#Also I see him saying he's equal opportunity as alluding to a lack of a preference so I don't think he's bi anyways

[jaehyunsbreadbasket]

Jeremiah Fisher, my favorite queer man-whore 😌

[hermannsthumb]

Hermann calling Newt “love” the second after they first sleep together...

yes ;__; sfw, just alluding to past sexy stuff

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

It takes Newt a little while to remember where he is when he wakes up. The hard mattress and cheap sheets feel like his, and so does the chilly A/C blasting through the vents, but the walls are too blank (no posters), and the comforter is too soft, and the nightstand is sorely lacking Newt’s collection of stagnant water glasses and chewed gum. There’s also someone else in bed with him, limbs sprawled all over Newt, and snoring away contentedly.

Newt puts on his glasses. No—not just anyone. Hermann.

The events of the previous night come rushing back to Newt. They saved the world. They defeated the kaiju. He and Hermann drifted. He and Hermann—and Newt peeks under the blanket to make sure—totally boned.

(“Won’t you see me back to my quarters?” Hermann said, fluttering his eyelashes coyly, and Newt stammered and nodded and tripped after him, and then Hermann opened his door, and grabbed Newt by his tie, and…)

“We totally boned,” Newt whispers aloud. Man, he can’t believe it! The two most impossible things in the universe—ending the war, and Hermann Gottlieb—and Newt did them both in one night. He thinks he deserves some sort of medal or trophy, or at least a huge high-five. Way to go, Newt.

He takes a couple quiet seconds to just observe Hermann. His hair is a total hot mess—Newt never knew Hermann had the capacity to get bedhead before now, but it’s adorable. He has a dark hickey by the sharp jut of his collarbone. Ha, Newt gave him a hickey, cool. The corner of his mouth is hitched up in a little smile, and he’s drooling. Absolutely adorable. Newt’s halfway to leaving a shower of kisses along his spine when he thinks better of it—what kind of wake-up call is that for the guy you’ve been helplessly in love with for a decade? Not a good one. Hermann deserves better. Hermann deserves…breakfast in bed.

Newt wears Hermann’s shirt instead of his own down to the mess hall, just ‘cause, and everyone he passes is in a fucking fantastic mood. People he’s never spoken a word to before bid him good morning, and ask him where Dr. Gottlieb is. “He’s a little worn out,” he tells them, grinning to himself over his private little joke.

It’s not until he makes it back to Hermann’s room that his high spirits start to fade a little.

Yeah, he and Hermann boned—but they also didn’t bone until last night. They spent who knows how many years crammed into a tiny lab together. The opportunity could’ve arisen at any time, any day, any time they got a little too close to each other when they shouted, but it didn’t. Not until last night. Not until Hermann—cheeks flushed with joy, still half in Newt’s head, body pumping with leftover adrenaline Newt could even feel—grabbed Newt by his tie and yanked him to bed. What if it was just victory sex, and nothing more? What if Hermann laughs at Newt for thinking otherwise?

Newt’s quiet as he can slipping back into Hermann’s quarters and then into bed. Quashing down the rising tide of anxiety in his chest, he presses a little kiss to the back of Hermann’s neck. The hair there is short and prickly and tickles Newt’s lips.

Hermann stirs. “Mmrgh,” he says into his pillow.

“Hermann?” Newt says, quietly. He touches Hermann’s bare shoulder. “Uh. Wake up, dude. I got you…breakfast.”

Hermann lifts his head, and blinks at Newt sleepily, once, twice. His face breaks into a soft, and equally sleepy, smile. “Newt,” he says.

“That’s me,” Newt says, his heart thudding, and feeling so lovesick it actually hurts.

“You brought me breakfast?” Hermann says. His voice is scratchy.

Newt presents the tray with a stupid little grin. He went a little overboard, but his mind blanked of everything Hermann likes to eat while he stood in line, and he wasn’t sure what else to do. Anyway, at least there’s a variety now. “You should’ve seen the mess,” he says. “I’ve never seen them make this much food before. It’s almost eleven, and they still had muffins.” Newt always sleeps too late to get the good muffins.

“I’m glad of it,” Hermann says. He yawns. Hermann’s kinda like a languid, lithe cat when he’s just woken up—all limbs, and all lazy. Who knew. “You quite wore me out last night. I could do with plenty to eat.”

Newt blushes. He holds the tray while Hermann stretches his arms above his head and sits up, taking the liberty of poking two plastic straws into two PPDC-standard juiceboxes. “I think one of these is apple,” he says, examining them. “Honestly, they all taste the same to me anyway. Do you want—”

But Hermann cuts him off with a kiss. “Mm, I’ll take either,” he says, sliding his fingers idly along Newt’s jaw. They catch in Newt’s stubble. “Is there coffee?” Newt nods, and pushes one of the chipped mugs over to him. Hermann takes one gratefully. “Be a dear and hand me the milk, won’t you, love?”

Newt drops his juicebox. “What?” he squeaks.

“Milk?” Hermann says. He’s stirring sugar into his coffee, cool as anything. “If you haven’t got any I don’t mind. I like it black just fine.”

“You,” Newt says. “You said…”

“Mm?”

“Nothing,” he says.

He hands Hermann the little box of milk he picked up. Hermann stirs that into his coffee, too, and then spreads jam on a piece of toast. “We ought not to have slept in so late,” he hums. “I imagine we’ve got plenty of paperwork to do. And cleaning…” He sniffs in Newt’s direction, and makes a face. “Perhaps we could do with some of that, too.”

“Hey, Hermann?” Newt says. “You know that thing you just called me? Could you, like, keep calling me that?” His face feels hot; he starts twisting his pinkie ring around and around, watching that instead of Hermann. No one’s ever called him anything but Newt before, except maybe babe or something. And hearing Hermann say it, so effortlessly, and casually... “I…like it.”

There’s a small kiss pressed to his temple. He can feel Hermann smiling. “Of course, love,” Hermann murmurs.

“Cool,” Newt says.

[that-wizard-oki]

Hello! I've been aware of your blog for years, and made a Tumblr blog very recently. I want to say that your posts are extremely well thought out, and give the storyline of Wizard101 a lot of much needed depth. I think if Wiz had the gameplay and story structure of Pirate101, it would benefit highly especially for worlds like Azteca and Khrysalis. Currently I'm rewriting Wiz and your posts are a huge inspiration. Finally. what are your thoughts on Arc 3? Imo it had potential but failed.

Hey there! Thank you so much for all your kind words, I’m glad you enjoy my thoughts and theories about the game-  and I’m flattered to hear they inspire you to create your own fan work :D 

Personally, I wouldn’t say that Arc 3 failed in any sense. I think the idea of a children's/family game to tackle the theme of a broken family\divorce is pretty smart- it gives the opportunity to adults who play this game with their kids to find a way to perhaps talk about their own experience with the same themes in their real lives (if it applies to them). Likewise, i also like that the story focuses on that the CHILDREN are the one who have to clean up the PARENTS mess, more or less. Often times the children in families who have a parent/parents that are either split, should split, or are abusive to one another, are the ones who get caught in the cross fire- this is SO evident with Mellori and Bat in Empyrea.

Following that, I think it was also super clever to have Mellori (and the wizard) initially ALSO be fighting against Spider’s children. Another common occurrence in families that experience abuse between their parents/ect, is that one or both of the parents will try to divide their children onto sides- furthering the divide and conflict in the family itself. THIS was exactly what was happening in arc 3- we weren’t technically fighting Raven and Spider, but their children were fighting each other in their names.

One of the most beautiful things to come out of this game was the fact that Mellori and Bat WERE able to see through that, and instead focused on the real threat at hand- their parents. In fact, it is their COMBINED power that allows the wizard to defeat the result of Raven and Spider- the Aethyr Titan. This reflects so well into reality, where when the children of broken families try their damned to support one another, instead of letting their parents continue to control and divide them, it leads to the kids being able to break the domino effect that comes with that kind of family dynamic. They are able to become individuals- instead of being some mini version or “part” of their parents (which is also clever on KI’s part to make Mellori and Bat/Rat/Scorpion LITERAL extensions of Raven/Spider, which makes it seem like they are just kind of mindless bots doing whatever their entrusted parent tells them). 

One part i particularly like as well is that towards the end of Empyrea, Mellori talk about how she’s going to go home to her mom- and it’s not Raven, it’s Baba Yaga. I absolutely love this idea that, yea, Mellori (and any kid for that matter) SHOULD be able to choose who their mom/dad/parent is if their birth parent(s) don't provide for you the way a parent should. I think that is a SUPER important lesson for Kids AND parents to hear. You choose your own family if that’s what it comes down to, and there is NO shame in that. 

That being said, i do have my issues with some things too- this might seem small, but I never liked how when we’re in the Husk, and Raven and Spider are talking to one another about who’s “really” at fault, and eventually Raven goes “oh what have i done?” and Spider just goes “.... Yea were were BOTH really bad huh?” Like.... listen, sure, Raven probably shouldn’t have locked Cob away for eternity and stole his chaos heart in order to reform the spiral, BUT imma be real with y’all... Spider also did shit to aggravate Raven- specifically, he messed with her kids into a fucking war. I mean this half sarcastically, but tbh, if you mess with a mother’s kids... that's fucking on you man, you know the grave your digging for yourself on that one lmao.

But more seriously- i feel like they REALLY tried to make Raven out to be “worse” than Spider, and having Spider just beguile her with his words at the end in a way were she ended up being like “oh nooo IM the really bad one, oh no oh noo :((” JUST for him to be like “no its ok babe :) we’re BOTH equally as bad, stay here with me and we can be bad and alone together :)”

Actually now that i write that out, it is a little.. weird that Spider kinda got what he wanted- to be with Raven, when imo, they really should have STAYED split. I don’t come from a divorced family, but I’ve many friends who do, and I’ve gathered that more often than not... divorce can be a good thing, as it is likely to stop/lessen the conflict within families. I think that yea, they both did bad things to one another, and need to stay apart, not spend the rest of eternity together.

That’s probably my biggest qualm with the entirety of Arc 3, beyond the various obvious one, which is that Morganthe played like, absolutely no part in it lmao. I’ve talked endlessly about it, so i won’t repeat myself too much lol. 

Just to briefly reiterate- i think that Morganthe, the one who re-discovered shadow magic, was groomed by the Shadow Magi, and very blatantly infused with something akin to the conversion tables we see in Khrysalis, I think she would have been an invaluable source of information and help for the Wizard. Not only does she probably know the most about Shadow Magic outside of Spider, but it’s insanely alluded to that she was under his control- perhaps even had contact or conversation with him somehow in her time as Shadow queen.

The biggest frustration of her lack of presence though, comes from the way Khrysalis built up this INSANELY interesting Foil between the Wizard and her. The way that they both weirdly fit the prophecy, the way their lead into The Hive was so eerily mirrored, the fact that we were both called the Children of Light and Shadow by Spider, and not to even mention how the shared feelings of loneliness and fear of failure as students of Ambrose... like I could go on about these two and how amazing it would have been for them both to work together in arc 3, but also help heal and grow as The Children of Light and Shadow... but that’s not what we got unfortunately. 

Anywho, i don’t wanna ramble on about that too much because i touched on it in another ask post and you can look at that if ya want in my tag, but yea! Those are my general thoughts on Arc 3. Again, i love this arc, i think it truly has some of the most nuanced writing and characters thus far in the game. 

Besides, i always think they could easily write in Morganthe’s return for a redemption with the wizard, especially now with the Wizard seemingly trying to fight their own shadows.

Hope that satisfied your question though, and good luck with your writings :D

[lions-arch-chronicle]

Issue 6!

Image ID under read more

Title: Have we unmasked masked roller f?

Story: There has long been debate and conjecture on the true identity of the famed Masked Roller “F”. Scholar Courica along with Consultant Teekay, have conducted a deep dive investigation into who Masked Roller “F” could potentially be.The first potential suspect has been alluded to being no other than Pact Marshal Logan Thackeray. Theories suggest that it could be Thackeray because of the lack of action that he currently sees as the Pact Marshal. The high intensity and adrenaline that comes with roller beetle racing along with the lower impact on the body would be the perfect replacement for the usually intense environment that a battlefield produces. The main argument against this point is mainly Thackeray’s most noticeable feature, his hair. There could potentially be an argument for a wig being used to further the masked persona, but a wig would potentially be impossible to keep in place due to the high wind speeds that racers experience.Another candidate for the identity of the masked roller is the originator of the sport as well as the creator of roller beetles Gorrik. We are aware that Gorrik is in fact, an asura, but dear readers we would like to point out that transformation tonics are also an item that an ingenious asura could create fairly easily and have a ready supply if not a never-ending tonic. The knowledge that Gorrik has about the beetles as well as the creation of the mount lines up with the skills and abilities seen in the masked roller.The final and most controversial option is that Masked Roller “F” is none other than the Krytan noble, Lord Faren. It’s unlikely that the busy lord would have the time or the skill set necessary for him to be the masked roller. But the build, hair, and voice all seem eerily similar to the rider making him a strong candidate.Unfortunately, all three potential riders declined for interviews leaving this an unsolved mystery.

