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mirkwoodshewolf · 4 years

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Guardian of creatures; AU! Queen x reader chap. 1

*Author’s note*

Well it took awhile from the last update (plus things have been happening in my personal life like losing yet ANOTHER kitty cat this year) but I finally came around and deliver to you guys the first chapter of my new Hallowqueen series. Now keep in mind it’s mostly in 2nd PERSON POV which means as the reader it’s basically gender neutral, so be patient with me as I try to make sure to keep my pronouns in order. Also I hope you all watch the video I have linked in the story, I def. LOVED it when I first found it years ago and this guy can really sing and bring a gender-bend Disney character to life, so if you’ve never heard of him, check out his page you won’t regret it :)

Now not really any warnings per-say except rude bosses, seductive gestures,

Taglist:

@plethora-of-things

@waddles03

@psychosupernatural

@ixchel-9275

@simonedk

@queensdivas

@jd-johndeacon-or-jackdaniels

@dancingcoolcat

@queendeakyy

@kinole009x

@klausidiot

@geek-and-proud

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Chapter 1,

First day on the Job

*April 11th, 1926*

First day on the job. Well it’s really an internship but you were looking forward to it. Working for the New York Times was an opportunity for any writer. Your dream was to one day publish the next great American novel, as a child you’ve always been whisked away by the words and tales of dragons, sea-baring pirates, and worlds unlike the one you lived in.

It amazed you how one writer can just take you away on a journey and help distract you from the stresses of the world. And here is where your journey began in hopes of accomplishing that dream.

You had first heard about the internship for the NY Times in the papers in an advertisement. The call asked for a 300 word sample of your writing as well as any previous writing experiences you’ve had in the past.

In school you’ve been part of the school newspaper and helped write up advertisements for after school events. So after submitting your sample as well as a resume, about 2 months later you finally got a letter from the NY times wanting to do an interview.

Long story short, the interview went great and now you’ve got the internship. You now stood before the doors that would start your future in the world of writing. Tugging the strap of your suitcase over your shoulder, you take a deep breath in before exhaling and entered inside.

Already swarms of people flooded the first floor of the building, their voices echoing off the large room. The repeated sounds of phones ringing piercing the room as secretaries at their desks were answering them.

It felt like a dream to you for you to actually think that you were now working in one of the top Newspapers brands in all of America.

“You there!” a voice called out. You turned and saw a young man in a brown suit. “Why are you just standing there!? We are running a newspaper here, not a charity tour.”

“Sorry, I’m….my name is (y/n) (l/n). I’m the new intern to Mr. Grayson.”

“Ohh right. He’s been expecting you. You’re late by the way.”

“Late? But I’m right on……”

“One rule about working under Mr. Grayson, he expects his interns and anyone on his team to arrive before he does. Which is 6am on the dot. And it is now,” he looks down at his watch, “8:45. That’s a good start.”

“I’m sorry I wasn’t tole. I promise it’ll never happen again.”

“See to it that it doesn’t. I’m Harry Wormwood, Vice President of the New York Times.”

“Oh Mr. Wormwood it’s an honor to—”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. Just get up to your post and start your internship.”

“Yes sir.” You said solemnly. Wow he was rude. To think you have a VP like him that acts like that around new people, especially interns. But he was right, you had to get up to meet with your head of office and get right to work with whatever he needed help on.

You adjusted your bag once more before heading straight to the elevator and went up to the 13th floor. After a bit of a ride and getting some more people in the elevator with you, you finally arrive to your floor.

People, like down in the first floor, were swarming the room, typewriters were tapping away as men were at their desks typing away their stories and articles for the paper. Or as they like to call it ‘putting the paper to bed’. You walk forward towards a middle aged man with ginger colored hair and ask him.

“Excuse me, do you know where Mr. Grayson’s office is at?”

“In the back, straight down the hall, last door. It’ll have his name plagued on the door in gold.” He said without looking you in the eye.

“Great, thank you.” you followed his instructions but when you got to his door, there was sounds of a commotion going on. Well when you say that you mean the sound of someone yelling and belittling someone, then yes.

“YOU GODDAMN SONS OF BITCHES!!! If we can get a picture of Joan Crawford in lingerie, then we can surely get a hold of this damn jazz club!” you peek inside and inside you see four men surrounding a desk.

And right there at his desk with a cigar between his teeth was your new boss, Mr. Richard Grayson. He was a middle aged man around his late 40’s possible even early 50’s. He was a fairly tall man with greying short hair, a small mustache across his lip.

But what really made him well known was the way he carried himself. He was always described as a man who carried himself like a drill sergeant (that could be because he was one during the Great War). A true, Bronx accent that carried out demands for miles and miles on end.

“Sir, we have tried everything we could to get a hold of an interview inside but not even our best interviewers could get pass security.” Said a blonde haired man in a blue suit.

“Our photographer Eddie has been on it for weeks and the owners have threatened a lawsuit against him because he’s been taking pictures of the club without consent.”

“Aww what are they shy?” Mr. Grayson mocked out. “Then let them sue us then, get rich on their own standards! That’s what made this country stand the way it is!”

“Maybe we should just forget about it.” Said a brown haired man.

“I have been on this case for years. Ever since these mysterious owners built their club at the start of the decade and has remained popular I want to know just what the secret to their success.”

“Sir the only thing we have is that the owners come from England and that they prefer a specific crowd of people.” Answered a young man around your age who had black hair.

“Yeah right they do.” Mr. Greyson muttered sarcastically. That’s when he suddenly turned towards you. “You!” he pointed at you. You’re startled by his loud, strong voice as you quickly come inside his office.

“Sorry sir I-I-I didn’t mean to eavesdrop. I really should’ve knocked.”

“You’re the new intern right?” he ignored your apology and went straight to the question at hand.

“Y-Yes sir.”

“Excellent. I want you to go to this night club and get an exclusive interview with the owners, bartender, musicians, I don’t care who. Just find someone to talk to and ask them about their Jazz club.”

“Sir you can’t give it to them. This is a big responsibility, not to mention too much for a fresh intern to take over.” Said the man in the brown suit that you saw first speak to Mr. Grayson.

“Shut it Mack! You remember what I had you do the first day you were late working for me. What better way to get started than by throwing fresh meat to the wolves.”

Can you say you regret working here yet? No too early? Okay then.

“So what do you say kid, will you do it?” before you could even answer, your boss continues, “Of course you’ll do it. Now then. Take this camera, your notepad, and come up with a clever story to get inside. Good luck kid!” he tosses you a camera and notepad before escorting you out of his office and shutting the door behind you.

Okay……what the fuck just happened? It all happened so fast you almost couldn’t even believe it. And what jazz club did he want you to check out again?

Later that night (after getting the information from some of your new team members) you now stood before the building you were supposed to go undercover for.

In a bright neon sign at the side of the building was the name BEWITCHED JAZZ. Now you have heard of this club before and remember it getting fairly good praise from the public and has a good swarm of people. Hell even some of the biggest names in Hollywood have been seen going into that club.

But there was always an air of mystery about it. Like Mr. Grayson said, security is always tight. First of all security actually gives you a pat down before entering inside. Any traces of photography or recording equipment is immediately destroyed (yes you heard, destroyed).

Thinking it’d be best, you decide to leave the camera in your car and just wait it out. Cause that seems to be the problem that most of Mr. Greyson’s reporters don’t seem to get, they just think barging on in will get them access. A good reporter always plans ahead and blends in with the crowd, observes then goes in for the kill.

You stand in the line and for about an hour you stand there waiting to get inside until finally it’s your turn to go up.

“Next.” A very tall and muscular man speaks out as he unhooks the rope allowing you to come forward. “Pardon but I’m gonna need to do a pat down.”

“Go ahead.” As he carefully and precisely starts the pat down, you can’t help but feel intimidated, hell his whole hand goes halfway down your leg and covers your entire back. He was a pretty intimidating man to look at, and you hope he doesn’t snap you like a toothpick.

“Now you don’t have any weapons or outside drinks that I’m not aware of?” he asks in that deep, deep baritone voice of his.

“No sir.” You answer.

“Show me some identification.” You pull out your wallet and give him your ID. He looks down at it before looking towards you skeptically.

Swallowing nervously, the giant just looks at you with a skeptical look before finally giving you back your ID.

“Go right on in.” what? Oh god you couldn’t believe you could actually go in. You take your ID and put it back inside your wallet and thank the guard before stepping inside.

It was a fairly big place, about 3000 sq. ft. A decent size of the typical jazz clubs in NYC. It looked like any ordinary jazz club, firefly lights hanging from the ceiling, the lights lowered to a slight shadow, tables surrounding everywhere, including each side of the catwalk.

A grand stage was at the very center of the building with a band playing an upbeat jazz score. Waiters and bartenders tending to each customer. Some people were dancing to the music while most were sitting down talking to one another.

“Wow.” You softly muttered.

“It’s alright but we make do.” A voice suddenly spoke up. You jump back startled but you stop as you stare at the man before you.

He was unlike any other man you’ve seen in your entire life. He was fairly tall and lean, but not unhealthily skinny, just lean. His eyes were almost a hypnotic blue and he had fairly sharp features, particularly his nose and even his profile.

It was like looking at an angel. But what really struck your attention was the curly hair he had. It reminded you of that one scientist from like the medieval ages or something, what was his name again uhh—Neutron? New—Newton! Isaac Newton that’s the guy.

“Sorry I didn’t mean to frighten you.”

“No it’s—it’s fine. I’m just…..I was just admiring the place. I’ve…..never really been to a jazz club before.”

“Well, I hope we here at the BEWITCHED can help fill your desires. Oh manners, I’m Brian. Head Bartender.” Head bartender? That’s new.

“What’s a head bartender?”

“Basically I run the bar and train all the other bartenders so that every drink is made to perfection. Now come, sit and let me prepare you something.” He does a gentle gesture towards the bar with his arm and you go to sit at an empty cushioned barstool. Wow this was really cushioned, it kinda reminded you of sofa material. Now so soft that you sink into it but not hard enough to where it’s uncomfortable.

Brian goes around the bar and stands before you and asks with a warm smile and says with that soft voice of his that you can somehow hear over the music.

“Now what can I get for you?”

“Actually I’m…..don’t really know my drinks that well, what’s your most popular one?”

“Well the most popular drink on our menu is French 75. A pretty basic cocktail made with gin, champagne and lemon. I think the main reason why people like it so much is they think it’s actually from France but in truth it really isn’t.” he teases the last part of his statement which makes you softly laugh. “There’s also the Bees Knees, also called our ‘bathtub gin’. Mainly from our pianist player. But that’s basically gin, fresh lemon juice and honey. To give it that sweet yet tart flavor.”

“I think I’ll go with the Bee’s Knees then.” He gave a snap of his fingers.

“Coming right up.” He pulls out a small circular bowl wine glass and with graceful precision he starts whipping up the drink. Shaking the cocktail up in a perfect blend, pouring out the right amount of gin and juice into the concoction. Before finally topping it off with some honey and stirred it up.

Then with a grace and delicate pour, he pours the Bee’s Knees, which comes out in a beautiful, clear sunset orange color into the glass before topping it off with two flower decoration toppings.

“Here you are.” He said as he picked it up delicately from the stem of the glass and handed it over to you. You set down a dollar and took a small sip of it.

And as soon as your tastebuds were washed over with the drink, it was like you had died and gone to heaven.

“Oh my god! This is sooo good!”

“I’m glad you like it. That’s actually one of the owner’s preferred cocktails of choice. Can’t get enough of it.”

“I can see why. And he certainly has good taste.”

“She does. Actually.” Wait did he just say. I quickly looked up at him and I stammered.

“Wait—you mean this……”

“It’s a partnership. Both she and her husband own the place. She makes most of the decisions since she knows the business world better than any of us. While he takes care of the finances, she’s always been lousy when it comes to the math. Don’t tell her I said that though.”

“My lips are sealed.” You say as you take another sip of your drink.

The curtains then close and a spotlight came on at the center of the curtain. That’s when you suddenly hear all the ladies in the room beginning to scream bloody murder. God never have you heard so many women scream before nor have you seen them try to get up to the stage so quickly in your life.

“Here they go again.” Brian says as he starts cleaning out a beer glass.

“What?” you ask.

“Every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday night when my mate preforms, the ladies all go crazy at the chance of getting to him.”

“Mate? You mean you guys are…..” you ask curiously.

“Oh no nothing like that. Where we come from mate means best friend. But even though I don’t condone his constant flirtatious behavior, he’s gotten me out of more scraps than I care to imagine.”

Peeking through the velvet blue curtain was an arm. The red glittering sequin pattern delicately bounced off the spotlight and soon a hypnotic, soft yet raspy voice began to sing. When the curtains opened up and a soft jazz tune began playing, on stage stood a very, very, very, very handsome man.

