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mirnaheadlines · 7 months ago

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Government Policies for a Green Economy: Incentives and Regulations

Green Economy A successful transition to a green economy requires a combination of public and private sector efforts, Green Economy with governments playing a crucial role in setting the framework for this transformation. Policies often target sectors such as energy, transportation, agriculture, waste management, and construction, which are significant contributors to environmental impacts. In this context, incentives and regulations serve as two sides of the policy coin, ensuring both the encouragement of sustainable practices and the enforcement of environmental protection.

One of the main goals of government policies for a green economy is to shift economic activity toward more sustainable practices. This involves reducing greenhouse gas emissions, promoting renewable energy, and ensuring that economic growth is decoupled from environmental degradation. To achieve these goals, governments employ a wide range of tools, including tax breaks, subsidies, grants, carbon pricing mechanisms, and strict environmental regulations.

A green economy also emphasizes social inclusiveness, Green Economy ensuring that the transition to sustainability benefits all members of society, particularly vulnerable groups who are most affected by environmental degradation. Green Economy Government policies often include provisions for job creation in green industries, education and training for new skills, and social protection measures to ensure that no one is left behind in the transition.

This section will delve into six key areas of government policies for a green economy: renewable energy incentives, carbon pricing mechanisms, green transportation policies, sustainable agriculture support, waste management and recycling regulations, and financial incentives for green innovation.

Renewable Energy Incentives Green Economy

One of the cornerstones of any green economy policy framework is the promotion of renewable energy sources. Governments have introduced a range of incentives to encourage the production and consumption of renewable energy, such as wind, solar, and hydropower. These incentives are critical for reducing reliance on fossil fuels, which are the primary source of greenhouse gas emissions.

Renewable energy incentives often take the form of subsidies and tax breaks. For instance, many governments offer production tax credits (PTCs) and investment tax credits (ITCs) to companies that generate renewable energy or invest in renewable energy infrastructure. These financial incentives lower the cost of renewable energy projects, making them more competitive with traditional fossil fuel-based energy sources.

Feed-in tariffs (FITs) are another common incentive mechanism. Green Economy Under a FIT program, renewable energy producers are guaranteed a fixed price for the electricity they generate, often over a long-term contract. This provides a stable revenue stream and reduces the financial risk associated with renewable energy investments. Net metering programs, which allow individuals and businesses to sell excess renewable energy back to the grid, are another way governments encourage the adoption of renewable technologies.

Governments also support renewable energy through research and development (R&D) funding. Green Economy By investing in the development of new technologies, governments can help bring down the cost of renewable energy and make it more accessible. Many governments also provide grants and low-interest loans for renewable energy projects, particularly for smaller-scale projects such as rooftop solar installations.

In addition to financial incentives, governments often mandate the use of renewable energy through renewable portfolio standards (RPS). An RPS requires utilities to obtain a certain percentage of their electricity from renewable sources, creating a guaranteed market for renewable energy. This not only supports the growth of the renewable energy industry but also helps reduce the overall carbon footprint of the energy sector.

Green Economy The combination of financial incentives and regulatory mandates has been instrumental in driving the rapid growth of renewable energy in many parts of the world. Countries such as Germany, Denmark, and China have become global leaders in renewable energy production, thanks in large part to strong government policies that promote green energy development.

Carbon Pricing Mechanisms

Carbon pricing is a critical tool in the fight against climate change and a key component of government policies for a green economy. By putting a price on carbon emissions, governments create an economic incentive for businesses and individuals to reduce their carbon footprint. There are two main types of carbon pricing mechanisms: carbon taxes and cap-and-trade systems.

A carbon tax directly sets a price on carbon by levying a tax on the carbon content of fossil fuels. This encourages businesses and consumers to reduce their use of carbon-intensive energy sources and shift toward cleaner alternatives. The revenue generated from carbon taxes is often used to fund green initiatives, such as renewable energy projects or energy efficiency programs, or to provide rebates to low-income households to offset higher energy costs.

Cap-and-trade systems, also known as emissions trading schemes (ETS), work by setting a limit (or cap) on the total amount of greenhouse gas emissions that can be emitted by covered entities, such as power plants or industrial facilities. Companies are issued emission allowances, which they can trade with one another. Companies that can reduce their emissions at a lower cost can sell their excess allowances to companies that face higher costs for reducing emissions. This creates a market for carbon allowances and incentivizes businesses to invest in cleaner technologies.

Both carbon taxes and cap-and-trade systems are designed to internalize the environmental cost of carbon emissions, making it more expensive to pollute and more profitable to invest in sustainable practices. These mechanisms can drive innovation, as businesses seek out new technologies and processes to reduce their carbon liabilities.

Several countries and regions have implemented carbon pricing policies with varying degrees of success. The European Union’s Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) is one of the largest and most established cap-and-trade programs in the world. Canada has implemented a nationwide carbon tax, with revenue returned to households through rebates. In the United States, some states, such as California, have implemented their own cap-and-trade programs in the absence of a national carbon pricing policy.

However, carbon pricing mechanisms face challenges, including political opposition and concerns about economic competitiveness. In some cases, businesses argue that carbon pricing increases costs and puts them at a disadvantage compared to competitors in countries without similar policies. To address these concerns, governments often include provisions to protect industries that are vulnerable to international competition, such as offering rebates or exemptions for certain sectors.

Green Transportation Policies

Transportation is a major source of greenhouse gas emissions, particularly in urban areas. To promote a green economy, governments are implementing a range of policies aimed at reducing emissions from the transportation sector. These policies focus on promoting the use of public transportation, encouraging the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs), and improving fuel efficiency standards.

One of the most effective ways to reduce transportation emissions is to encourage the use of public transportation. Governments invest in expanding and improving public transit systems, such as buses, trains, and subways, to make them more accessible and attractive to commuters. By providing reliable and affordable public transportation options, governments can reduce the number of cars on the road and lower overall emissions.

In addition to improving public transportation, governments are offering incentives for the purchase of electric vehicles (EVs). These incentives often take the form of tax credits or rebates for EV buyers, which help offset the higher upfront cost of electric vehicles compared to traditional gasoline-powered cars. Some governments also offer additional perks for EV owners, such as access to carpool lanes or free parking in city centers.

Governments are also investing in the infrastructure needed to support electric vehicles, such as building charging stations. A lack of charging infrastructure is often cited as a barrier to EV adoption, so governments play a critical role in addressing this challenge. By providing grants or partnering with private companies, governments can help build a network of charging stations that makes EVs a more convenient option for drivers.

Another important component of green transportation policies is improving fuel efficiency standards for cars and trucks. Governments set regulations that require automakers to produce vehicles that meet certain fuel efficiency targets, which helps reduce the amount of fuel consumed and the emissions produced by the transportation sector. Some governments also implement vehicle emissions standards, which limit the amount of pollutants that cars and trucks can emit.

In addition to these policies, governments are encouraging the use of alternative modes of transportation, such as biking and walking. Investments in bike lanes, pedestrian infrastructure, and bike-sharing programs make it easier for people to choose low-emission forms of transportation. These efforts not only reduce emissions but also improve public health by promoting physical activity.

Sustainable Agriculture Support

Agriculture is both a contributor to and a victim of environmental degradation. It is responsible for significant greenhouse gas emissions, deforestation, water use, and pollution from fertilizers and pesticides. At the same time, agriculture is highly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, including more frequent droughts, floods, and changing weather patterns. As a result, governments are increasingly focusing on promoting sustainable agricultural practices as part of their green economy policies.

One of the key ways governments support sustainable agriculture is through financial incentives for farmers who adopt environmentally friendly practices. These incentives can take the form of subsidies, grants, or low-interest loans for practices such as organic farming, agroforestry, and conservation tillage. By providing financial support, governments encourage farmers to invest in sustainable practices that might otherwise be cost-prohibitive.

Governments also provide technical assistance and education to help farmers transition to more sustainable practices. This can include training programs on topics such as water conservation, soil health, and pest management, as well as access to research and technology that supports sustainable farming. Extension services, which provide hands-on assistance to farmers, are another important tool for promoting sustainable agriculture.

In addition to financial and technical support, governments implement regulations to reduce the environmental impact of agriculture. These regulations can include restrictions on the use of certain pesticides and fertilizers, requirements for buffer zones to protect water sources from agricultural runoff, and mandates for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions from livestock and manure management.

Governments are also working to promote more sustainable food systems by encouraging the consumption of locally produced and organic foods. Public procurement policies, which require government institutions such as schools and hospitals to purchase a certain percentage of their food from sustainable sources, are one way governments support the development of local, sustainable food systems.

Another important aspect of sustainable agriculture policies is protecting biodiversity and promoting ecosystem services. Governments often provide incentives for farmers to preserve natural habitats on their land, such as wetlands, forests, and grasslands, which provide important ecosystem services such as carbon sequestration, water filtration, and pollination. By promoting biodiversity and ecosystem health, governments help ensure that agricultural systems are more resilient to environmental changes.