Title: Logan’s Luscious Locks Investigated?

Story: Everyone from Rata Sum to Amnoon knows about the seraph captain’s devotion to his Krytan Queen, but even more widely acknowledged is the phenomenon that is Logan’s Luscious Locks! How exactly does such a busy man manage his miraculous mane? We’ve all got our theories, from flaxseed oil to conditioner laced with bloodstone dust, but what this writer wants to know is who does Queen Jenna’s hair? Is it really patriotic or romantic devotion that keeps Captain Thackery so glued to her side? Or is it an excuse for an extensive beauty regime, known only to the Divinity’s Reach elites? We may never know, but I know I for one would split a lot of ends to learn that secret!

Title: Upcoming Tyrian Weather Advisories

Story: Reports have been coming in from Central Tyria that branded rifts have still been appearing periodically. The areas where the predicted rifts will be opening are : Rancher’s Wash, Vitpeln Hills and Giant’s Passage. If you have any plans to be in these areas within the next day we advise caution as the it will be dangerous until the rifts are sealed. Recommendations state that if you can use the detour to get to your destination that it is highly recommended to do so, if not The Lion Guard highly recommend carrying a weapon to fend off the branded that will be escaping through the portals. As mentioned in previous weather reports, improvised weapons are ill advised and experts recommend exotic or better weaponry to be used in the case of brandstorms.

Title: A spicy review from the Black Citadel: too hot to handle 

Story: I recently toured the Black Citadel to see how it was. I grew up in Divinity’s Reach and this was a culture shock! It was so dark and drab! And worst of all, there was so much LAVA! Lava of all things! In the middle of the biggest city in Ascalon! I don’t know how people live here! Someone named Pove the Sleepless even told me they have accidents in the area the lava was in! It’s not safe! I even saw a cub running around! I also talked to a gentleman named Unglot Sootmane who told me the area was named after his mother, which is actually kind of sweet. If you want to check out the Lava it’s in the southeastern corner of the city near the scrapyard, though I don’t know why you would. Editor’s Note: Kittyblog was informed multiple times that the “lava” that she observed were actually forges filled with molten metals used by the charr legions. This however did not persuade her away from her opinions on the Black Citadel. We must also point out Kittyblog’s potential bias within this story, we aren’t quite sure what that bias is but...it’s there so please read this article with a bit of salt.

Title: Boasting Hall: The Superior Salt

Story: In your last issue, a writer at the Lion’s Arch Chronicle said that they drank bloodstone coffee, “which packed a punch so powerful that I was afraid my soul may have left my body. I think my skeleton may still be suffering the aftershocks and I would recommend avoiding all foods laced with bloodstone dust.” The argument that avoiding all foods that have used bloodstone dust as a spice is absurd! Starting your week off with a piping hot cup of bloodstone coffee is just what every Tyrian needs. The energy that you obtain when you combine coffee grounds with bloodstone dust is without compare! Sure, the after-effects and potential heart failure are a downside but consider how productive you’ll be before then!I always say that bloodstone dust is the most versatile cooking ingredient, and if The Commander has given my bloodstone food their seal of approval, then that should speak for itself.

Title: Skritt Union Recognized by Lion’s Arch Chronicle

Story: The Lion’s Arch Chronicle is happy to report that negotiations with Skritt Harmony in Negotiating Employment, or SHINE for short, has come to a successful conclusion in which the needs of our skritt coworkers have been met. There was an outpouring of support from the local community in support of the skritt seeking fair treatment by their employers. One such voice was popular skritt based blog Skrittposts who made the statement, “We at skrittposts would like to express our sincerest solidarity with skritt and support their demand for fair wages and equal opportunity shiny insurance!!” They continued their statement clarifying their lack of a formal petition as well. “We do not have a signed petition, as most individual skritt cannot write; however, the perceived eloquence of this elocution should suffice as proof that many skritts support #skrittrights!”The demands of SHINE were presented to Editor-in-Chief Courica and owner of the LAC and the Black Lion Trading Company Evon Gnashblade and were accepted after a week of debate and compromise between both parties. Our skritt coworkers will now receive salaried positions equal to their writing and editorial counterparts along with vacation hours, dental, and the highly sought after yet controversial shiny insurance that will be provided by the Black Lion Trading Company.We are extremely happy to report that skritt produced content will resume next week with the first installment of Kuritata’s Fashion Review thanks to the several wonderful submissions that we have received thus far. 

[tothedarkdarkseas]

its SO infuriating that murdoc's attraction to men is never brought up unless it's for a joke. i wouldn't have much of a problem if it was NEVER brought up but still acknowledged, since that could be written off as just some really bad internalized homophobia. but it is brought up, he speaks about "fancying" men, yet it's not normalized like his attraction to women is. it's always the punchline or the whole joke altogether. idk just venting at this point hi how are ya

Behind a cut for length, but also TW to discussion of general homophobia.

I can definitely understand this frustration anon. A similar story: not to wear my embarrassing fandom history on my sleeve, but years ago I was part of a fandom for a teen-targeted sort of show (a mistake I’ll never make again) and I really developed this deep-rooted resentment for the writers and a particular ship because it was exclusively touted out for a punchline. It really bothered me that we’d validate this ship and the “gay subtext” when the two being caught in “oh no, it’s not what it looks like!” situations for lazy homophobic comedy was the entire basis of it. It wasn’t subtext, it didn’t say anything about the characters or their relationship; it was just treated, like you say, as a punchline.

In comparison, I can’t say the Gorillaz situation steams me quite as much, but I can absolutely see why it would. I think that I’ve just... learned to work with what Gorillaz is? To the extent that these things, the lack of seriousness or representation, play into the narrative of internalized homophobia and identity politics between two very flawed, aging British men. In part, I think the context of Gorillaz is important-- but in part, I also feel the lack of context for Gorillaz is an easy comeback to dismantle that. Who does it exist for? It’s not on a label, and it’s always combined reality with absurdity. So now what? I’d certainly be happy if Murdoc’s attraction to men was brought up again in a significant way, a way fans couldn’t deny or write off, but equally Gorillaz exists to be ridiculous comedy and I would argue there hasn’t been a serious attempt to address most things outside of political issues. But the decision to let Gorillaz be political and be a band with a statement does contradict the reluctance to let the band members, as their own people, feel real or like they actually live their own lives. It’s just sort of a constant spiral of “this, but that, but this.” Now, I don’t say any of that to tell you how to feel or to disagree with your annoyance, but I guess my best advice is conning the system and headcanoning Murdoc as a performer down to his core, someone who likes to shock and have attention but is terrified of being something real to another person. It’s fine to make a joke in an interview about sex toys or which celebrity he’d shag, but making a less raunchy, plainly affirming statement the way Noodle did isn’t in Murdoc’s wiring.

I’m sorry for getting off on a bit of a tangent here! Warning for uncomfortable casual homophobia after this point, but I think it’s very true that his attraction to men isn’t normalized by the canon. I understand why fans want to headcanon that the characters speak in code about certain things, that choices in Stu’s wardrobe or who’s carrying what handkerchief is really supposed to allude to a sexuality that is yet unspoken, but... you’re really giving the writers Gay Credit they didn’t earn. The reality is that Jamie and the writers are older straight men who have only begun to refine the way they speak through their work in recent years, and I don’t think they’ve put serious thought into writing LGBT characters. None of that is to say I think the writers should be flogged or even that I think they’re sincerely homophobic people... but I do think they’re more comfortable addressing it in the younger female Noodle than they are in the old geezers. IMHO, while I’m 100% on board saying Murdoc is canonically bisexual, it’s generous to suggest they ever intentionally alluded to Murdoc’s sexuality from day one as an actual confirmation of a particular sexuality and not simply as a joke. I recognize it’s uncomfortable to say so, but looking back on early material nearly all of Murdoc’s features or personality traits were chosen, by design, to make him more repellent in a comedic fashion. His long jagged nails, freakish tongue, offcolored teeth, unflattering descriptions of his hair or body, frankly even his Satanism, and above all his misogynistic comments or his racist and fascist jokes all characterized Murdoc as an undesirable person. And if asked honestly, I do think his references to his sexual behavior-- both with women and men-- were most likely meant to make Murdoc seem “deviant.” That was the character they were going for. None of this is to say Murdoc is one-dimensional or that fans have not grown to love a few of these traits and embraced or expanded on them, but I think the roots of Murdoc’s attraction were more about painting a “shocking” portrait than detailing a sincere identity.

However! None of that is to say Gorillaz didn’t evolve as a project, and it’s certainly clear Murdoc became a favorite among staff. Not only did Phase 3 originally cast him in the grandest role yet, but every phase after 3 has been about humanizing or redeeming Murdoc to some extent. Unfortunately I do think it’s probably unrealistic to expect a serious commentary on Murdoc’s identity to come from canon, as they’ve had every opportunity to do so and haven’t-- but I don’t think this comes as much from a lingering casual homophobia as that simply not being “the tone” they aim for with Murdoc, who has never issued a truly serious and not ego-maniacal statement about himself in my memory. And if I’m speaking truthfully for myself, I don’t feel a terrible need for it, but I don’t want to invalidate why this frustrates you. The status quo “works” for “my” version of the characters, but it would be more meaningful to the real audience to showcase it in some way that we all understood to be knowing and deliberate, but most of all, sincere in his sliminess; Lord knows, as a bisexual disaster myself we need more disgusting/scumbag representation. (Murdoc and Stu, respectively.)

[basicsofislam]

ISLAM 101: 5 PILLARS OF ISLAM: ALMS AND CHARITY: FIQH OF ZAKAT IN DETAIL:

RECIPIENTS OF ZAKAT: (Part 3)

DEBTORS

In normal circumstances, zakat should be given to a person in debt, irrespective of the person’s prior wealth. Although in one way, debtors can actually be classified among the poor and destitute, the main difference is that their unfortunate state is presumably only temporary. By declaring, “Charity is not permissible for the rich, except for the following five: A warrior in the way of God, a zakat collector, a debtor, a person who buys the charity collected as zakat, and a rich person who receives from a poor the gift that was given to him as zakat,”12 the Prophet has pronounced the eligibility for zakat of a debtor, even if he is rich. On the account of Abu Said al-Hudri, a Companion during the time of the Noble Messenger had bought fruit, which were destroyed before he could offer their payment. Upon hearing this, the Prophet advised the others to lend him financial support. After the amassed total fell short of the required amount, the Prophet said to the creditors, “Take from what there is, for there is no more,” insisting on some additional understanding and compromise on their behalf.13 Falling into debt must never be seen as a method of receiving zakator as a pretext for escaping it, practices strongly condemned by the Prophet and certainly subject to divine fury. The people declared by Islam as being eligible for zakat, in this case, are not those who are penalized for their avarice, but rather those who are going through rough patches while leading a planned and moderate life. The bottom line is that life is transient, man is expected to behave responsibly, and errors perpetrated in this fleeting life may lead to a devastating scenario on the Day of Judgment.

FI SABILILLAH (IN GOD’S WAY)

In line with the various connotations the Arabic term may suggest, “fi sabilillah” is basically the commitment to put aside all personal duties and dedicate one’s entire time to spend in the way of God. Initially, this involves seeking and learning the knowledge that brings happiness in this life and in the hereafter, and in time, may also require the removal of impediments that stand in the way of spreading God’s name to all corners of the world. It is exactly for this reason that a group courageously taking such an immense task is entitled to zakat, thereby encompassing the broader meaning of the term jihad, as all kinds of struggle offered with the sole aim of pleasing God.

Analyzing the issue from the perspective of the Prophetic Era, the Ashab al-Suffa (Companions that had dedicated their entire time to the pursuit of knowledge), whose numbers reached up to 400, throw more light on the issue as exemplary models, in terms of the duty they had accomplished. Enduring a variety of difficulties, they nevertheless remained incessantly alongside the Prophet, eager to realize his very command and imbibe from him pearls of wisdom. Having devoted themselves solely in this direction, they frequently suffered hunger, even facing, on occasions, the threat of falling unconscious. Abu Hurayra, an heroic example of this devotion, responded to certain criticisms that came in his direction by simply stating, “My brothers complain that I narrate too many hadiths. However, while my Ansar brothers (Medinan Muslims) were busy cultivating their lands, and my Muhajir brothers (Meccan Muslims) were engaged in trade, me and others alike were incessantly by the side of the Prophet, memorizing his words, “At the risk of fainting from hunger.”14 This illustrates the extent of the dedication and consequent hardship which devout followers encountered for the sake of serving the Qur’an and the Sunna—and also exemplifies the different manner in which believers struggled to support Islam. Of course, the Qur’an is far from quiet on such sacrifices, eternalizing their earnest devotions as follows, in a verse which was also critical to some of the earlier discussions:

Alms are for the poor who are restrained in the cause of God, unable to travel in the land. The ignorant man counts them among the wealthy because of their restraint. But you will know them by their appearance. They never beg people with importunity. And whatever good things you spend, surely God knows them well. (Baqara 2:273)

Despite of the difficulties they constantly faced, these Companions would not divulge their hardships, causing others to overlook them when they identified people in no need. Even though there still were a limited number of individuals who might have had a fairly good idea of their dire situation, it was impossible to know the full depth of suffering they concealed to establish the faith of Islam. To cut a long story short, the following account provides an excellent example by which to crystallize this description.

