#( THE LITTLEJOHN FAMILY. )

[jerseydeanne]

RICHARD LITTLEJOHN: The run-up to the Platinum Jubilee has given council jobsworths an excuse to go into red tape overdrive... Ignore the killjoys - let's have a right royal knees-up!

[fullyalivephotography]

A Queen Creek Olive Mill Fall Family Session

A Queen Creek Olive Mill Fall Family Session

A Queen Creek Olive Mill Fall Family Session I have another beautiful fall family session for you today! I am so proud of myself for actually sitting down and writing blogs amidst my busy season. But if I don’t write them then I don’t build searchable content for other families to find beautiful locations, outfit ideas, and inspiration for their sessions. So, firstly, blog posts are great for…

[elizabethswitch]

They found the ProPublica source who leaked the Trump family tax info and

This hero's name is Mr. Littlejohn. Little John is inside the IRS wreaking havoc on wealthy thieves, taking info fromthe rich and giving it away, am I having a stroke

“Littlejohn then saved the tax returns to multiple personal storage devices, including an iPod.”

LEGEND

[piedpiperart]

Phantom of Gotham 18

Chapter 17

”I can’t believe you!” Tim exclaimed, punching Danny in the arm when he spotted him in class. 

“Ouch!” Danny laughed nervously, rubbing his arm. “You-”

“You could have told me you were leaving! Or at least talked to us about it first,”Tim said, exasperated. Danny watched him throw himself into the seat next to Danny dramatically and throw his bag down, only to dig through it for a tupperware of… oh, were those Alfred’s cookies? Danny hoped they were for him. Alfred’s cookies were awesome. “Now even Damian is bugging me about you and telling me to just take you home after school.”

“Uh, you guys did say I could leave and that you wouldn’t call CPS,”Danny reminded him, rubbing the back of his neck. Tim gave him a look, blowing some bangs out of his eyes.

“Yes. And we’ll stick to that. But you know we only said that because we’d hope to convince you to stay at the manor. Because we’re rich and we have an infinite amount of space for you to stay,”Tim stressed. “Seriously. Where are you staying now?”

“Not telling,”Danny deflected immediately. “You guys got a frickin’ vigilante working for you, I’m not a snitch.”

“That’s not-” Tim threw his hands into the air exasperatedly. “Fine! But only talkers get cookies,”Tim glared, sliding the tupperware of solid gold goodness away from Danny’s hands. Danny pouted, but didn’t relent. 

The day continued like that, with Tim trying to convince him to stay at the manor, while Danny deflected and changed  subjects like a bored teen changing channels on a tv. I was getting cumbersome for both of them by lunch though, and they’d settled for a truce. Danny ended up getting a few cookies while Steph joined them at the lunch table. She was soon cackling over the Waynes losing a potential adoptee and for Danny sneaking out. They high-fived. Tim was not amused. By the multitude of texts to Tim’s phone, the family wasn’t either. 

RobinHood

Went to the Pizzaria, kid’s stuff is gone. 

LittleJohn

Damn. I got nothing on my end. Any ideas?

RobinHood

Tail him after school

MaidMarian

You think he’ll notice?

LittleJohn

Well, he might if he’s got a ghost looking out for him Steph. We’re not sure where Phantom went the other day but we do know that Danny got out of the manor without triggering any security.

RobinHood

Plus Phantom is friends with Danny. 

MaidMarian

Eh, we can still try. Or just kidnap him as civilians (≖⌣≖)

LittleJohn

Eh… Maybe. Last resort.

RobinHood

I could just take him from school

MaidMarian

•̀ ᎑ -

LittleJohn

No!! That would be so much worse oh my god

Jason sighed at his brother’s lack of creativity. He’d thought the Pizzaria might have been cleared out but seeing it for himself still made his heart sink. If only there was some clues to where the kid had gone, he thought. No doubt he was anywhere but around Hood’s territory now. 

To be fair, he wasn’t nearly as worried about the kid now that he knew he had ghost powers that helped him survive. Still, Jason knew living on the streets wasn’t all it was cracked up to be. Part of him thought that maybe the kid was scared that everyone hunting him would put the Waynes in danger. He wasn’t wrong to think that, but they could handle themselves. Sure, ghosts were a new thing for them, but they adapted. Made plans. 

Jason wasn’t sure they’d be able to keep Danny or Phantom in one place without using some kind of ghost technology like the GIW or call in a magic user. Except Jason didn’t want to think about having weapons that Danny’s parents made to hurt him. From what he could tell, ghosts weren’t as much of a problem to humans as humans were to ghosts. Jason didn’t need ghost weapons to deal with the GIW, and he sure as hell was gonna deal with them. 

