#THERE IS STILL HOPE FOR THE JUSTIN LAW TREATMENT. AS OF RIGHT NOW. HOPE

[specialgrades]

You ready for tomorrow? I'm not. I will be... so distraught.

so ready! sosososo ready 's gonna be great! ahahaha (i say, y'know, like a liar)

[jazy3]

Thoughts on Grey’s Anatomy: 17X16

SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

I really liked this episode! I loved the scenes between Meredith and Bailey and Meredith with her kids. So precious! I think Meredith is the perfect person to take over the residency program now that Richard has too many jobs as Bailey says! I think she is really going to shine in this new role. In the past I thought her and Alex might wind up running the hospital with him as Chief of Surgery and her as Residency Director. While that won't happen because Justin Chambers' exit, I think it will be great to see Meredith step up and take on the role. Ultimately, I want to see her operate again and be a badass, but since she’s still recovering, I think having Meredith take this on while she recovers from COVID is a great idea.  

I’m glad that we got to see Maggie and Winston disagree on something and work through it in this episode. While I think Winston did overreact a bit when Maggie was upset and a bit reluctant about the wedding planning and said that everything felt like a compromise I'm glad that they showed the two of them disagreeing and working through it because up until now they've been portrayed as the perfect couple. I loved the scene where Maggie and Winston talked about the wedding and then it was revealed that Maggie had arranged for her Dad and Winston’s Grandmother to fly in for the wedding. That was very sweet and they got the actor that previously played her Dad back!

I also really liked the patient that Maggie, Helm, and Richard treated. I felt so bad for her when she told them that her husband had died and her dog had ran away and that she wasn’t good with people. I suspected she was pretending early on because of her loneliness. I was so sad about the missing dog for the whole episode and I was ecstatic when they found him! I’m more of a cat than a dog person, but pets are family. I am also glad that we got to learn more about Helm in this episode and that she appears to have left her Meredith obsession behind. That was funny the first few times they brought it up, but then it just got weird and annoying.

Especially after both CeCe the matchmaker and Carina talked to Helm about it and told her she needed to move on and find someone that could love her back and then she went right back to being obsessed with her. That’s been her whole personality for the past three seasons. Now in this episode we learn that she likes to cook, that she makes a mess when she cooks, and that she likes to watch the news. I think Helm moving in with Levi and Jo is a good thing, but he definitely should have cleared it with Jo first and they for sure need a bigger place.

I really liked the scene with Link and Jo. I like that he called her out on the fact that she obviously wanted to adopt Luna and told her she should stop doubting herself. I was surprised and disappointed that Jo’s adoption application was denied. She's clearly formed a bond with Luna and she was ready to have kids with Alex prior to his departure and she was close to Val prior to her death. I’m curious as to why her application was denied and why she failed the background check. I hope we get a follow up to that because she would be a great Mom to Luna and I want to know what happened there.

When we found that out my first thought was, “That’s illegal!” because here in Canada and in Ontario specifically to the best of my knowledge you can’t discriminate against someone and reject their adoption or foster application because they are a single parent, have had mental health issues in the past, stole a car while homeless or lived under an assumed name while fleeing domestic violence provided they meet the other criteria such as being able to provide a safe loving home and can prove that they are financially stable and have a good support network in place.

I was confused as first, but then my friend Amy and I were talking about it and I realized that I was applying my own context to another situation. Having the right to adopt and not be discriminated against is something that the women’s, gay rights, and disability rights movements here in Canada have fought very hard for. A lot of changes were enacted in the 2000’s and 2010’s to make it easier for people from all walks of life to adopt and foster. In fact, in many cases social services will look for prospective parents who share a child’s background or history because they will be able to relate to the child in a way that a parent without that experience might not be able to.

That’s not to say that everything is perfect and that discrimination and unfair treatment doesn’t happen. It does. People can be sneaky about it. But you do have recourse here. You would be able to contest the discrimination. I’m not familiar with adoption laws and policies for Washington State where the show is set so it’s possible that this kind of discrimination may still be legal there or there may not be specific policies addressing it. If anyone does know I would love to know more as what I’m saying is based on the experiences of people that I know here in Ontario. I do think that Jo will eventually get custody of Luna. They've spent a bunch of time setting this up and dropping hints about this storyline so it would feel hollow to have it end like this. It would also put Jo back in a dark place which she just got out of for the umpteenth time.

I’m interested to see where they go with Amelia and Link’s storyline around him wanting more children and Amelia not wanting anymore. Couples getting together and then realizing at a later point that they feel differently about having children or having more children in this case is a real thing that happens. Amelia and Link started off as casual sex partners which progressed into something more serious when Amelia found out she was pregnant. They've become this beautiful family and it turns out they are a great match, but because they didn't start out with marriage and kids in mind there are bridges that they have to cross at some point. I'm glad that Link is voicing his desire to have more kids down the road now so that they can talk about it.

I totally get why Amelia doesn't want more kids. After what happened with Christopher and Ryan and then Owen, Betty, and Leo and then with Meredith's kids I get why Amelia doesn't want more children. It's a lot of work, she's been through a lot, and getting overwhelmed could impact her sobriety. Link is a good guy and way more sensitive around this topic that Owen ever was so my hope is that they'll talk it out, Amelia will share her concerns, Link will understand, and he'll fulfill that need for more kids by spending more time with Leo or Meredith's kids.

Also real talk, Owen was an absolute asshole to Cristina and Amelia when they didn’t want kids and straight up said that there was something wrong with them because they didn’t want to be with something who treated them poorly and kept trying to force them to have kids that they didn’t want. While it’s great that he gets it now and was able to offer some words of wisdom to Amelia in this episode and be supportive it doesn’t make up for or change the fact that he was god awful to both of his ex-wives because they didn’t want kids and he did. He knew Cristina didn’t want kids long before they got married and he married Amelia without ever talking about his desire to have children and just assumed she wanted that too.

He should really call Cristina and apologize because what the hell? I think it’s the difference between perception and experience. Before when he wanted kids but didn’t have any he was in love the idea and couldn’t understand someone not wanting that. Now that he has two kids he realizes how much work that is and why someone might not want that especially if they are dealing with other issues that could be impacted by having more children. I really enjoyed the patient storylines this week. I had previously read a study about what Amelia is working on and how doctors and scientists have now determined that there are two types of patients who appear brain dead. 

The kind that actually are where their body is still alive but no one’s home and the kind we see in this episode where their body is still alive and they are still in there, but can’t communicate in traditional ways, but can communicate through thinking about different things to answer yes or no questions. There is a special kind of machine that is needed to scan for this and they are expensive but they’ve proven that hospitals make the costs back within a year because the machines allow them to determine which patients are actually brain dead and which can still make decisions and answer questions about their care.

Something I didn’t like about this episode was that Levi chose Nico over Dr. Mason Post the hot Vaccine Doctor. I was really rooting for them to get together and for him to start something new with someone who might actually treat him well and I was so freaking disappointed wand pissed off when Levi showed up at Nico’s place and got back together with him instead of going over to Mason’s. I’m Team Mason all the way! He's a gem. He's attractive, funny, smart, direct, and kind. He's everything Levi deserves in a partner after the nonsense Nico has put him through.

I liked Nico and Levi when they first got together, but after Nico revealed that he lied about being out to his parents their relationship went downhill fast. He's treated Levi like crap ever since and his one-time apology doesn't fix that or do anything to address the way he's acted or fix his and Levi's relationship problems. I hope Mason returns next season, Levi winds up with him, and Nico goes off to work for the Mariners as he was supposed to originally.

My only other complaint is that Meredith and Hayes didn't have any scenes together this week, but it looks like they'll have scenes in the finale so I'm happy about that. My favourite moment of the episode was when Amelia told Owen that Tom had moved to Boston to help Jackson with the changes he wanted to make and Owen thinking that he had been fired said that he hated that there was one more thing he had to like and respect about the guy. I'm not an Owen fan in general, but that line cracked me up! I’m really looking forward to the finale! I’m excited that based on next week’s promo Meredith and Hayes will have scenes together and hopefully we’ll be getting some movement on the world's slowest moving slow burn storyline!

I swear to god glaciers move faster! People have gotten engaged, broken up, gotten back together, and moved to Boston in the time that Meredith was on that beach while Hayes worried about her from afar. So, I'm excited for that. I'm also excited for Maggie and Winston's wedding and to know why her Dad and his Grandmother are objecting. I hope to see Jo adopt Luna and I'd love to see some father-daughter scenes with Richard and Meredith.

Until next time!

[newstfionline]

Headlines

Exhausted cities face another challenge: a surge in violence (AP) Still reeling from the coronavirus pandemic and street protests over the police killing of George Floyd, exhausted cities around the nation are facing yet another challenge: a surge in shootings that has left dozens dead, including young children. The spike defies easy explanation, experts say, pointing to the toxic mix of issues facing America in 2020: an unemployment rate not seen in a generation, a pandemic that has killed more than 130,000 people, stay-at-home orders, rising anger over police brutality, intense stress, even the weather. “I think it’s just a perfect storm of distress in America,” said Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms after a weekend of bloodshed in her city. Jerry Ratcliffe, a Temple University criminal justice professor and host of the “Reducing Crime” podcast, put it more bluntly: “Anybody who thinks they can disentangle all of this probably doesn’t know what they’re talking about.” Through Sunday, shootings in New York City were up more than 53%—to 585—so far this year. In Dallas, violent crime increased more than 14% from April to June. In Philadelphia, homicides were up 20% for the week ending July 5 over last year at this time. In Atlanta, 31 people were shot over the weekend, five fatally, compared with seven shootings and one killing over the same week in 2019.

Congress created virus aid, then reaped the benefits (AP) At least a dozen lawmakers have ties to organizations that received federal coronavirus aid, according to newly released government data, highlighting how Washington insiders were both author and beneficiary of one of the biggest government programs in U.S. history. Under pressure from Congress and outside groups, the Trump administration this week disclosed the names of some loan recipients in the $659 billion Paycheck Protection Program, launched in April to help smaller businesses keep Americans employed during the pandemic. Connections to lawmakers, and the organizations that work to influence them, were quickly apparent. Members of Congress and their families are not barred from receiving loans under the PPP, and there is no evidence they received special treatment. Hundreds of millions of dollars also flowed to political consultants, opposition research shops, law firms, advocacy organizations and trade associations whose work is based around influencing government and politics. While voting, lobbying and ultimately benefiting from legislation aren’t illegal, advocates say the blurred lines risk eroding public trust in the federal pandemic response. “It certainly looks bad and smells bad,” said Aaron Scherb, a spokesperson for Common Cause, a watchdog group that was also approved for a loan through the program.

Missouri summer camp virus outbreak raises safety questions (AP) Missouri leaders knew the risk of convening thousands of kids at summer camps across the state during a pandemic, the state’s top health official said, and insisted that camp organizers have plans in place to keep an outbreak from happening. The outbreak happened anyway. An overnight summer camp in rural southwestern Missouri has seen scores of campers, counselors and staff infected with the coronavirus, the local health department revealed this week, raising questions about the ability to keep kids safe at what is a rite of childhood for many. The Kanakuk camp near Branson ended up sending its teenage campers home. On Friday, the local health department announced 49 positive cases of the COVID-19 virus at the camp. By Monday, the number had jumped to 82.

Our Cash-Free Future Is Getting Closer (NYT) PARIS—On a typical Sunday, patrons at Julien Cornu’s cheese shop used to load up on Camembert and chèvre for the week, with about half the customers digging into their pockets for euro notes and coins. But in the era of the coronavirus, cash is no longer à la mode at La Fromagerie, as social distancing requirements and concerns over hygiene prompt nearly everyone who walks through his door to pay with plastic. “People are using cards and contactless payments because they don’t want to have to touch anything,” said Mr. Cornu, as a line of mask-wearing shoppers stood three feet apart before approaching the register and swiping contactless cards over a reader. While cash is still accepted, even older shoppers—his toughest clientele when it comes to adopting digital habits—are voluntarily making the switch. Cash was already being edged out in many countries as urban consumers paid increasingly with apps and cards for even the smallest purchases. But the coronavirus is accelerating a shift toward a cashless future. Fears over transmission of the disease have compelled consumers to rethink how they shop and pay.

The White House and AMLO (Foreign Policy) Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador visits the White House today (Wednesday) for his first foreign trip since winning the presidency in 2018. His arrival in Washington on Tuesday evening was typically on-brand for the leftist leader: He flew in economy class on a commercial airliner (albeit in an exit row). Unlike Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau—who spurned an invite to today’s meeting as the U.S. government threatens to place tariffs on Canadian aluminum—this summit is too good an opportunity for López Obrador to turn down. That’s largely because of the importance of the United States to Mexico’s economy—which is predicted to contract by 10.5 percent this year, according to the International Monetary Fund. As his approval rating gradually falls along with Mexico’s economic performance, López Obrador is aiming to stay on Trump’s good side. “This is about the economy, it’s about jobs, it’s about well-being,” López Obrador said before he departed for Washington.

Berlin looks east (Foreign Policy) Germany is hoping to strengthen its economic ties with China, setting itself apart from the rest of the West and the United States in particular. Germany’s relationship with China has always been divided. On one hand, human rights issues preoccupy the German public, and figures such as Ai Weiwei and Liao Yiwu are well known there. But on the other, trade between China and Germany is significant and largely responsible for Germany’s post-2008 prosperity. The antagonism shown by President Donald Trump and his team toward German Chancellor Angela Merkel has also poisoned any attempts by the United States to sell Berlin on a split with Beijing.

OECD unemployment rate to hit record highs (Foreign Policy) The world’s wealthiest countries will see record unemployment rates as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). The OECD forecast a 9.4 percent unemployment rate across the 37 countries that make up the group’s membership, a number that could go as high as 12.6 percent if these countries see a second wave of coronavirus cases. In releasing the data, OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurría called on wealthy countries to better protect the economically vulnerable across their societies. “In times of crisis, ‘normality’ sounds very appealing. However, our normal was not good enough for the many people with no or precarious jobs, bad working conditions, income insecurity, and limits on their ambitions,” Gurría said.

Rioting in Serbia (Reuters) Dozens of demonstrators and police were injured in overnight rioting in Belgrade, triggered when a crowd stormed Serbia’s parliament in protest at plans to reimpose a lockdown following a surge in coronavirus cases. Footage showed police kicking and beating people with truncheons while protesters pelted officers with stones and bottles, after thousands chanting for the resignation of President Aleksandar Vucic gathered outside the building. Vucic announced the new lockdown on Tuesday, saying it was needed because of the rising number of coronavirus cases.

Top U.S. general speaks on Russian bounty case (Foreign Policy) Gen. Frank McKenzie, the head of U.S. Central Command, has poured cold water on recent allegations, first reported by the New York Times, of a program run by Russian intelligence offering cash to Afghan militants for killing U.S. soldiers. McKenzie called the reports “very worrisome,” but said he couldn’t point to any U.S. casualties that could have had a direct link to the alleged program. McKenzie said that Russia’s actions in Afghanistan should, however, still be watched closely.

Japan battered by more heavy rain, floods; 58 dead (AP) Pounding rain that already caused deadly floods in southern Japan was moving northeast Wednesday, battering large areas of Japan’s main island, swelling more rivers, triggering mudslides and destroying houses and roads. At least 58 people died in several days of flooding. Parts of Nagano and Gifu, including areas known for scenic mountain trails and hot springs, were flooded by massive downpours.

‘We’re next’: Hong Kong security law sends chills through Taiwan (AFP) The imposition of a sweeping national security law on Hong Kong has sent chills through Taiwan, deepening fears that Beijing will focus next on seizing the democratic self-ruled island. China and Taiwan split in 1949 after nationalist forces lost a civil war to Mao Zedong’s communists, fleeing to the island which Beijing has since vowed to seize one day, by force if necessary. Over the years China has used a mixture of threats and inducements, including a promise Taiwan could have the “One Country, Two Systems” model that governs Hong Kong, supposedly guaranteeing key civil liberties and a degree of autonomy for 50 years after the city’s 1997 handover. Both Taiwan’s two largest political parties long ago rejected the offer, and the new security law has incinerated what little remaining faith many Taiwanese may have had in Beijing’s outreach. Some now fear even transiting through Hong Kong, worried that their social media profiles could see them open to prosecution under the legislation.

Millions of Australians brace for lockdowns amid Melbourne virus outbreak (Reuters) Five million Australians face a heavy police clampdown from midnight on Wednesday to contain a flare-up of coronavirus cases, with checkpoints to be set up around Melbourne to ensure people stay at home.

Suleimani killing “unlawful” (Foreign Policy) In a new report, Agnès Callamard, the U.N. special rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, concluded that the January killing of Iranian Commander Qassem Suleimani by a U.S. drone strike was arbitrary and unlawful under international human rights law, citing a lack of any imminent threat posed by Suleimani in the lead up to the assassination. Callamard will present her findings to the U.N. Human Rights Council on Thursday. The United States left the council in 2018.

Rising food prices in Lebanon (Worldcrunch) In Lebanon, the constant change of the dollar exchange rate and a plummeting Lebanese pound have led to a 190% increase in food prices within a year. Hit with exponential inflation, French daily Les Echos notes that the country is facing its most serious economic and currency crisis since the end of its 1975-1990 civil war.

Dozen of bodies found in Burkina Faso, and rights group suspects extrajudicial killings (Reuters) At least 180 bodies have been found in common graves in Djibo, a town in the north of Burkina Faso, Human Rights Watch (HRW), said in a report released on Wednesday, saying that the killings were likely carried out by government forces.

[mind-reader1]

Queen of Hearts (Ch.21)

Drake x MC (Emma Barnes)

TRR AU: What would happen if Emma loved Drake but had to marry Liam?

Catch up here

Warnings: NSFW, maybe some cursing? Honestly I don’t remember

Note: I just found out my grandpa has cancer and won’t be doing treatment. In addition to that, I’ve just got a lot of shit going on right now, things are scheduled to post every Tuesday/Thursday and Saturday, but I don’t know how much I’ll be on here. Please be patient with me. If I don’t interact with you or post or comment or whatever, I promise I’m not ignoring you.

Word Count: 2,990

Summary: Worst nightmares come to life for one of our poor babies, I’m not cruel enough to put you through two funerals so there’s only one. 

Chapter 21: Mirrors - Justin Timberlake

'Cause I don't wanna lose you now

I'm looking right at the other half of me

The vacancy that sat in my heart

Is a space that now you hold

Show me how to fight for now

And I'll tell you, baby, it was easy

Coming back into you once I figured it out

You were right here all along

It's like you're my mirror

My mirror staring back at me

I couldn't get any bigger

With anyone else beside of me

And now it's clear as this promise

That we're making two reflections into one

'Cause it's like you're my mirror

My mirror staring back at me, staring back at me

Yesterday is history

Tomorrow's a mystery

I can see you looking back at me

Keep your eyes on me

Baby, keep your eyes on me

Drake stood frozen, staring at the coffin in front of him, he’d barely been making it through the days since that night. He felt empty, broken, his other half, his better half, his whole world had died in his arms. He couldn’t protect her, he was too late, Liam blamed him to make matters worse. He had lost both of his best friends now, he was alone at court. He couldn’t even see her one last time, it was closed casket because the damage had been too extensive, no one wanted the people’s last thought of Emma to look like that. They put up Drake’s favorite picture of her, she was all dolled up for a ball, looking over her shoulder at someone laughing because of what they’d said, her long blonde curls cascading down her back. It killed Drake to look at it, his heart shattering a little more every time, though he didn’t even think that was possible, but he still couldn’t bring himself to look away. Looking away meant that he had to look at the coffin, a reminder that she really was gone forever. One by one her friends came and dropped a rose and some dirt into her grave, whispering goodbyes. Drake went last, dropping in a sunflower, since that was her favorite, he dropped more tears than anything though. He couldn’t believe this had happened, after everything. He had taken a bullet for her the first time, if he had just been sleeping in her room that night, they wouldn’t be here. She would still be curled up in his arms, safe, breathing deeply with her head on his chest. Drake fell to his knees, his whole body wracked with sobs and guilt, he had promised to protect her, to love her forever. They were supposed to have forever together though, now he would have to spend forever alone.

Liam had found comfort with Olivia and frankly, Drake hated his guts for it. He claimed to have loved Emma, but so quickly moved onto Olivia, getting the kind of support he so desperately wanted and needed. Sure, everyone missed her, but no one understood Drake’s pain, he couldn’t even put in into words. The closest he could come to describing it was soul crushing oblivion. He didn’t even know how to begin to live life without her, she had completely turned his world upside down and set it on fire just to leave him, to deal with the cleanup. He couldn’t blame her though, she had only gone down to the vault because she was trying to solve the mystery, protect her friends, protect him. He got back to the palace and peeled off every piece of his all black suit he had bought just for this, he wanted to burn it, he hated it, hated everything it represented. He caught a glimpse of a picture sitting on his desk, it was a picture of them from New York, before Liam had proposed. He had handed her a stuffed animal, she smiled down at it, squeezing it in her arms, Drake was smiling down at her, the happiest man alive in that moment. He flipped the picture face down, grateful for Maxwell’s stupid scrapbook, without it he wouldn’t have any proof she had ever chosen him. Wandering to her room in a drunken stupor he found it was cleared out already except for the same stuffed animal on her bed. Sitting there, just waiting for her to return. Drake collapsed again, unable to see through the flood of tears running down his face, broken glass in his hand from the bottle of whiskey he had been carrying. He reached out to the stuffed animal clinging to it, holding it against his heart as if he could somehow will her back to life.

“You asked me to love you till the day you die, well that wasn’t supposed to be until we were old and grey! I don’t know how to do this without you Emma.” His words were muffled into the bear, it still smelled like her. Warm vanilla, a hint of strawberries and fragrant flowers. Normally it was heady and intoxicating, Emma’s skin brushing against his, this time it only brought him a little comfort, aiding the alcohol in numbing the pain to a dull ache in his heart.

