#estimating databases

[asestimationsconsultants]

The Role of an Estimating Service in Circular Construction and Material Reuse

Introduction As construction shifts toward sustainability and circular economy principles, traditional cost estimating must evolve. An estimating service that integrates circular construction strategies offers clients insights into both environmental and financial performance, especially through material reuse and lifecycle analysis.

Assessing Reusable Materials Estimators examine available salvageable materials from demolition or deconstruction processes. They assess their structural integrity, performance history, and compliance with code requirements. A precise estimate of cost savings from reuse versus new material procurement is critical to circular planning.

Cost Implications of Circular Processes Reclaimed materials often require additional labor for processing, transportation, or certification. An estimating service calculates these secondary costs and compares them against the expense of virgin materials. This holistic approach ensures reuse is both environmentally and economically justified.

Lifecycle Cost Estimation Instead of focusing only on upfront expenses, circular estimating emphasizes long-term value. Estimators provide lifecycle cost analysis to show clients the savings from using durable, low-maintenance reused materials, accounting for extended replacement cycles and potential operational savings.

Collaboration with Deconstruction Teams Estimating services coordinate with demolition contractors and sustainability consultants to quantify the volume and value of recoverable materials. This data feeds into the budget and helps determine whether reuse strategies align with the project’s financial goals.

Incentives and Certification Support Many jurisdictions offer financial incentives for using recycled materials or achieving green certifications. An estimating service identifies applicable credits, tax breaks, or LEED points, incorporating them into the estimate to demonstrate potential offsets in total project cost.

Software Tools and Databases Estimators now use platforms that include inventories of reusable materials and databases tracking regional material exchange programs. These tools enhance accuracy and help estimators provide clients with both sourcing opportunities and reliable cost benchmarks.

Conclusion An estimating service that understands circular construction adds immense value by quantifying sustainability alongside cost. Their role in balancing economic and ecological outcomes ensures that reuse and recycling are feasible, not just idealistic.

[sayruq]

Officially the Palestinian death toll has passed 30,000. As this article will tell you, the official count is far below the actual death count

Gaza's health ministry said Thursday that the number of Palestinians killed in the war has surpassed 30,000. The official number now stands at 30,035 deaths. The figure is widely viewed as the most reliable one available. The health ministry provided NPR with one of its latest reports on the death toll, 38 pages long, to analyze. A close look at how Gaza's health ministry counts those killed in the war reveals a system that is buckling under the weight of war and unable to keep an accurate toll of the dead. Thousands remain unaccounted for — either missing under the rubble, buried hastily in side streets or decomposing in areas that can't be safely reached.

The Gaza health ministry says its daily tally now relies on a combination of accurate death counts from hospitals that are still partially operating, and on estimates from media reports to assess deaths in the north of Gaza, where Israeli forces control access. Its detailed daily report shows that its electronic system for counting the dead was disrupted on Nov. 12, when communication was lost with three major hospitals in the north, soon followed by more in other parts of Gaza. In the early days of the war, as the wounded and dead streamed into hospitals, Gaza's health ministry kept a detailed daily count of the number of people killed. Public and private hospitals were recording into an electronic database the names, ages, genders and ID numbers of the dead.

[blanchetteminxia]

the stadium roared. the crowd was a cacophony of cheers, jeers, and the rhythmic thumping of drums. sae itoshi, ever the consummate professional, remained focused. his. senses. were. fine-tuned.

he could hear the precise click of his cleats on the manicured grass, the whistle of the wind as the ball soared through the air, the synchronized chants of the ultras. what he did not expect to hear was you.

you were supposed to be the epitome of meekness. shy. reserved. the kind of girl who spoke in whispers and blushed at a strong breeze. you were, in his estimation, a calming presence in his otherwise chaotic world. a quiet harbor in the storm of his existence.

and then he heard it.

it started subtly enough. a slightly louder cheer than usual. he almost dismissed it as the general excitement of the game. but then it escalated.

"SAE! DO YOU SEE THIS?!"

Sae's head snapped up, his eyes scanning the crowd. Was that...? No, it couldn't be.

"YOUR PASSING IS DIVINE INTERVENTION!"

his eyebrow twitched. he was starting to recognize the... timbre.

"THAT’S THE FATHER OF MY UNBORN CHILDREN!"

okay, there was no mistaking it now. that was your voice.

sae's gaze landed on your section of the stands. you were... transformed. gone was the quiet, demure girl he was courting. in her place was a woman possessed.

you were standing, jumping, waving your arms with the ferocity of a conductor leading a heavy metal orchestra. your face was flushed, your eyes blazing with an intensity he'd never seen before. and you were... screaming.

sae's mind, usually a well-organized database of football strategies and opponent weaknesses, short-circuited. he saw you sandwiched between two equally... enthusiastic women. one was holding up a sign that read "SAE, OUR CHILDREN MISS YOU," and the other was yelling something about the structural integrity of her lower extremities.

and you were right there with them, a tiny, ferocious general in this army of passionate (and slightly unhinged) fans.

he watched, dumbfounded, as you launched into a detailed critique of the opposing team's defense, your voice surprisingly loud and carrying across the stadium with alarming clarity.

"WHO ARE THESE EXTRAS AND WHY ARE THEY BLOCKING MY GLORIOUS KING!"

sae stumbled, nearly losing possession of the ball. his teammates stared at him, concern etched on their faces. the opposing team looked equally bewildered, their concentration broken by the sheer... force of your cheering.

for the rest of the game, sae was... distracted. he kept glancing at you, his mind struggling to reconcile the image of the quiet girl he knew with the banshee-like creature in the stands. he made several uncharacteristic mistakes, his passes going astray, his tackles mistimed.

the opposing team scored. their captain pointed in your general direction and gave you a thumbs up. sae wanted to disappear.

by the time the final whistle blew, sae was a broken man. he trudged off the field, the cheers of the crowd fading into a distant buzz. he spotted you waiting for him near the players' tunnel, your face glowing with triumph.

"hey,…”  he croaked, his voice barely a whisper. "what... what was that?"

you beamed at him, your usual shyness returning as quickly as it had vanished. "oh, sae! did you see me? i was really getting into it! those girls were amazing! i think i made some new friends!"

sae stared at you, his brain refusing to process the words. he opened his mouth to speak, but all that came out was a strangled, "yeah.. that was… new”

you tilted your head, confused. "oh yea.. when you're on the field, i just... i get a little passionate."

a little passionate.

sae replayed the events of the last ninety minutes in his head. the screaming, the yelling, the detailed anatomical commentary from your fellow fans...

somehow, he finds this new side of you amusing. so much so that now, four years later, he finds himself smiling as he hears your screams from the bleachers.

he has never felt so lucky to have such a devoted cheerleader.

[inbabylontheywept]

I went to summer camp as a kid. Six times, actually. I have many fond memories, and even more terrible ones. Here's one that's a mixture of both.

To set the stage, I had just spent the night in the infirmary due to a big fight I had with almost my entire tent. They never wanted to sleep, and were always obnoxiously loud with a lantern dubbed "the sun" that let me see movement around me with my eyes closed from the shadows passing over it. I was sleep-deprived, overstimulated, autistic-but-unaware-of-that, and twelve years old, and I already disliked these girls because they talked shit about me behind my back and took advantage of naivety. This unfortunate combination lead to a blowout meltdown in which I said some things I regret, so the counselors decided it'd be best if I spent some time away.

Now, this had the unforeseen consequence of putting me in a place with less supervision. This place also had some strange bugs. They were small, about the size of my pinky fingernail. Most of their bodies were in their tails, which curved downwards like a reverse scorpion. They were black and white, sort of striped, with six legs and no wings. Their fangs were very thin, but long, extending out from their faces like brownish parentheses. They had a propensity to bite.

Perhaps you can see where this is going.

While messing around with these bugs, I noticed that when they bit, they didn't just chomp and leave. They sunk their fangs in and they kept them there for a long time. Naturally, I decided to see what would happen if I let them, nay, encouraged them to bite me, as an experiment. When would they extricate their incisors from my flesh? Would my reaction to the bites vary depending on the amount of time each bite lasted?

I let these bugs bite me four times, once for about 13 minutes, once for about 5 minutes, once for about 1 minute, and once for 45 seconds (I didn't have a watch, so these are estimates). Then, I forged a peaceful resolution with my tentmates and we went to watch the beginning of Color War.

Except, turns out it's stupid to let unidentified insects taste your blood. The bites swelled up huge. I got chills. My stomach hurt intensely. My counselor took me back to the infirmary to get them checked out.

Needless to say, this was not easy to explain to the nurse on duty ("WHY" "For science!"). His first thought was we needed to figure out what bit me. If only it were that simple.

We combed through the databases for insects in the state. We expanded our search to arachnids, even, although it certainly wasn't one. I drew a little mock-up on a Post-It to show him. There was not a single match. To this day, I have no idea what it was that I let bite me. I was given orders to come back tomorrow to get them checked by a doctor, and also return every morning and night for a week to put warm compresses and medicinal ointments on the bites, and a strong directive to never do anything like that again, with a side of "What the hell were you thinking????"

A couple of months later, after camp, I went to my friend's bar mitzvah. The woman in the row behind me tapped my shoulder. She asked me how the bug bites were. It was the doctor from the infirmary.

-- @dr-robert-chase-apologist

That was a beautiful ending. I have a similar story, but less gruesome than letting bugs bite me. My family used to go up to trips to the Mogollon Mountains two or three times a year. The woods were where my dad always felt the most at peace.