The Bats had been gathering information on them like crazy. Babs was still hacking their databases and Batman was putting together a plan to inform the Justice League. They weren’t entirely sure this was something the Green Lanterns needed to take up to the OA, but if it was they’d cross that bridge when they got to it. 

-----------------------------------------

Damian was furious. 

He’d been texting Timothy nonstop about Danny and yet- unsurprisingly- his older brother had been unable to convince the boy to come back to the manor. Frustratingly, Timothy had not even responded to any of his text messages since lunch time and hadn’t come to the manor after school. Even Todd wasn’t answering any of his messages- plans- to convince Danny to join the family. It had been two days and Danny had still been staying who knows where. The family had not even tried to follow him home out of some misguided respect for privacy and free will. He was sure Danny was somewhere abandoned, likely somewhere lacking proper water and heat. Damian was beyond frustrated that all his hard work getting Danny used to a stable meal plan was for nothing. 

It was ridiculous how dumb Danny was acting in regards to his own safety. As one of the few species of half ghost around, he had the survival instincts of a paper bag, and Damian was of the opinion that he should be trying a lot harder considering his status. Damian had no idea why Danny would think they wouldn’t be able to protect and care for him at the manor. Obviously, Danny was an asset when it came to the Ghostly dimension given his halfa status and friendship with Phantom. There was no other reason why he wanted Danny to stay. It wasn’t like he missed the boy. Even if he was better than Timothy in every way, and had intriguing powers that he trusted Damian with. Not at all.

Damian scoffed, adjusting his tie for the third time. He didn’t want to go to this infernal Gala, especially when only Grayson and his father were attending. Cass was still in Hong Kong, and Jason and Timothy had other plans. Damian hoped those plans included getting Danny to stay at the manor. He would no doubt be a good sidekick for when Damian was older, and he would not be letting Danny slip through his fingers. 

“Are you ready Baby bat?” Grayson asked, a grin on his face and despite the formal wear, he’d somehow convinced Father to let him wear a glittery monstrosity instead of a tie. “There’s gonna be a few people B wants us to keep an eye on, wanna help me with surveillance?” Damian scoffed. “Why not. It’s not as if there will be anything else of importance going on,”He added. Grayson gave him a knowing smile, as if he was recalling just how boring and overly formal these parties were. 

“I’d say you get used to it, but…”Grayson trailed off, sighing dramatically. “Never do.” He shook his head, then they made their way to the front where Alfred and Bruce were waiting with the car. 

As far as Galas go, it was certainly not the most boring, but it definitely wasn’t providing any riveting conversations. As far as surveillance, Damian was able to trade off with Grayson during the night, switching targets and gleaming information as they went. It was no surprise that Mr. Elwood was simply in an affair than any nefarious business deals. Ms. Green on the other hand was definitely collaborating with some of the shader patrons in the Gala, whom Father suspected had ties to Penguin. 

Though, there was one target that Damian couldn’t get a read on. He was tall, haughty, and self-absorbed, yet according to B, had a perfectly clean multi-million dollar business despite multiple complaints and signs to otherwise. Damian in particular hated him on principle for the way he looked down on everyone around him. He ignored how hypocritical that statement might be and chose to eye the billionaire talking with his father. 

“As I was saying, my son Daniel reminds me a lot of your sons,”Vlad was saying to Bruce. He was wearing a gray suit with a black shirt and an annoyingly green tie. Damian was certain it was some type of football paraphernalia. “He’s very headstrong and independent for one. How do you deal with your sons when they refuse to listen to reason?”

“Oh?” Brucie said with an exaggerated confused look. He ignored the concerning question for now.“I was unaware you had any children.”

Annoyance and something else flashed across Vlad’s face before he schooled his expression to exasperation. Damian sneered at the man internally. “Ah of course, Daniel is technically my godson, but he’s like a son to me. We have a lot in common,”Vlad explained, a sneer suddenly forming and taking Damian by surprise,”At least more than his father has with him. Honestly, his mother could do so much better than that bumbling idiot.”

“Where is this Daniel then?” Damian cut in, garnering the attention of both men. Vlad seemed surprised to see him, if not a bit jealous. “If you are so close, how come he didn’t join you here?”

“I would have loved to have the little badger here beside me,”Vlad’s face twisted into something like sadness, but missed the mark. “Unfortunately, Daniel’s gone missing these past few months without so much as a word.”

