#Senate Armed Forces Committee

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Jennifer Bendery at HuffPost:

WASHINGTON — Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) on Tuesday pressed Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump’s defense secretary nominee, on whether he believes it should be disqualifying to be defense secretary if someone has committed sexual assault — challenging Hegseth’s claims that he’d been “completely cleared” of any wrongdoing amid the allegations he’s faced of sexual assault and infidelity. Kaine grilled Hegseth about the October 2017 incident in Monterrey, California, involving a woman who accused Hegseth of sexually assaulting her and preventing her from leaving his hotel room. Hegseth has said the encounter was consensual and that he was never charged with a crime. Details are murky, though, as he entered into a nondisclosure agreement with the woman in 2020. During Tuesday’s high-stakes hearing, Kaine noted Hegseth was still married to his then-second wife at the time of the alleged sexual assault and had just fathered a child by a woman who would later become his third wife. “I was falsely charged,” Hegseth said. “Fully investigated and completely cleared.” “So you think you were completely cleared because you committed no crime? That’s your definition of completely cleared?” the Virginia senator replied. “You had just fathered a child two months before by a woman that was not your wife. I am shocked that you would stand here and say you’re completely cleared. Can you so casually cheat on a second wife and cheat on the mother of a child that had been born two months before?” As Hegseth began talking about being “redeemed by my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,” Kaine noted the defense secretary nominee had admitted to that infidelity before bringing up the sexual assault allegations against him. “Now, if it had been a sexual assault, that would be disqualifying to be secretary of defense, wouldn’t it?” Kaine asked. Hegseth did not answer the question directly, instead couching his response in regard to the allegations against him specifically. “It’s a false claim then and a false claim now,” he replied. Kaine repeated his question, but Hegseth again called it a “false claim” and “a hypothetical.” The senator still didn’t let up. “So you can’t tell me whether someone who has committed a sexual assault is disqualified from being secretary of defense?” Kaine said.

[...] The Virginia Democrat later asked Hegseth if he had nondisclosure agreements in connection with his first two divorces and whether he would agree to release his former wives from those agreements to speak openly about their marriages to him. Hegseth said he wasn’t aware of such agreements, but Kaine suggested he had something to hide. “Did you ever engage in any acts of physical violence against any of your wives?” Kaine said. “Senator, absolutely not,” Hegseth replied.

Pete Hegseth cowardly dodged questions from Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA) about whether sexual assault is a disqualifier to be a Defense Secretary.

See Also:

Ahmed Baba: Pete Hegseth’s Evasions Highlighted His Subservience To Trump

Daily Kos: Republicans are covering up Hegseth's behavior to get him confirmed

[saywhat-politics]

Attorney General Pam Bondi defiantly defended the Trump administration when asked whether the Department of Justice would investigate the alleged security breach now known as Signalgate.

As bipartisan pressure mounts over an apparent leak of classified information that was inadvertently shared with The Atlantic‘s Jeffrey Goldberg on an unsecured Signal app, attention has turned to whether the irresponsible treatment of top-secret data merits a criminal investigation. Senator Roger Wicker, who chairs the Senate Armed Forces Committee, has already announced his intention to expedite the naming of 2an independent Inspector General to look into the matter.

At the end of a Thursday morning press event to announce the arrest of an MS-13 gang leader, the attorney general was asked, “Is DOJ involved at this point? If so, why?, If not, why not?”

[gunsandspaceships]

MCU Timeline: Iron Man 2. Part 2

Part 1

2010

May 11, night - Stark Expo opening. Blood toxicity - 19%.

May 12, 9:00 am - 3:30 pm - Tony at the Senate Armed Services Committee hearings.

May 13, evening:

Tony is back home and has a video conference in 4 hours. Blood toxicity - 24%. 362 days of Expo left.

Tony (unofficially for now) appoints Pepper as CEO of SI.

May 14 - Tony officially transfers the management of the company to Pepper.

Note: confirmation of 2010 from S.H.I.E.L.D. dossier. The Avengers (deleted scene).

Between May 14 and May 23 - Tony hires Natasha as his new PA.

May 23 - Tony in Monaco. Vanko attacks him on the race track. Blood toxicity - 53%.

BAMF achievement: are you talking about Afghanistan, Tony?

May 24, 7:32 am PT - Tony and Pepper are on the Stark Jet flying home from Monaco. Three hours into the flight, Stern is interviewed by MSNBC.

May 25:

Hammer arranges Vanko's escape and brings him to his place. Ivan begins work on drones, his reactor 2.0 and a suit.

Night - Tony searches for information about Vanko after he was declared dead.

Another f*ck up in dates - the screens say 05.06.10. For that to be true, we'd have to move Tony's birthday and change the Expo countdown.

May 29 (Saturday):

Tony's birthday. Blood toxicity - 89%.

10 pm - party.

Rhodey steals Mark II and fights Tony, then flies away.

May 30:

Morning - after ~10 hours of doing something somewhere Rhodes finally brings Mark II to Edwards Air Force Base.

Tony eats donuts in a donut. Fury and Natasha give him a pep talk and lithium dioxide.

Hammer brings Ivan not his bird and notices that he makes drones, not suits.

USAF calls in Hammer to outfit stolen Mark II with his weapons.

Afternoon - Fury tells Tony that Howard was the founder of S.H.I.E.L.D. and gives him a chest of Howard's things.

Evening - Hammer gets his hands on Mark II and turns it into "War Machine".

Tony looks through his father's notes and receives his message recorded in 1973.

May 31:

Morning - Tony goes to apologize to Pepper and finds the "Key to the Future".

Afternoon - Tony (re)discovers a new element and orders components for a particle accelerator. Meanwhile, he drills more holes into his house, eventually turning it into a piece of Swiss cheese.

June 1:

343 days of Stark Expo left.

Morning - Tony builds his particle accelerator. Coulson is reassigned to New Mexico.

Note: As we've established in Thor's timeline, its events take place in November 2011. Not May/June 2010. I could do some logical gymnastics and stretch it to 2010 (which would already create a mess), but there's no way it could be in May/June.

Afternoon - Tony finishes the particle accelerator and synthesizes the new element at home.

Note: mention of 2010 again.

Evening - Vanko finishes his suit and the drones.

6:20 pm - Vanko calls Tony. Tony heads to New York in the new Mark VI.

40 minutes is most probably an exaggeration, since it is unlikely that Tony could get from Malibu to Flushing in less than 40 minutes. In any case, Tony didn't have time for anything else, especially considering that he needed time to assemble his new suit.

7-9 pm - Hammer and Vanko at the Stark Expo. Tony and Rhodey fight Vanko and defeat him. He blows himself and the Expo up. Tony saves Pepper and 8-year-old Peter Parker. Pepperony's first kiss.

Considering that other things tell us it's been 19 days since Pepper became CEO, Tony's "a week" line is an exaggeration. And Pepper plays along, just like she did with 12% in The Avengers.