Said ibn Musayyab, one of the forerunners of the Tabiun generation (the praised generation who were acquainted with the Companions, though they did not see the Noble Prophet himself) who was the son-in-law of Abu Hurayra, tells the following story about his father-in-law, as the elder walking around gleefully in a linen robe:

Plunged in deep thought, he (Abu Hurayra) then turned to himself, muttering “Get over yourself, Abu Hurayra! You seem to have long forgotten the days when you would collapse from hunger and children would start treading on you, and others would hasten to you, conceiving it as an epileptic fit. Nobody would understand, bar the Prophet (upon whom be peace) and Jafar ibn Abi Talib, who would say ‘Come Abu Hurayra!’ where upon you would tag along with them. How many times you entered the home of the Honorable Prophet, satisfying your hunger with milk, presented by him!”15

Abu Hurayra, in fact, could not pursue anything else, conceiving this as the only path to revive one’s world and reach the eternal abode. Abu Hurayra’s desire and sensitivity in running to the need of the Prophet, and in memorizing every single word he uttered, was equally matched by his vigor in joining the armed forces, when required, where he confidently assumed the front ranks. Similarly, Abu Lubaba, and many others, displayed the same attitude.

Thus it was for the likes of these exemplary figures, that divine glorification was revealed. As conveyed, there were more than 100 Companions who, while prostrating in salat (prayer), would hold fast to their insufficient clothes to prevent an exposure of their private areas. As a matter of fact, all possessions and wealth had been abandoned in migrating from Mecca to Medina for the sake of God. The Prophet (upon whom be peace) nurtured a unique sensitivity for his Companions, and he would give them everything that came his way; and yet, especially in the early years of the faith, it still fell short of covering even their basic needs. He himself would endure days of starvation, to the point where he even tied a rock around his stomach to diminish his own feeling of hunger—and yet his soft heart could not bear the hunger of his Companions. So while he lived a life well below the standards of those around him, he displayed an unmatched sensitivity to the requirements of others.

Through his efforts, Abu Hurayra achieved such proximity to the Messenger that more often than not, he would refer to the Prophet as his Khalil(Confidant), such that he would begin his explanations by saying, “My Confidant told me…” Or, “I went next to my Confidant.” Or, “I conversed with my Confidant…” and so on. By using this term, Abu Hurayra alluded to the ache and longing he experienced whenever he was away from the presence of the Prophet. In one of his many visits to the Prophet, he witnessed him offering salat while seated, showing signs of agony and distress. Immediately after the salat was finished, Abu Hurayra asked the Prophet why he offered his prayer sitting, only to receive this response: “Hunger; O Abu Hurayra!” Abu Hurayra, having witnessed such a heartbreaking scene, broke down in tears and the duty of consolation was, again, left to the Prophet, who uttered these words of gentle comfort: “Don’t cry, Abu Hurayra, because surely, the least torment on the Day of Judgment will befall the starved who have indeed already suffered its hardships.”16

Such was the attitude displayed by this great “Confidant.” While the Prophet endured a variety of hardships, it would obviously have been utterly unconceivable for Abu Hurayra and the other 400 friends – the Ashab al-Suffa – to opt for lives of pompous luxury. Affirming their faith in God granted them such an immense maturity that they were constantly on the lookout for opportunities where they could lend their services. So even while they lacked the basic necessities of the day—a horse to ride, a saddle, a flask to carry water in, or a loaf of bread, for example—they would still come to the Prophet, asking for opportunities by which they could serve in God’s cause and thus vehemently insisting, “Provide us with means, O Messenger!” Evidently, the Companions always sought additional opportunities by which they could support the growth of their faith community and offer themselves increasingly in the name of God. Of course, understanding the depth of service of his close Companions, the Honorable Prophet would give them support and suggestions, as well as anything material he could provide, in order to increase their benefits before God. On the sad occasions when he had nothing left to give, and he was starving himself, he would suffer the unparalled and additional agony of having to turn back a Muslim who was willing to do more for his faith but simply had nothing more to offer. The Qur’an’s depiction of the preparations in the lead-up to the Tabuk campaign draws attention to this profound and moving situation:

Nor (is there any blame) on those who came to you, to be provided with mounts, and when you said to them, “I am unable to provide you with mounts.” They returned with tears streaming from their eyes, grieving that they could find no means to contribute. (Tawba 9:92)

As mentioned earlier, it is unimaginable in any healthy community for the rich to indulge in luxury while there are those who, out of insufficient means, are deserted to their own starvation and despair. Therefore, mobilizing all financial means towards those who have dedicated their entire lives for a noble cause—and who shed tears not for their own discomfort, but only for their failures in finding the necessary means to give more—would ultimately revive their vanished hopes, instigating an immensely efficacious movement by which the rewards of overwhelming sacrifice would be jointly shared—and enjoyed—by all the benefactors. Within the broadest sense of the term, the invaluable groundwork would thus be laid for talented students and followers, germinating in them an enormous eagerness to become passionate servants in God’s way, and upholders of universal ethics. This is, after all, the essence and vision of Islam.

WAYFARERS

On the word of the Qur’an, the last group of recipients which is identified is that of wayfarers— individuals who become needy during travel, even if they are essentially rich back home. It has virtually become impossible, especially today, to avoid traveling, whether it be for work or to spread the word of Islam to all the ends of the world. The quest to travel in order to serve in God’s way; to provide a righteous example of faith in parts of the world with little or no exposure to Islam; or to resettle in different communities in order to directly invite others to Islam is, in effect, an excellent motive to establish funds, in concordance with the Qur’anic directive to accommodate the needs of travelers and those who lend their services to the mission of God.

This command is simultaneously a verification of how Islam attends to a person’s financial requirements while also decreeing the spread of good and the purge of evil—for including these altruistic souls as recipients of zakat allays their financial concerns and saves them from lagging behind in devoting their lives to the search for thirsty hearts eager to be quenched with the nectar of Truth.

The Messenger of God enunciated the rich among those who may occasionally be eligible to receive zakat while traveling (and thus in need of resources).17 The mention of travelers in the hadith is simply an elaboration of the Qur’anic command in relation to wayfarers. Therefore, though a person may possess enough wealth to donate zakat, he may also be eligible as a recipient, provided that he is in need during travels.

WHERE ELSE CAN ZAKAT BE GIVEN?

The essential aim of zakat is to cure all social diseases that stem from inequality in the distribution of wealth and, ultimately, create a tightly knit community resembling a robust building. Evidently, there exist certain institutions which are aimed at serving the exact purpose for which zakat is intended, and these tend to be well known within a community. Even though these institutions have technically not been mentioned among the other categories of recipients, they do receive zakat owing to their particular social aims and functions. These institutions, which are formed around the core concept of charity, have the power to reach out to the deprived, to ease their lives and, as discussed above, help avoid or discourage potential social strife.

In the words of the Prophet (upon whom be peace), a Muslim society is like one body where all parts join the agony of a single limb; viewed from this angle, reviving one certain part of society is commensurable to breathing new life into the entire organism. Espousing this kind of an impetus, each member of society is expected to become active. Actualizing God’s will in all parts of society will, in effect, terminate theft and other crimes connected to financial instability, graciously giving the community a brand new lease on life. While charity and aid foundations, scholarship funds and orphanages may, at first, give the impression of being excluded from the eight groups delineated by the Qur’an, they each fundamentally relate and encompass one or more of the specified recipient groups. The dictates of the Qur’an, in effect, are both general and unrestricted—the essence of a vibrant and comprehensive system of ordinances for life. Therefore, conditions like poverty, traveling, being in debt, or striving in the way of God are inherently deemed to generate the need for assistance, so that individuals in such conditions clearly achieve eligibility for zakat, and organizations which provide such targeted assistance must receive available funds in order to deliver the appropriate relief.

Illat, in Islamic terminology, means the basic reason for determining the permissibility or the impermissibility of an action, and it constitutes a crucial foundation of Islamic jurisprudence. Recall that as far as the muallafa al-qulub are concerned, they receive zakat as long as, or whenever and wherever, they exist and there is a need for warming their hearts towards Islam. The situation is similar for wayfarers, as discussed above; namely,zakat is only given to such a group as long as it exists—that is, as long as individuals fitting this description can be identified. Therefore, looking from this perspective, we can say that the very existence of institutions or foundations which serve the needs of any of the individuals defined, and which have as their primary intent and purpose the support of these groups, is sufficient reason for their entitlement to zakat.

[letromantorchwicklive]

One Thing Analysis

Kill for kill Eye for eye Blood for blood It’s time to die Retribution tastes so sweet

- We've got her clear, unbridled rage peaking through. Neo's on a mission and it's sole purpose is to kill. Not just that, it's a justified hunt. It's fucking retribution. What happened was unjust and wrong, cruel and shouldn't have happened. She doesn't know what else to do, the only thing that's helping her right now is this.

Gone's the light That he gave Now revenge is all I crave Retaliation soon complete

-A good reference to Roman's namesake and insight to just how much he mattered to her. Remnant is consistently referenced both visually and verbally as a world full of darkness. The darkness is given form through the Grimm and Neo's talking about the only light she's had to survive this darkness. Plus! She's admitting to her desperation for revenge and how it drives her. The tag line of "retaliation soon complete" is also showing, very clearly, that she knows her target or targets (I say target, singular tbh) and is closing in. She can touch the end goal, she's almost there. So close she can taste it.

I was nowhere I had no one I felt nothing Lost without a voice and on my own Then the candle's flame Brought a brand new name But now you've stolen everything and I'm all alone

- Neo has now, canonly, had an incredibly lonely life. Either metaphorically (like, poor family life) or literally (STREET RAT STREET RAT). She's felt all alone, choosing to feel nothing rather than constant pain. Pain and suffering, of course, attracting Grimm. She's also canonly mute! Something I know a lot of people have been on the fence about, but lacking a proper way to communicate would easily have isolated her further throughout her life. Roman was the first person to show her genuine positive attention. "Candle's flame" meaning both light and warmth into her life for the first time in- well, ever. "Brand new name" could also be metaphorical. She could be talking about being named, his name, or him bringing new meaning and life to the one she already possessed. Now, the love they shared for one another (in however you see it- excluding Father&Daughter it’s not canon guys they were both adults) is gone and she's been thrust back into the cold dark world Roman helped her to escape in the first place.

I had one thing And you've taken it from me A single light A single friend But you've made that end

- This is pretty straight forward. Neo had one thing in her whole life that mattered- Roman. He was the single most important thing to her to ever exist and she's livid. Not only did she love him and he love her, they were best friends. Equals. Partners. Neo's also staring down at the single person she blames, Cinder. These words blame one person and one person only. This song is introduced at first sight of Cinder, aimed only at Cinder. The wording calls for attack on one person. When Cinder redirects all blame for Roman's death to Ruby, it doesn't pick back up. It's quiet- Neo's thinking. She's making a new game plan, one taking into account Maiden Powers.

There was one thing To help escape the misery And now it's all disarrayed You took my whole life away You've sent me back to nothing Now you'll pay Pay

- A lot of this is straight forward, like the last verse. Roman meant everything to her, he was all she had and the only thing to make her happy. Not happy again, happy period, because she had been so absolutely fucking miserable by herself. Look at Weiss- who grew up alone and miserable aside from her sister. Look at Ren and Nora- who had only each other. Roman and Neo weren’t necessarily the big bad guys we were shown- they were doing their jobs. So many of these little tidbits in the song are alluding to direct correlations in the main cast of heroes, just if they were in a different place and different time. She’s also screaming (repeatedly, might I add) that her whole life is literally in shambles. Nothing makes sense anymore, there’s no structure, no Roman.  Neo says it herself, “You took my whole life away.” Again, this is directed singularly. She’s reinforcing her singular target- Cinder and she will pay.