Damian frowned as his father offered meaningless sympathies. Daniel? Vlad had been from Wisconsin, but he recalled the man having some sort of dealings in Amity. After a moment he remembered and scowled. This man was the Mayor of Danny’s town. He was the one who’d let the GIW in in the first place, surely. Looking up at the man’s false mask, set on gaining sympathy from his father made him light up with contempt. 

“Of course,”Vlad was saying when Damian started paying attention again.”I had originally come to Gotham to find him, you see. I’d heard something about him being spotted in the area and just had to check it out for myself.”

That was bad. If he was talking about Danny, then Vlad somehow had gotten ahold of information about his whereabouts. Who else had that intel? Was the GIW or the Fentons on his tail? Was Danny in danger? He quickly excused himself from the two adults and meandered over to his elder brother to relay the information. Hopefully they could get Danny to a safe location before something bad happened. 

Chapter 19

[marchentraume]

Hi uh, I'm just gonna list out my Michael Sheen and David Tennant crossover ships with short headcanons and why lol:

Miles Maitland and Ginger Littlejohn (Bright Young Things)

They both existed in the same project before even knowing who the other ways ofc I ship it

Beautiful and full of life Miles balances out the serious Ginger, the latter can make sure Miles is safe from anyone who would hurt him

This one is probably my fave and have been slowly getting more invested, shout out to my kindred spirits who also have a galaxy brain for these two

Martin Whitly (Prodigal Son) and Alec Hardy (Broadchurch)

This might just be copying hannigram but I haven't watch Hannibal yet so no clue here haha

Martin is quite literally a criminal but also very educated, he would see Alec and want to save him realizing there's one person he wants to keep safe if not contained and away from the world

Alec is perplexed how such an educated man can do what he did but also attracted to both sides he shows

This isn't a healthy ship but why would I be into shipping for only that :D

Romeo and Romeo (Romeo and Juliet)

Both have played Romeo once in their respective lives and maybe I just want them to kiss

It's nothing deeper than that, both are INCREDIBLY gorgeous in their productions and I wish more photos existed...

Aro (Twilight series) and Peter Vincent (Fright Night 2011)

(yes this is a remake)

Vampire and "vampire hunter"? That's all I need.

You know Aro would love teasing the supposed cowardly Pete but surprisingly turned on when he he stands up to fight back

Of course the angst for Peter gaining attraction for a creature that killed his family

The sex would be insane you know it

I'm sure I'll build up more as I continue the brain rot but also let me know yours or any additional HCs with these ships I love...sheen and tennant...

[citylighten]

This is still a work in progress - I have caps of other relatives who aren’t here, but because I’m trying to have a equal portion of Carrieri’s & Scozzari’s (specifically to show who looks like who on what side of the family) this is what I’m comfortable posting for now. 😂

So here we have

Rosinha Carrieri - Mother to Francisco and Morena Carrieri.  Concetta Scozzari - Mother to Stefani, Ignazia, and Giovanni (who is not on here atm)  Morena Carrieri - Sister to Francisco, mother to Leonardo (not on here atm) and Tiago Ignazia Scozzari - Sister to Stefani and Giovanni, mother to Apollonia  Tiago Carrieri - Son to Morena and younger brother to Leonardo  Apollonia Scozzari - Daughter to Ignazia   Francisco Carrieri - Partner to Stefani Scozzari. Father of Sonia, Salvatore, and Rosaria. Stefani Scozzari - Partner to Francisco Carrieri. Mother of Sonia, Salvatore, and Rosaria. Salvatore Scozzari - Middle child. Boyfriend to Eve Littlejohn. Eve Littlejohn - Girlfriend to Salvatore, daughter to Linda Littlejohn (not present) Rosaria Scozzari- Youngest child. Sonia Scozzari - Oldest child.

[yourwosogirly]

women’s football masterlist 🤍✨.

fics 🤍✨.

🤍 katie mccabe

opposites do attract

🤍katie zelem

kicking off romance

🤍 alessia russo

sweat and sparks

struggling with change

🤍mapi leon

breaking hearts, healing souls

🤍 lucy bronze

thunder and lightning

🤍 ruesha littlejohn

dont you dare p2

thoughts 🤍✨.

🤍 leah williamson

nothing yet!

🤍 alessia russo

alessia russo

🤍 alexia putellas

nothing yet!

🤍 rachel daly

nothing yet!

🤍 katie mccabe

nothing yet!

🤍 ella toone

nothing yet!

🤍 mary earps

nothing yet!

🤍 jessie fleming

nothing yet!

🤍 millie bright

nothing yet!

🤍 sam kerr

nothing yet!

headcannons 🤍✨.

🤍leah williamson

leah williamson as your girlfriend

🤍 alessia russo

nothing yet!

🤍mary earps

nothing yet!