“Don’t move!” Emma opened her eyes to find Mara standing there, having already disarmed Justin, leveling his own gun at his chest. She was bewildered, checking her body to see if she was still solid, still alive. She was on the floor, she must have passed out, her head throbbing, a large bump forming where she must have hit it.

“Get the fuck away from Barnes!” Liam and Drake came rushing down the stairs, Emma breathed in a sigh of relief when she saw them, she was safe, she was indeed still alive. Lucretia still had one trick up her sleeve though, taunting Olivia once more about not knowing her past. She leaned against the wall and a large crack opened, the ceiling beginning to collapse around them. Mara grabbed Lucretia before she could get away, but Justin was quicker and disappeared into the dust. Liam rushed in and Emma thought he was going after her, but he pulled Olivia out and Drake grabbed Emma just moments before the ceiling collapsed where they had been standing. Drake enveloped Emma in his arms, she breathed in deep, inhaling his familiar scent of leather, whiskey and aftershave. One of his arms held her flush against his body, while his other gently stroked her hair, whispering soothing sweet nothings in her ear. Seeing that gun leveled on her brought him back to the homecoming ball, he thought he was going to lose her again, and he knew he wouldn’t survive that. Drake looked over at Liam, expecting to see a pang of jealousy on his friends face, instead he smiled softly, Liam was too focused on Olivia to even notice them. Olivia was tough, but she was visibly shaken by the encounter, Liam gently rubbing her arms and talking to her in hushed tones. Maybe there was hope for Liam after all, Drake thought. They escorted the women to their rooms, Drake stopping outside of Emma’s door, the charade was up. Mara and the rest of the guard now knew about them, not that it was a well-kept secret, but it was confirmed now. He tried to leave Emma, but she yanked his hand back, refusing to let go.

“Drake. You can’t leave me, not now.” He glanced nervously at Mara, but she kept her eyes ahead. He nodded and followed Emma into her room, holding her, gently tracing small circles on her back to try and help her fall asleep. He ended up falling asleep first, every time Emma closed her eyes she saw Justin pointing the gun at her, the vision of Drake haunting her every thought. They traveled to the palace the next day, everyone still shaken by what had occurred in the vault, Lucretia being transferred to a secure location where she could be interrogated. Drake refused to leave Emma’s side, both of them scared that Anton was lurking around every corner. She couldn’t bring herself to tell Drake about it, she knew it would hurt him than he already had been, she could feel Drake’s pain in that vision, she knew neither of them would be able to survive losing the other. She couldn’t let him out of her site until Anton was found. Olivia hardly left Liam’s side, needing the comfort more than she cared to admit, and trying to figure out a way to annul her marriage to Anton. After a week, Mara had a security briefing ready for them, everyone meeting in one of the dining halls. Maxwell blamed himself, the Beaumont’s had been the one to hire Justin, but the truth was he had fooled everyone and so there was no one to blame. Anton saw an opening to get close to the Royal court and he took it.

“I shudder to think what could have happened if he got to you before you and Emma are married before there’s an heir.” The weight of Regina’s words hitting everyone, she didn’t know about Drake and Emma, they hadn’t had the heart to tell her as she and Constantine were so excited for Liam. They would need to be married and produce an heir quickly if Anton wasn’t caught. That put even more pressure on her, and pressure on Drake, all of them would be forced into the role of parents even if they weren’t ready. Even if they hadn't figured out how it was going to work long term.

“Yes, that’s concerning.” Liam mumbled.

“It must be the reason for ancient ascension laws, to counteract schemes like this.” Olivia flinched at Regina’s words, even if she wasn’t behind this, she couldn’t help but feel responsible as it was her husband and aunt plotting it all without her knowledge.

“What’s the plan then? How are we going to stop Anton from attacking again?” Emma was still anxious, she wanted this whole ordeal to be over with.

“Your duchy. We haven’t yet been on the tour and I doubt they will be expecting us to go there.” Everyone nodded their approval, Emma was excited to see her duchy finally, Valtoria. On the drive there, Emma found herself daydreaming about what it would look like. Was it grand? Was it quaint and homey? Nothing she could dream up compared to it once they finally arrived. She squeezed Drake’s hand as she looked out the window, a gleaming lake spread out in front of them, a luscious forest at the edge of her duchy, and a large, but simple estate designed to look like a castle in the center of it all. Before they could get two steps up the drive, a woman dressed in a suit greeted them, introducing herself as Gladys. She showed them around the estate and grounds, Emma’s duchy had it all. Stables, a menagerie, the beautiful estate, a lake, and of course the forest. In the grand hall though, Emma was blown away by the throne’s beauty, but it left a sour taste in her mouth, a reminder that she would have to sit on a throne beside Liam instead of on Drake’s lap as they curled up together in the room around her. Gladys ended the tour with the master bedroom, she wanted to show just her and Liam something, but Emma insisted everyone stay. If it was something meant to be private, she wanted Drake there with her. Gladys led her and Liam out to a balcony before quietly stepping away.

“I believe this is for you and Drake.” Liam whispered before slipping away, Drake joining her there on the balcony, looking out over her duchy. The hills turned into mountains, the lake going as far as the eye could see.

“It’s perfect.” She breathed out. Drake grabbed her waist and pulled her close to him.

“I could see this being our home someday. After the press has died down, you and I can slip away from the palace and live here, returning when we’re needed.” Emma’s heart ached, she wanted nothing more than that with Drake, but it felt like it would never happen, like it was all a fantasy.

“Drake, my home is in your eyes, your arms, your heartbeat. You’re my home, it doesn’t matter where we are. I love you.” He leaned down to kiss her softly, resting his forehead against hers. Sometimes he still didn’t believe she had picked him, that he could have gotten so lucky as to have someone as amazing as Emma love him.

“I love you too Em.” Later, her friends spread out as they explored the rest of the estate, Emma found Drake out in the stables, she knew it was where he felt calmest.

“Hey you.” He turned and smiled, continuing to brush one of the horses.

“This place is huge Barnes. A little overwhelming.”

“I know what you mean, I feel like I’ve barely seen any of it, even after the tour.” Drake turned to her with a mischievous grin on his face.

“Feel like taking a private tour with me?”

“I think you already know the answer to that.” Drake saddled up the horses, he and Emma riding off into a forest trail. They followed the trail to a clearing by a large lake, Emma and Drake jumping off their horses.

“It still doesn’t feel real.” Emma looked at Drake confused. “I can’t believe that you chose me, that this is all yours, that you’re still the same woman I fell in love with despite it all.” Emma smiled and grabbed Drake’s hand, giggling as he spun her around so her back was to him.

“It’s ours Drake, no matter who I’m married to, everything I have, including my heart will always belong to you.” Drake began swaying and kissed her, he felt reassured by her words, he hated that he let his fears keep ruining moments like this for him. They broke away breathless, Emma very aware of his hands now lingering on her hips.

“It still feels weird Barnes.”

“We could always build ourselves a cabin here, add a porch where we can sit in our rocking chairs and stare out at the water.” Drake began kissing down her neck, pulling on her ear lobe with his teeth, his hot breath tickling her ear.

“I like that idea Barnes.” His hands wandered down her leg, and back up, his nails and rough calluses dragging against the sensitive skin inside her thighs. He slowly unbuttoned her pants, Emma gasping as his hands slid into her pants, teasing her over her thong.

“Drake.” She tried to turn to face him, but he held her in place, his hand pushing her panties aside to tease her clit. Emma moaned and leaned back into Drake, his bulge pushing against her. Emma lost herself in his touch, Drake too focused on the sound of Emma’s moans to notice that the sun had gotten quite low since they left.

“Drake.” Emma was so close, he knew it too, they were so focused on each other, they didn’t hear the horse approaching.

“Emma, Drake, we were wor-Oh!” Emma and Drake jumped apart, Liam staring at them with a scowl on his face. Emma turned, her cheeks bright red, as she buttoned up her pants.

“I, um, well everyone was worried because we couldn’t find you and then noticed some horses were missing. We should head back before it’s too dark.” Liam turned to ride away.

“Liam!” Emma called after him, but he was already gone. She turned to Drake and sighed, they could never seem to get the timing right.

“I guess we should go.” He helped her back onto her horse and followed her, heading back towards the estate. Emma slept alone that night and for the first time since Lythikos she got a good night's sleep, but Hana was pounding on her door early the next morning. She had invited her parents to the lighting festival tomorrow and they had accepted, she hadn't seen them since she blatantly disobeyed them, she was worried to say the least. They walked down to the boutique together, Emma attempting to calm her friends’ nerves. Bertrand was late, but he already had the perfect dress picked out for her as always. It was meant to represent her house sigil, a phoenix. It was a high neck, blue, orange and red hues all mixed together with gold swirls accenting her chest. A long cape flowing behind the dress, it even had a matching hat, but she felt absolutely ridiculous wearing it so she left it at the boutique. Emma tried to leave and go check on last minute preparations, but Bertrand followed her around, lecturing her about anything and everything he could think of.

“Are you going to lecture me about safe sex too Bertrand? Or do you think Drake and I are responsible enough?” She snapped, Bertrand's eyes grew wide as Emma's hands flew to her mouth, realizing what she had just said. As if it couldn't get any worse, Drake chose that moment to walk into the room. Bertrand didn't know about Emma and Drake, he'd be pissed, cat was out of the bag now though.

“You slept with the commoner?! Are you trying to ruin the Beaumont house name? What about Liam?”

“So, I'm not good enough for Emma because I'm a commoner, but you're somehow good enough for my sister?”

“No, I, that's not what I meant Drake.” Bertrand was scrambling for the right words.

“I love Drake and that's never going to change no matter what anyone thinks. Liam and I have had an arrangement since New York. I'm marrying him to keep my friends, the people I love, and Cordonia safe. You of all people should know that status doesn't matter! It wasn't fair of you to place the responsibility of keeping your house afloat on me, you got what you wanted anyways, so just leave us be Bertrand.” he stood there for a moment shocked, Emma had never spoken to him that way, no one ever had. He shuffled away, and Drake turned to Emma.

“That was so hot, and this dress is absolutely stunning on you. If I didn't know better I'd say you were trying to kill me Barnes.” he said trying to distract himself from the anger towards Bertrand rising in him.

“I can always take it off.” She leaned in and whispered. Drake pretended to collapse, and Emma rolled her eyes at him.

“That would surely kill me Barnes because you're drop dead gorgeous.” He leaned in for a kiss, but Emma turned away, noticing Liam entering the room.

Tag List:  @notoriouscs @brightpinkpeppercorn @ooo-barff-ooo@leelee10898@princesstopgun@choicesyouplayandmore@sleepwalkingelite@roonarific   @indigo39@skyila@speedyoperarascalparty @andy-loves-corgis@furiousherringoperatortoad@drakewalkerfics@findingdrake@sue9659@smritysriv@larryssunflower@likethetailofacomet@zaffrenotes@mrsdrakewalkerblog @agent-bossypants @endlessly-searching-for-you   @cgd03

Next time: Get ready for some good smut, since I left ya’ll with that awful cliffhanger and start of this chapter 

[differentnutpeace]

Dr. Rachel Levine: Transgender Health Care Is An Equity Issue, Not A Political One

Dozens of states are considering Republican-led bills that advocates say are harmful to transgender people. The recent spate of bills are "really challenging to see," says Dr. Rachel Levine, the nation's newly confirmed assistant secretary for health. หวย บอล เกมส์ คาสิโนออนไลน์

"I really think that the decisions about health care for LGBTQ youth are really between the family, the child, the young person, their doctor, maybe their therapist," said Levine, the first openly transgender official to serve in any Senate-confirmed position, in an NPR interview.

Though more Americans than ever oppose discrimination against transgender people, Levine is taking office at a time when trans rights have once again become a controversial political issue.

NATIONAL

Dr. Rachel Levine On Her Trailblazing Role As The First Openly Trans Federal Official

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Governors in Tennessee, Arkansas and South Dakota have recently signed legislation or executive orders aimed at banning transgender women and girls from participating in women's sports.

A measure passed Monday in Arkansas is now awaiting the governor's signature and would ban transgender minors from accessing gender-affirming medical care like hormone blockers and would allow insurance companies to refuse such care for people of all ages. The ACLU of Arkansas called the bill "cruel and discriminatory."

In her first interview since being confirmed, Levine questioned those efforts.

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Asked whether her comments risked drawing accusations of politicizing the department's work, Levine said no, casting her involvement as appropriate given her new stead as a top public health official.

POLITICS

Rachel Levine Makes History As 1st Openly Trans Federal Official Confirmed By Senate

"I don't see it as a political issue at all. I view this as a health equity issue," she said. "This is about fairness and equality and about specifically health equity, which is part of my portfolio. So I don't see any risk in terms of politicization of this issue."

As the first openly transgender person to serve in such a high-ranking role — and for that role to be one of the nation's foremost public health posts — Levine said part of her responsibility is to educate Americans through her public appearances.

"I like to quote that sage Yoda from Star Wars. You know, 'Fear is the path that leads to the dark side. Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering.' I think that people fear what they don't understand," she said.

NATIONAL

'It's Hurtful': Trans Youth Speaks Out As Alabama Debates Banning Medical Treatment

Before her nomination, Levine most recently served as Pennsylvania's top public health officer and the president of an association of state health officials. But her appointment was widely opposed by religious groups and conservatives. Some right-leaning news coverage of her appointment misgendered her in their stories.

During her confirmation hearing in February, Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky criticized Levine's support of hormone blockers for minors and compared gender-affirming surgery to genital mutilation and amputation. Ultimately, only two Republican senators voted to confirm her.

In a statement after her confirmation, Levine spoke directly to young transgender people, saying, "Sadly, some of the challenges you face are from people who would seek to use your identity and circumstances as a weapon. It hurts. I know."

NATIONAL

South Dakota Governor Bans Transgender Girls From Sports Teams By Executive Order

Levine joins the Biden administration's Department of Health and Human Services at a moment the agency confronts a slew of challenges: an unabating opioid crisis, considerably more unaccompanied minors crossing the border than previous years, and a rising number of uninsured Americans.

The administration's first swing at a COVID-19-related relief package, the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan signed into law last month, included a provision that expands eligibility for health care subsidies for plans purchased through Healthcare.gov, the insurance marketplace created by the Affordable Care Act. The Biden administration now plans to spend $100 million to advertise the subsidies.

Levine called the provision "one of the most significant pieces of health care legislation since the ACA," saying that the administration hopes the subsidies will draw 15 million uninsured Americans to sign up for plans. More than 25 million people in the United States currently do not have health insurance.

NATIONAL SECURITY

Pentagon Releases New Policies Enabling Transgender People To Serve In The Military

And there is still the pandemic, with cases on the rise across the U.S. as some states lift restrictions.

The Biden administration's effort to scale up the nation's vaccination program has been a success: Nearly 30% of the nation has received at least one dose of the vaccine, and confidence in the vaccines among the American public has risen significantly in the last few months. But cases have begun to tick up, and hospitalizations appear to be following.

"There is a light at the end of this tunnel with the distribution and the administration of the vaccines. But we're not done yet. We have to stay the course," Levine said. "Please wear a mask, wash your hands, stay socially distant. And when the vaccine is available to you, please get vaccinated."

Sam Gringlas and Justine Kenin produced and edited the audio version of this story.

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[orbemnews]

Deliveroo Shares Stumble as Trading Begins: Live Updates Here’s what you need to know: Deliveroo is now in 12 countries and has over 100,000 riders.Credit…Toby Melville/Reuters Deliveroo, the British food delivery service, dropped as much as 30 percent in its first minutes of trading on Wednesday, a gloomy public debut for the company that was promoted as a post-Brexit win for London’s financial markets. The company had set its initial public offering price at 3.90 pounds a share, for a market value of £7.6 billion or $10.4 billion. But it first traded at £3.31, 15 percent lower, and kept falling. The offering has been beset by major investors planning to sit out the I.P.O. amid concerns about shareholder voting rights and Deliveroo rider pay. Deliveroo is trading under the ticker “ROO.” The business model of Deliveroo and other gig economy companies is increasingly under threat in Europe as legal challenges mount. Two weeks ago, Uber reclassified more than 70,000 drivers in Britain as workers who will receive a minimum wage, vacation pay and access to a pension plan, after a Supreme Court ruling. Analysts said the move could set a precedent for other companies and increase costs. Deliveroo, which is based in London and was founded in 2013, is now in 12 countries and has more than 100,000 riders, recognizable on the streets by their teal jackets and food bags. Last year, Amazon became its biggest shareholder. Demand for Deliveroo’s services could soon diminish, as pandemic restrictions in its largest market, Britain, begin to ease. In a few weeks, restaurants will reopen for outdoor dining. Last year, Deliveroo said, it lost £226.4 million even as its revenue jumped more than 50 percent to nearly £1.2 billion. Last week, a joint investigation by the Independent Workers’ Union of Great Britain and the Bureau of Investigative Journalism was published based on invoices of hundreds of Deliveroo riders. It found that a third of the riders made less than £8.72 an hour, the national minimum wage for people over 25. Deliveroo dismissed the report, calling the union a “fringe organization” that didn’t represent a significant number of Deliveroo riders. The company said that riders were paid for each delivery and earn “£13 per hour on average at our busiest times.” In Britain, Deliveroo has 50,000 riders. On Monday, shares traded hands in a period called conditional dealing open to investors allocated shares in the initial offering. The stock is expected to be fully listed on the London Stock Exchange next Wednesday and can be traded without restrictions from then. An H&M store in Beijing. The retailer’s chief executive, Helena Helmersson, said H&M had a “long-term commitment” to China.Credit…Kevin Frayer/Getty Images More than a week after the Swedish retailer H&M came under fire in China for a months-old statement expressing concern over reports of Uyghur forced labor in the region of Xinjiang, a major source of cotton, the company published a statement saying it hoped to regain the trust of customers in China. In recent days, H&M and other Western clothing brands including Nike and Burberry that expressed concerns over reports coming out of Xinjiang have faced an outcry on Chinese social media, including calls for a boycott endorsed by President Xi Jinping’s government. The brands’ local celebrity partners have terminated their contracts, Chinese landlords have shuttered stores and their products have been removed from major e-commerce platforms. Caught between calls for patriotism among Chinese consumers and campaigns for conscientious sourcing of cotton in the West, some other companies, including Inditex, the owner of the fast-fashion giant Zara, quietly removed statements on forced labor from their websites. On Wednesday, H&M, the world’s second-largest fashion retailer by sales after Inditex, published a response to the controversy as part of its first quarter 2021 earnings report. Not that it said much. There were no explicit references to cotton, Xinjiang or forced labor. However, the statement said that H&M wanted to be “a responsible buyer, in China and elsewhere” and was “actively working on next steps with regards to material sourcing.” “We are dedicated to regaining the trust and confidence of our customers, colleagues, and business partners in China,” it said. During the earnings conference call, the chief executive, Helena Helmersson, noted the company’s “long-term commitment to the country” and how Chinese suppliers, which were “at the forefront of innovation and technology,” would continue to “play an important role in further developing the entire industry.” “We are working together with our colleagues in China to do everything we can to manage the current challenges and find a way forward, ” she said. Executives on the call did not comment on the impact of the controversy on sales, except to state that around 20 stores in China were currently closed. H&M’s earnings report, which covered a period before the recent outcry in China, reflected diminished profit for a retailer still dealing with pandemic lockdowns. Net sales in the three months through February fell 21 percent compared with the same quarter a year ago, with more than 1,800 stores temporarily closed. Kenneth Chenault, left, a former chief executive of American Express, and Kenneth Frazier, the chief executive of Merck, organized a letter signed by 72 Black business leaders.Credit…Left, Justin Sullivan/Getty Images; right, Spencer Platt/Getty Images Seventy-two Black executives signed a letter calling on companies to fight a wave of voting-rights bills similar to the one that was passed in Georgia being advanced by Republicans in at least 43 states. The effort was led by Kenneth Chenault, a former chief executive of American Express, and Kenneth Frazier, the chief executive of Merck, Andrew Ross Sorkin and David Gelles report for The New York Times. The signers included Roger Ferguson Jr., the chief executive of TIAA; Mellody Hobson and John Rogers Jr., the co-chief executives of Ariel Investments; Robert F. Smith, the chief executive of Vista Equity Partners; and Raymond McGuire, a former Citigroup executive who is running for mayor of New York. The group of leaders, with support from the Black Economic Alliance, bought a full-page ad in the Wednesday print edition of The New York Times. “The Georgia legislature was the first one,” Mr. Frazier said. “If corporate America doesn’t stand up, we’ll get these laws passed in many places in this country.” Last year, the Human Rights Campaign began persuading companies to sign on to a pledge that states their “clear opposition to harmful legislation aimed at restricting the access of L.G.B.T.Q. people in society.” Dozens of major companies, including AT&T, Facebook, Nike and Pfizer, signed on. To Mr. Chenault, the contrast between the business community’s response to that issue and to voting restrictions that disproportionately harm Black voters was telling. “You had 60 major companies — Amazon, Google, American Airlines — that signed on to the statement that states a very clear opposition to harmful legislation aimed at restricting the access of L.G.B.T.Q. people in society,” he said. “So, you know, it is bizarre that we don’t have companies standing up to this.” “This is not new,” Mr. Chenault added. “When it comes to race, there’s differential treatment. That’s the reality.” The stunt comes as the company is promoting its new ID.4 electric S.U.V. in the United States.Credit…Ronny Hartmann/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images Contrary to what you may have read, Volkswagen has not changed its name. The company’s U.S. operation caused a stir with an announcement on its website that it planned to call itself Voltswagen to emphasize its push into electric vehicles as it rolls out its first electric sport-utility vehicle in the United States — the ID.4. The change came ahead of April Fool’s day — a favorite time of year for companies to try to grab a share of the social media conversation, such as when IHOP tried to convince the world it was changing its last letter to B, as in burgers. “At the end of the day, it was a bit of fun with the name and the brand,” a Volkswagen spokesman, Mark Gillies, said. “We wanted to reinforce what we are messaging about the ID.4.” Word of the name change surfaced on Monday when a news release announcing the name change was published on the company’s website for about an hour before disappearing. CNBC, USA Today and others reported on the news release, saying it was dated April 29 and appeared to have been accidentally posted a month early. On Tuesday, the company posted a new statement dated March 30 about the name change, raising a flurry of comments and speculation on social media. Late Tuesday afternoon, Volkswagen officials in Germany, where the company is based, acknowledged it was a marketing tactic. The company’s Twitter account was changed Tuesday morning to show a logo with the new name, but the company’s website continued to use the old name. We know, 66 is an unusual age to change your name, but we’ve always been young at heart. Introducing Voltswagen. Similar to Volkswagen, but with a renewed focus on electric driving. Starting with our all-new, all-electric SUV the ID.4 – available today. #Voltswagen #ID4 pic.twitter.com/pKQKlZDCQ7 — Voltswagen (@VW) March 30, 2021 The new name was written in a fluorescent blue typeface similar to the font General Motors chose for a new logo it unveiled in January. G.M.’s logo was intended to have the same effect — to emphasize its commitment to electric vehicles. G.M. has said it aims to make only electric vehicles by 2035. Volkswagen has said it will no longer develop new gasoline engines a few years from now. Volkswagen needs to make a splash if it wants to sell a lot of electric cars in the United States. Tesla dominates the market for now, while Ford Motor has gained ground with the Mustang Mach-E electric S.U.V. that has been delivered to several thousand drivers. Changing the name of an automaker as established as Volkswagen would clearly be a huge undertaking, and not just for the company. Its dealers would have to spend millions of dollars to rebrand their franchises. “I don’t know anything about it,” said Jason Kuhn, owner of two Voltswagen, nee Volkswagen, dealerships near Tampa, Fla. said on Tuesday before the company admitted it was just having fun. “I’ve read it. I really can’t comment.” The Ever Given cargo ship was stuck in the Suez Canal nearly a week.Credit…Agence France-Presse — Getty Images The traffic jam at the Suez Canal will soon ease, but behemoth container ships like the one that blocked that crucial passageway for almost a week aren’t going anywhere. Global supply chains were already under pressure when the Ever Given, a ship longer than the Empire State Building and capable of carrying 20,000 containers, wedged itself between the banks of the Suez Canal last week. It was freed on Monday, but left behind “disruptions and backlogs in global shipping that could take weeks, possibly months, to unravel,” according to A.P. Moller-Maersk, the world’s largest shipping company. The crisis was short, but it was also years in the making, reports Niraj Chokshi for The New York Times. For decades, shipping lines have been making bigger and bigger vessels, driven by an expanding global appetite for electronics, clothes, toys and other goods. The growth in ship size, which sped up in recent years, often made economic sense: Bigger vessels are generally cheaper to build and operate on a per-container basis. But the largest ships can come with their own set of problems, not only for the canals and ports that have to handle them, but for the companies that build them. “They did what they thought was most efficient for themselves — make the ships big — and they didn’t pay much attention at all to the rest of the world,” said Marc Levinson, an economist and author of “Outside the Box,” a history of globalization. “But it turns out that these really big ships are not as efficient as the shipping lines had imagined.” Despite the risks they pose, however, massive vessels still dominate global shipping. According to Alphaliner, a data firm, the global fleet of container ships includes 133 of the largest ship type — those that can carry 18,000 to 24,000 containers. Another 53 are on order. A.P. Moller-Maersk said it was premature to blame Ever Given’s size for what happened in the Suez. Ultra-large ships “have existed for many years and have sailed through the Suez Canal without issues,” Palle Brodsgaard Laursen, the company’s chief technical officer, said in a statement on Tuesday. Some of the most vulnerable Americans still haven’t received their stimulus checks, but millions of them who receive federal benefits should get their payments next week, according to the Internal Revenue Service. People who receive benefits from Social Security, Supplemental Security Income, the Railroad Retirement Board and Veterans Affairs — but do not file tax returns because they don’t meet the income thresholds — were among those who faced delays. But most of them, with the exception of those receiving benefits from Veterans Affairs, could have their payments arrive by direct deposit on April 7. About a million student loan borrowers who were left out of earlier relief efforts are getting a reprieve — but only if they defaulted on their loans. The Education Department said on Tuesday that it would temporarily stop collecting on defaulted loans that were made through the Family Federal Education Loans program and were privately held. The change, however, still leaves millions of other borrowers in that program responsible for payments while the bulk of the country’s student loan borrowers have had theirs paused. A Huawei store in Beijing. The United States has placed strict controls on Huawei’s ability to buy and make computer chips.Credit…Greg Baker/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images The Chinese tech behemoth Huawei reported sharply slower growth in sales last year, which the company blamed on American sanctions that have both hobbled its ability to produce smartphones and left those handsets unable to run popular Google apps and services, limiting their appeal to many buyers. Huawei said on Wednesday that global revenue was around $137 billion in 2020, 3.8 percent higher than the year before. The company’s sales growth in 2019 was 19.1 percent. Over the past two years, Washington has placed strict controls on Huawei’s ability to buy and make computer chips and other essential components. United States officials have expressed concern that the Chinese government could use Huawei or its products for espionage and sabotage. The company has denied that it is a security threat. In recent months, Huawei has continued to release new handset models. But sales have suffered, including in its home market. Worldwide, shipments of Huawei phones fell by 22 percent between 2019 and 2020, according to the research firm Canalys, making the company the world’s third largest smartphone vendor last year. In 2019, it was No. 2, behind Samsung. Huawei remained top dog last year in telecom network equipment, according to the consultancy Dell’Oro Group, even as Britain and other governments blocked Huawei from building their nations’ 5G infrastructure. Announcing the company’s financial results on Wednesday, Ken Hu, one of its deputy chairmen, said that despite the challenges, Huawei was not changing the broad direction of its business. Another Huawei executive recently revealed on social media that the company was offering an artificial intelligence product for pig farms, which some people took as a sign that Huawei was diversifying to survive. Mr. Hu took note of the news reports about Huawei’s pig-farming product but said it was “not true” that the company was making any major shifts. “Huawei’s business direction is still focused on technology infrastructure,” he said. Source link Orbem News #Begins #Deliveroo #Live #shares #Stumble #trading #Updates

