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frostyharbor · 16 days ago

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MODERN WARMANCY

INDEX + INTRO

A Wizarding World x Call of Duty crossover simon "ghost" riley x witch!Reader disclaimer: the usual "JK Rowling sucks" and "I don't condone military violence"

When you join the quiet little Office of Magitech Integration at the Ministry of Magic, you're granted a top secret security clearance. It doesn't become relevant until years later, when your boss surprises you with a shocking revelation and the real reason why you were hired:

To create magically modified Muggle weapons to combat the rising Dark Lord Makarov.

There's only one task force mad enough to test such abominations. Their captain strikes you as a bit insane. The two sergeants treat you like a sibling. And the one in the mask? Well, he doesn't really have much to do with you at all.

At least, not at first.

A little adventure, told through snippets and one shots, on mixing magic and modern warfare. Reading the intro for context is recommended, but most other parts should be standalone and can be read out of order. All parts, unless otherwise stated in the chapter, are rated T. tags: crossover au, canon-typical violence, fluff, slice of life, background plot, romance

PARTS

UNBURIED | FAMILIAR | MOBILE HOME | ARTS & ENCHANTMENTS

↓ READ BELOW FOR THE INTRODUCTION ↓

“Welcome to the Office of Magitech Integration.”

“Nothing below an ‘Exceeds Expectations’ on your NEWTS. An Outstanding in Ancient Runes and Magical Theory.”

Bartholomew Thorne pauses, looking up at you over your credentials to give you an approving smile.

You smile back, aiming for cool and unaffected. Inside, your heart is racing. Please, please, please…

He taps another file on his desk. “Led the House E.L.F. project, too?” At your nod, he laughs. “Caused quite the stir at the ministry, that one.”

You remember. Your final two years at Hogwarts had been spent working with a development team on the House Enchanted Labor Familiar, House E.L.F. for short. After four semesters of hard work, a crude yet serviceable machine, equipped with the latest artificial intelligence and an arsenal of housekeeping charms, had been presented to the Ministry.

Magical Ethics had shaken their heads gravely over the little bot. The Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures had immediately submitted a flurry of complaints, stating this overreach in magitech would replace “willing elf labor”.

Your only support had come from the House Elf Rights Advocates, who had enthusiastically applauded the innovation. But they occupied a corner of the Ministry even smaller than the one you currently sat in, and in the end it hadn’t amounted to much.

Back in the present, Thorne hovers only a brief moment longer over your paperwork before setting it neatly aside.

Folding his hands on the desk, he looks at you directly. “Now, why do you want to join this office?”

It’s a question you’re ready for. “Because I believe that the Muggle world has a lot to offer us, sir.” It’s a dangerous phrase you wouldn’t even think to utter anywhere else in the Ministry. “The Ministry still uses paper airplane memos to send information between departments; Muggles can do it in a second over email.”

You hesitate, and Thorne waves you on with a careless gesture. “We still use quills and parchment–they use pens and paper. If we need information, we have to go to a library—they have everything you could ever possibly need to know stored digitally, where anyone can access it at any time.” You catch your breath. “There is so much that we could do better—faster—if we’re given the chance to develop it.”

“It’s an uphill battle,” he warns gravely. “There’s too much old blood still in the ministry to accept hybrid products.”

“I understand.”

“And what do you bring to the table?”

“I’m smart.” You lift your chin. “I’m smart, I know what I’m doing, and the E.L.F. project gave me the experience to learn what works and what doesn’t. It taught me how to work on a team, too. And,” you force a little extra steel in your voice, letting it harden your tone. “I’m not afraid of a little challenge.”

Thorne’s eyes gleam. He stands and, a little shaky after your declaration, you stand too.

“Well, then.” He offers his hand out to you and you take it. A flicker of electricity runs up your fingers and into your arm, like an oath seeping into the skin.

“Welcome to the Office of Magitech Integration.”

For an office you had assumed was generally ignored by the Ministry, the OMI is shockingly opulent.

You had been expecting basement-level offices, dim halls, and cramped workspaces. Instead, you walk into a bright and spacious atrium, the glass ceiling charmed to show a sunny blue sky. It’s so masterfully done that you can feel the warmth of the artificial sunlight on your back as you approach the front desk.

The receptionist looks up at you kindly, greeting you by name.

“That’s me,” you confirm, a little surprised. “How did you know?”

“I’ve got your badge here somewhere—it’s got your picture on it. Just a minute.” He shuffles through the stacks of paperwork on his desk. As he looks, more memos materialize in his inbox tray, which chimes a pleasant little melody at the new additions.

“What is that?” You ask, leaning over the desk for a closer look.

“Oh, those? Our Instant Inboxes.” He yanks the new paperwork out of the tray. “Whenever the boss wants to give us something, he just writes our name on it, slides it into his outbox, and—poof!” He laughs a bit sourly. “Now it’s on my desk.”

Now that you think of it, you hadn’t seen one flying piece of paper since you had walked into the office. That old dog, you think. He let me ramble about the Ministry memos and didn’t even mention this once.

“Here we are!” The man exclaims, fishing out your badge from between two files. He dangles it out to you by the lanyard, and you slide it over your head. “Now, Thorne wants you in Experimental Prototyping, but we’re still waiting on a few things to clear with your security clearance. Until then, you’ll be shadowing an officer on the Ethics and Oversight Council.” He laughs when you can’t disguise your grimace fast enough. “I know, boring old lot, aren’t they? But it’s good to learn sometimes what you can’t do before you learn what you can.”

“And,” he gives you a conspiratorial wink, “the atrium’s just for the stuffy officials. The real office is down that hall. I hope you weren’t hoping for peace and quiet.”

“No, sir.”

He waves you on with another laugh.

You walk away, your new badge suddenly heavy around your neck. The blow of being shuffled into Ethics of all places momentarily overshadows all else. You had been itching to get your hands on some tech, to strip it down and put it back together better.

Everyone starts somewhere, you remind yourself. Patience.

It isn’t until you’re halfway down the hall, headed for the door marked EOC, that the other details catch up to you.

Hang on…security clearance?

Much to your surprise, the EOC is much more lenient than the Department of Magical Ethics.

“They’re the real duffers,” one of them grumbles to you over morning tea, a few weeks into your assignment. “We know how to bend the rules a bit.”

You suppose they have to. Even though you’re not working firsthand on any projects, the ones that cross your desk for review are outrageous in nature.

On one memorable occasion, a handler wearing thick dragonhide gloves had brought in a mystery object swaddled in magic-suppressing blankets.

“You’re joking,” you say flatly when the blanket is opened to reveal a keyboard, of all things.

“I wish,” the senior officer says gravely. “It was supposed to motivate the user to work on their projects, but made them obsessed instead. The tester hasn’t slept in three days and had to be pried away.”

She flips the keyboard over, indicating the obvious runes etched into the back. You recognize Dagaz and Inguz. Completion. Goals. Strangely, there’s still a battery compartment.

You point it out. “Funny that they’d leave that if it runs off of magic.”

Together, you open the compartment and shake out the batteries onto the desk. They’re not a brand you recognize.

“Careful!” The senior barks when you automatically reach for one. You pull back your hand, but not before a fingertip brushes the side of one battery. You’re immediately seized with the urge to do something, anything, just as long as you’re doing it—

She performs a diagnostic spell with a graceful arc of her wand, hissing as red sparks fly over the table. “That’s why we didn’t catch it the first time—they snuck the charms in through the bloody batteries, not the keyboard!”

You get a front row seat to the row that ensues between Ethics and Prototyping, fighting the urge to make yourself small when some of the developers’ eyes find you standing behind the senior ethics officer. I’m on your side, you want to say, but at the same time, you understand the EOC’s reasoning.

“Promise me you won’t cut corners, kid,” your mentor seethes when you walk back to her office. “In this line of work, shortcuts get people killed.”

It’s a promise you try to adhere to in the following years.

You officially enter Experimental Prototyping and Development after two months spent shadowing the EOC.

After the time spent among filing cabinets and old rule books—if you never saw a copy of the Ministry Rules of Experimental Procedures again, you’d die happy—the labs are a breath of fresh air. Fresh being relative; it’s mainly oil, ozone, and a whiff of gunpowder.

If the EOC is willing to bend some rules, the EPD is willing to completely bulldoze them.