🤍alexia putellas

nothing yet!

moodboards 🤍✨

🤍leah williamson

dating leah williamson

🤍alessia russo

nothing yet!

🤍mary earps

nothing yet!

🤍alexia putellas

nothing yet!

blurbs 🤍✨

🤍 magdalena eriksson

ain’t your fault

🤍 mary fowler

no worries

🤍zerica musovic

collisions

🤍 leah williamson

enchanted

wip’s 🤍✨.

🤍 rachel daly

eyes on me

we’re meant to be together + millie bright

baby, oh

🤍 aitana bonmati

trapped with you

🤍 katrina gorry

my family

🤍 leah williamson

hidden desires

🤍 millie bright

we’re meant to be together + rachel daly

🤍 lia wälti

hidden desires + leah williamson

🤍 steph catley

golden girls

🤍alessia russo

pamper date

I wanna kiss your lips

🤍 ella toone

embracing strength

🤍 alexia putellas

broken pieces

[plethoraworldatlas]

A U.S. federal district court has just sentenced Charles Littlejohn to five years in prison. What exactly did Littlejohn — a contractor for the IRS — do? He committed a public service. He revealed just how astoundingly little America’s richest are paying in federal taxes.

In 2019, after Donald Trump had reneged on his campaign pledge to publicly share his personal tax data, the then 33-year-old Littlejohn passed detailed info from Trump’s tax returns to the New York Times. The subsequent Times exposé revealed that Trump, in 2016, had paid a mere $750 in federal income taxes and not paid any such taxes in all but five of the fifteen previous years.

A year later, Littlejohn shared a much wider federal income tax data set with the nonprofit news organization ProPublica. These new numbers helped expose how a variety of wealthy public officials, including the mega-millionaire Rick Scott, a Republican U.S. senator from Florida, had exploited tax code loopholes “to preserve their family fortunes for their heirs.”

A fuming Senator Scott would go on to position himself — before Littlejohn’s sentencing this past Monday — as among the “thousands of American taxpayers” that Littlejohn had subjected to “partisan abuse.”

The Wall Street Journal shared Scott’s indignation. “The man behind the largest heist of taxpayer data,” the Journal insisted, fully deserves a “multiyear sentence” severe enough to “deter future political raids on unpopular Americans.”

But the outrage over Littlejohn’s IRS data leaks went far beyond the ranks of right-wing lawmakers and editorial boards. The presiding U.S. district court judge on Littlejohn’s case, Ana Reyes, could barely contain her fury.

“I cannot overstate how troubled I am by what occurred,” Reyes announced last October at the hearing where Littlejohn pled guilty to one count of unauthorized disclosure of income tax returns. Reyes went on to promise “serious consequences” for Littlejohn’s transgressions.

“People taking the law into their own hands,” she intoned, will always be “unacceptable.”U.S. Attorney-General Merrick Garland would be equally aghast.

“By using his role as a government contractor to gain access to private tax information, steal that information, and disclose it publicly,” Garland harrumphed, “Charles Littlejohn broke federal law and betrayed the public’s trust.”

The federal prosecutors on Littlejohn’s case, meanwhile, totally rejected any suggestion that the government ought to be taking Littlejohn’s noble motives into account.

[abcnewspr]

HIGHLIGHTS FOR ABC NEWS’ ‘GMA3: WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW,’ DEC. 25-29

The following report highlights the programming of ABC’s “GMA3: What You Need to Know” during the week of Dec. 25-29. “GMA3: What You Need to Know” is a one-hour program co-anchored by Eva Pilgrim and DeMarco Morgan, with Dr. Jennifer Ashton as chief health and medical correspondent. The news program airs weekdays at 1:00 p.m. EST | 12:00 p.m. CST on ABC, and 4:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. EST on ABC News Live.

Highlights of the week include the following:

Monday, Dec. 25 — Broadway Brings the Holidays to “GMA3”; Broadway performer Alyssa Fox (“Wicked”); Broadway performer Sonya Balsara (“Aladdin”); Broadway performer Vincent Jamal Hooper (“The Lion King”); Broadway performer Alex Nicholson (“Hamilton”); a performance by Shoshana Bean; a performance by Tyler Hardwick

Tuesday, Dec. 26 — Battle of the Holiday Leftovers Volume II Show featuring chefs Kardea Brown, Jordan Andino, Anne Burrell and judged by celebrity chef Josh Capon, TV personality Kevin O’Leary and “GMA3” contributor Rocsi Diaz