When you say handsome, you really mean handsome. This man looked like he was carved from the god with his ruffled up blonde hair, his piercing blue eyes that unlike Brian’s which were soft and inviting, this guy had hypnotic eyes that just draw you in and could kill you.

He wore a bright sequin cherry red tail suit which was unbuttoned pretty much all the way down, exposing his upper body to the ladies. His neck decorated with 3 necklaces. One of which went practically down to where his abs were, the other hung right at the center of his chest and was in the shape of some sort of snail shell or some other type of seashell. The last one was more of a choker but was decored with beautiful diamonds like a crown of sorts.

He strut across the stage with grace and purpose as he continued to sing with a lustful, hypnotic tone that just made you go numb and melt in your seat. And your eyes refusing to look away from this handsome creature before you.

*Male singer*

I got plenty money in 1922 You let other rich men make a fool of you Why don't you do right like some other gals do?

He kneels down in front of the stage in front of a beautiful young woman. She had long, wavy blonde hair and she looked up at this man with lust in her eyes. He placed a dollar bill between her teeth and closed her mouth as he walked down the steps of the stage.

He then walked over towards a woman with short raven hair. She was fairly lean and had almost an aristocratic air about her. He stood in front of her and took her hand in his. He leaned towards her hand almost wanting to kiss the back of it, but his lips teased her hand and you could see her slightly shiver past her authorative demeanor.

With a cunning grin, he then stripped his tailcoat off his back leaving the undercoat which exposed his bare arms, the hint of black ocean waves tattoos decorated around his biceps.

You couldn’t speak at this point as you felt our heart racing rapidly, almost as if it were about to pop right out of your chest. The man soon turned his eyes right on you. His piercing eyes staring deep into your soul.

Slowly walking towards you, he circles around you like a wolf circling it’s prey. His hand gently grazes up your arm and you feel a bolt of electricity run up your spine, and it didn’t help when his hot breath gently sung in your ear.

Let’s get out of here, I got some money for you

You're sittin' down wonderin' what it's all about If you ain't got no money they will put you out Why don't you do right like some other gals do? Let’s get out of here, I got some money for you

Now if you had prepared twenty years ago You wouldn't be wanderin' now from door to door Why don't you do right like some other gals do? You didn’t know why but you were willing to let this god-like siren just devour you. But when you turned your attention back to him, you saw that he was now looking towards you left at the upper floors.

There at the top of the red carpet stairs stood a fairly beautiful woman. Her hair was a beautiful long ginger color and she wore a similar sparkling dark cherry red dress. She held in her hand a silver dollar.

He slowly walked up towards the mysterious woman that stood by the stairs and the two stared each other down. She gave him the dollar but before she took her hand away, he took it in his and stared up at her like she was an angel (which you’ll admit, she did kinda look like one).

Let’s get out of here, I got some money for you

Let’s get out of here, I got some money for you Why don't you do right, like some other gals, do?

As he did a falsetto for the final note, he grazed the woman’s hand before doing his seductive walk back towards the stage. He turned back towards the audience and gave a flirtatious wink before the curtains closed on him.

The ladies all screamed as the lights came back up and you felt the spell the man had somehow placed on you slowly fade away. Right now if you had to describe how you were feeling it’s be like running a marathon and had just swam across the entire Pacific ocean twice.

“Hope he didn’t scare you too bad honey.” A soft, Southern accent spoke. You turned around and there stood the woman that the blonde singer had tried to seduce with his voice. But she didn’t seem affected like all the other women were.

“I-I ju……he was……” she lowly chuckled.

“He has that effect on all the ladies. There’s nothing to be embarrassed about. Brian dear, get this dear a glass of water.”

“Right away my lady.” Brian said as he prepared you a glass of water. She takes a seat beside you and continues.

“He may act all macho and seductive. But trust me, his bark is worse than his bite.” She spoke in that honey-like voice of hers that had a slight raspy to it, but it didn’t change the softness to her motherly tone.

“Who—who was he?” you ask her.

“He only gives out his name to those he truly trusts. So most of the ladies here call him the blonde Siren.”

“The blonde Siren?”

“Now I hope I’m not being intrusive but I haven’t seen you in this club before, have I?”

“No. This—is my first time actually.”

“Really? For business or pleasure?” she said as she leaned her chin against fist, looking at you with red eyes? Wait she had red eyes? And not like the kind of red that comes from being tired or when you get pink eye. They were literally red eyes, blood red to be exact. Not wanting her to see that you were stuck in thought you came up with a good excuse.

“I’ve just heard about this place from some friends and—wanted to see for myself.” She looked at me skeptically at first but a soft grin spread across her face.

“Well we try our best. We also want to make sure that first timers are treated fairly and respectfully. That’s the one law here at BEWITCHED.”

“Well I’m fairly happy. The drinks are amazing and the music is phenomenal.”

“I’m glad.” She then hummed out a chuckle. “Silly me, I almost forgot, you can call me Serafina. I’m the owner of this fine establishment.” Your eyes widened.

This young and beautiful woman owned this entire place?! But she couldn’t be older than her mid 20’s. And the fact that she was a woman running this club, that’s completely unheard of. A woman owning such a booming business.

Of course there wasn’t any jealously on your part. In fact you were amazed that such a young woman could run a business like this and be so successful.

“Brian told me that a woman owned this place. But—pardon me for saying this but you’re…….”

“Too young to run a big business?” she said with a quirked brow. Thinking you had offended her you tried to defend your statement but all that came out were stutters of embarrassment. “Relax honey. I get that a lot. Why do you think we’re so secretive? A young woman running a big business. Oh the scandal of it all!” the two of you laugh.

The big clock along the ceiling soon chimed out midnight. Whoa it’s already that late.

“I should get going. If I’m late for work again my boss will kick me to the curb for sure. And on my second day no less.”

“You sure you’re sober enough to drive honey?” Serafina asked you. You give her a nod.

“Yeah. I only really had one drink and that water sobered me up a lot. Thank you so much Brian, Serafina.”

“Anytime sweetie. Hope to see you again soon.” Serafina says with a warm smile. You grab your wallet and pay the rest of your tab to Brian before finally walking out of the club.

*3rd Person POV*

Once they were gone, Brian turned to her and said.

“It was them.”

“Just as Freddie prophesized.” Serafina dropped her fake accent and spoke with her normal British tone.

“So it is time then?” another British male voice spoke up. The High elf and the ginger haired witch turned and soon walking towards them was John Deacon himself.

His once long hair was now cut down to a short tuff of brown hair. He wore a clean-cut black tailcoat suit. Serafina extended her hand and the two lovers joined hands with each other.

“Yes my love.”

“Honestly I hoped this day would never come.”

“But it must John. You know this. You have seen what will happen if they don’t help us.” Brian warned him.

“I’m not sure if we can even trust them.” Coming around the bar to pour himself a drink was Roger. “They’re human. And humans have been poking around in our business for centuries. Especially their reporters. We already run the risk of exposing ourselves to the human realm.” He took a shot of his beer.

‘Now, now my darlings we mustn’t quarrel.’ A soft, serpent voice spoke in their heads. ‘The humans are our least concern right now. What matters now is getting our key to help us finally put an end to the dark Wizards once and for all.’

“Yes Freddie.” All four of them softly chorused out.

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tangleweave · 3 years

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Through The Lens (Drabble)

“Brock! Where the hell are you?”

“Corner of East 52nd and 2nd Ave, cool your jets, huh?”

“Better have your camera ready! Score some eyewitnesses!”

Eddie rolled his eyes as he hung up and stowed his phone. Yeah, his camera would be ready – it was tucked in his backpack as he scrambled up a fire escape ladder on the northwest corner. People could hardly be bothered to notice the Olympian jump he’d just accomplished; they were too busy taking notice of the stopped traffic and the sounds of panicked screaming in the distance.

Once atop the building, he let It out. It wrapped all about him like a weighted blanket, a suit of bulletproof armor hiding just beneath the surface of his skin – save for when he needed It to be a bit more responsive. Its milky white exterior, so often considered a color of purity, belied Its true nature.

Fully shrouded, he leapt from the building’s edge, landing on the next one across the street to the south. He leapt again, taking advantage of his forward momentum. The apartment complex he was hurtling towards was considerably taller – he wouldn’t be reaching the top of it without slowing down. Instead, upon his next landing, he took an oblique leap off the east edge and shot a line of webbing to the apartment complex, suspending himself over the street and further increasing his momentum.

Within moments, he was turning the corner of 45th Street at breakneck speed and racing eastward towards Stark Tower. The sounds of panicked bystanders were increasing exponentially with each block he passed; cars were scrambling to get away from the immediate area, and he could hear a distinctive, percussive vwip-vwip-vwip sound that nothing he’d ever heard of could produce.

When he reached the edge of the plaza overlooking 2nd and Park, he needed a moment to take in what he was seeing. It looked for all the world as though there was a small-scale war being waged at the foot of Stark Tower. Armored vehicles and men clad head-to-toe in black body armor had the foyer and half the block surrounded, but evidently not secured – because there was a bright flash of blue and red streaking all around them from various angles.

Eddie silently instructed It to recede back into his body while he stood on the rooftop and fished his camera out of his backpack. The odd noises, he now realized, were erupting from the weapons the black-clad men were wielding – gleaming silver rifles that emitted bursts of indigo energy. The blasts blew holes in the pavement and in surrounding cars and buildings, but they didn’t seem to care; they were firing indiscriminately. Thankfully, there were no civilians apparently in the area. Just the red-and-blue blur they were shooting at.

Goddamn it, he grumbled mutely. Should’ve grabbed my slow-mo rig. I’ll be lucky to snag anything she does at normal speed. I’m probably better off…

And then it struck him. Of course he would be better off not trying to catch her. All he had to do was get the landscape. She would slow down once she was done bringing them the thunder, he could get her then.

Quickly, he brought his shot into focus and began snapping close-ups of the attackers and their vehicles. The shooters were all wearing dark balaclavas, so he was unlikely to capture any identifying images, but their military postures and tactics were on full display. And as Eddie inspected and shot the vehicles they drove through his more powerful lenses, he could see that although the sides had been painted black, they hadn’t been expertly done. There were decals from carpet cleaning companies and dog pounds still visible through the paint, which had clearly been sprayed on. There was rust around the bottom edges of one of the vans.

Someone cheaped out on the vehicles, but not the tactical gear? He took more shots of the attackers and their weapons. Sophisticated looking, very futuresque, except… he squinted. Oh, you gotta be shittin’ me. Although the rifles’ ammunition was nothing to snicker at, the housings had been repurposed from water guns and spray-painted silver.

“Are you for real?” he mumbled, snapping an array of photos of the attackers. “You guys made dime-store Star Wars blasters an’ you really thought you’d go bargin’ into Stark Enterprises like that? Goddamn morons.”

The action was already beginning to wind down. One by one, the men were disarmed and knocked mercilessly to the ground. By Eddie’s count, there appeared to be seventeen of them, but only four were still standing.

One was thrown headfirst into the frame of his own vehicle.

Another was clotheslined.

The third was hurled bodily into the fourth, leaving both in a crumpled heap on the ground.

All of which had taken barely five seconds.

Only one remained on his feet – and Eddie had his camera cued up. He was armed with an above-average sense of timing, and if she was anything like the reports and interviews made her out to be, it was going to be a doozy of a finisher. She’s gonna get this jackass from behind, it’s just what the wall-crawler would be doin’ to one of us, right… about… now—!

His fingertip hit the button at the precise moment she was lifting the soldier of fortune into the air by the back of his own pants.

Eddie laughed aloud before he even saw the image on the camera’s LCD. He had it and he knew it, but now he wanted to see what she would do with the guy. “Oh, dude, you deserved that!” he crowed.

She dropped the attacker unceremoniously to the ground, then hurtled into overdrive again, sweeping every single one of the soldiers of fortune up and tossing them almost dismissively into the back of the largest vehicle they’d driven up in: a repurposed medium-size Penske moving truck. With each thug she scooped, she tore away their tactical gear and personal weaponry, and either crushed it in her hands or dropped it to the ground beside the vehicle.

Eddie caught a slightly blurred image of the last two mercenaries being tossed in. Not the sharpest resolution on God’s green Earth, but he knew he could sell it anyway. He winced at the sound of their bodies thudding into the back. “Oh, man, hurts like heartbreak,” he muttered.

She slammed the door closed, and a pair of narrow-focus energy beams from her eyes melted the locking mechanism, ensuring the truck now had yet another new purpose: human tuna can. For a moment she stood there staring at her handiwork, and Eddie could see through his lens a look on her face that he knew all too well.

Be awful easy to just leave it right there, take all their gear inside, and let ‘em sweat it out until the cops and firefighters arrive with the jaws of life. And Eddie honestly couldn’t blame her if that had been exactly what she’d decided to do.

But instead, she made a point of going around the perimeter of the war zone they’d made out of Park Avenue, checking all the buildings for people who might have been trapped inside and letting them all know it was safe to come out now.