[techcrunchappcom]

New Post has been published on https://techcrunchapp.com/panic-and-confusion-permeate-white-house-following-trumpscovid-diagnosis-the-guardian/

Panic and confusion permeate White House following Trump's Covid diagnosis - The Guardian

Golden autumn sunshine shone down on Washington on Saturday to illuminate a US capital upended as Donald Trump began his first full day in hospital battling coronavirus amid a presidential election thrown into chaos.

Just hours earlier, on Friday evening after an excruciating wait for news, the president had emerged from the White House with a lacklustre wave and thumbs up, but ignoring reporters’ shouted questions about the state of his health.

Trump stalked slowly across the south lawn and boarded the US presidential helicopter. The only visual clue that something profound had changed was Trump’s face: he was wearing a mask.

As Marine One lifted into the sky just before sunset, the president left behind a White House staff suddenly rudderless, fearful and unsure how the story will end. The reality TV star turned president has delivered his greatest moment of suspense and the presidential election with its first “October surprise” but maybe not its last.

Trump, 74, is spending the weekend at a military hospital near Washington after discovering that not even the commander in chief of the world’s most powerful country is immune to the coronavirus. Said to be feverish and fatigued, there is huge uncertainty over his condition, its potential to deteriorate and whether he might become incapacitated.

Trump films message before leaving for Covid treatment in hospital – video

In his absence, the mood in the White House was said to be one of panic, with growing concern over the extent of the spread of the virus within the building and whether it could disrupt the functioning of government.

Staff have taken their lead from Trump’s bubble of denial for months, eschewing face masks and congregating in the west wing’s cramped spaces and narrow hallways. The president’s positive test was chilling proof of what the rest of the country has long known: no one is safe.

“People are losing their minds,” one source told the Washington Post newspaper.

As Friday wore on and Trump’s conditioned worsened, staff were also forced to confront the possibility that his health could be at serious risk. An information vacuum filled with rumour and speculation and did little to calm nerves, with media outlets forced to depend on leaks from anonymous officials or presidential tweets such as: “Going welI, I think! Thank you to all. LOVE!!!”

embed

The heavily guarded White House is one of the world’s most secure properties with a new 13ft tall fence to keep out intruders, protesters and terrorists. Yet it too was breached by the invisible pathogen that has killed more than 205,000 Americans. Commentators said there could be no greater proof of the administration’s failure to combat the pandemic.

How, when or from whom Trump became infected remains a mystery. But the myth of invulnerability may have been finally shattered by an event in the White House Rose Garden last Saturday in which he nominated judge Amy Coney Barrett to the supreme court. More than 150 guests sat close together without face masks, apparently lulled into thinking it was safe to do so in the open air.

But eight attendees – Trump, the first lady Melania Trump, senior aide Hope Hicks, former White House counselor Kellyanne Conway, Senators Mike Lee and Thom Tillis, University of Notre Dame president John Jenkins and junior staffer – have all since tested positive for the virus.

On Saturday morning it emerged that the Trump re-election campaign manager Bill Stepien had also tested positive, fueling more chaos into the election. Deputy campaign manager Justin Clark is set to run the Trump campaign headquarters in Stepien’s absence.

After last Saturday’s Rose Garden celebration, an event which continued with receptions indoors at the White House, Trump spent a whirlwind week campaigning for the 3 November presidential election.

On Tuesday there was a chaotic and dismal debate with rival Joe Biden in Cleveland, Ohio, where many of his entourage sat unmasked in contrast to the Democrat’s team, who strictly followed the protocols.

On Thursday, Trump attended a political fundraiser at his golf club in Bedminister, New Jersey, even though he was aware he had been exposed to the infected Hicks. That night, sounding unconcerned, he gave an interview to Sean Hannity of Fox News, apparently blaming the military or law enforcement for violating physical distancing: “They want to hug you and kiss you because we really have done a good job for them. You get close, and things happen.”

Trump’s revelation that he was positive came in perhaps the most momentous tweet of his entire presidency just before 1am on Friday. At last, critics said, a man notorious for dealing in disinformation and fantasies had to face a cold scientific truth he could not wish, insult or tweet away.

He also referred to it in the tweet correctly as Covid-19, having previously referred to the disease in public remarks variously as “the China virus”, the plague and “kung flu”.

Later that morning, the White House tried to project an air of business-as-usual. Officials Mark Meadows, Larry Kudlow and Kayleigh McEnany all sought to assure reporters that Trump was in good spirits and had only mild symptoms.

Yet by the afternoon, there was evidence of growing gap between spin and reality. It was announced that Trump had been injected with an experimental drug combination and, “out of an abundance of caution”, would be flown to hospital. The otherwise routine Marine One journey gave many in Washington a sense of witnessing history unfold before their eyes.

Howard Fineman, a journalist, tweeted: “I’ve seen and heard many indelible moments here in DC over the years, but nothing like Marine One flying over our neighborhood bound for Walter Reed, bearing a president struck, like millions of others, by global pandemic. Unsettling, scary. Politics is stilled for just a moment.”

Officials said Trump’s stay of a few days at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center is precautionary and that he will continue to work from the hospital’s presidential suite, which is equipped to allow him to keep up his official duties.

But the hospitalisation represents the gravest threat to an incumbent US president’s health since 1981 when Ronald Reagan survived a would-be assassin’s bullet outside a Washington hotel and received emergency medical attention.

Trump’s age, sex, obesity and elevated cholesterol put him at greater risk of becoming seriously ill from a virus that has infected more than 7 million people nationwide. If he declines sharply and is unable to carry out his responsibilities, he could transfer power to the vice-president, Mike Pence, under the 25th amendment to the constitution. Pence tested negative for the virus on Friday.

Bill Whalen, a research fellow at the Hoover Institution think tank at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California, said: “The dominoes are multiple. There’s the question of his ability to campaign in person moving ahead. There’s the question of his ability to have the office right now: the 25th amendment. I’ve talked to some of my conservative friends who think he should be invoking this right now.

“I hate to speculate like this, but what if his health did deteriorate rather fast to the point where either he was unconscious or just delirious? Then the vice-president, the cabinet, would have to step in and do this, so there’s actually a school of thought that he should invoke it proactively.”

The US government has a long history of opacity when it comes to presidents’ health and the Trump White House, in particular, suffers from a trust deficit.

Doctors outside Walter Reed medical center on Saturday. Photograph: Susan Walsh/AP

Kurt Bardella, a senior adviser to the anti-Trump group the Lincoln Project, said: “What we’re seeing is a very healthy scepticism about anything that comes from the White House. These are the same people who have been lying about everybody else’s health terms of the impact of Covid-19, so why would we expect any differently when they’re talking about themselves?”

Dan Rather, a veteran journalist who reported on Richard Nixon’s downfall in 1974, added on Twitter: “What we don’t know is a lot more than what we do know. And we have an administration that long ago squandered its credibility. All coverage of this crisis should keep these truths in mind for context.”

His next debate with Biden, scheduled for 15 October, is in doubt. As well as Stepien testing positive for Covid-19, so has key ally Ronna McDaniel, the head of the Republican National Committee, and former New Jersey governor Chris Christie, who helped coach Trump for the first debate with Biden. Despite Trump’s attempts to change the conversation, for example with Barrett’s court nomination, the pandemic remains the defining issue at the ballot box.

Glen Bolger, a Republican pollster, told the Associated Press: “It’s challenging. It would be better if the discussion was about jobs and the economy, or even Joe Biden is going to ‘be held captive to the left’. But the election is going to be about coronavirus, and that’s not favourable terrain for Republicans.”

[xtruss]

ARGUMENT

Pope Francis’s Silence on Xinjiang Speaks Volumes

A pope dedicated to human rights has said nothing on China, thanks to a secret deal with Beijing.

BY BENEDICT ROGERS | JULY 29, 2020 | Foreign Policy

Pope Francis leaves the window of the Apostolic Palace overlooking St. Peter's Square in Vatican City after the Sunday Angelus prayer on July 22, 2018. ANDREAS SOLARO/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES

This month, the president of the Board of Deputies of British Jews wrote a most courageous letter to the Chinese ambassador in London.

In the letter, Marie van der Zyl took an extraordinary step for the leader of Britain’s main Jewish organization—she drew comparisons between the plight of the Uighurs in China today and the Holocaust. Nobody could see the evidence and fail to note, she wrote, “the similarities between what is alleged to be happening in the People’s Republic of China today and what happened in Nazi Germany 75 years ago: People being forcibly loaded on to trains; beards of religious men being trimmed; women being sterilised; and the grim spectre of concentration camps.”

Van der Zyl is just one of many faith leaders to speak out against the atrocities being committed in Xinjiang. But one voice has been strangely absent—that of Pope Francis, ordinarily a powerful advocate for the oppressed. His silence speaks to the dangers of the deal made with China by the Vatican—and demands that others in the church speak out.

Before van der Zyl’s letter, there was the decision by Jewish News to highlight the discovery of 13 metric tons of Uighur hair—with “Nazi resonance”—on the front page of the newspaper.

The letter was followed by a Twitter thread by the widely respected former Chief Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, who wrote: “As a Jew, knowing our history, the sight of people being shaven headed, lined up, boarded onto trains, and sent to concentration camps is particularly harrowing. That people in the 21st century are being murdered, terrorised, victimised, intimidated and robbed of their liberties because of the way they worship God is a moral outrage, a political scandal and a desecration of faith itself.”

Around the same time, Maajid Nawaz, a prominent Muslim counterextremism activist, went on hunger strike for the Uighurs. Nawaz, a former radical Islamist who now devotes his time to fighting intolerance of all kinds courageously and successfully, promoted a petition for a parliamentary debate on imposing Magnitsky-style sanctions on the Chinese regime for its treatment of the Uighurs.

And last Saturday, the president of the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences, the outspoken Cardinal Charles Bo of Myanmar, released a statement mostly about Turkey’s Hagia Sophia mosque—but which included: “In China, the Uyghur Muslims are facing what amounts to some of the contemporary world’s worst mass atrocities and I urge the international community to investigate.”

Yet so far, the world has heard nothing from the world’s major Muslim and Christian leadersYet so far, the world has heard nothing from the world’s major Muslim and Christian leaders. Muslim-majority countries have, mostly, sided with China—shamefully and in pursuit of narrow and elusive economic interests. The archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, has said nothing. Neither has Francis.

“Yet so far, the world has heard nothing from the world’s major Muslim and Christian leaders.”

It is Francis’s silence that shocks me most. Almost every Sunday, as he prays the Angelus, he rightly references some injustice somewhere in the world. He has spoken often in the past not only of the persecution of Christians around the world but of the plight of the Rohingyas in Myanmar; the conflicts in Syria, Yemen, Ukraine, and Nigeria; and religious freedom for all.

One country—and one country alone—is noticeable by its absence in his prayers and statements: China.

In China today, we see one of the 21st century’s worst crimes—perhaps a genocide—being perpetrated against the Uighurs. But in addition, we see the most flagrant violation of an international agreement in China’s imposition of the new national security law on Hong Kong—a law that destroys Hong Kong’s freedoms and autonomy. We also see the worst crackdown on Christians since the Cultural Revolution, while the repression in Tibet continues.

Yet in the face of all of these crimes, Francis remains silent. He has not uttered a public prayer (I hope he has at least said a private one) for the Uighurs, Hong Kongers, Christians, Falun Gong practitioners, Tibetans, and others who are increasingly feeling the pressure of the Chinese Communist Party’s boot—at all.

Why?

Two years ago, the Vatican made a deal with Beijing that bought the pope’s silence.Two years ago, the Vatican made a deal with Beijing that bought the pope’s silence. When I say “bought,” I am not suggesting impropriety. I love this pope and his focus on mercy and forgiveness. On almost every other matter—and I write as a Catholic who converted seven years ago and came into the church in, of all places, Myanmar—I agree with Francis. So I write not as a hard-line conservative hostile to Francis but rather as someone who loves him but is perplexed by how badly wrong he has gone on China.

“Two years ago, the Vatican made a deal with Beijing that bought the pope’s silence.”

One of the most troubling aspects of the Vatican-Beijing deal is that the text remains secret. If it is such a good arrangement in the eyes of the Holy See, why can’t ordinary Catholics—and the world at large—know what it says? What we do know is that it gives the Chinese Communist Party—an avowedly atheist regime—a direct role in the appointment of Catholic bishops and that it has already led to the forced retirement of several underground bishops loyal to the Vatican in favor of state-approved bishops until recently out of communion with the church.

And it has not led to any improvement in freedoms for Catholics. If anything, the situation has worsened. No clergy imprisoned before the deal have been released, and several have been arrested, detained, and disappeared since the deal was agreed. Far from bringing the desired unity or protection for the church, it has caused greater division and more repression.

But that deal had the effect of silencing Francis, for whatever reason, and it breaks my heart. As the last British governor of Hong Kong, Chris Patten, wrote in the Tablet recently, it seems that the Vatican “may be cosying up to a Chinese Communist Party at the worst conceivable moment, just as it is embarking on a loutish rampage in China and beyond.”

I spoke out early on, two years before the deal with Beijing was signed, in an open letter. I tried to warn the Holy See again of the dangers it may be entering into. And while never questioning the pope’s motivations—which are noble and are about protecting people in China and renewing his fellow Jesuit Matteo Ricci’s engagement with the country—I profoundly question the judgment of those around him. Out of naivety, Francis’s Vatican has sold out to one of the world’s most repressive and aggressive regimes.

That is the story so far. But it need not be the end of the tale.

It is not inevitable that the wonderful Board of Deputies of British Jews, Britain’s former chief rabbi, Nawaz, a few of my friends, and I stand with the Uighurs in the face of one of the contemporary world’s worst atrocities and that Francis and Welby do not. Welby’s silence is difficult to explain—other than, like Francis, a naive belief that China’s is a regime with which one can still engage and reason. The reality is that the regime has moved from a pragmatic desire to exercise certain controls over religion to one driven by a repressive, ideological urge to tighten its grip. That was clearly signaled by the abolition of the State Administration for Religious Affairs in 2018, which had working relationships with most faiths. Those relationships are now handled, much more crudely and brutally, by the United Front Work Department, which is directly responsible for ideological control of non-party groups.

So it is now time that these two key Christian leaders wake up, review their position, cross the Rubicon, and say enough is enough.

They need to signal clearly that they believe in the teachings of their faith—of human dignity, freedom, and justice—which matter more than any shady deals with brutal regimes.

They need to abandon naivety. They need to say they won’t compromise when it comes to human life and dignity.

And they need to recognize that Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the Protestant pastor who stood up against Adolf Hitler, was right when he said: “Silence in the face of evil is itself evil. … Not to speak is to speak. Not to act is to act.”

They need to respect the memory of Maximilian Kolbe, venerated as a saint for giving his life for another’s at the gas chambers of Auschwitz.

They need to say clearly: We are all Uighurs, Hong Kongers, Chinese Christians, Tibetans, and Falun Gong practitioners now.

Let Francis and Welby say so.

Or forever lose their—and our—peace.

[blackstar]

yo its the mod of sparto-i and is it cool if i link to your post about the ableist shit in the SE manga ending? im making a post about some generally really uncomfortable things in the soul eater manga and i thought that would be a good point to make. i'll give you credit, of course!