Wednesday, Dec. 27 — Young Voters Show; ABC News political director Rick Klein on election poll numbers one year out; North Carolina Democratic Party chair Anderson Clayton and Alabama Republican Party chair John Wahl; ABC News multiplatform reporter Elizabeth Schulze on student loan debt; ABC News senior congressional correspondent Rachel Scott

Thursday, Dec. 28 — “GMA3”’s Favorite RecipesShow; chef and cookbook author Eric Ripert (“Seafood Simple”); Agostino Fresh Mozz Co. co-owners Anthony Agostino and Giacomo Cunsolo; chef and cookbook author Chris Valdes (“One with the Kitchen”); lobster restaurant owners Jim Tselikis and Sabin Lomac; celebrity chef Josh Capon; TV host and cookbook author Lidia Bastianich (“Lidia’s From Our Family Table to Yours”)

Friday, Dec. 29 — “GMA3” Behind the Music with artists Missy Elliot, Jason Mraz, Darius Rucker, Kim Petras and others

ABC Media Relations Brooks Lancaster brooks.lancaster@abc.com

Jordan Littlejohn jordan.littlejohn@abc.com

-- ABC --

[spacetimewithstuartgary]

Germany joins NASA's Artemis accords as newest signatory

During a ceremony at the German Ambassador's Residence in Washington on Thursday, Germany became the 29th country to sign the Artemis Accords. NASA Administrator Bill Nelson participated in the signing ceremony for the agency, and Director General of the German Space Agency at DLR Dr. Walther Pelzer signed on behalf of Germany.

NASA Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy and the following also were in attendance:

Jennifer Littlejohn, acting assistant secretary, U.S. Department of State

Chirag Parikh, executive secretary of the U.S. National Space Council

Andreas Michaelis, German ambassador to the United States

Dr. Anna Christmann, federal German coordinator of German Aerospace Policy

"I'm thrilled to welcome Germany to the Artemis Accords family," said Nelson. "Germany has long been one of NASA's closest and most capable international partners, and their signing today demonstrates their leadership now and into the future—a future defined by limitless possibilities in space and the promise of goodwill here on Earth."

The Artemis Accords establish a practical set of principles to guide space exploration cooperation among nations, including those participating in NASA's Artemis program.

"Germany and the United States have been successful partners in space for a long time. For example, German companies in the space sector are already central contributing to the Artemis program. The German signing of the Artemis Accords gives a further boost to this joint endeavor to carry out programs for the exploration of space. Thus, the Artemis Accords offer a multitude of new opportunities for industry and scientific research in Germany—and ultimately also across Europe," said Pelzer.

NASA, in coordination with the U.S. Department of State, established the Artemis Accords in 2020 together with seven other original signatories.

The Artemis Accords reinforce and implement key obligations in the 1967 Outer Space Treaty. They also strengthen the commitment by the United States and signatory nations to the Registration Convention, the Rescue and Return Agreement, as well as best practices and norms of responsible behavior NASA and its partners have supported, including the public release of scientific data.

More countries are expected to sign the Artemis Accords in the months and years ahead, as NASA continues to work with its international partners to establish a safe, peaceful, and prosperous future in space. Working with both new and existing partners adds new energy and capabilities to ensure the entire world can benefit from our journey of exploration and discovery.

[killed-by-choice]

Liu Dan, 21 (China 2009)

Liu Dan and her beloved fiancé Song Qingshan had known each other since they were kids. They were classmates in Jinshen Middle School in Jingang Town and began dating in 2006.

They wanted to get married, but the law stated that they both had to be of legal age for marriage first and at least one of them was slightly too young (according to the laws at the time). Although they were not legally considered a married couple, a marriage ceremony was performed by Song Qingshan’s family for them and Liu Dan moved in with them. She became pregnant at some point in 2008.

Liu Dan was examined by Dayao Hospital and the examination results showed that her due date was March 5th. Liu Dan was excited to have her baby and was not expected to have problems with the birth.

Liu Dan and Song Qingshan’s happy life together turned into a living nightmare less than two weeks before the baby was due. On February 26th 2009, two vans suddenly stopped in front of the house. Before the family could do anything, a group of people abducted Liu Dan and took her to the PFPC in Liuyang City. Despite Liu Dan’s struggles and desperate cries, she was forced to undergo an abortion by lethal injection. She was taken to a population and family planning station. Song’s family and Liu Dan’s mother arrived to the PFPC station that night to be with her.

(Sometime before, Dayao Hospital had noted that abortion could be dangerous for Liu Dan because of her high blood pressure and unclear amniotic fluid. It was an assault on her health to force her to undergo the abortion.)

On the second day, Liu Dan suffered from vaginal bleeding. Her family requested to send her to hospital, but the PFPC workers immediately denied it.