Waste Management and Recycling Regulations

Effective waste management is a critical component of a green economy. Governments play a key role in regulating waste disposal, promoting recycling, and encouraging the reduction of waste generation. These efforts are aimed at reducing the environmental impact of waste, including greenhouse gas emissions from landfills, pollution from improper disposal, and the depletion of natural resources through excessive consumption.

One of the main ways governments regulate waste is by setting standards for waste disposal. This includes regulating landfills, incinerators, and hazardous waste facilities to ensure that they operate in an environmentally responsible manner. Governments also implement bans or restrictions on certain types of waste, such as single-use plastics, to reduce the amount of waste that ends up in landfills or the environment.

In addition to regulating waste disposal, governments are increasingly focusing on promoting recycling and waste reduction. Many governments have implemented extended producer responsibility (EPR) programs, which require manufacturers to take responsibility for the disposal of the products they produce. This can include requirements for companies to fund recycling programs or take back products at the end of their life cycle.

Governments also implement policies to encourage households and businesses to recycle more. This can include providing curbside recycling services, setting recycling targets, and offering incentives for recycling, such as deposit return schemes for beverage containers. Public awareness campaigns and education programs are also important tools for promoting recycling and waste reduction.

In some cases, governments use economic instruments to promote waste reduction, such as charging fees for waste disposal or providing financial incentives for businesses that reduce waste. Pay-as-you-throw programs, which charge households based on the amount of waste they generate, are one example of how governments use pricing mechanisms to encourage waste reduction.

Another important component of waste management policies is promoting the circular economy, which focuses on keeping materials in use for as long as possible through recycling, reusing, and remanufacturing. Governments support the circular economy by providing incentives for businesses that adopt circular practices, such as designing products for durability and recyclability, and by setting targets for reducing waste and increasing recycling rates.

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Government Policies for a Green Economy: Incentives and Regulations

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palestinianmina · 9 months ago

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🚨🚨🚨 You can save a life! Act now‼️‼️🍉🍉🍉🍉🍉

My name is Mina, I'm 19 years old from Gaza. On October 7th, we woke up to the sounds of rockets, bombing, and destruction. By October 10th, we were forced to leave our home with nothing—(no clothes, no belongings, nothing)—because our area became a dangerous war zone. A week later, we received the devastating news that our home had been completely destroyed😔😔💔💔💔.We are now displaced, with no place to call home. We have been forced to move 10 times over the past eleven months of this genocidal war. We currently live in a place barely suitable for three people, while our family of eight struggles to fit. My aunt and her one-year-old daughter were killed by the occupation. My grandfather died due to the lack of medication and the closure of hospitals because of insufficient resources. He was a heart patient who needed regular treatment, but it was cut off due to the blockade and lack of medical supplies.I was in my first week of university, finally enrolling in my dream college (medical school) after achieving one of the highest grades in my city (98.6% in the scientific branch). Now, I lost this academic year, and it seems the second year will be lost as well, with no way to change this dire situation. My elder sister, (Salwa), was supposed to be in her third year of university. She was the top of her class and aspired to participate in student exchange programs and pursue a master's degree. Now, her university is destroyed, and she is unable to do anything. My younger sister, (Abeer), was supposed to be in her final year of school, excelling academically and aiming for a high grade. Unfortunately, her school was destroyed, and she cannot continue her education. My younger siblings, Adel (13), Jana (12), and Ammar (8), also cannot continue their education. They are in crucial stages for their development and future, but everything has been shattered.Basic necessities are almost nonexistent in Gaza: cleaning supplies are scarce, feminine hygiene products are nearly impossible to find and extremely expensive, and essentials like (shampoo, soap, and laundry detergent) are either unavailable or exorbitantly priced. Diseases are spreading alarmingly, particularly skin diseases and, more recently, polio. We are terrified of infection as the health situation deteriorates severely💔💔.We urgently need a safe, healthy, and fear-free life for me, my siblings, and my family. Please help us by donating through the link and sharing our campaign 🙏🏻🙏🏻❤️‍🩹❤️‍🩹❤️‍🩹❤️‍🩹

#stand with gaza #gaza #gaza genocide #gazaunderattack #free palestine #i stand with palestine #send help #please help

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theantoniomabs · 2 years ago

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sirfrogsworth · 4 months ago

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The Price of "Efficiency"

There is a classic story about writing in space. It typically goes something like,

"NASA spent millions of dollars developing an ink pen so they could write in microgravity.

Russia used a pencil."

It became a parable about efficiency and bloated, wasteful budgets and overcomplication.

And without nuance, it feels like a good lesson. It's a simple teaching you can store in your brain and it can help you avoid complication when simplicity will work just as well.

But the parable is a lie.

There is a reason they spent millions of dollars making a space pen. Pencils in space are fucking dangerous. If one splinter or shard or speck gets loose in zero gravity that fucker can float directly into your eyeball.

There is a more modern version of this story. Congress will look over NASA or the military's budget and ask why they need $400 hammers or bolts that cost $50 apiece. They will hold up a bag of bolts and tell the taxpayer they are getting screwed.

But the NASA hammer has the pencil problem. If a shard of steel breaks off that hammer in zero gravity, it's a big problem. It could float into an important electrical system and cause a short. Maybe even a fire.

And those bolts might be for a $50 million fighter jet. They need to be custom manufactured to extreme tolerances. And you'll be glad you paid for those $50 bolts because replacing the fighter jet will end up being much more costly.

This is a concept Elon Musk should understand considering his work at SpaceX. People often deride SpaceX when a rocket blows up. They see it as a giant waste. But that is a normal part of rocket development. If you want to make a better rocket, you cannot avoid blowing a few into smithereens.

Everything needs context.

You have to consider nuance before making huge unilateral decisions about apparent wasteful spending. The folks who run these programs should be allowed to defend their existence. But outside his own interests, Elon can only seem to see space pens when Russian pencils will suffice. He is looking at these programs and making no effort to see the nuance.

They say USAID gives more money to "governance" than they give to "humanitarian aid."

HOW WASTEFUL!

Except a lot of humanitarian aid gets stolen without government infrastructure to secure and deliver said aid.

Waste happens. Fraud happens. I have no doubt.

But figuring out what is *actually* wasteful is a difficult job that takes a lot of research and understanding.

But also, sometimes the fraud and the waste are worth it. Large companies will actually factor theft and fraud into their budget because it would be more costly to try and prevent it. They consider it "the cost of doing business."

But it seems no fraud or waste is acceptable to a conservative when the goal is helping people. 100% efficiency is required. You can't give all kids school lunches because some of those kids have rich parents. You can't give people disability income because some will take advantage.

Apparently if you can help millions of people but you have to absorb 10% of the cost due to fraud... well that is just unacceptable.

It's better to help no one at all.

Oftentimes Republicans will create anti-fraud programs that end up costing more than the actual fraud happening. And all the anti-fraud programs end up doing is making deserving people jump through extra hoops.

Get a lawyer. See an approved doctor. Gather 20 years of evidence that you've been disabled. Whoops, they didn't request the proper records. Start over.

That was basically my disability case. I was already on disability. They had already determined I was disabled 20 years ago. But I had to prove that I was disabled all over again to get the better kind of disability. They couldn't take their own word that I was disabled.

Those hoops were created because catching fraud is more important than helping people.

Not terribly efficient.

And then there is the "not our problem" approach.

Taxpayer money is "wasted" helping people in other countries. "We have homeless veterans! Why are we helping African babies?"

Giving out free condoms is one of the easiest and cheapest ways to stop the spread of disease. Sickness cares very little for imaginary borders. Saving lives in another country also saves lives here. It's mutually beneficial. We probably even prevented some of those homeless vets from getting infected.

No thought is being put into this scorched earth shit show.

As always... get fucked, Elon.

#long post

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fionayao2008 · 2 years ago

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rajaniesh · 2 years ago

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Supercharge Your Coding with GitHub Copilot: The Future of Intelligent Autocompletion

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eugenedebs1920 · 2 months ago

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Politicians lie to get your vote. They bend the truth. They may even knowingly make a false claim. The Trump administration is the complete distortion of objective reality.

I am perhaps a bit too informed on current events, particularly the fall of American democracy. So far in this second round of Trump, I’m not sure if I’ve heard a single word of truth from him, those around him, or his propaganda networks.

It had been nonstop lies, corruption and criminality. Seriously! Not a single ounce of truth.

First thing he did was pardon the Jan 6th insurrectionist, claiming they had been treated very badly. Many of them beat the crap out of capital police, they stormed the capital looking to sting up Mike Pence and Nancy Pelosi. They stole documents, smeared feces all over walls, and defiled our nation’s capital. Many deserved the sentence they received.

Second thing was to blame all of Americas problems on people with brown skin, gay people, trans people, anyone who wasn’t a straight white man. Even when his stupid ass transportation Secretary had the first air crash in over a decade, that was because of minorities somehow. Funny. Pete Buttigieg is gay and not a single plane crashed during his whole time as Transportation Secretary.