This was where some of the red meat came from, the part that people seldom focused on but which was all-important for anybody in the superhero business. The battle’s origins and specifics would be determined and debated for days and weeks to come, and it showcased the extend of her myriad powers beautifully… a show of physical dominance and prowess. But just as it was in the bedroom, any display of total dominance was best followed by proper after-care. And in this, she excelled. There was a particularly touching moment where she examined the head wound of an older trash collector who’d been struck by falling debris.

His camera shutter clicked more on these moments than it had during the fight. The people of New York, America, and the world didn’t even know it yet, but these would be the pictures they most wanted to see. The greatest among them, connecting with the least of them.

He knew what the headlines would say. “Stark Tech Attacked In Broad Daylight!” “Stark Heiress Delivers Superior Smackdown!” “Iron Man’s Daughter, Defender of Park Avenue!”

None of them would be wrong, and all of them would sell copy. Violence was sensational. But he already knew the headline for his article. Not only would it outsell everyone else, it would tell the tale that really mattered.

“Supergirl Cares About Us”

// END //

Speedy recovery @akasupergirl .

#akasupergirl #muse: eddie brock #drabble

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diarrheaworldstarhiphop · 5 years

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...And what about the significant skilled and white-collar migrant workforce? Despite the rhetoric about “shithole countries” or nations “not sending their best,” the toll of the migration brain drain on developing economies has been enormous. According to the Census Bureau’s figures for 2017, about 45 percent of migrants who have arrived in the United States since 2010 are college educated.8 Developing countries are struggling to retain their skilled and professional citizens, often trained at great public cost, because the largest and wealthiest economies that dominate the global market have the wealth to snap them up. Today, Mexico also ranks as one of the world’s biggest exporters of educated professionals, and its economy consequently suffers from a persistent “qualified employment deficit.” This developmental injustice is certainly not limited to Mexico. According to Foreign Policy magazine, “There are more Ethiopian physicians practicing in Chicago today than in all of Ethiopia, a country of 80 million.”9 It is not difficult to see why the political and economic elites of the world’s richest countries would want the world to “send their best,” regardless of the consequences for the rest of the world. But why is the moralizing, pro–open borders Left providing a humanitarian face for this naked self-interest?

...

As the child of migrants, and someone who has spent most of my life in a country with persistently high levels of emigration—Ireland—I have always viewed the migration question differently than my well-intentioned friends on the left in large, world-dominating economies. When austerity and unemployment hit Ireland—after billions in public money was used to bail out the financial sector in 2008—I watched my entire peer group leave and never return. This isn’t just a technical matter. It touches the heart and soul of a nation, like a war. It means the constant hemorrhaging of idealistic and energetic young generations, who normally rejuvenate and reimagine a society. In Ireland, as in every high-emigration country, there have always been anti-emigration campaigns and movements, led by the Left, demanding full employment in times of recession. But they’re rarely strong enough to withstand the forces of the global market. Meanwhile, the guilty and nervous elites in office during a period of popular anger are only too happy to see a potentially radical generation scatter across the world.

...

I’m always amazed at the arrogance and the strangely imperial mentality of British and American pro–open borders progressives who believe that they are performing an act of enlightened charity when they “welcome” PhDs from eastern Europe or Central America driving them around and serving them food. In the wealthiest nations, open borders advocacy seems to function as a fanatical cult among true believers—a product of big business and free market lobbying is carried along by a larger group of the urban creative, tech, media, and knowledge economy class, who are serving their own objective class interests by keeping their transient lifestyles cheap and their careers intact as they parrot the institutional ideology of their industries. The truth is that mass migration is a tragedy, and upper-middle-class moralizing about it is a farce. Perhaps the ultra-wealthy can afford to live in the borderless world they aggressively advocate for, but most people need—and want—a coherent, sovereign political body to defend their rights as citizens.

Trump infamously complained about people coming from third-world “shithole countries” and suggested Norwegians as an example of ideal immigrants. But Norwegians did once come to America in large numbers—when they were desperate and poor. Now that they have a prosperous and relatively egalitarian social democracy, built on public ownership of natural resources, they no longer want to.17 Ultimately, the motivation for mass migration will persist as long as the structural problems underlying it remain in place.

Reducing the tensions of mass migration thus requires improving the prospects of the world’s poor. Mass migration itself will not accomplish this: it creates a race to the bottom for workers in wealthy countries and a brain drain in poor ones. The only real solution is to correct the imbalances in the global economy, and radically restructure a system of globalization that was designed to benefit the wealthy at the expense of the poor. This involves, to start with, structural changes to trade policies that prevent necessary, state-led development in emerging economies. Anti-labor trade deals like nafta must also be opposed. It is equally necessary to take on a financial system that funnels capital away from the developing world and into inequality-heightening asset bubbles in rich countries. Finally, although the reckless foreign policies of the George W. Bush administration have been discredited, the temptation to engage in military crusades seems to live on. This should be opposed. U.S.-led foreign invasions have killed millions in the Middle East, created millions of refugees and migrants, and devastated fundamental infrastructure.

Marx’s argument that the English working class should see Irish nationhood as a potential compliment to their struggle, rather than as a threat to their identity, should resonate today, as we witness the rise of various identity movements around the world. The comforting delusion that immigrants come here because they love America is incredibly naïve—as naïve as suggesting that the nineteenth-century Irish immigrants Marx described loved England. Most migrants emigrate out of economic necessity, and the vast majority would prefer to have better opportunities at home, among their own family and friends. But such opportunities are impossible within the current shape of globalization.

Just like the situation Marx described in the England of his day, politicians like Trump rally their base by stirring up anti-immigration sentiment, but they rarely if ever address the structural exploitation—whether at home or abroad—that is the root cause of mass migration. Often, they make these problems worse, expanding the power of employers and capital against labor, while turning the rage of their supporters—often the victims of these forces—against other victims, immigrants. But for all Trump’s anti-immigration bluster, his administration has done virtually nothing to expand the implementation of E-Verify, preferring instead to boast about a border wall that never seems to materialize.18 While families are separated at the border, the administration has turned a blind eye toward employers who use immigrants as pawns in a game of labor arbitrage.

Meanwhile, members of the open-borders Left may try to convince themselves that they are adopting a radical position. But in practice they are just replacing the pursuit of economic equality with the politics of big business, masquerading as a virtuous identitarianism. America, still one of the richest countries in the world, should be able to provide not just full employment but a living wage for all of its people, including in jobs which open borders advocates claim “Americans won’t do.” Employers who exploit migrants for cheap labor illegally—at great risk to the migrants themselves—should be blamed, not the migrants who are simply doing what people have always done when facing economic adversity. By providing inadvertent cover for the ruling elite’s business interests, the Left risks a significant existential crisis, as more and more ordinary people defect to far-right parties. At this moment of crisis, the stakes are too high to keep getting it wrong.

#immigration #angela nagle

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noramoya · 6 years

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PART ONE :

OF LINDA-RAVEN WOODS’S

02/28/2019 ARTICLE .

“America has a long and sordid history of lynching or unfairly convicting African-American men based on the false allegations of white accusers. The names known to history echo loud and long — Robin White, Emmett Till, Charlie Weems, Ozie Powell, Clarence Norris, Andrew and Leroy Wright, Olen Montgomery, Willie Anderson, Haywood Patterson, Eugene Williams (the latter nine known collectively as “The Scottsboro Boys”) to contemporary names such as Vincent Patton, still serving time in Angola Prison despite the fact that his white accuser later confessed that “all black men look alike” to her and therefore she could not even say with certainty that Patton had raped her.

And these cases do not even begin to include the many whose names have long been lost to history; those who paid the ultimate price for the paranoid fears of a Jim Crow-era America. “We currently live in a world of fake news and alternative facts,” wrote Martinzie Johnson in an excellent think piece titled “Being Black in a World Where White Lies Matter.” Martinzie then states, “white lies have tangible consequences.”

Martinizie wrote this piece a few days after a bombshell confession by Carolyn Bryant, the young white woman whose accusation of Emmett Till fifty-two years prior resulted in the 14-year-old boy being kidnapped from his uncle’s home and murdered by her husband and brother-in-law. It took half a century for Bryant to finally admit to biographer Timothy B. Tyson that“nothing that boy did justified what was done to him.”

The current hype that has been built around Leaving Neverland, a film directed by Dan Reed and funded and distributed by HBO in the U.S. and Channel 4 in the U.K., may appear deceptively at first as an important film for the #MeToo era, highlighting the alleged sexual abuse that Michael Jackson inflicted on two young boys who idolized him and fell-by grand and parental design-into his circle. At least, that is according to the hype that has been drummed up around it.

But a closer look reveals many disturbing reasons to argue that this agenda-driven film has little to do with either journalistic integrity or concern for sexual abuse victims. Instead, there are many justifiable reasons to argue why this film is simply a new twist on the age-old concept of lynching a black man based on white lies. The fact that it is a black man who also just happened to be one of the most beloved and powerful figures in entertainment is, of course, the very matter at the heart of the film’s controversy, along with the fact that we are into the tenth anniversary of his passing.

At a time when Michael Jackson’s life should be the subject of fond remembrances and reflections on his artistic legacy, we instead get this, the equivalent of a posthumous, 21st century lynching based on nothing but the uncorroborated testimonies of two men whose civil case against his estate has already been dismissed, not once but twice.

Why is the “woke” crowd so determinedly asleep at the wheel on this? And an even more troubling question: Why are so many of the most influential journalists in the U.S. and U.K. enabling it? Dan Reed’s controversial film has indeed accomplished one positive goal even before its scheduled broadcast, although it may not be the goal he intended.

For sure, the film has helped shed much needed light on the underbelly of #MeToo, revealing some startlingly dark truths about who the movement is designed to protect-and who it is willing to sacrifice.

But first, let’s back up and look at the key players in this drama. We have Michael Jackson, whose story has already passed into the realm of an American mythical figure, a poor black kid who worked his way up from nothing to become one of the most legendary musical figures of all time. This was a man who worked non-stop from the age of five to build his legacy. In the 45 years of his life that he gave to the public, he managed to break records, to achieve what few black artists before him had done (including owning, at one time, half the Sony-ATV catalogue), and to build a legacy that is intricately woven into the fabric of U.S. pop culture. But beyond that, he became a world icon in a way that only a very few American artists have achieved.

This is all a long way of saying Michael Jackson worked hard — damn hard — — to build what he achieved. And before we start trying to dismantle that legacy based on nothing but the words of two white men who joined his long list of hangers-on, we’d better be looking long and hard at the facts. That is, if we want to be able to live with ourselves in the aftermath.

But herein lies at least some of the problem. Most who have already followed the story to any degree are already at least superficially aware that there are inherent issues with the claims of Wade Robson and James Safechuck, the two subjects of this documentary. It is widely known, for instance, that Wade Robson-as a 23-year-old adult- testified in Jackson’s defense at his 2005 trial, swearing under oath and penalty of perjury that nothing sexual ever happened between them. But the inconsistencies, as well as problematic and ever changing timelines in their stories, goes much deeper.

On February 7 2019, the estate of Michael Jackson sent a strongly worded letter to HBO CEO Richard Plepler, followed by another a couple of days later to Channel 4 CEO Alex Mahon. The letter to HBO outlined, in painstaking 10-page detail, the long, problematic history of Robson’s and Safechuck’s claims (coming from attorneys who have spent the better part of the last six years battling these very allegations in court), while the letter to Channel 4 specified that the program is in direct violation of the channel’s guidelines for ethical journalism, citing a clause which states that any program making “significant allegations” must allow “those concerned” to be “given an appropriate and timely opportunity to respond.” Both letters were explicitly detailed, powerful complaints against the two accusers, highlighting the many various flaws and inaccuracies with their stories. Collectively, they revealed a dark history of two opportunists who took advantage of Jackson’s generosity and friendship.

Interestingly, what Dan Reed chose to leave out of his film is as interesting as what he chose to leave in. While I have not seen the film, I know sources who have, and who have been able to describe to me in detail what it represents. It is, quite frankly, a one-sided film in which only two voices are heard-that of Robson and Safechuck.

Now, let’s make an analogy. Suppose you had to decide a court case based only on hearing the prosecution’s case presented? Suppose there is no defense, no cross examination, no presentation of exculpatory evidence, no opening statement and no closing argument? You would no doubt find the story as presented only through the voice of the prosecution and their witnesses quite compelling. It is only under cross examination that those stories often start to crumble, raising what we might call reasonable doubt. And it is only through exculpatory evidence that we can actually weigh an accused person’s guilt, or lack thereof.

Leaving Neverland is essentially the equivalent of sitting through a four-hour testimony of two prosecution witnesses offering their sales pitches, without benefit of cross examination.

Entertaining? Possibly, if you consider four hours’ worth of extremely graphic descriptions of sexual acts against children entertaining. Truthful? Hard to say, except we know the track record of the accusers. Fair or ethical? Absolutely not, especially given that the accused subject of the film is deceased.

