#fuck us all for that court rulings and that ceo both sides of the talk she really did launch a smear campaign against him

[wherelanguage-ends]

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[arse-crack-thistle]

a firstprince meet-cute

the heroes of olympus au

in which the roman son of apollo meets the greek son of themis

Henry—the quiet son of Apollo and Centurion of the 3rd cohort—leads a team of five demigods through the Long Island woods. Their task: spy on the Greeks and bring information back to Octavian. The golden-haired boy wishes he could’ve refused, but anyone who goes against the Pontifex Maximus gets severely punished and he will not let any harm come to his legionaries. Not again.

The group weaves through the trees, dodging the sight of any patrols. Henry has no idea how he’ll get close enough to hear anything, but he might be able to interpret some battle strategy from the Greek’s night preparations. As his fellow soldiers fan out beside him, Henry inches up the hill. He’d say a prayer to his father if he thought it would help, but he doesn’t. After many unanswered prayers about his sexuality, about his rather fucked up influential family, he doesn’t bother with Apollo anymore.

Henry gestures for his right-hand man—Pez, son of Mercury and the only one who actually knows he’s gay—to peer over the hill with him; the others stay back, keeping watch. The Centurion readies an arrow just in case, while Pez has his hand on the hilt of his blade, and they watch Greek demigods reinforce their buildings, sharpen their weapons, and prepare medical tents. None of them are practicing formations, which doesn’t help Henry or Octavian at all. He has to come back with something, so he puts the arrow away and crawls forward.

This could be really stupid, but he has to try—not for Octavian but for New Rome. It’s the only place that’s felt like home to him. Back in England, there’s his grandmother, the CEO of an underwhelming home goods empire. The stuff is cheap, but they’re still the number one seller back home. His mother and brother have a part in it. His sister ran off a few years back, and he has no idea where she is or if she’s even alive. His father—or rather ex-step-father—hasn’t wanted much to do with him since about three years ago when he found out Henry’s mother had an affair at a music festival fourteen years before.

They had a scandalous divorce, covered by every major news outlet, and Henry found out his true identity when a handsome demigod knocked on his door and told him he was in danger and had to be take to California. Several monsters, a few thousand miles, and a few months with a wolf goddess later, he found himself at Camp Jupiter. Everything that happened to him up until then—the blurry images of creatures at the corner of his eyes every time he turned a corner, the dyslexia that made his passion for writing frustrating, the way he never really fit in with his family—finally made sense. He was a demigod! And when the sign of Apollo appeared over his head after he made his first bullseye at the archery range, he truly felt like he found where he belonged.

Pez whispers for him to come back, but Henry lifts a hand in warning. Just then, someone—a dryad probably—screams an alert to his enemy, and all Underworld breaks loose. His legionaries get in formation behind him, readying themselves for the Greeks. They were taught never to run from a fight, but Henry can’t allow this to happen. He’s been in enough battles to know when he can win and when he can’t. Eventually, they’ll be outnumbered because Octavian won’t send him reinforcements if he can help it. He doesn’t know how violent the Greeks will be, but if they willingly fired on New Rome when their defenses were down, then he can’t take the risk. And he won’t repeat what happened in the Titan war.

Henry orders his soldiers back, telling Pez to take temporary control of the cohort and share the minimal information they gathered with the Pontifex. If they’re to be any casualties tonight, it will only be Henry and the Greeks he can take down with him.

•••

The last thing Alex—the wise-ass son of Themis—wants to do in the middle of the night is go to a counsel meeting at the Big House. He wipes the sleep from his eyes as he walks up the creaky steps. Inside, Chiron and the other counsellors gather around a table. It’s times like this he wishes it was a year ago when the children of minor gods were left out of meetings and decision-making. But as soon as he slaps himself awake, he regains his undying need to get involved and raise hell—fair and just hell, of course.

He sits down next to Nora, the temporary head counsellor of the Athena cabin. She’s bouncing in her seat—no doubt high on caffeine and nectar and ready to get back to developing war strategy. She gives him a wink and taps her fingers like she’s back home typing on a computer. Chiron clears his throat and tells the demigods of a Roman scout team that was spotted an hour ago. Unfortunately, most of the soldiers got away, but they did manage to capture one. He’s being held in one of the Big House’s guest rooms.

Now it’s Alex’s turn to bounce. He’s been waiting for an opportunity like this. A prisoner of war means they’ll need to get information. There will need to be a lawyer present—or a lawyer in training that is. He can preside over the questioning, be the voice of justice, and maybe even get the Roman to see the right side is his. He can picture it now: Camp Half-Blood safe from the Romans and that dude reformed in his ways, joining them to stop Gaia. Yes, this is his chance to step out of his sister’s shadow.

