#Wilson would corroborate

[regular-gnome]

This theory has been in my head for awhile now so I’m gonna ask does way by any chance have schizophrenia because I noticed in one comic u made he talks to the dead skulls of the creatures he was once friends with, and that just made me think he is but idk if collectors can work like that (love ur work btw!)

In Way's case, they do it more out of comfort than delusion. They are aware that the skulls are dead and see the remains more like empty shells than creatures (or at least they are trying to, as it was explained to them that way before). But after their friends died, Wayfarer stayed there for months, during which time they developed a habit of talking to the bodies while they were skeletonizing. Refusing to face how isolated they were and that it was time to go back. After realizing they would be picked up soon, they took one of the skulls back to the archives. In their own internal monologue, they usually 'talk at' their friends like they were still having a conversatoin, but the skull functions more like a focus or keepsake that was passed on to them

While they can have develop their own share of mental issues, (the unfun part about mental health is that the problems can stack) I'm hesitant to make a clear association between them and a disorder, esssspecially one that is already often stigmatized. All of them have done terrible things, and I don't want to perpetuate the stereotype that anyone who isn't typical will become a monster, even if the things they did had other reasons

(thanks!!:D)

[archaeologysucks]

Yesterday I broke through a long-standing brick wall in my family tree, and was finally able to connect one of my ancestors with her parents and siblings, which is pretty damn satisfying. It was a case of women getting lost in the records when they remarry and change their names, which is unfortunately extremely common. I also got to add another wild story involving bigamy and legal turmoil to my family history, and that's always fun.

I knew a lot about my great-great-great grandmother Mary Emeline Brown (1833-1910), but unfortunately the earliest proven record I had for her was her marriage in 1848 at the age of about 15 to John M. Armstrong in Jerseyville, Illinois. This meant that on the earliest census record (1850) that lists every person by name, she was already married, with no clues about her family of origin.

All I knew was that her maiden name was the extremely common Brown, and that her death certificate named her parents as John Brown and Ruth Nelson, with no indication who had given that information or whether they knew it to be accurate.

There was a prominent Brown family in Jersey County, Illinois, however, and I was sure Mary was connected to them somehow, but I couldn't quite prove it. I knew where her husband's grandfather and uncle's land was, and where the Brown lands were, so I made a map to see if that would help. I was able to prove that the Armstrong lands lay on the same major roadway as those of a John Brown (1790-1872), a few miles to the east, and for a while, I thought that might be Mary's father.

The only problem? There was no Mary listed among this John's children, and no obvious gap she might have fit into. Also, his wife's name was Margaret Piper, which is not very similar to Ruth Nelson. Well, maybe Ruth Nelson was not John's wife. Maybe Mary was born out of wedlock. Such things weren't uncommon. Damned if I could prove it, though, without doing some complicated DNA work, or finding some court documents that stated her paternity.

For a long time, I was stuck there, at the same dead end my grandmother had arrived at when she first started working on our genealogy in the 1980s. Just about everyone who listed Mary on their family tree on Ancestry.com gave her parents either as this John Brown, without offering any corroborating evidence, or else simply as John Brown with no additional information at all.

Well, the other day, I decided to dig a little deeper. I went through every single family tree that included Mary, to see if I could find even one clue that might point me in a useful direction. And I found one: a single ancestry tree that listed Mary's parents as Vincent Brown (c. 1805-1834) and Elizabeth Wilson (1810-1892). And more importantly, the researcher had explained their conclusions, which is something surprisingly few people on Ancestry.com ever do.

When Vincent Brown died in about 1834, he left a wife and a few young children, but because he was a young man, he left no will naming his heirs. However, court documents for his estate mention a child with the initials M. E. Brown as one of his heirs. This is not proof, but ….

In 1839, when Mary would have been about 6 years old, Elizabeth Wilson Brown remarried to Jonathan Routh, whose surname some sometimes spelled Roth or Ruth. It's not impossible to think a later relative might have heard the name Grandma Ruth, wife of Jon, associated with Mary's mother, and assumed that was her first name, confusing Wilson for Nelson as her maiden name, and also assuming Jon was Jon Brown, since that was Mary's maiden name. This is also not proof, but ….

On the 1840 census, which only lists the head of household by name, with numbers for each sex and age bracket for all other household members, all the known children of Elizabeth Brown and Jonathan Routh (spelled Ruthe on this record) are accounted for, and one is a girl between the ages of 5 and 9, who could be Mary. This is also not proof, but ….

Jonathan Routh and Elizabeth had three more children, but he decided not stick around. In 1845, he left Illinois for Texas with no intention of returning, and he did not bother to grant Elizabeth a divorce first. In 1852, he remarried in Texas, and had several more children. He served in the Confederate Army during the Civil War and died in 1864. In 1871, Elizabeth sued his heirs in Texas for half of his estate, because she was still his legal wife. The case went to the Texas Supreme Court, and she was ultimately awarded 1/4 of his estate ($750) in 1883.

When Elizabeth Wilson Brown Routh died in 1892, her estate probate documents named all of her heirs, which at that time included many grandchildren, one great-grandchild, and one surviving daughter: Mary Ernest. By this time, Mary E. Armstrong had divorced my great-great-great-grandfather John M. Armstrong (and good for her, because he was a piece of work), and remarried to Albert Ernst, a man 20 years her junior who owned a brewery. Well done, grandma.

Is that proof that my Mary Emeline Brown Armstrong Ernst was the child of Vincent Brown and Elizabeth Wilson Brown Routh? Well, no, not really. But it is compelling evidence, and a strong lead that I can follow up on by digging deeper into Jersey County, Illinois court records, and looking into what became of her theoretical siblings for additional clues. Importantly, there is nothing here to contradict the idea that this was her family. I am fairly confident that this is them, and that it's only a matter of time before I can prove it definitively. I love solving historical mysteries and puzzles!

[twisted-in-the-wind]

Raphael's Nose

I came across this post and it got me thinking. https://www.tumblr.com/deardarlingdevil/732586051569352704?source=share

In the post, deardarlingdevil, compared Raphael to Haarlep in both the male and female form and suggested that Raphael is insecure about some features including the bump on his nose, the small notch at the tip and his cleft chin. Not needing any excuse, I began to gaze, uh, examine Raphael's face in detail and I had an immediate thought.

Raphael's nose looks like it was broken, like Luke Wilson's nose. It would explain why Haarlep would have a totally different nose, so I looked it up. It is often hereditary but can also be caused by injury. https://www.healthline.com/health/dorsal-hump#causes "Trauma or injury to your nose can also cause a dorsal hump to develop. A bruise on your nose or a broken nose can result in a dorsal hump if the cartilage and bone heal unevenly."

That made me curious so I began to look at other parts of his face and I think, I may be completely wrong of course, but I think Raphael has faint, silvery scars to his forehead and the left side of his face. The right side is clear but the lines go from top of his head to his nose and from the top of his head down to almost his jaw in some places. Also, is his jaw uneven? On the left side of his face as well. Could Haarlep just be an undamaged Raphael?

I zoomed in on my phone which is how I noticed all of this. Am I nuts? I fully believe Raphael has experienced some gnarly shit including whatever made him leave his Dad's Circle of Hell. Cambions also don't have a great experience of life since their mothers often die at birth and their infernal parent usually doesn't give a shit. And then their his Father who can only be described as temperamental. In DnD, Raphael is described as being favoured by his father but by the time of BG3, that's clearly not the case. What kinds of fights has he been in?

What do you think? Am I seeing things that aren't there?

Haarlep for comparison:

EDIT: Hey, I found another high quality pic with a good look at his face and there are no lines. While I love the idea, I don't think I can say that the lines are scars with any certainty unless I find something else in future that corroborates it. I still love it as a headcanon though and I genuinely think that his nose looks broken af. Hopefully the idea is still inspiring to you guys.

[mariacallous]

There’s nothing that upsets the British more than being ignored by the Americans. Or, if I’m being cruel, there’s nothing that upsets them more than not being shown love by the Americans. The special relationship between the two countries is an article of faith. It is desperately sought by one side and conferred with a pat on the head by the other.

For sure, there have been bumps in the road. U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson was infuriated when British Prime Minister Harold Wilson declined to help him with Vietnam in 1967; Prime Minister John Major got on President Bill Clinton’s bad side when the Conservatives in the United Kingdom campaigned for George H.W. Bush in 1992. In 2016, President Barack Obama infuriated the Brexiteers by warning voters that it would put the U.K. at the “back of the queue” for any trade deal if it left European Union. His prediction came true, at least for a while.