Life for life Death for death Tit for tat Just one last breath Absolution's nowhere near

- I mentioned it before in my analysis over Cinder and Neo’s brawl, but man is Neo out for fucking blood. This is archaic law, in our world. I mean this literally- Hammurabi’s Code were the first historically proven, written and widely known set of laws. He’s the reason we have the “eye for an eye” saying and Neo is only accepting this kind of justice. As long as Cinder is alive, breathing and even remotely well, Cinder isn’t going to be free of her guilt. The only way that she could ever atone for being the cause of Roman’s death is with her own.

Cue the scene Now it's time Reparation for your crime And judgment day is finally here

- Neo’s become Judge, Jury and Executioner. Will Cinder rise to a good afterlife? That’s none of her business, her business is sending Cinder to wherever she belongs. Neo’s so fucking ready to finish this, to get some closure

I have waited for this meeting For this moment Dreamed about the day I'd make you crawl

- Neo wants more than Cinder’s death. Neo wants begging, pleading, desperation and fear from her. This is probably the only thing that’s kept her going since the Fall of Beacon after finding Roman’s body. This rage is absolutely what fueled her survival through the Grimm infested waste lands that are unoccupied areas of Remnant. Neo wants to make Cinder taste the hell she  put them through and to face the same end that so forced upon Roman after it all.

What a sweet release When you rest in peace Vengeance- Justice- Finally mine And I'll watch you fall

- RIP Cinder, there’s no escaping any of this for you. Neo’s determined, this is the only thing she can focus on, the only thing that brings even the slightest hint of relief in her life without Roman.

I had one thing And you've taken it from me A single light A single friend But you've made that end There was one thing To help escape the misery And now it's all disarrayed You took my whole life away You've sent me back to nothing Now you'll pay

- We’ve returned to the chorus, even angrier this time. Out of everything to receive repetition in this song, this makes the most sense. It’s displaying her grief and rage eloquently while showcasing her determination. Neo’s always been shown as incredibly capable, handling herself well and almost always with a level head. It seems Roman was the key to that- they had a security within each other that kept them both level headed. The thoughts “Roman’s alive” and “Neo’s alive” must have been their calming mantras. Sure, Roman would have instances of frustration, but when it came to battle he was always calm and collected. Even more so when fighting along side Neo, but the moment when his mantra of “Neo is alive” can no longer be taken as fact, or could be in serious jeopardy, his collected demeanor is out the window. This fight against Cinder is has Neo struggling to remain level headed. She’s becoming impatient, itching to finally finish off Cinder, bored that it’s not more fun and still enraged that this woman is so selfish as to not realize why she’s grieving in the first place. Neo’s mantra is gone, and it can never come back.

You destroyed my life After years of suffering Finally had a place to go to But not anymore And now it's war And there won't be peace ’til I get What I came for

- Cinder is responsible, and Neo won’t let her back out of it by throwing the blame onto Ruby like there’s nothing she did wrong. Neo spent untold number of years alone, scared, sad and found solace in Roman. They probably found solace in each other, home was where ever the other was. Someone to trust no matter what, years spent together and full of love and respect. His death ripped that away, so now it’s fucking war. Neo vs Cinder, the fight to the death and she’s not going to fall for some scapegoat in the form of a 15 year old little girl. Neo had been in Ruby’s position before, fighting for your life and the life of the people person who mattered more than anything to you and terrified of not succeeding. No, Neo knows that the grown woman who refuses to accept any form of blame is responsible. That doesn’t mean she wont bide her time until the perfect opportunity strikes. Oh no, Neo is not on Cinder’s side. She’s on Roman’s side and even his death won’t change that.

I had one thing And you've taken it from me A single light A single friend But you've made that end There was one thing To help escape the misery And now it's all disarrayed You took my whole life away You've sent me back to nothing Now you'll pay (Now you'll) Pay

💖💖💖 -Mod Neo

[chrysolina]

A day in the life

Prompt - 

person a: you use too much shampoo person b: ya know, I don’t get criticised like this when I shower alone. person a: I’d hope not. being hard on you is my job.

A/N - OkAY so this WAS meant to be posted on Valentine’s Day but given the fact that I started to too late here it is, a solid few weeks later ): Enjoy tho!!

Summary - You and Steve share a well needed warm shower after being caught out in the cold spring rain

Word count - 1.6k ( a smol child)

Warnings - death by fluff, alluding to adult themes

“That’s it! That’s the last time I’m going out without a goddamn umbrella.” Steve suddenly awoke from his hazy catnap on the sofa to the sound of you disrobing in the hallway, the force in which you were dropping and shedding your clothes told Steve two very simple things; one, you were pissed and two, you were most probably soaked from head to toe.

Rising slowly as his bones in his back popped and clicked back to life, Steve watched with amused eyes and a slight smirk as you continued to fumble with your clingy wet clothes. By now, you had already shed your coat, blouse and boots and was now left tangling with your soaked blue jeans that hung onto your frame maliciously.

If you weren’t so evidently pissed off, Steve would’ve found the strip tease highly erotic — but the glare you ahoy him once you noticed his figure told him not to push his luck.

You looked to your humoured fiancé with a pointed look of defeat. “Little help here?” Your tone was a little bit on the exasperated and snappy side but by this point, after walking through the streets of Brooklyn soaking wet and two bags full of groceries — you were at an ends.

But Steve didn’t hold you to it, instead he held your shoulders with soft hands and rubbed them soothingly, causing you to fall into his strong washboard pecs with a huff.

Steve looked out the window of yours and his spacious Brooklyn apartment and smiled to himself. You must’ve really got it bad out there. “Y’alright babe?” Steve cooed into your soaked hair and rubbed your bare, cold back affectionately.

You shook your head into his chest and retracted more into the heat he was giving off, stupid super serum. “M’cold, very very cold.” Steve didn’t need you to tell him that you were cold, your body was failing you really.

Just by a single touch to your forehead, Steve could feel you burning up quicker than a bonfire and the shivers that were running up and down your back as his warm hands held you also told him about your state — not to mention your chattering teeth. “Alright, go hop in the shower and I’ll sort out the rest out here.” You looked up to Steve with uncertain eyes after hearing his proposition.

“Y’sure? I don’t want you cleaning up all my mess.” It was true, as much as you knew Steve would give up the world to love you and protect you, you were a big girl that could take care of herself and you certainly weren’t the one not pulling their weight in the relationship. Ideally, you wanted to do everything equally and to the same just amount — but that’s harder than it looks when you’ve got a super soldier fiancé who worships the ground you walk on.

Steve held your forehead against yours momentarily, the heat coming off you and him made him feel whole again. “And yet you clean up all my messes and stoke all the fires I create as well, it’s only fair babe.” You tried to counter his claim but you could keep your mouth shut at your fiancé’s knowing look.

That man loved being right.

“Fine,” You huff whilst flicking a strand of wet hair out of your face. “But I expect you to come help me once you’re done out here.” There was no way in hell Steve couldn’t smirk coyly at that idea, you were the embodiment of why his blood pumped to his groin and to skip up on an opportunity to see your curves in action? He’d be a mad man if he said no.

Steve kisses your forehead tenderly before letting you go. “Consider it done.” Steve smiled to himself as he watched you pad out of the hallway and down towards the main bathroom, wondering how did he get so lucky to have you as his girl? Let alone his fiancée - whom of which he’ll be marrying in the coming summer.

Steve couldn’t deny that he had fallen hard and fast for you, it was a fact he just had to embrace. From the moment he saw you and your eyes locked on his, every romantic cliché made sense to him; you really were the spark to his fuse and made him feel whole again.

That was all he could think about as he quickly put the tins away in the cupboard and put your clothes in the washing machine; the thought of you walking down the aisle to him, a vision shrouded in wait, ready to be pronounced as the next Mrs Rogers. Steve knew his mom would be proud of his choice.

After putting the plastic bags away under the sink, Steve bolted off to the bathroom with a spring in his step and slid through the opening he made in the door with a devious smirk. Judging by the lack of steam in the room, Steve could tell you hadn’t been in the shower long and were probably taking your sweet delicious time waiting for him.

Steve didn’t have to be reminded of why he was in there to strip down to the bone, his joggers and sweaters flew off his skin and into a messy pile next to your bra and undies. Once his boxers were completely gone, Steve pulled back the wet shower glass door and stepped in, with one arm making its way straight to your waist.

“Hey you.” You smiled at the feeling of two strong arms wrapped around your waist and lent back into the perfectly carved man behind you, Steve’s chest now slick and wet with the water off of your back.

“Hey,” Steve kisses the skin behind your ear affectionately. “Getting busy without me, is it?” Steve looked to the bottle of shampoo you just grabbed from the rack and frowned slightly at it — just between you and him, there’s nothing he loves more than washing your hair after a long day.

You scoffed lightly at his childish behaviour. “No,” you rolled your eyes at your pouty fiancé. “Just getting it ready for you - hand.” You then lightly tapped one of Steve’s hands that were around your waist and cupped it so none of the shampoo could leave his hand.

The sudden noise of squelching liquid being squoze to death danced around the bathroom with the sound of the running water, the gooey golden substance flowing out easily and steadily into a nice circle.

Steve looked down at the amount of shampoo you just used with a frown. “Y’know Y/N/N,” Steve began to massage the goo into your wet locks and managed to draw a satisfied moan from your lips at his handiwork. “You use too much shampoo for one wash.” You couldn’t help but furrow your brows at his statement — did your fiancé really not understand how much you needed just to keep your hair clean? Evidently not.

Instead of quipping back in retaliation, you simply rolled your shoulders back into his chest and shrugged your shoulders slowly. “Y’know, I don’t get criticized like this when I shower alone - maybe I should take more showers alone, without the running commentary.” Although your sassy mouth had a tendency to get you into trouble with Steve either at home or in the boardroom during a meeting, you still couldn’t help but smile smug to yourself at your comment — you just couldn’t stop yourself on days.

Before you had a chance to to turn to see what the suddenly silent Steve was doing, you felt the harsh sting of a hand against your left ass cheek and a resounding slap echo around the wet walls of the shower and the bathroom, the said hand then coming to clamp itself onto your cheek with a ferocity that was too strong not to get aroused by.

Suddenly, you felt a hot beating breath tickle and coax up and down your vacant neck and the evident feeling of a erection wedges between your two asscheeks, it’s throbbing only making you more aroused by the minute.

“I’d hope not.” Steve kisses and sucked on the wet vacant area of your neck with a fire you only knew as lust. “Being hard on you is my job - amongst other things.” You couldn’t help but allow a whine escape your parted lips as Steve’s hand made its way round to slowly tease your aching clit.

Before Steve had the chance to pluck any more noises of pleasure out of your parted, roughed lips, you parted your slick body from his and spun around to face him, flicking a little bit of shampoo suds across his pecs cheekily. “Help me wash this out and then we can have some fun, deal?” The look on your face left no room for Steve to disagree with you but given the fact that you were looking very stern with a mountain of suds on your head, Steve couldn’t help but crack a smile at your demure.

Your brows furrowed at Steve’s hearty smile and laugh that overcame him. “Sorry babe, it’s just your - y’know,” Steve motioned to your head with a single finger and you couldn’t help yourself from joining in and laughing at what you soon figured was your head - or more so - the shampoo on your head.

You couldn’t help but sigh pointedly at him. “Well,” you started to trail a finger up tantalisingly across his wet pecs, your bodies now slick, hot and drenched by the water cascading from above. “The quicker you stop laughing and start washing my hair, the quicker we can attend to this.” With the other hand you gave Steve’s thick girth a solid jerk and the other, you kept firm and flat on his wide chest, the hiss he let out during your motions made you feel very very smug with yourself.

And let’s just say, you’ve never had a shower as quick as that one with Steve.

- - - -

Permanent tags - @patzammit @tacohead13 @thisismysecrethappyplace @mrssierrarogers @achishisha @multireality @its-a-pretty-interesting-wall​ @coffeebooksandfandom​ @bettercallsabs @just-trying-to-survive-marvel@mackevanstanfan80 @thinkxlovexloud @partlybcrnes

[fieldbears]

Washed-Up Stucky MNF/Fic Writer Provides Endgame Opinions

I’m going to try to tackle this linearly, at least to begin with:

I am very much Team Bored With MCU Hawkeye, but I want to give sincere props for the cold open, which I think accomplished several things simultaneously: recapped the consequences of the last film (since, hey, it’s been a fuckin while), set the tone, and began Clint’s narrative arc.

That said, jesus, I’m still irritated by the shoe-horned family to begin with. First they were invented for convenience and narrative stakes, and then their final, ultimate reason for existence was to be temporarily fridged. Take a moment to imagine a world where Clint was the circus runaway loner he was supposed to be, who only had his coworkers as found family, who either responded to The Snap by throwing himself harder into his teamwork work OR went rogue because his sense of justice and agency was so fucking destroyed by what happened. He didn’t need a blood family to have the arc he had. And he didn’t even need the arc he had. But this is a bitchfest about a choice made many years ago, not made in this final movie.