My dad used that time to hike through the trees. And I grew into that eventually, but when I was very little, I felt a particular kinship to the small things of this world. Worms and beetles and woodlice and those peculiar Arizona grasshopers with wings the size of jellybeans and tummies the size of my thumb.

And on one trip, there was an incredible number of these beautiful, fuzzy caterpillars. Picture below.

I went a little crazy about them. They were fluffy, and they were had pretty colors, and they had the cutest, softest, stubbiest little suction cup feets that I'd ever seen. Watching them climb up stalks of grass or over fallen branches was enchanting.

So I caught, like, twenty of them, and most got put in a little terrarium where I could watch them do cute caterpillar things. Mostly eat fresh pine needles and wriggle gregariously. But some I kept out just to play with. I'd put them on my palm, and I'd watch them crawl all the way up to my neck, then I'd move them somewhere else. They tickled, and I was charmed to be their jungle gym.

But apparently, those little hairs break off like fiberglass, and they have some kind of venom on them, so I had these strange, wriggling, almost tattoo like rashes all over my arms up to my neck. Very embarrassing to explain to my parents.

There was an entomologist on the street that I grew up on named Freddie. And he wasn't just a bug expert, he was specifically a caterpillar expert. He had a garden in his backyard that was specifically tailored for butterflies, he'd always draw in clouds of Monarchs during their migration. My parents asked him about the mysterious itchy caterpillars, and he said they were lophocampa ingens, and that I was lucky that I didn't inhale those hairs. They can stick inside your throat and make it swell closed. Scary little bastards.

I'd still see them after that, but never in such numbers. And while I appreciated them, I always tried to keep a few feet of distance. Just to be safe.

(Also, just wanted to clarify that I didn't remember the name for 20 years, I googled "irticating caterpillar Mogollon", and saw the picture. It wasn't until I read the caption that I was like oh yeaaaaah, that's what he called them. But it was one of those memories I could never have pulled at will.)

[wachinyeya]

A major review of over 67,000 animal species has found that while the natural world continues to face a biodiversity crisis, targeted conservation efforts are helping bring many species back from the brink of extinction.

The study draws on data from the IUCN Red List, the world's largest database of species conservation status. The researchers say their results, reported in the journal PLOS Biology, highlight both the successes and the need for urgent action.

The world is facing a global biodiversity crisis, with 28% of more than 160,000 assessed species threatened with extinction, and an estimated one million species facing this fate due to human activities. However, conservation measures can be successful if there is concrete evidence about what works.

The researchers, led by the University of Cambridge with the IUCN, BirdLife International, and Oxford and Durham Universities, used Red List data to assess whether conservation measures had been put in place, and whether those actions had a positive impact on a given species' conservation status.

"We found that almost all the species that have moved from a more threatened category to a less threatened category have benefited from some sort of conservation measures," said lead author Ashley Simkins, a Ph.D. candidate in Cambridge's Department of Zoology. "It's a strong signal that conservation works."

While there is no 'one size fits all' solution, the researchers observed some connections between conservation success stories. Many of these species live in isolated areas, such as islands, where intensive conservation efforts—such as habitat protection, captive breeding and reintroductions—can be fully implemented.

"While biodiversity loss is a genuine crisis, it's vital that we celebrate the success stories wherever and whenever we can," said Simkins. "It's so hard for a species to improve its conservation status, but with the right effort, we can turn things around."

The Iberian lynx, once the world's most endangered cat, has rebounded from just a few hundred individuals to a few thousand. Likewise, the kākāpō, a flightless parrot from New Zealand, has benefited from dedicated recovery programs. And the European bison, which was hunted to extinction in the wild in the early 20th century, now roams parts of Eastern Europe thanks to sustained conservation efforts over decades.

Marine species have also seen dramatic recoveries. Humpback and blue whales, once driven to the brink of extinction by commercial whaling, have made a comeback after an international moratorium on whaling. However, despite these success stories, the study found that six times more species are declining than improving.

The researchers say that, like human health care, preventative measures in conservation are preferable and more cost-effective to emergency interventions.

"Humans have gotten pretty good at what could be considered 'A&E' conservation—focusing on species at very high risk of extinction," said Simkins. "What we're less good at is preventing species from becoming threatened in the first place. We need to move beyond treating the symptoms of biodiversity loss and start addressing the root causes."

The researchers also emphasize the need for collaborative, locally driven conservation. In Papua New Guinea, for example, conservationists worked with local communities to replace tree kangaroo hunting with sustainable forms of animal protein, including farming of chickens and fishing—an approach that benefitted both people and wildlife.

"It's vital that we as conservationists are working with stakeholders, rather than dictating to them, whether that's an Indigenous community in Papua New Guinea or a farmer in Somerset," said Simkins.

"Conservation doesn't have to be a zero-sum game—there are compromises that can benefit both the natural world and human society."

"In this climate of constant stories about wildlife declines and insufficient political action to protect nature, it's important to realize that there are also many success stories and that conservation efforts are making a real, demonstrable impact on the world," said co-senior author Dr. Silviu Petrovan, also from the Department of Zoology. "Conservation works if given the chance."

"This research sheds light on which actions to save species have been effective, and what interventions are needed," said co-author Dr. Stuart Butchart, Chief Scientist at BirdLife International. "Governments need to turn their words into actions, and rapidly scale up efforts to save species from extinction and help populations to recover. Safeguarding our natural heritage for future generations depends upon this."

"The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species informs and guides on-the-ground conservation decisions; actions which are further guided by the research presented in this publication," said co-author Craig Hilton-Taylor, Head of the IUCN Red List.

"Almost everyone will have their own favorite example of a conservation success story, whether it's the bald eagle in North America, or the red kite in the UK," said Simkins. We need joint action to ensure these positive stories aren't the exception—they're the norm."

[mudwerks]

(via Vending machine error reveals secret face image database of college students | Ars Technica)

Canada-based University of Waterloo is racing to remove M&M-branded smart vending machines from campus after outraged students discovered the machines were covertly collecting facial-recognition data without their consent.

The scandal started when a student using the alias SquidKid47 posted an image on Reddit showing a campus vending machine error message, "Invenda.Vending.FacialRecognitionApp.exe," displayed after the machine failed to launch a facial recognition application that nobody expected to be part of the process of using a vending machine.

"Hey, so why do the stupid M&M machines have facial recognition?" SquidKid47 pondered.

The Reddit post sparked an investigation from a fourth-year student named River Stanley, who was writing for a university publication called MathNEWS.

Stanley sounded alarm after consulting Invenda sales brochures that promised "the machines are capable of sending estimated ages and genders" of every person who used the machines without ever requesting consent.

This frustrated Stanley, who discovered that Canada's privacy commissioner had years ago investigated a shopping mall operator called Cadillac Fairview after discovering some of the malls' informational kiosks were secretly "using facial recognition software on unsuspecting patrons."

Only because of that official investigation did Canadians learn that "over 5 million nonconsenting Canadians" were scanned into Cadillac Fairview's database, Stanley reported. Where Cadillac Fairview was ultimately forced to delete the entire database, Stanley wrote that consequences for collecting similarly sensitive facial recognition data without consent for Invenda clients like Mars remain unclear.

Stanley's report ended with a call for students to demand that the university "bar facial recognition vending machines from campus."

what the motherfuck

[covid-safer-hotties]

Also preserved on our archive (Thousands of reports, sources, and resources! Daily updates!)

By Robert Stevens

A COVID wave fuelled by the XEC variant is leading to hospitalisations throughout Britain.

According to the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), the admission rate for patients testing positive for XEC stood at 4.5 per 100,000 people in the week to October 6—up significantly from 3.7 a week earlier. UKHSA described the spread as “alarming”.

Last week, Dr. Jamie Lopez Bernal, consultant epidemiologist at the UKHSA, noted of the spread of the new variant in Britain: “Our surveillance shows that where Covid cases are sequenced, around one in 10 are the ‘XEC’ lineage.”

The XEC variant, a combination of the KS.1.1 and KP.3.3 variants, was detected and recorded in Germany in June and has been found in at least 29 countries—including in at least 13 European nations and the 24 states within United States. According to a New Scientist article published last month, “The earliest cases of the variant occurred in Italy in May. However, these samples weren’t uploaded to an international database that tracks SARS-CoV-2 variants, called the Global Initiative on Sharing All Influenza Data (GISAID), until September.”

The number of confirmed cases of XEC internationally exceeds 600 according to GISAID. This is likely an underestimation. Bhanu Bhatnagar at the World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe noted that “not all countries consistently report data to GISAID, so the XEC variant is likely to be present in more countries”.

Another source, containing data up to September 28—the Outbreak.info genomic reports: scalable and dynamic surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 variants and mutations—reports that there have been 1,115 XEC cases detected worldwide.

Within Europe, XEC was initially most widespread in France, accounting for around 21 percent of confirmed COVID samples. In Germany, it accounted for 15 percent of samples and 8 percent of sequenced samples, according to an assessment from Professor Francois Balloux at the University College London, cited in the New Scientist.

Within weeks of those comments the spread of XEC has been rapid. Just in Germany, it currently accounts for 43 percent of infections and is therefore predominant. Virologists estimate that XEC has around twice the growth advantage of KP.3.1.1 and will be the dominant variant in winter.

A number of articles have cited the comments made to the LA Times by Eric Topol, the Director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute in California. Topol warns that XEC is “just getting started”, “and that’s going to take many weeks, a couple months, before it really takes hold and starts to cause a wave. XEC is definitely taking charge. That does appear to be the next variant.”