The most illustrative moment in recent history, however, belongs to Prime Minister Tony Blair and President George W. Bush. After the 9/11 terrorist attacks in the United States, the Blair became the galvanizer-in-chief for the White House. He was spectacularly successful in assembling a coalition of the willing for the invasion of Afghanistan. Within months, however, Bush had turned his attention elsewhere, announcing in a State of the Union address that he would go after the “axis of evil,” at the heart of which was Saddam Hussein and Iraq.

Blair had no idea this was going to happen, and he resolved he would never be blindsided by the White House again. As I wrote in my book, Blair’s Wars, he spoke with Bush in April 2002 and said he would go along with him, come what may. The rest, as they say, is dodgy dossiers, spurious legal advice, elusive weapons of mass destruction, and a disastrous occupation. All the various public enquiries that followed have corroborated this chain of events.

This line of thinking—always being at the United States’ right hand—is deeply embedded in British political psychology. It was that way before the U.K. joined the EU, while it was a member, and since it walked away. It is based in a small amount of hubris and a large lack of confidence. It was born in the hope that the relationship restores the status the U.K. once held on its own and still clings to.

President Donald Trump has upended pretty much every aspect of the world order. One of the byproducts of this is how London behaves in regards to Washington. During Trump’s first administration, it wasn’t that difficult to navigate. Prime Minister Theresa May found him distasteful but was able to work with him. Prime Minister Boris Johnson became a soulmate of his mercurial double across the pond—even though Johnson had made some unsavory remarks about Trump during his tenure as London’s mayor. In any case, Trump’s bark was worse than his bite.

This time around, however, everything is different—far more threatening than even the most assiduous strategists would have predicted.

The recent fraught weeks, during which Trump has humiliated Ukraine and embraced Russia, in which Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has been called a “dictator” and Russian President Vladimir Putin has been praised as a man of peace, have tested the mettle of all European leaders.

Trump and his people initially didn’t like what they saw in Prime Minister Keir Starmer, not least because Labour officials had gone to the United States to campaign for Vice President Kamala Harris.

MAGA ideologues regard Britain as infected with “woke,” not dissimilar to elsewhere in Europe. Yet they venerate other British cultural symbols like the monarchy, seeing them as a route back to a traditionalism that they wish to thrust upon their own people. Believing the two countries to be joined together by a shared language and other social mores, the Trumpians assume, or rather require, the Brits will ultimately follow along—come what may.

A lawyer by training and instinct, Starmer took the view that the less he said publicly about Trump, the more he might be able to influence him behind the scenes. His first visit into the lion’s den was marked by ostentatious flattery. He brought a letter from King Charles III inviting the president to London for a second state visit, and he talked glowingly about the special relationship. Tickled pink, Trump provided some surprisingly warm words of his own.

On his return to the U.K., Starmer was delighted with his diplomatic handiwork, as was much of a domestic media that had taken to criticizing him at every turn. The media seemed to agree with Starmer’s assessment that the relationship was going well. But not all took that view, however. Writing in the Times, veteran commentator Matthew Parris called it a “cheap stunt.” He wrote, “Going well? Yes, if to watch a British prime minister dancing attendance upon a monster and tickling its fancy is to watch an encounter ‘going well.’”

Starmer was not alone. Three days earlier, French President Emmanuel Macron made a pilgrimage to the White House and even managed to put his hand on Trump’s knee.

Then, barely hours after Starmer had returned to the U.K., came the ambush of Zelensky in the very same room.

To their credit, Starmer and Macron have tried to deal with each setback with as much steely resolve as possible. All Europe’s main players are operating with impediments. Macron is a presidential lame duck. Germany is waiting for its new government, though with the announcement of a $500 billion defense fund, Friedrich Merz has wasted no time in signaling his determination to step up.

Britain’s role is the most intriguing. Many in the European Commission and among EU member states have feared that Trump would exploit the U.K.’s position outside the bloc to drive a further wedge. Trump has already hinted he’ll do so, suggesting to Starmer that he might exempt the Brits from all or some of the tariffs that he’s waiting to slap on Europe. That would, as the British and American right-wing say, help “get Brexit done.”

It is a byproduct of the wider aim, shared by the Trumpians and by Putin, of undermining the EU from inside and out. In the early post-Brexit years, the EU was keen to distance itself from the U.K. and not reward it for its decision to leave. But now, for the EU, it seems everything is up for discussion with the Brits—including some flexibility in London’s arrangements with Brussels— as part of a more immediate task of helping Europe defend itself from the Trump-Putin axis. Trump’s hope seems to be that Starmer will break ranks, recommitting Britain to become an offshore haven for American (and presumably Russian) economic interests.

Which way will Starmer turn? Will he play the part of a teacher’s pet? Or will he stand firmly in unison with his European partners? Starmer has insisted that it’s a false choice and, so far, he appears to have been true to his word.

With Britain outside the formal structures of the EU, Starmer has to rely upon what used to be called variable geometry. He is also using a phrase beloved by former President George W. Bush: coalition of the willing. So far, the European approach is being coordinated by the British and French, with the Germans presumably about to join the top table, along with the EU and NATO. These new permutations are likely to outlast this present crisis—no matter how long it lasts—suggesting a finessing of some of the Brexit boundaries.

Yet, with Trump being Trump, there are many more serious crises ahead. How far will the Trump administration go to appease Putin? How far will Putin penetrate, militarily and politically, into Ukraine—and, who knows, other countries—with the United States’ acquiescence or blessing? Will Trump achieve his wish to take over Greenland? What about the tariffs? These are the known unknowns.

How far will the British really go in standing up to the White House? At what point will they be forced to realize that not only is the relationship no longer special (it hasn’t been for a long time), but that the friend is an adversary? Starmer is hoping that, by hanging in there, he can curb the instincts of his—and Europe’s—abusive partner.

[simshousewindsor]

NEWS OF TRADITION

[Kently Estate]

Princess Lara: Thank you for letting Uncle Louis host Thanksgiving this year. I know you all changed things for me, and I appreciate it.

Queen Katherine: You don't have to thank me, sissy. Anything for my new nephew! I always forget how much closer you are to Kently than the palace.

Princess Lara: Yes, and with Anna and the kids back at Kently, we're all somewhat together again.

Queen Katherine: "How is Anthony enjoying fatherhood?"

Princess Lara: "He's adjusted well. We got married, father died, you became queen, then we got pregnant. It's been a challenging two years. He's been so supportive."

Queen Katherine: (smiles) I'm glad to hear. Jazmyn! I can't believe how big Jackson has gotten!

Lady Jazmyn: Girl! He doesn't miss a meal!

Queen Katherine: (laughs) Two year olds!

Princess Margot: Time to eat!

Princess Lara: I'll tell the children. I think they're still outside.

- - - - - LATER - - - - -

Princess Lara: The children should be right in.

Princess Hattie: This Philemon scandal is all over the news!

Princess Margot: I thought that had died down.

Princess Hattie: No! He lied on the House floor last week, in front of the minority leader. He resigned!

Princess Lara: What?

Princess Hattie: Birch! He was Philemon's undoing.

Princess Margot: The Osteopath?

Prince Louis: Right after Philemon's statement, Birch appeared on SNN, where he endorsed Philemon's version and dismissed all rumors and insinuations as "baseless".

Princess Hattie: What Birch didn't know was the Metropolitan Police was investigating his affairs. They had interviewed 139 of his friends, associates and patients, and had maintained a 24-hour watch on his home for two weeks.

Prince Louis: Among those who gave statements was Wilson, who contradicted her earlier assurances and confirmed her sexual relationship with Philemon, providing corroborative details of the interior of the Cavalier Terrace house.

Princess Margot: What? That's a security breach.

Lady Jazmyn: What's the Cavalier Terrace house?

Prince Louis: Where Philemon and his wife live, as a member of the House of Commons.

Princess Hattie: Well, Philemon confessed the truth to Keller's private secretary Monday, confirming that he had lied, resigned from the government, and applied for the office of steward of the Shaltern Hundreds in order to give up his House of Commons seat.

Prince Louis: I'm sorry, Kate. We should change the subject.

Prince Leo: Why should Kate care? None of this is her fault!

Prince Louis: The sims of Windengurg take everything out on the monarchy. The good and especially the bad. The government is formed in the sovereigns name so these are acts, many believe, are directive and reflective of the crown. Mommy always said "the Crown is a delicate jewel."

Queen Katherine: Speaking of, I'd like to make a grade gesture this Christmas. I'd like to restart an old family tradition - Christmas Day walk to church in Beaverdam.

Prince Louis: Oh, Kate. How lovely!

Queen Katherine: We haven't done it since 1992. Therefore, I'd like you all to spend Christmas with me in Beaverdam this year. Lara, please bring anyone you need to help you and the baby.

- - - - - LATER - - - - -

Queen Rowena: I'm so proud of you. Your father would be, too.

Queen Katherine: Thank you, mommy.