“Don’t you worry about those old bags,” one of your new coworkers advises you after you hesitate over the latest project—a Muggle photocopier with the capacity to copy even magical moving pictures. You’re impressed until you notice the flaw—every individual in the picture can walk out of their frame and into the frame of another.

It’s a level of magic you were familiar with from the portraits at Hogwarts, but you didn’t think that it extended to the average photograph.

The original photo had been of an old couple waving, but now, ten copies of the man occupy one frame while ten copies of the woman occupy another. The remaining eight photographs stand empty.

As you study the picture, one of the men makes eye contact with you and taps on the front of the picture, where glass would be if it were framed. He squints his eyes, leans forward, and breathes in front of him; a tiny cloud of fog appears on the photo. With one tiny finger, he writes two words: SU PLEH.

HELP US.

Blood running cold, you slam the photo facedown on the table.

Your coworker doesn’t even look up. “Gotta push the limits somewhere, or else you get nowhere, right?”

It’s your first real brush with the darker side of development. An eerie, lingering reminder that magic—and its users—doesn’t always play by the rules. But it isn't the last. In fact, it’s nothing compared to what comes later.

Years after the photocopier, when the true reason for your security clearance finally reveals itself, you’ll look back on this moment and think: That was only the beginning.

You’re tinkering with a laptop when a tap on the door breaks your focus.

It’s Thorne. There are a few more wrinkles around his eyes and mouth, and his hair has begun to go gray at the roots, but he more or less looks like the same man that had hired you four years ago.

If it had been anyone else, you'd have dismissed them. But Thorne’s not just your boss—he’s a mentor and a friend. And he wouldn’t interrupt without good reason.

Setting the laptop aside, you wave him in. With a flick of your wand, the pile of blueprints and design schematics cluttering up your extra desk chair banish themselves to a box in the corner of the room.

He sits, and you follow. He’s not looking at you; he’s eyeing the innards of the laptop currently strewn across your desk.

When he makes no move to speak, you clear your throat awkwardly.

“How can I help you, sir?”

He glances up sharply as though startled, drumming his fingers on the arm of the chair.

For a moment, he still doesn’t speak.

Then: “What do you know about this new Dark Lord?”

It’s a conversation-starter so far out of left field that it hits you like a brick. After gathering your wits, you scramble for some sort of coherent answer. “Er, I…I guess what the Prophet’s been reporting, sir.”

And the Prophet had been reporting very little.

Vladimir Makarov had been a name whispered in the halls of Hogwarts from your sixth year onwards. By the time you graduated, professors had adopted a permanently pinched, worried look. Professor Longbottom, if you recall correctly, had been especially stricken, and was absent from the school more often than not.

Makarov, a young Russian upstart, had been weaving in and out of the shadows since, making headlines one year and becoming virtually invisible for the next two. What baffled the Ministry, according to the Prophet, was that he and his followers didn’t appear to have any sort of manifesto. No cause.

Just chaos.

Thorne smiles grimly. “I’ll get straight to the point. Makarov is a dark wizard, yes. A powerful one. But he’s been working with Muggle fringe groups to extend his reach in their world as well.” He holds up a hand as you open your mouth. “Wait a moment. It gets worse. He’s been working with PMCs—Private Military Companies,” he clarifies, seeing your expression. “These groups are wreaking absolute havoc in the Muggle world.”

After a long pause, he saves the worst blow for last. “We suspect that they have been provided with magically-modified Muggle weaponry.”

The statement hangs in the air between you. Sentient photocopies, manic keyboards…every mishap from over the years pales in comparison.

“The Ministries—ours and the Muggle one—have worked together in the past during times of war. Top secret initiatives, of course. In the years of Grindelwald and Hitler, there were specially-designated hit squads from the DMLE that aided Muggle military operations in undermining the Nazi regime."

You follow the conversation only barely, sitting open-mouthed as Thorne continues.

"During the Muggle Cold War, we had our own spies stationed in the Soviet Union and throughout the Eastern Bloc. They helped the Americans and other NATO-aligned states gather intelligence.”

The implications set your mind in a spiral. “You’re talking about a massive violation of the Statute of Secrecy,” you say slowly. “How on earth did the Minister ever agree to it?”

“Because the right people in the right places recognized that these were conflicts that would affect the entire world, ours included. This wasn’t some petty spat between nations—this was nuclear war, kid.”

Nuclear. The word stabs into your brain like an ice pick. You have vague recollections of learning about it in primary school, remember seeing snatches of it on television (something something weapons of mass destruction), but your time in the Wizarding World has dulled your knowledge on Muggle warfare.

While you’re still thinking, Thorne moves on. “What I’m trying to say is, throughout history, there have been times when Magical Law Enforcement has worked together with the British Muggle army. And it’s looking like that time is coming around again.”

You have a creeping suspicion of what Thorne is getting at. It would violate every ethical rule in the book, but he’s got that hard look in his eye that tells you he’s not really asking. “And what does this have to do with the OMI?”

“If Makarov’s giving his Muggle followers modified weaponry, the Muggle Prime Minister wants his soldiers outfitted with the same.”

The laptop parts on your desk vibrate; a slip of accidental magic on your part. Scooting yourself away from the desk, you take a deep breath and try to control yourself.

Thorne looks sympathetic but unyielding. “The Prime Minister says that soldiers are being shot to pieces in Kosovo. Some of them young men and women, just in their twenties—”

“Don’t manipulate me!” You interrupt sharply, and the laptop parts give a little jump. “I can read the implications for myself! It doesn’t change the fact that you’re suggesting we experiment in some of the most illegal branches of magic!”

Replacing flying memos with the Instant Inboxes? Harmless. Accidentally turning photographs sentient after putting them through a magical copier? A bit more worrisome, but fixable.

But modifying a weapon has no other use besides war. Anything you create isn’t going to be used in an office, or to make someone’s life easier at home. It’s going to be used to kill.

“We’re not being asked to go out and kill enemies ourselves. Just…to level the playing field, is all.”

“Is that all?” you snip back, crossing your arms and looking away. You both know better. Just leveling the playing field is the first domino in a long line of consequences. Tip it over and who knows what will happen.

“This is why I hired you.”

The quiet admission makes you look back at your boss, eyes wide. “What?”

“Why I hired you. Why I gave you your security clearance. We always have to be on the lookout for new blood when facing situations like this.” His gaze is direct, unflinching. “You weren’t afraid to push boundaries and said you were willing to face challenges.”

“Challenges aren’t the same as war crimes, sir.”

“In this environment, we can’t always afford to split hairs. If it helps us beat Makarov and protect both the Muggle world and ours, would it be worth it?”

Would it? You think of what he described—poor Muggle soldiers torn to pieces after being ambushed with superior weaponry they couldn’t hope to match on their own. A world in the shadow of a new Dark Lord.

But you think, too, of the little man in the picture. Help us. The unintended consequences of innovation and experimentation. That had been a photo. These new projects would be weapons. Who could say where this path would lead?

Thorne looks at you expectantly, head tilted to the side as he waits for an answer.

This is why I hired you.

Taking a moment to exhale in through your nose, you let the breath out after holding it for a few seconds. “Alright. Fine.”

Thorne looks pleased, but you have to resist the urge to bury your face in your hands. “Where do we even start?”

“The beginning is usually the best place,” he says pleasantly, pulling a file out of thin air. He prepared for this, you realize, a bit sour. He knew you would say yes.

The file is slid across your desk, and you open it with no small amount of trepidation. The paperwork that greets you is vastly underwhelming—it’s barely a few pages, most of it redacted.

“Am I supposed to do something with this?”

“They’re a Muggle task force so classified that most of their own government doesn’t even know about them. Get used to the secrecy.”

Thorne leans in and flips through the pages until he reaches the one he wants, an agreement to the testing of magically-enhanced weapons with four signatures at the bottom. “This is what matters to us. They’ve agreed to be the first soldiers to test whatever we put out for them. We’ll be working with them directly to find what their needs are.”

“And when this is all finished?” You squint at the signatures, trying to make out a name among the loopy scrawls. You see two Johns, and maybe a Kyle. The final name is unrecognizable. “What’s to stop them from using them against us?”

“Can you use magic or not?” Thorne smirks. “You figure it out.”

author notes: got the random idea of Ghost tinkering with a sentient rifle and this was born. It will be updated every Sunday at 7:00AM. Some parts may be standalone, others may not, and all will likely be less than 1K words.

thanks for reading!