Liu Dan was forcibly sent to the PFPO’s operation room. Around midnight, her baby was stillborn. Nobody was allowed to know if the baby was a boy or a girl because none of Liu Dan’s family members were allowed to enter the room. She was already physically and emotionally devastated, but at 3:00 A.M. Liu Dan became even weaker and bled even more. Someone pushed on her belly, causing her to bleed even more heavily.

Sensing something was wrong, Song Qingshan broke into the room and found Liu Dan was bleeding from her nose, eyes, ears and mouth. The PFPO hadn’t even bothered to call emergency services at that point.

When a team of doctors from Liuyang City hospital finally arrived, Liu Dan was in great danger and she could not afford to move to the hospital. Emergency medical treatment was given in the room and calls were made for other equipment and more doctors. But everything was too late. At about 6:00 a.m., Liu Dan was declared dead.

Liu Dan’s brother rushed back home from Beijing when he found out that his sister and her baby had been killed. He tried to expose her story to media, but all the newspapers hung up the phone on hearing it was about the Population and Family Planning Policy. An activist group known as Women’s Rights Without Frontiers was tipped off and helped expose the truth. Liu Dan’s case was even included in a report submitted into the Congressional Record.

Song Qingshan and the families were eventually paid the equivalent of about $46,000 from the government and the PFPO ($40,000 were from the PFPO). But what they really wanted was for Qi Zhiqiang (the man who signed to authorize the forced abortion) to be brought to justice. He is the one who directly caused Liu Dan and her child’s death.

Abortion tore apart a young couple in love who had hoped to have many years together as a happy family. Song Qingshan was made to suffer unimaginable grief at the death of his true love and their only child.

New Evidence Regarding China’s One-Child Policy Forced Abortion, Involuntary Sterilization, Infanticide and Coercive Family Planning November 10, 2009 Hearing Before the U.S. Congressional Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission (Liu Dan is Case 6)

https://www.womensrightswithoutfrontiers.org/blog/reggie-littlejohn-speaks-at-capitol-hill-press-conference-11811/

[byneddiedingo]

Badlands (Terrence Malick, 1973). Cast: Martin Sheen, Sissy Spacek, Warren Oates, Ramon Bieri, Alan Vint, Garry Littlejohn, John Carter. Screenplay: Terrence Malick. Cinematography: Tak Fujimoto, Stevan Larner, Brian Probyn. Art direction: Jack Fisk. Film editing: Robert Estrin, Billy Weber. Music: George Aliceson Tipton. 

Badlands was also Terrence Malick's first feature, made before he yielded to his inclination toward profundity and made movies like The Thin Red Line (1998) and The Tree of Life (2011), which take conventional genres like the war movie and the family drama and infuse them with metaphysics and cosmological speculation. In Badlands he stuck to the two main characters, the psychotic Kit (Martin Sheen) and his morally blank girlfriend Holly (Sissy Spacek), and left the philosophical import of their stories alone -- or better yet, left them for us to ponder. For the movie is in its essence a fable about the nature of evil. Kit is, in the cliché parlance, a "cold-blooded killer," one who doesn't reflect on his actions, whether it's picking up the girl he takes a fancy to, or casually gunning down anyone who stands in his way. There's mercifully little in the way of backstory psychology -- we take Kit and Holly for what they are. We can surmise about Holly's emotional blankness, since we see a little of her father (Warren Oates) who is an inept and even cruel parent (he kills her dog to punish her), but we see and learn almost nothing about what shaped Kit. The tendency of some would be to fault the environment in which the two grow up: the bleak, opportunity-starved small towns of the American heartland. But Malick lets his cinematographers -- Tak Fujimoto, Stevan Larner, and Brian Probyn -- seek out the spare beauty of the region. We're left to surmise that perhaps this kind of evil -- the kind we see often in the cruel gun stories of our day -- can find its nourishment anywhere.

gifs from boydswan:

[collymore]

Don't hold your breath on my account!

By Stanley Collymore

All those vociferously and quite aggressively shouting leave Kate alone are the same bloody ones, the identical odious and vile hypocrites that quite obsessively in rightwing rags, like the Daily Mail and also, their similarly, likeminded electronic media counterparts quite customarily; aggressively; naturally distinctively vitriolically and crucially essentially, undeniably, obsessively berate Meghan, Harry, and equally their children very unwarrantedly even when these published stories or reported by these biased media have absolutely nothing whatever to do with Meghan and her family. But hey that’s perfectly OK as it's simply, a naturally, rather lawfully revenue generating, through such numerous clickbait responses, for the media firms actually involved and equally allows the Karen and Gammon racists, to quite lawfully and harmlessly spout off publicly their evilly and obsessive racism!