Queen Rowena: I know I haven't been myself lately. Losing your father was very tough but I'm feeling much better.

Princess Lara: You don't have to apologize, mommy. We're just glad you're feeling better.

Queen Katherine: I will have a full dowry starting in January. I neglected so many charities.

Princess Lara: Same here! Kate has given Anthony and I several more patronages.

- - - - -

Queen Katherine: Have you talked to King Felipe lately?

Prince Louis: Of Oasis Springs? No. Why?

Queen Katherine: Whatever happened between he and father? I was reading fathers journals and he mentioned a trip you two took and a deal that was made but his next entry discussing the king was very unfavorable.

Prince Louis: Oh. I...uh... I wouldn't know, Kate. I wouldn't think too much of it.

Prince Louis: How is your Christmas speech going?

Queen Katherine: I've made so many changes since granny died. I fear I will make many more edits before we film.

Prince Louis: I'm always here if you need to share your thoughts and ideas, bear.

Queen Katherine: Thank you, Uncle Louis.

Queen Katherine: (hugging) We'll see you in Beaverdam.

Prince Louis: I wouldn't miss it. Christmas at Beaverdam! My favorite tradition!

Previous | Beginning | Next

[if-you-fan-a-fire]

"BENCH DENIES BAIL TO STRIKE PICKET," Toronto Star. November 10, 1933. Page 2. ---- While on Remand, Allegedly Commits Common Assault, Magistrate Comments ---- "There will be no bail on this charge," said Magistrate Browne in police court to-day, when dealing with the case of Joe Chenary's. "He was remanded yesterday on a charge of aggravated assault and he went right back and allegedly committed common assault."

The accused was one of a number of men doing picket duty at a strike at the Ontario Boys' Wear plant. A remand until Nov. 13 was the order.

Craves Russia, Gets Head Read Mike Solomon threw a brick through a window in the hope that it would lead to deportation to Russia.

"I'll send him to the Psychiatric hospital," the bench suggested.

"He wants to return to his native land," objected defence counsel. "Yes, I know; that's the reason I'm ordering the examination." replied the bench.

"This man fired a rifle on Eglinton Ave.," Detective Coleman said as the reason Albert McAllister, a well-dressed young man, was charged with vagrancy.

"What was the cause of the celebration?" asked Magistrate Tinker. "I don't know. There were three of them. They had been drinking wine and I think McAllister wanted to scare the other two away."

"Foolishness," remarked the bench. "I'll fine him $5 or five days. I can't order the rifle confiscated, because it belongs to somebody else." he finished.

Henry Clarke and Frank Kelly made too many appearances for being found drunk, records showed. Each was given a $50 or one month option.

Three others, John Sutton, Michael McManus and Herbert McNeilly, were also convicted of drunkenness. Their option was $10 or 10 days.

George Minhinick, Magistrate Browne was told, took a cheque for $45 to D. McFarland of the Liquor Control Board and asked for an advance of $20, promising to return and make it good. On his failure to return an attempt was made to cash the cheque. It was returned n.s.f.

Adjournment was made until November 23.

"It's the only way I can make a living just now," said Berard Brady in explaining why he had "collected" some china. "The apartment was open and empty and there was no one around."

"What are you working at?" "I'm not, just now."

"You'd better stop lifting other people's property." Remanded for sentence

George Berenze gave Mike George $13 on the understanding that he get him a job in the abattoir, said Detective Johns.

"You ought to be ashamed of yourself taking the last money of a working man," said the magistrate. "You'll be committed to jail for 60 days."

Had Take-a-Chance Books "Another racket," remarked Magistrate Browne after he had heard Detective Sunderland describe the "business proposition" operated by John Mixer.

"On this little book are so many numbers covered by paper. When the paper is torn off, the price to be paid is revealed. The winner is supposed to win a lamp." witness said.

Defence counsel said the books had been all recalled.

"They're being brought in every day to this man's agents," stated witness.

Fine of $50 and costs or 30 days was imposed.

"In asking for a remand in the case of Hugh Petrie, David Petrie and Henry Wilson, charged with theft," Crown Attorney Cibson said. "I understand there are further charges and that there will be approximately $2,000 worth of merchandise involved."

November 16 was set for the hearing, under bail of $1.000 each. Charges of attempted theft in the same case faced Louis Murphy,

William Wilcox and Harry Wilcox. Remand until the same date was ordered. Bail in their case was $500.

Denies Fur Coat Right One A remand for sentence until Nov. 17, was given Morris Dvoretsky, accused of stealing a fur coat from Mrs. Ida Shoom.

W. B. Horkins for the defence said his client would make complainant a new coat.

Mrs. Shoom stated that she had left two coats with accused for re- pairs last July. One coat had been returned.

Accused produced a coat in court but Mrs. Shoom denied it was hers. Her contention was corroborated by the storekeeper who had sold it to her.

"I maintain it's impossible to identify the coat after it has been cut up and remodeled," Mr. Horkins said.

"An expert furrier has said it is not the same coat. I'm convinced this man stole the coat."

John C. Lacey, who was last week. George Meyer, proprietor of a convicted of obtaining $36 from for sentence until called on. "He has Yonge St. drug store. was remanded been in custody a week," the bench commented.

Avoided Tram, Hit Auto Frank Rossi was fined $100 and costs for illegal possession of liquor when he appeared before Magistrate Jones in liquor and traffic court.

Testifying against Frank Clark, charged with reckless driving, P.C. Parke related that last night the accused had knocked into a parked auto to avoid hitting a street car on Queen St. W.

"He then backed up and almost hit a car going east, " he said. "He smelled strongly of liquor and staggered on his feet."

"What was the condition of the road?" P.C. Parke was asked. "Very icy."

"Requiring the greatest sobriety," commented the bench. Clark denied he was drunk and contended that the accident was unavoidable and due to the slippery roads.

S. Armstrong, a passenger in Clark's car, maintained accused was not drunk.

"You've been convicted yourself of driving a car while drunk?" witness was asked. Armstrong admitted this was true.

"He's an expert witness," smiled his worship. "Ten dollars and costs or 10 days and seven days," he ruled.

[romanceyourdemons]

more ink has been spilled about the birth of a nation (1915) than i will ever write, but i would like to look at d w griffith’s claim that “the story writes itself.” although the film goes to great lengths to present itself as the self-evident or historically supported story of the nation, it actually uses many techniques, including some of the most advanced film technology of the time, to present its argument. the film’s air of historicity is of course supported by all of the marketing around it, including woodrow wilson’s famous endorsement of the film as “like writing history with lightning,” but is also forwarded within the film itself through the frequent and obvious citations to the history books used as references for the set design. the widely praised cinematography bridges the gap between the affect of historicity and the pathos-laden emotional slant. griffith maintains careful control over scope in the cinematography of this truly epic film, using both cutting-edge technologies like tracking shots and narrative intercutting and technologies that would soon fall out of favor like vignettes or irises and under cranking. with a wide range of deeply emotionally effective camera techniques, griffith guides the audience seamlessly from the epic scale to the small scale, equating the sickly-sympathetic poignancy of the latter with the broadly corroborated historicity of the former to infuse historical events with a highly targeted emotional significance. although the film frames itself as arguing against war, what it is actually arguing for is a particular view of black people and their ability to function in various positions in society. this is a fundamentally racist argument, and the film presumes and builds upon the audience’s whiteness and according racism or ignorance and lack of sympathy toward black people. the film’s prelude, showing the happy, stable status quo in piedmont before the brutal destabilization of the war, fills its deep shots with black bodies in passive, de-agentified positions in society—not just embodying the literary role of “happy slave” and other minstrelsy-derived stock characters, but also simply standing and moving in a way that forms a soothing visual backdrop to the action. this status quo, both narrative and visual, contrasts against the point later in the film when blackface actors begin to take active, agentive roles in the narrative. by acting in a way that draws the camera’s eye, these characters break the visually pleasant status quo; as blackface actors, their faces, gestures, and expressions are uncanny in their obvious affectation, and the overall affect is very unpleasant. to a white audience member from the northern united states in the 1910s, who had met or seen virtually no black people, this technique of using the physical presence of black bodies to establish and then violate the status quo proved very effective in biasing audience members against empathy towards or recognition of the equality of black people—to the extent, of course, that this film caused the reformation and nationwide spread of the kkk. even though griffith presented the birth of a nation (1915) as a film that came naturally, its high level of skill, both visual and narrative, speaks otherwise, both suggesting and forwarding the film’s real argument