Which brings us back to Channel 4’s weak defense when confronted by the estate. Their claim is that the film contains denials Jackson made in his own lifetime. However, these would have been denials Jackson raised against the accusations made against him in 1993 and 2005. He did not have the opportunity to “deny” the accusations made by Robson and Safechuck, who waited four and five years after his death, respectively, to bring them.

As for HBO, their only response-after having it outlined for them in 10 excruciatingly detailed pages exactly everything that was wrong with the stories these two men are claiming- was that it was “powerful.” In other words, what they were actually confessing is that ratings matter more than truth, fairness, or accuracy.

This truly begs the question: Would HBO have been so quick to fund and support this project had its subject been any celebrity other than Michael Jackson? Moreover, would the immediate condemnation of the media have been as swift to rush to judgment without at least raising a question mark or a demand for vetting of the film’s accuracy? My guess is that the answer would be no.

Of course, if we raise that question, it would also be fair to acknowledge that Jackson’s legacy is one that many feel is already tainted by doubt. After all, he was accused by the parents of Jordan Chandler in 1993, and ten years later, the Arvizo allegations resulted in a grueling 5- month trial which ended in his acquittal on 14 counts. It would be understandable to have doubts and questions, as I did back in 2009 when I first began researching the allegations made against Jackson.

For many, those lingering questions remained even after Jackson’s death. At the time, public sentiment largely fell into three camps: Those who always believed, unequivocally, in his innocence; those who said, “Whatever may have happened, it’s past; let him RIP” and then those few who continued, with dogged determination, to unearth his corpse and prop it up for re-trial in the court of public opinion. It may go without saying that those who are standing behind and supporting this project fall into the latter category. But unless we accept the naïve explanation that this project is all about “justice for victims”, there are bigger questions that need to be addressed: WHO IS REALLY BEHIND THIS ?! ALSO, WHY NOW ?! AND WHAT ARE THEY REALLY HOPING TO GAIN FROM IT ?!

It is astonishing beyond belief that no one in the mainstream media — not one serious investigative journalist — seems willing to raise these questions !

What many fail to realize is that Jackson became a target for a racist driven agenda. What appears, deceptively, as a case of “smoke and fire” was actually a long and quite convoluted history of “smoke and mirrors.” The first accusation grew out of a personal dispute between Jackson and the first boy’s father, Evan Chandler, when Jackson refused to finance Chandler’s trilogy of film projects.

Although Jackson eventually settled that case out of court, the civil settlement did not preclude a criminal trial. Rather, two Grand Jury hearings failed to bring an indictment. However, because Jackson did settle the case, opening the door for financial gain to be made at his expense, a cottage industry of accusing Michael Jackson was thus born.

Every accusation made since then, including those of Robson and Safechuck, has come down to an issue of money. It is, after all, easy to make up a convincing story, and in the case of Michael Jackson, all they had to do is study the details and patterns of previous stories. A little known fact is that Janet Arvizo consulted the same attorney who had represented the Chandlers (a pattern that has continued, with both Robson and Safechuck represented by the law firm Manly, Stewart & Finaldi ).

Many of these shadesters were convinced that the best case scenario was that they might hit a financial windfall on a par with the Chandlers. But at the very least, even when they knew their bogus stories would never hold up in a court of law, they could always count on the tabloids, some of whom were known to shell out as much as six figures for any potential dirt on Michael Jackson.

The 2005 case against Jackson was, in reality, an absolute travesty of justice that should never have gone to trial, another case of a family that took advantage of his generosity and then tried to “get back” when the friendship soured. However, if there was at least one positive aspect that came from it, it was the fact that this also served as the trial by jury that Jackson did not receive back in 1993. Tom Sneddon, in his gloating determination to “get” Jackson at all costs, actually reversed then current California laws against bringing in prior allegations. This meant that questions, evidence and witnesses from the 1993 case could also be introduced.

Jackson, in essence, was not only exonerated from the claims that the Arvizo family made against him, but those of the Chandlers as well. It seemed in theory, at least, that he had finally gotten the chance to fight those accusations in court just as he had initially wanted to do, back in ’93.

Dan Reed’s film only scratches the surface of the Chandler and Arvizo allegations, which may be understandable from a narrative standpoint if his focus is on the stories of the Robson and Safechuck families, but seems nevertheless a puzzling omission for a film whose entire context comes out of these two past sets of allegations.

What is more damning, however, is the fact that his film also only scratches the surface of the two more current claims that it is purporting to be about. The film presents only the subjects themselves telling their alleged side and their alleged stories of abuse, while purposely choosing to omit any counter narratives or rebuttal testimonies. In the Q&A that followed the film’s premier at Sundance, Dan Reed appeared to dodge this very specific question when asked.

https://youtu.be/BMcte6orvQc

Given the very serious nature of the allegations being waged in this film, to purposely omit any kind of rebuttal testimony (especially on behalf of a deceased individual) is beyond unethical.

While Dan Reed, HBO, and Channel 4 have continued to hide behind the mantra of the oft-repeated “let the viewer make up their mind” the film itself offers no such opportunity.

Furthermore, the film seems to purposely omit details that would obviously raise questions in the viewer’s minds regarding Robson’s motives. For example, why did Robson continue to defend Jackson and to speak glowingly of his friendship with him right up until 2013, when he was denied the chance to direct the Michael Jackson Cirque du Soleil show?

* answer to these questions on

PART TWO !

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whereareroo · 2 years

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Big Katy Trail: Day #3-4

9/17-18/22

You get a special treat today. It’s rare for me to cover two days in a single post. I’ve been too busy to write.

I’m writing this at 5:08 p.m. on Day #4. We’re in Jefferson City for a scheduled day “off.” We left the hotel room this morning’s at 8:30 a.m. We just got back. It was a busy day “off.” Let’s jump back to Day #3 before I cover Day #4.

We approached yesterday, Day #3, with enhanced seriousness. We had 54 miles to cover. That’s serious business. As the day unfolded, we were serious about hydration, serious about eating, serious about proper pacing, and serious about taking rest breaks. The seriousness paid off. It was a tough day, but we were under control and in good spirits the whole way.

I had the team out the door, bikes fully packed, at 6:45 a.m. We biked up a hill in Booneville to the local diner, which opened at 7:00 a.m. After a hearty breakfast (the place was much better than it looked), we were on the trail by 7:45 a.m. We were headed to Jefferson City, which is the capital of Missouri. The 54 mile ride would be the longest leg of this trip. The weather was wonderful.

Thankfully, the route passed numerous “points of interest.” We stopped at 7 or 8 of them. We saw some caves and rock formations that Lewis & Clark visited as they traveled the Missouri River. We saw a famous giant oak tree that’s at least 400 years old. We saw a sculpture, resembling Stonehenge, made of old boats that stand upright because their noses have been buried.

At mile 14 into our day, we stopped for a second breakfast in a nice town called Rocheport. At mile 38, we stopped for lunch in a sleepy town called Hartsburg. Lunch was delicious. In two weeks, Hartsburg will host its annual pumpkin festival. The town has a population of 138. The festival draws a crowd of 60,000.

We made it to Jefferson City at about 5:00 p.m. All along, we planned for a day of rest here. We’re staying at a nice Marriott. The girls hit the pool. I went out to scout the town on foot. I found a good place for dinner. We finished eating at 7:30.

The Day #3 ride was perfect. It was long enough to be challenging. It wasn’t so long that it was exhausting. Friend #1 and Friend #2 have never biked so many miles in a single day. Our actual distance was 52 miles, a few miles short of the estimate in the guidebook. Covering more that 50 miles is a big accomplishment.

Today, on Day #4, we explored Jefferson City. At 8:30 a.m., we left the hotel to walk to 9:00 a.m. Mass. The church is directly across the street from the capitol building, which looks just like a miniature version of the U.S. Capitol. We walked around the capitol area, which was quiet on a Sunday morning. A highlight is the Lewis & Clark statue that sits just behind the capitol. We walked along Main Street, where we had a light breakfast. The Main Street area is nice.

The highlight of the day was the two hour tour of the former Missouri State Penitentiary. At one time, the place was the largest prison in America. It closed in 2004, after a 168 year history. The tour guide was excellent. He’s a former television reporter and he’s been studying this prison for more than 11 years. Sonny Liston, once the heavyweight boxing champion of the world, learned to box when he was an inmate at the prison. James Earl Ray, the man who assassinated Martin Luther King, escaped from the prison shortly before the assassination. It was difficult to hear about the horrors that occurred within the walls. The tour of the gas chamber, where 39 men were executed, was uncomfortable. Take the prison tour if you ever visit Jefferson City.

I have to stop now. We still need to eat dinner, and I need to get my bike gear prepared for the final three rides. We have about 110 miles to St. Charles. We’re so glad that you’ve joined us on the ride. See you on the trail tomorrow.

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slowlyteenagestarlight · 4 years

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Stolen.......

So I saw someone post the below items that Trump has accomplished thus far...I wanted to see if they were actually true. So I just spent the better part of 90 minutes googling every single item. You can see my answers below. It's simple folks, Copy/Paste each item (without the corresponding number) into Google and see for YOURSELVES! Oh and another thing, I noted that Google is a Leftie for sure! Almost 99% of every item I googled showed the first 1 or 2 results as the opposite or negatibe in some way (go figure...). I had to look through the results below the top 1 or 2. How do ya like that? Knowledge is POWER people! Get some! See for yourselves! Don't let the B.S. media tell you what's what... And ya know what? I was a Cruz supporter. Did not like Trump at all. But, he IS Making America Great Again!

WHAT HAS PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP DONE SINCE HE HAS BEEN IN OFFICE ……

1. Supreme Court Judge Gorsuch (Yup)

2. 59 missiles dropped in Syria (Yup)

3. He took us out of TPP (Yup)

4. Illegal immigration is now down 70%(Yup, the lowest in 17 years)

5. Consumer confidence highest since 2000 at index 125.6 (Yup)

6. Mortgage applications for new homes rise to a seven year high (Yup)

7. Arranged from 7% to 24% Tariff on lumber from Canada (Yup)

8. Bids for border wall are well underway (Yup)

9. Pulled out of the lopsided Paris accord (Yup)

10. Keystone pipeline approved (Yup)

11. NATO allies boost spending by 4.3% (Yup)

12. Allowing VA to terminate bad employees (Yup)

13. Allowing private healthcare choices for veterans (Yup)

14. More than 600,000. Jobs created (Yup, ACTUALLY A LOT HIGHER)

15. Median household income at a 7 year high (Actually 15 year high...)

16. The Stock Market is at the highest ever in its history (Yup)

17. China agreed to American import of beef (Yup)

18. $89 Billion saved in regulation rollbacks (Yup)

19. Rollback of A Regulation to boost coal mining (Yup)

20. MOAB for ISIS (HAHAHA Yup)

21. Travel ban reinstated (Yup, but only for some of the dangerous scuzlims)

22. Executive order for religious freedom (Yup)

23. Jump started NASA (In the works)

24. $600 million cut from UN peacekeeping budget (Yup)

25. Targeting of MS13 gangs (Yup)

26. Deporting violent illegal immigrants (Yup)

27. Signed 41 bills to date (Yup, actually 53 bills!)

28. Created a commission on child trafficking (Yup)

29. Created a commission on voter fraud (Yup)

30. Created a commission for opioids addiction (Yup)

31. Giving power to states to drug test unemployment recipients (Yup)

32. Unemployment lowest since May 2007 (Yup)

33. Historic Black College University initiative (Yup)

34. Women In Entrepreneurship Act (Yup)

35. Created an office for illegal immigrant crime victims (Yup)

36. Reversed Dodd-Frank (Passed House now in Senate...)`

37. Repealed DOT ruling which would have taken power away from local governments for infrastructure planning (Yup)

38. Order to stop crime against law enforcement (Yup)

39. End of DAPA program (Yup)

40. Stopped companies from moving out of America (Jury's still out on this one...)

41. Promoted businesses to create American Jobs (Yup)

42. Encouraged country to once again – ‘Buy American and hire American’ (Yup)

43. Cutting regulations – 2 for every one created (Yup)

45. Review of all trade agreements to make sure they are America first (Yup)

46. Apprentice program (Yup)

47. Highest manufacturing surge in 3 years (Yup)

48. $78 Billion promised reinvestment from major businesses like Exxon, Bayer, Apple, SoftBank, Toyota (Yup)

49. Denied FBI a new building (Yup)

50. $700 million saved with F-35 renegotiation (Unable to verify)

51. Saves $22 million by reducing white house payroll (Yup)

52. Dept of Treasury reports a $182 billion surplus for April 2017 (2nd largest in history)

53. Negotiated the release of 6 US humanitarian workers held captive in Egypt (Yup)

54. Gas prices lowest in more than 12 years (Yup)

55. Signed An Executive Order To Promote Energy Independence and Economic Growth (Yup)

56. Has already accomplished more to stop government interference into people’s lives than any President in the history of America (After Googling all of the above, I'm gonna hafta say YUP!!!)

