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balkanradfem · 9 months

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"Growing flax to make linen was one of the oldest human activities in Europe, particularly in the Rhineland. Archeologists have found linen textiles among the settlements of Neolithic cultivators along the shores of Lake Neuchâtel in the Jura Mountains west of Bern, Switzerland. These were elaborate pieces: Stone Age clothmakers of the Swiss lakeshores sewed pierced fruit pits in a careful line into a fabric with woven stripes. The culture spread down the Rhine and into the lowland regions.

The Roman author Pliny observed in the first century AD that German women wove and wore linen sheets. By the ninth century flax had spread through Germany. By the sixteenth century, flax was produced in many parts of Europe, but the corridor from western Switzerland to the mouth of the Rhine contained the oldest region of large-scale commercial flax and linen production. In the late Middle Ages the linen of Germany was sold nearly everywhere in Europe, and Germany produced more linen than any other region in the world.

At this juncture, linen weavers became victims of an odd prejudice. “Better skinner than linen weaver,” ran one cryptic medieval German taunt. Another macabre popular saying had it that linen weavers were worse than those who “carried the ladders to the gallows.” The reason why linen weavers were slandered in this way, historians suspect, was that although linen weavers had professionalized and organized themselves into guilds, they had been unable to prevent homemade linen from getting onto the market. Guilds appeared across Europe between the twelfth and fifteenth centuries but many of the items they produced for exchange, like textiles and soap, were also produced at home right up through the nineteenth century. The intricate regulations of the guilds—determining who could join, how they would be trained, what goods they would produce, and how these could be exchanged—were mainly designed to distinguish guild work from this homely labor. That linen making continued to be carried out inside of households—a liability for guilds in general—lent a taint to the linen guild in particular.

In the seventeenth century, guilds came under pressure from a new, protocapitalist mode of production. Looking for cheaper cloth to sell on foreign markets, entrepreneurs cased the Central European countryside offering to pay cash to home producers for goods. Rural households became export manufacturing centers and a major source of competition with the guilds. These producers could undercut the prices of urban craftsmen because they could use the unregulated labor of their family members, and because their own agricultural production allowed them to sell their goods for less than their subsistence costs.

The uneasiness between guild and household production in the countryside erupted into open hostility. In the 1620s, linen guildsmen marched on villages, attacking competitors, and burning their looms. In February 1627 Zittau guild masters smashed looms and seized the yarn of home weavers in the villages of Oderwitz, Olbersdorf, and Herwigsdorf.

Guilds had long worked to keep homemade products from getting on the market. In their death throes, they hit upon a new and potent weapon: gender. Although women in medieval Europe wove at home for domestic consumption, many had also been guild artisans. Women were freely admitted as masters into

the earliest medieval guilds, and statutes from Silesia and the Oberlausitz show that women were master weavers. Thirteenth-century Paris had eighty mixed craft guilds of men and women and fifteen female-dominated guilds for such trades as gold thread, yarn, silk, and dress manufacturing. Up until the mid-seventeenth century, guilds had belittled home production because it was unregulated, nonprofessional, and competitive. In the mid-seventeenth century this work was identified as women’s work, and guildsmen unable to compete against cheaper household production tried to eject women from the market entirely. Single women were barred from independent participation in the guilds. Women were restricted to working as domestic servants, farmhands, spinners, knitters, embroiderers, hawkers, wet nurses. They lost ground even where the jobs had been traditionally their own, such as ale brewing and midwifery, by the end of the seventeenth century.

The wholesale ejection of women from the market during this period was achieved not only through guild statute, but through legal, literary, and cultural means. Throughout the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries women lost the legal right to conduct economic activity as femes soles. In France they were declared legal “imbeciles,” and lost the right to make contracts or represent themselves in court. In Italy, they began to appear in court less frequently to denounce abuses against them. In Germany, when middle-class women were widowed it became customary to appoint a tutor to manage their affairs. As the medieval historian Martha Howell writes, “Comedies and satires of this period…often portrayed market women and trades women as shrews, with characterizations that not only ridiculed or scolded them for taking on roles in market production but frequently even charged them with sexual aggression.” This was a period rich in literature about the correction of errant women: Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew (1590–94), John Ford’s ’Tis Pity She’s a Whore (1629–33), Joseph Swetnam’s “The Araignment of Lewde, Idle, Froward, and Unconstant Women” (1615). Meanwhile, Protestant reformers and Counter-Reformation Catholics established doctrinally that women were inherently inferior to men.

This period, called the European Age of Reason, successfully banished women from the market and transformed them into the sweet and passive beings that emerged in Victorian literature. Women accused of being scolds were paraded in the streets wearing a new device called a “branks,” an iron muzzle that depressed the tongue. Prostitutes were subjected to fake drowning, whipped, and caged. Women convicted of adultery were sentenced to capital punishment.

As a cultural project, this was not merely recreational sadism. Rather, it was an ideological achievement that would have lasting and massive economic consequences. Political philosopher Silvia Federici has argued this expulsion was an intervention so massive, it ought to be included as one of a triptych of violent seizures, along with the Enclosure Acts and imperialism, that allowed capitalism to launch itself.

Part of why women resisted enclosure so fiercely was because they had the most to lose. The end of subsistence meant that households needed to rely on money rather than the production of agricultural goods like cloth, and women had successfully been excluded from ways to earn. As labor historian Alice Kessler-Harris has argued, “In pre-industrial societies, nearly everybody worked, and almost nobody worked for wages.” During the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, monetary relations began to dominate economic life in Europe. Barred from most wage work just as the wage became essential, women were shunted into a position of chronic poverty and financial dependence. This was the dominant socioeconomic reality when the first modern factory, a cotton-spinning mill, opened in 1771 in Derbyshire, England, an event destined to upend still further the pattern of daily life."