I could write a whole post about why it could not be just a week (from Expo opening to the fight) as it's stated in other timelines, but I'll just give you one question to think about: how many days Ivan would need to build all those drones, a new reactor and a suit? Probably not 2.

A week later - Fury gives Tony Natasha's assessment of him and offers him a position as a consultant at S.H.I.E.L.D. Tony accepts.

Mid June - Senator Stern awards Tony and Rhodey with medals.

The Consultant

Second half of 2010:

The World Security Counsel still supports the Avengers Initiative at this point. But they want The Abomination on the team. Coulson and Sitwell send Tony to sabotage the transfer between General Ross and S.H.I.E.L.D. He succeeds, and Blonsky remains in prison.

After that, the WSC loses interest in the Avengers Initiative.

MCU Timeline: The Infinity Saga

[dorothylarouge]

What was the galaxy's political landscape like after the Empire lost its dominance - how much sway did it still hold, did a neoliberal New Republic get established etc.?

And did Luke reestablish the Jedi Order, if so what was his version like?

After the Battle of Endor, the Empire fractured, with a number of individual warlords carving out their own petty kingdoms and mini-empires, such as the warlord Zsinj and Treuten Teradoc, who formed the polity known as the Greater Maldroon and attracted Grand General Veers and Grand Admiral Sloane to his service. For a brief time, Mas Amedda ruled what remained of the centralized Imperial government in his capacity as Regent, but he was politically outflanked and removed from power by Ysanne Isard, director of the Imperial Security Bureau. Amedda fled for Byss at the center of the galaxy, where he formed an Imperial Royalist Confederation, which he continues to lead. Isard would continue to lead the rump Empire until its defeat by the Republic at the Battle of Coruscant, at which point what was left of the centralized Empire collapsed and Isard killed herself rather than be captured. Most of the Imperial warlords weeded themselves out, and only a handful of Imperial factions remain. These include the Central Committee of Grand Moffs, who rule Kessel and what was formerly Pyke space, dominating the galactic spice trade, and the Iron Triad, a criminal enterprise led by former Grand Moff Ubrik Adelhard, which became a major player in the galactic underworld after the collapse of the Hutt Cartel.

The largest and most successful Imperial remnant is the Pentastar Alignment, which nominally rules much of the galactic north. It was formed by Ardus Kaine, Grand Moff of Oversector Outer, in the months after Endor, and declared independence from Coruscant about a year after the Emperor's death. Defections from other warlord states caused the Alignment's ranks and territory to swell, and Kaine secured his place as the most powerful remnant leader after his defeat of Zsinj at the Battle of Dathomir. Soon afterward, he began his efforts to consolidate the Alignment as a state and cultivate a cult of personality by circulating the Pentastar Codex, a work of political theory he wrote that outlined the principles and policies of Kainism, a more cosmopolitan form of paternalistic national conservatism which replaced Palpatine's New Order as the Alignment's state ideology. These political efforts, as well as Kaine's marginalization of the Moff Council, rankled hardliners in the military and intelligence service, and in 10 ABY the New Order faction or the integralists, led by Dedra Meero and Gilad Pellaeon, launched attacks on Kainist positions, beginning the Pentastar Civil War, which remains ongoing.

The New Republic, by 10 ABY referred to mostly as simply the Republic, reorganized itself from the Rebel Alliance immediately following the Battle of Endor, and soon after the Senate convened its first session on the temporary capital of Chandrila. Elections were not held until following the Liberation of Coruscant, by which point clear political factions had had time to form in the Senate. From its founding to 8 ABY, the Republic was led by Mon Mothma as Chancellor. However, she was forced from power following a series of politically damaging incidents, including a poorly-conceived amnesty program for former Imperials, and she was succeeded by Leia Organa, who quickly pushed through political reforms to stabilize the Republic, including splitting the position of Chancellor into the offices of Chief of State and Prime Minister, and establishing a formal cabinet.

There are four major political blocs in the Senate, two in government and two in opposition. The largest parties in the Senate mainly began as the result of a split in the Progressive Party, the political arm of the Rebel Alliance. The blocs are:

The Organa Bloc, consisting of the Progressive People's Party, the Liberal Party, and the Federalist Party: center to center-left, with the PPP itself being a social democratic party under Leia's leadership.

The Iblis Bloc, consisting of the People's Union Party, Reform Party, and Libertarian Party: Led by Corellian firebrand Garm Bel Iblis, they are a left-wing to far-left grouping in coalition with the Oragana Bloc.

The Fey'lya Bloc, consisting of the Progressive Conservative Party, the Constitutionalist Party, and the Free Hyperlanes Party: Led by Bothawui Senator Borsk Fey'lya, they are a conservative, center to center-right grouping which serves as the official opposition who are steadily growing in popularity in part due to Fey'lya's populist appeals to alien unity against human hegemony.

The Mothma Bloc, consisting of the Galactic Unity Party, the Core Alliance, and the Anti-Jedi Party: A looser-knit grouping of mainly non-aligned right-wing parties, this group is nominally headed by Leida Mothma, daughter of Mon Mothma, who unlike her mother is a traditionalist conservative. Her party, the GUP, is often considered a successor to the Galactic Integralist Party, which had been the state party under the Empire, and is full of Imperial sympathizers, apologists, and outright former Imperials, and pushes for a normalization of relations with the Imperial successor states. The group also includes the Core Alliance, a group of important Core Worlds joined together to maintain their traditional privileges within the Republic, and Alyx J'onzz's Anti-Jedi Party, a fringe group of conspiracy theorists.

After Endor, Luke Skywalker went on walkabout for several years, exploring various Force traditions, discovering Jedi lore, and connecting with Force-sensitives, including surviving Jedi. He returned a Jedi Master, and formed the Order of the Jedi Knights, or New Jedi Order, in 8 ABY, with his Temple erected on the Jedi homeworld of Tython. The Order now has over a hundred members, and Luke leads the High Council with the title of First Master. Luke has reformed the Jedi in many ways, such as relaxing rules against attachments and distancing it from an official capacity within the Republic. These changes are disquieting to the Old Guard faction within the Jedi, led by Master Oppo Rancisis, who often makes his opposition to Luke's policies known in heated arguments in the Council chamber.

[misfitwashere]

Rejected Cabinet Nominees

Some historical guidance

TIMOTHY SNYDER

JAN 16

Historically, nominees for cabinet positions have been rejected by the Senate or have withdrawn their candidacies in order to prevent that outcome. It is not common, but nor is it abnormal. The power of "advice and consent" granted to the Senate by the Constitution has been exercised in practice. 

A number of Trump's appointments are simply outrageous by historical, ethical, strategic, or any other standards. The ongoing confirmation hearings tend to normalize the bizarre (although Democrats and a couple of Republicans have asked meaningful questions.)

So a few examples of failed nominations might serve as one tool among others to keep the events of the moment in perspective.