OH i forgot to mention: if that post in mention is really old im sorry for digging it up and stuff (i was going through your soul eater tag which, again, sorry if thats weird aaah)????? but yeah anywho hope your day is a Good One and if im stepping out of line im mega Sorry dude!! good blog btw

go right ahead! you can reblog as much of my old se meta as you want; that stuff might be getting kind of dusty at this point but i do still stand by most of what’s in there, and that which i don’t isn’t so totally off base that i’d be opposed to anyone unearthing it from its metaphorical tomb 

also if you’re talking about uncomfortable things in the soul eater manga, you should definitely mention that soul eater not (not considered canon by a lot of people, to be fair, but the worldbuilding details it provides are imo a different matter than its plot/characters) states that dwma practices population control on the remaining werewolves, which is. hm. okay. 

...actually dwma is just a corrupt fucking mess in general; even setting aside the grand scheme stuff like them carrying out a what’s essentially a genocide campaign against witches (and using a witch’s own creations in order to do so; ask me sometime about how weapons and witches are natural symbiotes who were and continue to be pitted against each other by dwma) and them contributing to if not encouraging the treatment of weapons as second class citizens/to some extent less human, there’s still a lot of individual cases just in the manga of their policy towards a person being questionable at best

things i’d point out specifically:

black☆star being raised with a learned hatred of his clan by the very people who killed them is worth a second thought at the least, especially when noting that he chooses to present himself as a star clan member despite saying that they were nothing but monsters and he’s glad they’re dead (he may have been taught to hate his family but he subconsciously still wants to maintain a connection) 

justin law, an 17 year old who had devoutly served dwma and lord death for most of his life, was executed the moment he ceased to function as their tool without anyone even suggesting that an attempt be made to save him from madness — to rub salt in the wound, he was executed by a death scythe with a healing wavelength who already once rescued someone from madness, but of course marie’s ability woudn’t be wasted on justin! who the fuck cares about saving a kid whose problems stemmed primarily from the neglect of the organization that’s now decided to kill him?  (i am bitter) 

giriko’s vendetta against dwma is completely justified. i think there’s a post about this in my meta tag already, but also the blanks on this one kinda fill themselves in so i don’t feel the need to say more on that point outside of ‘get urself a man who waits 800 years for u to wake up so he could help u bring down the people who turned your creations/children against ur own kind and would hunt u to death with a smile’

oh hey look at that i completely forgot that the slightest mention of soul eater makes me write out like eight paragraphs minimum in a frenzied sweat

[pinyonn]

I guess this can be considered my last ‘official’ statement on anything when it comes to FF, just for me to say my piece and close the chapter then burn the damn book.

If you don’t already know, Hi I’m Neruka/Nuka/Vargul/Emery/Aiiree. I was on the staff and site for almost 10 years and left and help start the mass exodus. It’s nothing I regret, if I had stayed around I probably would have been miserable or snapped.

I want to start off with saying that, I was such a little shit in the past. It's not an excuse of course, but at the time I had a lot of untreated medical (mentally and physically) going on and now under proper medication, I’m more stable and clear minded. I feel like I easily snapped on people and was over emotional and I do feel very bad about that. I, however, do not feel like it warped my judgment on the exodus or what Justin said, having the evidence and looking back at it still pisses me off, so yeah.

Feralfront was my home throughout my childhood, however, it always had its problems, and my issues with the current owners of FF started quickly. Wynn had gained my 14-year-old past selves trust very quickly, she knew I was vulnerable and in a bad spot mentally and emotionally due to an abusive situation, she was the only adult I had around (Note she was like 36ish when we met) that I felt treated me like a real person, so naively I took her word as law on things. I won’t go into detail but she had spent years manipulating me and emotionally abusing me when I did not do as she said, this caused me to lose many friendships over FF staff related things. Later on, I saw what she was doing and learned to defend myself, she did not like this claimed I was as worthless as my dead, drug addict mother who abused me, who Wynn knew this was a sore spot for me and she aimed at the most vulnerable spot she could. This comment from one of the only adults I knew really fucked me up for a while, I attempted suicide, tho failed and was talked out of getting help. Wynn continued to manipulate and try to abuse me others and myself from that time to the exodus, around 7 years. 

Frosty and I, however, were close friends and I hold nothing against Frosty, my main concerns will always be with her husband and his treatment of minors. While I say I’m disappointed in what actions Frosty has taken as of late I do hope that apart of my dear friend I once knew is still in there somewhere. 

Most of you know how the exodus went down, I’m sorry it had to happen. I wanted to resolve it peacefully but no such things were possible, and it sucks. I won’t go on further about how the exodus happened as if you want more information on that there are screenshots everywhere. 

I just want to say that seeing Feralfront like it is is heartbreaking. This site, even if it has many painful memories and is own at least 2/3rds of the way by two people I believe should never be around children..I still pity the website. I want to help it, there’s nothing I can do, there’s nothing anyone can do. Sadly the situation, as much as it sucks, is pretty hopeless. 

This place I used to love now steals money from people and is infested with child porn. Which I might add, the staff team could get rid of easily, when the old staff cracked down on porn and deleted it and banned child porn posters, know what happened? Wynn yelled at us and told us to stop, she said the porn brought activity so we were killing the site. 

That's the type of management that is there. Feralfront is no longer my home, its a place for people to go post kiddy porn and try to hopelessly bring back the feelings of nostalgia.

I have a new goal, a new place now. I’m determined to make WCARPG what Feralfront could have been, I have good members, a good staff, and a clear mind now. I’m determined to make the right choices and to make a safe, fun, place for people to rp and grow - what I honestly believe I deserved growing up instead of the Feralfront full of adults who manipulated me and abused me. 

Since taking my medicine I had not felt so depressed since I looked back and tried to help FF, it's not nearly as bad but still present. I can’t let this place drag me down again and I won’t. So I’m considering this my ‘final words’ or final statement. I’m still around, I’m still salty af, but I’m done trying when it comes to FF anymore.

[artificialqueens]

Stonewall (Katlaska, Biadore): Chapter 1- Landfill

Author’s Note: So, as someone very involved in LGBT rights stuff in the UK, I’ve wanted to write something around this for a while, so I did. Set in 1968 onwards, this fic follows the lives of a collection of LGBT people living in New York in the lead up to the Stonewall Riots, finding love and finding themselves (I like cheesy stuff.) There will be twists… So I can’t give away all of the characters’ gender identities yet but it centres around Brian/Katya, Justin/Alaska, Danny/Adore, Roy/Bianca, Aaron/Sharon, Brian/Trixie and possibly others… Oh and Cory because why not? Not all are here from the beginning.

Brian always aimed to stay unnoticed when he was in school. Keep his head down, only speak when spoken to, hand in good enough grades to get by not not good enough to draw attention to himself. Unless he was in competitions of course, it’s hard for no one to spot you when you’re walking towards them on your hands and knees, belly to the ceiling, back in a sharp arch. But that was necessity, gymnastics was the only thing he’d decided he couldn’t just give up out of fear. It was the height of the Cold War, and being an oddly flexible, skinny Russian boy had already put him at risk of harm. If they found out his secret, or just generally how weird he could be when he got talking, he would be thoroughly screwed. Let me know if you enjoy it, and if not, where I can improve xxx

All that changed on the morning of October 28th 1968, when some force from above compelled him to step out of the shadows. The day started like any other Monday, showering, pulling on a shirt, tie and blazer, glancing in at his passed out father and then heading off to school. He walked, for several reasons. The first was that he liked to keep fit, the second was that on a sunny day, the New York streets could almost pass as beautiful (if you ignored the half dead junkies seeping between the cracks) and the third was that the school bus was the exact sort of place one could find themselves getting noticed in the kind of way that Brian completely did not want to get noticed.

His first and second classes of the day had gone as smoothly as he could have hoped, the hitch coming at class number three- History of Comedy (Literature) with Mr Haylock. He always enjoyed the lesson, it was one of the few he shared with his friend, Daniel Noriega. Danny, unfortunately, was not quite as good at keeping his head down as Brian was, his feminine voice and wavy hair never ceasing to get him in trouble. It also didn’t help his case that he seemed completely and utterly devoted to his Literature lessons, though of course Brian knew that this wasn’t the case. The two boys had been friends since they were 11, when Brian’s family both moved to the city. Danny’s mother, Bonnie, ran a daycare centre, and often would end up taking the leftover children home when nobody came for them at the end of the day, until somebody managed to get in touch with their parents. Since his father fulfilled the stereotype of Russians loving Vodka, Brian spent more than a few nights sharing a room with Bonnie’s son. When they were 15, they had found themselves in the same literature class, ran by the very same Roy Haylock that Brian found himself say in front of that Monday morning, and Danny was instantly transfixed. After a few months of Danny’s blushing and not meeting their new teacher’s eyes, Brian finally managed to get the truth out of him.

“Wait a second… Noriega… Are you telling me that you’re, you know… Gay?” Danny looked away from him, clearly afraid his friend was going to reveal his secret. In 1965, it was still considered mental illness to be homosexual, and the treatments were less than pleasant. In fact to be with another man was still considered criminal, and at this point both boys were still very afraid of the law. Not to mention the way he would be treated by the people around him. There was a reason the gay community in New York was so closely knit, and that was that they had all been rejected by everybody else. What Danny didn’t know was that very soon, he would find himself a part of that community, fighting for liberation with Brian right beside him. But that’s a story for another time. To 15 year old Danny’s surprise, Brian’s face broke into a grin.

“I knew it! I knew it!! Me too!!! Oh god don’t tell my father.” The two of them sat together all of that night, hugging, crying, and talking about how good Roy Haylock’s arse looked in tailored pants. That was when they became inseparable, and when Danny became the first person to ever hear the truth about Brian’s childhood in Russia.

Back to that Monday morning in 1968, where the two teenagers sat absorbed in the lessons of one Roy Haylock, both for very different reasons. Brian tried to contain his smile, looking at the boy next to him, who gazed forlornly at the older man’s brown eyes from where they sat. Mr Haylock turned to write something on the blackboard and Brian whispered to his friend “Noriega you’re hopeless.” Danny didn’t manage to contain his laughter and their teacher span around.

“Something funny Noriega?” Brian struggled not to smile at the blush creeping up Danny’s neck.

“No Sir, nothing. I was just… Thinking about… Comedy, Sir, because this is a class on Comedy… And comedy is, y know… Funny?” He hadn’t meant it to come off as talking back, but he had an unfortunate habit of keeping his foot in his mouth, and the poor excuse landed him a detention at lunch. Brian sagged at the thought of eating alone, but then remembered that there was a school baseball game on that lunch and he decided just to loose himself in the crowd. As he turned to leave at the end of the class, Danny whispered in his ear “Alone time with the love of my life… Maybe you’ll get lucky today as well? Find someone to get you over that Aaron dude? I know, I know, you guys are friends now and it’s all fine, but you need to get out there!!”

Brian only rolled his eyes and walked away, but something told him that he might just be right. While he went to go and find himself a place amongst the benches, Danny walked up to the front of the class and leant against the front desk.

“You know, Noriega, you could at least try not to stare?” Roy let out a laugh at Danny’s blush, watching the younger boy loose his confidence, knowing he’d been caught.

“Oh relax, I don’t mind, it’s quite flattering, I was almost afraid I was growing too old for my students to be hitting on me, though I must admit it was usually the girls.” Taking a seat, he patted the place across from him. The younger man sat, looking like he was half tempted to bolt. His face gave away nothing, but inside his mind was racing. How long had Roy known? For the two years he’d been studying with him? Would he tell? Was he interested in Danny or did he think the boy was nothing more than a joke? He decided his best bet was to avoid finding the answers to these questions, and to avoid giving his teacher any more ammunition with which to tease him.

“Do we need to have this conversation, Sir?” His hands clutched at each other in his lap.

“No, we don’t, but can we at least be honest with each other? You should call me Roy. Since you’ve spent the last two years ignoring my lessons in favour of my behind, I feel calling me Sir is rather thankless, unless you’re into that, since you haven’t yet learnt anything about Literary History and as such I can’t really consider myself your teacher. So, Danny, may I call you Danny? We need to talk about what you’re going to do after next year. As far as I’m aware, you’re one of the few students who hasn’t yet presented any sort of a plan, and that worries me. I mean some have rather dubious goals, such as professional gymnastics, but at least it’s a starting point. Do you have any ideas?” The younger boy looked at him with a rather guarded expression, confused as to what his teacher’s angle was. He didn’t seem to want to expose him, ridicule or punish him, but he wasn’t necessarily flirting either. For a man in his thirties in their social climate, his approach to the subject was astoundingly frank.

“Um… Well… I sing. I’m not planning on going to college, I’m not really good enough at math to excel, and manual labour doesn’t really suit me, more because I’m not exactly accepted in the work place than not being capable of the work itself, but I sing pretty well. I think I’m just gonna try and do that in bars, Sir. Roy. Sorry. And sorry about… That… I’m not very good at being discreet I guess.” He smiled carefully, looking up at Roy through lashes that the older man noticed upon looking were thick and coated in mascara. Roy smiled for a moment, before his eyes turned sad. He held out his hands to the younger boy, an offer for him to take him. For a moment they were left empty, but slowly Danny found himself placing one of his small hands within Roy’s two. The two men’s eyes met, and Roy made sure they locked this time. His brows were furrowed with concern.

“I worry about you Danny, I don’t mind in the least that you’re a flirt and that you wear Mascara outside of the clubs, but there are a lot of men who would, you were lucky with me. You’re vulnerable, living the life that you… That we lead. We’re vulnerable. When your very existence is considered wrong, you need to learn how to tread carefully, and dare I say it, be subtle. Either that or you need to learn where you are and aren’t safe. I don’t want to see you hurt, kid. You may be annoying as hell but you have a good heart.” The boy’s eyes blew wide as he listened to his teacher’s words, unable of stopping himself from leaning forwards.

“You’re gay?” Roy smiled and rolled his eyes.

“Clearly it’s not going to be easy to get the message through to you, if that’s all you got out of my deeply moving soliloquy. For starters, keep your voice down!! I could loose my job!” Danny drew back his hands and blushed a little. It made Roy’s heart beat a little faster, realising that he’d been disappointed to see the boy’s smile drop.

“Sorry, Sir.”

“It’s okay, kid. I know you don’t mean any harm, you’re young, you haven’t seen what the world can do to people like us yet, and I’d really rather you didn’t. Now I want you to know that I’m here if you need my advice on anything, this is my house address and phone number. Please don’t just come over for a booty call, this is for emergencies only. You seem like the sort who might just get himself into trouble every now and again. Now off you go, you’d better find Mr McCook, he looked more than a little lost when he went to eat without you.” Danny stood, he knees brushing against the other man’s as he did so, and looked down at the address and phone number in his hand. Looking more serious and contemplative than he ever had before, he turned and walked away. Just before he left, he looked back and said quietly

“Thank you, Roy.”

While all of this had been happening, Brian had been having a confrontation of his own. He’d been walking over to get a seat when he saw one of the team members, Cory, and a bunch of his friends, picking on a tall, skinny boy with a skin tight shirt, blazer and bag on the floor. One of the boy’s pushed him down, and he heard Cory use the word “fag.” On some ridiculous impulse, he ran and stepped between them. The only though running through his head was ‘Brian, what the hell are you doing?’ Before he rattled off the first comeback he could think of, hoping the confidence of his voice would mask the fluttering of his breath and shaking of his hands.

“Hey Cory, how’s your dad? We didn’t have much opportunity to catch up last time I saw him due to the fact he had my dick in his mouth.” Cory turned as red as a beet, his friends loosing it at the look on his face before they were all called away by the coach. Brian turned to help the boy up, surprised to see that he looked angry.

“You shouldn’t have done that.”

“Look, I’m sorry if I made you look weak or something but those guys shouldn’t be speaking to you like that, I had to say something. I’ll just leave it next time.” He turned to leave, but was stopped by a bony hand closing around his wrist.

“No, that’s not what I meant. It’s… Complicated… Can I talk to you somewhere private?” Brian’s first instinct was to draw away has arm, but looking up at the other boy he found himself hesitantly agreeing.

“Okay, fine. I’ve already screwed up my reputation of not existing for you, so why not? I’m Brian by the way, Brian McCook.” They started walking together, Brian allowing his companion to take the lead, and the older boy laughed quietly at the comment.

“Oh I know who you are, Brian, but… McCook? Seriously? What with your Russian Gymnast status I was expecting something harder to pronounce for a last name!” He was shocked. Not a single person other than Danny and one or two of their teachers had ever noticed him enough to connect his talent to his first name, nor to wonder what his last name was.

“Well… I changed my name when I was 11, my last name used to be Zamolodchikova. In case that makes you feel any better! Also how did you know who I was?” By this point they had found themselves sitting comfortably in an abandoned classroom, side by side on a rather small desk.

“Zamo- what now? What was your first name?” Brian’s smile faltered on his face.

“Oh we don’t talk about that. I’m Brian now, that’s all that matters. What about you? Am I allowed to know the name of the man who has dragged me away from a lunch with my adoring fans?”

“Justin Honard, pleasure to make your acquaintance.” Brian blanched hearing the name and almost forgot to shake the hand that had been held out to him.

“Wait, Justin as in Cory’s older brother? Man I’ve really put my foot in it haven’t I?” The other boy, Justin, let out a quiet laugh at Brian’s embarrassment and nudged him slightly until he began to smile again.

“It’s alright, you didn’t know. But yeah, complicated as I said. Cory wants a scholarship, he needs to stay on good terms with his teammates. He knows for sure I’m gay, and doesn’t care in the slightest, but if the rest of the team knew that he’d be in deep shit. So every now and again he joins in. I can see it bothers him, and he always spends ages at home trying to make it up to me, but there isn’t much else he can do.” Unconsciously, Brian’s hand snaked around Justin’s waist in a vain attempt to offer comfort.

“So… I have to ask, what the hell motivated you to step in there? None of us have ever had the slightest inclination you might be… You know… So why would you imply that you are when you’re not? And you don’t even know me!” Justin’s drawl had begun to make itself more and more known through the conversation as he started to relax, and the two found themselves smiling at each other’s odd habits.

“Well, for starters, I am. Totally. Full homo. So is my best friend Danny, but I suspect the whole city knows that.” He laughed at Justin’s surprised expression.

“But I don’t know what hit me really, I’ve never spoken at all to anyone here but Danny other than in answer to a question, so that was quite unexpected for me. I really do try not to get noticed. I don’t know, I guess it was just something about you. I never thought anyone as gangly as you could look graceful slumped in the dirt…” Their conversation went on for the rest of the hour’s lunch, and a little longer. During this time they learnt that both had briefly dated Aaron Coady and had kept him as a friend, and agreed that the three of them, plus Danny, really needed to hang out, maybe that night. Justin suggested a bar he knew, and Brian agreed, nodding excitedly.

“Why don’t we make it a date, plus two friends to make sure we don’t do anything… Regrettable?” Justin added, his cool exterior betrayed by the fact that he was very gently biting his lip, not that Brian had the slightest problem with the gesture.

“Sounds good, pick me up at 9?” With absolutely no warning, Justin leant forward and gave him the gentlest of kisses, pulling back to see a shocked and flustered Brian, cheeks turning pink. He grinned at the response and began to walk towards the door.

“Oh and Brian? As for how I know who you are, however could I forget a man with your show stopping flexibility? I try to keep track of these things.”

Yep. Danny was definitely right, this meeting was fate.

[theonyxpath]

Those are three of the Clan cards from the Prince’s Gambit casual Vampire: the Masquerade card game that we will be Kickstarting next week. Here’s a bit of text we’re using in the KS that helps describe the game:

Designed by long-time Vampire: the Masquerade tabletop RPG developer Justin Achilli, Prince’s Gambit is a fast-paced social deduction game set within the world of Vampire: the Masquerade, but which requires no special knowledge to play. Players must cooperate to gain the favor of the Prince while deducing who among them are secretly the traitorous Sabbat infiltrators.

We’re going live at 12 noon, Eastern US time, next Tuesday the 21st and hope you’ll join us for Onyx Path‘s first-ever fantastic card game Kickstarter!

Here’s a link to our Prince’s Gambit Example of Play video, hosted by Justin Achilli himself, with a special guest role by our own Eddy Webb. It’s about 10 minutes long, but goes through the important set-up and highlights how a typical game plays: https://youtu.be/b9SSpeli5JE 

Since this is our first card game Kickstarter, expect that we’re going to go for a pretty straightforward set of Rewards, and then see where we can go with the Stretch Goals. We’re all pretty excited about it over here, and looking forward to ya’ll joining us!

    M20 Book of Secrets art by Eric Lofgren

  Next up, some of you might recall me talking in earlier installments of these merely magnificent meanderings we call a blog about how Onyx Path was “shoring up its infrastructure”. Those efforts, made possible by our being able to absorb Rollickin’ Rose and Mighty Matt full-time into the gestalt mind that is Onyx Path and so have the bandwidth needed, are starting to show results.

Going as far back as Rose’s review of her own Vampire: the Requiem 2e game line, and her decision to step away and bring on Dangerous Danielle Lauzon as her awesome replacement, we’ve been reviewing each line and the creative teams involved. Mostly, we’ve been looking for ways to help them bring out their creative vision for the projects while still adhering to a publishing structure we and the creators can agree on.

This is not always an easy path to try and make work, and we’ve had some instances where we can’t make our needs and those of a creator mesh. Other times, external issues mean that the working situation is a bad fit.

(Actually, I really like the phrase “bad fit” for these sorts of situations. I stole it from some HR training back in the day, because it just seems to express a truth about some employees and some jobs and how they don’t go together. The person isn’t a bad person, nor is the job a bad job, overall. It’s just not a good match or fit, at that time, with the way the person needs to be, and what is needed for the job. This has more truth to it and expresses how these situations are more multi-faceted, than our all-too human need to assign blame, IMO.)

By-and-large, we’re going to make any changes without much in the way of announcement or explanation. And if we do say anything it will be to laud new creators coming to the fore. Because they deserve it.