- Sofi Thanhauser, Worn: A People's History of Clothing

#radical feminism #feminism #linen #history of clothing #sexism #female oppression #the rights they TOOK from us #i'm so pissed #i knew there would be misogyny in history of clothing #but this made my blood burn #Sofi Thanhauser

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wallwriterstuff · 11 months

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A Little Blood Never Scared Me ||Kyle 'Gaz' Garrick x Female!Reader||

Warnings: Mentions of alcohol consumption/drunkenness. Descriptions of injury, blood and violence. Descriptions of the disconnect between being home and being out in the field. A few swear words and so much fluff near the end your teeth will rot.

Tags: Written (very late, sorry!) for @glitterypirateduck 's October 141 writing challenge because I currently have an unhealthy obsession with Modern Warfare. Prompts used include 2 characters (Gaz and Price), Damsel in Distress, and Taking Care of Each other.

Words: 4091

Summary: It can be difficult to readjust to civilian life without appropriate distractions. Or - the story of how Gaz can't help but play the role of knight in shining armor despite being on leave and meets the best distraction yet.

It’s never easy to come home and rejoin the real world.

Out in the middle of some war-torn territory it’s easy to forget how…mundane, it all is. When he exchanges the hard smoothness of his rifle for the hard smoothness of a whisky tumbler at the local pub it all feels very surreal. There’s nothing more foreign than the flimsy weight of a kitchen knife when your used to a combat blade. Hell, even his nose keeps twitching because the shower gel he uses at home isn’t the same as the standard issue soaps he’s used to at the barracks. He’s gone from scentless to being a human Yankee candle and it’s making his skin crawl almost as much as the clattering of pool balls, pinging in his ears like the deafening roar of a mortar strike. That being said, the burn in his throat is a welcome distraction, as is the company. Price has a way of putting it all into perspective he’s just yet to master and if Kyle has chosen him as his own personal Obi-wan, well, Price doesn’t need to know.

“You called your mum yet?” He asks him, eyes crinkling at the edges as he smirks a bit at Kyle’s obvious wince. Shaking his head, the younger man taps his fingers against the side of his tumbler before lifting it to his lips. He pauses, briefly, eyes lifting to meet piercing, amused blue.

“Will when I’m ready, you know what she’s like.” He sips, savouring the grounding burn in the back of his throat. With his glass safely back on the table he lifts his cap, running a hand over his hair. It’s grown uncomfortable long, definitely not as short as he usually has it, but maybe that’s just him being overly aware of the regulations he doesn’t need to adhere to as much on leave. Price grunts a bit in acknowledgement, watching his sergeant carefully, and Kyle hates the feeling that somehow, he’s being looked through instead of at. Price has always been good at that to, the man’s instincts borderline supernatural, at least in Kyle’s opinion.

“Worrying about her son? How dare she.” There’s not a hint of mockery in Price’s voice but the underlying message is clear to Kyle. Get your head right and call your mother, you prick.

“Think she’s more worried about my sister at this point, what with her due and all.” Kyle deflects him from the crux of the matter with practiced ease, but he knows he only gets away with it because Price lets him. He’s not really sure he wants to delve too deeply into the idea that home feels like coarse sand in his boots and the smell of gunpowder instead of the plush carpets and excessive luxury of a 60-inch TV screen in his apartment.

“Due already? Thought she’d only just got knocked up?” Price’s eyes flicker about, tracking something over his shoulder. Kyle immediately feels his hackles raise but the subtle stiffening of his muscles is something he just about manages to push away with another admittedly large sip of his drink. It’s only someone exiting the bathroom.

“Watch it, might be my Captain but that’s my sister you’re talking about.” He warns lightly. Price grins a bit. Kyle let’s his eyes slide over the pub. They’ve chosen a table off to the side, tucked out of the way of prying eyes in such a position that let’s them see the entire room – not even Price can kick that instinct. There’s a middle-aged couple that appear to be on a date in the corner booth, smiling and ignorant of the world around them. A few rowdy regulars that the bartender dotes on at the dartboard let out another cheer as someone hits something remarkably close to a bullseye. It’s a bog-standard pub all in all, from the exposed wooden beams to the threadbare carpet that reeks of long-spilled booze and something that attempted to clean the spill. Nothing here to fear.

“She ready for the little one to arrive?” Price asks the question as if he has any way of knowing the answer. The disconnect between him and his family after months away is just as surreal to him as the prospect of cooking his own meals again rather than ripping open an MRE and praying it was somewhat edible this time. Price leads the conversation with the mastery of knowing the steps to the dance. It’s an easy routine, a simple one, and it brings him more comfort than he dares say. There’s aimless chatter and there’s noise but not too much noise, a good drink, and a warm atmosphere that almost, almost, mimics the heat of whatever godforsaken dessert he’s traipsed through this time. It’s grounding and mundane and a slow ease back into the reality of what everyday life tends to be when you aren’t being shot at or hanging from helicopters. By the time their three drinks in, Kyle feels less like a rattle snake coiled to strike and a little more human again.

The group at the dartboard have only gotten rowdier, and they’ve stumbled their way back over to the bar for another round. A shared glance is all it takes for Kyle to know this will be their last drink tonight, better to leave before anything kicks off amongst the herd of drunken fools and sets them back into fight or flight mode.

“I’ll call my Mum tomorrow.” Kyle relents finally, meeting Price’s eyes for a tad longer than necessary just to show he means it.