Secretary of Defense

John Tower was the first George H.W. Bush nominee for secretary of defense. He has served in the Senate for more than twenty years, and had chaired its Armed Services Committee. He was an author of the Tower Commission report on the Iran-Contra Affair. He was questioned by Senators about his past alcohol use and womanizing.

Pete Hegseth, unlike Tower, has zero knowledge, experience, or qualifications for the of running the Department of Defense. His program, judging from his books, is to ignore foreign enemies, politicize the armed forces, and carry out a "Holy War" against Americans. Pete Hegseth's womanizing and alcohol use, by his own account, far exceed Tower's. Unlike Tower, Hegseth paid off a woman who filed a police report accusing him of sexual assault in circumstances that, by her account, strongly suggest the use of a rape drug. Hegseth had to resign from both of the advocacy groups he ran because of incompetence and drunkenness. He regularly had to be physically carried away from events because he was too drunk to stand. In once case he had to be prevented from joining strippers on a stage. He also displayed total financial and budgetary incompetence. In this connection it is worth mentioning that the Department of Defense has the largest budget of any government in history.

There is a disturbing tendency to forgive Hegseth everything because he is a veteran. This seems unfair to veterans who do not display his failures of character. But it also contains within itself the troubling idea that soldiers can do no wrong: an idea that Hegseth himself seems to hold. That way lies military dictatorship. In any event: Tower served in the Pacific Theater during the Second World War and was in the reserve for decades.

The Senate rejected Tower.

Director of National Intelligence.

This position was created relatively recently and elevated to cabinet rank still more recently. It is meant to oversee the work of all American intelligence agencies. So a relevant historical comparison will be to the position of director of central intelligence.

Anthony Lake was second-term Bill Clinton's nominee for the position of director of central intelligence. Lake was eminently qualified. He is one of the most accomplished American diplomats of the post-1945 period. Among many other positions he was Director of Policy Planning in the State Department under Carter, and National Security Advisor during Clinton's first term. His nomination ran into trouble because of two occasions when his deputies on the National Security Council failed to inform him of discussions with the chairman of the Democratic National Committee about donor access to the White House.

Tulsi Gabbard has no qualifications to be Director of National Intelligence. A very long list of Americans with national security experience regard her as a danger to the safety of Americans. She is known abroad as a supporter of two of the world's most violent dictators, Bashar al-Assad and Vladimir Putin. As a congresswomen she consistently made excuses for Assad, whose regime killed something like half a million people before it was overthrown. She proposed that the Russo-Ukrainian war could be ended "in the spirit of aloha" and repeats Russian propaganda tropes. Russian media refer to Gabbard as "comrade" and "girlfriend" and "our agent."

Under Senate pressure, Lake withdrew his candidacy.

Attorney General

Zoe Baird was nominated by Bill Clinton for attorney general at the beginning of his first term in 1993. She was eminently qualified professionally for the job. She had however hired undocumented immigrants in her household and had not paid Social Security taxes for them.

Pam Bondi is Donald Trump's nominee for the same position. As part of Donald Trump's legal team, she sought to justify his attempt to overturn the results of an election. As Florida attorney general, she accepted luxurious perks from relevant parties in cases she was considering. In that capacity she also failed to pursue a case against Trump University after a political group supporting received a check, an illegal donation, from Trump's foundation signed by Trump. As a lobbyist she represented a Russian money manager convicted in Kuwait and served as a public relations representative for the government of Qatar. She was paid more than $100,000 a month just for that assignment, which she left in order to defend Trump from conviction after his first impeachment. Then she went back to working for Qatar.

Under Senate pressure, Baird withdrew her candidacy.

Succeeding events created the closest thing we have to a historical standard for rejecting cabinet nominees by Republican Senators: the employment of undocumented workers.

After Baird withdrew, Clinton nominated Kimba Wood. She too was eminently qualified to serve as attorney general. It emerged that she too had hired an undocumented worker as a nanny. Wood did so at a time when this was legal, and she paid the appropriate taxes. Nevertheless, the mere fact that she had employed one undocumented person, entirely legally, stopped her candidacy. in 2001, President George W. Bush nominated Linda Chavez to be secretary of labor. She then withdrew her candidacy after it emerged that she had paid an undocumented person to work in her household.

So one might move beyond the obvious point that Bondi's scandals dwarf Baird's (and Hegseth's those of Tower, and Gabbard's those of Lake) and propose a pragmatic line of questioning that would apply to Trump's other nominees. Have they or their companies employed undocumented workers? It seems a reasonable question to ask, especially of the billionaires. Given the coming administration's oft-declared hard line on illegal immigration, this would seem to be a minimum standard for its cabinet nominees.

The Senate has a constitutional role, and in the past has exercised it. Some of the nominees presented to them this month are wildly inappropriate to the point of risking the integrity of American national security and calling into question basic principles of the rule of law. The history of failed nominations reminds us just how far some of these people fall below any reasonable standard.

[eretzyisrael]

by Adam Kredo

When Hamas gunmen paraded emaciated Israeli hostages across a stage in Gaza earlier this month, they were flanked by two representatives from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), an aid group that boasts of its neutrality. The agency’s participation in the choreographed propaganda display—as well as its failure to visit the hostages as they struggled in captivity—is now drawing scrutiny on Capitol Hill, with GOP lawmakers questioning the Red Cross’s objectivity and care for those still held in captivity.

The most shocking scene to date unfolded two weekends ago, when Hamas militants forced three severely malnourished Israeli captives—Ohad Ben Ami, 56; Eli Sharabi, 52; and Or Levy, 34—to make a speech to a crowd of Gazans before their release. Standing beside the masked gunmen were two Red Cross officials identified by the Washington Free Beacon as Nour Khadam and Stephanie Eller, both of whom have been featured in the ICRC's online materials.

Footage from the hostage release shows Khadam shaking hands with a Hamas militant as Eller stands behind him, and a masked Hamas soldier snaps photographs. Like other Red Cross officials present at these stage-managed events—reportedly produced by an Al Jazeera journalist—Eller and Khadam signed documents and stood on hand while the terror group forced the hostages to thank their captors. Photos taken on the day show the Israelis holding certificates provided by Hamas as they are interviewed next to gun-touting militants.

The Red Cross's involvement in the Hamas propaganda ritual came more than a year after the terror group kidnapped 251 people, including Americans, in its Oct. 7 attack. During the hostages' time in captivity, the Red Cross did not fulfill its mandate to visit them and assess their health, as the group routinely does in traditional conflicts.

The scenes have drawn outrage in both Israel and the United States, with President Donald Trump likening the hostages to "Holocaust survivors" and casting doubt on the ceasefire’s durability. On Capitol Hill, meanwhile, lawmakers have taken note of the Red Cross’s participation in these ceremonies and said the aid agency is jeopardizing its image as an unbiased actor. While the United States has long been the committee's top funder, senior Senate sources say there is talk of reassessing American funding to the ICRC while GOP officials examine its ties to Hamas.