    V20 Dark Ages Companion art by Michael Gaydos

  Finally, after having said how we’re pushing forward to shore up how we do things and get more projects out to you in time-frames that mean you can better enjoy the lines…I’ve got to tell you that right now, a bunch of our projects are stuck.

If you look down at the At Press section of Mirthful Mike’s part of the progress report, you’ll see a stack of projects uploaded for PoD proofs from the PoD printer. Just sitting there for a couple of weeks now.

Apparently, the servers at DriveThruRPG and those at the PoD printer are refusing to talk together, or so I’m told. Personally, I think that it’s a thinly veiled disguise to mask the birth of Skynet and all the servers are conspiring against us.

Regardless, we’re in a holding pattern for those and any other PoD books that aren’t already on sale.

So, GRRRRR!

Two steps forward and one step back has been the staccato rhythm on the Onyx Path (and at WW before that) for years, so we should be used to it. But I repeat: GRRRR!

Folks are talking. Tech crews are begging the AIs to work (or for mercy). And we’ll get these great projects out to you all as soon as we can!

  BLURBS!

KICKSTARTER!

Assuming the Prince gives us his Favor, we will be going live with our Kickstarter for Justin Achilli’s Prince’s Gambit casual Vampire card game on Tuesday, March 21st at 12 noon Eastern US time!

Designed by long-time Vampire: the Masquerade tabletop RPG developer Justin Achilli, Prince’s Gambit is a fast-paced social deduction game set within the world of Vampire, but which requires no special knowledge to play. Players must cooperate to gain the favor of the Prince while deducing who among them are secretly the traitorous Sabbat infiltrators.

Next, the Monarchies of Mau KS is scheduled come after Gambit.

  ON SALE!

Changeling: the Lost is now available as a Bundle of Holding! All offered products are deeply discounted, and 10% of all proceeds go to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

  DTRPG’s GM’s Day Sale is in its LAST HOURS! Check out all sorts of sales and bargains on Onyx Path and White Wolf PDFs at DriveThruRPG.com!

      Looking for our Deluxe or Prestige Edition books? Here’s the link to the press release we put out about how Onyx Path is now selling through Indie Press Revolution: http://ift.tt/1ZlTT6z

You can now order wave 2 of our Deluxe and Prestige print overrun books, including Deluxe Mage 20th Anniversary, and Deluxe V20 Dark Ages!

    The Secrets of the Covenants for Vampire: the Requiem 2nd REVEALED this Wednesday on DTRPG! Physical copy PoD version coming to DTRPG: http://ift.tt/2gbQjus

Vampires gather under many banners. But five have endured the tumult of Western history better than any other. The Carthian Movement. The Circle of the Crone. The Invictus. The Lancea et Sanctum. The Ordo Dracul. Each has its fierce devotees, its jealous rivals, and its relentless enemies. Now,for the first time, the covenants speak for themselves.

This book includes:

A variety of stories from each of the covenants, all told in their own words.

Never-before revealed secrets, like the fate of the Prince of New Orleans.

New blood sorcery, oaths, and other hidden powers of the covenants.

    From the massive Chronicles of Darkness: Dark Eras main book, we have pulled this single chapter, Dark Eras: Fallen Blossoms (Hunter 1640-1660 Japan). Japan is moving into the Edo Period. New laws and new ways of thinking wash over the land, and with a new order come new threats to humanity. Take a look at the Vigil in a time where samurai transition from warlords to bureaucrats, Japan massively and lethally rejects outside influence, and when Edo rapidly grows into a world power.

Continuing our individual Dark Eras chapters, we offer you Dark Eras: Fallen Blossoms on in PDF and physical copy PoD versions on DTRPG! http://ift.tt/2mfc1F1

    From the massive Chronicles of Darkness: Dark Eras main book, we have pulled this single chapter, Dark Eras: Doubting Souls (Hunter 1690-1695 Salem). Immigrants and tribes struggled to co-exist on the Eastern Seaboard in the ever-expanding Colonies. Violent clashes, supernatural beliefs, and demonic influences spelled disaster for Salem Village and its surrounding towns, while others fought werewolves and vampires on the frontier. With so much at risk, only god-fearing men and women were deemed innocent — and those were few indeed.

Available in PDF and physical copy PoD versions on DTRPG: http://ift.tt/2kKOrfm

    From the massive Chronicles of Darkness: Dark Eras main book, we have pulled this single chapter, Dark Eras: The Bowery Dogs (Werewolf 1969-1979 NYC). New York City in the 1970s. Crime. Drugs. Gang violence. Vast economic disparity. And werewolves. It’s a lean, ugly time to be alive, and the lone wolf doesn’t stand a chance out there. In the end, all you really have is family.

Available in PDF and physical copy PoD versions on DTRPG: http://ift.tt/2lM0Tzv

    The Locker is open; the Chronicles of Darkness: Hurt Locker, that is! PDF and physical copy PoDs are now available on DTRPG! http://ift.tt/2gbM9me

Hurt Locker features:

Treatment of violence in the Chronicles of Darkness. Lasting trauma, scene framing, and other tools for making your stories hurt.

Many new player options, including Merits, supernatural knacks, and even new character types like psychic vampires and sleeper cell soldiers.

Expanded equipment and equipment rules.

Hurt Locker requires the Chronicles of Darkness Rulebook or any other standalone Chronicles of Darkness rulebook such as Vampire: The Requiem, Werewolf: The Forsaken, or Beast: The Primordial to use.

      Both the Beast: the Primordial http://ift.tt/2fEMsdO & Promethean: the Created 2nd Edition Condition Cards http://ift.tt/2iSein1 are now on sale on DTRPG in PDF and physical card PoD versions! Great for keeping track of the Conditions that are on your characters!

      From the massive Chronicles of Darkness: Dark Eras main book, we have pulled this single chapter, Dark Eras: Ruins of Empire (Mummy 1893-1924). Perhaps the quintessential era of the mummy in the minds of Westerners, this period saw the decline of the two greatest empires of the age: British and Ottoman. Walk with the Arisen as they bear witness to the death of the Victorian age, to pivotal mortal discoveries in Egypt, and to the horrors of the Great War.

Available in PDF and physical copy PoD versions on DTRPG. http://ift.tt/2k0XDhX

    From the massive Chronicles of Darkness: Dark Eras main book, we have pulled this single chapter, Dark Eras: The Sundered World (Werewolf and Mage 5500-5000 BCE). At the birth of civilization, in the shadow of the Fall, the Awakened stand as champions and protectors of the agricultural villages spread across the Balkans. In a world without a Gauntlet, where Shadow and flesh mingle, the steady taming of the world by humanity conflicts with the half-spirit children of Father Wolf.

Available in PDF and physical copy PoD versions on DTRPG. http://ift.tt/2k16mRj

    Night Horrors: Conquering Heroes for Beast: the Primordial is available now as an Advance PDF: http://ift.tt/2j7p7lO

This book includes: 

An in-depth look at how Heroes hunt and what makes a Hero, with eleven new Heroes to drop into any chronicle.

A brief look at why Beasts may antagonize one another, with seven new Beasts to drop into any chronicle.

Rules for Insatiables, ancient creatures born of the Primordial Dream intent on hunting down Beasts to fill a hunger without end, featuring six examples ready to use in any chronicle.

    The PDF and physical book PoD versions of Reap the Whirlwind, the Vampire: the Requiem 2nd Edition Jumpstart swirls into being on DTRPG! http://ift.tt/2i1WPpD

You are a vampire, a junkie. Every night, you beg and you borrow and you steal just a little more life, just a few more sweet moments. But there’s a guy at the top. The Prince. He’s got everything. The money, the secrets, the blood.

Tonight, you’re going to take it from him. Tomorrow, there’ll be hell to pay.

This updated edition of Reap the Whirlwind features revisions to match the core rulebook for Vampire: the Requiem 2nd Edition. Text edits and rules clarifications have also been updated.

Reap the Whirlwind Revised includes:

Rules for creating and playing vampires in the Chronicles of Darkness

The first two levels of every clan Discipline, the dark powers of the dead

A complete adventure by noted horror author Chuck Wendig

This new revised Reap the Whirlwind Revised includes an updated booklet, 7 condition cards, and the interactive Vampire: the Requiem 2nd Edition character sheet.

      Open the V20 Dark Ages: Tome of Secrets now on DTRPG! Both PDF and physical book PoD versions are now available! http://ift.tt/2i1XOXd

The Tome of Secrets is a treatment of numerous topics about Cainites and stranger things in the Dark Medieval World. It’s about peeling back the curtain, and digging a little deeper. Inside, you’ll find:

• Expanded treatment of Assamite Sorcery, Koldunic Sorcery, Necromancy, and Setite Sorcery

• A look at Cainite knightly orders, faith movements, and even human witchcraft

• Letters and diaries from all over the Dark Medieval World

              CONVENTIONS!

Impish Ian Watson will be on a Q&A panel at CAiNE http://ift.tt/2m5ejGC being hosted in Hamilton Ontario March 16 to 19th 2017!

Discussing GenCon plans. August 17th – 20th, Indianapolis. Every chance the booth will actually be 20? x 30? this year that we’ll be sharing with friends. We’re looking at new displays this year, like a back drop and magazine racks for the brochure(s).

In November, we’ll be at Game Hole Con in Madison, WI. More news as we have it, and here’s their website: http://ift.tt/RIm6qP

        And now, the new project status updates!

    DEVELOPMENT STATUS FROM ROLLICKING ROSE (projects in bold have changed status since last week):

First Draft (The first phase of a project that is about the work being done by writers, not dev prep)

Exalted 3rd Novel by Matt Forbeck (Exalted 3rd Edition)

Trinity Continuum: Aeon Rulebook (The Trinity Continuum)

M20 Gods and Monsters (Mage: the Ascension 20th Anniversary Edition)

M20 Book of the Fallen (Mage: the Ascension 20th Anniversary Edition)

M20 Cookbook (Mage: the Ascension 20th Anniversary Edition)

Ex Novel 2 (Aaron Rosenberg) (Exalted 3rd Edition)

C20 Novel (Jackie Cassada) (Changeling: the Dreaming 20th Anniversary Edition)

Pugmire Fiction Anthology (Pugmire)

Monarchies of Mau Early Access (Pugmire)

Hunter: the Vigil 2e core (Hunter: the Vigil 2nd Edition)

  Redlines

Scion: Origins (Scion 2nd Edition)

Scion: Hero (Scion 2nd Edition)

Kithbook Boggans (Changeling: the Dreaming 20th Anniversary Edition)

WoD Ghost Hunters (World of Darkness)

Trinity Continuum Core Rulebook (The Trinity Continuum)

  Second Draft

The Realm (Exalted 3rd Edition)

Dragon-Blooded (Exalted 3rd Edition)

BtP Beast Player’s Guide (Beast: the Primordial)

V20 Dark Ages Jumpstart (Vampire: the Masquerade 20th Anniversary Edition)

GtS Geist 2e core (Geist: the Sin-Eaters Second Edition)

CtD C20 Jumpstart (Changeling: the Dreaming 20th Anniversary Edition)

Pugmire Pan’s Guide for New Pioneers (Pugmire)

VtR Half-Damned (Vampire: the Requiem 2nd Edition)

  Development

W20 Changing Ways (Werewolf: the Apocalypse 20th Anniversary Edition)

Signs of Sorcery (Mage: the Awakening Second Edition)

SL Ring of Spiragos (Pathfinder – Scarred Lands 2nd Edition)

Ring of Spiragos (5e – Scarred Lands 2nd Edition)

SL Dagger of Spiragos (Pathfinder – Scarred Lands 2nd Edition)

Dagger of Spiragos (5e– Scarred Lands 2nd Edition)

Arms of the Chosen (Exalted 3rd Edition)

Changeling: the Lost 2nd Edition, featuring the Huntsmen Chronicle (Changeling: the Lost 2nd Edition)

Book of Freeholds (Changeling: the Dreaming 20th Anniversary Edition)

  Editing:

CtD C20 Anthology (Changeling: the Dreaming 20th Anniversary Edition)

Wraith: the Oblivion 20th Anniversary Edition

M20 Art Book (Mage: the Ascension 20th Anniversary Edition)

BtP Building a Legend (Beast: the Primordial)

  Post-Editing Development:

CtL fiction anthology (Changeling: the Lost 2nd Edition)

  Indexing:

Pugmire

      ART DIRECTION FROM MIRTHFUL MIKE:

In Art Direction

Beckett’s Jyhad Diary – new stuff AD’d

W20 Pentex Employee Indoctrination Handbook

V20 Dark Ages Companion – Got finals from Osterberger and Leblanc… and two more from Gaydos.

Dagger of Spiragos  – Finals in progress… and maps are progressing.

VTR: Thousand Years of Night

Cavaliers of Mars – AD’d

Monarchies of Mau Early Access – Prepping notes for artists

BtP Building a Legend – Contracting…

April Fool’s thing – Leblanc should be cranking out the cover for the (REDACTED) thing this week.

  Marketing Stuff

  In Layout

Prince’s Gambit – Making the remainder of graphics this week.

C20 – With Aileen

M20 Book of Secrets – Layout in progress.

Dark Eras Companion – Adding in corrections…

W20 Song of Unmaking – Knocking that out Monday.

1000 Years of Night

  Proofing

EX3 Tomb of Dreams Jumpstart – first proof.

V20 Lore of the Bloodlines – At WW for approval

  At Press

Ex 3 Screen – Ready to ship, shipping started last week.

Ex 3 core book – Ready to ship, shipping started last week, along with map and bookmarks.

Beckett Screen – Shipped to shipper.

W20 Shattered Dreams – Shipping.

Shattered Dreams Screen – Shipping.

Beast Conquering Heroes – Uploaded and processing. (See above in the blog for all these “processing”)

Mortal Remains: Beast- Red In Tooth and Claw – Uploaded and processing.

Dark Eras: Beneath the Skin – Uploaded and Processing.

Dark Eras: Out of the Cold – Uploaded and Processing.

Necropolis Rio – Uploaded and processing.

      TODAY’S REASON TO CELEBRATE: Today, let’s celebrate this wonderful time of year, when the breezes are starting to warm us, and the trees are starting to bud, and flowers starting to sprout, and AHHHHHHH there’s a blizzard barrelling down on us!

Today, let’s celebrate the beauty of the deep snow, so white and sparkling (like vampires). The way the ice glistens on the downed power lines as they snap, crackle, and pop. But mostly how nice it is to stay inside and see all of it out the window!

[daresplaining]

What are your thoughts on Evil!Matt Murdock from the Spider-Gwen universe? He's obviously very different from the Matts of other universes, but what might he have in common with them? Do you think he'll end up with a redemption arc, or will he stay a villain? Sorry that most of this is so vague, but I'm just REALLY into alternate versions of characters.

    We’re loving evil Matt. He’s so gleefully malevolent! It’s great fun to see a version of this character who has the life he wants and is enjoying every minute of it.

    (Gosh, look at him…)

    As you know (and in case anyone doesn’t), there are many, many Matt Murdock-inhabited alternate universes (both Marvel and DC are big on alternate universes), and someday we should do a comprehensive post about all of them, because there’s great variety. There is (to name a few) a Matt without superpowers, a Matt who is an agent of SHIELD, a Matt who is a demonic chef, several zombie Matts, Matts from a range of time periods and social backgrounds, a whole bunch of tragically deceased Matts, and even a Matt who is a mouse.

Mouse Murdock: “Stay back, Fisk, or you’re going to have a long, bad day.”

[Howard the Human #1 by Scottie Young, Jim Mahfood, and Justin Stewart]

    Thanks to this range of interpretations, which play with and subvert almost every aspect of Matt’s character, there are actually very few consistent cross-universe qualities that tie them together. He’s usually blind, and tends to possess that strength/stubbornness of spirit that is such a staple of the DD narrative. But beyond that, they’re all over the place.

    The variant we think bears the closest resemblance to Spider-Gwen’s Matt is from the What If? Daredevil VS Elektra one-shot by Karl Bollers. In this universe it is young Matt, rather than Elektra’s father, who is killed during the hostage situation at Columbia University. The Hand, who are aware of Matt’s abilities and training, steal his body and resurrect him to fight for them. Taking on the moniker “The Advocate” (because of course he does), he performs the Hand’s dirty work for years until crossing paths once more with Elektra– now a SHIELD agent– who must put aside the knowledge of who he once was in order to take him down.

Elektra: “I’m here to stop you.”

Matt: “From doing what? Bringing order to chaos? Imagine these widowmakers without my guidance. You’re still holding onto the ideals of youth. Your father raised you in a sheltered, protected bubble allowing you limited contact with the rest of the world. Clouded your thoughts with fairy tale notions of ‘good’ and ‘evil’.”

[What If? Daredevil VS Elektra by Karl Bollers, Rafael Kayanan, and Lovern Kindzierski]

    It’s a straightforward (albeit quite nuanced) Elektra/Matt role reversal, and given the core concept of Earth-65– in which a tragically dead past love switches places with her superhero counterpart– we were originally expecting Spider-Gwen Matt’s situation to be similar. 

    We learn, via his character page at the end of Spider-Gwen vol. 2 #3, that Earth-65 Matt has the same basic origin story as his 616 counterpart, though he isn’t trained by Stick until after Jack’s death. An unspecified amount of time later, the Hand kill Stick and adopt Matt, finishing his training and inducting him into their ranks. By the time we first meet him in Edge of Spider-Verse #2 he has become the leader of the western branch of the Hand, and has used his power and influence to take over Wilson Fisk’s criminal dealings while he’s in prison. As in Daredevil VS Elektra, here we have a Hand-trained, Hand-allied Matt who operates as an assassin.

[Spider-Gwen vol. 1 #5 by Jason Latour, Robbi Rodriguez, and Rico Renzi]

    However, there’s clearly a power difference between these two universes. “Advocate” Matt, while technically the leader of the Hand, was brainwashed by his resurrection and operates as a tool to do the Hand’s bidding– while Earth-65 Matt is calling the shots, living a full life, and shows no signs of brainwashing whatsoever. There’s no crisis of conscience and, beyond his affiliation with Fisk, no hint of anyone pulling his strings behind the scenes. He acts solely for his own benefit, offering aid when it best suits him and daring others to compromise their morals by accepting it. He’s a proud ninja/assassin/mob boss/sleazy lawyer, and he doesn’t care who knows it.

Matt: “’Kingpin’?! Moi?! Captain, I’m just a blind servant of justice. Why, I can’t even dress myself.”

[Spider-Gwen vol. 2 #5 by Jason Latour, Chris Visions, and Rico Renzi]

    The obvious question is, then, how did he end up this way? What is the X factor on Earth-65 that turned its Matt willingly villainous? To start, he’s one of those characters whose past has always contained the potential for a super villain origin. There’s even a famous Frank Miller quote about it. Were it not for his optimism and strength of spirit, and his devotion to law and justice, Matt very well could have pulled an Elektra and just given up on humanity. That’s a core part of Elektra’s character concept actually– a demonstration of how someone very like Matt could end up on a non-heroic path. (We wrote a whole post about this, for anyone who wants the rambly details.) In fact, 65 Matt’s situation is much more similar to 616 Elektra’s than that of the other evil Matt, discussed above. 

    One key difference between the 616 and 65 realities is Matt’s support system, or– more specifically– the destruction of it. Young Earth-65 Matt suffers the loss of not one, but both of his parents (616 Matt was raised thinking Maggie was dead, so was never faced with the actual trauma of losing her. To extend this tangent, while we’re here in the parentheses, it’s interesting to note that 65 Maggie is still alive. Did she ever come out of the coma? Is she going to reappear? Are we going to get awkward mother/evil son bonding? Jason Latour, are you reading this?) 

    Then he is taken in by Stick, who is apparently an all-out vigilante crimefighter in this universe. 65 Stick would have been much more of a parental figure to Matt than his 616 counterpart– who was parental to a certain degree, but wasn’t Matt’s sole source of emotional support due to Jack still being around. Note that at this point 65 Matt is still a moral person, operating in what must have been a sidekick role. But then Stick is killed, a third parental figure lost, leaving him alone. The timing on the character bio is a little shaky, but if we go ahead and assume that the timeline is 616-based, Matt would have been in college– and there’s no mention of any other contacts or friends he might have had at this point. No connection to Foggy, as far as we know, who we’re convinced was instrumental in keeping him focused and grounded in the main continuity.

Foggy: “You’ve gotta snap out of it, Matt… like your dad would’ve wanted! We’ll be graduating soon… and I want you to join me, Matt… as my partner!”

[Daredevil vol. 1 #53 by Roy Thomas, Gene Colan, and Artie Simek]

    Another possibility– since Foggy does exist in this universe– is that they did know each other, but had some kind of falling-out. Who knows? Either way, faced with this absolute isolation, it makes some sense that 65 Matt would have seen the Hand as the only place left to go.

    We’re short on details about his time training with the Hand, but his flippant reference to having been “raised by ninjas” (in Spider-Gwen vol. 2 #5) suggests that he does think of them as family. If brainwashing was involved, it was very subtle, but at that point it may not even have been necessary. The Hand would have offered him a purpose, a direction, and an opportunity to make something of himself– all offers that would have appealed to a seemingly directionless Matt. They would have offered him empowerment– both literal and metaphorical– which is something Matt has always strived for, regardless of the universe. Seeing a hero like Stick fail might have colored his perception of how effective good guy justice could be. And the loss of everyone he has previously cared for could have hardened young Matt enough to allow him, in conjunction with his Hand training, to suppress his respect for human life.

    It’s tough to say at this point whether or not he’ll get a redemption arc, but his current trajectory makes it seem unlikely. Unless this has all been an act to cover up for some bigger scheme yet to be revealed, he hasn’t shown any signs that he’s at all interested in redemption. The criminal thing seems to be working out very well for him, and as charming and entertaining as he his, he hasn’t yet displayed any in-universe redeeming qualities. He wouldn’t have any desire or motivation to become a good guy at this point because he just keeps winning.