Price gives an approving nod, “Good lad.”

He glances over at the group at the bar, the boisterous laughter turning his head as he watches a woman gingerly skirt her way around them to head for the bathrooms. His eyes narrow in distaste as a particularly loud wolf-whistle makes your head duck and your pace increase. He understands their attraction, you’re easy on the eyes, but you clearly don’t want to be bothered either and he can see the flush on your cheeks is just as much down to embarrassment as it is alcohol consumption.

“Alright, who’s paying then?” He asks, tearing his eyes from your figure once he knows your safely tucked in the ladies out of their eyesight. Price tips his head, reaching for his wallet and producing a coin.

“Call it.”

“Tails.” Kyle’s response is immediate, eyes keenly tracking the coin as Price flips it. Judging by the disapproving grunt and the mild annoyance in his eyes, Price has lost this round, and he can’t stop the smug grin twitching his lips upwards. It falls quickly as he hears the hollering from the crowd at the bar.

“Go on son!”

“Get some!”

“Don’t fumble it mate!”

From the corner of his eye he sees a tall brunette man stumbling his way from the bar, and something about the look in his eyes sets him on edge. It’s almost predatory in nature, the kind of look that you see in nature documents as predators stalk their prey, and he twists his body instinctually to face the oncoming threat before he even fully comprehends what the threat is. He’s not sure what about this drunk buffoon sets him so on edge but he learned early on in his career that trusting your gut was usually the safest option. That and the idiot does look like a bit of a dick.

“Might come up with you to the bar anyway.” He says.

“Suit yourself.” Price’s voice is calm, unbothered, but it’s as natural and easy as breathing to Kyle to put himself as one more barrier between a potential threat and a friend. Neither of them even has a chance to get up from their seats before three things seem to happen at once.

1, you emerge from the bathroom.

2, the brunette man from the bar trips over his own feet.

3, the pair of you collide and create some cosmic chain of knock-on collisions that Kyle has only half a second to decide whether or not he can stop or if he just has to embrace it.

If he doesn’t want a broken wrist, embracing it seems to be his best option.

Fate deposits you in his lap not a second later, ribs cracking painfully against the tabletop and your hand slapping into his glass, even as he tries his best to steady you. You’re both covered in beer from the brunette guy’s drink as it sloshes from the pint glass and onto your clothes, and Kyle wrinkles his nose a bit against the sudden yeasty smell. There’s a sharp cry from both fallen parties and a soft grunt from him as your arse lands not so gently on more delicate areas of his body, but despite the jolt of pain in his thigh and wrists he’s otherwise doing far better than you, though he thinks you’re a bit too shell-shocked from the fall to recognise there’s blood dripping from your hand.

“Way to go Mark!”

“Fumbled it mate!”

The rowdy bar crew irk him more than he lets on as Price hauls up the idiot, Mark. His face is red from a mixture of alcohol, embarrassment, and anger, anger he swiftly lets loose on the three people in front of him. Price holds his hands up in surrender as Mark shirks him off rather violently, almost falling again when he twists too hard and quick in his uncoordinated state.

“Ge’off! You! You made me spill my beer!” The accusing finger pointed your way seems to snap you from your stupor and you wriggle out of Kyle’s gentle grip with wide eyes.

“I didn’t – what?” Your voice is a pitched squeak of disbelief and shock. Kyle stands, grabbing a wad of napkins to press it against your wound. “Ow! Hey! What the – oh my god…” You stare wide-eyed at the rivulet of blood rolling down your arm. It’s soaking through the napkins quicker than Kyle would like.

“Keep your arm up, above your heart. You won’t have hit anything major, it’s just the alcohol thinning your blood.” He reassures you, keeping his touch light and unintrusive. You could easily push his hand away but you don’t, surprised Y/E/C eyes flickering up meet his own.

“You even listenin’ to me you little bitch? I said you owe me another drink!” Mark’s words are so slurred that another drink is clearly a terrible decision for him.

“Oi, leave the lady in peace.” Price suggests. Knowing his Captain has him handled Kyle focuses his attention on you, gently moving the bloodied napkin from your palm. It sticks a bit, and you wince as the coarse material comes free of your broken skin.

“Sorry, sorry…you’re going to need stitches.” He informs you. There’s a jagged line that won’t stop pumping red, the flesh torn open with a glint of glass inside.

“Stitches? Oh no, not needles. I – shit I feel dizzy.” You turn whiter than a sheet at the thought and Kyle’s quick to adjust his grip on you to help you sit, keeping your arm elevated while you put your head between your knees.

“Easy, deep breaths, you’re going to be alright,” he crouches beside you, hearing Price and Mark squaring off behind him, “I’m Kyle. Can you tell me your name?”

“I’m Y/N.” your voice is a little weak. “Sorry for, you know, sitting on you.” Kyle chuckles a little at that, glancing up as Price hands him a towel. Price has angled himself between you two and the drunken fool as his friends come to collect him.

“Don’t worry about it, glad you landed on me and not the table.” He focuses on wrapping the towel around your hand, apologising quietly when the pressure makes you wince.

“Oh no, I landed on that to. I landed on all the things.” You groan a bit, good hand massaging your ribs. Kyle grimaces slightly.

“Can I check nothings broken?” he offers. You look up at him, search his gaze for any ill-intent, and then you nod. He makes sure to give you a reassuring smile as his hand finds your side, fingers gently applying pressure and watching your face for any signs of discomfort. It feels more intimate than is appropriate for a first meeting but your nerves bottle before his does and you look away with pink cheeks, which is a feat in itself because Kyle had been sure you’d lost a bit too much blood to blush like that.