A report in the Independent published Tuesday noted of the make-up of XEC, and its two parent subvariants: “KS.1.1 is a type of what’s commonly called a FLiRT variant. It is characterised by mutations in the building block molecules phenylalanine (F) altered to leucine (L), and arginine (R) to threonine (T) on the spike protein that the virus uses to attach to human cells.

“The second omicron subvariant KP.3.3 belongs to the category FLuQE where the amino acid glutamine (Q) is mutated to glutamic acid (E) on the spike protein, making its binding to human cells more effective.”

Covid cases are on the rise across the UK, with recent data from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) indicating a 21.6 percent increase in cases in England within a week.

There is no doubt that the spread of XEC virus contributed to an increase in COVID cases and deaths in Britain. In the week to September 25, there were 2,797 reported cases—an increase of 530 from the previous week. In the week to September 20 there was a 50 percent increase in COVID-related deaths in England, with 134 fatalities reported.

According to the latest data, the North East of England is witnessing the highest rate of people being hospitalised, with 8.12 people per 100,000 requiring treatment.

Virologist Dr. Stephen Griffin of the University of Leeds has been an active communicator of the science and statistics of the virus on various public platforms and social media since the start of the pandemic. He was active in various UK government committees during the height of the COVID-19. In March 2022, he gave an interview to the World Socialist Web Site.

This week Griffin spoke to the i newspaper on the continuing danger of allowing the untrammelled spread of XEC and COVID in general. “The problem with COVID is that it evolves so quickly,” he said.

He warned, “We can either increase our immunity by making better vaccines or increasing our vaccine coverage, or we can slow the virus down with interventions, such as improving indoor air quality. But we’re not doing those things.”

“Its evolutionary rate is something like three or four times faster than that of the fastest seasonal flu. So you’ve got this constant change in the virus, which accelerates the number of susceptible people.

“It’s creating its own new pool of susceptibles every time it changes to something that’s ‘immune evasive’. Every one of these subvariants is distinct enough that a whole swathe of people are no longer immune to it and it can infect them. That’s why you see this constant undulatory pattern which doesn’t look seasonal at all.”

There are no mitigations in place in Britain, as is the case internationally, to stop the spread of this virus. Advice for those with COVID symptoms is to stay at home and limit contact with others for just five days. The National Health Service advises, “You can go back to your normal activities when you feel better or do not have a high temperature”, despite the fact that the person may well still be infectious. Families are advised that children with symptoms such as a runny nose, sore throat, or mild cough can still “go to school or childcare' if they feel well enough.

The detection and rapid spread of new variants disproves the lies of governments that the pandemic is long over and COVID-19 should be treated no differently to influenza.

Deaths due to COVID in the UK rose above 244,000 by the end of September. It is only a matter of time before an even deadlier variant emerges. Last month, Sir Chris Whitty, England’s chief medical officer, told the ongoing public inquiry into COVID-19 “We have to assume a future pandemic on this scale [the global pandemic which began in 2020] will occur… That’s a certainty.”

[genshin-impact-updates]

Xbox Player Recruitment: Genshin Impact Xbox Series X|S Test Player Recruitment Now Open

Genshin Impact is about to launch on Xbox, and we're launching the "Xbox Test" for Travelers to experience and provide feedback.

Sign up to participate now!

After joining the test server, complete certain testing tasks on the server for a chance to receive a certain amount of Primogems as a reward on the official server.

*Please note that this recruitment is only for Xbox players. Test participants must have an Xbox Series X|S device; otherwise, they will not be able to participate in the test.

How to Apply

Fill out the survey:

>>>Link<<<

Please read the survey carefully and fill it out accurately. If you are eligible for the test, we will notify you via the contact information provided in the survey.

Submission time

September 6, 2024 11:00 (UTC+8) – September 23, 2024 11:00 (UTC+8)

Estimated start time:

Early October

Device Requirements

Currently Supports

Xbox Series S

Xbox Series X

Confidentiality Notice for Test Content

This player recruitment for the test is focused on Xbox content, and most of the content is still in a state of adjustment.

Considering that leaks from the test server could lead to misunderstandings of the official version's content and negatively impact Travelers' experience with the official release, we thus require Travelers participating in the player database to keep the test content completely confidential and not disclose it in any form (including but not limited to screenshots, live streams, videos, etc.).

Therefore, Travelers who have the opportunity to participate in the test will need to sign a confidentiality agreement.

If it is confirmed that a tester has leaked information, they will be dealt with in accordance with the relevant clauses of the confidentiality agreement.

All content on the test server does not represent the quality of the final release. Please refer to the content of the official version for reference.

Notes

1. This test is only for Xbox, and eligibility is tied to the device used for the initial login. Switching to other devices is not allowed. If you change devices and trigger a ban, it will not be lifted. Account sharing or trading is strictly prohibited, and such actions will be considered a breach of the confidentiality agreement.

2. For important information regarding the test recruitment and relevant details, Travelers should rely on official channels such as HoYoLAB. Please refrain from trusting false information from unofficial sources.

3. All Travelers must fill out the information accurately. We will carefully verify the authenticity of the information provided. If there are discrepancies between the submitted information and the actual details, it may result in ineligibility for this test. If errors in the survey are due to personal reasons, we will consider it as a forfeiture of your test eligibility.

4. The test server does not support in-game purchases. After the current test period ends, all data will be deleted. Test eligibility is only valid for the current test and cannot be inherited, transferred, or sold.

5. Please ensure that you are 18 years old or older. Otherwise, you will not be eligible for the test, and we will not enter into a confidentiality agreement with you.

[ca-dmv-bot]

do you ever think you'll run out?

Certainly. But it definitely isn't soon. I think I estimated it at ~2yr from now, and that was before I added an extra 20k plates or so to the bot's database. I guess it'll be five or six years from now.

[allthegeopolitics]

The lives of an estimated 1,500 international students have been thrown into turmoil after their F-1 or J-1 visas were revoked in recent weeks. Students at more than 240 American universities have been impacted by a change to their resident legal status, which means they can no longer complete their studies in person and will have to return home, according to a tracker created by Inside Higher Ed. Three universities told Middle East Eye that they received no prior notice, and the reasons for terminating students’ legal status were unknown.

Continue Reading

[mariacallous]

The United States government has collected DNA samples from upwards of 133,000 migrant children and teenagers—including at least one 4-year-old—and uploaded their genetic data into a national criminal database used by local, state, and federal law enforcement, according to documents reviewed by WIRED.

The records, quietly released by the US Customs and Border Protection earlier this year, offer the most detailed look to date at the scale of CBP’s controversial DNA collection program. They reveal for the first time just how deeply the government’s biometric surveillance reaches into the lives of migrant children, some of whom may still be learning to read or tie their shoes—yet whose DNA is now stored in a system originally built for convicted sex offenders and violent criminals.

The Department of Justice has argued that extensive DNA collection activity at the border provides “an assessment of the danger” a migrant potentially “poses to the public” and will essentially help solve crimes that may be committed in the future. Experts say that the children’s raw genetic material will be stored indefinitely and worry that, without proper guardrails, the DNA dragnet could eventually be used for more extensive profiling.

Spanning from October 2020 through the end of 2024, the records show that CBP swabbed the cheeks of between 829,000 and 2.8 million people, with experts estimating that the true figure, excluding duplicates, is likely well over 1.5 million. That number includes as many as 133,539 children and teenagers. These figures mark a sweeping expansion of biometric surveillance—one that explicitly targets migrant populations, including children.

The DNA samples are registered in the Combined DNA Index System, or CODIS, a database administered by the FBI, which processes the DNA and stores the resulting genetic profiles. A network of criminal forensic databases, CODIS is used by local, state, and federal enforcement agencies to match DNA collected from crime scenes or convictions to identify suspects.

On May 10, 2024, for instance, records say that CBP agents from the El Paso, Texas, field office collected a DNA sample from the mouth of an individual in its custody whom CBP identified as Cuban and who was detained for allegedly being an “immigrant w/o docs.” Swabbing the individuals’ cheek, the agents obtained a DNA sample containing the individual's entire genetic code and then sent the sample to the FBI for processing.

According to CBP records, the individual was just 4 years old.

Of the tens of thousands of minors whose DNA was collected by Customs and Border Protection over the past four years, as many as 227 were 13 or younger, including the 4-year-old. Department of Homeland Security policy states that individuals under 14 are generally exempt from DNA collection, but field officers have the discretion to collect DNA in some circumstances. The data shows additional entries for kids aged 10, 11, 12, and 13. The numbers spike beginning at age 14; more than 30,000 entries were logged for each age group from 14 to 17.

Under current rules, DNA is generally collected from anyone who is also fingerprinted. According to DHS policy, 14 is the minimum age at which fingerprinting becomes routine.

As many as 122 minors were categorized as American citizens, 53 of whom were not detained for any criminal arrest, CBP records say. (People asking to enter the United States to apply for asylum are put in civil rather than criminal custody.)

Neither DHS nor CBP provided comment ahead of publication.

Multiple legal, privacy, and immigration experts described the findings as deeply troubling. “It’s horribly dystopian,” says Vera Eidelman, a senior staff attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union's Speech, Privacy, and Technology Project. “It’s impossible for me to think of a reason to collect a 4-year-old’s DNA and upload it to a database that’s explicitly supposed to be about criminal activity.”