Gwen: “But… why?”

Matt: “I don’t know. Why not? Because I can? Or maybe it’s just that the season is the reason. The “why” doesn’t matter. All that matters is– now I’m your only hope for being Spider-Woman. And that’s fun, right? Like having your own personal Santa Claus.”

[Spider-Gwen vol. 2 #15 by Jason Latour, Robbi Rodriguez, and Rico Renzi]

    But it’s also entirely possible that this could change. His seemingly positive upbringing, and the superhero training he received from Stick, suggests that he was once a moral person. There’s been a trend in this series of exploring villains’ motivations, often as a way of paralleling Gwen’s personal journey. Harry Osborn and Jesse Drew received this treatment, as– to a certain degree– did Frank Castle and Mysterio. Evil Cindy Moon’s motivations are clear, even if she’s still very much an antagonist. Heck, we even got a bit of Bodega Bandit’s life story. If Matt sticks around (which he clearly will) and as Gwen starts to spend more time with him, it’s likely his backstory will start to make its way into the narrative. At the very least, we might get a sense of exactly why he’s so interested in recruiting Spider-Woman, which could involve more than simply wanting a powerful pawn to play with. This would open the door for a more complex understanding of his motivations, if not a full redemption arc. That, we feel, would require his plans to start failing him, and for the cushy life he’s been leading as a villain to develop some cracks.

    Currently, he seems to have four points of potential weakness: S.I.L.K., George Stacy’s upcoming trial, Fisk, and Gwen herself. Despite Matt’s current *cough* truce with Cindy, S.I.L.K. is still his biggest rival for power in the criminal underworld– and they could very easily turn on him. We honestly doubt Matt will have any trouble with the trial, if it even ends up happening at all, but it’s fun to imagine D.A. Foggy Nelson kicking him around the courtroom a bit, isn’t it? We also don’t know how Fisk feels about Matt having taken over as Kingpin, or whose idea the transition of power even was. Once he gets out of prison, is Fisk going to want his job back? And of course, at some point Gwen is going to find the power and leverage to start fighting against Matt’s blackmail. She is the hero, after all, and it’s practically guaranteed that she will beat him in the end. And who knows where that might lead?  

    As one final tangent, we wanted to point out the “Skills/Talents” section of 65 Matt’s character bio:

“Skills/Talents: Murdock’s superhuman abilities give him a unique synthesis between his motor reflexes and the outside world– particularly a refined motor control and sense of balance. Little is yet known about the extent of Murdock’s ninja training during his time abroad, though his command of both his powers and respect of the ninjas in his employ suggest that he not only completed his training, but thrived.”

   616 Matt received only basic ninja training– which was more than enough to turn him into a badass, of course, but which also left him locked out of a lot of the upper level, magic-based Chaste/Hand skills. But here we have a version of Matt who has reached his full potential. High level Hand ninjas can do all sorts of cool things, from bringing people back from the dead to taking over the minds of others… and we are really excited to see what kinds of tricks 65 Matt has up his sleeve.   

[americanlibertypac]

Video and Full Text of Trump Address to Congress

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oJuvNMLBcQk]

Mr. Speaker, Mr. Vice President, Members of Congress, the First Lady of the United States, and Citizens of America.

Tonight, as we mark the conclusion of our celebration of Black History Month, we are reminded of our Nation’s path toward civil rights and the work that still remains. Recent threats targeting Jewish Community Centers and vandalism of Jewish cemeteries, as well as last week’s shooting in Kansas City, remind us that while we may be a Nation divided on policies, we are a country that stands united in condemning hate and evil in all its forms.

Each American generation passes the torch of truth, liberty and justice –- in an unbroken chain all the way down to the present.

That torch is now in our hands. And we will use it to light up the world. I am here tonight to deliver a message of unity and strength, and it is a message deeply delivered from my heart.

A new chapter of American Greatness is now beginning.

A new national pride is sweeping across our Nation.

And a new surge of optimism is placing impossible dreams firmly within our grasp.

What we are witnessing today is the Renewal of the American Spirit.

Our allies will find that America is once again ready to lead.

All the nations of the world — friend or foe — will find that America is strong, America is proud, and America is free.

In 9 years, the United States will celebrate the 250th anniversary of our founding — 250 years since the day we declared our Independence.

It will be one of the great milestones in the history of the world.

But what will America look like as we reach our 250th year? What kind of country will we leave for our children?

I will not allow the mistakes of recent decades past to define the course of our future.

For too long, we’ve watched our middle class shrink as we’ve exported our jobs and wealth to foreign countries.

We’ve financed and built one global project after another, but ignored the fates of our children in the inner cities of Chicago, Baltimore, Detroit — and so many other places throughout our land.

We’ve defended the borders of other nations, while leaving our own borders wide open, for anyone to cross — and for drugs to pour in at a now unprecedented rate.

And we’ve spent trillions of dollars overseas, while our infrastructure at home has so badly crumbled.

Then, in 2016, the earth shifted beneath our feet. The rebellion started as a quiet protest, spoken by families of all colors and creeds -– families who just wanted a fair shot for their children, and a fair hearing for their concerns.

But then the quiet voices became a loud chorus — as thousands of citizens now spoke out together, from cities small and large, all across our country.

Finally, the chorus became an earthquake – and the people turned out by the tens of millions, and they were all united by one very simple, but crucial demand, that America must put its own citizens first … because only then, can we truly MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN.

Dying industries will come roaring back to life. Heroic veterans will get the care they so desperately need.

Our military will be given the resources its brave warriors so richly deserve.

Crumbling infrastructure will be replaced with new roads, bridges, tunnels, airports and railways gleaming across our beautiful land.

Our terrible drug epidemic will slow down and ultimately, stop.

And our neglected inner cities will see a rebirth of hope, safety, and opportunity.

Above all else, we will keep our promises to the American people.

It’s been a little over a month since my inauguration, and I want to take this moment to update the Nation on the progress I’ve made in keeping those promises.

Since my election, Ford, Fiat-Chrysler, General Motors, Sprint, Softbank, Lockheed, Intel, Walmart, and many others, have announced that they will invest billions of dollars in the United States and will create tens of thousands of new American jobs.

The stock market has gained almost three trillion dollars in value since the election on November 8th, a record. We’ve saved taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars by bringing down the price of the fantastic new F-35 jet fighter, and will be saving billions more dollars on contracts all across our Government. We have placed a hiring freeze on non-military and non-essential Federal workers.

We have begun to drain the swamp of government corruption by imposing a 5 year ban on lobbying by executive branch officials –- and a lifetime ban on becoming lobbyists for a foreign government.

We have undertaken a historic effort to massively reduce job?crushing regulations, creating a deregulation task force inside of every Government agency; imposing a new rule which mandates that for every 1 new regulation, 2 old regulations must be eliminated; and stopping a regulation that threatens the future and livelihoods of our great coal miners.

We have cleared the way for the construction of the Keystone and Dakota Access Pipelines — thereby creating tens of thousands of jobs — and I’ve issued a new directive that new American pipelines be made with American steel.

We have withdrawn the United States from the job-killing Trans-Pacific Partnership.

With the help of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, we have formed a Council with our neighbors in Canada to help ensure that women entrepreneurs have access to the networks, markets and capital they need to start a business and live out their financial dreams.

To protect our citizens, I have directed the Department of Justice to form a Task Force on Reducing Violent Crime.

I have further ordered the Departments of Homeland Security and Justice, along with the Department of State and the Director of National Intelligence, to coordinate an aggressive strategy to dismantle the criminal cartels that have spread across our Nation.

We will stop the drugs from pouring into our country and poisoning our youth — and we will expand treatment for those who have become so badly addicted.

At the same time, my Administration has answered the pleas of the American people for immigration enforcement and border security. By finally enforcing our immigration laws, we will raise wages, help the unemployed, save billions of dollars, and make our communities safer for everyone. We want all Americans to succeed –- but that can’t happen in an environment of lawless chaos. We must restore integrity and the rule of law to our borders.

For that reason, we will soon begin the construction of a great wall along our southern border. It will be started ahead of schedule and, when finished, it will be a very effective weapon against drugs and crime.

As we speak, we are removing gang members, drug dealers and criminals that threaten our communities and prey on our citizens. Bad ones are going out as I speak tonight and as I have promised.

To any in Congress who do not believe we should enforce our laws, I would ask you this question: what would you say to the American family that loses their jobs, their income, or a loved one, because America refused to uphold its laws and defend its borders?

Our obligation is to serve, protect, and defend the citizens of the United States. We are also taking strong measures to protect our Nation from Radical Islamic Terrorism.

According to data provided by the Department of Justice, the vast majority of individuals convicted for terrorism-related offenses since 9/11 came here from outside of our country. We have seen the attacks at home -– from Boston to San Bernardino to the Pentagon and yes, even the World Trade Center.

We have seen the attacks in France, in Belgium, in Germany and all over the world.

It is not compassionate, but reckless, to allow uncontrolled entry from places where proper vetting cannot occur. Those given the high honor of admission to the United States should support this country and love its people and its values.

We cannot allow a beachhead of terrorism to form inside America — we cannot allow our Nation to become a sanctuary for extremists.

That is why my Administration has been working on improved vetting procedures, and we will shortly take new steps to keep our Nation safe — and to keep out those who would do us harm.

As promised, I directed the Department of Defense to develop a plan to demolish and destroy ISIS — a network of lawless savages that have slaughtered Muslims and Christians, and men, women, and children of all faiths and beliefs. We will work with our allies, including our friends and allies in the Muslim world, to extinguish this vile enemy from our planet.

I have also imposed new sanctions on entities and individuals who support Iran’s ballistic missile program, and reaffirmed our unbreakable alliance with the State of Israel.

Finally, I have kept my promise to appoint a Justice to the United States Supreme Court — from my list of 20 judges — who will defend our Constitution. I am honored to have Maureen Scalia with us in the gallery tonight. Her late, great husband, Antonin Scalia, will forever be a symbol of American justice. To fill his seat, we have chosen Judge Neil Gorsuch, a man of incredible skill, and deep devotion to the law. He was confirmed unanimously to the Court of Appeals, and I am asking the Senate to swiftly approve his nomination.

Tonight, as I outline the next steps we must take as a country, we must honestly acknowledge the circumstances we inherited.

Ninety-four million Americans are out of the labor force.

Over 43 million people are now living in poverty, and over 43 million Americans are on food stamps.

More than 1 in 5 people in their prime working years are not working.

We have the worst financial recovery in 65 years.

In the last 8 years, the past Administration has put on more new debt than nearly all other Presidents combined.

We’ve lost more than one-fourth of our manufacturing jobs since NAFTA was approved, and we’ve lost 60,000 factories since China joined the World Trade Organization in 2001.

Our trade deficit in goods with the world last year was nearly $800 billion dollars.

And overseas, we have inherited a series of tragic foreign policy disasters.

Solving these, and so many other pressing problems, will require us to work past the differences of party. It will require us to tap into the American spirit that has overcome every challenge throughout our long and storied history.

But to accomplish our goals at home and abroad, we must restart the engine of the American economy — making it easier for companies to do business in the United States, and much harder for companies to leave.

Right now, American companies are taxed at one of the highest rates anywhere in the world.

My economic team is developing historic tax reform that will reduce the tax rate on our companies so they can compete and thrive anywhere and with anyone. At the same time, we will provide massive tax relief for the middle class.

We must create a level playing field for American companies and workers.

Currently, when we ship products out of America, many other countries make us pay very high tariffs and taxes — but when foreign companies ship their products into America, we charge them almost nothing.

I just met with officials and workers from a great American company, Harley-Davidson. In fact, they proudly displayed five of their magnificent motorcycles, made in the USA, on the front lawn of the White House.

At our meeting, I asked them, how are you doing, how is business? They said that it’s good. I asked them further how they are doing with other countries, mainly international sales. They told me — without even complaining because they have been mistreated for so long that they have become used to it — that it is very hard to do business with other countries because they tax our goods at such a high rate. They said that in one case another country taxed their motorcycles at 100 percent.

They weren’t even asking for change. But I am.

I believe strongly in free trade but it also has to be FAIR TRADE.

The first Republican President, Abraham Lincoln, warned that the “abandonment of the protective policy by the American Government [will] produce want and ruin among our people.”

Lincoln was right — and it is time we heeded his words. I am not going to let America and its great companies and workers, be taken advantage of anymore.

I am going to bring back millions of jobs. Protecting our workers also means reforming our system of legal immigration. The current, outdated system depresses wages for our poorest workers, and puts great pressure on taxpayers.

Nations around the world, like Canada, Australia and many others –- have a merit-based immigration system. It is a basic principle that those seeking to enter a country ought to be able to support themselves financially. Yet, in America, we do not enforce this rule, straining the very public resources that our poorest citizens rely upon. According to the National Academy of Sciences, our current immigration system costs America’s taxpayers many billions of dollars a year.

Switching away from this current system of lower-skilled immigration, and instead adopting a merit-based system, will have many benefits: it will save countless dollars, raise workers’ wages, and help struggling families –- including immigrant families –- enter the middle class.

I believe that real and positive immigration reform is possible, as long as we focus on the following goals: to improve jobs and wages for Americans, to strengthen our nation’s security, and to restore respect for our laws.

If we are guided by the well-being of American citizens then I believe Republicans and Democrats can work together to achieve an outcome that has eluded our country for decades.

Another Republican President, Dwight D. Eisenhower, initiated the last truly great national infrastructure program –- the building of the interstate highway system. The time has come for a new program of national rebuilding.

America has spent approximately six trillion dollars in the Middle East, all this while our infrastructure at home is crumbling. With this six trillion dollars we could have rebuilt our country –- twice. And maybe even three times if we had people who had the ability to negotiate.

To launch our national rebuilding, I will be asking the Congress to approve legislation that produces a $1 trillion investment in the infrastructure of the United States — financed through both public and private capital –- creating millions of new jobs.

This effort will be guided by two core principles: Buy American, and Hire American.

Tonight, I am also calling on this Congress to repeal and replace Obamacare with reforms that expand choice, increase access, lower costs, and at the same time, provide better Healthcare.

Mandating every American to buy government-approved health insurance was never the right solution for America. The way to make health insurance available to everyone is to lower the cost of health insurance, and that is what we will do.

Obamacare premiums nationwide have increased by double and triple digits. As an example, Arizona went up 116 percent last year alone. Governor Matt Bevin of Kentucky just said Obamacare is failing in his State — it is unsustainable and collapsing.

One third of counties have only one insurer on the exchanges –- leaving many Americans with no choice at all.

Remember when you were told that you could keep your doctor, and keep your plan?

We now know that all of those promises have been broken.

Obamacare is collapsing –- and we must act decisively to protect all Americans. Action is not a choice –- it is a necessity.

So I am calling on all Democrats and Republicans in the Congress to work with us to save Americans from this imploding Obamacare disaster.

Here are the principles that should guide the Congress as we move to create a better healthcare system for all Americans:

First, we should ensure that Americans with pre-existing conditions have access to coverage, and that we have a stable transition for Americans currently enrolled in the healthcare exchanges.

Secondly, we should help Americans purchase their own coverage, through the use of tax credits and expanded Health Savings Accounts –- but it must be the plan they want, not the plan forced on them by the Government.

Thirdly, we should give our great State Governors the resources and flexibility they need with Medicaid to make sure no one is left out.

Fourthly, we should implement legal reforms that protect patients and doctors from unnecessary costs that drive up the price of insurance – and work to bring down the artificially high price of drugs and bring them down immediately.

Finally, the time has come to give Americans the freedom to purchase health insurance across State lines –- creating a truly competitive national marketplace that will bring cost way down and provide far better care.

Everything that is broken in our country can be fixed. Every problem can be solved. And every hurting family can find healing, and hope.

Our citizens deserve this, and so much more –- so why not join forces to finally get it done? On this and so many other things, Democrats and Republicans should get together and unite for the good of our country, and for the good of the American people.

My administration wants to work with members in both parties to make childcare accessible and affordable, to help ensure new parents have paid family leave, to invest in women’s health, and to promote clean air and clear water, and to rebuild our military and our infrastructure.

True love for our people requires us to find common ground, to advance the common good, and to cooperate on behalf of every American child who deserves a brighter future.

An incredible young woman is with us this evening who should serve as an inspiration to us all.

Today is Rare Disease day, and joining us in the gallery is a Rare Disease Survivor, Megan Crowley. Megan was diagnosed with Pompe Disease, a rare and serious illness, when she was 15 months old. She was not expected to live past 5.

On receiving this news, Megan’s dad, John, fought with everything he had to save the life of his precious child. He founded a company to look for a cure, and helped develop the drug that saved Megan’s life. Today she is 20 years old — and a sophomore at Notre Dame.

Megan’s story is about the unbounded power of a father’s love for a daughter.

But our slow and burdensome approval process at the Food and Drug Administration keeps too many advances, like the one that saved Megan’s life, from reaching those in need.

If we slash the restraints, not just at the FDA but across our Government, then we will be blessed with far more miracles like Megan.

In fact, our children will grow up in a Nation of miracles.

But to achieve this future, we must enrich the mind –- and the souls –- of every American child.

Education is the civil rights issue of our time.

I am calling upon Members of both parties to pass an education bill that funds school choice for disadvantaged youth, including millions of African-American and Latino children. These families should be free to choose the public, private, charter, magnet, religious or home school that is right for them.

Joining us tonight in the gallery is a remarkable woman, Denisha Merriweather. As a young girl, Denisha struggled in school and failed third grade twice. But then she was able to enroll in a private center for learning, with the help of a tax credit scholarship program. Today, she is the first in her family to graduate, not just from high school, but from college. Later this year she will get her masters degree in social work.

We want all children to be able to break the cycle of poverty just like Denisha.

But to break the cycle of poverty, we must also break the cycle of violence.

The murder rate in 2015 experienced its largest single-year increase in nearly half a century.

In Chicago, more than 4,000 people were shot last year alone –- and the murder rate so far this year has been even higher.

This is not acceptable in our society.

Every American child should be able to grow up in a safe community, to attend a great school, and to have access to a high-paying job.

But to create this future, we must work with –- not against -– the men and women of law enforcement.

We must build bridges of cooperation and trust –- not drive the wedge of disunity and division.

Police and sheriffs are members of our community. They are friends and neighbors, they are mothers and fathers, sons and daughters – and they leave behind loved ones every day who worry whether or not they’ll come home safe and sound.

We must support the incredible men and women of law enforcement.

And we must support the victims of crime.

I have ordered the Department of Homeland Security to create an office to serve American Victims. The office is called VOICE –- Victims Of Immigration Crime Engagement. We are providing a voice to those who have been ignored by our media, and silenced by special interests.

Joining us in the audience tonight are four very brave Americans whose government failed them.

Their names are Jamiel Shaw, Susan Oliver, Jenna Oliver, and Jessica Davis.

Jamiel’s 17-year-old son was viciously murdered by an illegal immigrant gang member, who had just been released from prison. Jamiel Shaw Jr. was an incredible young man, with unlimited potential who was getting ready to go to college where he would have excelled as a great quarterback. But he never got the chance. His father, who is in the audience tonight, has become a good friend of mine.

Also with us are Susan Oliver and Jessica Davis. Their husbands –- Deputy Sheriff Danny Oliver and Detective Michael Davis –- were slain in the line of duty in California. They were pillars of their community. These brave men were viciously gunned down by an illegal immigrant with a criminal record and two prior deportations.

Sitting with Susan is her daughter, Jenna. Jenna: I want you to know that your father was a hero, and that tonight you have the love of an entire country supporting you and praying for you.

To Jamiel, Jenna, Susan and Jessica: I want you to know –- we will never stop fighting for justice. Your loved ones will never be forgotten, we will always honor their memory.

Finally, to keep America Safe we must provide the men and women of the United States military with the tools they need to prevent war and –- if they must –- to fight and to win.

I am sending the Congress a budget that rebuilds the military, eliminates the Defense sequester, and calls for one of the largest increases in national defense spending in American history.

My budget will also increase funding for our veterans.

Our veterans have delivered for this Nation –- and now we must deliver for them.

The challenges we face as a Nation are great. But our people are even greater.

And none are greater or braver than those who fight for America in uniform.

We are blessed to be joined tonight by Carryn Owens, the widow of a U.S. Navy Special Operator, Senior Chief William “Ryan” Owens. Ryan died as he lived: a warrior, and a hero –- battling against terrorism and securing our Nation.

I just spoke to General Mattis, who reconfirmed that, and I quote, “Ryan was a part of a highly successful raid that generated large amounts of vital intelligence that will lead to many more victories in the future against our enemies.” Ryan’s legacy is etched into eternity. For as the Bible teaches us, there is no greater act of love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. Ryan laid down his life for his friends, for his country, and for our freedom –- we will never forget him.

To those allies who wonder what kind of friend America will be, look no further than the heroes who wear our uniform.

Our foreign policy calls for a direct, robust and meaningful engagement with the world. It is American leadership based on vital security interests that we share with our allies across the globe.

We strongly support NATO, an alliance forged through the bonds of two World Wars that dethroned fascism, and a Cold War that defeated communism.

But our partners must meet their financial obligations.

And now, based on our very strong and frank discussions, they are beginning to do just that.

We expect our partners, whether in NATO, in the Middle East, or the Pacific –- to take a direct and meaningful role in both strategic and military operations, and pay their fair share of the cost.

We will respect historic institutions, but we will also respect the sovereign rights of nations.

Free nations are the best vehicle for expressing the will of the people –- and America respects the right of all nations to chart their own path. My job is not to represent the world. My job is to represent the United States of America. But we know that America is better off, when there is less conflict — not more.

We must learn from the mistakes of the past –- we have seen the war and destruction that have raged across our world.