“But she owes me a beer!” Mark is still insistent, even as his friends try to drag him away. Kyle huffs, annoyed now as he glances back at him over his shoulder.

“She owes you about as much as any other woman on the planet. Nothing. Now piss off and sober up mate.” There’s enough warning in his voice that Mark’s more sober friends hurry to comply with the thinly veiled threat.

“You got anyone who can get you to hospital love?” Price asks, standing as still as stone until he’s sure there’s no chance of Mark making his way back to you. Kyle keeps the pressure on your hand, seeing a bit more alertness to your eyes now.

“No, no we’ve both had something to drink.” You grimace, looking at Kyle with big doe eyes he finds more endearing than he’d care to admit. “Do I really need stitches?”

“Yeah, you do, and for someone to pick the glass out the wound,” Kyle’s smile is a tad sympathetic now, “But the good news is your ribs aren’t broken. You may have landed on all the things but you’re not too bad off for it.” His light teasing brings a twitch of a smile to your lips, a smile that quickly falls as Price questions if you have friends or a partner here to go with you. Though your eyes search the pub thoroughly, they fill with frustration and regret when you see no familiar face in sight.

“No…I was on a date,” you look a bit embarrassed to admit it, “Guess he snuck out while I was in the bathroom.” Kyle tilts his head slightly, carefully helping you to stand when you attempt it.

“More fool him, look at all the fun he could be having.” He says it just to see you smile, enjoying the tinkling of your laughter in his ears.

“Oh, bucket loads right? Christ…that stings.” Your smile falls away into a wince again, and though he knows he’ll get shit for it later from Soap when Price inevitably tells him, he can’t stop the offer from tumbling out of his mouth.

“I’ll go with you then.”

You sigh, “It’s okay, really, no need to ruin your night any more than I have.”

“Who said you’d ruined my night? Come on, let’s get you seen to.” He’s already gently guiding you out of the pub with Price on your other side, knowing you’re likely to protest anyway from the look on your face. You pause only to grab a jacket from your table before the cold night air envelopes you, Kyle keeping your arm up and sticking close to ensure your warm enough – the last thing he wants is you going into shock on him.

“Are you sure?” you ask for the hundredth time. Kyle silences you with a single look that has a shudder crawling up your spine, one he can feel ripple into him since you’re standing so close, and he feels a little smug at the reaction he gets from you. He’s seen your eyes lingering once or twice to, and he’s starting to thank whatever’s watching over him the evening took this turn.

“Gaz!” Price calls his name and Kyle turns to see him standing, holding open the door of a cab not 50 yards down the road. Bundled in the back of a cab that’s probably breaking a few speeding laws to get you both to a nearby hospital, he feels those instincts tugging at the back of his mind, trying to claw him back into work mode. There’s blood, there was the threat of violence, and it’s got all of his hackles raised a bit, even though he’s trying to be soft with you. You’re clearly in pain and still a little shocked by the nights events and he doesn’t want to be too stoic or too harsh and make it worse, so he focuses on the gentle smell of your perfume and the softness of your hair tickling the side of his face. It crosses his mind then you might be uncomfortable with his proximity, and he subtly tries to shift away only to find you follow him, naturally wanting more of his warmth as the blood loss and shock make you feel cold.

“Just to be clear, I don’t usually do this.” You say softly. Kyle glances at you with a raised eyebrow, your voice and the rumbling purr of the engine is all quiet and helps soothe some of his louder thoughts right now.

“You don’t usually bleed all over strangers at the pub? A shame, I was looking for someone who shared my hobby.” He tries to joke, feeling a bit rusty and out of practice, and realises too late how goddamn creepy that probably sounded. He’s thankful to hear your quiet laughter.

“No, well, yes, I don’t do that either, but I meant hopping into cabs with strangers.” You nudge his side lightly with your elbow and he relaxes a little more.

“We exchanged names and I’m covered in your blood, not sure we can call ourselves strangers anymore, more like…strange acquaintances.” He suggests. You hum in agreement at that, and you lapse back into silence with him once more. It’s a strangely comfortable one, but then again Kyle’s never really been a man of many words. He keeps half an eye on the gentle rise and fall of your chest, the pallor of your skin. Your bathed intermittently in warm orange light from the street-lights outside, and his breath hitches a little in his chest. Maybe it’s been a little too long since he was allowed to think of anything other than what the next target is, but he’ll be damned if he doesn’t take the opportunity to admire the way your long lashes brush your cheeks, or the perfectly shaped outline of full, painted lips.

“Thank you, for coming with me.” You look up at him, your smile so sweet it makes his stomach flip. It really isn’t the best of circumstances, he knows so, but he rarely gets the chance to charm a pretty woman and, well, your night’s been a bit shit, so he feels obligated to cheer you up some.

“When a pretty woman falls into your lap, you’d be amiss to pass up the opportunity to play knight in beer-stained armour.” He chuckles. He’s taking most of the weight of your arm but he ignores the discomfort in his own. Your eyes are pinched with pain, and he can only imagine how badly your sliced palm must be throbbing, knowing from his own encounters with combat knives how deeply the sting of a cut can run.

“Bold of you to assume I’m a damsel in distress. I sliced open my hand perfectly well without your help.” You quip back. Kyle grins. You’ve got a wicked tongue and the wit of the devil. As the cab pulls up, he tips the driver an extra £20 before helping you into the accident and emergency ward. It’s crammed wall to wall, every chair full and an excess of patients standing around, and the strong burn of disinfectant in his nose has him taking slightly shallower breaths to avoid the smell as best he can. You look even paler under the fluorescent lighting and he’s determined to get you seen to quickly, the bright red of the blood-soaked towel on your hand standing out starkly in this pristine white place.