The first third of that movie was rough. The whole thing had the narrative flow of “A Series of Related Short Stories Played One After the Other”, but the first third seems to be Failing To Establish the New World and then Clumsily Establishing The Emerging Situation.

The establishing shots and scenes to show the audience what The Snap’s consequences were worldwide were... lacking. It’s dark? No more baseball? People are relying on natural light instead of interior lighting, but this is also happening at Avengers HQ, where they clearly still have power and internet access to work their tech, so... was it just an aesthetic choice? I feel like the film tried to spend time showing us what the consequences were for the average New Yorker, but instead we get a weird Canonly Gay Russo Character who gave a good performance that tells us about the human loss but not about the mechanics of this new world. We get the ‘no baseball’ shot and all we get afterward are ‘people miss the missing people’. But restaurants still exist? Businesses are functioning? (Wouldn’t New York run kind of smoother if it wasn’t overpopulated?) I feel like we were invited to start thinking about how this dystopia works, but were never given answers. (There are so many interpretations of how things could go wrong if certain people just disappeared, and their knowledge/access were suddenly unavailable, and none of it was explored, even briefly, outside of establishing shots.)

The Garden Planet - it’s discovery, the traveling to it, the fight there - lacked emotional grounding in a way I find hard to explain. The audience was excited for Brie Larson being a fucking boss, and the quick execution of the grab-him-and-cut-his-arm-off plan was satisfying, but the twist and subsequent letdown was just a weird beat after a slog to get there, after waiting on a deep letdown beat from the last movie.

Last thing about flow and emotional beats, because I want to move on to character analysis, and this is a huge one for me: Clint’s fight in Tokyo and Steve’s fight with himself were some of the biggest missed opportunities in the entire film.

Not counting the football field brawl at the end, which I don’t count as a real fight scene, these are the two major fight scenes of the entire film and as far as I can tell, there was no effort made to make these showpieces. They went to the trouble of bringing Clint to Bladerunner Central, and pit him against the last bastion of aesthetic-obsessed mafia in the world. The panning camera in the interior as Hawkeye fought goons brushed past lazy fight scenes that only showed who was winning, not the brutality that Clint was supposedly falling into, not the grit of this new awful world, just... shapeless dark bodies getting thrown through windows? And on top of that, they could have made up (or picked from canon) any Big Bad to pit him against outside in the street, and we get an Orientalist sword fight that could have fit in nicely on a CW superhero show, and some of the most unnecessary exposition dialogue I have ever heard. Someone bothered to weave Clint’s arc in earlier, with Rhodey explaining to Natasha that Clint’s gone International and also Worryingly Dark. Why the fuck do we have the ‘I’ll give you anything you want’ line, on the rotten cherry on top of ‘stop being mean to the yakuza, we didn’t start it’? You already covered his motivations with the cold open.

And while Steve’s fight ended in a FABULOUSLY HEARTBREAKING WAY, the fight itself was nothing - you can pick little character details out like how they both ditched their shields almost immediately, and it was funny that Then-Steve mistook Now-Steve for Loki in the first place, but it was still a completely lost opportunity to get one true superhero battle in this three-hour slog. Both Steves could have gotten up and carried out the rest of the narrative after a decent brawl, but instead they fall a great distance after some blocked shots and it... was nothing? Missed opportunity for some cool shit.

Okay, skipping to character assessments now:

Clint’s character has been mishandled from the beginning and this seemed to be the “better late than never” eleventh hour arc. Except the end of the arc is unclear - it made sense for him to fall apart after losing his Shoehorn Family, but how did Natasha’s choice to fall do anything but fridge someone else, with more agency this time? It makes Natasha noble, which she already was, and it made her win against Clint, which I appreciate, but Natasha didn’t need salvation through death and Clint learns nothing by getting them back, just experiences relief.

Bruce. I want to say, first, that I love Hulk in a Cardigan. Cardihulk can stay. I want fanart, I want t-shirts, give me all of it. But Bruce’s explanation of “I scienced it so I could get the best of both worlds” only gives us half of the acceptance that Banner’s character is already working towards. As we saw most explicitly in Ragnarok, the Hulk isn’t just a physical form, he has his own separate consciousness, originally defined by rage but revealed to be more complicated. Bruce merging into Cardihulk seems to have... erased Hulk’s separate consciousness without merging it into himself? If there had been some acknowledgement of a second voice still within him that shot out opinions or demands for certain menu items in the diner, this would have been a much cleaner end to his arc, which has been equally messy between actor and narrative shifts.

Speaking of Ragnarok... it’s time! Are you ready? Have you read articles about the Gambit Gambit too? Are you fucking depressed that a fat suit was used for comedy gags in the year of our lord 2019? Because I was. The Russos seemed to... not struggle with what progress Ragnarok had put onto Bruce and Thor’s characters, but reject it. This movie’s Thor was anxious for laughs, was desperate for easy answers to a a feeling of lost heroism, and it didn’t feel like a familiar character. The time-travel scene with his mother wrapped it up very elegantly, and was well performed, but that scene didn’t need to follow a series of “chunky drunk in sweatpants” jokes to show us that Thor was struggling. Everyone in the film is fucking holding on by their fingernails, but only one is played for cheap laughs.

At least we get the bisexual Asgard lady king we deserved.

Tony got the right death. He got a hero’s death and Pepper’s last lines of “you can rest now” were exactly the right lines to wrap up an arc characterized by fear and a desire to protect and control at any cost. I knew the MCU was never going to really acknowledge that Tony’s The Problem, even with lines like ‘you should have let me do the fascist robot thing, that was gonna work fine’ thrown around pretty much as soon as he touches down on earth again.

I’m not sure if there’s much to say about Natasha. It was fitting that she was running HQ, that she was struggling, that she was rejecting emotional help from Steve but clearly still close with him. Seeing her break down after hearing the report on Clint felt right after, I think, being told by several directors (or making the personal acting choice? idk) to just be as flat and as decolletagey as possible. And again, while I feel like she would be self-sacrificing on that cliffisde if given the opportunity, and that she would win, the narrative choice to place her there and have that be her end didn’t really give her anything she didn’t already have. She had nothing to prove.

I have a hard time really laying out my thoughts on Steve without launching into the pregnant absence of Bucky, but I’m going to try. Chris Evans did a good job being the emotional heart of a really fractured story with a lot of conflicting pieces. Seeing him lead a talk therapy session after The Snap seemed very out of character for him until one realizes that Sam isn’t there to lead it himself. His scene offering help to Natasha was another good scene between them proving that not every m/f relationship has to be sexual to be interesting or add to the plot. His leadership speech during the Stupid Fucking Slow-Mo Heroes’ Walk to the platform was well done and makes me think of what could have been for the MCU, if they’d ever just let them be a cohesive found-family team for twenty minutes and let them fight some doom-bots or something. Fuck. Imagine.

Something weirdly satisfying about the deceitful ‘hail hydra’ line in the elevator. Yes? Yes.

The hammer scene was satisfying to me without being too gratuitous, but I’ll acknowledge that some people weren’t into it. Having paid more attention to Steve’s arc than most, I’ll argue that he earned it several times over.

His ending - that is, the secret life he alludes to but doesn’t explicitly reveal to Sam - is earned too. I’ve read at least one thing saying that Steve’s arc was all about him learning to let go, but that’s... never what Steve does. Not at the end of any arc, of any comic story, does Steve let go. Not of his principles, not of the people he loves, he is always “Thinking... Thinking About Bucky!” and getting in fights he can’t necessarily win. So I don’t think his final ending is ever Learning to Let Go. I think it’s fair that it’s Just Once, Just This One Time, Getting What You Want And Getting To Enjoy It.

And now I’m backtracking to Bucky. I’ve read one article already that theorizes that Steve’s arc, which was highly prioritized, included literally as little direct interaction with Bucky as possible because... the MCU? the Russos? Marvel?...  is aware that Steve/Bucky is the most popular same-sex ship in the MCU. And that’s tiresome as fuck but I think there’s some truth to it. I wonder if, like in Civil War, we’ll hear later from the actors that a lot of contextual one-on-one scenes were shot and then mysteriously cut from the final edit.

I will say that in my head, Bucky is relaxed when Steve goes back in time for the final time, and lets Sam goes to talk with Steve one-on-one at the bench, because Bucky is not worried if Steve will come back, and does not feel a need to check on Steve on the bench. Because, like Peggy, Bucky has been getting secret visits too. Maybe as far back as during his time in Wakanda, but certainly since the final fight with Thanos. Bucky was calm because he already knew. He didn’t miss Steve because Steve hadn’t given him an opportunity to do so.

d

[virginiaprelawland]

Sexual Crimes And Mens Rea

By Kayla Blevins, Liberty University, Class of 2020

July 23, 2020

The first woman to graduate from the Coast Guard’s helicopter rescue swimmer school was Sara Faulkner. She joined the Coast Guard and claims she experienced an immense amount of sexual harassment to the point where she was diagnosed with PTSD. She said early on that the Coast Guard did not favor women, “They said that there were no female rescue swimmers and alluded to the fact that there never would be, explaining that they had broken away from the Navy rescue swimmers twelve years prior and had higher standards.” (1) She made it through training, but her problems just started. She said her superior officer, Albert Amescua, harassed her openly, “I don’t know how many times he smacked my ass — I can’t even count them — and hard in front of the guys. I could see them look down or shield their eyes. He would say, ‘Sara, go into the chief’s office, you better be flat on your back when I get in there.’”(2) Amescua would also lick her collar bone, grab her, or tell her that she“smelled good for him.”(3) After a year,Faulkner filed a complaint; however, Amescua has denied all the allegations. Faulkner said the Coast Guard tried to end her career by setting her up for failure because she was considered a “problem.” (4)She was sent for a mental evaluation against her will and was diagnosed with a personality disorder. The Coast Guard, Faulkner said, used this to try to force her into early retirement.

Her colleague, Francesco Thompson, wrote that “This immediately made her a target to other rescue swimmers as a ‘whistleblower’ that broke the code of silence. Sara was forced to endure unwarranted humiliation, embarrassment, and isolation for honoring the Coast Guard's core values of honor, respect, and devotion to duty.” (5)

Faulkner brought a lawsuit against the Coast Guard and eventually, the case was reviewed by Congress’ Committee on Government Reform and Oversight. The Committee issued a report that reprimanded the Coast Guard leaders for not investigating adequately. The report said, “Coast Guard military leadership has failed to:

1.     Conduct prompt, thorough, and impartial investigations of allegations of harassment and bullying;

2.     Hold officials accountable for deficient and incomplete investigations; and

3.     Take corrective action to address retaliation against individuals who report harassment and bullying.” (6)

The report found the Coast Guard failed to conduct satisfactory investigations into Faulkner’s allegations. The Committee offered suggestions for the Coast Guard to implement that should be common sense, such as the Coast Guard investigating the allegations fairly and accurately. In Faulkner’s case, the focus of the Coast Guard’s investigation seemed to be centered on Falkner’s frame of mind and character, and never the perpetrator. That is mens rea – it is evidence that demonstrates the defendant’s intent, preparation, plan, or knowledge of the charging offense. (7)

Mens Reain Sexual Crimes

Mens rea is a Latin term that reflects the perpetrator’s state of mind at the time when the crime was committed. (8) However, in sexual harassment cases, especially when the victim is an adult, the court usually examines the victim’s state of mind. (9) The Model Penal Code § 213, along with some modern penal codes, tends to shift the focus from the perpetrator's mindset to the victims. (10)

The Model Penal Code was implemented in 1962, with states ratifying their versions in their state laws. There are several suggestions about how to rewrite the MPC because many have accused it of being outdated and not fair to both men and women.For example,§213.1(1), defines “rape” as only when “[a] male . . . has sexual intercourse with a female…by the threat of imminent death, serious bodily harm, extreme pain, or kidnapping.” The crime is not counted as a first-degree felony when the victim lacked any serious physical injuries and when the victim was “a voluntary social companion of the actor…[or] had . . .  previously permitted him sexual liberties.”(11) Therefore, the authorities consider the crime a felony of the second degree. (12) There seem to be two sides to how to update theMPC: one side is explained by Erin Pricefrom the University of the Pacific and the other side is explained by a court case in New Jersey.  