The only long-term solution for these humanitarian disasters is to create the conditions where displaced persons can safely return home and begin the long process of rebuilding.

America is willing to find new friends, and to forge new partnerships, where shared interests align. We want harmony and stability, not war and conflict.

We want peace, wherever peace can be found. America is friends today with former enemies. Some of our closest allies, decades ago, fought on the opposite side of these World Wars. This history should give us all faith in the possibilities for a better world.

Hopefully, the 250th year for America will see a world that is more peaceful, more just and more free.

On our 100th anniversary, in 1876, citizens from across our Nation came to Philadelphia to celebrate America’s centennial. At that celebration, the country’s builders and artists and inventors showed off their creations.

Alexander Graham Bell displayed his telephone for the first time.

Remington unveiled the first typewriter. An early attempt was made at electric light.

Thomas Edison showed an automatic telegraph and an electric pen.

Imagine the wonders our country could know in America’s 250th year.

Think of the marvels we can achieve if we simply set free the dreams of our people.

Cures to illnesses that have always plagued us are not too much to hope.

American footprints on distant worlds are not too big a dream.

Millions lifted from welfare to work is not too much to expect.

And streets where mothers are safe from fear — schools where children learn in peace — and jobs where Americans prosper and grow — are not too much to ask.

When we have all of this, we will have made America greater than ever before. For all Americans.

This is our vision. This is our mission.

But we can only get there together.

We are one people, with one destiny.

We all bleed the same blood.

We all salute the same flag.

And we are all made by the same God.

And when we fulfill this vision; when we celebrate our 250 years of glorious freedom, we will look back on tonight as when this new chapter of American Greatness began.

The time for small thinking is over. The time for trivial fights is behind us.

We just need the courage to share the dreams that fill our hearts.

The bravery to express the hopes that stir our souls.

And the confidence to turn those hopes and dreams to action.

From now on, America will be empowered by our aspirations, not burdened by our fears –-

inspired by the future, not bound by the failures of the past –-

and guided by our vision, not blinded by our doubts.

I am asking all citizens to embrace this Renewal of the American Spirit. I am asking all members of Congress to join me in dreaming big, and bold and daring things for our country. And I am asking everyone watching tonight to seize this moment and —

Believe in yourselves.

Believe in your future.

And believe, once more, in America.

Thank you, God bless you, and God Bless these United States.

[lodelss]

Rachel Nuwer | Longreads | March 2020 | 28 minutes (7,033 words)

You can listen to our four-part “Cat People” podcast series on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

It’s a gloomy April afternoon in rural Oklahoma, and I’m sitting on the floor of a fluorescent-lit room at a roadside zoo with Nova, a 12-week-old tiliger. She looks like a tiger cub, but she’s actually a crossbreed, an unnatural combination of a tiger father and a mother born of a tiger and a lion. That unique genetic makeup places a higher price tag on cubs like Nova, and makes it easier, legally speaking, to abuse and exploit them. Endangered species protections don’t apply to artificial breeds such as tiligers. Hybridization, however, has done nothing to quell Nova’s predatory instincts. For the umpteenth time during the past six minutes, she lunges at my face, claws splayed and mouth ajar — only to be halted mid-leap as her handler jerks her harness. Unphased, Nova gets right back to pouncing.

With her dusty blue eyes, sherbet-colored paws, and prominent black stripes, Nova is adorable. But she also weighs 30 pounds and has teeth like a Doberman’s and claws the size of jumbo shrimp. Nova’s handler, a woman with long brown hair who tells me she recently retired from her IT job at a South Dakota bank to live out her dream of working with exotic cats, scolds the rambunctious tiliger in a goo-goo-ga-ga voice: “Nooooo, nooooo, you calms down!” Nova is teething, the handler explains, so she just wants something to chew on. The handler reaches for one of the tatty stuffed animals strewn around the room — a substitute, I guess, for my limbs. In that moment of distraction, Nova lunges. She lands her mark, chomping into the bicep of my producer, Graham Lee Brewer.

“Ooo, she got me!” Lee Brewer grimaces as he attempts to pull away from the determined predator. Nova’s handler has to pry the tiliger’s jaws open to detach her. After the incident, the woman conveniently checks her watch: “OK, you guys, time is up!”

I paid $80 for the pleasure of spending 12 minutes with Nova, but I’m glad the experience, billed as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, is over. On our way out, we pass more than a dozen adult tigers yowling and pacing cages the size of small classrooms. Nearby signs solicit donations. You are their only hope. Sponsor a cabin or compound today! In the safety of our car, Lee Brewer rolls up his sleeve, exposing a swollen red welt. “Look at my gnarly tiger bite,” he chuckles. “I tried to play it off but I was like, this fuckin’ hurts!”

It’s not the first time I’ve seen this world up-close; I spent the better part of eight years investigating wildlife trafficking around the world. During my travels, I visited farms in China and Laos where tigers are raised like pigs, examined traditional medicine in Vietnam, ate what I was told was tiger bone “cake,” and tracked some of the world’s last remaining wild tigers in India. Almost everywhere I went, tigers were suffering and their numbers were on the decline because of human behavior. Until recently, though, I had no idea the United States was part of the problem.

Within a few weeks of my visit, Nova will be far too big and dangerous for overpriced playtime sessions. Cats like her are most likely confined to one of those cramped cages my producer and I passed leaving the zoo, where they spend the rest of their life being speed-bred to crank out more adorable cubs. Or Nova might be sold to another breeder, or to someone who wants to keep her as a pet. Although no one tracks big cat ownership in the U.S., it’s estimated that there are likely more pet tigers in America than there are left in the wild. What’s more, depending on the species of cat, federal oversight is either limited or nonexistent. In some states, it’s easier to buy a lion — a 400-pound predatory killer — than it is to get a dog.

Animal rights activists have been pushing for decades to curb big cat ownership in this country, arguing that the industry is cruel, dangerous, and detrimental to conservation of cats in the wild. Now, reform appears within reach. The movement owes its momentum to, of all things, a murder-for-hire plot gone terribly awry. You might have seen the headlines in the Washington Post and New York magazine: Joe Exotic, a self-described “gay, gun-carrying redneck with a mullet,” among the largest tiger owners and breeders in the U.S., charged with conspiring to commit murder for hire. At its height, Joe’s zoo in Wynnewood, Oklahoma, which is where I visited Nova, housed more than 200 big cats, including lion-tiger hybrids, as well as about 60 other species, everything from lemurs to owls to giraffes. Joe even acquired a pair of alligators he claimed were once owned by Michael Jackson. Still, as one local told me, “The animals weren’t the entertainment. Joe was the entertainment.”

Last year, an Oklahoma City jury convicted Joe, whose legal name is Joseph Maldonado-Passage, of the murder-for-hire plots against a Florida activist and sanctuary owner named Carole Baskin. For Joe, Baskin had become something of an arch tiger rival. The news coverage mostly focused on Joe’s outlandish personality and the details of his decade-long feud with Baskin. But the jury also found Joe guilty of 17 wildlife crimes, including illegally killing five tigers and trafficking tigers across state lines — marking the first significant conviction of a tiger criminal in an American courtroom. “This verdict sends a shot across the bow to other roadside zoos who are playing fast and loose with federal regulations,” said Carney Anne Nasser, director of the animal welfare clinic at Michigan State University College of Law.

In other words, the bad boy of the big cat world might have inadvertently contributed to cleaning up the dirty industry he helped build and then exploited for much of his adult life.

Simba, a Bengal tiger, was sent to an animal sanctuary, Big Cat Rescue, in Tampa, Florida. (Matias J. Ocner/Miami Herald via AP)

* * *

Big cats are easier to find than you might think. I recently struck up a conversation with the chef at my favorite sushi joint in New York City. He asked what I’d been working on, and I filled him in on a bit of the Joe Exotic story and the big cat trade. To my surprise, he nodded along knowingly: “Oh yeah, a buddy of mine just got a serval!” Celebrity culture is another hot spot for exotic animal ownership. This past fall, Justin Bieber reportedly spent $35,000 on two savannah cats and created a dedicated Instagram page that quickly amassed more than 500,000 followers. When PETA criticized Bieber’s new pet choice, he posted a statement on his Instagram story telling the nonprofit group to “suck it” and “focus on real problems.”

Shopping for an unconventional animal used to mean scanning the classified sections of newspapers or fliers on the cluttered billboards at grocery stores and gas stations. But those analog methods of sale have long since given way to people hawking large cats in ways that are now more traditionally modern: closed Facebook groups and exotic pet websites. Getting an ocelot or a cheetah can be as easy as sending a DM or text, agreeing on a price, and setting a pick-up date. Depending on what state you live in, owning one of these animals might be entirely legal. And even if it’s not, there’s almost always a way to sidestep the rules, which can be confusing and are rarely enforced.

Save for a handful of regulations pertaining to animals listed in the Endangered Species Act (ESA), there’s almost no oversight of big cat ownership by the federal government. The Animal Welfare Act is supposed to ensure humane treatment of big cats and other captive animals, but the inspectors are overworked and many of the rules are weak, vague, or both. Although the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) does technically require a permit to sell endangered species such as tigers, lions, leopards, or jaguars across state lines, unscrupulous sellers and buyers often don’t want to bother with permits and deal in untraceable cash payments. At trial, one buyer even testified to participating in sales marked as “donations.” Joe Exotic used this tactic for years to evade the gaze of law enforcement. He wasn’t the only one. At Joe’s trial, that same tiger owner testified: “Everybody marks donation.”

Same goes for regulations at the state level: Loopholes abound in the legislative patchwork governing big cat ownership. “There’s lots of ways tigers have been technically regulated on paper but in practice, not so much,” Nasser said. Roughly two thirds of states have some sort of regulations prohibiting private big cat ownership as pets. In 10 states, anyone can own a lion or tiger as long as they pay as little as $30 for a license from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Four states — North Carolina, Wisconsin, Nevada, and Oklahoma — have no laws on the books at all.

Rules aside, very few people, no matter how well-intentioned, are prepared to own one of the world’s largest, deadliest predators. “Everybody wants a tiger cub, but nobody wants a tiger,” said Tim Harrison, a retired Ohio police officer and first responder who specialized in exotic creatures. These days, Harrison runs Outreach for Animals, a nonprofit that advocates responsible exotic pet ownership and trains emergency personnel to safely deal with animal-related crises. Harrison used to be a big cat owner himself, before realizing his mistake. “I was on the dark side,” he said, “thinking I was doing the right thing.”

Many big cat owners are subjected to what Harrison describes as a “baptism in reality,” learning firsthand that these adult cats are expensive and dangerous. “A big cat is like a walking, thinking IED,” he said. “You don’t know when that thing’s going to go off.” One of the most famous incidents took place in 2003 at a live performance by the popular entertainment act Siegfried and Roy. One of the duo’s iconic white tigers, Mantacore, knocked down Roy Horn, grabbed him by the neck, and dragged him awayo. First responders rushed Horn to the hospital in critical condition. He survived but only returned to the stage once more years later. Defenders of the popular act contended that Horn suffered a stroke mid-act and Mantacore was just trying to help him, but Harrison disagreed. He argued on national television that Mantacore had intended to kill Roy, and that Roy had brought this upon himself: He’d disrespected the largest predatory cat in the world by forcing the animal to do magic tricks.

No agency tracks the number of people attacked and killed by captive big cats. According to a database of incidents compiled by the Humane Society of the United States, 24 people have died and 294 have been injured in the U.S. since 1990. Those figures likely only represent a fraction of the real numbers. Not every case makes the news, and the people involved in these incidents don’t always divulge the true cause of injury. In 1999, when a family’s pet tiger killed a 10-year-old girl in Texas, the victim’s mother initially told emergency dispatchers that her daughter had cut her neck by falling off a fence.  (She’d later testify she did not recall making the phone call.) In 2003, a man in New York City visited the hospital for a severe wound on his arm and leg; he claimed to have been bitten by a pit bull — not by Ming, the 400-pound tiger he had holed up in his Harlem apartment.

Big cats can threaten more than just their owners. The most infamous example occurred in 2011, when exotic animal owner Terry Thompson opened the doors to almost all of his pets’ cages before shooting himself. In what came to be known as the Zanesville massacre, law enforcement officers had to hunt and kill 18 tigers, 17 lions, and three mountain lions, as well as bears, a baboon, and wolves. “It was like Jumanji in real life,” said Harrison, who was one of the two dozen or so officers who responded to the incident. Many of the people who responded to the call that day suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder, Harrison claimed. They had no choice but to kill the animals, then they faced virulent public backlash for doing so.

Zanesville is an extreme example, but it’s not the only case of exotics turned loose. One problem is there’s a lack of places equipped to take in these animals — even zoos don’t want them. Since starring in a 2011 documentary The Elephant in the Living Room, about exotic cat ownership, Harrison gets about 30 calls a year from people desperate to find a new home for their lions or tigers. With few options, some people donate their cats to shady facilities that use them for breeding. Others abandon them. The New York Times recently reported that a woman looking for a place to smoke a joint stumbled upon a caged tiger in a vacant home in Houston. Unsurprisingly, the owner did not immediately come forward to claim the tiger, but she was later arrested and charged with one misdemeanor count of cruelty to a nonlivestock animal.

A sign warning motorists that exotic animals are on the loose rests on I-70 Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2011, near Zanesville, Ohio. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)

* * *

As a boy, Joe Exotic raised pigeons and captured porcupines, racoons, and baby antelope at his childhood homes in Kansas and rural Wyoming. But it was the death of his older brother, Garold Wayne, in a car accident in 1997, that precipitated Joe’s entrance into the tiger business: Joe convinced his parents to use the roughly $140,000 settlement they received to open a wildlife rescue center.

Before Joe and his parents had completed the first cages at the GW Exotic Animal Memorial Foundation in 1999, someone dropped off an unwanted mountain lion and black bear. Soon after, they received a call about two tigers, a black leopard, and a mountain lion found in a backyard. Joe set out with a horse trailer and tranquilizers to collect the animals, which were skinny and malnourished. When Joe spoke to me this spring on the phone from a county jail in Oklahoma, he told me there was an excitement about the uncertainty and possibility of those early days. “I had no intention of being Joe Exotic or the Tiger King or anything like that,” said Joe, who came up with the “Tiger King” moniker because people struggled to pronounce his original surname, Schreibvogel. “But I never said no to a rescue.”

Pretty soon, Joe started breeding his own tigers. He bred some 400 big cats over the years. He sold the animals to buyers on both coasts for as much as $5,000 each. By the mid-2000s, Joe had become one of the largest exotic animal operators in the country. He owned dozens of species and put together a traveling magic show. Although Joe had been “about the animals” in the beginning, as time passed, according to Joe’s ex-boyfriend John Finlay, fame and profit monopolized his thinking. Joe’s niece, Chealsi Putman, who helped out at the zoo for years, noticed the same evolution. “It’s like he’s seen dollar signs,” Putman told me. “He figured out a way to make money and ran with it.”

Not all big cat owners are similarly motivated. For some, it’s a grossly misplaced desire to help an endangered species — not realizing that big cats bred in the U.S. are hybridized mutts that have no genetic worth for wild tiger conservation. For others, like 54-year-old Deborah Pierce, the motivation is something more akin to love, or infatuation. Pierce started small, rehabbing injured wildlife at her house and volunteering and working at a local veterinary clinic and zoo after she graduated from high school. But helping lion keepers wasn’t enough to satisfy Pierce. “I wanted one of my own to just spend time with,” she said.

Pierce was encouraged when she learned that at the time her home state of South Carolina had no laws preventing her from owning a big cat. She talked her husband into helping her construct a double-fenced pen on their secluded, wooded property. She easily found a dealer on the internet selling lion cubs for $1,500 — like Nova, “picture babies” that were too large for cub petting by the time of sale — and arranged to purchase a female cub. “I could afford her easier than I could afford a new bulldog,” Pierce said. She named the lion Elsa, and a few months later, she got Charlie, a baby cougar, to keep Elsa company.

That was 12 years ago. Pierce’s perspective has since changed. She’s emptied her savings account on her cats. They eat $5,000 worth of meat a year and the veterinary bills run around $10,000 annually. Last year, the county hit her with an $1,100 fine for not having the proper paperwork. (South Carolina started regulating big cats in 2018.) Pierce no longer has time to ride horses, her other great love, and her husband left her in 2016, breaking not only her heart, she said, but also Charlie and Elsa’s. She’s put a dream of moving out to Arizona on hold as well. State laws there strictly regulate private ownership of big cats, and finding a sanctuary where Elsa and Charlie could stay has proven too difficult. “They’re my best friends,” Pierce said, “but if I had it all to go over again, I wouldn’t have gotten them.”

At this point, Pierce has resigned herself to the long haul, perhaps as many as another eight years given the lifespan of captive big cats. “I just want to be able to give Elsa and Charlie a happy life,” she said. “Their happiness is more important than mine, in my eyes.”

A month after I visited Pierce, she emailed with bad news. Charlie had died in surgery. “His heart was still beating, but he wouldn’t breathe when the oxygen came off,” she wrote. “So, we let him slip away.” Elsa, she says, has been inconsolable, and Deb blames herself for not bringing Charlie to the vet earlier. The bill for Charlie’s last visit, which totaled $4,800, even after the vet gave Pierce a significant discount, has only added to her stress. “I just hope nothing happens to Elsa before money is available again,” she says. “That’s my number one worry right now.”

  * * *

  The modern exotic animal craze traces back to the ’70s and ’80s and a phenomenon called zoo babies. Each spring, interstate signs and TV commercials featured photos of blue-eyed, squealing balls of fuzz debuting at major zoos around the country, an irresistible marketing lure for families that turned out to snap photos and cuddle the newest arrivals. Zoo babies were among the industry’s number one moneymaking programs, and tigers were always the biggest draw. As an added bonus, zoos advertised these activities under the guise of conservation. “You’d get your T-shirt, get your picture taken, and you’d walk away feeling like you’ve saved the world — you’ve saved tigers,” Harrison said.

But there was a problem, and Harrison, who worked as an exotic animal veterinary assistant as a teenager in Ohio, noticed it. There were lots of zoo babies but no zoo adolescents. When Harrison eventually began asking the staff about what had happened to last year’s tiger cubs, he’d get vague answers about the animals being traded off to different zoos. To Harrison, that math didn’t add up: Even the largest zoos around the country had only two or three adult tigers. But zoos annually paraded hundreds of babies out for pictures and play sessions.

Jack Hanna holds two Bengal Tiger cubs that were born and bred in captivity during a groundbreaking ceremony at the Dallas Zoo in 1998. (AP Photo/Tim Sharp)

Harrison eventually learned the dark truth: After the cubs reached a certain age they became “zoo surplus” and were sold at exotic animal auctions to private buyers. These auctions were raucous events, attended mostly by veteran wildlife keepers and professional breeders that zoos relied on to supply their collections. Harrison attended a few and noticed the same employees who weeks earlier had been talking up the conservation value of the zoo’s tiger babies, holding cub after cub up by their armpits to sell to the highest buyer. The whole scene was commonplace at the time. “No one thought anything of it,” Harrison said.

The zoo baby phenomenon led to a surge in private big cat ownership. In the 1990s, according to Harrison, wildlife-related television spread the idea of owning a pet tiger to a much wider audience. Jack Hanna types bottle-fed cubs and paraded tigers on leashes on talk shows. The predators appeared no more dangerous than a golden retriever. “It was like somebody flipped a switch on,” Harrison said. At the time, Harrison was the lone police officer in Ohio who could handle big cat emergencies; he suddenly went from getting a couple calls a year to getting more than 100. After removing an unruly pet from someone’s property, he’d ask people why they thought it was a good idea to own a lion or tiger. Many responded it was because they’d seen it on TV. Harrison started calling it the Steve Irwin syndrome.

That turns out to be an apt diagnosis. According to research conducted by scientists at Duke University, seeing a wild animal in an unnatural, human setting — a chimpanzee drinking out of a baby bottle or sitting through a talk show interview — makes people less likely to donate to a conservation organization that aids that species and more likely to think the creature in question would make a great pet. According to Kara Walker, now a behavioral ecologist at North Carolina State University and lead author of the research, published in 2011 in the journal PLOS One, this also extends to people’s thought process after an encounter with a cub, which might go something like: Look at this cuddly tiger! I got to pet it for 20 minutes and it licked my hand and now I can have a tiger, too!

Enterprising private exotic animal owners capitalized on the moment. They realized they could make a killing holding their own cub petting events at malls, fairs, and roadside zoos, which compounded an already vicious breeding pattern. “I call it the breed and dump cycle,” said Nasser, the Michigan State law professor. That cycle is largely responsible for the proliferation of tigers throughout the U.S., and by the middle of the last decade, the most notorious of all the breed-and-dump outfits belonged to Joe Exotic.

But cub-petting events weren’t enough for Joe. Concerned with fame and fortune, he plotted ways to grow his online following and commercialize the business. He started selling Tiger King–branded candy, apparel, and condoms. He also kept zoo costs down by euthanizing sterile or defective tigers and turned donated animals that weren’t moneymakers — especially emus — into cat food. During regular inspections of Joe’s zoo, the USDA cited hundreds of American Welfare Act violations. The agency conducted four investigations, including one that looked into the deaths of 23 tiger cubs from 2009 to 2010. (As an endangered species, tigers cannot be killed unless there is a legitimate reason, such as ending the life of a sick tiger.) Animal rights groups such as PETA conducted their own covert investigations, revealing what they claimed was gross abuse — dead and dying animals, extremely crowded cages lacking basic necessities such as water, and untrained staff who routinely abused animals. In retaliation, Joe launched social media attacks and filed dozens of contrived police reports claiming his accusers were the ones who were breaking the law.

For years, Joe’s strategy worked: Profit off cubs. Evade his enemies. Skirt the law. It probably would’ve continued to work had Joe’s path not collided, as he once put it, with “some bitch down there in Florida.”