As one of the world’s largest law enforcement agencies, CBP is responsible for intercepting and processing individuals who cross the US border without authorization. While Immigration and Customs Enforcement handles long-term detention and deportation, CBP controls the earliest, most vulnerable hours of a migrant’s legal journey in the US, often when they are first taken into custody, questioned, and in many cases fingerprinted and swabbed for DNA.

Both CBP and ICE operate under the Department of Homeland Security and, under current policy, are authorized to collect fingerprints and DNA from anyone in their custody as young as 14 years old. Exceptions for younger children can be made in certain cases involving “potentially criminal situations”; however, the CBP data analyzed by WIRED indicates this was the case in as few as 2.2 percent of the hundreds of kids subjected to DNA swabs.

Of the 227 people listed in the data as children under 14 and having their DNA submitted to the FBI, most of them are simply labeled “detainee.” Only five were listed as arrestees or linked to criminal charges.Got a Tip?Are you a current or former government employee who wants to talk about what's happening? We'd like to hear from you. Using a nonwork phone or computer, contact the reporter securely on Signal at dmehro.89.

CBP’s participation in the CODIS program isn’t new, though it expanded significantly after a 2020 Department of Justice rule amending a previous exemption that effectively allowed DHS to avoid collecting DNA from civil immigration detainees.

Sara Huston, an expert in genomics policy and the principal investigator at the Genetics and Justice Laboratory and a research assistant professor of pediatrics at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine, tells WIRED that CODIS is a powerful tool for law enforcement when solving violent crimes, sexual assaults, and missing persons cases.

Huston explains that typically when DNA is collected from a crime scene—such as in a sexual assault case—it’s processed and uploaded to CODIS and compared with DNA from anyone in the database, which includes people who have been previously arrested for certain crimes or convicted. A match can help investigators connect unsolved cases, identify suspects, and share critical leads across jurisdictions.

But the inclusion of migrants, the vast majority of whom were not listed in CBP data as having been accused of any felonies, raises deeper questions about what kind of data belongs in a criminal database. CODIS was designed to track criminal offenders, not to permanently catalog the genetic information of undocumented children passing through immigration custody.

“It’s not that we can’t solve crimes by collecting these samples—that’s why CODIS exists, and it’s a wonderful tool,” Huston says. “But it’s not a fair system to keep DNA of people who have not committed crimes on the assumption that they likely will.”

Apprehensions of migrants who crossed the border unlawfully between ports of entry have since fallen to historic lows during the current Trump administration; it's unclear whether the pace of DNA collection has also slowed, as the most recent data ends on December 31, 2024.

The data, which CBP published to its website in February, shows that DNA collection accelerated under the Biden administration, with daily submissions to CODIS increasing sharply in 2024 alongside a reported rise in border apprehensions. On a single day in January 2024, for example, the Laredo, Texas, field office submitted as many as 3,930 DNA samples to the FBI—252 were listed as 17 or younger, CBP records show.

The DOJ has defended the mass collection of DNA at the border as necessary for solving crimes. In its official rationale, the agency argues that this sweeping effort is “essential” not only for identifying migrants who may have committed crimes in the past but also for potentially solving crimes they might commit in the future.

For Stevie Glaberson, the director of research and advocacy at the Center on Privacy & Technology at Georgetown Law, the implication is clear: The US government is treating every person who crosses the border, regardless of age, legal status, or whether they’re accused of any wrongdoing, as a possible suspect in crimes yet to occur.

If the government’s goal is to determine whether a detainee is connected to past crimes, Glaberson tells WIRED, there would be no need to add that person’s DNA to CODIS—they could simply check for a match against existing profiles. “It’s hard to imagine a situation where a 4-year-old was involved in criminal activity,” Glaberson says.

“Taking DNA from a 4-year old and adding it into CODIS flies in the face of any immigration purpose,” she says, adding, “That’s not immigration enforcement. That’s genetic surveillance.”

Multiple studies show no link between immigration and increased crime.

In 2024, Glaberson coauthored a report called “Raiding the Genome” that was the first to try to quantify DHS’s 2020 expansion of DNA collection. It found that if DHS continues to collect DNA at the rate the agency itself projects, one-third of the DNA profiles in CODIS by 2034 will have been taken by DHS, and seemingly without any real due process—the protections that are supposed to be in place before law enforcement compels a person to hand over their most sensitive information.

CBP collects DNA using buccal swab kits—long cotton-tipped sticks used to scrape the inside of a detainee’s cheek. While the DNA sample itself contains a person’s entire genetic code, Huston says that what’s uploaded to CODIS is better understood as a lower-resolution snapshot—a DNA profile made up of select genetic markers used solely to identify individuals—and is not intended to reveal traits, health conditions, or genetic predispositions. However, both she and Glaberson note that the raw DNA sample itself could be stored indefinitely.

The DOJ did not respond to multiple requests for comment, nor did it answer questions about how long raw DNA samples are stored. However, a current DOJ official, speaking to WIRED on the condition of anonymity due to fear of retribution, defended the collection and retention of migrant DNA. Storing raw samples, they say, is necessary for due process—to confirm that a match in CODIS can be traced back to the original raw material. “If you aren’t committing a crime, being in this database isn’t going to affect you,” they say, arguing that a larger pool of DNA increases the chances of finding a match.

Under federal law, CODIS data and the raw genetic samples can only be used for identification in criminal cases. DHS policy states that DNA samples may not be used to discriminate “in the provision of health benefits or other services” and that DNA samples are not used by the FBI to “reveal any physical traits, race, ethnicity, disease susceptibility, or other sensitive information about an individual.”

But privacy advocates worry that those rules aren’t enough, since policies can change and new uses can emerge alongside new technology. For instance, privacy and civil liberties experts have warned that the government could one day use DNA to link immigrants to family members, who could also be targeted by law enforcement. Another concern is that genetic data might be reanalyzed to predict health-related markers or inherited conditions—potentially influencing decisions about admissibility or whether someone is likely to require government support.

As Glaberson warns, “The warehousing of genetic samples containing the entirety of people's genetic code presents a risk in the future.”

[twipsai]

omega and silver fic is up! ill put the full thing under the cut yayyy

~

Days and weeks and months melted together, years going by as his body rusted and decayed, warping itself beyond repair as fewer and fewer people dared to enter the Flame Core, fewer caring to check in on them.

He wasn’t conscious for a large portion of it. How could he be? Why would he be? Any reason to stay present was gone.

So he sat. He waited. For what, he wasn’t sure.

…

And then.

And then one day.

One day, something new. The feeling of something stirring against his chest awoke him from a multi-decade slumber. It took minutes, maybe hours, for all of his systems to come back online. The ones remaining, anyway. Everything hit him like bullets— two lifeforms detected, tactile input detected, loss of ammunition, left shoulder joint disconnected, motor functions offline…

Everything buzzed faintly.

Finally, he could see again.

He shifted his cameras down to see…

“CHILD.”

The kid’s eyes flew open as he stumbled backwards from being curled up against his side. A scream erupted from the child’s body. Analysis showed he was a hedgehog, about six, not matching anyone stored within his database.

Though, there weren’t many people around who did, anymore.

“WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?” Omega questioned, voice echoing unpleasantly against the cavern’s walls.

The child didn’t answer, his breathing picking up speed as his hands started to tremble. He fell to his knees, eyes wide and unblinkingly staring at Omega.

“I BELIEVE I MAY HAVE FRIGHTENED YOU. THIS WAS NOT MY INTENTION.”

It looked like the child couldn’t breathe, now, as if he was being strangled by an invisible force. He grasped a hand around his neck while tears rolled down his cheeks.

Somewhere in his data storage, something like a memory surfaced. It was an unfamiliar feeling.

At some point, someone he knew had something like this happen to them.

“INITIATING ‘COMFORT’ PROTOCOL.”

Through old, crackling speakers, a song started to play. Even with the terrible audio crunching, the piano still rang out as soft as ever. Slow notes drawled on. The lifeform behind him shifted. The child took about 3.49 seconds to visually indicate he had heard the music. His ears perked up and his terrified eyes softened. Over the course of six minutes and twenty-three seconds, the child’s heart rate decreased from 110 beats per minute to 100.

The first thing that tiny child squeaked out was, “Can you move?”

Omega responded after a moment to check. “NO.”

The child then slowly stood, inching forward on trembling legs to sit closer to the music. He leaned an ear to Omega’s chest where the sound crackled out from. He was way too warm for a tiny child, and if he wasn’t showing no other symptoms, Omega would have thought he was sick.

As the song steadily reached its conclusion, the child seemed about as relaxed as he was going to get.

“What is this?” he asked.

“GYMNOPEDIE NO. 1.”

The child looked up and squinted his eyes, confused. “I don’t understand.”

“IT’S A VERY OLD SONG FROM AN ESTIMATED 400 YEARS AGO.”

“A song? What’s a song?”

Omega was never very good at explaining the more… human aspects of life. The alive parts.

Others would be better suited to explain this.

He knew many that could’ve.

“A SONG IS TYPICALLY A COLLECTION OF NOTES PLAYED IN SUCCESSION TO CREATE A MELODY. WHY WERE YOU SLEEPING ON ME, CHILD?”

“I’m sorry.”

“I DO NOT CARE. YOU HAVE NOT ANSWERED MY QUESTION.”

The child’s grey quills flared out even more than they already had, and he fidgeted with the bandages around his wrists. “Your body is cold. It’s very warm here. I was just trying to cool off…”

“WHAT IS YOUR NAME?”

“I think it’s Silver.”

“YOU ARE NOT SURE?”

“No.”

“WHY ARE YOU HERE?”

“I’m trying to get to Crisis City.”