Trump brings in the world’s richest man to make government efficient. Yet the first thing he does is dismantle USAID, a program that was less than 1% of the U.S. budget and gave food and medicine to the poorest people across the globe. Think of it! The richest man on the planet, taking food from the most impoverished people on earth. It’s unbelievably messed up.

The guy who spent almost $300 million getting trump elected then starts rummaging through every aspect of the federal government where, ironically, he starts dismantling and picking apart agencies that were investigating his companies. CFPB and SEC were looking into his electronic currency for X, dissolved or defunded. The FDA was looking into the brain chips he was working on, defunded drastically. The FAA was bringing charges against spacex for the rocket explosions that posed numerous dangers, massive funding cuts. You hear very little about this on “legacy” media.

Trump betrays Ukraine, goes so far as to call Zelenskyy a dictator but praises Putin! He has Jerkin Dicks Vance make some ABSURD speech condoning AfT rhetoric and berating our allies, we vote against condemning Putin’s war crimes, along with countries like, North Korea, Belarus, Iran, and of course Russia. WTAF!? And maga is cool with this? We joined the damn axis of evil! The just shameful ambush of Zelenskyy in the White House, it’s one of those things you can’t unseee. Just disgraceful…

The immigration enforcement is fascist to the core! Whatever you think about a country of immigrants immigration policies, a country which committed genocide against the native inhabitants, that made its initial fortune on the backs of enslaved peoples, that nation should have learned 250 years later that all people deserve to be treated with dignity and minimum respect at least. The only lawyer who spoke the truth in court over the administrative error which sent a Maryland man to a supermax prison in El Salvador, got fired by the administration for telling the truth! Lawyers are bound by a code of ethics (believe it or not) and swear an oath to uphold the law.

The tariffs. My god the tariffs. In 100 days America went from the best economic recovery of all developed nations after covid, to the stock market tanking and the contraction of the economy as a whole. Lie after lie about this too. Not simply about inflation or Wall Street, but telling us not to believe our lying eyes and empty wallets with claims that prices are actually down. I CAN CLEARLY SEE THAT THEY AREN’T! How dumb do they think we are!?

Then there’s the full on assault to the first amendment. It’s funny because the right has been setting the precedent that liberals have been attacking the first amendment for years now. (a good way to predict what corruption Republicans are planning is to listen to what they are accusing others of. Promise! It works every time) Why!? Because your Facebook post on how ivermectin cures covid was disputed and taken down? Cry me a river. Trump has attempted to dictate what university professors can teach and the curriculum offered. He has sued law firms for defending causes in conflict with his. He has instituted Christian defense orders. Sued and threatened multiple press organizations. We haven’t even seen the response to an enormous protest in DC yet. June 14th. Be there…

There is not enough time in my life to go over every lie that Trump and his administration have perpetuated, but I can tell you this. The proposed budget, the funding cuts, the degradation of constitutional rights, the immigrant hate, the installation of HIGHLY UNQUALIFIED loyalists in intelligence and defense agencies, defying the courts, discrediting the press, politicizing religion, going after universities, eliminating the department of education, using the DOJ as a personal retribution law firm, military parades, accosting our allies, aligning with autocratic regimes, ignoring due process, creating an alternate reality void from facts or data, where nothing one sees is what they’re actually seeing, distorting what’s real, what’s true, what’s objective, and not backing down from that fabricated story.

I could go on.

These are the actions of a dictator. These are the doings of autocrats. What is playing out in front of our faces is the destruction of the American democratic representative constitutional republic, and the inception of a fascist state. It’s been 100 days people!! This much damage has already occurred.

I posed a question the other day that stuck in my mind. Is it that maga believes the lies that are told to them, does nearly half the country lack the critical thinking skills to see past the propaganda? Or is it that their disdain and animosity towards liberals is so great they simply don’t care? The hatred towards their fellow Americans for having opposing political views is so strong, that they’re willing to burn the whole thing down just to “own the libs”?

I can’t answer that with clarity, but either way….

It’s not good

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mostlysignssomeportents · 1 month ago

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The meritocracy to eugenics pipeline

I'm on a 20+ city book tour for my new novel PICKS AND SHOVELS. Catch me in PDX on Jun 20 at BARNES AND NOBLE with BUNNIE HUANG. After that, it's LONDON (Jul 1) and MANCHESTER (Jul 2).

It's kinda weird how, the more oligarchic our society gets, the more racist it gets. Why is the rise of billionaires attended by a revival of discredited eugenic ideas, dressed up in modern euphemisms like "race realism" and "human diversity"?

I think the answer lies in JK Galbraith's observation that "The modern conservative is engaged in one of man's oldest exercises in moral philosophy; that is, the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness."

The theory of markets goes like this: a market is a giant computer that is always crunching all kinds of "signals" about what people want and how much they want it, and which companies and individuals are most suited to different roles within the system. The laissez-faire proposition is that if we just resist the temptation to futz with the computer (to "distort the market"), it will select the best person for each position: workers, consumers, and, of course, "capital allocators" who decide where the money goes and thus what gets made.

The vast, distributed market computer is said to be superior to any kind of "central planning" because it can integrate new facts quickly and adjust production to suit varying needs. Let rents rise too high and the computer will trigger the subroutine that brings "self-interested" ("greedy") people into the market to build more housing and get a share of those sky-high rents, "coming back into equilibrium." But allow a bureaucracy to gum up the computer with a bunch of rules about how that housing should be built and the "lure new homebuilders" program will crash. Likewise, if the government steps in to cap the price of rents, the "price signal" will be silenced and that "new homebuilders" program won't even be triggered.

There's some logic to this. There are plenty of good things that market actors do that are motivated by self-interest rather than altruism. When Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin developed their Pagerank algorithm and revolutionized internet search, they weren't just solving a cool computer science problem – they were hoping to get rich.

But here's the thing: if you let Larry and Sergey tap the capital markets – if they can put on a convincing show for the "capital allocators" – then the market will happily supply them with the billions they need to buy and neutralize their competitors, to create barriers to entry for superior search engines, and become the "central planners" that market theory so deplores. If your business can't get any market oxygen, if no audience ever discovers your creative endeavors, does it matter if the central planner who decided you don't deserve a chance is elected or nominated by "the market"?

Here's how self-proclaimed market enthusiasts answer that question: all Larry and Sergey are doing here is another form of "capital allocation." They're allocating attention, deciding what can and can't be seen, in just the same way that a investor decides what will and won't be funded. If an investor doesn't fund promising projects, then some other investor will come along, fund them, get rich, and poach the funds that were once given to less-successful rivals. In the same way, if Google allocates attention badly, then someone will start a better search engine that's better at allocating attention, and we will switch to that new search engine, and Google will fail.

Again, this sounds reasonable, but a little scrutiny reveals it to be circular reasoning. Google has dominated search for a quarter of a century now. It has a 90% market share. According to the theory of self-correcting markets, this means that Google is very good at allocating our attention. What's more, if it feels like Google actually sucks at this – like Google's search-results are garbage – that doesn't mean Google it bad at search. It doesn't mean that Google is sacrificing quality to improve its bottom line (say, by scaling back on anti-spam spending, or by increasing the load of ads on a search results page).

It just means that doing better than Google is impossible. You can tell it's impossible, because it hasn't happened.

QED.

Google wasn't the first search engine, and it would be weird if it were the last. The internet and the world have changed a lot and the special skills, organizational structures and leadership that Google assembled to address the internet of the 2000s and the 2010s is unlikely to be the absolute perfect mix for the 2020s. And history teaches us that the kinds of people who can assemble thee skills, structures and leaders to succeed in one era are unlikely to be able to change over to the ideal mix for the next era.

Interpreting the persistent fact of Google's 90% market-share despite its plummeting quality as evidence of Google's excellence requires an incredible act of mental gymnastics. Rather than accepting the proposition that Google both dominates and sucks because it is excellent, we should at least consider the possibility that Google dominates while sucking because it cheats. And hey, wouldn't you know it, three federal courts have found Google to be a monopolist in three different ways in just a year.

Now, the market trufans will tell you that these judges who called Google a cheater are just futzers who can't keep their fingers off the beautiful, flawless market computer. By dragging Google into court, forcing its executives to answer impertinent questions, and publishing their emails, the court system is "distorting the market." Google is the best, because it is the biggest, and once it stops being the best, it will be toppled.

This makes perfect sense to people who buy the underlying logic of market-as-computer. For the rest of us, it strains credulity.

Now, think for a minute of the people who got rich off of Google. You have the founders – like Sergey Brin, who arrived in America as a penniless refugee and is now one of the richest people in the history of the human species. He got his fortune by building something that billions of us used trillions of times (maybe even quadrillions of times) – the greatest search engine the world had ever seen.

Brin isn't the only person who got rich off Google, of course. There are plenty of Googlers who performed different kinds of labor – coding, sure, but also accountancy, HR, graphic design, even catering in the company's famous cafeterias – who became "post-economic" (a euphemism for "so rich they don't ever need to think about money ever again") thanks to their role in Google's success.