[gustingirl]

not rlly absurd but here we go

no matter what, wilson is a better cook and baker. the days they dont do takeout are the days wilson whips up a fantastic meal. house is endlessly and vocally jealous

wilson and cuddy (and sometimes ducklings, depends on seniority) have regular talk-shit tea parties. house is not invited but he knows about them and tried to spy once. they ended up sacking him with the bill and everything he heard was decoy conversation (did you know that the barnacle relative to its size-)

house helps wilson learn spanish by refusing to speak to him in english for days on end (and will torment the ducklings just for fun the same way) and takes full advantage of wilson's limited vocab to pepper him with affection. this backfires very quickly as wilson learns

while wilson encourages but doesnt participate, house is a closet musical theater nerd. pretty cool when his mayfield roomie alvie wrote that blockbuster broadway show about a founding father

wilson has stuffed animals and hes almost one hundred percent convinced house does too but to this day the evidence is circumstantial at best

they have both literally slept together on wilson's office couch during all nighter hospital stays and sometimes find excuses to do so before and during their relationship

the stint with the 82yo woman with syph (s1e8) lets say,, inspired house to write poetry. rlly intentionally bad poetry. he leaves sticky notes of terrible lines all over wilson's side of the bathroom. to this day wilson has never told a soul and has kept all of them

oh my god you're a fantastic human being and i love you, let me go in parts

they definitely have like cooking competitions and house is way more petty so whenever wilson cooks something delicious he has to pretend he doesn't like it

SO TRUE, remember that episode where house thought wilson and cuddy had fucked and wilson kept on fooling house about it? same shit, house would go to wilson to "corroborate" tea he had heard and he would be fooled every single time

i would have paid for one episode where house does not speak a word in english just to mess with everybody. i love the idea of wilson and house being competitive

LMAO NOT HAMILTON OMG and considering hugh was the inspiration for "you'll be back", then house was alvie's inspiration. house is definitely a musical theatre junkie but won't admit it bc he knows wilson will mock him

house definitely has stuffed animals bc wilson keeps on gifting them little ones and he can't throw them away but he also can't show wilson he keeps them so he hides them somewhere. when wilson brought it up one dinner, house had to start changing the hiding spot because wilson is always close to find them

but what about when the ducklings catch them? they come up with the most absurd excuses, at least house does. wilson can’t figure anything out so when cameron asks him in private he just confesses

ok but wilson doesn't even tell house about them, until one fight where house says wilson never cared about their relationship, wilson shows him all the post its he has been saving since day one.

then they have sex.

please send me more, you just made my day

[infinitecrime]

Spoiler free TFATWS Episode 5 review:

Another very solid episode. A huge amount of pay off for many of the various subplots at play and a great progression of the overall story. Some conversations that really needed to be had were finally had and it was immensely satisfying. Other than a strong opening action sequence, this episode was mainly character and dialogue focussed, which I think is going to upset some of the fanboys, but for me it might have been the strongest episode yet.

Spoiler heavy review:

Writing/Plot: 

The opening fight was fantastically choreographed and heart breaking in a lot of ways. The acting was noteworthy which is rare for a fight scene where people normally phone it in or we don’t really see much of their expressions because they’re stunt doubles. I’m glad this was the only real action this week - it felt nice to get a break and return to character and plot driven scenes.

Overall this episode was just really satisfying in terms of plot progression and pay off. We resolved Bucky’s beef with Wakanda, Zemo’s fate, Bucky and Sam not seeing eye to eye, Isaiah’s story, Sam’s issues with the shield, and closure for Lemar’s family. We’ve progressed Sam and Sarah’s money/boat issues and whatever the fuck Sharon and Batroc have going on. Next week we’re setting up to give Yori some closure and put an end to John and the Flagsmashers.

Even the Flagsmashers, who we barely saw, got more development than it seems they have for a while - we now know they are all in on criminal behaviour, are willing to kill, have a distinct target (the GRC), and a distinct goal (stop the Patch), and have a mini army to do it with.

The vibe of this episode was just... soft, which is surprising for a hyper masculine superhero bro show. The whole community coming together to help the Wilson’s and Bucky being inducted into the family was just so wholesome. Even the Isaiah scenes, heart wrenching as they were, would have been intercut with violent and graphic torture flashbacks under some other director, but Kari knew that the story was powerful and upsetting enough on it’s own.

Sam:

Sam and Sarah are just amazing. Really really hope we see her in future Marvel properties. It's so nice to see the perspective of someone so grounded in a world of wizards and shit. I love that he seems to tell her everything and values her advice just as much if not more than that of soldiers and superheroes. 

Watching him grapple with Steve and Bucky’s expectations of him vs Isaiah’s expectations of him vs Sarah’s expectations of him vs his own wants and needs was very impactful, and in the end, he’s going to honour them all and pick up the shield, but on his own terms, as his own man, because he wants to, not because some old men told him to/not to.

Sam finally got some of those deeply emotional beats that I have been hoping for this whole time, which gives Anthony a chance to really flex his acting muscles. He’s great at subtlety but he really shines in this episode now the writing has allowed him to. Everything with Isaiah and the scene of him wiping blood off the shield was so raw.

Isaiah, who gets his own section this week:

God, his entire section was so powerful and well done. I’m so glad he came back and we got to learn more about his story and his situation. I’m so glad it was explicitly addressed what was done to him, why it was done, how it affects Sam and his perception of the shield, how it affected his family, and how he still carries all that trauma to this day. I’m so glad it was a one on one between them.

Carl Lumbly was absolutely fantastic and Anthony played off of him wonderfully. The injustice and pain is so stark in this scene. I would love to see more of him in the future but I also want him to be able to finally rest.

Isaiah did exactly what Steve did. Went against express orders to do the right thing and saved a group of POW's that the top brass had written off as expendable. In return, Steve got his fake Captain title made real, a fancy new shield, and was lauded as a hero. Isaiah was imprisoned, tortured, experimented on, and treated as a criminal. For the same. damn. thing.

I was perplexed in previous weeks about people condemning Bucky for not telling anyone about Isaiah, when doing so would have disturbed his well earned peace and put him in extreme danger. In this episode we get the confirmation that Bucky’s choice was right: Isaiah is legally dead and in hiding and the government don't know he's alive. He wants to be left alone ("Leave me dead, my name is buried") and that’s more important than what Sam wants or what you think Bucky should have done. It’s up to Isaiah; and Bucky (and later Sam) respected his wishes.

Bucky:

Ayo calling Bucky White Wolf, telling him to steer clear of Wakanda “for the moment” but not forever, and making Sam a vibranium Cap suit shows he’s fully forgiven. To be honest, they likely don’t have an extradition treaty with Germany so they actually never would have gotten their hands on Zemo if Bucky hadn’t broken him out, so they’re probably happier with him than they let on right now.

The Zemo-Bucky relationship and the grudging respect and understanding they have for each other is so interesting. I honestly don’t believe this is the last we’ll see of Zemo. He’s straddling the anti-hero/villain divide and he’s just so fascinating. Bucky getting his closure with Zemo and showing him that he isn’t the weapon Zemo treated him as was powerful, although I don’t think Zemo actually thought he would kill him. He knows that Bucky wasn’t corrupted by the serum, and even admitted as much.

Fighting John with the shield must have given him flashbacks to the helicarrier fight with Steve which can’t have been pleasant. The pure rage on his face at seeing the shield misused was clear here.

Seeing him helping the Wilson’s and being integrated into the community and the family in a way he hasn’t had since the Howling Commandos (and even then, they were at war) was just so, so sweet and wholesome. And his boat fixing skills corroborated my science nerd/mechanic Bucky headcanons.

Bucky and Sarah lightly flirting is very cute and I would like to see that relationship be developed more. 

It was nice to see him explicitly apologise and recognise why Sam didn’t want the shield, as well as explaining why he reacted the way he did. I don’t understand the people saying it wasn’t good enough at all - it was a clear and sincere apology and completely proportional to the actual offence, which was not quite understanding a perspective that he wasn’t really equipped to immediately understand. He doesn’t need to beg or plead - just acknowledge his ignorance, say sorry, and improve, which he did. Sam was perfectly happy with it and accepted the apology, his gift, and his help on the boat. Drama over nothing as per usual amongst the Bucky antis.

I still wish they would be more explicit about Steve’s fate and how they both feel about it, but I liked the scene we got.

Other characters:

“You built me.” - Wyatt is extremely good at mining sympathy out of an otherwise unsympathetic character. As much as I hate him, I did feel for him in the courthouse scene and with Lemar’s parents. He's an example of the veterans that are exploited until they crack then left in the dust as damaged goods when they do. I’ve been so, so impressed with Wyatt and the nuance and complexity and sympathy he’s managed to inject into the character. In anyone else’s hands he would be a two dimensional power crazed villain, but in Wyatt’s he’s a lot more than that.

Val is intriguing. Skrull? HYDRA? Power Broker? Something new entirely?

I wish John’s wife got a name. This is the second love interest minor female character (after the bartender) without an onscreen name, unless I missed it.