57. President Trump has worked with Congress to pass more legislation in his first 100 days than any President since Truman (Yup)

58. Has given head executive of each branches 6 month time frame, dated March 15, 2017, to trim the fat, restructure and improve efficiency of their branch. (Yup)

59. Last, refused his Presidential pay check. Donated it to Veterans issues (So far, Yup)

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sallyember · 4 years

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Love, hate him, but do not ignore Michael Moore about #45 !

#wemustwinblue2020

“MY PLAN FOR HOW TO MAKE SURE WE HAVE AN ELECTION, #TRUMP IS REMOVED, AND THE REPUBLICANS ARE GONE FOR GOOD”

by Michael Moore

“TRUMP HAS DECLARED WAR ON US AND OUR DEMOCRACY.

“IT’S TIME FOR US TO PUT OUR LIVES ON THE LINE, IF NECESSARY, AND TO MAKE HIM THE LAST REPUBLICAN PRESIDENT OF OUR UNITED STATES.

“Trump, right now, tonight, is up to some very nasty, scary stuff — stuff we can’t even imagine — and of course we can’t imagine it because we don’t think like Trump. Our brains are wired for love, empathy, solidarity, compassion, freedom, person, woman, man, camera, TV.

“You know like I know that Trump has a devious, wicked plan to destroy this Election. We need to declare, immediately, that it is he and the Republican Party who have to go, for the sake of this country’s existence, they must be crushed and removed.

“Trump actually has an arsenal of plans already in action to ensure he never leaves office. He has them all in high gear — some visible, some not. If you could see them all you’d be so stunned, you’d have to immediately convince yourself that there’s no way he can pull this off.

“We are all caught in Trump’s Matrix, a mad web, the work of a psychopath-in-chief with tricks so devious that fascists of old, if alive today, would marvel at what Trump has accomplished.

“For the next 11 weeks — and then for the 12 weeks between the Election and the Inauguration — Trump is planning nothing but anarchy, chaos, a call to arms of his angry white male followers and the complete destruction of our democracy.

“You think I’m kidding? You think I’m overstating the case? Do you want to take the risk that I might not be wrong?

“Most of you, understandably, chose not to listen to me four years ago when I warned you Trump was going to win the Presidency by taking Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania.

“May I please ask that you now give me your serious attention for what I am about to say — because if I’m right again this time, there won’t be a next time. There will be nothing left for me to warn you about. There probably won’t be much left of me.

“Here’s how Trump plans to end our right to choose the next President and Congress. It will happen fast. I am also laying out here a battle plan for us to defeat this takeover of our democracy. We must act now.

“HERE ARE TRUMP’S 5 PLANS, ALREADY IN MOTION:

“PLAN #1: Create Chaos.

“Instill Fear. Fire Up the Base with Racist Vigor. Pandemonium Ensues.

“CHECK. DONE.

“PLAN #2: Suppress the Vote

“•Dismantle the Post Office.

“•Create 4-Hour-Long Lines by Drastically Reducing Number of Polling Locations.

“•Throw Black and Brown Voters Off the Rolls.

“•Stop Those Who’ve Served Time from Voting.

“•Place 50,000 ‘Poll Watchers’ at Voting Sites Around the Country to Intimidate Voters.

“VOTER SUPPRESSION IN ACTION AS WE SPEAK.

“PLAN #3: Postpone the Election.

“Place the blame on a ‘legitimate’ national tragedy or emergency — massive deaths from the pandemic, a terrorist attack, an assassination, a deadly hurricane, a civil war in the streets, one or both Presidential candidates falling ill to COVID-19 — anything that reasonable people, even people who are opposed to Trump, will agree that ‘we just can’t hold an election right now! We just need to postpone it for a couple days, a couple weeks (a couple months… a couple years…).’

“Or, perhaps he’ll just cancel the Election outright and see if he can get away with it.

“TRUMP READY TO PULL THE TRIGGER.

“PLAN #4: His September Surprise.

“His October Surprise.

“His November Surprise.

“His January Surprise.

You think you can guess what it will be, but trust me, it’ll be far worse. We need to be ready. Stay on high alert, my friends. Millions of us will need to act on a moment’s notice. It’s the grim reaper of Democracy at our doorstep.

“We made the mistake of letting Trump get this far — why wouldn’t he now think he can get away with everything??

“THE SURPRISE IS UNKNOWN. THAT’S WHY IT’S A SURPRISE.

“PLAN #5: He Will Not Leave.

“When #Trump loses, he will declare the Election invalid, rigged, stolen — and he will refuse to step down.

“So, what will we do then?

“HERE IS OUR BATTLE PLAN TO REMOVE TRUMP AND THE REPUBLICANS:

“1. Do Not Wait — Biden/Harris Should Start Running the Country Now.

We simply don’t have time to wait until January 20, 2021. Nearly 200,000 of us have already died from Trump’s reckless incompetence with the coronavirus. By Election Day it’s possible another 100,000 to 200,000 of us will have needlessly died. A total of 400,000 dead? That’s the equivalent of one hundred and thirty-three 9/11s! Or 532 planes being flown into 532 buildings. If something that horrific ever happened, and the President not only didn’t do anything about it, but tried to pretend it wasn’t all that bad – ‘it is what it is’ – he would be run out of the White House by an angry mob of millions of Americans, lucky not to have his head put on a spike on the Key Bridge over the Potomac.

“It doesn’t have to come to that. Biden and Harris should present to America a simple nationwide plan to end the pandemic — and then act on it immediately.

“They should call a meeting of all the Governors and ask them what help do they need — and then find a way to get them that help, going around Trump and just making it happen. They should ask industry, in lieu of campaign contributions, to produce hundreds of millions of instant-result tests. They should call their Heads of State friends overseas and ask them to send all the PPE they can spare. They should get 250 million Americans to take the ‘Face Mask Pledge.’ And they should promise the scientists in our top universities all the money and help they need once they’re in office. Ignore Trump. Treat him as if he’s irrelevant and get the job done.

“2. The Republican Party Must Be Crushed and Destroyed. Trump Must Become the Last Republican President.

“In the Michigan county where I live, the August primary this month set a record turnout for a presidential-year primary. In fact, more people this year voted by mail-in ballot than ALL those who voted in 2016 — by mail-in AND in-person combined. This is a highly encouraging sign for what we now need to do:

” • We must create an historic massive turnout between now and November 3rd — a tsunami of voters the likes of which have never been seen, and may never be seen again. In 2016, 66 million Americans voted for Hillary Clinton. This time, though, we have to WALLOP Trump with an electoral concussion, a blow so profound he won’t know what hit him. This must be a defeat so crushing, so humiliating, a whooping of such epic proportions that he will be forced to leave 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue with his tail between his legs on January 20th.

“This mammoth landslide must not only ensure that no president ever behaves this way again, we need to see to it that Trump is the last Republican president. The Election Day Uprising must put an end to this party of Trump enablers and traitors. They had a choice. They chose Trump over Democracy. They chose Putin and Netanyahu over fair elections and freedom for all. They chose the 1% over the 160 million working Americans. They chose the NRA over the massacred children of Sandy Hook. They chose to rig our elections, our textbooks, our economy. Democrats helped them along the way, and we’ll take the stick to them and fix that.

“The Republicans, though, chose to let hundreds of thousands of their fellow citizens perish from COVID-19 because loyalty to Party and to Trump was greater than their duty to the American people. For that alone, the Republican Party must be put out of business for good. Vote out every last one of them.

“Conservatives will have to form a new party, much like when the Whigs were sent packing in the 1800s. The Republicans must pay for their crimes.

“• We must flip the Senate —- and not just by the three seats we need for control. We should shock the pundit class and, as the Republican Party is reduced to ashes, grab a solid 55+ seat majority. Colorado, Arizona, Maine, North Carolina, Georgia, Iowa, Montana and even Kansas, South Carolina and, yes, Texas (a state that is now 57% non-white) — are all possible Democratic Senate wins. Think about spending a weekend or a week helping out in one of these states. The Republicans will wish they had managed this pandemic better and had everyone busy back at work by now. All this ‘free time’ should make for their undoing.

“• Finally, we have to vote the local Republicans out of office, too. State Houses and Senates will be drawing the electoral map for the next ten years. We can’t let the cheating Republicans do this again. Do what you can to elect Dems in your state and local elections. The punishment of the Republican Party — a certified terrorist organization for having helped kill at least 200,000 Americans — is an imperative.

“3. Who Would Be Willing To, If Need Be, Put Their Life on the Line To Ensure This Election Is Held and EVERYONE Gets to Vote? I Would. Would You?

“These steps must be taken immediately:

“• The Secret Service, the FBI, the Capitol Police and the Joint Chiefs of Staff must be called before Congress and swear under oath that they will guarantee that the election will be held, they will enforce the Constitution they swore to uphold, and if he’s defeated but refuses to leave, they will escort the former President of the United States out of the White House.

” • Biden and Harris must put Trump on notice that if he does one more thing to interfere with the Election or issues one more threat to suppress the vote, they will turn him and his crime family over to the new Justice Department for prosecution.

” • Every single one of us must be strong in our publicly-stated resolve that there is ABSOLUTELY NO REASON ON EARTH TO POSTPONE OR CANCEL THE ELECTION. That’s our unmovable and intractable position.

“No national tragedy, disease, threat or the melting of all of Greenland will cause us not to vote on or before November 3rd. Even if, God forbid, either candidate passes in their sleep between now and Election Day, the Election will continue — and the winner’s VP – or Nancy Pelosi – will become President on Inauguration Day.

” • Let’s all pledge that, if Trump tries to cancel the election or if he refuses to accept its results, millions of us will go to DC and encircle the White House, a thousand deep, until he backs down, resigns or is removed.

“• And, if you can, quietly make this commitment to yourself: ‘There are only a very few things I’d be willing to give my life for. This is one of them.’ I know. That’s dark. And heavy. And awfully sad because it shouldn’t have come to this. But if we can’t even say that, then what good are we? If we aren’t willing to make that sacrifice, then America is already over and we might as well just fold our tent and see if Canada will take the non-racist, non-homophobic, non war-mongering ones of us who have manners and get satire.

“4. Become an Election Defender.

“Each of you should form an urgent action group – a rapid response team – in your neighborhood or town and do the following:

“• Hold a daily protest at your local post office

“• Picket the home of your local Postmaster (he/she may be on your side, so bring them some baked goods)

“• Chain yourself to a local blue USPS dropbox if you can find one. Or chain it to something that won’t move.

“• Sign up with the city clerk to be a poll worker on Election Day – especially if you’re young. Because of the pandemic, polls will be very short of poll workers. If you’re told they have enough help, then call the local Democratic Party and offer to be a ‘poll watcher,’ the group of people from each party who get to oversee the voting to make sure there are no irregularities.

“• Demand your city create more voting locations. Convince owners of arenas, theaters, ball parks, malls – places with large open spaces – to offer their facilities as polling places so that everyone gets a chance to vote.

” • Canvas your neighborhoods over the next month to get people to fill out the form you’ll have them sign to get a mail-in ballot — and if they want to vote in person, let them know when the first day is so they can do that. Make a list of who needs a Covid-safe ride. The earlier the better!

“5. The Uprising We’re In Is Only Getting Bigger. The People Will Now Call the Shots.

“Why wait for the politicians to fix the mess of a country we’re in when they helped orchestrate the mess in the first place? Why don’t we just declare how we want to live — a new way to govern and function as a country — and we will finally fulfill the promise of the American Dream that has never been realized.

“Life, liberty, true equality, a sharing of the wealth, being good citizens of this world and kind stewards of a fragile Earth.

“What have we learned from this pandemic? What we already knew: That employer-based health insurance can evaporate in an instant. Health care is a human right.

“That being told ‘we can’t afford that!’ (free college, free child care, free medical care – the things most advanced nations have) is total BS — the government CAN afford anything we decide we need!

“We’ve learned that teachers, nurses, the mailwoman, farm workers, mass transit drivers and the minimum wage workers stocking the grocery shelves at 3 in the morning are our most important citizens and they need the respect and income they deserve immediately. 74% of the country now believes a guaranteed annual income is a great idea — fifty percentage points higher than when Andrew Yang proposed it 7 months ago!

“We’ve learned to slow down, consume less — and that is what may be the path to saving the planet (when the 4% of its inhabitants [US] is no longer sucking up 25% of its resources and hoarding more than half its wealth).

“We’re about to go elect more women than ever before — a time to turn the reins over to the gender that stands a better chance of getting us through the deadly viruses of Covid, Capitalism and Republicans (R.I.P.).