There's a pretty good argument to be made that these people "earned" their money, in the sense that they did a job and that job generated some money and they took it home. We can argue about whether the share of the profits that went to different people was fair, or whether the people whose spending generated that profit got a good deal, or whether the product itself was good or ethical. But what is inarguable is that this was money that people got for doing something.

Then there's Google's investors. They made a lot of money, especially the early investors. Again, we can argue about whether investors should be rewarded for speculation, but there's no question that the investors in Google took a risk and got something back. They could have lost it all. In some meaningful sense, they made a good choice and were rewarded for it.

But now let's think about the next generation. The odds that these billionaires, centimillionaires and decimillionaires will spawn the next generation of 1%ers, 0.1%ers, and 0.0001%ers are very high. Right now, in America, the biggest predictor of being rich is having rich parents. Every billionaire on the Forbes under-30 list inherited their wealth:

https://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/forbes-billionaires-under-30-inherited-203930435.html

The wealthy have created a system of dynastic wealth that puts the aristocratic method of primogenitor in the shade. Every scion of every one-percenter can have their own fortune and start their own dynasty, without lifting a finger. Their sole job is to sign the paperwork put before them by "wealth managers":

https://pluralistic.net/2021/06/19/dynastic-wealth/#caste

Yes, it's true that some of the very richest people on Earth got their money by investing, rather than inheriting it. Bill Gates's investment income growth exceeds even the growth of the world's richest woman, L'Oreal heiress Liliane Bettencourt, who never did anything of note apart from emerging from an extremely lucky orifice and then simply accruing:

https://memex.craphound.com/2014/06/24/thomas-pikettys-capital-in-the-21st-century/

But Bill Gates's wealth accumulation from investing exceeds the wealth he accumulated by founding and running the most successful company in history (at the time). Doing work never pays as much as allocating capital. And Gates's children? They can assume a Bettencourtian posture on a divan, mouths yawning wide for the passage of peeled grapes, and their fortunes will grow still larger. Same goes for their children, and their children's children.

Capitalism's self-mythologizing insists that the invisible hand owes no allegiance to yesterday's champions. The mere fact that the market rewarded you for allocating capital wisely during your tenure does not entitle your offspring to continue to allocate wealth in the years and centuries to come – not unless they, too, are capital allocators of such supremacy that they are superior to everyone born hereafter and will make the decisions that make the whole world better off.

Because that's the justification for inequality: that the market relentlessly seeks out the people with the skill and foresight to do things and invest in things that improve the world for all of us. If we interrupt that market process with regulations, taxes, or other "distorting" factors, then the market's quest for the right person for the right job will be thwarted and all of us will end up poorer. If we want the benefits of the invisible hand, we must not jostle the invisible elbow!

That's the justification for abolishing welfare, public education, public health, affirmative action, DEI, and any other programs that redistribute wealth to the least among us. If we get in the way of the market's selection process, we'll elevate incompetents to roles of power and importance and they will bungle those roles in ways that hurt us all. As Boris Johnson put it: "the harder you shake the pack the easier it will be for [big] cornflakes to get to the top":

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2013/nov/28/boris-johnson-iq-intelligence-gordon-gekko

Which leaves the servants and defenders of the invisible hand with a rather awkward question: how is it that today, capital allocation is a hereditary role? We used to have the idea that fitness to allocate capital – that is, to govern the economy and the lives of all of the rest of us – was a situational matter. The rule was "shirtsleeves to shirtsleeves in three generations": "The first generation makes it, the second generation spends it, and the third generation blows it."

That's the lesson of the rags to riches story*: that out there, amongst the teeming grubby billions, lurks untold genius, waiting to be anointed by the market and turned loose to make us all better off.

In America, these stories are sometimes called "Horatio Alger" stories, after the writer who penned endless millionaire-pleasing fables about urchins who were adopted by wealthy older men who saw their promise and raised them to be captains of industry. However, in real life, Horatio Alger was a pedophile who adopted young boys and raped them:

https://newenglandhistoricalsociety.com/horatio-alger-hundred-year-old-secret/

Perhaps your life was saved by a surgeon who came from humble origins but made it through med school courtesy of Pell Grants. Perhaps you thrilled to a novel or a film made by an artist from a working class family who got their break through an NEA grant. Maybe the software you rely on every day, or the game that fills your evenings, was created by someone who learned their coding skills at a public library or publicly funded after-school program.

The presence among us of people who achieved social mobility and made our lives better is evidence that people are being born every moment with something to contribute that is markedly different, and higher in social status, than the role their parents played. Even if you stipulate that the person who cleans your toilet has been correctly sorted into a toilet-cleaning job by the invisible hand, it's clear that the invisible hand would prefer that at least some of those toilet-cleaners' kids should do something else for a living.

And yet, wealth remains stubbornly hereditary. Our capital allocators – who, during the post-war, post-New Deal era were often drawn from working families – are now increasingly, relentlessly born to that role.

For the wealthy, this is the origin of the meritocracy to eugenics pipeline. If power and privilege are inherited – and they are, ever moreso every day – then either we live in an extremely unfair society in which the privileged and the powerful have rigged the game…or the invisible hand has created a subspecies of thoroughbred humans who were literally born to rule.

This is the thesis of the ultra-rich, the moral justification for rigging the system so that their failsons and faildaughters will give rise to faildestinies of failgrandkids and failgreat-grandkids, whose emergence from history's luckiest orifices guarantees them a lifelong tenure ordering other people around. It's the justification for some people being born to own the places where the rest of us live, and the rest of us paying them half our salaries just so we don't end up sleeping on the sidewalk.

"Hereditary meritocracy" is just a polite way of saying "eugenics." It starts from the premise of the infallible invisible hand and then attributes all inequality in society to the hand's perfect judgment, its genetic insight in picking the best people for the best jobs. If people of one race are consistently on top of the pile, that's the market telling you something about their genomes. If men consistently fare better in the economy than women, the invisible hand is trying to say something about the Y chromosome for anyone with ears to hear.

Capitalism's winners have always needed "a superior moral justification for selfishness," a discreet varnish to shine up the old divine right of kings. Think of the millionaire who created a "Nobel Prize sperm-bank" (and then fraudulently fathered hundreds of children because he couldn't find any Nobelists willing to make a deposit):

https://memex.craphound.com/2006/09/07/nobel-prize-sperm-bank-human-tragicomedy-about-eugenics/

Or the billionaire founder of Telegram who has fathered over 100 children in a bid to pass on his "superior genes":

https://www.cnn.com/2024/08/26/tech/pavel-durov-telegram-profile-intl

Think of Trump and his endless boasting about his "good blood" and praise for the "bloodlines" of Henry Ford and other vicious antisemites:

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2020/05/22/trump-criticized-praising-bloodlines-henry-ford-anti-semite/5242361002/

Or Elon Musk, building a compound where he hopes to LARP as Immortan Joe, with a harem of women who have borne his legion of children, who will carry on his genetic legacy:

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/29/business/elon-musk-children-compound.html

Inequality is a hell of a drug. There's plenty of evidence that becoming a billionaire rots your brain, and being born into a dynastic fortune is a thoroughly miserable experience:

https://pluralistic.net/2021/04/13/public-interest-pharma/#affluenza

The stories that rich people tell themselves about why this is the only way things can be ("There is no alternative" -M. Thatcher) always end up being stories about superior blood. Eugenics and inequality are inseparable companions.

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2025/05/20/big-cornflakes-energy/#caliper-pilled

#pluralistic #eugenics #meritocracy #phrenology #good blood #oligarchy #hereditary meritocracy #lucky orifices

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c1qfxugcgy0 · 1 month ago

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At my last job, we sold lots of hobbyist electronics stuff, including microcontrollers.

This turned out to be a little more complicated than selling, like, light bulbs. Oh how I yearned for the simplicity of a product you could plug in and have work.

Background: A microcontroller is the smallest useful computer. An ATtiny10 has a kilobyte of program memory. If you buy a thousand at a time, they cost 44 cents each.

As you'd imagine, the smallest computer has not great specs. The RAM is 32 bytes. Not gigabytes, not megabytes, not kilobytes. Individual bytes. Microcontrollers have the absolute minimum amount of hardware needed to accomplish their task, and nothing more.

This includes programming the thing. Any given MCU is programmed once, at the start of its life, and then spends the next 30 years blinking an LED on a refrigerator. Since they aren’t meant to be reflashed in the field, and modern PCs no longer expose the fast, bit-bangable ports hobbyists once used, MCUs usually need a third-party programming tool.

But you could just use that tool to install a bootloader, which then listens for a magic number on the serial bus. Then you can reprogram the chip as many times as you want without the expensive programming hardware.

There is an immediate bifurcation here. Only hobbyists will use the bootloader version. With 1024 bytes of program memory, there is, even more than usual, nothing to spare.