But when their stalker, gold digger bitch turned saint by them and through her own deception is found out to be the odious, dishonest cunt which she is and has always been, and furthermore, makes it abundantly obvious, by her cowardly actions, that she has been a primary force through her personal stooges, and British rags in quite purposely denigrating Harry, Meghan and their children; and very specifically, and also literally racially so Archie, when he was undoubtedly a mere embryo in Meghan's woman; yet really pathetically, but obviously clearly according to Kate's distinctly brainwashed and simply braindead very noxious sycophants, the actual world, literally including Harry and Meghan, must simply generally feel sorry for and essentially empathize with Kate Middleton! You're clearly literally free to do so, of course; but don't actually hold your breath that I personally, will effectively ever be numbered among such sycophants!

(C) Stanley V. Collymore 19 March 2024.

Author's Remarks: I truly couldn't be any more indifferent to this gold digger, white Karen racist's welfare or otherwise, than I effectively am about the actual life span or, undoubtedly, the actually impending demise of similar white scum unquestionably, like: Tom Bauer, Sarah Vine, Rebecca English, Maureen Callaghan, Jeremy Clarkson, Amanda Platell, Frank Hester, Piers Morgan, or Richard Littlejohn, to name just a few of these walking deads.

[hqtoussaint]

Black Women Are Disappearing From Social Media — Including Me. Here's Why. By Amanda Miller Littlejohn, HuffPost, Oct 9, 2022 "We help everyone be great — our jobs, our partners, our families back home. We take care of everyone. … We’re tired of being so damn helpful — for free."

[kathor]

“How Gender Ideology Almost Destroyed My Family” - January Littlejohn

[shahananasrin-blog]