#reader #x reader #reader insert #simon x reader #ghost x reader #simon ghost riley x reader #simon riley x reader #cod fanfic #crossover au #simon riley #task force 141

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imomnba-x07 · 2 months ago

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Steve spent 3 movies saving Bucky. He gave up everything for Bucky. He went against everyone, even against Sam's "he's not the kind you save, he's the kind you stop" bullshit, Steve might not agree with Bucky's choices but he'd stand by him and that's a fact. You think he'd kill off his relationship with Bucky, his best friend and family since the 1920s for, let me check my notes, someone he met in 2014??? 💀💀 you're crazy as fuck but believe what you want if that lets you sleep at night 😂

Awe so delusional you didn’t even have the balls to show your blog name, that’s cute. I’m ganna guess you’re like 13 but lemme tell you how adult relationships work. Don’t worry I’ll hold your hand through it all ☺️

Let’s start with the claim that Steve’s movies were only ever about Bucky. This statement takes any sort of agency away from Steve. You throw away every hardship, every conviction every bit of his personality and morals if all you boil it down to is Bucky. In your mind, Steve is no longer a character, no longer a person. He’s a dog who does whatever Bucky needs. Which is not true. He cares about Bucky yes. But Steve is not a servant to Buckys will.

Steve, even before knowing Bucky was alive, was against SHEILD and the use of the helicarriers. (Which means he was anti government control, are you with me so far or do I have to dumb it down further?) “This isn’t freedom, it’s fear.” Steve says to furry when he is first told about project insight. Steve’s mission throughout that movie, his main goal, is to stop project insight and to stop the corruption from undermining people’s freedoms (which he does all with his partner Sam, none of this would have been possible without someone who shared just as strong of a passion for all this as steve). Sorry to break your heart, but Bucky is second in all that. He wants to help Bucky too, but let’s not twist Steve’s priorities here nor make it seem like Steve can only care about one thing at a time.

“He not the kind you save, he’s the kind you stop” sorry but Sam only said that from a narrative perspective for Steve to rebuttal. It’s not even really in character for Sam so I’m not ganna entertain that point. It’s something I laugh off anyways cause thats the only evidence you weird stickies have against Sam after all these years cause yall can’t let shit go. Pathetic.

Now let’s flash forward to civil war, since again, you seem to suffer from amnesia and can’t remember anything about Steve that isn’t Bucky Bucky boo bear Bucky. Steve’s plot in civil war is stopping government oversight. He isnt thinking about Bucky 24/7 in the film. Bucky is merely pulled into it all by unfortunate circumstances. Hell, you could take Bucky out of this film and Steve’s morals would have STILL stayed the same; governments can’t be trusted with control over enhanced individuals nor should they have any say in the avengers. THATS Steve’s moral standing throughout the movie. That doesn’t change. And it’s doesn’t change for Sam either, who holds those EXACT same principles and distrust for overreaching authority figures. Steve, Sam, and Nat went on the run, not for Bucky, but because they refused to be apart of a system they ALL didn’t believe in.

“He would stand by him and that’s a fact” right right I see endgame worked out so well for you people huh😬😬 (lmao)

Now let’s get into the whole friendship piece of it all, since by your definition friends should just blindly support and follow eachother wherever (did your parents never give you the “if your friends jump off a cliff are you jumping too” speech?).

Maybe this is just me, idk, but I have never believed in feeding my friends delusions. I am not ganna tell support every decision my friends make with a “yes queen!🤪” if that decision goes against my own morals and could cause them harm. You are a bad friend if you let the people you care about go through with choices that could do them harm or cause harm to others. Holding your friends accountable is important, it helps us all grow as people. Not being babied or placated or diluted into thinking every decision we make is good. That’s how echo chambers start and egos grow.

Steve and Bucky are grown adults. Steve, with everything we know about his character, would not just let Bucky do whatever, not without Steve shaking Bucky by the shoulders and giving him his two cents. If Bucky is making decisions that go against Steve morals and everything Steve fought to prevent, why does your underdeveloped brain think Steve would just do a magic 180 just for Bucky? Steve would be furious to hear that his best friend (by your own words) undid everything he worked so hard to maintain. And to think otherwise is absolutely ludicrous.

Besides, Steve is chasing a ghost. The Bucky we know is not the man who Steve knew in the 40s. Sam on the other hand, is a man who he has trusted the word of time and time again. Even before Steve spoke about the accords, SAM was the one who fought against them. Sam and Steve have ALWAYS been on the same side when it comes to the government having too much control. They don’t trust the government as far as they can throw them. Sam is also the only one Steve has ever listened to when it came to plans (stopping project insight and stealing Sam’s wings, listening to Sam when he told Steve to let the rest of team cap get arrested so Steve could get away, even providing group counseling during the blip, etc) so yes, I think Steve would absolutely side with Sam here.

You think Steve wouldn’t back the very man he hand picked to carry on the legacy of Captain America? The man who holds his same principles and beliefs? The man who is the rightful leader of the avengers and will lead his team with the very morals that Steve admired in Sam and believed in from the beginning?

Are you incompetent or did you just watch these movies with your eyes closed shouting la la la la la

#fuck off #this is long but I am so tired of your freakazoids #I’m angry and exhausted #and some of yall need to be told the harsh way that your just plain stupid #anti thunderbolts #anti stucky #sam wilson #steve rogers

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ladybugmania · 2 months ago

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The Wrecking Ball of Democracy

Donald Trump's political resurgence is not a movement of reform, it's a demolition project. What we are witnessing isn’t the evolution of a flawed system but its violent unraveling at the hands of a man and a party wielding power like a wrecking ball.

Yes, the status quo was stagnant. Institutions across the globe have long failed to evolve in meaningful ways. Democrats, like many others, often talked change but clung to the safety of the same old machinery. But what the current Republican leadership is doing goes far beyond disruption. It is destruction, deliberate, calculated, and without remorse. And definitely no plan.

Recently, Trump froze trillions in federal funding, jeopardizing everything from small business loans to education grants. Legal scholars warn this may be a violation of the Constitution itself. At the same time, federal agencies are ignoring court orders, as seen in immigration cases where lawful protections have been disregarded. These are not isolated incidents. They are warning flares from the core of a crumbling republic.

The GOP has escalated its assault on education, threatening institutions like Harvard over ideological disagreements. The aim? To coerce conformity, to punish dissent, to silence independent thought. This is not conservative governance, it is authoritarian impulse.

But here’s the darker truth: we may be watching the final chapters of American democracy being written in real time.

If this trajectory continues unchecked, we could face:

A hollowed-out judiciary, unable or unwilling to stand against executive overreach.

A silenced press and academic world, chilled by fear and retribution.

Communities stripped of public support, abandoned by a government that no longer sees them as constituents, but as collateral.

And to the Republicans who cheer this on while shouting about conspiracy theories, pedophiles, and imaginary cabals. Understand this: the wrecking ball swings both ways. That's right! BOTH WAYS.

You are not just destroying the systems your opponents rely on. You are dismantling the very frameworks that protect your freedoms, your families, your future. You are so blinded by rage and righteousness that you fail to see the structure collapsing around you.

Sandcastles built by ordinary people, schools, social services, neighborhood programs, are being trampled under the boots of those drunk on power and delusion. What rises in place of these castles may not be freedom, but the shadow of something far more dangerous.

"Trumpism isn’t about saving America.

It’s a boot through a child’s sandcastle.

Cruel, petty, and proud of it.

How pathetic. "

Yours Truly

The Moth Hawk

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classycoffeecat · 17 days ago

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If You Can’t Go to the Protest, Here's What You Do Instead

rethinking visibility, labor, and contribution in movement work

Not everyone can, or should, be in the streets. The assumption that physical presence at a protest is the only valid form of political participation flattens both access and impact. It erases the people sustaining movements from behind the scenes: caregivers, immunocompromised comrades, undocumented organizers, disabled activists, low-wage workers, trauma survivors, and those navigating complex material realities. Movements require more than just bodies in public space; they require infrastructure, strategy, and support.

Here are ten ways to contribute meaningfully when you can’t physically attend a demonstration:

1. Redistribute Wealth: Movements need money to function. Bail funds, mutual aid projects, and grassroots organizers often operate without institutional backing. Even small contributions help build capacity. Prioritize local and BIPOC-led initiatives.

2. Amplify Strategically: Digital platforms are both battlegrounds and broadcast systems. Share protest updates, livestreams, donation links, and safety information. Algorithms tend to suppress radical content; your engagement helps visibility. Center and amplify marginalized voices, especially those organizing on the ground.