Consumer electronics development is a funny gig. It, more than many other businesses, requires you to be good at everything. A startup making the next Furby requires a rare omniexpertise. Your company has to write software, design hardware, create a production plan, craft a marketing scheme, and still do the boring logistics tasks of putting products in boxes and mailing them out. If you want to turn a profit, you do this the absolute minimum number of people. Ideally, one.

Proving out a brand new product requires cutting corners. You make the prototype using off the shelf hobbyist electronics. You make the next ten units with the same stuff, because there's no point in rewriting the entire codebase just for low rate initial production. You use the legacy code for the next thousand units because you're desperately busy putting out a hundred fires and hiring dozens of people to handle the tsunami of new customers. For the next ten thousand customers...

Rather by accident, my former employer found itself fulfilling the needs of the missing middle. We were an official distributor of PICAXE chips for North America. Our target market was schools, but as a sideline, we sold individual PICAXE chips, which were literally PIC chips flashed with a bootloader and a BASIC interpreter at a 200% markup. As a gag, we offered volume discounts on the chips up to a thousand units. Shortly after, we found ourselves filling multi-thousand unit orders.

We had blundered into a market niche too stupid for anyone else to fill. Our customers were tiny companies who sold prototypes hacked together from dev boards. And every time I cashed a ten thousand dollar check from these guys, I was consumed with guilt. We were selling to willing buyers at the current fair market price, but they shouldn't have been buying these products at all! Since they were using bootloaders, they had to hand program each chip individually, all while PIC would sell you programmed chips at the volume we were selling them for just ten cents extra per unit! We shouldn't have been involved at all!

But they were stuck. Translating a program from the soft and cuddly memory-managed education-oriented languages to the hardcore embedded byte counting low level languages was a rather esoteric skill. If everyone in-house is just barely keeping their heads above water responding to customer emails, and there's no budget to spend $50,000 on a consultant to rewrite your program, what do you do? Well, you keep buying hobbyist chips, that's what you do.

And I talked to these guys. All the time! They were real, functional, profitable businesses, who were giving thousands of dollars to us for no real reason. And the worst thing. The worst thing was... they didn't really care? Once every few months they would talk to their chip guy, who would make vague noises about "bootloaders" and "programming services", while they were busy solving actual problems. (How to more accurately detect deer using a trail camera with 44 cents of onboard compute) What I considered the scandal of the century was barely even perceived by my customers.

In the end my employer was killed by the pandemic, and my customers seamlessly switched to buying overpriced chips straight from the source. The end! No moral.

#margin call

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batboyblog · 1 year ago

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Things Biden and the Democrats did, this week #19

May 17-24 2024

President Biden wiped out the student loan debt of 160,000 more Americans. This debt cancellation of 7.7 billion dollars brings the total student loan debt relieved by the Biden Administration to $167 billion. The Administration has canceled student loan debt for 4.75 million Americans so far. The 160,000 borrowers forgiven this week owned an average of $35,000 each and are now debt free. The Administration announced plans last month to bring debt forgiveness to 30 million Americans with student loans coming this fall.

The Department of Justice announced it is suing Ticketmaster for being a monopoly. DoJ is suing Ticketmaster and its parent company Live Nation for monopolistic practices. Ticketmaster controls 70% of the live show ticket market leading to skyrocketing prices, hidden fees and last minute cancellation. The Justice Department is seeking to break up Live Nation and help bring competition back into the market. This is one of a number of monopoly law suits brought by the Biden administration against Apple in March and Amazon in September 2023.

The EPA announced $225 million in new funding to improve drinking and wastewater for tribal communities. The money will go to tribes in the mainland US as well as Alaska Native Villages. It'll help with testing for forever chemicals, and replacing of lead pipes as well as sustainability projects.

The EPA announced $300 million in grants to clean up former industrial sites. Known as "Brownfield" sites these former industrial sites are to be cleaned and redeveloped into community assets. The money will fund 200 projects across 178 communities. One such project will transform a former oil station in Philadelphia’s Kingsessing neighborhood, currently polluted with lead and other toxins into a waterfront bike trail.

The Department of Agriculture announced a historic expansion of its program to feed low income kids over the summer holidays. Since the 1960s the SUN Meals have served in person meals at schools and community centers during the summer holidays to low income children. This Year the Biden administration is rolling out SUN Bucks, a $120 per child grocery benefit. This benefit has been rejected by many Republican governors but in the states that will take part 21 million kids will benefit. Last year the Biden administration introduced SUN Meals To-Go, offering pick-up and delivery options expanding SUN's reach into rural communities. These expansions are part of the Biden administration's plan to end hunger and reduce diet-related disease by 2030.

Vice-President Harris builds on her work in Africa to announce a plan to give 80% of Africa internet access by 2030, up from just 40% today. This push builds off efforts Harris has spearheaded since her trip to Africa in 2023, including $7 billion in climate adaptation, resilience, and mitigation, and $1 billion to empower women. The public-private partnership between the African Development Bank Group and Mastercard plans to bring internet access to 3 million farmers in Kenya, Tanzania, and Nigeria, before expanding to Uganda, Ethiopia, and Ghana, and then the rest of the continent, bring internet to 100 million people and businesses over the next 10 years. This is together with the work of Partnership for Digital Access in Africa which is hoping to bring internet access to 80% of Africans by 2030, up from 40% now, and just 30% of women on the continent. The Vice-President also announced $1 billion for the Women in the Digital Economy Fund to assure women in Africa have meaningful access to the internet and its economic opportunities.

The Senate approved Seth Aframe to be a Judge on the US Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, it also approved Krissa Lanham, and Angela Martinez to district Judgeships in Arizona, as well as Dena Coggins to a district court seat in California. Bring the total number of judges appointed by President Biden to 201. Biden's Judges have been historically diverse. 64% of them are women and 62% of them are people of color. President Biden has appointed more black women to federal judgeships, more Hispanic judges and more Asian American judges and more LGBT judges than any other President, including Obama's full 8 years in office. President Biden has also focused on backgrounds appointing a record breaking number of former public defenders to judgeships, as well as labor and civil rights lawyers.

#Thanks Biden #Joe Biden #kamala harris #student loans #student loan forgiveness #ticketmaster #Africa #free lunch #hunger #poverty #internet #judges #politics #us politics #american politics

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thanksbutno98 · 3 months ago

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Jail

John Price x wife!reader OC

Summary: John Price ends up in jail after protecting a loved one.

Warnings: Sexual themes, violence, blood, fighting, not edited.

——————

“Date night, date night, date night.” You chanted over and over.

John was chuckling and following you close behind while puffing on a cigar. The way your ass moved in that little black dress made John very thankful for date night. You were two glasses of wine in and John knew another drink would mean he was getting lucky tonight, if he wasn’t already.

You wore a black fitted velvet dress that came to mid thigh. It was long sleeved and had a square neckline. You paired it with silver jewelry and your black red bottom heels. You knew your ass and tits looked amazing in this dress by the way John kept groping you every chance he had. Your hair was loosely pulled back and framed your face elegantly while you did natural makeup.

John dressed much simpler in his black slacks and white button down. The sleeves were rolled up to his elbows and top two buttons undone. John had on his silver watch and shiny black loafers. You thought he looked so handsome with his beared neatly trimmed and his fresh haircut. And he smelled nicer than he looked with his oaky cologne and beard oil.

Life had slowed down with your children out of the house besides your youngest daughter. Jj had just gotten home from his latest deployment while Evelyn was in medical school. Lily was just finishing up school and was accepted into a culinary program. John consistently made sweet comments that you were able to hold on to your figure when you had a daughter who baked so much. He on the other hand was combatting weight gain and breaking even some days due to Lily’s exquisite desserts. John wasn’t losing by much and held on to his muscular frame but had developed a softer stomach instead of his toned abs that were now hidden beneath the thin layer of fat.

Tonight you two decided since your youngest, Lily, was old enough to be home alone you’d go out. That meant dinner and drinks. Dinner was fantastic and John didn’t even look at the bill because you two definitely spent more than you should have. Now, you two were on your way to some swanky pub for drinks down the street.

Opening the door for you, you gave John a kiss while he grabbed a handful of your ass. After flicking his cigar to the ground he walked into the pub that seemed to be for a much younger demographic. There were some people your age who were enjoying themselves. The bar was upscale and had to be way too expensive for university students.

Walking in, the bar was located on the right side and stretched for about half way of the long room. The stool cushions were beige leather while the legs were a red wood that matched the shiny bar. The glass cabinets behind the bar were stocked with expensive alcohol with fairy lights twinkling behind them. To the left were half moon booths that stretched the same length of the room that the bar did. The upholstery matched the bar stools and the round tables were shiny red wood. In the back were more round tables with chairs filled with nicely dressed university students.

“How do kids this young afford a place like this.” You whispered to John as he lead you to the bar, his arm wrapped around your waist.

“Mummy and daddy have fat wallets.” John joked sarcastically, then laid a kiss to your temple.

You knew John’s distain for spoiled rich kids. It truly rubbed him the wrong way to deal with anyone who had all their accomplishments handed to them. Before you could respond a familiar voice interrupted you two.