"Where was the Red Cross’s increasing concern for the safety and well-being of the hostages these last 493 days?" Sen. Ted Budd (R., N.C.), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, told the Free Beacon. "Participating in Hamas’s propaganda ceremonies definitely calls into question their supposed neutrality. Seems like the ICRC is more concerned about their public image than actually fulfilling their mission to protect the lives and dignity of victims of armed conflict."

The pictures of starving hostages that have emerged over the past month, a senior Senate adviser said, raise serious questions about whether the Red Cross is living up to its lofty mandate. In its mission statement, the ICRC calls itself "neutral, impartial, and independent," a description that seemingly runs counter to images of Red Cross officials standing alongside Hamas militants.

[z-socks]

Armored Heart

As the war trudges on, the senate's interest in protecting the existing Clones wanes, forcing Obi-Wan to find a solution that Cody doesn't originally care for, leading to a discussion that doesn't end the way either of them thought.

Or, a quick and bittersweet one-shot that addresses my headcanon about why the Jedi wear less armor as the Clone Wars goes on.

Also on AO3

Two and a half years. Two and a half years the war had raged on and the loss with it. Two and a half years of Clones - Brothers, men - left to rot in battlefields, names painted on their armor if any from their squads knew them. Shinies rolled out in a matter of hours to take their place. And now, now Obi-Wan and his commander were staring at a holo projection of a committee member representing the Senate denying his request for more plasti-bond to fix his men’s armor. Two and a half years of sending men, his men, into battle, two and a half years of undoing conditioning to offer his troops some semblance of personhood, and the Senate couldn’t even spare them a few credits to repair their most valuable display of identity!

“Perhaps you could source some plastoid from the dead.”

Obi-Wan heard Cody’s low growl from across the holo-table. “I’m afraid that solution won’t work for the men,” the Jedi offered, tone curt as he tried to release his frustration into the Force. “Their armor is too culturally intwined. To be stripped of it in death would be to label the fallen as traitors. I cannot make such a request to ones who have been nothing but loyal to the Republic.”

The committee member did not appear swayed, annoyed expression on their visage, blue and distorted on the patchy hologram this far out in the Outer Rim. It didn’t help they spoke with a translator, words garbled with the weak signal and delayed with the translation. “General, the Senate cannot afford to fund every request.”

Obi-Wan raised a brow. “This is a cost saving measure in the end. By repairing armor instead of replacing it-

“I’m sorry, general, but this is what the Senate has decided on.”

“Without consult of the troops, I’m sure.”

“Consult with the Clones is not required for the Senate to make wartime decisions.”

Oh how that rubbed Obi-Wan the wrong way. He grit his teeth. “Yet they’re the ones you send into battle for you.”

The committee member simply checked their chrono and sighed. “General, we are at war. Everyone has to pitch in.”

Pitch in. Pitch in? Obi-Wan had sacrificed his very ideals as a Jedi to lead in this war. His men suffered and died every campaign for the Republic. Pitch in. How many hours had he and Cody logged in planning battles to prevent loss of life across the galaxy? How many Clones volunteered their very souls to bring safety to civilians in the middle of enemy fire?

Pitch in.

The committee member couldn’t even sacrifice the time to extend this discussion. How was that ‘pitching in?’

Well fine.

With practiced ease, Obi-Wan unfastened his chest, upper arm, and leg armor, dropping it on to the holo-table before the committee member. Cody stared at him wide-eyed from behind the projection.

“If you would please,” Obi-Wan began with strained politeness, “inform the committee we have found a source of plastoid to melt into plasti-bond.” He leaned in. “Oh and do feel free to explain to the press why one of the Republic’s high generals is without armor.”

The committee member scowled but ended the call, leaving only Cody’s tight jaw and tendon-showing neck.

They’d taken the call on the bridge and several officers, Clones and nat-borns alike, were suddenly reinvested in their work. Too interested, really, especially for the night shift.

Obi-Wan took a breath and pointed to the plastoid mound on the table. “Cody, please have that sent to Lipp. I believe he has a processing station in the quartermaster’s office.”

There was no yes sir, just a sharp nod, a clear sign that Cody was seething. Instead, his commander barked an order for Boil to take the armor to Lipp and Cody followed Obi-Wan off the bridge. They stayed near lock-step the whole journey to Obi-Wan’s quarters. Obi-Wan could feel Cody’s emotions through the Force, a tight, red-hot thing that sat unnamed in his gut.

“Tea, commander?” he offered, maybe as a distraction, maybe as a disguise, an excuse to prolong the inevitable words Cody would tear into him.

Again, Cody stayed silent and only followed Obi-Wan through the door. It barely closed before Obi-Wan put up a hand to stop whatever barrage was coming his way. “Not a word, Cody, please.” He crossed to the tiny hotplate and kettle, setting the temperature. “I know you’re upset. I know you think I’m being reckless. But I’ve fought for years without any armor. And if it means the men can repair theirs,” he threw his hands up, “without having to strip the dead, Forcesake, I still can’t believe that was an actual suggestion.” He watched the first of the bubbles appear in the kettle. A sigh, a huff of a thing that blew loose hair from his forehead. “So please, please just….” Another sigh. Heavier, harder. “I’d rather they have their armor. It’s theirs. And it keeps them safe and-“

A finger under his jaw had his gaze turning from the boiling water. The contact was burning, but not as smoldering as Cody’s amber gaze, pupils dark pools that ate up the brown with every blink.

“I love you.”

“Co-“ he was cut off by a press of lips. Rough, needy, wanting, and a bit sloppy in the way a first kiss tended to be. Obi-Wan leaned in closer - Cody still unpracticed but very quickly learning - angling his mouth, repositioning to allow the kiss to deepen, now soft. Warm. Barest moisture.

A moan escaped his throat and it had Cody’s hand curling around Obi-Wan’s waist and pulling him closer. Obi-Wan brought a hand to Cody’s cheek, thumb brushing the trailing end of his scar. His hips hit something. The counter. Cody had backed him up to the counter. The hand on his waist slid lower, and lower, and-

The kettle whistled, a blast of reality to pull them apart.

Obi-Wan closed his eyes, still feeling Cody’s breath ghost his lips even as he pulled farther away. With a rough swallow, Obi-Wan attended to the kettle, motions rehearsed and automatic as his mind raced to catch up with what had just happened.

Cody had kissed him. Kriff! He’d confessed his love and-

The overfilled cup burned his hand with the hot water. Kriff, kriff, kriff.

“I should leave,” Cody murmured.

Kriff, kriff, kriff.

“Cody, no. Stay. I…” You what, Kenobi? "I'm sorry.” No, that wasn’t right.

Cody didn’t meet his eyes. “I should check on Boil.”

“Cody.” His hand found Cody’s of it’s own volition. “I… I want this.”

Cody’s gaze was so bright, so hopeful. It killed him to add the rest of it.

“But we can’t.”

Cody nodded, slowly, pain rippling through his sunrise Force presence. “I know.” He slid his hand out of Obi-Wan’s grip and rested it for a moment on his Jedi’s chest, right over his heart. “Should’ve kept your armor.”