[ad_1] Having opened a cafe in Edinburgh with a view to supporting the local homeless population, Littlejohn found himself hosting three of his staff members in his one bedroom flat. "When we started Social Bite I was quite obsessed with it," he said. "I would wake up thinking about it and go to bed dreaming of it; it was an all-consuming passion but that's unsustainable. "I wasn't seeing my family enough or making time for friends and it was a bit tunnel vision." The pressure took a toll on his mental health and he began having panic attacks, ending up in A&E several times. "It was a really scary experience and you think you're going to die," he added. The now 36-year-old was prescribed Valium and cognitive behavioural therapy and started exercising for the sake of his mental and physical health - he also learned to delegate. Littlejohn, who founded Social Bite in 2012 with his former business partner Alice Thompson, is now the recipient of five honorary doctorates, an MBE, a Robert Burns Humanitarian Award, and is listed in Debrett's as one of the most influential people in the UK. Social Bite started on Rose Street in the New Town and began to employ people with homelessness backgrounds after a man named Josh Hart, a Big Issue seller, came in to ask for a job. Littlejohn and Thompson, who left the company in 2020, also hired two brothers, Pete and Joe, who thrived in the cafe but lost their homelessness accommodation. Working in Social Bite became untenable because they had nowhere to shower and so Littlejohn invited them to live with him, one on each sofa in his living room. "It was meant to be for two weeks but they were there for over a year," Littlejohn said, "and then another employee moved in, so you can imagine the chaos of that. "It didn't seem strange at the time but looking back, you've got no balance at all." As Social Bite has grown, so too has the staff base and Littlejohn says he is far more able to find balance in his life now he has "far more talented people than me" working with him. Getting married a few years ago and becoming a dad 11 months ago have also helped to refocus his priorities. During lockdown, in the down time afforded by the pandemic, Littlejohn wrote a book - Paying It Forward - about both his own personal experiences and the founding of a social enterprise. When he left university, he said, he was motivated politically and by social issues but also had an entrepreneurial drive - perhaps thanks to his millionaire parents Simon and Heather - he wasn't sure how to satisfy. It was reading a book by the Bangladeshi social entrepreneur Muhammad Yunus that inspired him to combine his ethical position and his business spirit. He said: "I had just left university and at that time I had never heard of the term social enterprise, there was no cultural reference point for trying to create a business with a social mission, the only purpose of a business was to create profit. "Reading that book lit a fire within me when I learned that idea and felt a real sense of alignment." As well as a hope that the book will inspire other people in the business sector to harness their more altruistic motivations and tackle social issues, Littlejohn said the book will be a nice thing for his son to read when he is old enough. In a PR coup, Littlejohn managed to lure Hollywood A-listers George Clooney and Leonardo DiCaprio to support Social Bite in its early days and he's at the same trick with the new book: its endorsements so far come from Bob Geldof, Irvine Welsh, Martin Compston and Helen Mirren, to name just a handful. That first cafe on Rose Street has now become a string of coffee shops - the latest being on Sauchiehall Street in Glasgow - as well as a village to house homeless people and fundraising sleep outs in 52 cities around the world. Social Bite has also raised more than £25 million for charity. The success hasn't come without its challenges, however. When it was first announced that Social Bite would build a homelessness village in Edinburgh there were ample naysayers who predicted it would become a run down ghetto. "The status quo of homelessness accommodation in Edinburgh was so bad, God-awful hostels with bed bugs and piss stained mattresses and no support, and people were really spiralling and their mental health was plummeting. "That was the other option so we knew for a fact it would have been literally impossible to do anything worse. "We just tried to stay true to our vision and that was one of the projects I am really proud of." The Social Bite Village, which gives housing but also practical supports, has helped around 100 people into permanent accommodation and there are plans to build two more villages. Littlejohn said: "One of my favourite things to do is go down there. It's a thriving little community with garden wars going on between some of the houses with little ponds and gnomes and really impressive gardens." While trying to maintain a politically neutral stance, Littlejohn is scathing of what he sees as a long running failure to adequately tackle homelessness in Scotland - and, in particular, the missed opportunity post-pandemic. He said: "The vast majority of homelessness accommodation is run by private landlords so it's this very strange profit-making niche where these unscrupulous private landlords are literally profiting from human misery and vast quantities of council budget gets swallowed up for the provision of these private sector accommodations and it just feels a waste. "It's not that difficult, it's just providing decent support and a nice roof over someone's head. "It could easily be funded within existing budgets but it's the vulnerable people who really suffer. "It was dealt with in the pandemic as a public health issue and that gave it a sense of urgency because it affected everybody the political will was there and the funding was there and every rough sleepers throughout the UK was brought indoors. "So that goes to show you that when the political will is there then some radical things can happen." In 2018, with money raised from the Big Sleepout project where fundraisers sleep outdoors overnight, Social Bite lobbied the Scottish Government successfully to part-fund a housing first model. The social enterprise commissioned research to look at ways other countries were tackling homelessness and noticed a marked decrease in the statistics in Finland where the housing first model is used. Previously, homeless people would have to show they were "tenancy-ready" by tackling mental health problems and other issues before being granted housing, but that left vulnerable people in temporary accommodation. Social Bite put £2.3 million towards the scheme and persuaded landlords in five cities across Scotland to pledge 830 one bedroom flats. The Scottish Government then committed to £6.5m - and the scheme has helped 1000 people and changed local authority policy. Littlejohn said: "We realised that we have to do the entrepreneurial bit, mobilise and try to persuade local authorities to come alongside us, rather than standing on the sidelines and commissioning a study. "You need to understand your place in the world and where you fit, there are loads of larger charities doing lobbying and we don't need to duplicate that. We need to be the innovators and the challengers and the entrepreneurial thinkers." The Herald is speaking to Littlejohn in the new Sauchiehall Street cafe, which is next door to a Cafe Nero and a stone's throw from a Pret a Manger. It has been fitted out to be "by far the best we have done" because of the nearby commercial competitors and it is currently running employment programmes to give homeless people work. For 90 minutes each morning and afternoon the cafe is open to both homeless people and the paying public, which sees it attract around 100 homeless people each day. On a Tuesday the cafe closes entirely to provide hot meals to homeless people. Initially, Social Bite cafes were open at all times to paying customers and homeless people but Littlejohn had to adapt the model when it became clear that the paying customers were unhappy sharing the space. This might seem offensive but Littlejohn is pragmatic about the challenges of balancing commercial and social elements of the enterprise. He said: "It doesn't frustrate me at all, it's just the nature of these things and what we are trying to do is pretty unique and unusual. As long as we exist we will always have challenges in balancing those two tensions. "Homeless people come in and get that sense of dignity at being alongside paying customers in a main stream high street cafe environment and there's something important about that. "Really delicate balance that has tensions but it's really rewarding when you get that right." Staff can be part-barista and part-social worker so there is now an in-house counsellor who supports workers with any mental health issues or stresses. It was not, he adds, his idea but is an important addition for Littlejohn given his own mental health challenges. On his arm, Littlejohn has a tattoo he from a trip to Thailand five years ago, which reads "There is no them and us, there is only us," a fitting summary of his outlook on life. His mum, however, was unimpressed. "That's very good," she told him, "But could you not have just got it on a t shirt?" It's a reassuring end note: you can be a successful entrepreneur, multiple-award winner and the darling of the stars - but still get a row from your mum. [ad_2]