“Aren’t you two a little old to be out this late?” Your eldest daughter Evelyn smiled mischievously at you and John.

John’s entire demeanor changed seeing his eldest daughter. He went from the suave flirt he was when alone with you and shifted right back into being a father.

“Guess we’re the ones with fat wallets.” You joked, which had John chuckling.

Evelyn looked so much like you but as she grew into a young woman started to look like no one else but herself. She had her long brown hair pulled back into a white hair clip that allowed her full bangs to frame her face. As usual she wore a rosy Smokey eye with winged eyeliner and a soft pastel pink lipstick. She was dressed in black tights and a grey skirt that came just above mid thigh. Her faded green jumper was loose and showed off her white turtleneck underneath. It was paired nicely with the gold jewelry set she had been gifted by you and John when she started medical school. Your dad, Evelyn’s grandfather, liked to tell you both that you had that girl nextdoor kind of beauty that your mother had.

“Mum, you look right fit in that. Can I borrow it sometime?” Evelyn admired your dress and was gaping like a trout at how good you looked.

She was accustom to seeing you barefoot, in leggings and t-shirts with your hair tied back and a broom in one hand. You took keeping the house clean seriously and the hard work that went into that left you wanting to be comfortable in how you dressed. Evelyn admired that about you because she struggled to keep her one room flat clean and she didn’t know how you managed the entire house with only the help of her father and Lily. You use to get the whole family to help clean and it only took a couple of hours. Now with two men down it had to take a full day.

“You think?” You looked down at the outfit you were once self conscious about and blushed at the compliment.

“Yeah! God, hope I age like you. Bet no one here would guess you’re my mum, more like sister. A Jennifer Aniston, Ava Mendes, Halle Berry, Michelle Yeoh, kind of aging-so jealous!” Evelyn continued, making you giggle lightly at all the compliments. You knew she meant it too because she wasn’t usually a kiss ass to you.

“Oh stop it-“ Evelyn cut in before you could swat her compliments away.

“Sandra Bullock! She’s also aging phenomenally.” The fact Evelyn was now going on about celebrities she thought were aging beautifully was having you cackling laughing.

“Jamie Lee Curtis.” You added.

“Viola Davis!” She half shouted.

“Salma Hayek.” John said while wagging his eyebrows and appreciated the approving nods he received from you and Evelyn.

Evelyn and you continued to name beautiful actresses that you thought were aging like fine wine. It wasn’t lost on you that the actresses John named were some of the sexiest women alive. That was until your daughter brought her attention to John and gave him a judgmental look. You thought she was about to tear him down because of the actresses he was choosing to name. She could be protective when her father was being insensitive.

“And then there’s you, dad. Dressed like a store mannequin. . . Lucky man, with mum being so hot. If you two were single you’d never be able to score her now. Still don’t know how you did in the first place.” She continued and gave John’s outfit a once over and seemed to be unimpressed.

“How about you play nice and I’ll pay for you and your friend’s drinks.” John gave her a hug that she returned.

“No, they’re all a bunch of rich pricks. Just pay for mine and Archie’s.” With a big cheesy smile Evelyn moved to hug you while John nodded with a chuckle and flagged down the bartender.

“I’ll have a pear martini-“ You paused and looked to John.

“Whiskey, neat. Keep it open and put whatever she gets on my tab.” John nodded toward Evelyn and handed over his credit card. He then scanned the room until he saw Archie chatting with a group of friends.

Archie had grown into a handsome young man. No longer that scrawny little boy, Archie stood a little taller than John. Archie left behind the dorky attitude and haircut. It was swapped for a smart looking cropped cut and quiet confidence. He had also made it a habit to hit the gym so he was no longer all limbs but now had an athletic build to him. The two things that never changed were his freckles and thick rimmed rectangular glasses he’d always worn. The lenses were so thick it made it obvious he was blind as a bat without them.

“And him.” John pointed to the unsuspecting young man that remained his daughter’s best friend after all these years.

“He’s paying for some girls-“

“I’ll take care of it.” With that the bartender went on his way to make your drinks.

John had no reservation paying for Archie’s drinks and whichever young lady he was attempting to court. John saw Archie like a son and often gave him the fatherly advice Archie craved. It truly felt at times that you had four children instead of three. This had helped you and John make peace with never having a fourth child like you wanted. Because Archie was enough and fit in with you all seamlessly.

“So how’s studying.” You asked Evelyn who was happy to ignore her friends to chat with you.

Evelyn could become so immersed in her life that she would forget to check in or stop by. She was a person who gave herself to whatever life she was living. When at home, school seemed to be a distant thought and when at school or with friends, it was easy for her to forget about family.

“I would be studying now, if Archie hadn’t dragged me out to have fun.” With a shrug Evelyn took a sip of her mysterious dark drink.

The ice clinked against the glass as she brought it to her lips and took the smallest sip. After a moment you realized it was a dark and stormy and smiled how her alcoholic preferences had improved. She use to drink sweet wines that would leave most feeling sick the next day.

“Drinking that slow, I assume you want to study when you get back?” You asked which had her nodding as if she’d been caught doing something naughty.

It made you think back to when she was little and would give you that same charmingly sweet look. You were the same way at this age, putting your studies above all else; including fun. It made you happy you met John after you were established in your career or you might not have given him the time of day.

“Don’t tell Archie. He’s been on my case about ‘enjoying my twenties.’” Evelyn mocked Archie’s voice and used air quotes.

“You’ve turned out just like your mum.” John chuckled.

“Good, means I’m smart. Now I just have to figure out where I’ll be doing my special training. Archie’s already figured that out so I need to catch up.” Evelyn sighed heavily.

She never liked when someone else had things figured out before her. It was seen as the beginning stages of failure which she refused to ever let happen. Failing was not an option and much like John, Evelyn would fight tooth and nail for the things she wanted. You on the other hand made everything look easy and Evelyn was convinced you never once struggled academically.

“Could I buy you a drink?” A young man a few years older than your daughter approached the group.

He was tall, dark, and handsome. Dressed in dark blue jeans, a burnt orange sweater with a collard shirt underneath. You looked at Evelyn to see how she was about to handle being hit on. Wagging your eyebrows at her to signal the boy was cute. John on the other hand was unamused.

“I’m not interested, but-“

“Oh sorry, love. I was talking to-“ The man motioned to you.

Evelyn scoffed while you laughed audibly in this strangers face and then clamped your hand over your mouth for being so rude. Your reaction looked as if you shoved him with how he physically leaned away. It wasn’t uncommon for you to get hit on by men your own age when out like this but someone close to your son’s age was rare.

“Piss off.” John started to deeply chuckle until he was full on laughing at this man who couldn’t be any older than Jj.

“Sorry-“

“Oh my god! Don’t hit on my mum!” Evelyn loudly exclaimed making people around look over at you.

The man quickly ducked his head and walked away clearly embarrassed. Evelyn was now laughing because she had only done that to embarrass the man.

“That was-“ you spaced out for a second at how utterly ridiculous you found that. It was flattering but still, you would prefer things like that to not happen.

“Look who’s still got it! You’re a lucky man dad.” Evelyn hyped you up.

The three of you carried on and chatted about Evelyn’s studies and when she would come home next. Finding out Jj was coming home tomorrow was enough for Evelyn to agree to come back with you and John after this drink. Then you would take her to her flat and she’d pack a bag and stay the night.

“What are you drinking?” Another stranger came up but this time it was clear he was approaching Evelyn.

He was closer to John’s age which threw you off and immediately had John on guard. The middle aged man was slightly shorter than your husband. He had shaggy black hair that was greying and stubble across his chiseled face. You thought he almost looked like John Snow with how good looking he was.

“I’m not interested. Thanks though.” Evelyn barely looked his way and continued to talk to you about Lily.

“Oh c’mon it’s one drink.” The stranger insisted.

You felt John stiffen beside you at the pushy nature of what he saw as an average looking man. The gentle hold John had on your hip slipped away and bawled into a fist now resting on the bar. It was infuriating enough for John to witness you be approached by a pushy man but when it was his daughter; John became irate.

“Nope, thanks.” Evelyn waved him off.

“Oi, another of what she’s having, on me.” The man called to the bartender.

He waved his hand around Evelyn’s drink, you were focused on her eye roll while John was staring daggers at the man. John tried to step forward but you stoped him by tugging on his belt loop and pushing him back with one hand on his chest. With a sweet smile and big doe eyes that John loved you tried to distract him. Your effort was futile as John would never stand around while anyone made his daughter uncomfortable.

“I said-“ Evelyn was about to confront the man when she felt the hulking presence of her father. It was as if a looming shadow was cast over her and this stranger, causing them both to shrink under it.

“Leave her be. Or I’ll shove that drink, glass and all, so far up your ass you’ll taste it.” John practically growled.

Throwing his hands up in defeat and giving John an annoyed scoff the man stopped. John’s presence was enough to scare off most men and you were thankful it didn’t need to go past John threatening the man. But the man continued to cast dirty looks Evelyn’s way, like she had spat in his face when rejecting him.