“Cody.”

“It’s such a big target.”

Obi-Wan closed his eyes again, regretting the moment Cody removed his hand and slipped out the door.

[areyoufuckingcrazy]

“The Lesser of Two Wars” pt.11

Commander Fox x Reader X Commander Thorn

The sun streamed softly through the skylights of the café nestled high in the Coruscant Senate District, the sky hazy but warm. For once, the city didn’t feel like durasteel and duty—it felt like a reprieve.

She sat at the center of a wide, cushioned booth, coffee in hand, a real pastry on her plate, and a few senators she trusted across from her.

Padmé Amidala was all soft smiles and elegant composure, draped in airy lilac silks. Mon Mothma sipped quietly at her tea, nodding along to a story about a misfiled vote and a rogue Ithorian delegate. For a moment, she allowed herself to forget the war, the complications, and the heartbreak waiting back at HQ.

“Honestly,” Padmé was saying, brushing a strand of hair from her face, “I think it’s only a matter of time before Senator Ask Aak tries to propose another committee solely to investigate snack break durations.”

“And I will die on the floor before I vote yes on that,” the senator deadpanned.

Everyone laughed.

Near the corner of the table, GH-9 sat stiffly in a borrowed chair, arms crossed.

Across from him stood C-3PO, who had been in a monologue about Senate etiquette protocols for the past eight minutes. “And as I was saying, I once witnessed a Rodian ambassador eat a napkin, and I said to him—politely of course—that—”

“I will self-destruct if he keeps talking,” GH-9 whispered across the table.

R7 chirped in agreement, not helping.

Padmé turned just in time to see GH-9 lean slowly to the left in his chair. Inch by inch. Clearly trying to slide behind the potted plant beside them.

“Is he—?” she began.

“Yes,” the senator said, watching her droid with utter betrayal. “GH-9, you’re not stealth-programmed. You sound like a toolbox falling down stairs.”

“I’m preservation-programmed,” he said flatly, halfway concealed behind a fern. “Preserving my sanity.”

C-3PO peered after him, clearly unaware. “Oh dear, did I say something to offend your companion?”

“You haven’t not offended him,” the senator muttered, sipping her caf with a grimace. “GH, back in your chair before I reassign you to Senator Orn Free Taa.”

GH-9 hissed audibly and reappeared.

The others laughed again, and it felt real. It wasn’t forced diplomacy or battlefield gallows humor—it was easy.

She leaned back in her seat, her fingers absently brushing over the edge of her cup, eyes softening.

This was the first bit of normality she’d tasted in… Force, she didn’t know how long. No bombs, no war, no heartbreak waiting just behind a hallway corner.

Just brunch. And friends. And her ridiculous, problematic, fiercely loyal droids.

“Thank you,” she said quietly to Padmé and Mon.

Padmé smiled. “You deserve it. Whatever’s waiting after this—take this moment. Let it be real.”

She nodded, and for once, she let herself believe it.

The Senate Gardens were quiet that afternoon, a rare lull between committee meetings and security alerts. A breeze wound through the paths lined with silver-leafed trees and flowerbeds shaped like old planetary seals, bringing with it the scent of something vaguely floral and aggressively fertilized.

The senator strolled slowly, arms behind her back, letting the peace settle on her shoulders like a shawl. GH-9 followed dutifully a step behind, ever the loyal—if snide—shadow. R7 zipped ahead, occasionally stopping to examine flowers or scan the base of a tree for reasons known only to himself.

“You know,” she said, glancing sideways at her protocol droid, “I take back every time I said you talked too much.”

GH-9 tilted his metal head. “Growth. I’m proud of you.”

“It’s just…” she sighed, then cracked a smile. “Thank the Maker you’re not like Padmé’s droid.”

“C-3PO.” GH-9 shuddered audibly. “His vocabulary is a weapon. And I say that as someone fluent in Huttese and forty-seven forms of insult.”

Behind them, R7 gave a sharp beep-beep-whoop, then a low, almost conspiratorial bwreeeet.

GH-9 translated immediately. “He says he considered pushing Threepio off the balcony. Twice.”

The senator stopped walking. “R7. You didn’t.”

R7 spun his dome proudly and beeped again.

“He would’ve landed in the ornamental koi pond,” GH added. “Not fatal. Possibly therapeutic.”

She snorted and shook her head, then leaned down and patted the astromech on the dome. “You’re going to get us barred from every brunch if you keep this up.”

R7 chirped in what could only be described as gleeful defiance.

They walked on, shoes soft against the stone path. GH-9 silently adjusted his internal temperature, scanning the area with a casual eye, always alert even on a leisurely stroll. R7 nudged a flowerpot for no apparent reason and then spun away before anyone could catch him.

The senator paused under a willow-fronded archway, taking in the stillness of the city from this rare, green perch.

“Just for today,” she murmured, mostly to herself. “Let the galaxy run without me.”

Her droids flanked her quietly, one too sarcastic to say it aloud, the other too chaotic to sit still, but in their own strange way—they understood.

And for now, that was enough.

The quiet didn’t last.

The senator turned at the sound of approaching voices—one smooth and long-suffering, the other excited and young.

“—I’m just saying, Master, if Anakin can sneak out of his diplomatic duties, then maybe you should let me—”

“Padawan,” Kenobi’s voice was firm but amused, “if I must endure these soul-draining conversations, then so must you. Consider it training in patience.”

R7 gave a warning beep as the pair came into view, and GH-9 let out a long sigh that sounded entirely put-upon.

“Oh no,” GH muttered.

The senator smirked as Obi-Wan and Ahsoka stepped through the garden archway. Obi-Wan wore the tired expression of a man responsible for someone else’s teenager, while Ahsoka looked far too happy to be anywhere not involving politics.

“Senator,” Obi-Wan greeted her with a shallow bow, tone clipped but polite. “Apologies for the intrusion. Someone insisted on a detour through the gardens.”

“I said I heard R7 whirring and figured you were nearby,” Ahsoka said with a sheepish smile, stepping forward. “And I was right. He’s hard to miss.”

R7 let out a smug breep-breep.

“Of course he is,” GH-9 muttered. “He’s a four-wheeled menace with an ego the size of Kessel.”

The senator gave Ahsoka a warm smile. “It’s good to see you again. Still tormenting your masters, I hope?”

Ahsoka grinned. “Always.”

“And Anakin?”

“Gone,” Obi-Wan said flatly. “I’m certain he’s off flying something he wasn’t cleared to take.”

“Again?”

“Again.”

GH-9 gave an ahem. “Is it too late to apply for reassignment to the Jedi Temple? I feel I would fit in with the sarcasm and poorly timed emotional breakdowns.”

“Tempting,” Obi-Wan replied dryly. “But we’re quite full.”

The senator laughed softly. For all their chaos, this was the first time in a long while she’d felt truly…herself. Among friends. Just for a moment.