Erin Price, of the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law, offered suggestions for what should be the required mens reato be fairer for both sexes. A few American jurisdictions require proof of recklessness for sexual crimes, such as the New Yorkrape statute. Under Section 2.02(3), a court would conclude the mens rea term of recklessness. (13) Suppose an offender, John, is believed reckless because of his voluntary intoxication and is found guilty of first-degree rape of “Jane”if the actus reus (or a voluntary act)can be proven.(14)Price wrote,

Although John was not aware of how his intoxication would affect his conduct, the MPC sacrifices his circumstance for the perceived benefit in avoiding the difficulty in litigating an offender’s unawareness. The result of this sacrifice is that John could face 1.5 to 25 years imprisonment, registration as a sex offender for 20 years to life, and required treatment either in jail or prison. (15)

Price points out that his “unawareness” can take several forms. Supposed John was intoxicated, but stillunderstood that Jane did not consent, in which case he would not have a defense.(16) Or, John was so drunk he did not recognize that Jane was also too drunk to give her consent. (17)Another possibility is that John had never been drunk before and was unaware of its effects; he might not have understood that consuming that muchalcohol would cause him to participate in harmful sexual behavior.(18)Priceclaims the current MPC does not allow for considerations of these subtle distinctions between John’s“unawareness.” (19) Either the offender isboth intoxicated and reckless, or he is not.(20) Price wrote the law “[F]urther protects the female and her mental state, which exacerbates the injustice John faces when he is denied the opportunity to rebut his presumed recklessness.” (21)

The New York rape law says that a person is guilty of second-degree rape “when ‘being eighteen years old or more, … with another person who is incapable of consent because of being mentallydisabled ormentally incapacitated.’”(22) Price said that Janeis protected by the language “mentally incapacitated” because being intoxicated legally renders her mentally incapacitated and shielded by the law. (23) But John’s intoxication subjects himto criminal liability and punishment.(24)Price believes that even though both adults were intoxicated,thelaw protects Jane and condemns John.(25) Thus, the MPC contributes to a “gender imbalance in cases that prosecute only one side of a double-sided intoxication.” (26)

Price’s proposed changes would “reject the premise that an offender is automatically considered reckless because he became voluntarily intoxicated.”(27)In its place, it would require that legal responsibility for the offenses be proven by “[E]vidence of the offender’s actual subjective awareness for each element.” (28)If the offender lacks the subjective awareness required for the material element, (due to voluntary intoxication), he cannot be held liable.(29)

If adopted, the proposal permits admitting evidence of both the victim’s and the accused’s mental state.(30) Although the protection of victims under the law remains largely the same, the progressive recommendations in the mens rea requirement provide more equal protection for men and women. (31)

On the other hand, in New Jersey, a trial court concluded that a “delinquent” or reckless seventeen-year-old male was guilty of committing a sexual assault against a fifteen-year-old girl. (32) Evidence presented at trial indicated that both parties voluntarily engaged in consensual kissing and heavy petting. This led to a sexual encounter in which the girlsaid later she did not initially want.

The court held that “[A]ny act of sexual penetration engaged in by the male without the female freely permitting the specific act of penetration is by law an offense of sexual assault.” (33)Permission for sexual intercourse can be knownby the female giving permission verbally or her actionsshould indicate (to a reasonable person) that she is consenting when considering the surrounding circumstances. (34) The court found the girl did not express her consent through her words or actionsto the act of sexual penetration.(35)

This case was about whether forceshould be a required element in proving rape. As previously mentioned, the MPC§213.1(1) says there must be a physical injury on the female when proving rape. This was the New Jersey legislature and the court’s version of how they believe the law should be updated.(36) The court focused on the defendant’s conduct and rejected any judgment passed upon the victim except as it pertains to the actions of the defendant. (37)

There are several ideas on how the MPC should be updated to fit modern times. These ideas seem to mostly alter the mens reaelement. Mens rea is evidence that demonstrates one’s intent, preparation, plan, or knowledge of the offense. (38)These proposals broaden the definition of rape and may have negative effects on all intimate sexual relationships. (39) However, both men and women need to be careful about how they update the law and its new implications because of its potentially disastrous effects.

________________________________________________________________

(1)  Shannon H. Polson, “This woman was the first to complete Coast Guard Rescue Swimmer training, and serve.” Medium Magazine. Nov. 11, 017. July 17, 2020. https://medium.com/@ABorderLife/shes-definitely-got-grit-this-woman-was-the-first-to-complete-coast-guard-rescue-swimmer-d16c1f4f6143.

(2)  Kevin G. Hall, “She was a pioneering Coast Guard rescue swimmer. A tsunami of sexual harassment followed.” July 13, 2020. July 17, 2020. Miami Herald, https://www.miamiherald.com/news/state/florida/article238336883.html#storylink=cpy.

(3)  Ibid.

(4)  Ibid.

(5)  Ibid.

(6)  U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Reform Committee on Homeland Security, “Righting the Ship: The Coast Guard Must Improve its Processes for Addressing Harassment, Bullying, and Retaliation.” Dec. 11, 2019. July 17, 2020. https://oversight.house.gov/sites/democrats.oversight.house.gov/files/RTS%20Final%20Report.pdf.

(7)  McCord, James, (2012). “Criminal Law and Procedure for the Paralegal: A Systems Approach,” p. 58.

(8)  Ibid., p. 115.

(9)  Ibid.

(10)                   Ibid.

(11)                   Professor Stephen J. Schulhofer, “Model Penal Code Article 213: Rape and Related Offenses.” May 14, 2012. July 17, 2020. https://jpp.whs.mil/Public/docs/04-Meetings/sub-20150409/09_Prospectus_for_Revision_MPC213.pdf.

(12)                   Ibid.

(13)                   N.Y.Penal Law § 130.35 (2001).

(14)                   Erin Price, “The Model Penal Code’s New Approach to Rape and Intoxication.” University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law. July 17, 2020. https://www.mcgeorge.edu/documents/Publications/price_TUOPLR472.pdf.

(15)                   Ibid., p. 430.

(16)                   Ibid.

(17)                   Ibid.

(18)                   Ibid., p. 431.

(19)                   Ibid.

(20)                   Ibid.

(21)                   Ibid.

(22)                   N.Y. Penal Law § 130.30 (2001).

(23)                   “The Model Penal Code’s New Approach to Rape and Intoxication,” p. 431.

(24)                   Ibid.

(25)                   Ibid.

(26)                   Ibid.

(27)                   Model Penal Code § 213.0(4) at 1 (AM. Law Inst., Preliminary Draft No. 5, 2015).

(28)                   “The Model Penal Code’s New Approach to Rape and Intoxication,” p. 431.

(29)                   Ibid.

(30)                   Ibid., p. 433.

(31)                   Ibid.

(32)                   State in the Interest of M.T.S. - 129 N.J. 422, 609 A.2d 1266 (1992).

(33)                   Law School Case Brief, “State in the Interest of M.T.S. - 129 N.J. 422, 609 A.2d 1266 (1992).” Lexis Nexis. https://www.lexisnexis.com/community/casebrief/p/casebrief-state-in-the-interest-of-m-t-s.

(34)                   Ibid.

(35)                   Ibid.

(36)                   Ibid.

(37)                   No Name Given, “State of New Jersey in the Interest of M.T.S.” Casebook Notes, http://lawschool.mikeshecket.com/criminallaw/stateofnewjerseyintheinterestofmts.htm.

(38)                   McCord, James, (2012). “Criminal Law and Procedure for the Paralegal: A Systems Approach,” p. 115.

(39)                   “State of New Jersey in the Interest of M.T.S.” Casebook Notes.

Photo Credit: Jonathunder

[leradny]

Emerald City has its shortcomings, but one thing I absolutely love about it is that women are given the complete freedom to fail, to succeed, to do nice things, to do really terrible things. Every single one of them.

A brief explanation about why I won’t include Tip: Tip is a very important character, but he is a boy. He was born in a female body, but due to lack of resources, he cannot return to his preferred gender, nor can he pass for it. That is the only reason he presents as feminine. He was raised as a boy, and identifies as one exclusively. So, he’s not here. Although I love him.

Anyway, back to the women and girls.

For one thing, there are a lot, both in the background, and with speaking roles. There are young girls and old women. There are women who stay chaste. There are women who work at a brothel.

Even the minor female characters are given lives, backstories, and relationships. You don’t know the whole story and sometimes they don’t speak, but you get the sense that there is a whole story.

One of the most unorthodox ways Emerald City gets its plot rolling that I’ve never seen to the same extent in any other work of fiction is how significant events happen off-screen. This is generally eschewed in fiction for a very good good reason most of the time. But here it is handled, for the most part, in an ABSOLUTELY WONDERFUL way to give agency to all of its characters.

For example: My favorite character Mistress East, the most Merciful and Stern (AND BEAUTIFUL). The very fact that they juxtapose two seemingly contradictory things alludes to this convention of not showing the full picture, and allowing women to have fully rounded characters. We only see the Stern part of Mistress East for the short time she’s on screen. She tortures the main character. And yet, people are so very genuinely affected by her death! The Munja’kin exalt her, and torture Dorothy because they want to bring a murderer to justice. West runs out crying into the street. Her most loyal servant continues to guard the temple after her death. So, that merciful part of her personality must be there. We simply didn’t get to see it.

This juxtaposition is also evident in East’s costume design. She has Florence Kasumba’s shaved head, which is genuinely coded as a masculine trait. See: Furiosa, which works very well for that particular show. But this is not Mad Max. Emerald City threw masculine and feminine coding out the window for East! She has a shaved head, but pairs it with the most impractical, haute couture dress of any character in the show. It’s red and silky with a black feathered collar and beautiful intricate golden gauntlets, and there is not only one twenty-foot train, there are several. Keep in mind that Florence Kasumba could have very easily worn a wig for this role to look more feminine according to “traditional” gender roles, and yet was allowed to keep her hairstyle.

Another way is how they allow all of their characters the potential to do very good things, very bad things, and things the viewer doesn’t quite feel comfortable with. Not to say these characters don’t have defined personalities. But you can’t really guess what a character’s going to do.

Dorothy Gale is mostly a really good person. She is the hero, a woman of color, and by profession a nurse. She fits into that profession quite naturally. She takes care of dogs and children and she loves her adoptive family. But she also steals medicine if her family needs it and cannot get it, for whatever reason. She doesn’t default to hurting or killing people, but she totally will if it means her or them.

Sylvie is mostly a really sweet little girl who very rarely speaks and is mostly carried around by Lucas or looked after by Dorothy or playing with Toto. But after being established as such and getting abducted, Dorothy spends a lot of time trying to rescue her from a couple who tries to abduct her. Our heroine storms into the house, only to find that Sylvie has turned her abductors into stone off-screen.

Mistress West is mostly defined by being a sex and drug addict. She’s not very nice. She shouts at her servants. She ruthlessly discards people once she’s not interested in them anymore. She outright lies to someone. But, well, she still genuinely values honesty outside of it. She’s witty. She is genuinely traumatized by the death of her sisters.

Princess Langwidere, is mostly the strange girl who always wears masks and just buys Jack because she likes him. And then she goes from spoiled, eccentric princess to a terrifyingly shrewd politician when it’s revealed she’s been ruling the kingdom instead of her father for a long time. She busts out that AMAZING speech where she point-blank refuses to help the Wizard because he ignored her kingdom, and she will gladly see Oz burn to the ground. I love floaty eccentric girls. I love hyper-capable women. Princess Langwidere is literally two of my favorite character types IN ONE PERSON.

One character who haunts me is Mombi. As actors, women run into a lot of limitations with their craft because generally, nobody looks pretty when they emote with intensity. And women run into far less opportunities as they age because they also tend to look less pretty. But here is an older woman who is not only given screen-time, but artistic freedom. Spit FLIES OUT OF HER MOUTH when she rages at Dorothy! She is given the power to tackle, strangle, and overpower the younger heroine. And we completely believe that Dorothy will die! Lucas, a fucking 6′3″ soldier, has to stab Mombi in the heart, drag her off, and bash her in the skull before getting Dorothy away to safety. And he still doesn’t kill her! Nope!

Women in Emerald City are just as flawed and detailed and individual and self-serving and selfless and hypocritical as any of the men. I could write an essay about literally every female character, because all of them have done something that directly affects the plot. I may not like all of the characters, and they might not all have the same amount of screen time, but every single one of them has agency and relevance, and that is the level of equality this industry needs.

[ericcrawford]

CRAWFORD | Five thoughts on the firing of Bobby Petrino

Five thoughts on the firing of University of Louisville football coach Bobby Petrino:

1). THERE'S A NEW GODFATHER IN LOUISVILLE. Consider Vince Tyra’s Sunday. He woke up, put on a “Louisville football” hooded sweatshirt and a pair of sweatpants. He met with Petrino after the coach taped his weekly TV coaches’ show, and fired him and his son and two sons-in-law, plus his executive assistant.

He then met with U of L’s football players and the remaining coaches. He named Lorenzo Ward as the interim coach. He then watched Louisville win the ACC soccer championship on television. From there, a few minutes late, he rolled into to the Yum! Center basketball practice facility (not, as you might think, in a Brinks truck) and held his news conference.