“Just waiting for the drink I ordered. Stupid bitch.” He mumbled the last part.

You grabbed John before he could start throwing punches. It was hushed but you were begging him to stop and let it go. That those were just words and nothing truly happened. Evelyn was waving her hand at her father to calm down, annoyed he couldn’t control his temper. It was her biggest gripe with him and she had been complaining about it since she was a child.

“Hope it chokes you.” Evelyn spoke in a sugary sweet way that flustered the man. His nostrils flared and he couldn’t find a good enough retort.

Evelyn’s response calmed John down somewhat along with your quiet pleas for him to not loose his temper. That Evelyn was grown enough to handle herself and she didn’t need John to intervene. John listened to you and felt proud at his daughter’s smart mouth being used toward anyone but you and him. The man stalked off to his friends and went about his evening.

Finally your drinks arrived and Evelyn turned her back to the guy. You and her shared a wide eyed look at John’s reaction. He was radiating aggression that was suffocating. Trying to calm him down, you rubbed his toned back and whispered about how good looking he was. You told him how nice it was going to be to have a full house tomorrow. Everything would be fine and you’d laugh about this in an hour.

“Gross.” Evelyn muttered to you and you both broke out in giggles like school girls.

Evelyn went to take another sip of her drink but stopped when John’s hand was quickly placed over top of it. Turning to look at him John had his gaze set off to the side at the crowd of people.

“What?” Evelyn said defensively. She immediately thought John was saying she was drinking too much.

“Don’t drink that. The ice isn’t floating.” John was off before Evelyn could ask any more questions.

Slack jawed she watched John walk off. His broad shoulders were squared and he looked like he determined to do whatever caught his attention. John’s quick departure made your stomach drop. It was instant how you knew what he meant.

“Fuck.” You whispered.

“What’s going on?” Evelyn looked at you who seemed to understand what her father was saying.

“Your dad’s about to get himself arrested. Give me that.” You quickly took her drink and saw John was right.

Waving over the bartender he nodded to you. This was not how you wanted to spend your date night. Glancing over your shoulder you watched John push through the crowd of people and make his way to the center most booth. There was a group of men John’s age drinking beers and loudly laughing and talking.

“Um- this drinks spiked. Can you pull the security tapes and keep it back there in case-“ before you could finish, shouting broke out.

You didn’t bother looking. It was obvious to you what John was doing, but not to Evelyn who shrieked. Evelyn watched as John grabbed the man who had hit on her. He took him by the shoulders and yanked him out of the booth. To Evelyn’s horror her father dragged the man across the floor toward the door. The man’s friends jumped on John to try and stop him.

John kicked them off with ease and instead of taking this outside, he decided he’d do what he had planned in the bar. With the fury of a thousand men, John started swinging at the man who had somehow staggered in to his feet to try and get away. John was beating the snot out of the guy who had just hit on his daughter and then drugged her drink.

“What do you mean it’s spiked!?” Evelyn was looking between you and her father who had tackled the man to the floor, straddled the guy and threw punch after punch.

People were trying to pull John off but it was no use. John was glued to this guy and ready to pummel him into a pulp. It was his goal to leave this man a bloody mess on the sticky bar floor.

“When ice doesn’t float what does that mean about the liquid?” You looked at Evelyn who stared back absolutely flabbergasted by your question.

“Mum, this isn’t the time for one of your science lessons!” She snapped.

Pointing to her father you glanced over at John now trying to get the crowd of men off of him. They had dragged John off and a few people were helping the other man back to his feet.

“What does it mean?” You asked again calmly and waved off your husband. You couldn’t stop him and no part of you wanted to get involved in his violent tirade.

“Oh my god, you’re just as insane as him! It means the ice’s density is greater than the liquid.” In her frantic state Evelyn kept pushing her bangs back just for them to fall into her face again.

“Was it greater when you first got it?” You asked expectantly.

A man’s shriek caught your attention and you turned to see John chasing after the man who was trying to make a break for the door. John got ahold of him by the collar of his shirt and had him in a headlock a second later. He was trying to choke the guy out. Once again John was yanked off of the man who then tried to hobble toward the door. John dusted himself off, faked that he had calmed down, then once people let go of him was back to charging at the man.

“No- oh fuck. Dad’s gonna kill him!” Evelyn gasped.

“What the hell are you two even saying?” The bartender looked at both of you like you were crazy people.

You found it somewhat comical he didn’t seem concerned with the fight that had broken out. But John was currently being dragged off the guy by security, who were not messing around. They were having trouble keeping a hold of him. John had a firm grip on the guys hair and due to this he was being dragged along with John toward the exit. At one point John got his hands on the someone’s shoe and chucked it at a one of the bouncers and clocked him in the face.

“The ice isn’t floating.” You pointed at the ice sitting at the bottom of the drink.

Ignoring John was easier than fretting over him. He wouldn’t listen to you even if you screamed your head off. There was no use getting yourself worked up. John was going to be John and there was no changing that.

“It was floating earlier, it doesn’t just sink on its own. Means someone put something in it. For example, a roofie would do this or a huge amount of alcohol but we know that’s not possible.” You gestured to the full glass.

“Oh.” Evelyn stared at her drink blankly.

“Oh god! Mum the police are here.” Evelyn had her fingers in her hair and tugged at the roots.

“It’s fine- uhhh. We’ll bail him out, don’t worry.” You waved your hand for Evelyn to stay put but she grabbed you before you ran off.

“How are you not mad at him?” She half shrieked at you. You were her mother who hated violence and got on her, John and Jj’s case for fighting since she could remember.

“No way was I going to be able to convince him to not go after the guy. Plus anyone who tries to roofie a girl has it coming. You just happen to be our little girl so it feels a little better your father’s the one to beat the shit out of the guy.” With a shrug you turned and quickly made your way outside. You had to do that little run because you were in heels but you made it there after pushing through the crowd that had formed.

“You’re both crazy.” Evelyn’s said to herself.

Pushing through the crowd you collided with the door and burst through it. The cool night air tingled your warm skin. It completely sobered you up to see police hanging around. Putting on your sweetest smile you were prepared to do anything to get them to stop handcuffing John. John was standing calmly with his hands behind his back and being patted down.

“Do you have to arrest him? The guy tried to roofie our daughter.” You smiled sweetly as you exited the pub.

It was now your goal to do anything in your power to get John out of trouble, like you had done countless times. A small smirk broke out across John’s face seeing you act all sweet and innocent. It was one of your tactics to distract men and it almost always worked, to John’s dismay. He knew it would be hard to ignore your subtle flirting when you were dressed like the little mix John saw you as.

“Ma’am he beat the man unconscious. Yes, we have to arrest him.” The officer motioned to the man lying on the side walk and bleeding from his face. He was out cold with another officer attending to him.

“He’s military-“ You tried to explain hoping that could get John off the hook.

You batted your eyes which distracted both John and the young officer. It was impossible for John to ignore how pretty you looked when worried for him. The officer faltered for a second and then snapped out of whatever spell you had cast on him when your husband spoke.

“It’s okay, darling.” With a charming, satisfied smirk John gave you a wink.

You never thought he could look so handsome with handcuffs on and a black eye beginning to form. The sleeve of his shirt was torn at the shoulder slightly and the white fabric was smattered in beer and dirt. You and John held a searing hot gaze as he was moved to be put in the back of the cop car.

“Wait! Can I just give him a hug?” You asked before John was loaded into the back. You didn’t wait for a response and made your way toward John.

The one cop who seemed to be in charge found this amusing and nodded to the younger to let you. You gave John a hug around the middle and then a kiss to the lips. Smoothing down the front of his dirty dress shirt your slipped your hand in his back pocket and took out his cigar. John’s face split into a wide toothy grin as you offered it to him and he happily took it between his teeth. Letting out a breathy giggle you lit the cigar for John and left him with one last kiss to the cheek before keeping his lighter.

“So I doesn’t get stolen.” You returned the wink from a moment ago.

The two of you continued to stare deeply into one another’s eyes, absolutely captivated by the other. John found you to be the most divine woman to walk this earth. With your sweet flirty smile and big bright eyes, he was falling in love all over again.

John got into the back of the police car and to you it seemed like neither officer truly wanted to bring him in. They were looking between you two as if you were love sick teens. Only you and John had been married for so long and had built a life together. That kind of awe and wonder of young love never truly left but could come out in moments of adoration like tonight.

“Would’ve done the same thing ma’am. Come and collect him once everything with your daughter is settled. We’ll process him quickly.” The officer patted your back lightly and then went on his way.

“Thank you.” You smiled and went to go back inside.

“God, your parents are so in love.” Evelyn’s friend Isabel sighed in a day dream like state. They were watching the exchange from the window.

“I want someone to love me like that.” Archie drunkenly pointed at you.

“Don’t we all.” Evelyn sighed in mock annoyance.