3. Offer Practical Support: Protests are logistically complex. Offer rides, prep protest kits, provide meals, babysit, or create respite spaces for frontline activists. Material forms of care are often undervalued but essential to sustaining resistance.

4. Participate in Jail and Court Support: Those arrested need people waiting when they are released. Bring water, warm clothing, food, and emotional care. Court support is equally critical; showing up at arraignments demonstrates communal solidarity and discourages punitive overreach.

5. Coordinate Communications and Safety: Monitor police scanners, livestreams, and protester reports. Help disseminate accurate, real-time updates. Signal-boost urgent calls for help. Digital vigilance can reduce harm and increase coordination.

6. Engage in Direct Political Pressure: Organize phone zaps, email campaigns, and petitions targeting elected officials, agencies, or institutions involved in the harm being protested. Targeted pressure campaigns have measurable impact when executed collectively.

7. Host Educational Spaces: Facilitate teach-ins, reading groups, or workshops to build shared understanding of the issue at hand. Education creates informed solidarity. Frame your efforts as political education; not charity, not “awareness,” but power-building.

8. Create Cultural Interventions: Art is not a luxury; it’s strategy. Design flyers, zines, posters, or projection campaigns. Use visual media to mobilize, memorialize, and provoke. Culture work shifts narratives and creates shared language for resistance.

9. Write and Document: Narrative control is part of the struggle. Write public reflections, op-eds, social media threads, or personal essays that contextualize and support the protest’s demands. Archive movement histories as they unfold; documentation is defense.

10. Sustain the Long-Term Struggle: Protest is a flashpoint, not an endpoint. Long-term commitment involves joining organizations, redistributing resources, building community safety networks, and practicing political care in your daily life. Movements need consistency more than spectacle.

Protest is a collective ecosystem.

There is no single “right” way to contribute. If you are not able to show up in one way, show up in another. What matters is that we remain connected to each other, materially and politically; and that we resist the idea that visibility is the only form of value.

(Note: This is not mine- I do not have the source. Please let me know if you know the source, so I can give them credit) ✊️💗✨️

#online protest #activism #accessibility #disability #out of the doom #classy posts #resources

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justinspoliticalcorner · 5 months ago

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Ari Drennen at Ari's Threads:

When authoritarian regimes collapse, it often looks sudden—leaders flee, governments dissolve, and the state unravels in real-time. But collapse is rarely spontaneous. More often, it’s the result of a slow, self-inflicted erosion of power, set in motion when leaders overestimate their own support and push too far. This was the case in Afghanistan in 2021, where the U.S.-backed government, built on external military support rather than genuine legitimacy, crumbled almost overnight. It was also the case in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, where a war meant to demonstrate strength instead exposed military and political weakness. And it was the case in South Korea’s 2024 martial law crisis, where a government that assumed it could impose military rule without consequence was swiftly removed from power. Again and again, regimes that assume their grip on power is unshakable discover—too late—that their own overreach is what brings them down.

Overconfidence Leads to Overreach

Authoritarian regimes don’t collapse because of one bad decision. They collapse because of a pattern of miscalculations—each one widening the gap between the government and the people until the state is too hollow to stand.

[...]

Not all resistance looks like street protests or armed insurgencies. Some of the most effective opposition happens quietly, in ways that authoritarian governments struggle to contain. During World War II, the OSS Simple Sabotage Field Manual outlined ways that civilians could disrupt enemy governments—not with bombs, but with small, deliberate inefficiencies. Workers were told to misfile documents, delay projects, introduce small errors that, over time, would make the entire system grind to a halt. That same principle applied to Hong Kong’s 2014 protests, where a leaderless, encrypted messaging-driven movement made it nearly impossible for authorities to arrest key organizers. Every time police tried to crack down, new protest flash mobs would appear elsewhere. Digital resistance allowed the movement to stay ahead of law enforcement for months. In South Korea’s 2024 crisis, protesters flooded government hotlines, overloaded digital reporting systems, and created so much bureaucratic noise that state enforcement became nearly impossible. The government couldn’t keep up with digital disruptions, and by the time authorities responded, resistance had already moved to a different platform or tactic. Once a government loses the ability to enforce its own rules, even in the most basic ways, its power begins to slip—sometimes faster than even the people resisting expect.

[...]

Regimes Collapse from Within as Much as from Without

Governments don’t just fall because of external pressure. They fall because of their own mistakes. They push too hard, alienating even those who once supported them. They purge too many people, creating enemies where there were none. They assume military force can solve political problems, only to find that wars are easier to start than to win. They mistake silence for support, failing to see that silence is often just the absence of a safe way to speak. And then one day, the silence shatters, and the regime collapses so fast that even its leaders are caught off guard. Regimes that look stable on the surface often collapse the fastest. Russia hasn’t fallen, but it has been plunged into a financially ruinous war, losing soldiers and resources at an unsustainable rate. What was supposed to be a quick military victory has instead forced the country into a long, grinding conflict that is weakening its global influence and economic stability. Iraq was supposed to become a stable democracy, but de-Baathification fueled years of insurgency. South Korea’s government thought it could impose martial law, but within weeks, mass resistance forced it out.

Ari Drennen wrote a solid column on how autocratic regimes accelerate their collapse as a result of their drunken hubris, as we have seen in South Korea and Russia. This also applies to regimes that seemingly look stable.

#Ari Drennen #Substack #Ari's Threads #Protests #South Korea #Martial Law #Donald Trump #Ukraine #Russia #Russian Invasion of Ukraine #United States #George W. Bush #Iraq #Hong Kong

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mariacallous · 8 months ago

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If Donald Trump wins the US presidential election in November, the guardrails could come off of artificial intelligence development, even as the dangers of defective AI models grow increasingly serious.

Trump’s election to a second term would dramatically reshape—and possibly cripple—efforts to protect Americans from the many dangers of poorly designed artificial intelligence, including misinformation, discrimination, and the poisoning of algorithms used in technology like autonomous vehicles.

The federal government has begun overseeing and advising AI companies under an executive order that President Joe Biden issued in October 2023. But Trump has vowed to repeal that order, with the Republican Party platform saying it “hinders AI innovation” and “imposes Radical Leftwing ideas” on AI development.

Trump’s promise has thrilled critics of the executive order who see it as illegal, dangerous, and an impediment to America’s digital arms race with China. Those critics include many of Trump’s closest allies, from X CEO Elon Musk and venture capitalist Marc Andreessen to Republican members of Congress and nearly two dozen GOP state attorneys general. Trump’s running mate, Ohio senator JD Vance, is staunchly opposed to AI regulation.

“Republicans don't want to rush to overregulate this industry,” says Jacob Helberg, a tech executive and AI enthusiast who has been dubbed “Silicon Valley’s Trump whisperer.”

But tech and cyber experts warn that eliminating the EO’s safety and security provisions would undermine the trustworthiness of AI models that are increasingly creeping into all aspects of American life, from transportation and medicine to employment and surveillance.

The upcoming presidential election, in other words, could help determine whether AI becomes an unparalleled tool of productivity or an uncontrollable agent of chaos.

Oversight and Advice, Hand in Hand

Biden’s order addresses everything from using AI to improve veterans’ health care to setting safeguards for AI’s use in drug discovery. But most of the political controversy over the EO stems from two provisions in the section dealing with digital security risks and real-world safety impacts.

One provision requires owners of powerful AI models to report to the government about how they’re training the models and protecting them from tampering and theft, including by providing the results of “red-team tests” designed to find vulnerabilities in AI systems by simulating attacks. The other provision directs the Commerce Department’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to produce guidance that helps companies develop AI models that are safe from cyberattacks and free of biases.

Work on these projects is well underway. The government has proposed quarterly reporting requirements for AI developers, and NIST has released AI guidance documents on risk management, secure software development, synthetic content watermarking, and preventing model abuse, in addition to launching multiple initiatives to promote model testing.

Supporters of these efforts say they’re essential to maintaining basic government oversight of the rapidly expanding AI industry and nudging developers toward better security. But to conservative critics, the reporting requirement is illegal government overreach that will crush AI innovation and expose developers’ trade secrets, while the NIST guidance is a liberal ploy to infect AI with far-left notions about disinformation and bias that amount to censorship of conservative speech.

At a rally in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, last December, Trump took aim at Biden’s EO after alleging without evidence that the Biden administration had already used AI for nefarious purposes.