Later in the afternoon, he was scheduled to have dinner with the team.

Hat tip to Yahoo! Sports' Pat Forde, who noted a quote from Don Corleone that came to his mind: “Today, I settled all family business.”

Any questions?

2). THE MONEY? DON'T WORRY ABOUT THE MONEY. Tyra says he expects U of L to pay Petrino the full amount of his buyout, or approximately $14 million. How in the world will Louisville afford this?

Tyra noted several resources. He said he set aside contingency funds for a rainy day in the current athletic budget. He didn’t expect that it would be spent on Petrino’s buyout, but said it would account for about $2 million of the approximately $4.66 annual total in the first year.

Beyond that, Tyra said Louisville would further draw down some reserve funds, the largest fund being the Hickman-Camp Fund, which now stands at around $8 million after a $4.5 million withdrawal to pay the Xavier buyout for Chris Mack and $4 million to settle with former athletic director Tom Jurich already this year.

Tyra also alluded to other sources of revenue that could come online in the future. One of those is a naming rights deal for Cardinal Stadium, whenever it happens. One source many people don’t mention when talking about U of L’s liabilities is increased revenue from the ACC Network, to go online next season in a partnership with ESPN. While estimates of revenue haven’t been released for ACC schools, an increase of $6-8 million per year per school wouldn’t be outlandish.

Moreover, a new adidas deal (negotiated by former athletic director Tom Jurich) worth $130 million over 10 years is kicking in with a $5 million payment early in 2019.

Regardless, Tyra said it was less about the money than making the right call.

“I know that you’re going to quickly jump to the financials,” Tyra said. “But in my life, there’s been plenty of financial decisions that I’ve made, but you’ve got to make the right decision. And I think that today we’ve made the right decision on behalf of the program. . . . Dollar signs or not, it was time to make a decision.”

3). TYRA HOPES TO SEE IMMEDIATE CHANGE IN THE TEAM. In his meeting with the players, Tyra said that he hoped that they would take advantage of this dramatic change to re-write the ending of their season.

“I met with the players, we met in the auditorium,” he said. “I was clear about the decisions that were made, why they were made, and my expectations of coaches, what Louisville football means to the community, my expectations of them as players, and my concerns … around effort, cohesiveness, communication, etc.”

Tyra said he thought the meeting went well, that players greeted him, some with hugs, and that he planned to have dinner with the team on Sunday night to talk to players further. He also said that he met with the remaining coaches.

“My expectations (are) on a turnaround immediately with this team, with this talented team,” Tyra said. “They need to get focused immediately on North Carolina State this week. We’ve provided the pathway for the student athletes to have a great week, work their butt off but have a great time. There’s two weeks to do that to really make a name for themselves. It doesn’t have to end on a bad note. We’re 2-8. We don’t have to be 2-10. It doesn’t have to end that way. Even though people are writing that script for us, they can change that story.”

4). WHO IS THE INTERIM COACH? Lorenzo “Whammy” Ward is a veteran defensive coach. He played defensive back at Alabama. He was defensive coordinator at Fresno State in 2016 and was at South Carolina before that. He also worked under Frank Beamer as secondary coach for seven seasons at Virginia Tech.

“I chose him because he has great respect from the players, of all positions,” Tyra said. “I felt like he was the one at this point who could step in and take over the administrative role as well as the leadership role.”

Tyra said he’s not sure why the effort from the football team has been lacking, but didn’t mince words in saying that it has.

“When you have 10 penalties and 4 turnovers in the first half, against a (Syracuse) team that we’ve handled pretty well . . . I don’t think our talent has slipped that far and theirs has slipped up that much," he said. “If you want to say culture equals effort, then something screwy was going on. Because the effort wasn’t what it has been historically. . . . The players can’t hide from that. It shows up on film."

5). THE JOB GOES THROUGH JEFF BROHM. Before anyone asks, I don’t know if the Purdue coach and former Louisville quarterback is coming. I hate that he has to go through the next two weeks with this hanging over his season at Purdue. But that’s what college football has become.

Should he be offered the job? Yes. In my opinion, which is what you get here, he’s as important a hire as Howard Schnellenberger was. Failing to land him would be like Schnellenberger’s alma mater, the University of Kentucky, being unable to land him. It could have decades of repercussions.

It was a remarkable moment when Tyra actually mentioned Brohm by name, because why beat around the bush about it? (Another extraordinary fact about Tyra’s news conference Sunday.)

When WAVE TV’s Kent Taylor asked Tyra if he’d be open to the new coach hiring members of his family here (knowing that Jeff’s brother Greg is director of football operations at Purdue and his brother Brian is a quarterbacks coach), Tyra responded, “Nice bait, Kent.”

Later, Tyra took the speculation head on.

“I know all the tie-ins that Jeff has with Louisville,” Tyra said. “I know all the tie-ins that he and I have with Trinity. I’ve heard it all. But still, that doesn’t mean he wants to be here. I just don’t think it’s worth speculating, until we get to the season and see who wants to be here. I have a great opportunity to sell a great program. But I want to be clear, this is not a hire out of convenience. This is one we need to have that really wants to be here and is going to win here.”

There are other candidates. Dino Babers at Syracuse. Joe Whitt Jr., currently the defensive passing game coordinator for the Green Bay Packers and a former Louisville assistant, has interest. University of Cincinnati coach Luke Fickell and Ryan Day, the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Ohio State, are among the early names receiving serious consideration.

But Brohm likely is the starting point. And if he has interest and Louisville can afford him, he might be where the discussion ends.

[thebeautyoftorah]

VAETCHANAN

bs'd

Shalom. The thought of this week from my book 'Healing Anger' "Even with the right guide, personal improvement does not happen overnight. It requires hard work and perseverance. Yet, we will never totally complete the correction of our character flaws. There will always be more to do and more to fix, for character development is a lifetime process. We will always encounter new situations, new challenges, and new life tests. But remember that when you don’t give up you can’t fail". Buy my book at http://www.feldheim.com/healing-anger.html If you want to buy it from me in Israel let me know. This article is based partially on the ideas of R' Yonathan Gefen. To support this publication or if you know anyone who is interested in receiving it, please contact me. Feel free to forward these words of Torah to any other fellow Jew. Shabbat Shalom. VAETCHANAN-The Ultimate Mitzvah This week's parsha is the source of the mitzvah to learn Torah (Talmud Torah), that is described as being equal in value to all the others combined. "And you shall teach them thoroughly to your children and speak of them while you sit in your home, while you walk on your way, when you retire and when you rise." (1)

It is surprising that the source for Talmud Torah does not say 'you shall learn', rather 'you shall teach.' Why is this so?

The Ktav Sofer notes that the Torah does actually instruct us to learn (vedibarta bam) but only after telling us to teach first (veshinantam). The order should be reversed; a person learns before he teaches?! He answers that the Torah is alluding that one's own learning must be done with the ultimate goal of teaching others.(2) This also explains why the main source for the Mitzvah of Talmud Torah is teaching. Because the ultimate purpose of learning is to be able to give it over through teaching.

Of course, learning Torah is not merely a means to be able to teach, a person needs Torah to be able to develop a relationship with G-d, and without learning this is impossible. Nonetheless, it is clear from the commentaries that learning without teaching is a great lacking in the fulfillment of the Mitzvah of Talmud Torah. This is why the Sages teach us that it is essential to learn with the intent of teaching. Moreover, the Meiri (3) and the Maharal (4) both write that a person who learns but does not teach cannot reach completion.(5)

We now understand why the Torah stresses teaching ahead of learning. However, the choice of word it used needs understanding; usually 'you will teach' is translated as 'limadtem', but here the Torah says, 'veshinantam'. Rashi explains that this usage has an added meaning; it implies a high level of clarity so that one if someone asks a question, you can answer it without stumbling. From here we learn that a person can gain more clarity in his learning if it is in preparation to teach. A person who learns a Gemara knowing that people will challenge him on his understanding and explanations of it has a great incentive to learn with greater diligence. According to some commentators, this is the explanation of the Gemara: "Rebbi says, 'I learnt a great deal of Torah from my teachers, more from friends, and the most from my students." (6) Students force a teacher to attain a higher level of clarity and understanding.

This idea was stressed by great Torah leaders: An avreich (someone who learns full time) was not succeeding in his learning so he asked the Steipler Gaon if he should continue in kollel or begin teaching. The Steipler answered that in the past everybody wanted to teach, and a person who did not find a position in teaching continued to learn in kollel. He then said, "every Gadol Hador of the past grew greatly from giving lectures." (7) Teaching is also a great tool in helping one remember his learning. The Steipler once advised another Torah student to teach in Yeshiva katana, and explained that when one teaches others a piece of learning it is equivalent to learning it twenty times. He said further, "I know from my own experience that that which I learnt myself I have forgotten, but that which I taught to others I remember it to this very day." (8)

We have seen how teaching on a high level can greatly help one's own learning. However, it would seem that teaching people on a lower level would not have the same effect. However, a number of commentaries understand the Gemara that 'I learnt the most from my students' in a different way. The Chatam Sofer makes an extraordinary statement. He speaks at length about the importance of giving over of one's self for the sake of helping the spirituality of his fellow. He focuses on how Abraham devoted his time and effort to teaching the uneducated masses about Emuna (faith) rather than focus on his own growth. He then exhorts us to emulate Abraham and teach people even if they are on a low level of understanding. He addresses an argument against this approach. "If the Eved HaShem would say, 'my soul craves closeness to Hashem and I want to get close to him. How can I do this and reduce my own learning and self-perfection in order to perfect my fellow's soul?!' The answer to this is found in the words of the Sages; '… I learnt the most from my students'. Is it beyond G-d to make up to you the growth that you forsook for the sake of His honor?! You should do what Hashem commanded you - to teach the people - and He will fulfill His role…. He will make it possible for you to attain completion in a small time and you will be able to attain lofty heights beyond your own belief." (9) One who teaches people that are on a low level of learning will receive a great deal of Heavenly assistance which will enable him to attain greater heights than humanly possible. (10)

We have discussed much about the value of teaching Torah. Why exactly is it considered so great to the extent that the Egle Tal writes that it is on an even higher level than learning Torah? (11) There are a number of reasons for this but one can be found in the verse we have discussed. The Torah says, "you will teach it to your children." The Sages learn out this does not only refer to one's genetic children, but also to one's students. Why doesn't the Torah just tell us to teach students? The answer is that the Torah is showing us that teaching Torah is similar in a certain aspect to having children. When a person brings a child to the world he is giving him the tremendous gift of life. When a person teaches someone Torah he is giving him the opportunity to gain eternal life. Thus, by teaching Torah you are acquiring the quality of parenting - giving life. This is why students are referred to as children.

Indeed teaching Torah to a child is considered an even greater kindness than giving birth to him as the Mishna in Bava Metsia states; "If a person sees the lost objects of his father and his teacher, the teacher takes precedence." Why? "Because his father brought him to Olam Hazeh(this world) but his teacher who taught him wisdom, brings him to Olam Haba (the Next World)." (12) Teaching Torah is the ultimate act of kindness that one can do. May we all merit to fulfill it. ___________________________________________

1. Vaetchanan, 6:6.

2. Quoted in Dvar Yerushalayim, 181, quoted in Relevance, ibid.

3. Meiri, Sanhedrin, 24a' also see Meiri, Avos 4:6.

4. Maharal: Chiddushei Aggadot, 23b; also see Netiv HaTorah, Ch.8 for a lengthy discussion of this topic.

5. There are many Gemarot that speak very critically about a person that learns but does not teach. See Rosh Hashana 23a, Sanhedrin Perek Chelek.

6. Makkot 10a, Taanit 7a.

7. Quoted in Mishel Avot, Kinyanei Torah, 'halomed al menat lelamed.'

8. Ibid.

9. 'Pituchey Chatam,' - Hakdama to Shut Chatam Sofer, Yoreh Deah.

10. The Tosefot Yom Tov expresses the same idea in Avot 4:5.

11. Hakdama to Egle Tal - he proves this from a Gemara in Kesubot 17a.

12. Bava Metsia, 33a.

Le Iluy nishmat Eliahu ben Simcha, Mordechai ben Shlomo, Perla bat Simcha, Abraham Meir ben Leah,Moshe ben Gila,Yaakov ben Gila, Sara bat Gila, Yitzchak ben Perla, Leah bat Chavah, Abraham Meir ben Leah,Itamar Ben Reb Yehuda, Yehuda Ben Shmuel Tzvi, Tova Chaya bat Dovid.