“None of this will be launched by politicians. It will only come about through you and me taking action as part of the largest protest movement in our history — still growing, still going strong! — to end the racism, the abuse of the police state, the disgusting income inequality and the hateful misogyny that is going to come to an end in our lifetime.

“America, post-pandemic, must become a very different place. Let’s make this happen. Doing the above will be the best cure for the trauma of these past four years.

“Commit to being the change.

“Organize your friends and family today.

“Make your plan to campaign in a swing state Sept. or Oct.

“VOTE AS EARLY AS YOU CAN—and take 5 people along with you!

“We can do this. Trump – we’re coming for you.

“I’ll be in the first U-Haul truck that pulls up to your door.”

MICHAEL MOORE

http://michaelmoore.com

Love, hate him, but do not ignore Michael Moore about #45 Love, hate him, but do not ignore Michael Moore about #45 ! #wemustwinblue2020 "MY PLAN FOR HOW TO MAKE SURE WE HAVE AN ELECTION, #TRUMP IS REMOVED, AND THE REPUBLICANS ARE GONE FOR GOOD"

#Trump #45 #Democracy #Election #Election 2020 #End Republicans #Ending the GOP #GOP #Michael Moore #Removing 45 #Removing Trump #Republicans #vote #Voter suppression #Voters #War on Democracy

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murkserious · 4 years

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27 WAYS WE ARE BRAINWASHED AS AFRIKAN BLOOD PEOPLE WHITE VICIOUS SUPREMACY FROM BIRTH

by Dr Boyce Watkins

I remember when I first heard Malcolm X ask, “Who taught you to hate yourself?” Of course we know the answer to this question, but many of us are afraid to say it. Even mentioning the ways that white-dominated institutions shape our thinking can lead to punishment, ostracism, unemployment, incarceration and even death. The deepest part of this process is that the brainwashing in America can be so deep, so insidious, so subtle, that even the most meaningful reflection doesn’t allow us to solve the complex puzzle of White Supremacy.

This issue came to light last week when I went to visit a prison in Illinois. Although I am a law-abiding citizen, the prison took three years to approve me for a visit. After speaking to one of the inmates familiar with the approval process, we concluded that it was likely that my thinking and educational background made me some kind of threat to their system of oppression against black men. God forbid I go into the prison and say something that might inspire these black men to live a more empowered existence.

The fact is that people like myself are threats to white supremacy because we disrupt racialized systematic brainwashing.

I was sitting at my computer one night, thinking about all the ways that our minds are controlled from the time we are born. I thought about the many flawed concepts that are dropped into our psyches by media, the educational system, and even our own families. Some of these ideas hit us so early that we hardly have a chance to escape them. Others simply leave us crippled and unable to fight the racism all around us. Even more disturbing is that some of the greatest white supremacists in America can be other black people.

So, I made a list of several things many of us believe about the world and ourselves at an early age, as well as things we are trained to do that may end up being to our detriment. Of course this list is not final, nor is it presumably correct on every count. At the same time, it gives us something to think about, because the brainwashing is amazing, deep and deliberate in our society.

Here’s the list:

1) Letting our oppressors educate our children, medicate them, and put them into the school-to-prison pipeline. A thorough miseducation can be more destructive than no education at all, since many of our brains are filled with all the wrong stuff to begin with. Maybe instead of handing your child’s brain over to a public school system that has proven that it can’t properly educate black children, you can consider homeschooling the child after they get home for the day. Everything you need to know in order to teach your child is right there on the Internet.

2) Believing that white people are supposed to give us jobs when we can actually create them on our own: Given our long and rich history of working for white people, it can be difficult to see ourselves as the boss instead of the laborer. In fact, even us “educated” black people were often told that you should study hard in school so that some white-owned company will love you enough to employ you. Now, we’re seeing Harvard MBAs in the unemployment line, struggling to survive, like lions raised in the zoo who are starving to death because they were never taught how to hunt for their own food.

3) Thinking that every black person who goes to prison is automatically a bad human being: Mass incarceration is real and it is not by accident. When prisons are filled with strong black men who’ve received 40 year sentences for possessing two grams of a drug that many white people use on the weekend, you know you have a problem. What’s interesting is that the whole world sees this as a serious issue, but we do not.

4) Eating food that is going to give you diabetes and/or heart disease and/or high blood pressure and/or chronic obesity by the age of 45. Maybe eating pig guts and sweet tea with sweet potato pie every Sunday isn’t such a good idea after all.

5) Valuing sports and entertainment over education: Not many people know the name of the black kid who won the math competition, but everybody knows the guy who won the state championship. This fascination with sports as the pathway to success is largely driven by media, which waves black athletes and rappers in front of our boys just long enough for them to believe that education isn’t cool. Unfortunately, almost none of them ever get to play with LeBron James. Instead, the worst of them may end up as 25-year old baby daddies with no job, a criminal record, a weed addiction, bad knees and a fifth grade reading level. This is hardly the kind of man that an educated black woman would want to call her husband.

6) Believing that black people you see on white-owned TV networks are supposed to be leaders or role models to your community: If a white television executive wants to create key influencers in the black community, they can do so by putting that person on a network. Most of your favorite black celebrities, films, radio shows, TV shows and magazines wouldn’t exist to you were it not for white corporate benefactors positioning them to influence your mind.

7) Believing that every tax refund check and every paycheck is supposed to go straight to the mall to buy overpriced European brands from companies that don’t even hire black people: Money is capital to be used for investing, job creation and building businesses, not a consumption item to be given away at every available opportunity for the sake of materialistic excess or instant gratification. In other words, your money is your power, and you should not give all your power away.

8) Thinking that being “rich” means having a high paying job, a big house or a fancy car, even if it’s all financed with debt: There’s a good chance that the “baller” down the street is one paycheck away from being homeless. To determine the depth of true wealth, you have to go beneath the superficial.

9) Calling yourself and your friends n*ggers (or niggaz) and seeing nothing wrong with that: Listen to me carefully – You are NOT a n*gger, no matter how often Jewish-run record labels pay black rappers to tell you that you are.

10) Giving your money to white businesses and avoiding the black ones: Black people are often referred to as “liquid money,” because we are the only ones who are eager to give our money away to other ethnic groups. No one else does this. The guy in Chinatown is never going to buy your sh*t.

11) Thinking that we’re all supposed to vote for the Democratic Party in every election: Even Bill Clinton admitted that he put too many black people in prison, and President Obama’s not letting them out anytime soon. You don’t owe the Democratic Party anything, especially if they aren’t making black issues a priority.

12) Believing that Africa is a poor, dirty, horrible place with nothing but poverty and disease, and that you should thank your lucky stars you were “blessed” enough to live in America: Newsflash – you live in arguably the most racist country in the world. No country on the planet incarcerates black people the way we do in the United States of America. Many African leaders consider America to be racially corrupt.

13) Believing that Harvard and Yale are better than Spelman and Howard

14) Not realizing that both Spelman and Howard were founded by white people

15) Not realizing that most of the people who founded the NAACP were actually white and that this organization never really belonged to you in the first place. Not that they can’t help you, but they have less loyalty to you than to their corporate and political overseers.

16) Thinking that straight hair is “good” and black hair is “nasty,” then giving all of your money to Korean beauty shops so they can make you feel better about yourself. According to Dr Claud Anderson, roughly 85 cents of every dollar spent on black women’s hair goes to Koreans. I hate to admit it, but this makes us look really, really stupid.

17) Believing that light skinned women are more attractive than those with dark skin

18) Knowing nothing about African history, but believing that every great accomplishment occurred in Europe, starting with Christopher Columbus “discovering” a country that was well-populated thousands of years before he arrived.

19) Believing that you’re only supposed to pray, march and be peaceful every time your children get slaughtered by whites. It takes a while to train people to be as peaceful and forgiving as black people are. The brainwashing must be deeply rooted in tradition. Notice how one of the heads of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference was sent for “retraining” (aka re-brainwashing)after stating that black people should defend themselves. Even self-defense is considered to be a form of aggression when you are black in America.

20) Delivering your prayers to a big, white Jesus who will solve most of your problems for you, as long as you give money to the pastor.

21) Looking up to historical figures like George Washington who put our ancestors in chains and probably raped them

22) Believing that integration was a sign of progress for black people and not an era where black institutions were destroyed and left for dead

23) Believing that Martin Luther King is more important than Malcolm X because white people market him more regularly

24) Believing that Martin Luther King only spoke of peace and forgiveness instead of the same rage and reparations that many of us talk about today

25) Thinking that its normal to have an all-black neighborhood with a mostly white police force, when there are no all-white neighborhoods with a mostly black police force

26) Believing that a half-white president is going to be significantly different from a completely white one: Hint – most high-level politicians think alike, since they are supporting the same system that has oppressed you for 400 years. Many of them went to the same universities (nearly every member of the Supreme Court, plus every president for the last 27 years attended either Harvard or Yale at some point in their career). Also, our system incentivizes our political leaders to value corporate money over the plight of the American people. This is going to be the downfall of this nation.

27) Thinking that the first black (fill in the blank) to get into a white institution actually represents progress, even though whites have never considered it be progress to get into our institutions (Does standard White History include a story about the first white man to get into Morehouse?). We’ve been taught to believe that everything whiter is better: White corporate jobs, white universities, white neighborhoods, white TV networks/media outlets, the list goes on and on.

The fact is that we really, really LOVE white people, and this training started from birth. It started with us first learning how to hate ourselves and each other, and then to believe that the only way to restore our lost humanity was to gain the approval of our oppressors. As a result, we spend our lives marching, hoping, praying, working, begging, bowing, and compromising, with the expectation that we will be rewarded for our good behavior. Unfortunately, it can cause many of us to abandon the person we were meant to be, all for the sake of trying to become somebody else.

Once again, feel free to add to the list. I don’t know everything, but my brainwashing as a PhD tells me that I am supposed to think I know everything. So, maybe this is my first step toward escaping my own psychological plantation. We have all been infected affected.

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trumpsupportersunited · 7 years