“When I’m reelected,” he said, “I will cancel Biden’s artificial intelligence executive order and ban the use of AI to censor the speech of American citizens on Day One.”

Due Diligence or Undue Burden?

Biden’s effort to collect information about how companies are developing, testing, and protecting their AI models sparked an uproar on Capitol Hill almost as soon as it debuted.

Congressional Republicans seized on the fact that Biden justified the new requirement by invoking the 1950 Defense Production Act, a wartime measure that lets the government direct private-sector activities to ensure a reliable supply of goods and services. GOP lawmakers called Biden’s move inappropriate, illegal, and unnecessary.

Conservatives have also blasted the reporting requirement as a burden on the private sector. The provision “could scare away would-be innovators and impede more ChatGPT-type breakthroughs,” Representative Nancy Mace said during a March hearing she chaired on “White House overreach on AI.”

Helberg says a burdensome requirement would benefit established companies and hurt startups. He also says Silicon Valley critics fear the requirements “are a stepping stone” to a licensing regime in which developers must receive government permission to test models.

Steve DelBianco, the CEO of the conservative tech group NetChoice, says the requirement to report red-team test results amounts to de facto censorship, given that the government will be looking for problems like bias and disinformation. “I am completely worried about a left-of-center administration … whose red-teaming tests will cause AI to constrain what it generates for fear of triggering these concerns,” he says.

Conservatives argue that any regulation that stifles AI innovation will cost the US dearly in the technology competition with China.

“They are so aggressive, and they have made dominating AI a core North Star of their strategy for how to fight and win wars,” Helberg says. “The gap between our capabilities and the Chinese keeps shrinking with every passing year.”

“Woke” Safety Standards

By including social harms in its AI security guidelines, NIST has outraged conservatives and set off another front in the culture war over content moderation and free speech.

Republicans decry the NIST guidance as a form of backdoor government censorship. Senator Ted Cruz recently slammed what he called NIST’s “woke AI ‘safety’ standards” for being part of a Biden administration “plan to control speech” based on “amorphous” social harms. NetChoice has warned NIST that it is exceeding its authority with quasi-regulatory guidelines that upset “the appropriate balance between transparency and free speech.”

Many conservatives flatly dismiss the idea that AI can perpetuate social harms and should be designed not to do so.

“This is a solution in search of a problem that really doesn't exist,” Helberg says. “There really hasn’t been massive evidence of issues in AI discrimination.”

Studies and investigations have repeatedly shown that AI models contain biases that perpetuate discrimination, including in hiring, policing, and health care. Research suggests that people who encounter these biases may unconsciously adopt them.

Conservatives worry more about AI companies’ overcorrections to this problem than about the problem itself. “There is a direct inverse correlation between the degree of wokeness in an AI and the AI's usefulness,” Helberg says, citing an early issue with Google’s generative AI platform.

Republicans want NIST to focus on AI’s physical safety risks, including its ability to help terrorists build bioweapons (something Biden’s EO does address). If Trump wins, his appointees will likely deemphasize government research on AI’s social harms. Helberg complains that the “enormous amount” of research on AI bias has dwarfed studies of “greater threats related to terrorism and biowarfare.”

Defending a “Light-Touch Approach”

AI experts and lawmakers offer robust defenses of Biden’s AI safety agenda.

These projects “enable the United States to remain on the cutting edge” of AI development “while protecting Americans from potential harms,” says Representative Ted Lieu, the Democratic cochair of the House’s AI task force.

The reporting requirements are essential for alerting the government to potentially dangerous new capabilities in increasingly powerful AI models, says a US government official who works on AI issues. The official, who requested anonymity to speak freely, points to OpenAI’s admission about its latest model’s “inconsistent refusal of requests to synthesize nerve agents.”

The official says the reporting requirement isn’t overly burdensome. They argue that, unlike AI regulations in the European Union and China, Biden’s EO reflects “a very broad, light-touch approach that continues to foster innovation.”

Nick Reese, who served as the Department of Homeland Security’s first director of emerging technology from 2019 to 2023, rejects conservative claims that the reporting requirement will jeopardize companies’ intellectual property. And he says it could actually benefit startups by encouraging them to develop “more computationally efficient,” less data-heavy AI models that fall under the reporting threshold.

AI’s power makes government oversight imperative, says Ami Fields-Meyer, who helped draft Biden’s EO as a White House tech official.

“We’re talking about companies that say they’re building the most powerful systems in the history of the world,” Fields-Meyer says. “The government’s first obligation is to protect people. ‘Trust me, we’ve got this’ is not an especially compelling argument.”

Experts praise NIST’s security guidance as a vital resource for building protections into new technology. They note that flawed AI models can produce serious social harms, including rental and lending discrimination and improper loss of government benefits.

Trump’s own first-term AI order required federal AI systems to respect civil rights, something that will require research into social harms.

The AI industry has largely welcomed Biden’s safety agenda. “What we're hearing is that it’s broadly useful to have this stuff spelled out,” the US official says. For new companies with small teams, “it expands the capacity of their folks to address these concerns.”

Rolling back Biden’s EO would send an alarming signal that “the US government is going to take a hands off approach to AI safety,” says Michael Daniel, a former presidential cyber adviser who now leads the Cyber Threat Alliance, an information sharing nonprofit.

As for competition with China, the EO’s defenders say safety rules will actually help America prevail by ensuring that US AI models work better than their Chinese rivals and are protected from Beijing’s economic espionage.

Two Very Different Paths

If Trump wins the White House next month, expect a sea change in how the government approaches AI safety.

Republicans want to prevent AI harms by applying “existing tort and statutory laws” as opposed to enacting broad new restrictions on the technology, Helberg says, and they favor “much greater focus on maximizing the opportunity afforded by AI, rather than overly focusing on risk mitigation.” That would likely spell doom for the reporting requirement and possibly some of the NIST guidance.

The reporting requirement could also face legal challenges now that the Supreme Court has weakened the deference that courts used to give agencies in evaluating their regulations.

And GOP pushback could even jeopardize NIST’s voluntary AI testing partnerships with leading companies. “What happens to those commitments in a new administration?” the US official asks.

This polarization around AI has frustrated technologists who worry that Trump will undermine the quest for safer models.

“Alongside the promises of AI are perils,” says Nicol Turner Lee, the director of the Brookings Institution’s Center for Technology Innovation, “and it is vital that the next president continue to ensure the safety and security of these systems.”

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ellaandtheocean · 1 year ago

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STOP THE NZ GOVERNMENT'S WAR ON NATURE

Just when you thought they'd hit rock bottom, the National/Act/NZ First coalition government keeps digging. The fast-track approvals bill was released last month and forms the latest part of the government's war on nature. This would allow major infrastructure and industry projects such as mining, road construction and large-scale aquaculture to be fast-tracked if they are considered to be regionally or nationally significant. While I completely agree that the current Resource Management Act consenting process is not fit for purpose, its regulations are stringent for a reason - to protect our climate, our indigenous biodiversity and our whenua. We need development in New Zealand to be sustainable, and to focus more on nature-based solutions. This legislation is taking our country in the wrong direction. It's not the fast-track it's the wrong track!

Lack of consideration for environmental damage: This project requires the economic benefits of a project to be considered above all else. In the midst of intersecting climate and biodiversity crises, we should prioritize protecting the habitats we have left and supporting efforts to restore ecosystems.

Lack of regulation against negative human health impacts: Even if you're not a nature lover like me, we can probably all agree that exposure to carcinogenic chemicals and other toxins, dangerous pollution in outdoor recreation areas such as rivers and beaches, and air pollution are things that no New Zealander wants. This bill does not exclude projects and activities that will have a negative impact on human health.

Lack of transparency: There are already many projects earmarked for fast tracking under Schedule 2A of this bill, but this list has not been published, meaning a fast-tracked project could be coming to a place near you soon, and you'd have no idea until after the bill has passed. Details about the process for project selection and review are scarce.

Undemocratic: Rather than going through the full submission process, projects are sent straight to a panel to be reviewed. This means that local people and conservation groups won't get to have their say on projects that will directly affect them and the work they do. This is a blatant overreach of central government into local affairs, from a government who criticized Three Waters because they thought it took too much decision-making ability away from the regions.

