production capacity. £21m of fresh capital should help prove to customers that the business can be relied upon to make good on customer order commitments.

Customers base growing

One of the firm’s main customers is the US government. The company is working on D3S hand-held radiation detectors with it, and this market alone represents a potential opportunity of $1bn over the next ten years. Kromek has the skills and capabilities to take on these massive markets, but the group is only in its very early stages of growth.

Still, 2016 promises to be the strongest year on record for the group with over £22m of contracts awarded for the year to November, the largest value of contracts ever won in a year by the company. For the fiscal year ending 30 April 2017 City analysts expect the group to report revenue of £8.9m and a pre-tax loss of £3.7m for the year after, revenue is expected to hit £12.5m and losses should fall to £2.3m.

These forecasts look good, but could be subject to substantial revisions higher if Kromek’s fundraising convinces new customers to use the group’s services. A wave of new contracts could see the group report its maiden profit sooner than expected.

Undervalued

With the revenue set to grow by 40% next year and a cash rich balance sheet, shares in Kromek deserve a premium valuation.

Right now the UK technology sector trades at an average price to sales ratio of 11.4. Assuming Kromek deserves a similar valuation the company’s market capitalisation could hit £143m by 2018. Using the same valuation methodology, if the firm hits City revenue targets for this year, the company’s market capitalisation could hit £100m that’s an upside of 220% from current levels.

Overall, it looks as if the future is bright for Kromek.

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