I am still somewhat perplexed by Sharon. Is she a double agent? A triple agent? Is she the Power Broker? Is she against the Flagsmashers, or with them, or only out for herself and against everyone? I’m not sure how this can all be resolved in only one episode but I guess we’ll find out. I wonder if she’s being set up for a future project. Is she a Skrull?

I knew Batroc would be back when we didn’t explicitly see him die - is he being used by Sharon without his knowledge for some other purpose, or does she genuinely not give a fuck if he kills Sam?

Nice to see Torres and to see that he has an obvious crush on both Sam AND Bucky. He’s for sure swooping into the final battle next episode having fixed Sam’s wings.

Is the inclusion of Eli Bradley setting him up for a future Young Avengers series, or is he just a nice comic cameo and nothing more?

Lemar's parents had me tearing up. Fuck Walker for lying to them but at least he gave them some closure I guess? Poor Lemar. He deserved so much more and we deserved more of him.

Fuck John Walker and his fake shield.

[georgefairbrother]

On March 16th, 1976, the BBC reported on a political development that took almost everyone by surprise;

“…Harold Wilson, Labour leader for 13 years and Prime Minister for almost eight, has stunned the political world by announcing his resignation. Mr Wilson, who turned 60 five days ago, made his bombshell announcement to his Cabinet this morning. The news came after he had been to Buckingham Palace to inform the Queen, although it is understood he had already confided his plans to the Monarch last December…Mr Wilson, who has served in Parliament for 31 years, said he intended to remain on the backbench of the Commons in an advisory role but would not interfere with government decisions…”

He insisted publicly there were no undisclosed reasons for his resignation. BBC investigative reporter Barrie Penrose (1942-2020) and producer Roger Courtiour subsequently met with Harold Wilson secretly at the former Prime Minister’s request, discussing, amongst other things, suspected interference by the South African Security Services, who were allegedly mounting a campaign of smear against opponents of Apartheid, which also included Liberal leader Jeremy Thorpe. Harold Wilson  then reportedly expressed distrust of his own security services, citing  ‘alternative centres of power’, and asserting that the security services had been actively plotting against him by managing unfavourable press stories about himself and his close colleagues.  

According to later news reports, the BBC investigators claimed to have uncovered credible accounts of some conniving toward the planning of a coup against the Wilson Government, involving the head of MI5 and other senior military and establishment figures. The BBC soon had misgivings, Penrose had his contract terminated and the story was spiked over lack of corroboration, with questions raised about direct government intervention into the BBC’s editorial decision. Penrose and Courtiour continued their investigations on a freelance basis, eventually producing a book, The Pencourt File.

Harold Wilson’s successor was Foreign Secretary James Callaghan, who had also served as Chancellor of the Exchequer and Home Secretary; presented as a compromise candidate to provide at least some comfort to both wings of the Labour Party.  But Callaghan’s precarious minority government would face adverse by-election results, uncontrolled inflation, rising unemployment and increasing trade union militancy culminating in the chaos of the Winter of Discontent strikes.  The government fell  to a no-confidence motion in early 1979, and was defeated at the general election soon afterwards, consigning Labour to Opposition for 18 years.

Harold Wilson had won four general elections for Labour, and some of the reforms under his watch included the abolition of the death penalty, decriminalisation of homosexuality, conditional legalisation of abortion, more liberal divorce laws, creation of the Open University, and the Race Relations Act, the second incarnation of which made it illegal to refuse housing, employment, or public services to a person on the grounds of colour, race, ethnic or national origins. 

Later Baron Wilson of Rievaulx, he died in 1995, aged 79.

[jimintomystery]

I'm seeing more talk about Marvel Studios doing Thunderbolts or Dark Avengers projects, so I thought I should remind people to take that with a grain of salt. Check for sources, and consider those sources carefully.

I've been seeing rumors about the MCU introducing Thunderbolts/Dark Avengers for years. A brief report about Marvel looking for a director or something gets blown up into an article speculating about which characters could be in the movie/series. Clickbait sites get a lot of mileage out of it, because it's easy to write up a list of six MCU villains and argue why they could be in the T-bolts without offering any real inside knowledge about whether they will.

It's helpful to keep some perspective. Five years ago everybody "knew" that Zemo's appearance in Captain America: Civil War was designed to set up a Thunderbolts project. Nobody, however, was going around saying Zemo's next appearance would be in a TV show about Sam Wilson and Bucky Barnes. But now everybody "knows" that Zemo's appearance in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier is designed to set up a Thunderbolts project.

I'm not saying the rumors can't be true. Somewhere in all the talk there may be credible information being leaked from a real Marvel insider, ahead of an official announcement. But until such info is corroborated by a major Hollywood news outlet, like Variety, there's no way to be sure. I'd want something very concrete before I start getting excited about a particular project or team lineup.

[koreaunderground]

(2021/04/09) New Revelations on Germ Warfare: It’s Time for a Reckoning with Our History from the Korean War

[counterpunch.org][1]

  [1]: <https://www.counterpunch.org/2021/04/09/new-revelations-on-germ-warfare-its-time-for-a-reckoning-with-our-history-from-the-korean-war/>

# New Revelations on Germ Warfare: It’s Time for a Reckoning with Our History from the Korean War - CounterPunch.org

by Jeffrey Kaye

9-11 minutes

* * *

_The New York Times, which for years has maintained that U.S. airmen’s statements about use of biological weapons during the Korean War were “false confessions” obtained by Chinese and North Korean torture, never acknowledged the following submission sent to its opinion section in November 2020. I am publishing the article instead at CounterPunch, which is not afraid of uncomfortable truths._

![A picture containing textDescription automatically generated][2]

  [2]: https://uziiw38pmyg1ai60732c4011-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/dropzone/2021/04/a-picture-containing-text-description-automatical.png

Screenshot from CIA pamphlet, “Baptism by Fire: CIA Analysis of the Korean War”.

It’s been 70 years since the beginning of the Korean War. For young adults in their twenties today, that’s ancient history. It is as distant to them as the 1905 Russo-Japanese War was to me when I was 20 years old! But in both China and North Korea, the memory of the Korean War and charges of war crimes against America from that war remain a vivid part of the national consciousness, stoked at various times by the regimes in charge.

The North Korean and Chinese allegations of American use of biological weapons during the Korean War made headlines at the time, and the controversy over U.S. Air Force officers admitting under enemy interrogation details of germ warfare attacks rocked the U.S. defense establishment. In 1998, scholars connected to the Cold War International History Project (CWIHP) at the Wilson Center published documents that they claimed showed the germ warfare charges were a hoax, “a grand piece of political theater,” as Milton Leitenberg, Senior Research Fellow at the Center for International and Security Studies at the University of Maryland, [notably put it][3].

  [3]: <https://diplomacy21-adelphi.wilsoncenter.org/publication/chinas-false-allegations-the-use-biological-weapons-the-united-states-during-the-korean>

![Text Description automatically generated with low confidence][4]

  [4]: https://uziiw38pmyg1ai60732c4011-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/dropzone/2021/04/text-description-automatically-generated-with-low.png

_From CIA document release, “Baptism by Fire,” File #_[ _1952-03-06a.pdf_][5]

  [5]: <http://web.archive.org/web/20170127160812/https://www.cia.gov/library/readingroom/docs/1952-03-06a.pdf>

But in 2010, the CIA declassified hundreds of communications intelligence, or COMINT, daily reports from the Korean War. U.S. historians have mostly ignored this release. Over the past few years, I have undertaken an examination of these documents and found more than two dozen that were pertinent to the biological warfare charges. As I demonstrated in a [September 2020 essay][6] on the topic at Medium.com, these [documents][7] vividly portray the reactions and responses of North Korean and Chinese military units responding to biological weapons attack.

  [6]: <https://jeff-kaye.medium.com/a-real-flood-of-bacteria-and-germs-communications-intelligence-and-charges-of-u-s-4decafdc762>   [7]: <https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/7207516-BW-COMINT-Baptism-Files.html>

What follows are some samples from the entire batch of reports. The grammar and syntax can seem off at times, as the U.S. military and CIA lacked experienced linguists during this period.

Relying on information from the codebreakers at the Armed Forces Security Agency, the predecessor of today’s National Security Agency, a top-secret March 6 CIA report read, “An unidentified Chinese Communist unit on 26 February reported that ‘yesterday it was discovered that in our bivouac area there was a real flood of bacteria and germs from a plane by the enemy. Please supply us immediately with an issue of DDT that we may combat this menace, stop the spread of this plague, and eliminate all bacteria.’”