——————

“My wife here yet?” John called from where he sat in the holding cell.

John had been there for over an hour just twiddling his thumbs. It was him and one other man who was piss drunk, Charlie. The older man who looked down on his luck was sitting on the floor in their corner and babbling on and on about god knows what.

John had realized once he was being processed his watch was gone. It made him laugh to himself that you had slipped it off of him when you grabbed his cigar. You had been practicing slight of hand since the your kids were little. Clearly you were good enough to be able to get John’s watch without him or the officers around noticing.

John was trying to distract himself as he waited for you to bail him out. He was thinking about stopping and getting something sweet on the way home or asking you to make him something. That was when a police officer came in with another man to join John and Charlie. John lit up like it was Christmas morning.

It was the man who drugged Evelyn’s drink.

“What a treat.” John smiled devilishly.

You were standing at the front of the precinct having just bailed your husband out. You kept getting glances from passing male officers that had you regretting your outfit. Tugging at the hem of the dress you wiggled it down a bit and awkwardly waved to an officer who was staring at you longer than you liked.

“So you just bring him out and I wait here?” You asked the man at the desk who sighed loudly.

This was the last thing he felt like explaining, you were certain of that. He seemed completely uninterested and like he would rather be anywhere else. Then he stared at your cleavage and then looked back up at your eyes before answering.

“Where else would you wait for him?” The officer asked condescendingly.

The rude tone had you straightening up and ready to tell him exactly where he could go. You opened your mouth with an insult on the tip of your tongue but you were interrupted.

“AHH~” You perked up at the sound of a man’s high pitched shriek from down the hall behind the desk. The shouting didn’t stop and it sounded like a horror movie scene where someone was screaming and begging for their life.

“BREAK IT UP!” There was more shouting after that and you watched as two more officer went jogging down the hall and took a right to the holding cell out of view.

A few minutes later you watched your husband appear at the end of the hall. He was being escorted by two officers who looked angry while John seemed rather proud of himself. John had the hugest smirk plastered across his face and perked up even more when he caught sight of you. That charming energy came flooding back to John making you feel giddy.

“Take him.” One of the officers shoved John in your direction.

“And if you pull shit like that again you’ll get sued into oblivion!” The officer warned John by putting his finger in your husbands face like he was a petulant child. John put his hands up pretending to be innocent and you could tell by the smug look plastered across his face he felt he had done nothing wrong.

“What’d you do?” You asked as John took your hand and walked toward the door.

He had no intention of waiting around. John wanted to go home and take his beautiful wife to bed after a much needed shower. Then something sweet would be needed before bed and he could call tonight a successful date night.

“Idiot put that prick in the same cell as me. Oh, and nice job getting my watch.” John snickered as he held the door for you.

“I don’t want to know what you did to him. . . But it was probably cruel and over the top. And thanks.” You scoffed while squeezing John’s hand and leading him toward your car.

“You know me so well.” With that said John scooped you up causing you to squeal in delight.

He carried you bridal style over to the car after whispering all the naughty things he was planning to do to you when you got home. Kicking your legs you kissed his neck and egged John on to tell you more. By the time you were getting into the passenger seat John’s calloused hand was under your skirt and groping your ass.

John practically had his tongue down your throat while you made out in the passenger seat with him leaning over you. Your skin felt hot and a warm feeling was flooding your knickers. It was intoxicating having his hand under your skirt and thumb rubbing tight circles on the bundle of nerves that made you go cross eyed. Finally you pushed him off and told him to take you home so you could have your way with him. You didn’t need to get a talking to for making out in the car park of the police station.

John happily obliged and buckled you up so he could pinch your bottom one last time. The ride home was spent humming along to music and stealing glances that lasted a few seconds too long. Finally, after one long look from John where his icy eyes roamed your body you had enough. Holding on to your desire wasn’t possible, waiting to get home wasn’t an option. You needed him now.

“You should pull over.” You smiled mischievously.

“Hm?” John looked over to you and then his gorgeous blue eyes went wide.

He watched as you slid your pretty red panties off and tossed them in his lap. The two of you were on the same page. As much as rolling around in the sheets was what you wanted, a quickie was what you needed. Then round two could commence as soon as you two got in the shower together.

“Pull over.” You purred.

“Yes ma’am.”

——————

Hours had passed since Evelyn watched her dad get taken away in handcuffs and you told her to take a cab to the house. As soon as she was in said cab, Evelyn was calling Jj to let him know what happened. Jj was cackling and rushing home to see the aftermath.

“Where the hell are they?” Lily was hanging around the kitchen with Evelyn and Jj waiting for you and their father to come home.

Everyone rushed home to hear more about it and get on their father’s case for going to jail. Lily had gone to a friend’s without telling you or John and felt lucky that Jj called and told her everyone was heading home. Only it was taking you a lot longer to get home than the kids originally thought.

To their surprise their grandfathers car pulled up the driveway and out stepped you and John. You looked humiliated and John was trying to hide his smirk while your dad scolded him. It was loud enough Jj, Evelyn, and Lily could hear him shouting but not able to make out what he was saying.

“Why’s papa mad at dad?” Jj scratched his head.

Seeing your dad a few inches from John’s face and tearing him a new one was not how you expected date night to end. The fiery rage in his eyes was directed at you a moment later and you instantly felt like a little kid again. Shrinking under his disapproving eyes you wished the ground would open up and swallow you.

“Jesus, he’s laying into them.” Evelyn was watching you and John with your heads cast down.

You were tapping your bare feet while John had his lips pursed to keep himself from laughing. After a breath you didn’t give your dad a chance to keep going and made your way to the door with your heels in hand. John was right behind you and high tailing it inside.

“What took you so long?” Evelyn asked when you came through the door.

Everyone was looking at you, confused how you became visibly flustered by the question. Forcing a smile you shook your head and opened your mouth. It took you a moment to speak, your mind clearly wandering to something.

“Oh, nothing.” You looked and sounded guilty.

“Nothing.” John nodded in agreement. He seemed a lot more held together than you.

It was obvious to Jj that something happened by how his father was crowding your space and standing a little closer than he usually did. In fact John was practically breathing down your neck as you two shuffled into the kitchen. The siblings were sharing looks while you poured a glass of water and John started the kettle.

Your dad could still be seen on the patio. He was staring out into the yard with his back to the house. All your children had seen him do this before when he was particularly mad at you. It was how he gathered himself before he started screaming his head off.

“Nothing happened?” Jj asked you since he knew he wouldn’t be able to read his father.

“Yup.” You nodded and avoided eye contact.

“They’re liars-“ coming into the house your father was like a tornado ready to tear everything apart.

“Dad!” Your voice was high pitched, a silent plea for him to stop talking.

“Got arrested for humping like teenagers in the back of their car.” Your dad barked at you.

John finally broke and started laughing uncontrollably. He had to hold on to the sink to keep himself steady. This did not amuse your father and he was gearing up to turn on John next. Getting a call from his grown daughter who needed to be bailed out along with her husband sent your dad into a tail spin. He spent the entire ride from the police station shouting at you and berating John.

“OH MY GOD!” Evelyn shrieked.

“That’s disgusting!” Jj threw his hands up, looking at you as if you lost your mind.

“Woah. . . WAIT! Mum you got arrested!?” Lily went from unimpressed to shocked.

This was not how your children saw you or John. Yes, they knew you two were flirty with each other. It was hard to ignore the passing glances and how you both playfully patted the other on the bum. But doing something like hooking up in the back of your car was unimaginable to them.

“I don’t want to talk about it.” You were burning with embarrassment.

John’s uncontrollable laughter wasn’t helping you deal with the looks of disgust your two oldest had etched across their faces. Lily on the other hand didn’t seem interested in the conversation.

“We sit back there!” Jj practically yelled.

“And you’ve napped in our bed. What’s the difference?” John was just catching his breath.

His comment had Jj looking mortified and then John’s laughter kicked back up again at bursting his son’s bubble.

“Don’t let her fool you she’s been arrested before.” Your dad laughed loudly.

This was it, his punishment. It would be to air out your dirty laundry. You were an adult now, he couldn’t exactly ground you but maybe embarrassing you would keep you from acting so foolish again.

“Dad!” You hissed.

“WHAT!?” Your children shouted in your direction.

“Darling, why’ve you never told me about your criminal history?” John was belly laughing, unable to catch his breath and now leaning over the counter in his fit of hysterics. He knew everything about you, he was only teasing.

“You two can never get mad at us for anything, ever again.” Evelyn told you both.

“That’s not all!” Your dad was grinning like an idiot, looking proud of himself.

“I’ll kick your ass if you say another word!” You half shouted at your dad.

“Kick my ass?” He looked amused by the threat.

“Well. No. I’ll have John do it.” Meekly you pointed to John with your thumb.

Your dad and John shared a look. John shrugged and jokingly put his fists up. This had your dad chuckling deeply and shaking his head.

“Fine, but your mums no saint.” Your dad told your children who burst into endless questions.

“I know.” John grinned devilishly at you.

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