Ahsoka glanced at her, then at the droids, then elbowed Obi-Wan. “You see what happens when people actually like their astromechs?”

“I’m not convinced liking R7 is safe,” Obi-Wan replied.

“I’m right here,” the senator said.

“You nicknamed your astromech after a murder droid prototype,” Kenobi said pointedly.

“And?”

R7 beeped proudly.

They all walked together down the garden path, the sun cutting through the trees, the war momentarily at bay. Just a Jedi, a padawan, a senator, and two terrible droids sharing a rare pocket of peace.

⸻

The Senate rotunda was unusually quiet for mid-morning, the marble floors reflecting the soft golden light from the skylights overhead. Most of the Senators had retreated to their offices or were buried in committees, leaving the hallways hushed and peaceful.

She walked in silence, heels clicking softly, R7 trundling beside her with a low, rhythmic whirr.

It was rare to be alone without GH-9’s snide commentary, and even rarer to move through the Senate without being glared at, whispered about, or stopped by someone fishing for gossip about her war record. But for now, just for a little while, there was quiet.

Until she rounded the corner and nearly walked straight into Commander Fox.

He stopped short. So did she.

Her breath caught slightly in her throat—not just from the surprise, but from the look in his eyes. There was something unreadable behind the stoicism, something softer than usual. They stood there, face to face in the empty corridor.

“Senator,” he greeted, voice low and slightly rough.

“Commander.” Her voice came out steadier than she expected.

R7 beeped once in greeting. Fox gave the droid a slow nod, eyes never really leaving her.

“How’s your arm?” he asked, glancing briefly at the faded bruise near her elbow—one he shouldn’t have even noticed.

“Healing. You notice things like that?”

“I notice a lot of things,” he said simply.

Their silence was heavy but not uncomfortable. The tension between them wasn’t sharp—it was something else. Quieter. Close.

Fox shifted slightly. “I’ve been meaning to speak with you again… alone.”

She tilted her head. “About?”

His eyes searched hers. “About a few things. But none I can say properly here.”

A breathless pause lingered between them. Her lips parted to respond—just as a sharp bzzzzt and a startled, panicked wheeze echoed down the hall.

Fox’s head whipped toward the noise.

“What—?”

They both turned in time to see Senator Orn Free Taa stumble out of a side chamber, smoke curling from his heavy robes and one eye twitching violently.

Behind him, R7 retracted a small taser arm, beeping in what sounded suspiciously like satisfaction.

“You… you monster!” Orn Free Taa wailed. “That droid attacked me!”

“R7!” she gasped, both horrified and not remotely surprised. “What did you do?”

R7 gave a low, smug trill, followed by a short sequence of beeps that translated loosely to: He touched me. Twice. I warned him.

Fox blinked slowly, then turned to her. “Is this a normal day for you?”

“Less normal than you’d think, more than I’d like.”

Orn Free Taa continued to sputter. “I will have that thing decommissioned!”

R7 flashed red for just a second.

Fox stepped forward smoothly, posture stiff with authority. “Senator Free Taa, if you’d like to file a formal complaint, I suggest doing so through the appropriate channels. In the meantime, perhaps don’t antagonize sensitive hardware.”

Orn huffed and stormed off, muttering about assassins and droid uprisings.

Fox glanced back at her, then at R7. “He’s got personality.”

“He’s got issues.”

Fox gave the faintest, fleeting smile. “He fits in well with the rest of your entourage, then.”

She didn’t argue.

He lingered a moment longer, and when he spoke again, it was quieter.

“When you’re ready… come find me.”

And just like that, he walked away, leaving her with the scent of durasteel and something human.

R7 beeped once. She looked down.

“No,” she muttered, “you don’t get praise for tasing Taa.”

R7 whirred indignantly.

“…But thanks.”

⸻

The moment the senator stepped through the doors of her apartment, the tension began to slip from her shoulders.

Coruscant’s towering skyline glowed outside her windows, the buzz of speeders distant, like bees in a jar. Inside, however, her apartment was a rare sanctuary of quiet. The lights had been dimmed to a warm amber hue, and something actually smelled good.

“GH,” she called, slipping off her shoes. “Did you get the groceries I asked for?”

The protocol droid stepped into view with his usual self-important flourish, holding a wooden spoon like a scepter.

“Indeed, Senator. Organic produce only. Locally sourced. And I took the liberty of preparing a traditional dish from your homeworld. You’re welcome.”

She blinked. “You cooked?”

“Someone has to ensure you don’t wither away on cheap caf and political backstabbing. Now sit. Eat. Hydrate.”

“Did you poison it?”

“Only with love and an appropriate sodium content.”

She smirked and dropped onto the couch, letting her head fall back. R7 beeped in from his corner near the charging station, where he was currently judging the wine selection GH-9 had apparently pulled out.

Dinner was good—suspiciously good, considering GH’s history of being more bark than bite when it came to domestic duties. She’d almost forgotten how nice it was to sit, eat warm food, and not worry about her planet’s future or which clone might punch another one next.

That is, until GH-9 spoke again.

“By the way, Master Vos has been standing on your balcony for the past hour.”

She nearly choked on her wine. “What?”

“I refused to let him in. He tried to sweet-talk me, claimed he had urgent Jedi business, but I could sense it was likely just gossip. Or feelings. Or both.”

“GH,” she groaned, standing.

“I told him you were not available for nonsense. He insisted on waiting anyway. Shall I continue denying him entry?”

She padded toward the balcony doors, glass catching the light. Sure enough, Quinlan Vos was outside—hood up, arms folded, leaning against the railing like a kicked puppy pretending to be a sulky teenager.

He knocked once, with exaggerated slowness.

She stared at him through the glass. R7 wheeled up behind her, beeped once, and extended his taser arm with far too much enthusiasm.

“No,” she sighed. “We’re not tasing Vos.”

R7 beeped again, very pointedly.

“Not tonight.”

She cracked the door open just enough to glare at the man leaning far too comfortably on her private balcony. “You know normal people knock on doors.”

“I did,” Vos said, gesturing to GH through the glass. “He hissed at me and threw a ladle.”

“I did not hiss,” GH called from the kitchen. “I was firm, composed, and wielding kitchenware appropriately.”

She opened the door wider. “What do you want?”

Vos smiled sheepishly. “Just wanted to see how your day went. I heard through various channels there may have been… tasering?”

She narrowed her eyes. “You’re not coming in.”

“I won’t touch anything. I swear.”

“GH,” she called, already regretting this, “make up the couch.”

“I will not,” GH sniffed, “but I will sanitize it after.”

Vos grinned wide as he stepped inside, boots clunking softly. “I knew you missed me.”

“I didn’t.”

R7 beeped softly from beside her, his taser still not fully retracted.

“…Okay, maybe a little,” she muttered, walking back toward her half-eaten dinner. “But if you breathe too loud, I’m letting R7 handle it.”

R7 chirped in bloodthirsty agreement.