You give your name and details, checking in with the receptionist who looks at your hand like she wishes it would disappear from her line of sight, and then your led to an over-flow waiting room where there’s a chair hurriedly snapped open for you and the promise of a nurse seeing you quickly. Kyle crouches beside you again, looking over the mess of blood and beer on the pretty dress you’d been wearing that night, and quietly wonders how your date found enough faults in you to run out. For the five minutes he’s known you Kyle’s found you to be attractive and quick-witted, a good sense of humour, so he can’t imagine the conversation was that bad.

“Do you want some water?” he offers, thumb jerking to the water cooler not too far away. You nod a bit and leaves you with your hand raised to go fetch you both a cup. He watches you sip it slowly and he does the same, eyes flickering to find all the nearest exits out of habit. You’re like a magnet though, a beacon burning brightly in the night, and he finds his gaze quickly drawn back to you. The bubble you two have created is one of quiet comfort, the kind that warm blankets on cold days provides and is found in the deep hearts of forests or the embers of dying fires.

“This really doesn’t bother you, does it?” you question, pulling him from his thoughts. He glances up at you from his spot crouched beside you, head cocking. “This. Blood, hospital trips, confrontation. You’ve been completely unphased by this from the start.” You elaborate on your thoughts and Kyle finds himself blinking in surprise, adding the word observant into the file with your name on that he’s starting to compile in his mind. He’s almost reluctant to say what he knows is the answer to your unspoken question, knowing it’s often a crossroads for all relationships waiting to form in his life. He doesn’t want to give up the soothing balm that is you just yet. There’s just enough intrigue to make him want to know more, and yet he braces himself for the rejection he’s sure is inevitable from such a sweet thing as you.

“I’m a soldier.” He almost holds his breath once the truths out. The rest of the sentence can remain unspoken, you don’t need him to tell you of the horrors and misery he’s seen, everyone knows what soldiers see even if they don’t talk about it. You surprise him once more.

“Ah, I see.” The quiet acknowledgement is just that, a statement of fact that promises he’s been heard without delivering judgement, and he feels there’s hope he might still have a chance at knowing you.

“That bother you?” he just has to be sure.

You smile a bit, “Depends, are you here because you’re duty bound to protect innocent civilians?”

His head tilts a bit; he sees that inquisitive little gleam in your eyes, a spark of interest, and he catches it quick with the intent of nurturing that spark into roaring flame. His head’s completely quiet now. He feels like he can go back to the silence at home and survive it if only your voice fills the empty space instead.

“No…here because I think that what tonight’s shown me, is your hand fits nicely in mine.” The line is absolutely terrible and he knows it, but the way you fluster and smile at the ground has his own grin widening. When the nurse calls your name, you look up to her, then back at him, biting your lip. For the first time that night, you don’t try to be brave, you let him see your apprehension and offer him your good hand, wanting him to come with you.

“Prove it.” You say.

Kyle does, and when he returns to his apartment in the early hours of the morning, he can still feel the warm imprint of your lips on his cheek. Your perfume has stale beer has cloyed in his nose and the imprint of you is behind his eyelids when he closes them to try and sleep. The echo of your laughter rings in his ears and the reminder of your smile as he’d suggested late night waffles at a dessert place nearby your apartment. The phone on his nightstand seemed to hum with anticipation of using your now saved number tomorrow.

It's never easy coming back to the real world, but the real world certainly has it's perks.

#kyle 'gaz' garrick #x female!reader #kyle gaz garrick x female reader #captain john price #cod mw #cod mw 2 #cod fandom #141challenge #tw blood #tw injury #tw drinking #call of duty #call of duty x reader #task force 141

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anamericangirl · 4 months

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If the workers themselves do not directly control the means of production, such as the land and the machines used to produce food and other machines, then it is not a communist society.

If the state does not directly control the means of production, then it is not a socialist society.

If neither the state nor the workers directly own the means of production, but instead the means of production are owned by business owners and share holders, then you have a capitalist society.

These are the basic economic principles that define the difference between socialism, communism, and capitalism.

Now lets look at Nazi economic policy, with key points of interest in bold.

After the Nazis took power, industries were privatized en masse. Several banks, shipyards, railway lines, shipping lines, welfare organizations, and more were privatized. The Nazi government took the stance that enterprises should be in private hands wherever possible. State ownership was to be avoided unless it was absolutely necessary for rearmament or the war effort, and even in those cases "the Reich often insisted on the inclusion in the contract of an option clause according to which the private firm operating the plant was entitled to purchase it." However, the privatization was "applied within a framework of increasing control of the state over the whole economy through regulation and political interference," as laid out in the 1933 Act for the Formation of Compulsory Cartels, which gave the government a role in regulating and controlling the cartels that had been earlier formed in the Weimar Republic under the Cartel Act of 1923. These had mostly regulated themselves from 1923 to 1933.

The month after being appointed Chancellor, Hitler made a personal appeal to German business leaders to help fund the Nazi Party for the crucial months that were to follow. He argued that the experience of Weimar Republic had shown that "'private enterprise cannot be maintained in the age of democracy.' Business was founded above all on the principles of personality and individual leadership. Democracy and liberalism led inevitably to Social Democracy and Communism." In the following weeks, the Nazi Party received contributions from seventeen different business groups, with the largest coming from IG Farben and Deutsche Bank. Many of these businesses continued to support Hitler even during the war and even profited from persecution of the Jews. The most infamous being firms like Krupp, IG Farben, and some large automobile manufacturers. Historian Adam Tooze writes that the leaders of German business were therefore "willing partners in the destruction of political pluralism in Germany." In exchange, owners and managers of German businesses were granted unprecedented powers to control their workforce, collective bargaining was abolished and wages were frozen at a relatively low level. Business profits also rose very rapidly, as did corporate investment.