Another CIA report stated that on 3 March a “North Korean coastal security unit in eastern Korea reported… that UN bacteriological warfare agents in the surrounding area had prevented the movement of transportation since 21 February. Later in the day the unit reported to Pyongyang that ‘Pupyong (just southwest of Hamhung)… is the contaminated area. According to the correct news, no one can pass through it. If you do not act quickly, the 12th and 13th guard stations will have fallen into starvation conditions.’” [Parenthesis in original]

Then we have the following from a 6 March report: “Two coastal security stations in northeastern Korea reported on 11 March that ‘the bacteria bomb classified as mosquito, fly, and flea were dispersed,’ and ‘an enemy plane dropped ants, fleas, mosquitos, flies and crickets.’” The emphasis on insects reminds us that the Communists alleged at the time that the U.S. was working secretly with the former scientists of Japan’s Unit 731, who experimented extensively with the use of insect vectors in germ warfare. During this period and for years afterward, the [U.S. falsely denied][8] that Japan’s scientists had committed war crimes and attacked China with biological weapons during World War II.

  [8]: <https://www.laguardia.edu/maus/files/ethics-ch-16.pdf>

According to a 21 March CIA COMINT report, “a North Korean message, probably from the 23rd Brigade in western Korea, reports the alleged dropping of bacteria in the area occupied by the ‘18th Regiment, 4th Division.’”

A 9 May report: ‘They dropped spiders and ants over Songjin city… today,’ a North Korean coastal security station in northeastern Korea reported…. The message continues that the alleged drop area has been isolated and is being investigated by ‘the plague prevention work committee.’”

Not all the reports verified the use of bacterial weapons. In a 25 March intercept from a North Korean battalion in the Hamhung area, a North Korean military sanitation officer, sent to affirm a supposed biological warfare attack “reported that the policeman’s report was false and that the flies ‘were not caused from bacterial weapon but from the fertilizers on the place.’” In other words, not only were the attacks not a hoax, but Communist officials examined such reports from the field on the spot and noted cases where the accusations were mistaken, or found in some cases that no insects carried infectious material.

As Milton Leitenberg stated in a [2016 essay][9], which otherwise maintained the germ war allegations were untrue, the charges themselves remain 70 years after the fact “an issue of great importance to those concerned with arms control and allegations of the use of Weapons of Mass Destruction.” He was right. This alleged war crime is of high importance, and achieving peace with nuclear-armed China and North Korea depends, in part, on being honest about past transgressions of the United States against those countries.

  [9]: <https://cissm.umd.edu/research-impact/publications/chinas-false-allegations-use-biological-weapons-united-states-during>

Both the alleged Soviet documents presented back in 1998 by Mr. Leitenberg and scholar Kathryn Weathersby, and also a later purported memoir by Chinese doctor Wu Zhili, which also [alleged falsification][10] of the BW evidence, cannot withstand the failure of those documents, whose provenance has always been obscure, to withstand independent corroboration by external sources of information, not least, from the CIA COMINT documents themselves.

  [10]: <https://www.questia.com/library/journal/1P3-3957054041/a-chinese-admission-of-false-korean-war-allegations>

The Leitenberg/Weathersby documents allege that Communist in-fighting over the BW “hoax” led to a cessation of Communist charges of germ warfare by early 1953. But that’s not true. The charges continued throughout 1953 (as this [_New York Times_][11]article described) and for long afterward. Even more telling, the CWIHP documents failed to tell a coherent story, moving around the date of the alleged falsification of BW attack sites from _before_ to then _after_ an international team of investigators arrived to examine the charges. The date is crucial because the time to organize a large-scale deception — one that would involve hundreds of eyewitness reports given to investigators, the collection of bomb fragments, the testing materials and samples from alleged bacterial attack, etc. — would take some time, if it could be successfully done at all.

  [11]: <https://www.nytimes.com/1953/09/08/archives/germ-war-confessions.html>

There were other problems with the CWIHP documents, which only document from two to four sites of simulated biowarfare attack. But two investigation commissions documented dozens of sites of infection following U.S. air drops of contaminated insects, feathers, and other materials. Neither Mr. Leitenberg nor Ms. Weathersby has ever explained that issue, except to surmise that there may be documents that have yet to surface. In any case, the old fraud accusations seem moot now that we have evidence of Communist military units during the Korean War responding privately to each other regarding the vicissitudes of biological weapons attack.

Wherever the long denials of U.S. use of biological weapons during the Korean War may have originated, and no matter what the authority behind them, the denials fade away in the face of new unassailable documentation from U.S. government records of germ warfare attacks against North Korean and Chinese military units. The question now is how will U.S. historians, political scientists, the press, and the public respond to this turnabout regarding the old germ war charges.

![A picture containing text, outdoor, signDescription automatically generated][12]

  [12]: https://uziiw38pmyg1ai60732c4011-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/dropzone/2021/04/a-picture-containing-text-outdoor-sign-descript.png

Screenshot from CIA pamphlet, “Baptism by Fire: CIA Analysis of the Korean War”.

The U.S. record regarding the acknowledgment of atrocities during the Korean War is poor. In January 2001, President Clinton did issue a statement expressing “regret” for American killings in July 1950 of hundreds of unarmed South Korean civilians at No Gun Ri. As the _New York Times_ [noted at the time][13], Clinton’s “statement fell short of the apology many Koreans have demanded.”

  [13]: <https://www.nytimes.com/2001/01/11/world/army-admits-giacutes-in-korea-killed-civilians.html>

It is time for a reckoning with our past. If we expect change in China and North Korea, then there must be change in the United States. Author Nicolson Baker has recently called for the declassification of all records from the Korean War. Perhaps a President Joe Biden administration will consider revising a policy that has not worked for decades, and as part of a general peace offensive in the region, finally admit American responsibility for its actions, including use of biological weapons. With such an admission, the U.S. could then call for a turning of the page and a new day of openness and peaceful coexistence in East Asia.

[a-dinosaur-a-day]

Utahraptor ostrommaysi

By Nix, CC BY-NC 4.0

Etymology: Thief from Utah

First Described By: Kirkland et al., 1993

Classification: Dinosauromorpha, Dinosauriformes, Dracohors, Dinosauria, Saurischia, Eusaurischia, Theropoda, Neotheropoda, Averostra, Tetanurae, Orionides, Avetheropoda, Coelurosauria, Tyrannoraptora, Maniraptoromorpha, Maniraptoriformes, Maniraptora, Pennaraptora, Paraves, Eumaniraptora, Dromaeosauridae, Eudromaeosauria, Dromaeosaurinae  

Status: Extinct

Time and Place: Between 129 and 120 million years go, from the Barremian to the Aptian ages of the Early Cretaceous 

Utahraptor is known from the Yellow Cat and Poison Strip members of the Cedar Mountain Formation 

Physical Description: Utahraptor was a very large raptor dinosaur, and had the associated bodily characteristics - a bulky trunk, shorter legs, long arms, large head, and long, stiffened tail. It was really and truly huge, about 7 meters long and 500 kilograms in weight - about the size of a modern Grizzley or Polar Bear, though they might have been heavier than previously thought. Like other raptors, it had huge sickle claws on its feet, and the claws were probably around 24 centimeters long - or even longer, if they had been covered in a keratin sheath as potentially thought. The skull of Utahraptor has not yet been described, so for now we can only say that it had a long, triangular head like other raptors, with sharp serrated teeth. As with other raptors, it would have been feathered - with very large wings for flapping, and a distinctively huge tail fan. The legs of Utahraptor would have been slightly less feathered, but still distinctive. In short, it was a big and fluffy bird-bear, and the largest predator in its environment. 

By Matt Martyniuk, CC BY-SA 3.0

Diet: Utahraptor was a large predator and, accordingly, ate large sources of food such as ornithopods and younger sauropods. 

By PaleoNeolitic, in the Public Domain

Behavior: As a raptor, Utahraptor would have been most analogous to a cat - probably stalking alone rather than in packs, and utilizing ambush behavior to trap its prey. Since it had somewhat stubby legs and wasn’t very fast at all, it couldn’t have relied on pursuit to attack its food, even if its food was just as slow as it was. Instead, these powerful legs helped Utahraptor to jump onto its food and surprise it, even from the ground where it spent its time. It then could use raptor prey restraint (RPR) to stay balanced on the prey, flapping its wings rapidly as the prey moved around and tried to escape. Those impossibly large sickle claws then were used to strategically stab at places where the prey would bleed out - important veins and arteries - rather than slash. In addition to this, Utahraptor would have been able to flap its wings rapidly and run up steep surfaces - a technique called Wing-Assisted Inclined Running (WAIR) -  even vertical ones, like cliff faces and trees. This allowed Utahraptor to reach strategic vantage points and search for prey - and even jump down onto it from high heights. These techniques allowed Utahraptor to not only hunt the similarly-sized Ornithopods of the time, but also potentially attack the even larger Sauropods with which it shared its home. When it needed a smaller snack, that large claw could be used to pin down struggling furry mammals and lizards, in order for Utahraptor to then take a bite. 