⸻

Previous Part | Next Part

[darkmaga-returns]

General Cavoli’s Schizophrenia on Ukraine

by Larry C. Johnson | Apr 4, 2025

The Commander of US forces in Europe (aka USEUCOM), General Chris Cavoli, was on Capitol Hill today testifying before the Senate Armed Services committee. His opening statement is a remarkable mix of candor, fantasy and pure unadulterated male bovine excrement (MBE). It highlights my past contention that senior US defense officials will shade the truth (a euphemism for “lie“) in order to keep an existing policy intact, even if that policy is failing. We saw that in the Vietnam War and, more recently, the parade of generals who repeatedly told Congress that we were winning in Afghanistan.

I will excerpt a few paragraphs from his statement that illustrate what I mean. Cavoli grudgingly admits, early on in his remarks, that Russia is not on the ropes militarily:

Russian Reconstitution Despite extensive battlefield losses in Ukraine, the Russian military is reconstituting and growing at a faster rate than most analysts had anticipated. In fact, the Russian army, which has borne the brunt of combat, is today larger than it was at the beginning of the war—despite suffering an estimated 790,000 casualties. In December 2024, Moscow ordered the military to increase its strength to 1.5 million active service members and is recruiting approximately 30,000 troops per month. Russian forces on the frontlines of Ukraine are now at over 600,000, the highest level over the course of the war and almost double the size of the initial invasion force.

Despite repeating the canard that Russia has suffered 790,000 casualties, Cavoli concedes that the Russian military is larger today than in 2022 and that the Russians are adding at least 360,000 new soldiers to the ranks annually. I want to remind you that during the past 70 years, the US military has consistently overestimated enemy losses. The most egregious case was the Vietnam War, as I discussed in a previous article. During the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan, CIA and DIA analysts claimed that Russia lost more than 30,000 men. Russia’s official figures were half of that. I do give Cavoli credit for admitting that the “Russian military is reconstituting and growing at a faster rate than most analysts had anticipated.”

[yourreddancer]

Donald Trump has crossed a line no president in modern U.S. history has dared to cross.On June 6, he deployed thousands of National Guard troops to Los Angeles—without the consent of California’s governor. What began as a violent immigration raid quickly escalated into a militarized occupation of an American city. Communities were flooded with armored vehicles, heavily armed troops, and stun grenades. Peaceful protestors, immigrants, and journalists were attacked and arrested. The National Guard’s presence is not only unconstitutional—it’s a dangerous threat to our democracy.Congress must act. And they must act now.

This level of domestic military force is virtually unprecedented. It hasn’t happened in over 60 years. Legal experts and civil rights advocates are sounding the alarm: Trump’s use of Title 10 powers to override state authority may violate both the Posse Comitatus Act and the Constitution’s core principle of federalism.That’s why we’re demanding immediate investigations—by both the House Armed Services Committee and the Homeland Security Committees in the House and Senate.

Send your letter now to demand a full congressional investigation into Trump’s military crackdown in Los Angeles. Our democracy depends on it.

[mariacallous]

The Biden administration is launching a new initiative to end the war in Sudan—one of the world’s deadliest conflicts—with fresh peace talks following months of behind-the-scenes negotiations, according to five current and former officials familiar with the matter.

The United States plans to convene talks between Sudan’s two warring parties in Switzerland next month to revive long-stagnant efforts to end a conflict that has killed tens of thousands of people and pushed millions more to the brink of famine. Switzerland and Saudi Arabia will co-host the talks, and other regional powers and institutions with stakes in the conflict, including the United Nations, African Union, Egypt, and United Arab Emirates, will be invited to observe, the officials said. The talks are scheduled for mid-August.

The U.S. special envoy for Sudan, Tom Perriello, plans to brief congressional overseers on the plan this week and will be actively involved in convincing top negotiators from both sides of the conflict to attend the upcoming talks, several officials said. If both sides signal their seriousness about ending the conflict and send senior negotiators, then U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield—both of whom have been closely involved in Sudan policy—could open or preside directly over the talks, the officials said. These officials spoke on condition of anonymity, as they were not authorized to speak on the record.

Despite ongoing humanitarian efforts, Sudan’s war is worsening following 15 months of fighting between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the rival Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary group. U.S. officials estimate that around 150,000 people have been killed—though precise figures are hard to come by—and as many as 11 million have been displaced due to the conflict.

“Sudan right now is probably the worst humanitarian crisis in the world, and yet it’s not getting the attention it deserves,” Blinken said during an interview at the Aspen Security Forum on July 19.

A senior State Department official, also speaking on condition of anonymity, said Blinken was “very personally engaged on Sudan policy, including forthcoming initiatives.”

“Far too much of the world is looking at this crisis saying ‘it’s far too complicated,’ or they’re looking away, and we’re looking at this crisis and saying, ‘yes, it is that complicated, and we have to find a way,’” the senior official said.

The conflict in Sudan has also become a locus of foreign powers competing for influence, which analysts say is prolonging and worsening the war. The SAF is backed by Saudi Arabia and Egypt, while the United Arab Emirates backs the RSF. Iran is supplying the SAF with weapons, and the Russian government is courting the SAF, offering military support in exchange for access to a Sudanese port on the strategic Red Sea corridor. Russian mercenary groups, meanwhile, have reportedly armed the RSF.

Earlier this month, the head of the SAF, Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, hosted Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed for talks in Port Sudan, Sudan’s provisional capital under the SAF. (Both sides are still vying for full control over the capital city of Khartoum.) Since June, the RSF has seized swathes of territory near the borders to Ethiopia and South Sudan, heightening the risk of the conflict spilling into new territories or derailing the fragile peace process in Ethiopia’s Tigray region following a devastating war there that ended in 2022.

Both the SAF and RSF have been accused of widespread atrocities, including mass rape, torture, and civilian massacres. The United States has also concluded that the RSF is responsible for ethnic cleansing. Republican lawmakers on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and House Foreign Affairs Committee have criticized the Biden administration for not having a coherent Sudan policy and introduced resolutions recognizing the atrocities in Sudan as acts of genocide—a step that the administration has yet to take.

Officials and aid workers focused on Sudan warn that while it is being overshadowed by the wars in Ukraine and Gaza, Sudan risks becoming the world’s deadliest conflict and could spiral into a full-blown regional crisis without international intervention. Perriello has warned in the past that the conflict could become a “Somalia on steroids.” Around half of the people of Sudan, some 25 million people, face a food crisis. Of them, some 8.5 million people are acutely malnourished and more than 750,000 are on the brink of starvation, according to a report released last month by a group of experts from U.N. agencies and top aid organizations.

In 2021, Burhan seized power in a coup with the help of the head of the RSF, Gen. Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, better known as “Hemeti,” derailing a yearslong effort to transition Sudan to a democracy. Tensions between the two leaders mounted as both jockeyed for power and influence, until they erupted into war in April 2023.