That was an unfamiliar location. Omega checked his residual memory, and cross referenced it with previous data he had archived. “THE RUINS OF SOLEANNA.”

“Um. Maybe?”

“THE HEART OF IBLIS. INQUIRY: WHY IS A TINY MEATBAG LIKE YOU MARCHING TO YOUR CERTAIN DEATH?”

Silver sat down in the place where his left arm should have been, under exposed wires sparking threateningly. This close, Omega could see the scabs on his knees, the blood soaking through the messily-wrapped bandages, the cuts littering his arms and legs, his calloused hands and feet— he could see the determination in his eyes as he folded his hands in his lap and furrowed his brows. “I'm going to defeat Iblis.”

If Omega could laugh, he would. “DOES NOT COMPUTE. SILVER THE HEDGEHOG: SMALL, MORTAL, POWERLESS. IBLIS: GIANT, IMMORTAL, POWERFUL. I ASK AGAIN; WHY IS A TINY MEATBAG LIKE YOU MARCHING TO YOUR DEATH?”

“Because I have to! I have powers no one else has, if there's something I can do, then I wanna help!”

“FURTHER DATA NEEDED. WHAT POWERS DO YOU POSSESS, CHILD?”

“Um, someone told me its called psy– psycho— um—”

“PSYCHOKINESIS.”

“Yes! Psychokinesis!”

There was no telling how powerful the child actually was. Omega knew better than to underestimate children at this point, when three had accompanied him on adventure after adventure before the flames had consumed the world.

They were children. Most of his companions were. 

His chest suddenly felt strange. Felt. He tried to run a diagnosis on his power core, only to find that it was still destroyed. Nothing had changed about his state. What made that feeling?

“Excuse me, uh… sir?”

“OMEGA.”

“Huh?”

“THAT IS MY NAME. E-123 OMEGA.”

“Oh. Well, your eyes are glowing.”

Strange. Someone once said that he was very expressive— he thought it was what she called “sarcasm”, but then went on to explain all the little things she noticed about him, and how he reacts to things. It seemed that, even with almost all of his functions offline, he was still finding ways to express himself.

“Omega?”

“WHAT.”

Silver looked up at him shyly. “Can I lean on you again? It’s very hot in here, and you’re very cool…”

“I LACK THE PROPER MOTOR FUNCTION TO STOP YOU.”

“That’s why I asked.”

A memory surfaced. Covered in rust and cobwebs and ash.

A very long time ago, he was carrying someone gently, as gently as he could. This person was tired— he had been through a lot that week. He could barely stand. So he carried him to his room quietly, trying his best not to tear the blankets he used to tuck him in. He must not have done a very good job at being quiet, because he woke up to a degree.

“Omega,” he mumbled, eyes still half-closed. “Don’t… don’t let anyone do anything to you. Even though you’re… you’re a robot… you should get to be your own person…”

He quietly took a step back. 

“YOUR MUMBLING IS INCOHERENT,” Omega replied. “TELL ME TOMORROW; I WILL STILL BE HERE.”

And he turned.

And left.

Silver, for one reason or another, was dragging up memories that he thought had been trapped in old storage. Maybe it was the fact that he hadn’t had a conversation with another person in over a hundred years. Maybe the long stretches of silence had a way of turning one into a poet.

“YES,” Omega finally replied, “YOU MAY LEAN ON ME.”

Silver crawled over his lap, smushing himself in between Omega’s in-tact arm and torso, forehead leaning against his upper arm. If Omega thought the child would listen, he would warn him about getting tetanus from his rusted fingers.

“I have a question now. Is that okay?”

“YES.”

“How old are you?”

“73,784.8 DAYS HAVE PASSED SINCE MY CREATION.”

“Uhhh… that’s a lot…”

Eggman didn’t program conversion to weeks, months, and years into his internal clock. Eventually it would stop counting up when it hit 999,999.999 days. It also meant that he had to mentally convert it himself. “APPROXIMATELY 200 YEARS.”

“Oh.”

…

The child looked up at him with impossibly large eyes.

“Oh! Were you around before Iblis was, Omega?!”

“YES—”

“Can you tell me about it?! Please! I’ve heard stories but— but not from someone who was there! You gotta tell me!”

Much to his dismay, Omega was finding this child amusing. And familiar. “WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO KNOW?”

“Um, um…” When he was in thought, Silver fidgeted with his poncho’s hem. “Tell me about the sky!”

“...THE SKY?”

“Yes!”

Omega hadn’t been outside for most of his lifespan— he had spent it in the Flame Core. But he did remember that— “IT WAS GIANT.”

A massive expanse that blanketed the entire earth. A constant in a chaotic life. No matter where you went, the sky followed.

“IT WOULD CHANGE COLOR. MANY COMPARED IT TO A PAINTING.”

The child looked up at him with wonder in his eyes, absorbing every syllable.

“IT WAS THE ONE THING IN LIFE THAT REMAINED.”

Absolute awe was written on Silver’s face. 

Omega could make a well-informed guess of what awaited him outside the cavern if he was ever fixed.

“Can you tell me about the people?”

“YOU ASK MANY QUESTIONS.”

“I haven’t gotten this many answers before.”

They were his companions. Teammates. Friends, though, that was pushing it a little, as one of them would say. After so long to think about it, to put his feelings into words, he came to the conclusion that he must have cared about them. They were almost all gone, now. Almost. But he could remember watching them from afar, completely captivated by how they moved. It was all just play to most of them. They would train against each other, race across continents, get takeout in the middle of a mission… Everything was just another day. They laughed in the face of danger. They stood tall. They cared.

Oh, how they cared.

“I BELIEVE THEY WERE NOT VERY DIFFERENT FROM THE PEOPLE OF THIS TIME.”

“No?”

“NO. THEY WERE ALL JUST PEOPLE. MUNDANE.”

Silver knitted his brows together in thought, then pointed past where Omega’s cameras could reach, behind the two of them. “Was he there?”

But he knew.

He knew.

Knew who he was pointing to.

“YES.”

“What’s his name?”

“SHADOW.”

“Why is he trapped in there?”

While Omega couldn’t see him in his position, he knew exactly how Shadow looked. Arms up and cuffed with giant metal rings, attached to a hexagonal cage that stretched over him in a diamond shape, glowing pink and white. The image was committed to his long-term memory.

Perhaps it was better he couldn’t turn to see.

“HUMANITY THOUGHT HE WAS THE CAUSE OF THE FLAMES OF DISASTER.”

Silver stood and walked behind him. The tingle of apprehensiveness of having his back turned to a sentient being was duller than he remembered. “Was he?”

“NO,” he could say for certain. “NO, HE WASN’T.”

“Then why did they do this to him?”

He could remember his claw gripping Shadow’s neck as he begged and pleaded for mercy. He remembered his body acting without his command as he unfeelingly attacked him. He remembered Shadow going limp on the floor, almost dead. He remembered watching as people crowded around him and quickly put him into stasis.

He remembered standing with him,

for centuries.

Maybe as an apology. Maybe because it was what he was built to do.

He remembered.

“HUMANITY FEARS WHAT THEY DON'T UNDERSTAND, CHILD.”

Quietly, Silver walked back to Omega’s side, leaning on him once again, and a little more curled up in his lap than he was before. “I know,” he said. “I know that.” 

Of course he did. Omega could have guessed that, especially in this world; this world that was dominated by terror. After all, Silver was here, alone, at six years old. Whatever reason he had for that couldn't be a pleasant one.

“YOU REMIND ME OF THE PEOPLE I FOUGHT ALONGSIDE BACK THEN.”

“Before Iblis?”

“YES.”

“I do?”

“YOU ARE MARCHING TO FACE IMPOSSIBLE ODDS. YET YOU REMAIN OPTIMISTIC. YOU STRIVE TO PROTECT A BROKEN WORLD THAT HURT YOU.”

Silver fidgeted with the hem of his poncho. His markings pulsed with light. “Even if the whole world was against me,” he whispered, “I'd still protect it.”

“I SEE. INQUIRY;”

“Mhm?”

“HOW CAN YOU FIGHT WHEN YOU KNOW YOU CAN'T WIN?”

For a long time, Silver stayed quiet.

He spoke slowly. “As long as I don't give up… there's hope.”

How optimistic. How cruel, for a child to say those words with a trembling voice. If Omega could, he'd weep. 

Then, he returned to his excited demeanor. “Hey, you know what? I could probably get Shadow out of there!”

“YOU COULD NOT.”

“I could try! If I could wake your friend up, then maybe—”

“CHILD.”

He stayed quiet.

“I MADE A VOW TO PROTECT THOSE I HELD DEAR.” He flickered some of the lights on his body on and off. “I BROKE THAT VOW ONCE. NOW, I WILL REMAIN HERE, BY HIS SIDE, UNTIL I AM GONE.”

Silver was practically curled up in his lap, forehead rested on his chest. His body temperature had dropped significantly since he had woken up. “Okay, then. Hey, I have another question.”

“ASK IT.”

“Can you make that ‘song’ again?”

How optimistic.

How cruel.

“YES. I CAN.”

The piano hummed through his broken speakers. It made ear-splitting popping noises occasionally, but Silver didn't seem to mind. He shifted so his ear was right above Omega’s internal speaker.

His companions would have liked Silver. It was obvious— maybe even Shadow would have. But they were separated by eons.

Omega only hoped the next time they met, it was for a kinder reason.

‘Hoped’...

Silver must have been rubbing off on him. 