By Fred Wierum, CC By-SA 4.0

Though Utahraptor did not hunt in packs, that doesn’t mean it wasn’t social - and, indeed, there is considerable evidence not yet described that it lived in dense family groups. This would probably mean that adult Utahraptor would go out hunting on their own, while the little ones would gather their own food, before coming together in the same space for safety from other Utahraptor and just to spend the night. It is very likely that Utahraptor took care of its own young based on its relatives - and there’s hopefully more evidence on the way to corroborate this. This was a very complex social animal, using those fancy wings and tail fan to display to other Utahraptor - by holding up the wings and lifting the tail fan to display, it could communicate with others that it was a threat, that it wanted to mate, or to stay away from its nest. In general, it would have behaved very bird-like - walking around, bobbing its head, and moving its head to look for food and for each other rather than moving the eyes. And, like birds, it would have been very active, and warm-blooded. 

By Ashley Patch

Ecosystem: When the Cedar Mountain Formation supported Utahraptor, it was a very large floodplain environment, that periodically flash flooded and filled the valley with mud. This was a seasonally wet environment with a variety of rivers, forests, prairies, and open woodlands. The ecosystem had a short wet system and a very long, tedious dry season. Utahraptor shared this environment with countless creatures - the tuataran Toxolophosaurus, the turtle Glyptops, a variety of fish, the mammaliaform Cifelliodon, and - of course - other dinosaurs. There was the ankylosaur Gastonia, the large Iguanodon-like Ornithopods Cedrorestes, Hippodraco, and Iguanacolossus; the Sauropods Cedarosaurus and Mierasaurus; the Therizinosaurs Martharaptor and Falcarius; the Troodontid Geminiraptor; the Ornithomimosaur Nedcolbertia; and another raptor - Yurgovuchia! This gave Utahraptor a wide variety of things to hunt in its environment. 

By Emily Willoughby, CC By-SA 3.0

By the time of the later Poison Strip environment, things were changing rapidly in Cedar Mountain. Dry seasons were longer now, and a significant amount of sand was washing through the ecosystem. This made life higher in the floodplain, and probably eliminated many of the forests and river-woods that had been present prior to, leaving only a somewhat scrubland-esque plain. Accordingly, creature diversity actually went down - it was something of an ecosystem collapse. There was still food for Utahraptor to eat - the Ornithopod Planicoxa, and the sauropods Moabosaurus and Venenosaurus; but that was it. Utahraptor, thus, was living in a miniature extinction event - and disappears from the environment by the time the mud and rainy seasons returned in the Ruby Ranch Environment, and the large predator niche was replaced by the carnosaur Acrocanthosaurus. 

By Calum O’Halloran

Other: Utahraptor was the largest raptor known, and we actually have many fossils of it - but they’re trapped in a block! Well, there isn’t funding to remove them from the block, anyway. So much more could be (and will be, dammit!) written about this excellent dinosaur if it was adequately funded to be researched properly. Check out the Utahraptor Project if you want to learn more about Utahraptor - and consider donating! Literally every penny helps. Utahraptor is also one of the inspirations for the raptors of Jurassic Park, along with Deinonychus - though, obviously, those creatures do not resemble their real counterparts in the slightest.

~ By Meig Dickson

Sources under the Cut 

Apesteguía, S., S. de Valais, G. R. Cordero and O. M. Ramírez. 2011. New ichnological record from the late Campanian Toro Toro Formation at Toro Toro, Potosí (Bolivia): first probably dromaeosaurid tracks from South America. Ameghiniana 48(4):662-667

Aubrey, W.M. 1998. A newly discovered, widespread fluvial facies and unconformity marking the Upper Jurassic/Lower Cretaceous boundary, Colorado Plateau. Modern Geology, v. 22, p. 209-233.

Barco, J. L., and J. I. Ruiz-Omeñaca. 2001. Primeros dientes de terópodo (Dinosauria, Saurischia) en la Formación Villar del Arzobispo (Tithónico-Berriasiense): yacimientos Cuesta Lonsal y Las Cerradicas 2 (Galve, Teruel) [First teeth of a theropod (Dinosauria, Saurischia) in the Villar del Arzobispo Formation (Tithonian–Berriasian): Cuesta Lonsal and Las Cerradicas 2 localities (Galve, Teruel)]. In G. Meléndez, Z. Herrera, G. Delvene & B. Azanza (eds.), XVII Jornadas de la Sociedad Española de Paleontología. Los Fósiles y la Paleogeografía. Ayuntamiento de Albarracín y Fundación Conjunto Paleontólogico de Teruel, Albarracin, Spain 5.1:239-246

Campione, N. E., D. C. Evans, C. M. Brown, M. T. Carrano. 2014. Body mass estimation in non-avian bipeds using a theoretical conversion to quadruped stylopodial proportions. Methods in Ecology and Evolution 5 (9): 913 - 923.

Carpenter, K. 1998. Evidence of predatory behavior by carnivorous dinosaurs. Gaia 15: 135 - 144.

Carpenter, K. 2002. Forelimb biomechanics of nonavian theropod dinosaurs in predation. Senckenbergiana Lethaea 82: 59 - 76.

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Britt, B. B., and K. L. Stadtman. 1997. Dalton Wells Quarry. In P. J. Currie & K. Padian (ed.), Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs 165-166

Britt, B. B., D. A. Eberth, R. D. Scheetz, B. W. Greenhalgh, and K. L. Stadtman. 2009. Taphonomy of debris-flow hosted dinosaur bonebeds at Dalton Wells, Utah (Lower Cretaceous, Cedar Mountain Formation, USA). Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 280:1-22

Burnham, D. A., P. Senter, R. Barsbold and B. B. Britt. 2004. Phylogeny of the Dromaeosauridae. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 24(3, suppl.):42A

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DePalma, R. A., D. A. Burnham, L. D. Martin, P. L. Larson, R. T. Bakker. 2015. The first Giant Raptor (Theropoda: Dromaeosauridae) from the Hell Creek Formation. Paleontological Contributions 14: 1-16.

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[aion-rsa]

The Falcon and The Winter Soldier Season 2 Is Unlikely, Anthony Mackie Confirms

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

While Marvel fans (and the world at large) continue to be fixated on WandaVision, perhaps it’s time to concern ourselves with a post-Wanda world. The Disney+ series’ ninth and final episode will premiere this Friday and the show is, by all accounts, unlikely to receive a second season.

Thankfully, the TV landscape won’t be without Marvel content for long. March 12 sees the arrival of the behind-the-scenes documentary Assembled: The Making of WandaVision. Then the following Friday, March 19, is the premiere of the second Disney+ Marvel series: The Falcon and The Winter Soldier.

As those who can still remember a pre-2020 world know, The Falcon and The Winter Soldier was intended to be the first Marvel series on Disney+ before pandemic-related scheduling delays convinced Marvel to lead with WandaVision instead. Despite being in production for so long, we haven’t gotten many morsels of information from this Anthony Mackie and Sebastian Stan-starring series, beyond a couple of trailers and the toy reveal of Helmut Zemo’s comic-appropriate costume.

Thankfully a new feature about Mackie from Variety contains some fresh tidbits.

The most important news to address at the top is that The Falcon and The Winter Soldier is unlikely to get a second season. Mackie confirmed to Variety that there have been no discussions of a second season as of yet. This corroborates what Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige told reporters during Disney+’s Television Critics Association press tour appearance. Feige revealed that some Disney+ TV projects are designed for multiple season arcs and some are not. It would seem as though The Falcon and The Winter Soldier is destined for the latter camp, like WandaVision.

One other area that both Mackie and Feige seem eager to discuss is whether Mackie’s Sam Wilson a.k.a. The Falcon will indeed take up the mantle of Captain America. An aging Steve Rogers handed the iconic red, white, and blue vibranium shield over to Sam at the end of Avengers: Endgame, seemingly opening up a route for Sam to become Captain America like his character did in a brief comic run.

“I was really surprised and affected by the idea of possibly getting the shield and becoming Captain America. It took a long time for this shit to manifest itself the way it has, and I’m extremely happy about that,” Mackie told Variety.

In our brief first looks at the series, however, both Sam and Cap’s other friend Bucky Barnes a.k.a. The Winter Soldier seem to handle the shield interchangeably. Not only that but the U.S. government’s new supersoldier of choice appears to be John F. Walker (Wyatt Russell), as evidenced by his Captain America-esque costume. According to Feige, that question of succession may have opened up the door for this whole series

“Suddenly, what had been a classic passing of the torch from one hero to another at the end of Endgame became an opening up of our potential to tell an entire story about that. What does it really mean for somebody to step into those shoes, and not just somebody but a Black man in the present day?” Feige said.