The Nazis granted millions of marks in credits to private businesses. Many businessmen had friendly relations to the Nazis, most notably with Heinrich Himmler and his Freundeskreis der Wirtschaft. Hitler's administration decreed an October 1937 policy that "dissolved all corporations with a capital under $40,000 and forbade the establishment of new ones with a capital less than $200,000," which swiftly effected the collapse of one-fifth of all small corporations. On July 15, 1933 a law was enacted that imposed compulsory membership in cartels, while by 1934 the Third Reich had mandated a reorganization of all companies and trade associations and formed an alliance with the Nazi regime. Nonetheless, the Nazi regime was able to close most of Germany's stock exchanges, reducing them "from twenty-one to nine in 1935," and "limited the distribution of dividends to 6 percent." By 1936 Germany decreed laws to completely block foreign stock trades by citizens. These moves showed signs of Antisemitism and a move toward a war economy, with the belief that the stock market was being operated by Jews.

From this it is clear to see that Nazi economy does not fit into any of the previous categories of socialist, communist, or capitalist. While the Nazi party started as a greatly capitalist industry, it did eventually move towards more government control, to which it had previously been the antithesis of. However, It also employed Union Busting to stop the expansion of workers rights, much like as occurred in America at the same time, and froze wages, much as America has done these past 20 years. But to say Nazis are socialist, is historically factually incorrect, as many businesses that were privatized continued to thrive unimpeded.

As much as I appreciate your ability to copy and paste from wikipedia, you should know that wikipedia is actually not the definitive source on this issue. It's not like anyone can just go on there and edit it lol. If everything you know comes from wikipedia that explains why you don't know much.

Look, I've already thoroughly responded to all these points and I'm not going to keep having the same argument with people who can only repeat themselves or copy and paste from wikipedia without actually responding to what I say.

You do not understand how "privatization" worked in Nazi Germany but you should do some reading about it. You can read the wikipedia page on the term "Gleichschaltung" to get you started.

Anyway, your privately owned business isn't really privately owned if it has to follow certain rules set by the regime and can be shut down by them if you don't support them or break their rules.

It's historically factual to say the Nazis were socialist because they were and you only having the understanding of the different economic systems that don't go any deeper than a google definition and not knowing how "privatization" worked in Nazi Germany and the fact that you can't discuss this issue if you can't copy/paste your entire argument from wikipedia hardly makes a case against that fact.

Only people who are liars or historically ignorant say the Nazis weren't socialists.

#anon #answered

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allthebrazilianpolitics · 21 days

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G20 Youth calls for taxation against inequality, ceasefire in Gaza, ethical AI

Young leaders from around the world gathered in Rio de Janeiro from August 12 to 16 for the Y20 Summit, the official youth engagement group of the G20. After weeks of discussions, they reached a consensus on a Communiqué that addresses what they described as “enormous global challenges.”

The document, signed on Thursday, will be presented to G20 heads of state at their upcoming meeting in Rio this November.

Among the key points, the delegates called for a “fiscal architecture that provides for progressive taxation and stronger mechanisms against foreign exchange evasion.” They also urged the creation of a Youth Fund to bolster the global fight against hunger.

The Communiqué includes a call for an “immediate ceasefire” in Gaza, where thousands of Palestinian civilians have died since the conflict erupted in October.

The Y20 also stressed the urgent need for regulations to ensure artificial intelligence remains “ethical,” emphasizing the importance of “accountable and impartial AI systems” and measures to protect workers in the transition to new technologies.

#politics #economy #palestine #artificial intelligence #brazil #israel #image description in alt #mod nise da silveira

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tradesignalsbusiness · 10 months

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Mastering forex signals for trend following: a comprehensive guide

The foreign exchange market, or Forex, is a dynamic and ever-changing arena where traders seek to capitalize on currency price movements. One popular trading strategy is trend following, which involves identifying and following the prevailing market direction. Forex signals play a crucial role in assisting traders to navigate the complexities of trend following. In this comprehensive guide, we will explore the intricacies of Forex signals for trend following, helping you understand how to leverage them effectively for successful trading.

Understanding Trend Following

Trend following is a strategy that seeks to capitalize on the directionality of market prices. The basic premise is simple: identify the prevailing trend and place trades in the same direction. Trends can be upward (bullish), downward (bearish), or sideways (range-bound). Successful trend following involves entering a trade at the beginning of a trend and exiting when the trend shows signs of reversal.

The Role of Forex Signals

Forex signals serve as triggers for traders, indicating opportune moments to enter or exit a trade. These signals are generated through a thorough analysis of market data, including technical indicators, fundamental factors, and sometimes a combination of both. For trend following, signals become particularly crucial as they guide traders on when to jump on a trend and when to step aside.

Key Components of Forex Signals for Trend Following

1. Technical Indicators:

Moving Averages: These are fundamental tools in trend following. A moving average smoothens price data to create a single flowing line. Traders often look for crossovers, where short-term moving averages cross above long-term ones, as a signal to enter a trade.

Relative Strength Index (RSI): RSI measures the speed and change of price movements. A high RSI may indicate overbought conditions, suggesting a potential reversal, while a low RSI may indicate oversold conditions, signaling a potential buying opportunity.

Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD): MACD is a trend-following momentum indicator that shows the relationship between two moving averages of a security’s price.