[rjzimmerman]

Excerpt from this story from CBS News:

Extreme heat caused by emissions from 111 fossil fuel companies cost an estimated $28 trillion between 1991 and 2020, according to researchers at Dartmouth College.

Their study, which was published Wednesday in "Nature," presents a peer-reviewed method for tying emissions to specific climate harms. Their goal is to help hold companies liable for the cost of extreme weather, similar to holding the tobacco industry liable for lung cancer cases or pharmaceutical companies liable for the opioid crisis.

The research firm Zero Carbon Analytics counts 68 lawsuits filed globally about climate change damage, with more than half of them in the United States.

"We argue that the scientific case for climate liability is closed," wrote the study's authors, Christopher Callahan, who received his PhD from Dartmouth College, and Justin Mankin, a Dartmouth Department of Geography professor.

About a third of the total cost was attributed to five companies, which can be tied to more than $9 trillion in climate damage, according to the study. 

These are the top-emitting companies and the dollar amount the researchers estimate they are responsible for:

Saudi Aramco: $2.05  trillion

Gazprom: $2  trillion

Chevron:  $1.98  trillion 

ExxonMobil:  $1.91 trillion

BP: $1.45  trillion

The researchers figured that every 1% of greenhouse gas put into the atmosphere since 1990 has caused $502 billion in damage from heat alone, which doesn't include the costs incurred by other extreme weather such as hurricanes, droughts and floods. Emissions data is taken from the public Carbon Majors database, they said. 

They used 1,000 different computer simulations to translate those emissions into changes for Earth's global average surface temperature by comparing it to a world without that company's emissions.

Using this approach, they determined that pollution from Chevron, for example, has raised the Earth's temperature by .045 degrees Fahrenheit.

[covid-safer-hotties]

Also preserved in our archive

If you needed any more reasons to mask... I can confirm that RSV is no walk in the park.

by Katherine Kahn

In the years before the introduction of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccines, the virus was linked with substantial hospitalizations, intensive care unit (ICU) admissions, and in-hospital deaths among adults, according to a cross-sectional analysis of CDC data.

Adjusted analysis showed estimated RSV-associated hospitalization rates ranging from 48.9 per 100,000 adults during the 2016-2017 respiratory season to 76.2 per 100,000 in 2017-2018, reported researchers led by Fiona Havers, MD, MHS, of CDC's National Center for Immunizations and Respiratory Diseases in Atlanta.

Estimated hospitalization rates were highest among adults ages 75 and older, ranging from 244.7 per 100,000 in 2022-2023 to 411.4 per 100,000 in 2017-2018, findings in JAMA Network Openopens in a new tab or window indicated.

In addition, annual estimates of RSV-associated ICU admissions ranged from 24,400 to 34,900 for the 2016-2017 and 2017-2018 seasons, respectively, while estimated annual in-hospital deaths ranged from 4,680 in 2018-2019 to 8,620 in 2017-2018.

"These findings validated RSV as a substantial contributor to respiratory illness and hospitalization among adults, especially older adults," Havers and colleagues wrote, noting that up to 136,000 estimated annual hospitalizations occurred among those 65 years or older.

Researchers used data from the CDC's RSV Hospitalization Surveillance Network (RSV-NET)opens in a new tab or window to arrive at their estimates. From the database, they identified a total of 16,575 laboratory-confirmed RSV-associated hospitalizations from the 2016-2017 to the 2022-2023 respiratory virus seasons. To estimate RSV burden, Havers and colleagues used adjustment multipliers to correct for the relatively low proportion of adults who were actually tested for RSV while hospitalized, as well as test sensitivity.

Of note, RSV severity "appeared to be comparable to or possibly more than the severity of influenza and SARS-CoV-2" in hospitalized adults. In the study, about 19% of adults hospitalized with RSV required ICU care and 4.3% died in the hospital. In comparison, CDC data from the 2021-2022 season found that 15.5% of hospitalized adults with COVID-19 required ICU admission and 4.6% died, and 13.3% of patients hospitalized for the flu were admitted to the ICU and 4.6% died, they explained.

Also, estimates of RSV-associated hospitalizations in older adults were comparable to the burden of influenza-associated hospitalizations during milder influenza seasons.

Hospital deaths associated with RSV were highest among those ages 75 or older, at 5.8%. From the 2016-2017 respiratory season through the 2022-2023 seasons, adults 75 and older accounted for 45.6% of the hospitalizations, 38.6% of the ICU admissions, and 58.7% of the in-hospital deaths associated with RSV.

Deaths due to RSV were probably underestimated because the analysis did not include deaths after hospital discharge, Havers and colleagues noted.

The first-ever RSV vaccineopens in a new tab or window (Arexvy) received FDA approval in May 2023, followed by approval of a second vaccineopens in a new tab or window (Abrysvo) in June 2023. An mRNA RSV vaccineopens in a new tab or window (mResvia) was approved earlier this year as well. CDC recommendationsopens in a new tab or window now say that all adults ages 75 and older should receive a single dose of an RSV vaccine, as should those ages 60 to 74 years who are at increased risk of severe RSV disease.

"Given the large numbers of potentially vaccine-preventable hospitalizations and deaths associated with RSV, increasing vaccine coverage among adults at highest risk could reduce associated hospitalizations and severe clinical outcomes," the authors wrote.

Atypical patterns of RSV circulation occurred during the COVID pandemic. Lower hospitalization rates were observed during 2020-2021 and 2021-2022, whereas increased circulation and an earlier peak occurred during 2022-2023.

On average, only 43.5% of the hospitalized adults with acute respiratory illness whose data was included in the RSV-NET catchment were tested for RSV. During 2016-2017, RSV testing was performed in 30.4% of adults ages 18-49 years with acute respiratory illness, 33.1% in those ages 50-64 years, 31.5% for those ages 65-74 years, and just 27.7% of those ages 75 and older. During the 2022-2023 season, these proportions increased to 56.1%, 61.2%, and 61.6% for those age groups, respectively.

Clinicians frequently don't test for RSV in hospitalized adults with respiratory illness because of limited awareness of RSV as an important pathogen and because results do not generally change disease management, the study authors noted. Importantly, standard tests for RSV are now recognized to have lower sensitivity than previously thought.

The analysis had several limitations, including that RSV-NET data may not be generalizable to the entire country. Also, assumptions used in the adjustment analysis may have overestimated or underestimated the burden of RSV disease.

Study link: jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2826104

[stylesclarified]

Hi! http://youtube.com/post/Ugkx3ofi1sUAUbsISr7TwTu5Tp7JN853X8D6?si=hkiK_ll2BTkcT0O6

Are you able to debunk this?

I'm actually working on another post atm (in between a million work meetings that are driving me up the wall), but I think this should be tackled relatively fast, it's so nonsensical.

For years, we've been fed a narrative that positioned Harry Styles as the creative centerpiece of One Direction.

No, we haven’t. Louis and Liam have discussed songwriting in countless interviews. Just straight up false from the start.

But what if I told you the documented evidence tells a completely different story?

"The" documented evidence shows none of them had significant creative input. I discussed this in detail here.

Let's start with the facts. According to official BMI and ASCAP databases

First of all, BMI and ASCAP share a database called Songview. If you don’t even know what you’re talking about, maybe sit this one out.

– the registries that track songwriting credits –

They’re not “registries”; they’re Performance Rights Organizations. It’s obvious from the start that this person has no real understanding of these topics.

Louis Tomlinson contributed to a staggering 38 songs across One Direction's five albums. Liam Payne was right behind him with 37 credits.

It’s actually 37 for Louis and 34 for Liam, but that’s largely irrelevant since their contributions are usually estimated at only 5-10% of the full songwriting credit. I broke it down in detail in the post I linked above.

Meanwhile, Harry Styles accumulated just 20 credits – the fewest of any member.

Well, actually, Harry wrote 21 tracks—fewer than Liam and Louis but more than Niall (17) and Zayn (11)—so this claim is just plain wrong.

You can quite literally count the writing credits from this article. Each of them is mentioned once in the main text and once at the bottom (except Zayn, who also appears in the notes), so just subtract 2 from the total count (or 3 in Zayn’s case).

These aren't opinions, folks – these are verified industry records.

This is just a goofy thing to say after providing verifiably false information.

Julian Bunetta, one of One Direction's main producers, confirmed this in a 2018 Billboard interview, noting that "Louis and Liam were always the most active in writing sessions. They had natural instincts for pop structure that were remarkable." Yet somehow, this reality never made it into the mainstream narrative.

So, that's a fucking lie:

I have a feeling we'll see a bunch of these made-up quotes.

The disparity extends far beyond songwriting. Multiple sound engineers and producers have gone on record describing how...

Source? Who were these engineers and producers? Does this person know what "going on record" means?

If they'd "gone on record"... there... had... to be a record. Where is it? We need names and dates...

Louis would "stay until 3 a.m. tweaking backing vocals that weren't even his,"

There's so much wrong in such a tiny sentence.

1- Louis himself can't sing. His own vocal takes, the final ones in 1D albums, are often flat. And I'm not even talking about backing vocals. I'm talking about the main vocals.

2- What does "tweaking" even mean in this context? It can't be singing over them, because he barely sings any backing vocals as it is. Does this person mean go over them on autotune? Stack them? That would land him a producer role and he has never produced a single 1D track.