Risks of corruption and conflict of interest: The expert panels do not get the final say of which projects are approved; they can be overridden by any of these three ministers: Simeon Brown (Minister for Energy and Transport), Chris Bishop (Minister for Infrastructure) and Shane Jones (Minister for Oceans & Fisheries, Resources and Regional Development). Having one person make these calls presents a much greater risk of conflicts of interest occurring (and let's be honest, this is quite a risk).

Submissions on this bill are open until April 19th, and there are templates online you can use to make a submission if you're pressed for time. My favourites are from the Forest & Bird (the organization I volunteer with) and the Environmental Defence Society (linked below). You can also write to your local MP and let them know you DO NOT support this bill.

More information and submission templates:

STOP the War on Nature | Forest and Bird

Make a submission on the Fast-track Approvals Bill using EDS’s template | EDS

#nzpol #new zealand #aotearoa #nz politics #conservation #wildlife #nz wildlife #conservation nz

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dindjarindiaries · 2 months ago

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Hi Sunny, I was kinda curious to hear your opinion about Favreau's recent choices with the Mandalorian. I get wanting change and I respect them trying to innovate, I just don't understand what's the point in changing a perfectly good recipe when your public doesn't even like the new one and never asked for it. The space western is what made Mando so unique and beloved, it showed Star Wars in a completely new way, it was gritty but funny and authentically human in a way, dare I say it, very few SW projects did before. The fact that they're changing it into yet another family adventure with seemingly no interest to return to the show's original roots just sits wrong with me. Maybe with proper preparation the transition could have worked, but with how did it in season 3, it really doesn't at least for me. I know Favreau and Filoni don't get the final word on everything, there's most likely executive decisions weighting on too. I just hope they don't lose track of what this story truly was about.

I'm going to be very up front as I prepare to answer this and say that I'm now severely biased towards supporting both Favreau and Filoni after speaking directly with them; the passion that oozes out of those two, and the genuine kindness, gives me so much faith about how much they do really care for these characters and their stories.

That being said...

I also wasn't a fan of the direction things went in season 3. It makes me think that there may have been some overreach/concern from executives potentially, with Din and Grogu being separated after season 2, and I think they used TBOBF as a way to safely reunite them to make sure that they were back together for season 3. I don't think the company as a whole really trusted the story/dynamic without the two of them together, and that makes me really sad. It led to a lot of issues in season 3, IMO, amongst other things that were problems in that season, too.

I honestly do think that the upcoming movie will be taking things back to the Western approach we saw in season 1 some more. With the Razor Crest coming back, Din being ruthless again, and the two of them set up for some adventures - albeit this time as a lawman, kinda, rather than a bounty hunter - there's a lot of promising potential about going back to what we had before, and not in a way that feels like we're negatively digressing in their story.

We'll see, though! That trailer footage was so, so promising to me, and so was speaking to those at the helm of the project. I'm really excited to see what happens next, and I do genuinely have a really good feeling about it.

#the mandalorian #din djarin #grogu #the mandalorian and grogu #you have spoken

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jjmcquade-misc · 3 months ago

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From Foreign Aid to Digital Tools: The Evolution of U.S. Influence and the Signal Gate Controversy

A Legacy of Influence

For decades, the United States has wielded foreign aid and technology as tools to shape global perceptions and counter adversaries. From the Cold War era to the digital age, these efforts have often blurred the lines between goodwill and covert manipulation. This article traces that evolution, from the International Cooperation Administration (ICA) in the 1950s to the Obama administration’s push for internet freedom tools like Signal, culminating in the recent Signal Gate controversy involving Team Trump. At the heart of this narrative is Barack Obama’s role in promoting digital soft power and the unintended consequences that echo a troubled past.

1955: The Birth of the ICA and Covert Ambitions

In 1955, the U.S. launched the International Cooperation Administration (ICA) as a foreign aid agency tasked with winning “hearts and minds” in the developing world amid the Cold War. On the surface, the ICA built schools and roads, but beneath this facade, it served a darker purpose. The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) exploited the ICA as a front for covert operations, including:

Election interference in nations like Iran and Indonesia.

Regime stabilization (or destabilization) in Guatemala and the Congo.

Cover for intelligence officers posing as aid workers.

What was billed as “technical assistance” often masked political manipulation, propping up dictators and sparking coups. Far from fostering goodwill, the ICA became a symbol of imperial overreach, igniting local resistance and deep blowback.

Late 1950s–1961: The ICA’s Fall and USAID’s Rise

By the late 1950s, the ICA’s reputation had soured. Congress and foreign leaders criticized it as corrupt, ineffective, and a puppet of the CIA. The agency’s credibility crumbled, and its Cold War messaging backfired. The breaking point came in 1961, when the CIA’s Bay of Pigs fiasco exposed the perils of blending aid with espionage. President John F. Kennedy swiftly dismantled the ICA, replacing it with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). USAID promised a fresh start, professionalized, development-focused, and free of intelligence entanglements. Yet the lesson lingered: when aid doubles as a tool of control, it sacrifices legitimacy and effectiveness.

2012: Obama’s Digital Pivot with the Open Technology Fund

Fast forward to 2012, under President Barack Obama, when the U.S. embraced a new frontier: digital soft power. The Obama administration launched the Open Technology Fund (OTF), a federally funded nonprofit aimed at supporting internet freedom tools for dissidents in repressive regimes like China, Iran, and Russia. Among OTF’s flagship projects was Signal, an encrypted messaging app developed by Moxie Marlinspike. With OTF grants, Signal’s encryption protocol grew into a cornerstone of apps like WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger.

Obama’s foreign policy team saw Signal as a modern parallel to earlier aid efforts, a way to empower activists, bypass censorship, and promote democracy. OTF also backed VPNs, Tor, and other privacy technologies, cementing its mission to protect free expression online. During his tenure, Obama positioned these tools as a counterweight to authoritarianism, aligning with his broader vision of global engagement through innovation.

Signal’s Unexpected Reach

Signal’s mission began with noble intent: safeguarding dissidents abroad. But its reach soon expanded unpredictably. Today, the app is a go-to for:

Whistleblowers exposing corruption.

Journalists protecting sources.

Protesters organizing movements.

Criminals evading law enforcement.

Ordinary citizens wary of government surveillance.

Much like the ICA’s aid projects, Signal’s U.S.-funded origins led to unintended consequences. Its encryption became both a shield for liberty and a cloak for illicit activity, raising thorny questions about oversight and accountability.

Signal Gate: A Modern Scandal Unfolds

The story took a surreal turn during the Trump administration. Reports surfaced that Signal was preloaded on devices used by Team Trump, only for a technological blunder to add a prominent Trump critic to a group chat, triggering an embarrassing leak. The timing was striking: the incident followed President Donald Trump’s public attacks on USAID, which funds OTF and, indirectly, Signal. Conservative commentator Glenn Beck seized on this, suggesting a deeper conspiracy tying government tools to political missteps.

Was this a coincidence or a symptom of systemic flaws? The episode dubbed “Signal Gate” revived old debates about the risks of U.S.-backed initiatives spiraling beyond their intended scope.

Critical Assessment: Echoes of the Past

The journey from the ICA to Signal reveals a persistent challenge in U.S. foreign policy: balancing democratic ideals with the temptations of covert influence. The ICA’s misuse eroded trust abroad, just as Signal’s unintended uses, from leaks to lawbreaking, complicate its legacy. Barack Obama’s role is pivotal yet nuanced. His administration’s launch of OTF and support for Signal aimed to champion internet freedom, a forward-thinking extension of American values. But like the ICA, these tools escaped their original purpose, exposing the limits of control in an interconnected world.

The Signal Gate fiasco underscores the need for transparency and clear boundaries. When government-funded technologies serve both heroes and villains, they risk undermining the very principles they’re meant to uphold. As the U.S. navigates this digital era, it must heed the ICA’s cautionary tale: legitimacy hinges on aligning actions with stated intentions. For Obama’s vision to endure, future policymakers must ensure that tools of freedom don’t become instruments of chaos. In short, Obama didn’t just leave behind a bigger intelligence network, he left one that’s smarter, more resilient, and beyond the reach of any single administration or reform effort. The republic’s loss of control isn’t a conspiracy; it’s a consequence of a system designed to endure. The outcome of the intelligence network's evolution under Obama was staggering. By the time he left office in 2017, the U.S. Intelligence Community had grown into a sprawling system of 17 agencies, including heavyweights like the CIA, NSA, and FBI. But it wasn’t just the number of agencies that made it remarkable, it was how the whole operation was restructured and entrenched. These moves deepened the "deep state", a web of unelected players with growing influence and little accountability. Using executive orders to sidestep Congress, Obama built a system that’s harder to govern or reform. This shift, coupled with expanded surveillance like PRISM, sparked concerns over privacy, civil liberties, and unchecked power.