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HAPPPPPPY SATURDAY, CENTIPEDES!Welcome to your Presidentially dank Afternoon Recap thread! This is your girl u/IvaginaryFriend back at it again with a weeks worth of spice for you lovely Deplorables! (◠‿◠✿)Let's get on with the show!Sunday, December 17th:TODAY'S ACTION:Readout of President Donald J. Trump’s Call with President Vladimir Putin🔥🔥TRUMP TWEETS🔥🔥:As a candidate, I promised we would pass a massive TAX CUT for the everyday working American families who are the backbone and the heartbeat of our country. Now, we are just days away...Wonderful weekend at Camp David. A very special place. A lot of very important work done. Heading back to the @WhiteHouse now.More than a century after conquering flight, the #WrightBrothers continue to motivate & inspire Americans, who never tire of exploration & innovation. This GREAT AMERICAN SPIRIT can be found in the design of every new supersonic jet and next generation: http://45.wh.gov/WrightBrothersSIGNIFICANT TWEETS AND NEWS:Get Back to Work, Swedes! The Migrants Aren't Going to Pay For Themselves!Oh boo hoo, owners of $750k+ mansions in California are going to need to pay more in taxes. I thought the democrats wanted to #TaxTheRich?Four government critics found dead in Sweden. Everyone of them has had a heart attack. Everyone of them is less than 35. One of them was a journalist who was found dead the day before he was to release an in depth report about a journalist and his connection with ANTIFA and the Bilderberg group.Merry Christmas Deep State (Banned By Youtube last time!)🐸 TOP SPICE OF THE DAY 🐸:When you copy homework from your friend and change only a couple words...."He posts on T_D, guys!"I can hear the reeeeeeeeOffended a few coworkers tonightMonday, December 18th:TODAY'S ACTION:President Donald J. Trump Announces a National Security Strategy to Advance America’s InterestsA New National Security Strategy for a New EraRemarks by the Vice President Introducing the President for Remarks on the Administration’s National Security StrategyRemarks by President Trump on the Administration’s National Security StrategyText of a Letter from the President to the Congress of the United StatesPresident Donald J. Trump Announces Intent to Appoint Caren Harp to the Department of Justice🔥🔥TRUMP TWEETS🔥🔥:Remember, Republicans are 5-0 in Congressional Races this year. The media refuses to mention this. I said Gillespie and Moore would lose (for very different reasons), and they did. I also predicted “I” would win. Republicans will do well in 2018, very well! @foxandfriendsIvanka Trump will be interviewed on @foxandfriends.The train accident that just occurred in DuPont, WA shows more than ever why our soon to be submitted infrastructure plan must be approved quickly. Seven trillion dollars spent in the Middle East while our roads, bridges, tunnels, railways (and more) crumble! Not for long!My thoughts and prayers are with everyone involved in the train accident in DuPont, Washington. Thank you to all of our wonderful First Responders who are on the scene. We are currently monitoring here at the White House.Our deepest sympathies and most heartfelt prayers are with the victims of the train derailment in Washington State. We are closely monitoring the situation and coordinating with local authorities...Over the past 11 months, I have travelled tens of thousands of miles, to visit 13 countries. I have met with more than 100 world leaders and everywhere I traveled, it was my highest privilege and greatest honor to represent the AMERICAN PEOPLE!When the American People speak, ALL OF US should listen. Just over one year ago, you spoke loud and clear. On November 8, 2016, you voted to MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!As the world watches, we are days away from passing HISTORIC TAX CUTS for American families and businesses. It will be the BIGGEST TAX CUT and TAX REFORM in the HISTORY of our country!So True Ivanka!Thank You Maria B!70 Record Closes for the Dow so far this year! We have NEVER had 70 Dow Records in a one year period. Wow!With the strategy that I announced today, we are declaring that AMERICA is in the game and AMERICA is DETERMINED to WIN!Together, our task is to strengthen our families, to build up our communities, to serve our citizens, and to celebrate AMERICAN GREATNESS as a shining example to the world....SIGNIFICANT TWEETS AND NEWS:COLLUSION FOUND: Obama Admin Colluded With Iran and HezbollahLinda Sarsour Accused Of Enabling Sexual Assault Against Woman Who Worked For HerCOLLINS IS A YES. WE HAVE THE VOTES TO PASS MAJOR TAX CUTS. NOT TIRED OF WINNING! Take a look at how much you'll saveAS WE PREDICTED!!!! - Franken urged to reverse his resignation The demands from Democrats that he step down were 'the most hypocritical thing I’ve ever seen done to a human being,' Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) says.The Trump Curse strikes again! ESPN CEO John Skipper resigns due to substance abuse!ESPN President*🐸 TOP SPICE OF THE DAY 🐸:Russia Hacked SW8This should be common sense. Should.Liberalism is a mental disorderEvil Chick-Fil-A with its Christian "baggage" steps up to feed the people stranded at the Atlanta airport. On Sunday. When they're officially closed.Tuesday, December 19th:TODAY'S ACTION:Press Briefing on the Attribution of the WannaCry Malware Attack to North KoreaReadout of President Donald J. Trump’s Call with of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev of UzbekistanReadout of President Donald J. Trump’s Call with Prime Minister Theresa May of the United KingdomFour Nominations Sent to the Senate TodayPresident Donald J. Trump’s First Year of Foreign Policy Accomplishments🔥🔥TRUMP TWEETS🔥🔥:DOW RISES 5000 POINTS ON THE YEAR FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER - MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!Stocks and the economy have a long way to go after the Tax Cut Bill is totally understood and appreciated in scope and size. Immediate expensing will have a big impact. Biggest Tax Cuts and Reform EVER passed. Enjoy, and create many beautiful JOBS!A story in the @washingtonpost that I was close to “rescinding” the nomination of Justice Gorsuch prior to confirmation is FAKE NEWS. I never even wavered and am very proud of him and the job he is doing as a Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. The unnamed sources don’t exist!Congratulations to Paul Ryan, Kevin McCarthy, Kevin Brady, Steve Scalise, Cathy McMorris Rodgers and all great House Republicans who voted in favor of cutting your taxes!The United States Senate just passed the biggest in history Tax Cut and Reform Bill. Terrible Individual Mandate (ObamaCare)Repealed. Goes to the House tomorrow morning for final vote. If approved, there will be a News Conference at The White House at approximately 1:00 P.M.SIGNIFICANT TWEETS AND NEWS:Let this sink in, Mueller confiscated every single Trump transition email without a subpoena. Hillary Bleach Bit her 30,000 emails, from an illegal server, that were under subpoena and it was dismissed as "careless."Harvard poll found only 1 in 3 Americans approve of the tax bill but when asked their opinion on specific parts of it they overwhelmingly approve of nearly all of it (pg. 53/54)FACEBOOK SUSPENDS USER FOR CALLING FOR “SENSIBLE MIGRATION POLICIES”: 7 day ban for user as social media censorship scales new heights!#1 It seems like some People here NEED to be reminded: THE MEDIA IS OUR ENEMY! ALWAYS BUILD YOUR OWN OPINION! TRUST NO-ONE!Actor Who Was Arrested for Assaulting Trump Supporter, Now Investigated for Violent Sexual AssaultPRESS BRIEFINGS, INTERVIEWS, RALLIES:Press Beating🐸 TOP SPICE OF THE DAY 🐸:Twitter Censorship at its finestA year later and this monster isn’t banned and is still verifiedWowWhat America First Means. Updated. Made child the world.Totally Different Scenarios!Wednesday, December 20th:TODAY'S ACTION:Statement from President Donald J. Trump Regarding Final Passage of Tax LegislationRemarks by President Donald Trump, Vice President Mike Pence, and Members of the CabinetCabinet Meeting Marks Tremendous Year of ProgressThe Tax Cuts Act Follows through on President Donald J. Trump’s Promise of Middle Class Tax CutsPresident Donald J. Trump Signs S. 1266 into LawReadout of President Donald J. Trump’s Call with King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud of Saudi ArabiaPresidential Executive Order on a Federal Strategy to Ensure Secure and Reliable Supplies of Critical MineralsPresident Donald J. Trump Announces Ninth Wave of Judicial Nominees and Tenth Wave of United States Attorney NomineesRemarks by President Donald Trump, Vice President Mike Pence, and Members of Congress at Bill Passage EventPresident Trump Commutes Sentence of Sholom RubashkinEight Nominations Sent to the Senate TodayPresident Donald J. Trump Announces Intent to Appoint Personnel to Key Administration Posts🔥🔥TRUMP TWEETS🔥🔥:The Tax Cuts are so large and so meaningful, and yet the Fake News is working overtime to follow the lead of their friends, the defeated Dems, and only demean. This is truly a case where the results will speak for themselves, starting very soon. Jobs, Jobs, Jobs!I would like to congratulate @SenateMajLdr on having done a fantastic job both strategically & politically on the passing in the Senate of the MASSIVE TAX CUT & Reform Bill. I could have not asked for a better or more talented partner. Our team will go onto many more VICTORIES!Together, we are MAKING AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!We are delivering HISTORIC TAX RELIEF for the American people!WE ARE MAKING AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!SIGNIFICANT TWEETS AND NEWS:President Trump Delivers Remarks at a Bill Passage EventIT’S HAPPENING!!! #Boeing announces $300M employee-related and charitable investment as a result of #TaxReform legislation to support our heroes, our homes and our future.Let's have a moment of silence for the 200,000 U.S. AT&T employees killed by the $1,000 bonus given to because of tax reformFifth Third Bancorp will pay more than 13,500 employees a bonus and raise the minimum wage for its workforce to $15 after the passage of the GOP tax plan that will cut the bank's corporate tax rate.Wells Fargo raises hourly minimum wage to $15, also to donate $400 million in 2018!COMCAST joins the party - Announces $1,000 bonus for employees and invest $50 billion in U.S. marketAl Franken confirms he will leave the Senate in January 2, 2018DEMS BTFO. Judge throws out Dem win by 1 vote in Va., rules that race was a pure tie. Re-vote expected. No fucking around; we have to go out and vote in this one.Tuesday’s seven-hour interrogation of Deputy FBI Director Andrew McCabe contained numerous conflicts with the testimony of previous witnesses, prompting the Republican majority staff of the House Intelligence Committee to decide to issue fresh subpoenas next week on DOJ and FBI personnel.Rosie O'Donnell just attempted to bribe two senators. 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The audacious plan to bring back supersonic flight — and change air travel forever

One of the odd aspects of modern air travel is that it’s not really getting any faster. Ever since British Airways retired its money-losing supersonic Concorde in 2003, airlines have generally stuck to top speeds of around 615 miles per hour. That’ll get you from New York to San Francisco in five or six hours, depending on the winds, but you can’t find a plane that will get you there significantly sooner.

We’ve largely learned to tolerate our slow, boring aircraft. But there’s a compelling case that we shouldn’t — that air travel should actually be much, much quicker.

Right now there are a host of energetic startups and NASA engineers working on sleek new supersonic jets that could fly twice as fast as today’s commercial planes, if not faster. These jets would be major upgrades on the noisy, fuel-squandering Concordes of old, and they could be ready within the decade.

When you talk to people working on these super-fast planes, it’s hard not to get swept up in the excitement. Take Blake Scholl, the CEO of Boom, a startup that’s working with Virgin Galactic to put a new supersonic business jet into service by the early 2020s. He envisions a day when anyone could cross the Pacific or Atlantic in just a few short hours. “It changes how you think about the world,” he tells me.

“In aerospace, there are two great passions,” Scholl says. “You either want to build rockets and go colonize Mars — or you want to go really, really fast. People like Elon Musk are focused on the former. We’ve built a team that’s obsessed with the latter.”

So what’s the holdup? For some, it’s mostly politics. In a new paper for the Mercatus Center, titled “Make America Boom Again,” policy analysts Eli Dourado and Samuel Hammond make the case that outdated regulations are hindering innovation in air travel. Since 1973, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has banned civilian aircraft from flying faster than sound over land, to avoid the house-rattling sonic booms that the Concorde use to make. Yet recent technological advances have enabled supersonic designs that don’t create loud booms. So why not replace the FAA’s blanket ban with a simple noise standard, and let supersonic travel flourish?

Yet there are also skeptics who argue that regulations aren’t the only thing holding back our supersonic future. In practice, faster air travel isn’t always worth it, and airlines have excellent reasons for preferring those slow, boring planes — from fuel efficiency to airport noise to concerns about climate change. “I wish them all the best!” says longtime aviation consultant Robert W. Mann Jr. of the push for supersonic flight. “But it’s still not clear that there will be a market for this.”

That is to say, there are two tricky questions to explore here: Can we actually bring back supersonic flight? And even if we can — should we?

The Concorde, revisited: Why early attempts at supersonic flight failed

Anyone who wants to build a supersonic plane today first has to grapple with the tragic failure of the Concorde jet, a joint venture between Britain and France that began carrying passengers in 1976.

The Concorde was a technical marvel, flying at at Mach 2 (twice the speed of sound, or 1,512 mph) to go from New York to London in just 3.5 hours, instead of the usual seven or eight. But it suffered its share of economic woes, and British Airways finally retired the jet in 2003:

[embedded content]

The Concorde’s demise is a complicated tale, but it suffered from two mortal flaws. First, it was a horrendous fuel-guzzler and expensive to operate. Under the laws of physics, the air resistance or drag that a given object faces in flight increases rapidly as you approach Mach 1. So a plane flying supersonic requires a lot more energy than one flying below the speed of sound.

The Concorde’s designers tried to reduce drag by giving their plane a sleek body and short, slender delta wings. Even so, the Concorde required staggering amounts of fuel, burning roughly eight times as much oil per passenger mile for a trans-Atlantic trip as a modern-day 777. That made tickets forbiddingly expensive: $10,000 or more for a New York–London round trip. As oil prices rose, British Airways and Air France (which operated the jets) struggled to consistently fill the jets’ 100-125 seats. Bad for profits.

A second problem, meanwhile, is that whenever the Concorde traveled faster than the speed of sound — about 767 miles per hour — it created noisy sonic booms in its wake. To put it simply, the air in front of the Concorde couldn’t get out of its way fast enough, so it bunched up into large shock waves in a cone trailing the plane. Wherever those shock waves reached the ground below, they’d be heard as a loud “BANG, BANG” that could rattle windows, shake structures, and startle people.

A sonic boom is a cone-shaped shock wave produced by supersonic aircraft, heard the entire length of its flight path. Image from the US Air Force pamphlet “The Sonic Boom” (n.d.), modified by David Suisman. (Suisman, 2015)

Opposition quickly mounted, and in 1973 the FAA banned civilian aircraft from traveling at supersonic speeds over the United States. The Concorde could only exceed Mach 1 over water, limiting its market. British Airways and Air France mainly flew the Concorde out of New York and Washington DC to London and Paris, though there were a number of other international routes over the years.*

After the Concorde went bust, airlines shied away from supersonic flight. The extra speed didn’t seem to justify the hassle. At least, until recently.

How new technology could make supersonic flight viable again

Over the past decade, a number of aerospace engineers and entrepreneurs have been revisiting the Concorde’s demise. And some of them have walked away thinking that supersonic flight could work today — with just a few important (if difficult) tweaks.

A few years ago, Blake Scholl, a former coder and longtime amateur pilot, was messing around with spreadsheet models and realized that a number of recent advances in aerodynamics and engine technology could, in theory, allow engineers to build a plane that was far more fuel-efficient than the Concorde. “If you could do that, you could have a plane that was competitive with existing business travel,” he says. “I started running these numbers by various experts and realized it wasn’t just science fiction.”

In 2014, Scholl founded Boom, an aviation company based in Denver, Colorado. He has since assembled a team that includes accomplished former NASA, Boeing, and Lockheed Martin engineers to design a working successor to the Concorde.