2. Fundamental Analysis:

While trend following is predominantly a technical strategy, incorporating fundamental analysis can enhance the accuracy of signals. Economic indicators, interest rates, and geopolitical events can significantly impact currency trends.

3. Price Action:

Pure price action analysis involves studying the historical price movements of a currency pair. Identifying patterns, such as higher highs and higher lows in an uptrend, can provide strong signals for trend following.

Choosing a Reliable Signal Provider

With the plethora of signal providers available, it's essential to choose a reliable one. Consider the following factors:

Track Record: A provider's historical performance is a crucial indicator of their reliability. Look for providers with a consistent track record of accurate signals.

Transparency: Transparent signal providers disclose their methods, including the criteria for generating signals and their risk management strategies.

Risk-Reward Ratio: A good signal provider should have a clear risk-reward ratio for each signal, helping you manage your trades effectively.

Implementing Forex Signals for Trend Following

Once you've selected a signal provider or developed a reliable system, the implementation phase is critical. Here are some tips:

Risk Management: Set clear risk parameters for each trade. This includes defining the percentage of your trading capital you're willing to risk on a single trade.

Position Sizing: Adjust the size of your positions based on the strength of the signal and the volatility of the market.

Stay Informed: While signals provide valuable insights, staying informed about broader market trends and events is crucial. Unexpected news can impact the Forex market.

Continuous Evaluation: Regularly assess the performance of your chosen signals and be prepared to adjust your strategy if market conditions change.

Conclusion

Forex signals for trend following can be powerful tools in a trader's arsenal, helping to identify and capitalize on market trends. However, success in Forex trading requires a comprehensive understanding of both the strategy and the market itself. By combining technical indicators, fundamental analysis, and a disciplined approach to risk management, traders can use Forex signals to navigate the complex world of trend following with confidence. Remember, no strategy guarantees success, and ongoing learning and adaptation are essential for long-term success in the Forex market.

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praveenroshmi-blog · 1 year

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EURJPY: Euro Weakness and Yen Powerlessness

The US Dollar is weaker, after the ADP employment data report lowered the odds of the Fed raising interest rates later in the year. This favoured the Japanese Yen temporarily, although it is too early to conclude that, given that there is still important economic data throughout October that will be important inputs for the BOJ. Nonetheless, the Yen rose past 149.00 per dollar, climbing further…

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mariacallous · 4 months

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Earlier this year, McKinsey executives found themselves in serious political trouble. The Financial Times reported that their China branch had boasted in 2019 of its economic advice to the Chinese central government, while a McKinsey-led think tank prepared a book which advised China to “deepen cooperation between business and the military and push foreign companies out of sensitive industries.”

McKinsey, which had previously gotten media attention for promoting China’s Belt and Road initiative, responded with a statement saying that China’s central government had never to its knowledge been a client, and stressing its “75 year history of supporting the US government.” But the damage was done: Senior Republican policymakers called for McKinsey to be banned from tens of millions of dollars in federal contracts.

Once, information brokers like McKinsey could advise governments and share data across national borders with little controversy. Now, they are being forced to make hard choices—and not just by U.S. politicians. The Beijing branch of the Mintz group, a consultancy specializing in due diligence, was raided last year by Chinese authorities, which had apparently started worrying that accurate statistics about the Chinese economy were a national security threat. Bain, which provides detailed advice to corporations, was raided a month later.

These changes in practice go hand in hand with changes in regulation. Although China has eased off on some of the harshest implications of its new rules preventing the export of data, businesses still face serious uncertainty over what information they can export and what they can’t. The U.S, long notoriously lax in its treatment of sensitive data, has acquired a newfound zeal to prevent the export of certain kinds of information and moved sharply away from its past blanket support of “free cross-border information flows.”

Not so long ago, consultancies and other information brokers could work easily with different clients in different countries. Just as they talked to competing firms, they advised competing governments. In 2015, when senior McKinsey partner Lola Woetzel hoped the think tank’s book “provides useful input for the planning and development of China’s technology enterprises and government institutions,” she likely didn’t think she was making a controversial statement.

But what may have seemed banal then may now be depicted as smoking gun evidence that companies are helping the enemy. For decades, business leaders assumed that globalization meant market expansion. Their big worry was gaining and keeping market share, and competing with their rivals. Now, they are being thrown unprepared into a world where globalization means geopolitical risk—and information is the riskiest asset of all.

Top officials in Washington and Beijing no longer see economic information simply as the fuel for innovation and better business services. Instead, they worry about economic confrontation and act on fears over what might happen if there was an actual war, where data could power artificial intelligence, disinformation or surveillance. As markets become battlefields, government leaders begin to worry about who has crucial information about the contours of the combat zone—and who they might be sharing it with.

That is why leaders on both sides of the Pacific are ratcheting up actions aimed to limit the exchange of strategic information. Semiconductors—where the U.S. has imposed extensive restrictions on the export of tools and expertise—took the first hit. Now, business consultancies and compliance groups are in trouble. Soon, it may be everyone.

Once, information brokering seemed to be politically risk free. When political consultancies like McKinsey were criticized, it was usually left wingers deploring their business advice, not centrists and conservatives condemning their work with adversary governments. As governments realized they needed greater information and access, they started to rely more on international consultants, which worked with many clients in many countries.

Consultancy firms were already crucial middlemen in the globalized economy, providing advice and shaping so-called best practices. Big companies in Beijing could see what their peers in Boston were doing, and adapt it to local circumstances. Consultants began to do the same for government clients. Other major international businesses, such as accountancy firms and data brokers, got in on the action, providing governments with specialized information that they didn’t have themselves.