#ICA #signal #barack obama #usaid #CIA #deep state #republicans #donald trump #jd vance #robert kennedy jr #tulsi gabbard #maga #democrats #joe biden

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sensualnoiree · 1 year ago

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astro notes: daily transit 6/28

Friday, 6/28, transits bring a mix of spiritual insight, energizing action, and challenging decisions. The day begins with a spiritually significant lunar event, moves into dynamic and transformative energies, and navigates through potential stress and resolutions with supportive Venus–Mars alignment.

Key Influences

Pisces Moon Conjunct Neptune (1:44 a.m.): Spiritual Insights: This conjunction enhances spiritual experiences, particularly in dreams or meditation. It brings a sense of heightened intuition and deeper connection to the subconscious.

Moon Enters Aries (1:51 a.m.) and Sextiles Pluto (4:17 a.m.): Energizing Action: The Moon's shift into Aries brings a burst of energy and initiative. The sextile to Pluto adds a layer of purposeful transformation and empowerment.

Mercury Semi-Square Jupiter and Square Chiron (Morning): Communication Challenges: These aspects can create tension in communication, leading to overreaching and subsequent insecurities about decisions made.

Last Quarter Moon Phase Begins (2:53 p.m.): Decisive Action: This phase challenges us to make necessary decisions and changes to complete our goals for the current lunar cycle.

Venus Sextile Mars (14°39' Cancer–Taurus) (Evening): Pleasurable Activities: This supportive aspect helps ease the day's stress, encouraging relaxation and enjoyment of simple pleasures.

Integrating the Influences

Early Morning Spiritual Insights: Reflect and Meditate: The Pisces Moon conjunct Neptune offers a time for deep reflection, spiritual connection, and meditation. Embrace this energy to gain intuitive insights and connect with your inner self.

Morning Energizing Action: Initiate and Transform: As the Moon moves into Aries and sextiles Pluto, harness the dynamic and transformative energy to initiate new projects and make purposeful changes. This is a time for taking decisive action and embracing empowerment.

Communication and Decision Challenges: Navigate Tensions: The hard aspects of Mercury to Jupiter and Chiron suggest the potential for overextending and feeling insecure about choices. Be mindful of communication and avoid taking impulsive risks. Reflect on decisions and seek clarity.

Afternoon Decisive Action: Complete Goals: The Last Quarter Moon phase urges us to assess our progress and make necessary adjustments to achieve our goals. Use this energy to finalize tasks and make strategic decisions for the remainder of the lunar cycle.

Evening Relaxation and Pleasure: Enjoy Simple Pleasures: The Venus–Mars sextile brings a harmonious and pleasurable energy. Take time to relax, enjoy the company of loved ones, and indulge in activities that bring joy and contentment.

Practical Applications

Early Morning Practices: Meditate and Reflect: Start the day with meditation or reflective practices to harness the spiritual energy of the Moon-Neptune conjunction. Pay attention to dreams and intuitive insights for guidance.

Morning Activities: Initiate Projects: Use the energizing influence of the Moon in Aries and the transformative power of the Moon-Pluto sextile to start new projects and take bold actions. Focus on tasks that require initiative and determination.

Communication Strategies: Mindful Communication: Be cautious with communication during the morning. Avoid making hasty decisions and overcommitting. Reflect on your choices and seek input from trusted sources to navigate any insecurities.

Afternoon Adjustments: Strategic Decisions: As the Last Quarter Moon phase begins, assess your progress and make strategic adjustments to achieve your goals. Focus on completing tasks and making necessary changes.

Evening Relaxation: Indulge in Pleasures: Embrace the harmonious energy of the Venus-Mars sextile by engaging in activities that bring joy and relaxation. Spend time with loved ones, enjoy good food, and partake in pleasurable activities.

follow for more astro insights like this and head on over to @quenysefields or instagram sensualnoiree to book a session with me :)

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yetisidelblog · 5 months ago

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It’s only been eight days, and Trump’s administration just defied the Constitution to unilaterally freeze every federally-funded program nationwide.

This Executive Order is so broad that ALL programs supported by the federal government are at risk, immediately harming families and communities. Clean air and drinking water programs, support for the manufacturing boom happening around the country, Medicaid and health care for veterans, as well as fundamental federal assistance programs like SNAP and WIC, low-income home energy program (LIHEAP), and climate-related disaster aid are all affected.

We’re scared, Robert, but we’re also angry. Now is the time to act. Tell Congress to do everything they can to fight back — vital programs that help people every day in every state are being blocked, and the consequences to their constituents will be devastating. Here’s how you can reach them:

Text FIGHT to 877-877 to call your member of Congress; OR

Email your member of Congress by clicking here.

When our elected members of Congress decide how to use taxpayer money, the job of the executive branch is to follow through. Period. This dangerously broad overreach by the Trump administration, directed by Project 2025, is part of Trump’s extreme power grab meant to instill chaos, and it will cause very real harm to people in every state.

This is one of those moments to speak out, Robert. If Trump and his extremist allies go unchallenged in this fight, they will further consolidate power and put even more lives at risk. Tell Congress to stop them.

@upontheshelfreviews

@greenwingspino

@one-time-i-dreamt

@tenaflyviper

@akron-squirrel

@ifihadaworldofmyown

@justice-for-jacob-marley

@voicetalentbrendan

@thebigdeepcheatsy

@what-is-my-aesthetic

@ravenlynclemens

@thegreatallie

@writerofweird

@anon-lephant

@bogleech

@mentally-quiet-spycrab

@therealjacksepticeye

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marta-bee · 4 months ago

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News of the Week 2/13/25

Fair warning, the news has been a bit dark even by recent standards, especially if you're focusing on the international piece. It's still worth knowing what's going on, but make sure you're in as good a place as you can manage before clicking through.

Immigration

Birthright citizenship:

How a senator from the 1860s argued birthright citizenship applied to all races and groups born here, not just to African-descended former slaves. (RP)

How Trump's birthright citizenship EO could apply to Native Americans.

Mass Deportations and Guantanamo Detention:

Trump had promised to send only "the worst" to Guantanamo. Surprise: many sent there lack criminal record or only nonviolent crimes. (RP)

Several Guantanamo detainees are being guarded by military personnel, not ICE, which is potentially illegal. (RP)

The ACLU is suing over detainees not being allowed to speak to lawyers.

The history of immigrant detention at Guantanamo, pre-Trump. It wasn't pretty.

The pope rebukes Trump over migrant deportations, corrects Vance on Catholic theology.

Religious groups sue Trump administration over arresting immigrants in churches. (RP)

NY state court reconsiders letting undocumented immigrants vote in state and local elections. (RP)

DEI, Race and Gender

DEI: Companies navigate a legal minefield after Trump's anti-DEI EO's (RP)

Trans issues:

Trans and nonbinary people sue Trump over passport policy.

Specific stories of people affected by the new passport policy. (RP)

US military will no longer accept trans recruits (RP) or provide gender-affirming care for active-duty servicemembers.

A Space Force colonel on what the military loses by pushing out people like her. (RP)

Science

The NIH recently cut how much of grants could be used for "indirect costs" (support staff, buildings, equipment, etc.) to 15%, much below what's allowed by other funding sources.

A federal judge blocked the funding change.

How the funding change would affect specific research projects. (12ft.io)

Sen. Susan Collins argues the move would be illegal. (RP)

After a Trump EO's on gender-based language and climate change, several health-related government webpages were taken down.

A judge ordered them restored. (RP)

Predictably, the administration's compliance is less than 100%. (12ft.io)

How health officials are trying to back up and re-share the data the Trump administration took down. (RP)

How the disappearance of a paper on suicide prevention shows the overreach involved. (RP)

Foreign Relations

Ukraine:

Trump demands $500bn in rare earth minerals from Ukraine, in exchange for continued US support of Ukraine. (RP)

Trump says Ukraine may one day be part of Russia.

Trump spoke directly with Putin and said Putin agreed to talks to end the war against Ukraine.

The Guardian criticizes Trump's offer as a betrayal of Ukraine and bad deal-making generally (correctly, in my opinion).

Former Trump security advisor Bolton also criticized Trump, saying he'd "effectively surrendered" to Putin ahead of peace negotiations.