* * *

Carole Baskin in 2017 walking the property at Big Cat Rescue, a nonprofit sanctuary committed to humane treatment of rescued animals, often coming from exploitive for-profit operations. (Loren Elliott/Tampa Bay Times via AP)

Vultures circle overhead as Carole Baskin and I make our way along a secluded stretch of the Upper Tampa Bay Trail, about 15 miles outside of downtown Tampa. A spring breeze flutters her waist-length blond hair and blows through the thick surrounding brush of oaks and palmettos. Despite the blue sky and sunshine, the trail is empty. The only sound is the rustle of leaves and crunch of Baskin’s leopard-print boots on the pavement. It was this trail, Baskin explained to me, on which she regularly bikes to work, that a hitman had identified as a place to take her out.

Baskin is arguably the most well-known activist in the country campaigning against big cat ownership. She also takes in unwanted exotic cats at Big Cat Rescue, her sanctuary in Tampa, which currently houses 66 cats belonging to 11 different species. It’s one of the few places in the U.S. capable of providing these animals with a safe, reasonably good life in captivity.

Like Harrison, Baskin used to be part of the problem. A pivot from big cat owner to big cat conservationist is a common story among advocates in the field. Baskin stumbled into owning an exotic cat in the early 1990s at the age of 31. She and her ex-husband, Don, worked together in the real estate business. They used llamas to mitigate the brush on the Florida properties they sold, and the easiest place to get a llama was at an exotic animal auction. At one memorable event, a man seated next to Baskin bid on a baby bobcat. Baskin couldn’t help but lean over and whisper: “When that cat grows up, she is going to tear your face off.”

“I’m a taxidermist,” the man replied. “I’m just gonna club her in the head in the parking lot and make her into a den ornament.”

Baskin was horrified. Don outbid the man and they brought home the 6-month-old kitten, which Baskin named Windsong. As Windsong grew, the bobcat terrorized Baskin’s daughter and the family’s German shepherd. The solution, Baskin decided, was to get Windsong a playmate. Don found a guy in Minnesota who agreed to sell them a bobcat kitten. Turned out, the man was a fur farmer; Baskin and Don came back from that trip with 56 bobcat and lynx kittens — everything the farmer had for sale. The following year, they returned to rescue the 28 adult cats, too.

With their home overrun by exotic cats, Baskin and Don transformed a nearby 40-acre property they owned into a sanctuary, albeit with misguided tourism and breeding components. They called it Wildlife on Easy Street. They amassed a collection of at least 150 exotic cats of 17 species. For $75 a night, visitors could share a small cabin with a bobcat, cougar, or serval. Baskin started breeding half a dozen big cat species, including ocelots and leopards. Pre-internet, all Baskin’s information came from breeders and dealers, who had their own motivations. “They were saying, ‘Oh, you should breed these animals because they’re endangered and the zoos don’t know what they’re doing and they’re going to disappear from the wild,’” Baskin said. “So, we thought, well, that’s something we could definitely do to help save the cats.”

But people who bought kittens from Baskin often returned the cats after they grew up. Once, a Siberian lynx — an animal Baskin swore she recognized from when it was young — showed up at auctions. People started donating cats to Baskin’s sanctuary by the dozens. Some years, she turned away hundreds of animals due to a lack of space. Around the same time, Baskin started attending conferences held by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, where she learned a few hard truths. None of these cats had any conservation value for their species. In fact, Baskin realized big cats had no business being bred and kept as pets at all.

In 1997, Baskin pulled a 180. She stopped breeding and began spaying and neutering all of her animals. She started enforcing a new rule in 2003: Big Cat Rescue, her rebranded sanctuary, would take any unwanted tiger, lion, savannah, or whatever else, but in return the owner had to sign a contract forfeiting their right to own a big cat. “We’re the only place that absolutely insists that if you’re going to dump an animal here, you are never going to own another exotic cat,” Baskin said.

The contracts were a good start, but Carole had an even bigger goal in mind: ending all big cat ownership. Critical to realizing that vision is Howard Baskin, a businessman from Poughkeepsie, New York, who Carole met at an event at the Florida aquarium in 2002. (Baskin’s previous husband walked out the door one day and was never seen or heard from again — though she was questioned, no evidence was ever found linking Baskin to his disappearance.) A lifelong bachelor with a Harvard MBA and a law degree from the University of Miami, Howard appears in many ways Carole’s opposite. Carole dresses like a Woodstock attendee and carries herself with the breezy grace of a dancer. Howard trundles along, turtle-like, in dad-style khakis with a cell phone holster. But they make a good team. Howard handles the administrative and legal duties and Carole focuses on advocacy. “On our honeymoon, we wrote a 25-year plan to stop the big cat abuses that bad guys hold dear,” Carole said.

Carole and Howard started by setting up a Google alert for cub-petting events around the country. Baskin would email the venues explaining the downsides of cub petting and asking them to cancel the event, and if they did not respond, she would then direct her hundreds of thousands of social media followers to flood the venues with emails explaining the downsides of cub petting. One by one, malls began to call off the events. (Fairs proved more impervious to the bad PR.) Baskin homed in on the primary players in the exotic cat world and publicized her findings on 911animalabuse.com, a website she created. One individual stood out among all the breeders: a guy with a dozen different aliases, but whose cub petting photos always included the same motley group of heavily tattooed, pierced, longhaired workers. It was Joe Exotic’s crew.

* * *

Joseph Maldonado in 2013, answering a question during an interview at the zoo he then ran in Wynnewood, Oklahoma. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki, File)

As Baskin ramped up her efforts, Joe’s profits plummeted. In retaliation, he launched a smear campaign against Baskin’s nonprofit. He renamed his cub-petting show Big Cat Rescue Entertainment and designed a near-identical copy of Baskin’s Big Cat Rescue logo. The Baskins sued Joe in 2011 for copyright infringement. Joe countersued, but those claims were tossed out by a judge. Joe eventually agreed to a consent judgement north of $1 million, which he had no intention of paying. He did everything he could to obscure his money, changing the name of his zoo and transferring assets to an account in his mother’s name. Joe also made a series of increasingly unhinged videos posted on social media threatening Baskin’s life. One featured an effigy of Baskin. Another depicted Baskin’s head in a jar, Silence of the Lambs–style.

In 2015, Baskin got a call from a woman who said Joe had inquired with her then-husband, who she said was a former military sharpshooter, about hiring her husband to kill Baskin. Nearly two years later, Baskin received a similar warning from a woman named Ashley Webster, an aspiring wildlife biologist from Colorado who had just started working at Joe’s park. In a deposition, Webster recalled Joe saying “something along the lines of he’d give me a few thousand dollars to go to Florida and put a bullet in [Baskin’s] head.” Carole and Howard reported the incidents to police, but nothing seemed to come of it.

Unbeknownst to the Baskins, the FWS had launched an investigation of Joe and his zoo in 2016 for potential animal trafficking violations. The saga, which has been detailed at length in various news reports, involved an FWS agent convincing a man named James Garretson, who’d done big cat business with Joe in the past, to become a government informant. Garretson agreed to attempt to arrange a meeting between Joe and an undercover FBI agent posing as a hitman. At the outset, what the feds learned was that Joe already had his own scheme in the works: He planned to hire Allen Glover, a man from South Carolina who’d been convicted of assault, for the job.

Glover was a longtime associate of a man named Jeff Lowe, who’d done business with Joe and shortly after started hanging around the Tiger King and his world. Joe, who was under the impression that Lowe was wealthy, made his new friend the co-owner of the zoo’s land, along with his mother. In exchange, Lowe, according to a deposition, said he would pay a portion of Joe’s mounting bills at the zoo and let Joe run the park as usual. “The whole thing was to put the zoo in his name so Carole couldn’t get it,” Joe told me. But Lowe had other plans. In a May 2018 deposition, Lowe admitted that he was interested in the zoo for himself.

According to Glover, who testified at Joe’s trial, he and Joe settled on a $5,000 down payment for the hit on Baskin and discussed other details such as what weapon to use. Glover said that Joe eventually gave him $3,000 cash and a cell phone loaded with pictures of Baskin. But during his two days on the stand, Glover claimed he’d always intended to take the money and run. For his part, Joe denies giving Glover the phone, and said that Lowe was the one who instructed him to pay Glover. (Lowe declined multiple interview requests for this story.) Glover did travel east, but in court he said he only made it as far as an unknown beach in Florida, where he partied most of the money away in a single night. Glover claimed that it was not his intention to kill Baskin in Florida, but rather to warn her that Joe wanted her dead.

Meanwhile, in December 2017, Joe agreed to Garretson’s proposed meeting with the undercover FBI agent. The agent quoted Joe a $10,000 fee for the hit. The two agreed to a rough outline of a deal, but Joe never followed through. Instead, in June, without notice, Joe and his new husband, Dillon Passage, loaded up four dogs, two baby tigers, and a baby white camel, and took off. (Joe’s previous husband, Travis Maldonado, accidentally shot and killed himself in October 2017.) “Joe Exotic, as far as I was concerned, was dead,” Joe told me. He was going to create a new life with Passage.

Joe and Passage left Oklahoma and headed east, eventually landing in Gulf Breeze, Florida. On a sunny September morning, Joe pulled up to the local hospital. He planned to walk in and apply for a job. Instead, unmarked cars surrounded him. U.S. marshals jumped out, guns pointed, yelling at Joe to get on the ground.

Lowe had indeed been working with federal agents since as early as June. Less than a month before Joe’s arrest, Lowe bragged on Facebook that he’d been “setting [Joe’s] ass up for almost a year.” And it seems Lowe got what he wanted. He and his wife, Lauren, now run Joe’s old zoo, where they continue to churn out cubs for playtimes. The nursery lineup recently featured Nova, the rambunctious tiliger who bit my producer.

Jeff Lowe and Lauren Dropla with Faith the liliger at their home in 2016 inside the Greater Wynnewood Exotic Animal Park in Wynnewood, Oklahoma. (Ruaridh Connellan/BarcroftImages / Barcroft Media via Getty Images)

* * *

This past March, journalists from around the country descended on downtown Oklahoma City for Joe Exotic’s trial. Garretson and Glover testified against Joe. Joe’s ex-boyfriend John Finlay testified too. Joe took the stand at the end of the seven-day affair. He said he never intended for anyone to kill Carole Baskin and claimed to have known that Garretson, Glover, and Lowe were conspiring to take him down. He said he played along to better understand their plan and gather evidence he could use against them. The jury deliberated for less than three hours, then found Joe guilty on all charges, including illegally killing five tigers and illegally transporting endangered species across state lines. In January, a judge sentenced Joe to 22 years in federal prison. In a Facebook post, Joe maintained his innocence and said he plans to appeal.

Nasser hopes that Joe’s conviction triggers the beginning of what she calls “a long-overdue Blackfish moment for captive tigers,” referring to the popular documentary that exposed problems with the sea-park business’ treatment of orcas and led to numerous SeaWorld boycotts. Pending any appeals, the Baskins and other activists believe the Tiger King’s downfall could topple the industry. They hope to use the momentum and notoriety of Joe’s case to usher in sweeping legal reform of big cat ownership in the U.S.

Baskin has been pushing for this type of reform since 1998, when she began working on what’s called the Captive Wildlife Safety Act, a federal bill unanimously voted into law in 2003 that barred the sale of big cats as pets across state lines. Loopholes in the law, however, have rendered it largely ineffective. She and Howard — along with major nonprofit groups such as the Humane Society and the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) — have been pushing a new bill, the Big Cat Public Safety Act. First introduced in 2012, the legislation would ban all public contact with big cats, including cub petting, and would require all big cat owners to register their animals. Howard hired a top Republican lobbying firm in 2014 to work with Harrison to champion the bill — not for its conservation clou, but on its pubic safety merits. Senator Susan Collins signed on to the bill last November, the first republican cosponsor. Three other Republican senators, including Richard Burr of North Carolina, have since joined Collins. The registrations would provide officials with valuable insight into who owns what and where — potentially life-saving information in the event of, say, a tornado blowing through a tiger park. The ban on cub petting, though, is the most important part of the bill, as proponents believe it would disincentivize the breeding of big cats.

Last year, the bill made it out of the Committee on Natural Resources in a bipartisan vote and could soon head to the House floor, where it has broad support. “Law enforcement has enough problems trying to protect the public without having to run into a house where there might be a tiger,” said Harrison. Dozens of Republican lawmakers support it — a party full of politicians, who, Harrison said, for the most part “don’t give a crap about cats.”

For now, though, cub petting remains a lucrative industry. According to data compiled by a team of New York University researchers in 2016, at least 77 facilities across the country allowed interactions with exotic animals (about a quarter of those were with big cats). In a follow-up study in 2019, which focused specifically on tiger petting, those same zoos were still open. One operation in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, run by Bhagavan “Doc” Antle, charges up to $339 per person for tours and cub-petting sessions. Supporters of the Big Cat Public Safety Act believe that ending cub petting would go a long way toward stopping the trade of big cats altogether. “Without ending public contact, you’re not going to have sufficient incentive for all the fly-by-night exhibitors to stop breeding,” said Nasser.

The new protections would extend to smaller species such as jaguars and even unnatural hybrids like Nova. They’d also apply to accredited zoos. While the zoo baby phenomenon is no longer as rabid as it once was, not all zoos have ended the practice of animal meet-and-greets. The Nashville Zoo provides clouded leopard cubs for zoo fundraisers and media events (zoo officials say that play and petting sessions are not allowed), and the Dallas Zoo recently held a cheetah photo op session for the Dallas Stars (zoo officials point out none of the Stars were able to pet the cheetah, however).

Limiting and eventually banning big cat ownership in the U.S. would almost certainly be a boon for the species worldwide. Fewer than 4,000 tigers survive in the wild today. But they are farmed by the thousands in China, Laos, and other Southeast Asian countries where big cat parts are sought after as erroneous medicinal remedies and status-touting commodities. Tiger bone wine, in particular, is considered a cure-all tonic, a virility booster for men, and a coveted, favor-winning gift for superiors, elders, and relatives.

Tiger bone is banned in China, and it’s illegal to trade big cats and their parts in Vietnam and elsewhere in Southeast Asia. But there’s a robust black market for tiger bones, skin, teeth, and claws — and farmed tiger parts keep demand for these items alive, perpetuating poaching. The U.S. government considers closing tiger farms integral to saving wild tigers, but when State Department officials try to negotiate this point with foreign diplomats — especially those from China — they’re often told to clean up their own mess first. “When I talk to government leaders about tiger farming in many of the Asian countries, quite often they ask me, ‘What about tigers in the U.S.? What role do the tigers in private backyards in the U.S. contribute to wild tiger conservation?’” said Grace Ge Gabriel, IFAW’s Asia regional director. “Literally, I am speechless. I don’t have an answer.”

A tiger named Seth rests above a pond at Big Cat Rescue in 2017. (Loren Elliott/Tampa Bay Times via AP)

* * *

After I first contacted Joe following his trial, we spoke several times over the next few months. He liked to talk, only cutting off our calls if another person in the prison needed to use the phone. Joe never admitted any wrongdoing when it came to Baskin; rather, he was eager to defend his innocence. Multiple times he told me, “That whole mess was nothing but a setup.”

Joe did cop to something else, though. He said being locked up in jail had made him realize he’d mistreated the animals all those years, depriving them of their freedom and robbing them of their dignity by keeping them behind bars. Joe told me he regretted having done that. “Now that I have nothing to do besides sit in a cell with no TV, no radio, no nothing, I know exactly what I did to those [animals],” he said. “We can all be drove crazy by doing nothing.”

To make amends, Joe told me he plans to create a new zoo when he gets out. This one without any cages. Just tigers roaming free.

* * *

You can listen to our four-part “Cat People” podcast series on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Rachel Nuwer is an award-winning freelance journalist who reports about science, travel, food and adventure for the New York Times, National Geographic, BBC Future and more. Her multi-award winning first book, Poached: Inside the Dark World of Wildlife Trafficking, was published in September 2018 with Da Capo Press.

Editors: Mike Dang and Chris Outcalt Illustrator: Zoë van Dijk Fact checker: Matt Giles Copy editor: Jacob Gross

[mikesmiller86]

NFL bows to marijuana’s new status

By Ken Belson, The New York Times

The 10-year labor agreement between the NFL and players union that was ratified on March 15 is filled with dozens of incremental changes, most notably the one-percentage-point increase in the share of league revenue that the players will receive.

One of the biggest overhauls in the agreement, though, was a change the league had long resisted: loosening the rules governing players’ use of marijuana.

Under the new collective bargaining agreement, players who test positive for marijuana will no longer be suspended. Testing will be limited to the first two weeks of training camp instead of from April to August, and the threshold for the amount of 9-delta tetrahydrocannabinol — or THC, the psychoactive compound in marijuana — needed to trigger a positive test will be raised fourfold.

In adopting the changes, the NFL, a league not known for its liberal views, caught up to and in some ways leapfrogged Major League Baseball, the NBA and other leagues that had already eased their rules as acceptance of marijuana became more common in many parts of the country.

“There is a generalized sense that the fans don’t care about the issue, so it’s possible to appear progressive,” said Paul Haagen, co-director of the Center for Sports Law and Policy at Duke University.

NFL’s laxer standards are a big departure from the past. But while players will not be suspended for positive tests, they can be fined several weeks’ salary, depending on the number of positive tests. First-time positive tests will, as before, mean diversion into a league-mandated treatment program. Players who refuse to take part in testing or clinical care can be suspended for three games after a fourth violation, with escalating penalties for further violations.

Current and former players have long pushed for looser restrictions on marijuana, which they claim is a less addictive pain reliever than prescription medication, and a growing number of NFL owners saw the rules as a hindrance because resulting suspensions kept some of their best players off the field.

Over the years, the NFL had resisted loosening its marijuana rules to avoid conflicting with federal and state laws. But as more states have approved the use of marijuana for medical or recreational purposes, the league found itself enforcing a policy that, in some instances, was more punitive than local laws. In 11 states, including seven with NFL franchises, the drug is legal for any use. Thirty-one states allow use for medical reasons. The Green Bay Packers and the Tennessee Titans play in states where marijuana remains entirely illegal.

The NFL and the NFL Players Association continue to study the purported healing and addictive qualities of marijuana. The players pushed for a relaxed marijuana policy in part because of mounting research that details the hazards of alternatives — including the addiction rates among prescription opioid users and the irreversible internal damage that can be caused by opioids and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, such as Toradol, which has long been used to treat NFL players.

“The league’s considerations included a number of issues, including its status legally, but most important was always the advice and recommendations of the medical and clinical professionals,” Brian McCarthy, a league spokesman, said. That “remains the case.”

It is unclear what percentage of NFL players use marijuana. Over the years, current and former players have estimated that 50% to 90% of players use the drug. Former players like Ricky Williams and Rob Gronkowski have openly discussed the benefits of marijuana and cannabidiol, or CBD, a nonintoxicating compound found in the plant. But it wasn’t until 2016 that the first active player — Eugene Monroe, an offensive lineman with the Baltimore Ravens — urged the league to stop testing players for marijuana so that he and others could take it to treat chronic pain.

Now out of the league, Monroe said that the NFL and union had not gone far enough in the new agreement. “Why are they still testing at all?” he said. “I don’t understand. Just move on from this and do the right thing and let the players make the choice. There’s no secret that players smoke marijuana.”

The new rules will not change the status of players who are currently suspended for violating the substance abuse policy that is being replaced. Players who were banished under the previous agreement, after multiples positive tests, must still petition Commissioner Roger Goodell to be reinstated.

For example, Cowboys defensive end Randy Gregory, who has been suspended four times for missed or failed tests, has asked to be reinstated after being suspended indefinitely in February 2019, according to ESPN.

Some current players said that the looser testing standards were irrelevant, because they did not use the drug. “No lie i could care less about the marijuana policy,” Quandre Diggs, a defensive back with the Seattle Seahawks, wrote on Twitter about 10 days before the agreement was ratified.

Some former players warn that the looser rules could lead to a spike in drug abuse. Randy Grimes, who played 10 seasons for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and now works as a substance abuse counselor after a long battle with opioid addiction, said that the NFL must do more to address the mental health problems that drugs both mask and amplify.

“The marijuana now is incredibly engineered and potent, and it’s trouble waiting to happen,” he said. “I’m in the industry that sees the danger of mood-altering substances, and that’s what marijuana is.”

The trend in professional sports, though, is to reduce penalties. In December, Major League Baseball removed marijuana from its list of banned substances and now treats it the same way as alcohol: Players are not randomly tested unless they are in a treatment program. The National Hockey League still tests for marijuana, but there is no punishment for a positive result. Players with “a dangerously high level” of THC in their system are referred to the player assistance program for evaluation.

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NBA players must take four random tests for marijuana during the regular season. After a first positive test, a player must enter a drug program. A second positive test will result in a $25,000 fine, and a third will lead to a five-game suspension.

While the NFL Players Association hailed the looser standards as a victory, they were also a win for the owners. In the making of this new labor deal, the relaxation of the testing rules may have been one of the easiest points to negotiate.

The owners prioritized economic issues, like the split in revenue and the addition of extra games, over rules governing the workplace. Players sought to gain ground on those issues, demanding things like less taxing training camps and limits on the number of full-contact practices.

The owners saw loosening the testing standards as a concession that might persuade some of the players to vote for the agreement, which ultimately passed by just 60 votes.

“The owners were able to get two things done at the same time by minimizing the penalties and appealing to another segment of the membership,” said Charles Grantham, director of the Center for Sport Management at Seton Hall University who was a longtime executive at the National Basketball Players Association. “They found religion because it was cheap and easy. It wasn’t a big give.”

from News By Mike https://www.denverpost.com/2020/04/13/nfl-bows-to-marijuanas-new-status/