Producers for Midnight Memories:

Julian Bunetta, Carl Falk, Tom Fletcher, Teddy Geiger, Danny Jones, Jacknife Lee, Dougie Poynter, Robert John "Mutt" Lange, Matt Rad, John Ryan, Jamie Scott, Toby Smith, Ryan Tedder

Producers for Four:

Julian Bunetta, Pär Westerlund, John Ryan, Teddy Geiger, Steve Robson, Matt Rad, Jamie Scott, Ian Franzino, Afterhrs

Producers for Made in the AM:

Julian Bunetta, Jesse Shatkin, John Ryan, Afterhrs, Johan Carlsson, Jamie Scott

3- Where, physically, did he stay until 3 AM? Because they had zero input in albums 1 and 2, and most parts of albums 3 to 5 was recorded in hotel rooms while they were touring.

Like this:

They recorded in their hotel rooms putting mattresses up to help with soundproofing. Most of the last several albums were recorded this way.

There wasn't really a lot of studio time. And if there had been studio time, it'd have to be booked. You can only use it for the amount of time you've hired it. You can't just stay until 3 AM.

Louis wouldn't be able to go over vocal tracks on his own either. He'd need the vocal stems and the programs to edit them, which he absolutely wouldn't have. I mean, the fact that he was never credited as a producer says enough.

while Liam was "meticulous about vocal takes, often doing many more than required."

I’m sure Liam would’ve loved to be meticulous. Honestly, I think they all would’ve preferred that, but that’s not how it actually worked in reality. It’s one of the reasons their albums sound so poorly produced. They didn’t have time for multiple vocal takes—they were recording in their free time between shows while touring. Their voices were already exhausted from performing, and they just didn’t have the physical time to do things properly.

Just listen to the vocals on any random 1D song. They sound robotic and underdeveloped, and the way they sit in the mix feels awkward. At times, they even sound like chipmunks. The one I'm linking below, Fireproof, is one of the better-produced tracks they have and it still sounds like shit.

Compare to any random song of Harry's. Listen to the way the backing vocals sound and how the entire sound is mixed...

Or Niall's... and this song was produced by the same team as 1D!

Liam did not do "many more vocal takes than required" because none of them did.

According to these sources, Harry was more of a "get in, do your part, get out type" in the studio.

Once again, who are these sources? Names? Where did they say this? The fact that 1D barely went into the studio already makes this whole "statement" sus.

Even more revealing are the accounts of how band members supported each other. When Niall Horan struggled with confidence in his vocals, it was Louis and Liam who consistently advocated for him.

What’s the connection between a lack of confidence in one’s vocals and someone advocating for you? Does this person even know what "advocating" means? If Niall was struggling with his confidence, what he needed was support and a hug, not advocacy.

Former tour personnel have described how Louis would declare "If Niall's not singing, I'm not singing" when management tried to minimize Horan's contributions.

Source? Why would "tour personnel" know about this? This is the kind of conversation 1D would have with their producers, and tour personnel wouldn’t have been present in their hotel rooms or in the studio (the few times they recorded there).

Niall always had more solos than Louis, so why would Louis even say that in the first place? And why would management have any control over anyone’s contributions? An artist’s management doesn’t get to dictate what happens in the studio—that’s 100% up to the producers. Sure, the producers might be following orders, but those orders would come from the record label, not from the management.

Meanwhile, Liam provided technical coaching and emotional support to both Niall and Zayn when they faced challenges.

Liam provided emotional support to Zayn? The same Liam who had an actual fistfight with Zayn backstage? If you say so lmao

What's fascinating is that we simply don't see similar accounts of Harry taking on these supportive roles.

Harry at his guitarist Mitch's concert in New York (left) and at his keyboardist Madi Diaz's concert in London (right)

Harry signed Mitch to his record label...

When one of his live band members left to pursue her solo career, Harry gave her an opening act slot in her home country—for his sold stadium show there, btw. This is them right after:

This is Harry cheering on Pauli Lovejoy, his musical director, when Pauli opened for him in Wembley:

All of Harry's live band members got an opening act slot at Wembley. I think the man is as supportive as a person can be.

We didn't get to see this side of any of them in 1D because 1D's team had other priorities.

Sandy Beales, their touring bassist, revealed that "when Niall was going through that rough patch with his confidence, it was Louis and Liam who were constantly building him up. Harry was more... separate. Not in a bad way, just focused on different things."

So, Sandy Beales never said this. I know, shocking this person would just... make it up. I searched up and down for this quote and it straight up doesn't exist. I don't think Sandy would be too pleased to see his name being used in this way.

There's no indication Niall ever suffered with his confidence, for the record. That's literally old Larry fan fiction that Niall himself has denied.

This isn't about tearing down Harry Styles. He brought undeniable charisma and a distinctive voice to One Direction.

This is absolutely about tearing down Harry Styles, and the ending of this text will show it.

But the evidence suggests that the foundation of One Direction's musical output – the songwriting, the production involvement, the vocal arrangements – was built more substantially by his bandmates, particularly Louis Tomlinson and Liam Payne.

Once again with "the" evidence while not providing any, let alone all of it.

Louis and Liam had ZERO involvement in 1D's production and vocal arrangements. Z E R O. And their involvement in songwriting was minimal. They have a lot of credits, sure, but the involvement in each of those songs was minimal. I literally broke it down in a post not too long ago, which I have already linked.

So why the disconnect? Media studies professor Dr. Emma Collins may have the answer. Her 2022 research documented how management deliberately positioned Styles as the band's centerpiece regardless of his actual contributions. She found that Styles received 64% more media coverage than Tomlinson despite the latter's substantially larger creative input. "What we observed was a textbook case of media narrative construction," Collins wrote.

Hey, so, quick question... is this fanfiction? Am I reading fanfiction?

Like...?

Once again, "management" would have no hand in this. That would be their publicists. The insistence of this obscure, almighty figure of "management" denotes that this person is a straight up conspiracy theorist. Probably a former Larrie disillusioned with Harry's choices and how much more successful he is than the rest of his former bandmates, particularly Louis.

This manufactured narrative continued into their solo careers. Industry reports show that Columbia Records allocated approximately three times the marketing budget to Styles' debut compared to his former bandmates.

Why would Columbia, which only signed Harry as a solo artist, allocate any marketing budget to the other four? This person isn't just making shit up—they actually don't understand a single part of what they're talking about with such confidence. This is fanfiction.

Louis is signed to BMG, Liam was signed to Republic, Niall is signed to Capitol Records, and Zayn was first signed to RCA, and is currently signed to Mercury Records.

If this person is trying to say that Columbia allocated three more times the marketing budget to Harry than his bandmate's record companies did them, she should've... said that. And how would that be Columbia's or Harry's responsibility?

Industry reports show no numbers for any marketing budget, btw. That's not information you can actually get as a layman. We know Harry's three record deal was for aproximately $80 million, but that folds together production, distribution, and promotion, so it tells us factually nothing about his marketing budget. We have no numbers for any of the others.

His connection to Jeffrey Azoff, son of industry powerhouse Irving Azoff, provided extraordinary industry access that the others simply didn't have.

Okay... and??? How is that Harry's moral failure? The others should make connections then. They had the exact same tools and access Harry did.

By 2015, during the "On The Road Again" tour, crew members noted Styles' increasing isolation from group dynamics. Tour photographer Cal Aurand revealed that "Harry had essentially created his own operation within the operation. Different transportation schedules, different security, different accommodations." This separation foreshadowed his clean break from the band once the hiatus began.

In a shocking turn of events, Cal Aurand didn't say this. In fact, Cal is a very close friend of Harry's and would probably chop his tongue off before divulging anything about band dynamics to the media or "insiders", positive or negative.

This is Jackson, Cal Aurand's son...

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Cal Aurand (@calaurand)

You know, this Jackson

Harry's godson, Jackson. Who was born after the band broke up...

The pattern has continued throughout Styles' solo career. While Tomlinson, Horan, and Payne have repeatedly supported each other's projects, attended each other's performances, and spoken warmly about their shared experience, Styles has maintained a deliberate distance from his One Direction past.

Harry Styles maintained a deliberate instant from his 1D past by.... performing a 1D song every single time he did a live show? Including singing it with his guest when he headlined Coachella?

Or what about the several minutes he dedicated to the band in his documentary, which you can watch here at about 14 minutes:

Also... Harry very much has seen Niall in concert...

And vice-versa...

As music journalist Alexa Richards observed: "Louis, Niall and Liam discuss One Direction as a formative, positive experience and maintain connections with each other. Harry speaks of it as something entirely in the past, a chapter closed rather than part of an ongoing story."

Is anyone else shocked to learn that "music journalist Alexa Richards" doesn't exist?

Her quote doesn't exist either:

What would be the problem with One Direction being "a chapter closed"? It's been TEN YEARS.

What emerges from all these accounts is not a simplistic villain-and-hero narrative, but rather a more nuanced understanding of how the music industry creates and maintains certain perceptions regardless of behind-the-scenes reality. It's about how media machinery can elevate one member while minimizing the critical contributions of others.

All these accounts are made up. This person didn't include a single real and verifiable quote and all the stats they did include are verifiably wrong.

In Louis Tomlinson's 2022 documentary "All of Those Voices," he reflected: "I realized I'd spent so much time trying to make sure the band succeeded that I hadn't always fought for my own place in it." It's a poignant statement that speaks volumes about the unbalanced dynamics at play.

I haven't finished watching Louis' documentary (I've been putting myself through it to write another post), so he very well could've said this. That sounds like his repeated underdog narrative. I also wouldn't be surprised if this person made it up either.

It's not "a poignant statement that speaks volumes about the unbalanced dynamics at play," because if Louis did say this, he still didn't mention anyone else or any dynamics.