Europe wants to be involved in any peace talks. (12ft.io)

Sec. Defense Hegseth said it was unreasonable for Ukraine to retain its pre-invasion territory, or be admitted to EU as part of the peace deal.

Gaza:

Trump pushed Jordanians to accept resettled Gazans. They weren't convinced. (12ft.io) Trump threats to cut aid to Jordan if they don't. (RP)

Trump family's past dealings in Middle East. (RP)

The ceasefire was threatened when Gazans claimed Israel had resumed bombing. It's back on track, for now. (RP)

Haaretz argues Trump's Gaza plans are not in Israel's Interests. (RP)

MSNBC anchor Ayman Mohyeldin comments on US complicity in Israeli bombings against Palestinians. (VIDEO)

Autocracy & Oligarchy

Federal Funding Freeze:

A federal judge had ordered Trump admin to distribute grants he'd previously paused. Pro Publica found they were withholding the funds anyway. (RP)

The federal judge has now found Trump has defied the order (RP), the first time the Trump administration defied a court order.

An appeals court also denied Trump's request to lift the order.

Elon Musk and DOGE:

Trump (RP) and Vance question if courts have authority to challenge executive-branch activities like Musk's access to government systems.

Democrats want to use budget shutdown to demand Trump stop his assault on federal government agencies. (RP)

Musk cuts nearly $1bn in Department of Education contracts, including $100mil in alleged DEI training grants. (12ft.io)

Trump halts enforcement of anti-bribery law criminalizing Americans' bribing foreign officials.

Trump dismisses advisory boards at several military academies, claiming they were too "woke" (RP)

Eric Adams:

Trump instructed DoJ to stop prosecution (RP) after months of avoiding months of public criticism of Trump.

Eric Adams's mayor declares victory.

Politico discusses the political risk to Adams aligning himself with Trump (RP), especially given the DOJ is requesting dismissal without prejudice which means the charges could be reinstated.

He's considering switching parties to the GOP (RP)

Donald Trump and the Art of the Quid Pro Quo (RP) (Great headline, but a worthwhile read aside from that)

Counterpoint: De Blasio says the charges against Adams were flimsy and should have been dismissed anyway. (12ft.io)

Other NYC Shenanigans

NY received federal funding to assist migrants. Then Elon was scandalized by it on Twitter.

The Trump administration seized the money back from NY's bank accounts. (RP)

FEMA CFO and three others fired for authorizing the payment. (12ft.io)

The DOJ also filed suit against NY governor and others, over allowing undocumented immigrants to obtain driver's licenses and not releasing the database to immigration officials. (12ft.io)

USAID:

As USAID programs stop operation, China gains influence in those regions. (RP)

Sec. Defense Rubio had promised USAID funding freeze would allow waivers for humanitarian relief. They were always criticized as being hard to obtain. Now the program is entirely on hold. (RP)

How the USAID freeze is harming women and girls around the world.

US farmers also hurt by USAID spending halt, as USAID is no longer buying their food to send overseas. (12ft.io)

With Musk and Trump labeling USAID work as "criminal," foreign partners who worked with USAID are now at risk for persecution in their countries. (VIDEO)

#us politics #donald trump #elon musk #gaza #ukraine #news of the week

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edwardseymour · 8 months ago

Note

Catherine Howard wrote a letter to Thomas Cranmer shortly after her marriage, requesting an alliance?

✨ terfs/zionists fuck off ✨

she sent it before her marriage.

some historians have argued that it actually stemmed from henry, or perhaps her family members, but we simply do not have any evidence to suggest that. such a reading is justified solely by the belief that katherine must have lacked a political incentive on her own part — which is merely an assumption. nevertheless, i think it’s reasonable to conclude that cranmer was an inveterate cockroach, which perhaps made him ultimately unreliable as an ally.

“cranmer got support from a surprising direction: katherine howard, herself. according to wakefield, she conveyed the reassuring message to the archbishop ‘that you should not care for your businesses, for you should be in better case than ever you were’. the reason for this favour was the opposition expressed by cranmer to cromwell's anna of cleves marriage project, back in autumn 1539. this background helps to explain why the archbishop was so ready to co-operate with the king's move from wife number four to wife number five” (macculloch).

“macculloch’s suggestion may be valid, but while henry was still married to anna, cranmer had several discussions with harst, her brother’s ambassador, who described him as an ally. katherine could have seen them together and might have wanted to assure cranmer that his association with harst would not prevent her from favoring him” (warnicke).

russell describes her letter to him on the advent of her marriage as “a tantalising glimpse of her nascent ambitions”, one which suggested “an overestimation of her power and her refusal to play at factional politics”. it would not be the first time an english queen overreached herself on the advent of her marriage, and it would not be the last time katherine did so.

#katherine howard #📝

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prvtocol · 2 years ago

Note

❛ I’m just saying, murder is an option. ❜ // what if Quaritch 👀

𝟐𝟎𝟎 𝐑𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐎𝐌 𝐃𝐈𝐀𝐋𝐎𝐆𝐔𝐄 𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐌𝐏𝐓𝐒 ✿

At least SecOps had the decency to involve the Director of SciOps in this briefing on Project Phoenix’s objectives. Scratch that — most likely Stringer pushed and General Ardmore obliged. It’s no secret they are under the RDA’s version of Marshall Law; what once was a corporate-run entity, is now under military control. The Na’vi resistance's continued boldness, from the welcome party in orbit to hitting supply lines, mining, and researcher facilities gave them a reason enough to deem that necessary — a chokehold that’s going to be hard to rescind.

But here she is, in the Bridgehead Ops Center standing with Colonel Miles Quaritch back from the dead sixteen years later. The hybrid’s tall blue form may be a shadow of his former aged self, but everything else — personality, memories, the insatiable desire for revenge — is completely intact. The Recom Program is the next wave of human/Na’vi hybrids. No need for a driver like avatars and the potential for immortality if you grow them right. The first “squad,” with squad being the operable term, is all military in basis even if her own backup Recom is in an amino tank as they speak — an insurance policy for higher-ups to continue their job in the face of death. Until colonization is complete, and the capacity to house two million at Bridgehead City is fulfilled, humans remain in short supply on Pandora. Can't say the same for the endless supply of firepower and other machines getting 3D printed every minutes.

The Recom Leader’s remarks concerning eliminating the Na’vi resistance — essentially the entire clan of Omatikaya that supports their leader, Jake Sully — shifts a concerned gaze from the interactive holograph projector displaying the Hallelujah Mountains, to Ardmore.

“If I may, General.” Leave to speak is granted by the stern woman who despite Stringer, pulls more and more of the operation’s strings. Eyes turn to the non-militant, much to the skepticism of the only Recom in the room.

“Forgive me in advance as I only seek clarity.” Politely she starts, a soft though assured tenor which is often noted of the director. “Genocide of an entire Na’vi clan, which is who Sully is leading when we say resistance, could provoke more of a response than is prudent. It’s using a bulldozer to find a china cup.” The metaphor is spoken while matching Quaritch’s intimidating yellow stare with her own calm questioning gaze. Brianne may be petite in form, and unassuming in appearance, but she wields the Landry name and lineage making her corporate elite compared to others here from more modest backgrounds (job opportunities being so sparse on earth). Her posh accent is enough to sound as if she's speaking above them Not fully her intent. “If hunting down the leader of the resistance is the primary goal, I wholeheartedly support it. If we are lucky, they will run and lick their wounds and lose their stamina with it.”

The blunt switch in her voice and the harshness of her words are all a facade of military support. With SecOps and CetOps’ overreach, there is a need to be strategic. She is not going to be caught appearing as another Grace Augustine, whose Avatar Program was shut down due to interfering (leading the researchers to commit treason and their Sully problem to begin). SciOps is already losing control, she knows to be discrete.

“As you may assume, my primary concern is with my researchers in the field being able to continue their job. To find the next amrita, if you will.” It’s a boon to her subdivision to claim a discovery that is funding this entire operation, even if CetOps carries the quota forward. “But further stroking the flames of war prevents that. I support the squad but especially if they remain smart with this. I’m sure you will. I only encourage the colonel to consult me with xeno-cultural questions of engagement before more trouble is caused.”

Brianne knows that won’t happen. This invitation is a briefing, not a planning session but at least she made her voice known.

#badtrigger #v ( avatar ) .#c ( 2168 - 2170 ) .#(( ty for letting me write director bri ;; ))

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