A large model of Boom’s new XB-1 Supersonic Demonstrator at the company’s hanger at Centennial Airport. (Boom)

They’re not alone. Back in 2002, a group of investors led by Robert Bass formed a company called Aerion that aimed to harness innovative new drag-reducing technology to create a much more efficient supersonic business jet. Aerion is pretty far along in this task: In 2014, the company announced a partnership with aerospace giant Airbus to build and certify a supersonic craft within the decade. (Gulfstream, an established jet manufacturer, is also working with NASA on its own designs for supersonic flight.)

The race is on.

So what makes these companies think they can do better than the Concorde’s designers and build a vastly more fuel-efficient plane? In interviews, Boom and Aerion pointed to three broad technical advances that make this all seem feasible:

First, modern-day computer modeling makes exploring new aircraft designs far easier than it was in the 1960s. If the Concorde’s designers wanted to test a new shape to see how it affected drag, they had to build a scale model and put it through large wind tunnels — a clumsy process that could take months. Nowadays, genetic algorithms can explore and tweak new shapes much more quickly and effectively.

Newer composite materials, like carbon fiber, allow aircraft designers to pursue shapes and contours that weren’t possible for the Concorde’s designers, who worked with aluminum. (These materials can also better deal with the serious heat that builds up on the leading edge of the plane’s wing at speeds above Mach 2.)

Today’s jet engines are far more efficient than they were in the Concorde’s heyday.

“The breakthrough will be in the sum of those parts, not any one invention,” Scholl says. Put those three factors together, and he thinks Boom can build a plane that goes at top speeds of Mach 2.2 while being 30 percent more fuel-efficient than the Concorde. It will still create sonic booms, though quieter than the Concorde’s.

The proof, of course, will be in the testing. Boom unveiled a design for its supersonic XB-1 jet in mid-November. The company will then team up with Virgin Galactic to build and test a prototype at Edwards Air Base in California by the end of 2017. The hope, Scholl says, is to have a working plane in service by “the early 2020s.”

Aerion, meanwhile, is pursuing a different design that harnesses supersonic natural laminar flow, a concept it developed (and tested with NASA) to reduce the turbulent airflow around wings and reduce drag. Aerion will work with Airbus on the engineering and is in the process of selecting suppliers to manufacture the engines. The plan, says spokesperson Jeff Miller, is to get the plane into service by 2021:

(Aerion)

Assuming these planes work, the next challenge will be finding a market. Scholl’s goal is to introduce a plane that will cost just $5,000 to fly round-trip between, say, New York and London. At that price, his market research suggests, there will be enough business travelers willing to pay a premium for speed that he can fill small 45-seat jets. (As part of their deal, Virgin has an option to buy 10 of Boom’s planes.)

Consider the advantages: A flight between San Francisco and Tokyo might take just four hours instead of 11. A flight between New York and London, three instead of eight. “You could leave early in the morning from New York, have afternoon meetings in London, and be back home in time for dinner,” Scholl notes.

Still, it’s far from clear that Boom and Aerion can succeed in luring enough passengers to turn a profit. For one, notes Mann, the aviation consultant, their planes will still be less fuel-efficient than conventional planes, which means they could be more vulnerable to sharp swings in oil prices. Plus, there are market risks. The most profitable Concorde route lay between the great financial centers of New York and London. But what happens if, say, Brexit ends up shrinking the size of London’s banking industry?

“Obviously we’ll have to see,” says Mann. “But those are just examples of the sort of external shocks that could impinge on the practicality of supersonic travel.”

Boom and Aerion remain optimistic. The broader hope is that if supersonic flight gains a foothold with business travelers, costs will eventually come down as technology improves. Scholl’s ultimate goal is to make supersonic flight affordable to everyone. “It’s the same thing that Tesla did,” he says. “They started with the luxury Roadster and are now focused on mass-market cars.”

Because Boom and Aerion’s planes would only fly supersonic over water at the start, they could coexist with the FAA’s current ban on overland travel (although both companies could face regulatory hurdles around the noise their planes will make on takeoff and landing; more on that below).

That said, oceanic flights are still a relatively limited market. For supersonic travel to truly conquer the entire world, someone would have to take the next step and develop a plane that doesn’t produce terrifying sonic booms over land.

And that’s where NASA comes in.

The next big challenge: silencing sonic booms to allow overland flights

Ever since the 1970s, NASA has been wrestling with the math around the pressure waves that create aircraft sonic booms, trying to figure out how to reduce them. And, over the past decade, its engineers think they’ve finally cracked the problem.

“We’re at the point where we think we can design a quiet supersonic airplane,” says Peter Coen, the commercial supersonic technology project manager at NASA’s Langley Research Center. His team is currently working with Lockheed Martin on a $20 million project to design a prototype X-plane with much, much softer booms.

The science of what Coen’s team is doing gets a bit complicated (see this report for the gritty details), but here’s a very basic explanation. When a plane like the Concorde travels at supersonic speed, it creates a bunch of invisible shock waves, sharp pressure disturbances emanating from all the objects that stick out of the plane — the nose, the windshield, the wings, the tail. They’re shaped like this:

Although shock waves aren’t usually visible to the naked eye, NASA used schlieren imagery to see the disturbances made by a USAF Test Pilot School T-38C aircraft flying at supersonic speeds over the Mojave Desert. (NASA)

These shock waves are all different strengths, and they as they travel through the air, they coalesce into just two powerful waves — a strong positive pressure wave at the nose and a strong negative pressure wave at the tail. This “N-wave” configuration is highly stable and doesn’t decay much as it travels toward the ground. When this wave hits people below, our ears register it as two noisy bangs from each of the two sharp swings in pressure.

“So the trick,” Coen says, “is to keep those shock waves from coalescing into a N-shaped signal.” In theory, a plane with a different shape would create shock waves of more uniform strength that coalesce more gradually as they move through the air. If done successfully, people on the ground would experience a gentle rise in pressure when the wave hits rather than two sharp pressure changes.

Recent experiments have been promising. The Concorde created booms that were perceived to be as loud as 135 decibels on the ground — about as loud as the sound a jet engine makes from 100 feet away. But by experimenting with different shapes, NASA has developed aircraft models that, in wind-tunnel tests, create booms as soft as 79 perceived decibels, roughly comparable to a car passing 10 feet away. Eventually, NASA would like to get that down that to 70 decibels.

The goal is to design an actual plane using these concepts. Here is an artist’s conception of what the new X-plane might look like.

Artist’s conception of a low boom flight demonstration quiet supersonic transport (QueSST) X-plane design. (NASA/Lockheed Martin)

NASA will then plan to build a one-third-scale prototype and conduct the first test flight in 2020.* The idea is that they’ll gather data on what sorts of sonic booms the planes actually make, and then the FAA can use that data in deciding whether it makes sense to replace the blanket ban on overland supersonic travel with a noise standard — saying, for example, that supersonic flight is acceptable overland so long as the booms are below a certain threshold. (If that actually happened, Gulfstream says planes with quiet booms might be a possibility by 2025 or 2030 or so.)

But changing those rules will require wading into the murky world of politics — which is never easy.

The US government could still put the kibosh on supersonic flight

In theory, the FAA is open to the idea of revising its blanket ban on supersonic flight over land. In 2011, an FAA official gave a public presentation explaining that research on silencing sonic booms has progressed far enough that it may be time to consider a noise standard.

But the FAA is moving very slowly on revamping the rules — in part because it’s focused on other challenges, like overhauling the nation’s air traffic control system. The agency is also waiting for NASA and other companies to demonstrate their quiet-boom technology before crafting fresh regulations.

In their paper for the Mercatus Center, Dourado and Hammond argue that the FAA’s current approach is precisely backward. It would be much better for the agency to set guidelines ahead of time on what type of overland sonic booms would be acceptable — so that companies can have some certainty and know what to aim for in developing new designs. “Right now, the FAA is saying we’ll accept supersonic when we hear what’s acceptable,” says Hammond. “We’re trying to point out the absurdity in that.”

Even if the boom issue gets sorted out, however, there’s still another hurdle for supersonic planes: takeoff and landing. While all supersonic planes would fly at less-than-supersonic (or “subsonic”) speeds around airports, they’d still make a fair bit of noise on takeoff and landing. And that’s where things get a little tricky.

Over the years, the FAA has developed strict standards for the noise that airplanes can make around airports. Aircraft manufacturers have responded to these rules, in part, by doing things like building high-bypass engines with large-diameter fans that propel air out of the engine more slowly and hence reduce the noise from the exhaust.

The trade-off with these high-bypass engines is that they’re not as fuel-efficient at takeoff and the large fans create more drag while the plane’s in the air. That’s not a huge deal for normal aircraft, but it could be ruinous for supersonic jets. If the FAA requires supersonic jets to adhere to the newest, strictest noise standards coming into effect by 2018 (known as Stage 5 standards), those jets will take a major fuel efficiency hit. By contrast, if the FAA merely asked supersonic aircraft to adhere to the standards that were in place back in 2006 (known as Stage 3 standards), Scholl estimates, that would reduce supersonic ticket costs by some 15 percent.

Dourado and Hammond argue that the FAA should allow looser airport noise standards for supersonic jets in the very beginning, at least, to allow the technology to get to market. Engineers can then work on making them quieter. The companies making the supersonic planes agree. “The physics of supersonic aircraft are just so different, so saying you need to meet the standards of subsonic regulations could put a damper on development,” says Aerion’s Miller. “We’re hoping to reach a compromise with the FAA on this, since we’re talking about a new industry that could be beneficial.”

This could prove a contentious subject, however. The politics around airport noise can be extremely dicey (in separate research, Dourado and Raymond Russell have found that most airport noise complaints to the FAA come from just a small handful of people). While a strict airport noise rule wouldn’t necessarily kill supersonic flight, it could increase prices and dampen the market, particularly in the early days.

The deeper question: Do we really want supersonic flight?

Good old Concorde. Photo by Ian Waldie/Getty Images

The noise issue raises a bigger philosophical question around supersonic flight: How much do we really value speed, anyway? After all, the structure of our current aviation industry is the result of a series of compromises around competing values. And over the past 30 years, airlines have shown that there are a lot of other things we value more than simply going really, really fast.

Back in the 1970s, Mann explains, the industry realized that if it wanted to keep growing, it needed to be a good neighbor. That meant replacing their existing fleet of loud and dirty airplanes with much quieter models — even if it meant some trade-offs in terms of performance. Similarly, ever since the oil shocks of that decade, the industry has made a point of valuing fuel efficiency over raw speed.

“The optimal cruise speed has basically declined over the years,” Mann says. “Above about Mach 0.8, you pay so much for that speed in terms of fuel.” Today, a flight from New York to Denver or from DC to Miami actually takes longer than it did in the 1970s — because airlines have realized that the fuel savings are worth the delay.

Going forward, there’s another important value to weigh on the scale: climate change. Aviation is already the fastest-growing source of greenhouse gas emissions in the world, and the world’s airlines just agreed to a sweeping deal under the International Civil Aviation Organization to offset the growth of their emissions starting in 2020. Conventional aircraft manufacturers have worked hard to reduce fuel burn by 45 percent since 1968, and companies like Boeing and Airbus are now pushing to cut fuel use even further, through the use of lighter materials and novel engine designs. Still, this remains one of the toughest sectors to decarbonize.

And new supersonic jets that burn fuel at higher rates than conventional planes seem to go in precisely the opposite direction — even if they do save travelers time. True, a few supersonic business jets flying around wouldn’t have a major impact on emissions. But if cheap supersonic flight became ubiquitous, the global warming impact could be staggering (particularly if the planes fly at higher altitudes, due to the contrail effect). With the world already struggling to avoid dangerously large temperature increases, a new fuel-inefficient plane seems like a luxury the planet can ill afford.

When I asked NASA’s Coen about the climate consequences of a world filled with supersonic jets, he agreed that it was a real concern. But he also pointed out that there might be ways to square these different values. Future caps on aviation emissions could, for instance, spur supersonic jets to adopt low-carbon biofuels. (Or there’s another way this could all go: As Mann pointed out, it’s possible that stricter carbon caps could simply make supersonic flight unviable.)

It’s still too early to say how these issues will play out, but it’s a good reminder that our slow, boring planes have quite a few things going for them.

Even so, at the end of the day, the prospect of faster flight will remain forever tantalizing. The reduction in travel times has been one of the great technological breakthroughs of the past 200 years. This isn’t merely convenient; in some ways, it’s been the very marker of progress. Humans have long been obsessed with breaking new barriers, with going faster and faster. Even if on a purely romantic level, it would be a shame if we’re currently stuck going about as fast as we’ll ever go.

——

* Correction: I originally wrote that NASA and Lockheed Martin are working together to build a prototype of a quiet supersonic plane. That’s not quite accurate. Lockheed Martin has a contract to design a plane. But NASA hasn’t yet selected a company to actually build the prototype.