Feige’s quote reveals that the nature of Captain America’s succession will undoubtedly play a major role in this series, but so too will racial identity in modern America. The Marvel Cinematic Universe is quite a ways away from our own universe at this point thanks to The Snap, a major time jump, and obviously all those costumed superpowered individuals running around. But it would seem that The Falcon and The Winter Soldier wants to dial things back a bit to present a reality that looks like more of our own. 

Check out the rest of the interview for tidbits about Sam Wilson’s history and Mackie’s whirlwind career. 

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The Falcon and The Winter Soldier will premiere March 19 on Disney+.

The post The Falcon and The Winter Soldier Season 2 Is Unlikely, Anthony Mackie Confirms appeared first on Den of Geek.

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[barbariccia]

Miranda: Before you meet with the Illusive Man, we need to ask a few questions to evaluate your condition.

Jacob: Come on, Miranda. More tests? Shepard took down those mechs without any trouble. That has to be good enough.

Miranda: It’s been two years since the attack. The Illusive Man needs to know that Shepard’s personality and memories are intact. Ask the questions.

Shepard: Did you say two years? I’ve been gone that long?

Jacob: Two years and twelve days. And you were on an operating table for most of it.

as our background is already determined by the choices we made at the very beginning of me1, the questions that we’re asked reflect those backgrounds. jacob asked me about akuze and the thresher maw that wiped out our team for the sole survivor background, and somehow we forgot that cerberus was involved in that to some extent. your responses determine your starting paragon/renegade scores, and you have the option to call off the questions - of which there are only two. the second asks about virmire.

Jacob: Lt. Kaidan Alenko was killed in action. It was your call. Why did you leave him behind?

look, jacob, in another life he survived and if i could wind back time i would but what’s done is done, hop off my fucking dick about it already.

after we give our reasons for saving ashley, miranda asks about the citadel battle, and the destiny ascension, asking if we remember who we recommended for the council position. anderson, of course.

Miranda: Yes, Captain Anderson is now Councilor Anderson. Though from what I hear, he preferred life in the military.

Jacob: Still, good to know that the human Council member isn’t going to put politics ahead of defense.

jacob puts a stop to any more questions and vouches for our combat ability, having slogged through the cerberus base with us, and miranda isn’t happy, but accedes nonetheless. it’s an interesting dynamic - and considering what we’ve seen of them so far, an interesting mirror to the original team milky way.

jacob says in our initial conversation with him that he’s got biotic potential and takes the role of kaidan, the biotic option of me1, whereas miranda, coming in all guns blazing, is a lot more reminiscent of ashley “shoot first questions later” williams, something that’ll be corroborated when we get to our destination.

speaking of-

... impressive place. we land, and are told go on down to meet TIM.

but there’s no giant blazing star in the background???

ah. hologram.

TIM: Commander Shephard.

Shepard: Illusive Man. I thought we’d be meeting face-to-face.

TIM: A necessary precaution. Not unusual for people who know what you and I know.

Shepard: From what I hear, I cost you a fortune. Why’d you do it?

TIM: For the defense and preservation of humanity. I didn’t spend two years and billions of credits bringing you back to serve as a common soldier. Humanity is up against the greatest threat of our brief existence.

Shepard: ... The Reapers.

TIM: Good to see your memory’s still intact. How are you feeling?

Shepard: You need to earn the right to ask me those kinds of questions.

TIM: Cerberus isn’t as evil as you believe. You and I are on the same side; we just have different methods.

Shepard: Cut to the chase. What are the Reapers doing that made you decide to bring me back?

Shepard: Fighting a war doesn’t seem like Cerberus. Why are you involved?

Shepard: Sovereign was trying to harvest all life in the galaxy. Why would the Reapers target a few human colonies?

i fuckin well better have. wait, no, i probably don’t want reaper attention, fuck--

Shepard: If this is a threat against humanity, you need to mobilize the Alliance.

TIM: they suffered substantial losses fighting Sovereign. They’re rebuilding, still stretched too thing to waste resources verifying the Reaper threat. Blaming the abductions on mercs and pirates is easier. And more convenient.

Shepard: You could have trained an entire army for what you spent to bring me back.

TIM: You’re unique. Not just in ability or what you’ve experienced, but in what you represent. You stood for humanity at a key moment. You’re more than a soldier -- you’re a symbol. And I dont know if the Reapers understand fear, but you killed one. They have to respect that.

Shepard: If you’re after the Reapers, just point me in the right direction.

TIM: Miranda was worried you’d be resistant. She’s not usually wrong. I have a shuttle ready to take you to Freedom’s Progress, the latest colony to be abducted. Miranda and Jacob will brief you.

Shepard: Miranda killed Wilson in cold blood. Jacob’s just a gun for hire. You expect me to trust them?

TIM: Wilson was one of my best agents. But he was a traitor. Miranda did exactly what I expected of her. And she saved your life in more ways than one. Jacob’s a soldier, one of the best. He’s never fully trusted me, but he’s always been honest about it. You’ll be just fine with them... for now.

Shepard: What do you think I’ll find at Freedom’s Progress?

TIM: If I knew that, I wouldn’t need to send you. Find any clues you can. Who’s abducting the colonies? Do they have any connection to the Reapers?

TIM: I brought you back. It’s up to you to do the rest

[gildedfinches]

runes

The most prolific source for runic magic in the Poetic Edda is the Sigrdrífumál, where the valkyrie Sigrdrífa (Brynhild) presents Sigurd with a memory-draught of ale that had been charmed with "gladness runes" (stanza 5),

Biór fori ec þer /brynþings apaldr!magni blandinn / oc megintíri;fullr er hann lioþa / oc licnstafa,godra galdra / oc gamanruna."Beer I bring thee, tree of battle,Mingled of strength and mighty fame;Charms it holds and healing signs,Spells full good, and gladness-runes."

[6]

She goes on to give advice on the magical runes in seven further stanzas. In all instances, the runes are used for actual magic (apotropaic or ability-enhancing spells) rather than for divination:

"victory runes" to be carved on the sword hilt (stanza 6, presumably referring to the t rune named for Tyr[7]),

ølrunar "Ale-runes" (stanza 7, a protective spell against being bewitched by means of ale served by the host's wife; naudiz is to be marked on one's fingernails, and laukaz on the cup),

biargrunar "birth-runes" (stanza 8, a spell to facilitate childbirth),

brimrunar "wave-runes" (stanza 9, a spell for the protection of ships, with runes to be carved on the stem and on the rudder),

limrunar "branch-runes" (stanza 10, a healing spell, the runes to be carved on trees "with boughs to the eastward bent"),[8]

malrunar "speech-runes" (stanza 11, the stanza is corrupt, but apparently referred to a spell to improve one's rhetorical ability at the thing),

hugrunar "thought-runes" (stanza 12, the stanza is incomplete, but clearly discussed a spell to improve one's wit).[9]

The Poetic Edda also seems to corroborate the magical significance of the runes the Hávamál where Odin mentions runes in contexts of divination,[dubious – discuss] of healing and of necromancy (trans. Bellows):

"Certain is that which is sought from runes / That the gods so great have made / And the Master-Poet painted" (79)"Of runes heard I words, nor were counsels wanting / At the hall of Hor" (111)"Grass cures the scab / and runes the sword-cut" (137)"Runes shalt thou find / and fateful signs" (143)" if high on a tree / I see a hanged man swing / So do I write and color the runes / That forth he fares / And to me talks." (158)

Other oft cited sources for the practice of runic[dubious – discuss] divination are chapter 38 of Snorri Sturluson's Ynglinga Saga, where Granmar, the king of Södermanland, travels to the Temple at Uppsala for the seasonal blót. "There, the chips fell in a way that said that he would not live long" (Féll honum þá svo spánn sem hann mundi eigi lengi lifa).[10]

Another source is in the Vita Ansgari, the biography of Ansgar the Archbishop of Hamburg-Bremen, which was written by a monk named Rimbert. Rimbert details the custom of casting lots by the pagan Norse (chapters 26-30).[11] The chips and the lots, however, can be explained respectively as a blótspánn (sacrificial chip) and a hlauttein (lot-twig), which according to Foote and Wilson [12] would be "marked, possibly with sacrificial blood, shaken and thrown down like dice, and their positive or negative significance then decided."

Egils Saga features several incidents of runic magic. The most celebrated is the scene where Egil discovers (and destroys) a poisoned drink prepared for him, by cutting his hand and cutting runes on the drinking horn, and painting the runes with blood. While the motif of blood painted runes also appears in other examples of early Norse literature it is uncertain whether the practice of painting runes with blood is merely a literary invention or whether it had precedence in magical practice.[13]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Runic_magic#Tacitus