Past efforts to broker a peace deal in a format of talks hosted in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, have failed, prompting Perriello and other envoys to push for a reset in a new venue with buy-in from other regional powers and the United States. This initiative follows recent efforts by the U.N. envoy for Sudan, Ramtane Lamamra, to bring both RSF and SAF representatives to indirect talks in Geneva, focusing on the limited goals of expanding humanitarian aid access and protecting civilians. The two delegations did not directly meet, though the U.N. called the talks an “encouraging initial step in a longer and complex process.”

The U.S.-brokered negotiations are designed to achieve broader ambitions of bringing both sides face-to-face with a goal of ending the war.

“If a new round of peace talks do come to fruition, it would mean that all these outside actors who have been driving the conflict would now be on board with a peace process,” said Cameron Hudson, an expert on U.S.-African affairs  “If that is true, and everyone is rowing in the same direction, that would give us some cause for some hope in Sudan, really for the first time.”

[saywhat-politics]

Slotkin Stunned By Hegseth Asking If He's Given Military The Order To Use Lethal Force On Protesters

At today's Senate Armed Services Committee hearing, Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-MI) had a tough confrontation with Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth.

[superdiscochino]

Speaking to the Senate Armed Services Committee on Tuesday, Phelan cited the case of the USS Gerald R. Ford, America's largest and most expensive nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, which carried a price tag of $13 billion. The ship was struggling to feed its crew of over 4,500 because six of its eight ovens were out of action, and sailors were barred by contract from fixing them themselves. "I am a huge supporter of right to repair," Phelan told the politicians. "I went on the carrier; they had eight ovens — this is a ship that serves 15,300 meals a day. Only two were working. Six were out." He pointed out the Navy personnel are capable of fixing their own gear but are blocked by contracts that reserve repairs for vendors, often due to IP restrictions.

This is so funny, and is forcing me to reconsider my opinions re: right to repair. What are these sailors fighting for if not our corporations' sacred right to protect their IP and starve you? Why are we wasting money on ovens for sailors anyway? That's what MREs are for.

[aimeedaisies]

The Princess Royal’s Official Engagements in June 2024

04/06 As Master of the Corporation of Trinity House, attended the Trinitytide Anniversary Annual Court Meeting, Church Service and Luncheon. 💼⛪️🍽️

As Colonel-in-Chief, The Royal Corps of Signals, this afternoon inspected The Queen’s Gurkha Signals Regiment on public duties at St James’s Palace. 🫡

As Chairman of the International Olympic Committee Members Election Commission, held a Members Election Commission Meeting at St James’s Palace. 💼

05/06 With Sir Tim As Colonel-In-Chief of The Royal Regina Rifles, unveiled a statue and attended a Reception at 10 Place des Canadiens, Thue et Mue, Bretteville. 🇬🇧🇫🇷🇨🇦

With Sir Tim Attended a service of commemoration and reception to mark the 80th anniversary of the D-Day Landings at Bayeux War Cemetery. 🪦🪖

With Sir Tim As President of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, attended the Annual Service in Bayeux Cathedral to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the D-Day Landings. ⛪️

With Sir Tim As President of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, attended a service to commemorate the 80th Anniversary of the D-Day Landings at Bayeux War Cemetery. 🪦🕯️

06/06 With Sir Tim Attended the Annual Founder’s Day Parade at the Royal Hospital Chelsea. 💂

As Colonel of The Blues and Royals (Royal Horse Guards and 1st Dragoons), attended a Household Cavalry Council Meeting at Hyde Park Barracks. 🐎

07/06 Opened Forest of Dean Community Hospital. 🏥

Visited Ruskin Mill Trust in Nailsworth. 🏫

09/06 Attended the Bramham International Horse Trials Prize Giving, on its 50th anniversary. 🏇🏼

11/06 Opened Mercator Media Limited’s 25th Anniversary Seawork Marine Exhibition in Southampton. ⛴️

As Patron of the British Nutrition Foundation, visited the British Armed Forces Nutrition Programme at The Royal Logistic Corps Regimental Museum in Winchester. 🍏🍊

As Patron of Farms for City Children, and Past Master of the Worshipful Company of Butchers, attended a Festival of Learning at Butchers’ Hall. 🥩🥓🍖

Unofficial Sir Tim attended a reception at the King Edward VII Hospital and unveiled a plaque dedicated to Sir Jameson Boyd Adams. 🍾

With Sir Tim As Royal Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering, attended The Prince Philip Fund Commemoration Dinner at Prince Philip House. 🍽️🍾

12/06 On behalf of The King, held an Investiture at Windsor Castle. 🎖️

As Chancellor of the University of London, attended the School of Advanced Study 30th Anniversary Reception at Senate House. 📚📖

As President of The Duke of Edinburgh’s Commonwealth Study Conferences, attended a Dinner. 🍽️🗺️

13/06 As Patron of Transaid, visited the Multimodal 2024 Exhibition. 🛻

As Patron of the Townswomen’s Guilds, attended the Annual General Meeting. 💼

As Patron of the Foundation for Future London, attended the UK Cultural Exchange launch. 🇬🇧🗺️

With Sir Tim As President of the Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce, attended a President’s Panel Discussion and Dinner. 🎤🍽️

14/06 Presided over a conference attended by the Colonels of the Regiments of the Household Division. 💂

Cavalry Regiments

Blues and Royals - Princess Anne

The Life Guards - Non - Royal

Footguards

Grenadier Guards - Queen Camilla

Coldstream Guards - Non - Royal

Scots Guards - Prince Edward

Irish Guards - Catherine, Princess of Wales

Welsh Guards - Prince William

Reserves

London Guards - Prince Edward

15/06 With Sir Tim Trooping the Colour

17/06 With Sir Tim Attended a chapter of the Most Noble Order of the Garter in the Throne Room, Windsor Castle. 🏰

With Sir Tim Attended a luncheon, hosted by the King, at Windsor Castle. 🍽️

With Sir Tim Attended an Installation Service was held in St George’s Chapel at which The Duchess of Gloucester was installed as a Lady of the Most Noble Order of the Garter. 🪽🎖️

18/06 unofficial Attended day one of Royal Ascot. 🏇🏼

19/06 unofficial Attended day two of Royal Ascot. 🏇🏼

20/06 unofficial With Sir Tim Attended day three (Ladies Day) of Royal Ascot. 🏇🏼

21/06 With Sir Tim Attended the RNLI Beating Retreat, Reception and Dinner at the Old Royal Naval College in Greenwich. 🛟🥂🍽️

22/06 With Sir Tim As Patron of the Eric Liddell 100, attended a Service in St Giles’ Cathedral, followed by a Reception to commemorate 100 years since Eric Liddells Olympic gold medal win. 🥇

~ Engagements cancelled due to hospitalisation ~

Total official engagements for Anne in June:

2024 total so far:

Total official engagements accompanied by Tim in June:

2024 total so far:

FYI - due to certain royal family members being off ill/in recovery I won't be posting everyone's engagement counts out of respect, I am continuing to count them and release the totals at the end of the year.