Also, the documentary came out in 2023.

I encourage you to look beyond the carefully crafted narratives we're often presented with. The true story of One Direction's success is far more complex – and in many ways, far more interesting – than what made it into the headlines.

You should take your own advice because this was a mess.

A#HarryStyles is a selfish bitch no doesn’t deserve someone as amazing as #LouisTomlinson.

Ah, the truth comes out. That's what's behind this drivel. This is what The Hags do every single time, btw. They're all former Larries who hate that Harry has become so much more successful and killed all their Larry (and One Direction returning) fantasies. They behave like bitter exes themselves. Not only as if "Larry" was a real thing, but also, as if they knew for a fact they had broken up, and they were personally involved in said breakup.

#OneDirection will never reunite because Harry sold his soul for fame and the others want nothing to do with him.

This is plucked straight up out from the blog by The Mayor Of The Hags. YAWN.

He lost the brightness in his eyes because he sold his soul.

Yeah, look at this soulless man

He lost the brightness in his eyes, you hear me!

Do these people think we don't have an internet connection? What's going onnnnn?

Harry is one big humiliation ritual in front of us.

The whole "humiliation ritual" talking point is nothing more than a far right conspiracy theory. Just FYI.

If #LarryStylinson is true … Louis is the prize.

It's not true. And Harry has better taste than that.

Harry is just a miserable mess enslaved by the industry.

If he's so enslaved, how come he's been able to not release music for nearly three years? How does "the industry" allow that and why?

I'm trying to reason with a cuckoo, of course.

Louis is the one who is free.

Both are free. They're rich white men who don't have to work another day in their lives to live comfortably forever.

GET. A. JOB.

Speaking of, I have to get back to mine. Bye!

[alexa-yukiyu]

Locked Database ( Mihawk x f!reader x Crocodile)

A/N yoooooo, I spent yesterday and today makind this, got stuck a lot but I was determined to make it happened. This one is darker than what you guys are used from me but I wanted feedback that part of me a little bit. Million thanks to @quinloki and @💧Anon for giving me inspiration and ideas for this 👀.

Reader here is replaced by Dokucha as a place holder which stands for Reader in japanese

Dividers by @/saradika

“You sure stand out, don’t you, Mr. President?” Crocodile growled, shoving the newly distributed paper on Buggy’s Throat

“It wasn’t me, I swear,” he cries

“Then how the hell do you explain it?” He said, sending a swift kick his way, ignoring the pain-filled groan that escaped him.

“I should kill you for that, clown,” he said, inching his hook closer to his neck, pausing as a knife was sent his way, passing right through his sandy body.

Mihawk continued sipping on his wine as a knife was sent his way, simply edging away slightly to avoid it, yellow irises narrowing at a woman standing before them

“Leave him alone,” she growls, a pistol drawn and pointed their way

“Dokucha” Cries Buggy

“Mr.1,” Crocodile calls, dismissedly

“Let him go,” she demanded, breath hitching as an arm wrapped around her neck, a sharp edge to it.

“Drop the weapon,” a voice grumbled behind her.

She grits her teeth, complying as the hold around her tightened, the blade digging into her skin.

“Who are you?” Crocodile asks, raising an eyebrow when his question goes unanswered.

Mihawk takes notice of this and places his wine down, and in one swift movement, takes hold of Yoru and places the sharp edge against Buggy’s neck

“Stop!” She said, trying to make a run towards him being held back by the person behind her

“Who are are you?” Mihawk Drawls

“…”

He quirks a brow at this, digging his sword closer to the Buggy, receiving a whine from the severed head

“Im his sister,” she growls

“Of this clown?” Mihawk inquires, glancing at her

“Dokucha, don’t! You moron, get out of here!” The clown pleads

“Not without you.”

“Wonder if selling you into slavery will be able to get me back all the money this one owes me.”

“Don’t touch h- Agh,” he groans as Crocodile tightens his hold on him

“Perhaps the money she gets us will be enough so we don’t have to sell you, then we can kill you here and now.”

“W-Wait” she exclaims

“You’re starting to annoy me.”

“You said you were starting a new business, right?”

He hums, gesturing to the person behind them

She sighs as the person releases her

“I'm a prodigy at statistics and economy.” She starts

“I have the ability of a devil fruit aiding me as well, makes me a human database, I can calculate in seconds, provide prognostics just as fast, I can reach valuable contacts, gather the information you can only imagine, run enough statistics to power enterprises ”she continued, getting on her knees in front of them

“I know he is an idiot, but he is still my brother; please spare him. I will work for your company; I can easily raise it and make it a formidable force, so please don’t kill my brother.” she spoke bowing her head

Mihawk takes a glance over at the begging woman

“Come here.”

She looked up at the swordsman, slowly getting up and approaching the men

“If you truly are related to this one, then you have to prove your worth,” Crocodile said, pulling out a paper and handing it to her

“These are the current funds we have. Thanks to your brother, we also have the investments we must make for the guild. Tell me how you would make it work.”

She gingerly took the paper and looked it over, her brain beginning to perform calculations, pulling information and strategies from the network, trying to find the best fit

“Well?”

“First, I would take into account the possible outcomes and expenses of these upcoming investments and create an estimated balance sheet of the income and expenses that will be generated as opposed to current investments. After that, I will assess the risk that will be involved with each expected investment and determine the expected rate of return. Additionally, I will create a comprehensive budget and forecast for expected revenues and expenses to ensure that the guild has enough resources to carry out its operations while remaining solvent. I would move funds between areas they are more needed in, I would eliminate funds given to man-power and employees to the guild; my brother has no shortage of workers, so that is something the funds should not be wasted in," she rambles

Crocodile stares at her for a few seconds until an ominous laugh escapes him

“Well, Well, seems one of the siblings is actually competent.” He stays with a grin, letting out a cloud of smoke

“Why would a smart thing like you sacrifice yourself for him?”

“Are you deaf? He is my brother, an idiot, but still my brother; I'm not leaving him to die to the likes of you.”

“That so?”

“Yes,” she growls

He hums, sending a kick to the body in front of him, the smile growing on his face at the painful whines that escaped Buggy as he did so

“Why would you do that?!” She cries, bending down to help her brother, only to stop as a sword is placed at her neck, silently urging her to rise again

She throws a glance at Mihawk as she slowly stands up again

“What are you doing?”

“I don’t appreciate the tone you are taking; if memory serves me correctly, You were the one who got on their knees begging for mercy, and we heard your plea, and in return, you insulted us?” He spoke, raising Yoru and letting a small smile as Dokucha tried to rise with it to avoid being nicked

“Don’t touch her, please! Spare her!”

Crocodile grunts, growing tired of the bluehead’s whines and sending his hook smashing to his temple, knocking him out

“Buggy!” Dokusha cried, hissing when the sword dug into her skin as she tried to step closer to her brother

“Now we can have a talk without that clown interrupting,” Crocodile spoke, letting out another train of smoke escape him

“Need I remind you that you are not the one at the advantage here, Darling?” he began leaning back

“You are outwitted, outnumbered, and outpowered; you stand no chance to leave of this unharmed, much less that brother of yours; we decided to hear your deal out but never said we would agree.”

“…”

“You certainly are an asset, and now that we know what you are capable of, we can’t allow you to leave.”

“We will spare his life; we will let him become the figurehead of crossguild, make him the scapegoat.” Mihawk continues

“A coward like him is sure to obey without complaint, especially with you in the picture. But that also brings us to you,” Crocodile spoke, looking at her mockingly. Turning to one of his subordinates and began to mutter some orders to them

“Eyes on me,” Mihawk called, pulling her attention away from the scarred man and back to him

“Seems you have more common sense and pride than him, but don’t forget where you stand.”

She grits her teeth, holding back her tongue from snapping back at him, knowing that no matter what she said, no matter what came out her mouth, he was not wrong. Her ability was the only thing keeping her alive and on their radar; she wasn’t and probably would never be a significant threat to the two Warlords.

He smiles at this

“Down,” he orders

“I ‘m not a damn mutt.”

“Yes, a dog wouldn't be this much trouble to train,” he muses

“You da-

“Down, girl,” he repeats, a firmer tone in his voice

She glares at him as she eventually does as he wants and kneels on the ground in front of them

“That will do,” she hears Crocodile mutter as the subordinate returns with something in his hands; she tries to turn to asses what the item

Was but was stopped by the sword again

“Eyes on me,” the swordsman repeats

“You have no idea what you are dealing with,” she sneers

“We do. Thanks to your pleas and little demonstration we do, and that’s why we will take precautions,” the familiar voice of Crocodile rumbles behind her; before she jad time to register his words, the sound of something snapping, and the slight weight on her shoulders answer her question

“You have quite the ability; we can’t have you trying to communicate with someone who would create a problem for us or divulging important information, so from now on, we get to decide when and how you use that devil fruit of yours.”

A feeling of dread envelops her as she tries to enter her mindscape only to be unable to find anything

“Sea stone,” Crocodile confirms

“As I said, we get to decide when and how you use it from now on, little Plover.”

“So let’s talk about what is going to happen now”

This just makes me feel some sorta waaay, what are we thinking @quinloki i, @💧anon? I am having the time of my life with this one 😂. So proud of that last part with Mihawk, really like how it turned out. Also ya’ll if that small statistic/economy talk din’t make any sense it’s because I have no idea what the hell im talking about 😂 I just used fancy words I heard my dad use, since he is a banker I figured they would fit the context.

Taglist:

@imaginarydreams

@amethystviolin

@h0n3y-l3m0n05