Just as specialized compliance firms told business how to raise capital or make safe investments under different regulatory regimes, business consultancies advised governments how to attract investment, optimize public service delivery, and learn from what other regulators were doing. Governments saw themselves as innovating and competing for market share in a global economy. That seemed to allow information brokers to become middlemen for governments too.

Businesses are rarely happy when an information broker offers advice to an economic competitor as well as to themselves, but they can live with it, so long as confidentiality is preserved. When governments thought of themselves like businesses, they could accept the same rough bargain.

All that has changed now that governments worry less about market competition and more about security competition. What once seemed like market advice to competing governments may now seem like trading information with the enemy. Building up an adversary’s economy may help fuel a military machine that might someday be used against you, and providing data and information might directly enhance their arsenal. Microsoft offered to “relocate” cloud computing staff from China amidst dire pronouncements from the Biden administration that cloud computing might help adversaries train AI.

These sweeping changes explain McKinsey’s current troubles. Business activities that seemed innocuous a few years ago may be depicted as near-treasonous today. Companies that did not directly engage with foreign governments, but that just gathered market information, face similar dilemmas. Chinese regulators justified their action against Mintz by claiming that the company had conducted “foreign-related statistical investigations.”

In a world of geopolitical competition, even apparently innocent collection of economic data can be penalized harshly. After all, other governments could potentially use such data to discover and exploit economic vulnerabilities, discovering which businesses have financial relationships with which, or which rely on foreign technologies that might be weaponized against them.

The U.S. has already acted to choke off China’s access to certain highly advanced semiconductors, and has targeted businesses with close relationships to China’s military.

China has cut off foreign access to key data on business relationships and technological advances, which it fears may be deployed against it.

Chinese officials have also complained furiously at U.S. actions, but their rhetorical conversion to the gospel of free exchange of information is belated and hypocritical. China does not just censor its own citizens and try to silence dissidents abroad. It has spent decades enthusiastically trying to force reporters and information companies to comply with the party line, exploiting the vulnerabilities of parent companies, which want access to China’s market.

When Bloomberg ran a story on the corruption of China’s party elite, the government searched its bureaus and ordered state-owned companies not to lease Bloomberg terminals. Bloomberg reportedly killed a second story that would bring the corruption story closer to Xi Jinping, suspending, and later firing, the reporter responsible, reportedly for revealing what had happened.

The U.S. and China have each made efforts to limit the economic repercussions. Jake Sullivan, the White House national security advisor, has taken to using the more anodyne term “derisking” as an alternative to “decoupling,” and has stressed that the U.S. wants a “small yard, high fence” approach that would limit China’s access to a limited number of “foundational” technologies, while allowing continued financial and informational exchange elsewhere. China has partly rolled back a national security law that would have made it vastly more difficult for companies to transfer internal data across borders.

But even so, the trend seems to point toward more restrictions on information exchange rather than less. It is nearly impossible to define what “foundational” technologies are in advance, or to keep the yard small when a bipartisan coalition wants to dramatically expand it. And while some in China’s complex internal political system might want continued international exchange of trade and information, national security hawks are ascendant, suggesting that the future may see more rather than fewer restrictions on information exchange.

Nor are traditional information brokers like McKinsey—or even Ernst & Young—the only plausible targets. The U.S. Congress has started investigating whether cranes used at U.S. ports are phoning back to the mothership in China, while the E.U. worries about Chinese produced airport screening equipment The data revolution means that nearly every major business is an information broker, and hence at risk of being targeted or pressed into service as a possible unwilling combatant.

Indiscriminate data collection has itself become a risky bet as the logic of national security devours the globalized economy. TikTok’s business model and its Chinese roots have led U.S. politicians to see it as an urgent national security risk. That is why they swiftly passed legislation intended either to force its sale or shut down its U.S. operations. Biden administration executive orders limit cloud service providers and data brokers from sending data to China. Elon Musk has had to hustle and build an alliance with Baidu to get China to consider approving Tesla’s compliance with data security laws.

Every prominent international business that extensively gathers data risks unwelcome attention and action. And nearly everyone is gathering data. So what can businesses do to minimize the risk of being McKinseyed?

The first and most obvious step is to map their exposure. Companies need to understand how much they have become information brokers, the specific information and data that they have collected, and the different jurisdictions that they are exposed to. Very often, data practices are consigned to middle management and company lawyers—but they now pose potential existential risks.

As a result, capacity needs to be built at the level of top management. Senior executives in strategic sectors of technology, such as semiconductor production, have had to educate themselves in a hurry about how geopolitics is transforming their business model.

Some businesses will have to consider reforming their internal organizational structures to make themselves more robust. McKinsey itself is moving toward a more centralized risk management system to make it less likely that ambitious partners, hungry to grow their client relationships, create risk for the firm as a whole.

But for some businesses, the best step may be the most radical one—considering whether they want to be in the business of information gathering and brokering at all. As Fourcade and Healy suggest, the drive to gather data on everything was at least as much the result of businesses piling in on what everyone else was doing, as of cool consideration of the possible business model.

Others may want to support national privacy and data protection laws that they previously opposed. Such laws provide them with a potential legal shield against foreign demands for data and information that would hurt their reputation and get them into political trouble back home. Finally, businesses may find themselves increasingly forced to choose between the U.S. and China.

Information brokers like McKinsey and Bain have long been criticized for their association with a particular model of globalized capitalism. That model is in trouble—and so are the businesses that helped propagate its gospel. As information increasingly comes to be seen not solely as an economic input, but also as a source of geopolitical risk and disadvantage, McKinsey won’t be the last information broker to end up being targeted by angry politicians.

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