Refua Shelema of Yitzchak ben Mazal Tov, Yaacov ben Miriam, Yehuda ben Simcha, Menachem Chaim ben Malka, Naftali Dovid ben Naomi Tzipora, Nechemia Efraim ben Beyla Mina, Gila bat Tzipora, Tzipora bat Gila, Dvir ben Leah, Sender ben Sara, Eliezer Chaim ben Chaya Batya, Noa bat Batsheva Devorah,Shlomo Yoel ben Chaya Leah  and Dovid Yehoshua ben Leba Malka. Atzlacha to Daniel ben Mazal Tov, Debora Leah Bat Henshe Rachel, Shmuel ben Mazal tov, Yehuda ben Mazal Sara and Zivug agun to Gila bat Mazal Tov, Naftali Dovid ben Naomi Tzipora, Yehudit bat Malka, Elisheva bat Malka.

[basicsofislam]

ISLAM 101: ALMS AND CHARITY: VIRTUES OF ZAKAT: Part 21

RECIPIENTS OF ZAKAT: Part 3

DEBTORS

In normal circumstances, zakat should be given to a person in debt, irrespective of the person’s prior wealth. Although in one way, debtors can actually be classified among the poor and destitute, the main difference is that their unfortunate state is presumably only temporary. By declaring, “Charity is not permissible for the rich, except for the following five: A warrior in the way of God, a zakat collector, a debtor, a person who buys the charity collected as zakat, and a rich person who receives from a poor the gift that was given to him as zakat,” the Prophet has pronounced the eligibility for zakat of a debtor, even if he is rich. On the account of Abu Said al-Hudri, a Companion during the time of the Noble Messenger had bought fruit, which was destroyed before he could offer their payment. Upon hearing this, the Prophet advised the others to lend him financial support. After the amassed total fell short of the required amount, the Prophet said to the creditors, “Take from what there is, for there is no more,” insisting on some additional understanding and compromise on their behalf. Falling into debt must never be seen as a method of receiving zakat or as a pretext for escaping it,  practices strongly condemned by the Prophet and certainly subject to divine fury. The people declared by Islam as being eligible for zakat, in this case, are not those who are penalized for their avarice, but rather those who are going through rough patches while leading a planned and moderate life. The bottom line is that life is transient, man is expected to behave responsibly, and errors perpetrated in this fleeting life may lead to a devastating scenario on the Day of Judgment.

FI SABILILLAH (IN GOD’S WAY)

In line with the various connotations, the Arabic term may suggest, “fi sabilillah” is basically the commitment to put aside all personal duties and dedicate one’s entire time to spend in the way of God. Initially, this involves seeking and learning the knowledge that brings happiness in this life and in the hereafter, and in time, may also require the removal of impediments that stand in the way of spreading God’s name to all corners of the world. It is exactly for this reason that a group courageously taking such an immense task is entitled to zakat, thereby encompassing the broader meaning of the term jihad, as all kinds of struggle offered with the sole aim of pleasing God.

Analyzing the issue from the perspective of the Prophetic Era, the Ashab al-Suffa (Companions that had dedicated their entire time to the pursuit of knowledge), whose numbers reached up to 400, throw more light on the issue as exemplary models, in terms of the duty they had accomplished. Enduring a variety of difficulties, they nevertheless remained incessantly alongside the Prophet, eager to realize his very command and imbibe from his pearls of wisdom. Having devoted themselves solely in this direction, they frequently suffered hunger, even facing, on occasions, the threat of falling unconscious. Abu Hurayra, a heroic example of this devotion, responded to certain criticisms that came in his direction by simply stating, “My brothers complain that I narrate too many hadiths. However, while my Ansar brothers (Medinan Muslims) were busy cultivating their lands, and my Muhajir brothers (Meccan Muslims) were engaged in trade, me and others alike were incessantly by the side of the Prophet, memorizing his words, “At the risk of fainting from hunger.” This illustrates the extent of the dedication and consequent hardship which devout followers encountered for the sake of serving the Qur’an and the Sunna—and also exemplifies the different manner in which believers struggled to support Islam. Of course, the Qur’an is far from quiet on such sacrifices, eternalizing their earnest devotions as follows, in a verse which was also critical to some of the earlier discussions:

Alms are for the poor who are restrained in the cause of God, unable to travel in the land. The ignorant man counts them among the wealthy because of their restraint. But you will know them by their appearance. They never beg people with importunity. And whatever good things you spend, surely God knows them well. (Baqara 2:273)

Despite the difficulties they constantly faced, these Companions would not divulge their hardships, causing others to overlook them when they identified people in no need. Even though there still were a limited number of individuals who might have had a fairly good idea of their dire situation, it was impossible to know the full depth of suffering they concealed to establish the faith of Islam. To cut a long story short, the following account provides an excellent example by which to crystallize this description.

Said ibn Musayyab, one of the forerunners of the Tabiun generation (the praised generation who were acquainted with the Companions, though they did not see the Noble Prophet himself) who was the son-in-law of Abu Hurayra, tells the following story about his father-in-law, as the elder walking around gleefully in a linen robe:

Plunged in deep thought, he (Abu Hurayra) then turned to himself, muttering “Get over yourself, Abu Hurayra! You seem to have long forgotten the days when you would collapse from hunger and children would start treading on you, and others would hasten to you, conceiving it as an epileptic fit. Nobody would understand, bar the Prophet (upon whom be peace) and Jafar ibn Abi Talib, who would say ‘Come Abu Hurayra!’ whereupon you would tag along with them. How many times you entered the home of the Honorable Prophet, satisfying your hunger with milk, presented by him!”

Abu Hurayra, in fact, could not pursue anything else, conceiving this as the only path to revive one’s world and reach the eternal abode. Abu Hurayra’s desire and sensitivity in running to the need of the Prophet, and in memorizing every single word he uttered, was equally matched by his vigor in joining the armed forces, when required, where he confidently assumed the front ranks. Similarly, Abu Lubaba, and many others displayed the same attitude.

Thus it was for the likes of these exemplary figures, that divine glorification was revealed. As conveyed, there were more than 100 Companions who, while prostrating in salat (prayer), would hold fast to their insufficient clothes to prevent exposure of their private areas. As a matter of fact, all possessions and wealth had been abandoned in migrating from Mecca to Medina for the sake of God. The Prophet (upon whom be peace) nurtured a unique sensitivity for his Companions, and he would give them everything that came his way; and yet, especially in the early years of the faith, it still fell short of covering even their basic needs. He himself would endure days of starvation, to the point where he even tied a rock around his stomach to diminish his own feeling of hunger—and yet his soft heart could not bear the hunger of his Companions. So while he lived a life well below the standards of those around him,  he displayed an unmatched sensitivity to the requirements of others.

Through his efforts, Abu Hurayra achieved such proximity to the Messenger that more often than not, he would refer to the Prophet as his Khalil(Confidant), such that he would begin his explanations by saying, “My Confidant told me…” Or, “I went next to my Confidant.” Or, “I conversed with my Confidant…” and so on. By using this term, Abu Hurayra alluded to the ache and longing he experienced whenever he was away from the presence of the Prophet. In one of his many visits to the Prophet, he witnessed him offering salat while seated, showing signs of agony and distress. Immediately after the salat was finished, Abu Hurayra asked the Prophet why he offered his prayer sitting, only to receive this response: “Hunger; O Abu Hurayra!” Abu Hurayra, having witnessed such a heartbreaking scene, broke down in tears and the duty of consolation was, again, left to the Prophet, who uttered these words of gentle comfort: “Don’t cry, Abu Hurayra, because surely, the least torment on the Day of Judgment will befall the starved who have indeed already suffered its hardships.”

Such was the attitude displayed by this great “Confidant.” While the Prophet endured a variety of hardships, it would obviously have been utterly inconceivable for Abu Hurayra and the other 400 friends – the Ashab al-Suffa – to opt for lives of pompous luxury. Affirming their faith in God granted them such an immense maturity that they were constantly on the lookout for opportunities where they could lend their services. So even while they lacked the basic necessities of the day—a horse to ride, a saddle, a flask to carry water in, or a loaf of bread, for example—they would still come to the Prophet, asking for opportunities by which they could serve in God’s cause and thus vehemently insisting, “Provide us with means, O Messenger!” Evidently, the Companions always seeking additional opportunities by which they could support the growth of their faith community and offer themselves increasingly in the name of God. Of course, understanding the depth of service of his close Companions, the Honorable Prophet would give them support and suggestions, as well as anything material he could provide, in order to increase their benefits before God. On the sad occasions when he had nothing left to give, and he was starving himself, he would suffer the unparalleled and additional agony of having to turn back a Muslim who was willing to do more for his faith but simply had nothing more to offer. The Qur’an’s depiction of the preparations in the lead-up to the Tabuk campaign draws attention to this profound and moving situation:

Nor (is there any blame) on those who came to you, to be provided with mounts, and when you said to them, “I am unable to provide you with mounts.” They returned with tears streaming from their eyes, grieving that they could find no means to contribute. (Tawba 9:92)

As mentioned earlier, it is unimaginable in any healthy community for the rich to indulge in luxury while there are those who, out of insufficient means, are deserted to their own starvation and despair. Therefore, mobilizing all financial means towards those who have dedicated their entire lives for a noble cause—and who shed tears not for their own discomfort, but only for their failures in finding the necessary means to give more—would ultimately revive their vanished hopes, instigating an immensely efficacious movement by which the rewards of overwhelming sacrifice would be jointly shared—and enjoyed—by all the benefactors. Within the broadest sense of the term, the invaluable groundwork would thus be laid for talented students and followers, germinating in them an enormous eagerness to become passionate servants in God’s way, and upholders of universal ethics. This is, after all, the essence and vision of Islam.

WAYFARERS

On the word of the Qur’an, the last group of recipients which is identified is that of wayfarers— individuals who become needy during travel, even if they are essentially rich back home. It has virtually become impossible, especially today, to avoid traveling, whether it be for work or to spread the word of Islam to all the ends of the world. The quest to travel in order to serve in God’s way;  to provide a righteous example of  faith in parts of  the world with little or no exposure to Islam; or to resettle in different communities in order to directly invite others to Islam is, in effect, an excellent motive to establish funds, in concordance with the Qur’anic directive to accommodate the needs of travelers and those who lend their services to the mission of God.

This command is simultaneously a verification of how Islam attends to a person’s financial requirements while also decreeing the spread of good and the purge of evil—for including these altruistic souls as recipients of zakat allays their financial concerns and saves them from lagging behind in devoting their lives to the search for thirsty hearts eager to be quenched with the nectar of Truth.

The Messenger of God enunciated the rich among those who may occasionally be eligible to receive zakat while traveling (and thus in need of resources).17 The mention of travelers in the hadith is simply an elaboration of the Qur’anic command in relation to wayfarers. Therefore, though a person may possess enough wealth to donate zakat, he may also be eligible as a recipient, provided that he is in need during travels.

WHERE ELSE CAN ZAKAT BE GIVEN?

The essential aim of zakat is to cure all social diseases that stem from inequality in the distribution of wealth and, ultimately, create a tightly knit community resembling a robust building. Evidently, there exist certain institutions which are aimed at serving the exact purpose for which zakat is intended, and these tend to be well known within a community. Even though these institutions have technically not been mentioned among the other categories of recipients, they do receive zakat owing to their particular social aims and functions. These institutions, which are formed around the core concept of charity, have the power to reach out to the deprived, to ease their lives and, as discussed above, help avoid or discourage potential social strife.

In the words of the Prophet (upon whom be peace), Muslim society is like one body where all parts join the agony of a single limb; viewed from this angle, reviving one certain part of society is commensurable to breathing new life into the entire organism. Espousing this kind of an impetus, each member of society is expected to become active. Actualizing God’s will in all parts of society will, in effect, terminate theft and other crimes connected to financial instability, graciously giving the community a brand new lease on life. While charity and aid foundations, scholarship funds and orphanages may, at first, give the impression of being excluded from the eight groups delineated by the Qur’an, they each fundamentally relate and encompass one or more of the specified recipient groups. The dictates of the Qur’an, in effect, are both general and unrestricted—the essence of a vibrant and comprehensive system of ordinances for life. Therefore, conditions like poverty, traveling, being in debt, or striving in the way of God are inherently deemed to generate the need for assistance, so that individuals in such conditions clearly achieve eligibility for zakat, and organizations which provide such targeted assistance must receive available funds in order to deliver the appropriate relief.

Illat, in Islamic terminology, means the basic reason for determining the permissibility or the impermissibility of action, and it constitutes a crucial foundation of Islamic jurisprudence. Recall that as far as the muallafa al-qulub are concerned, they receive zakat as long as, or whenever and wherever, they exist and there is a need for warming their hearts towards Islam. The situation is similar for wayfarers, as discussed above; namely, zakat is only given to such a group as long as it exists—that is, as long as individuals fitting this description can be identified. Therefore, looking from this perspective, we can say that the very existence of institutions or foundations which serve the needs of any of the individuals defined, and which have as their primary intent and purpose the support of these groups, is sufficient reason for their entitlement to zakat.