He volunteers to mediate for whoever is charged with the interview. Alex ignores Chiron’s obvious hesitation; just because he can get a little heated—thank gods Leo isn’t here cracking a dumb pun joke at that, which would inevitably leave them both laughing on the floor—doesn’t mean he can’t be objective. So he hates the Romans’ guts and thinks they should go back to their stuck-up little camp, so what? Once he’s in the real world, going to college, running for congress like his father, he’ll have to deal with a shit-ton of people he doesn’t like. Looking at you, Bitch McConnell.

Just as Chiron decides he, Nora, Will Solace, and reluctantly Alex will talk to the Roman boy, a camper from the Aphrodite cabin bursts through the door and tells him one of the Hephaestus girls accidentally blew up a boy from the Ares cabin. Apparently, armor strapped with projectile explosives wasn’t the best idea. So Chiron declares they will talk to their guest in the morning, and in the meantime, they’ll take shifts in pairs guarding him. Alex raises his hand to get the first watch, but Chiron appoints Drew Tanaka and Connor Stoll. They both roll their eyes at the idea of being stuck together for the next few hours. Alex’s chest deflates.

Ever since his sister left—he and June are some of the rare demigods that have the same mortal and immortal parentage without being twins—the responsibility of the Themis cabin has fallen on his shoulders. He wanted it, of course, but his siblings also elected him to the head counsellor position, thinking he’d follow in June’s footsteps: ruling with truth, justice, and wisdom. Just like their mother.

Back in his cabin, Alex stares at the marble statue of her that presides over her children. Her iconic image—blindfolded, holding a sword in one hand and balancing a scale in the other—reminds him he’s definitely no June.

She was a leader of quests; Alex has never been on one. June was the voice of reason at counsel meetings; he struggles just to sit still, let alone calm a room with one enlightening sentence. When the children of minor gods were finally given their own cabins, there was no question who should run theirs. Now, he hears his siblings whisper whether they should hold another election. Gods, you call out your conservative brothers one time—it was way more than once—and suddenly, you’re imposing your opinion on everyone.

That’s not it though. Alex has never been given a chance to step up. No matter how many times he tries to convince the counsel they should establish a court system at camp—nothing settles an argument like a nice, fair trial—he always gets shot down.

Not anymore. He’s not going to sit back this time. Not when the threat to camp is this great. He’ll get what he needs from that Roman. If June were here, she would’ve been trusted to go ahead without Chiron, so Alex will do the same.

•••

Henry wakes up to angry whispers outside of his door. The twelve Greeks overtook him easily, but he did put up a good fight. At least, he did until he was knocked unconscious. On the table beside his bed, a note sits atop a plate of food.

Eat well. Hydrate. Rest. We’ll speak with you soon. -Chiron

A glass of juice spiked with nectar sits next to the plate. Why would those imbecilic Greeks give him what’s essentially strengthening serum? He intakes his surroundings: a bed, a table, a dresser, and a chair. Window to the left. Only door out to the right. There’s a clean set of clothes at the end of the bed, but Henry would rather go to Tartarus and back than put on another camp’s shirt.

He jimmies the window, but it’s locked and to hard to break. He lightly tries the doorknob, but it’s locked as well. By the sounds of it, three maybe four people argue outside his door. Romans never had this much trouble changing guard shifts. Henry fiddles about the room, looking for anything to 1. unlock the door and 2. use as a weapon. He can handle four Greeks, and he’ll do everything in his power to get back to his cohort.

Henry hears the click of the door unlocking. Gods, they’re thick, aren’t they? He grabs the wooden chair, and as the door swings open, he thwacks the person walking in with it. Just as he suspected, the chair breaks, and he uses one piece to press against the throat of the careless demigod he’s pinned to the floor.

The boy beneath him groans. He’s got light brown skin and dark curly hair, and if Henry weren’t about to kill him, he’d think he was quite cute.

“Gods, can you Greeks do anything with finesse? Even your hero, Percy Jackson, as talented as he may be, flies by the seed of his trousers.” Henry grits his teeth.

“Ha!” the boy coughs out. “Jumping to conclusions, are we? I thought you guys were supposed to be strictly trained soldiers. You miscalculated.”

He points behind him, and when Henry looks up, a girl stands battle-ready with a sword in her hand. The distraction is enough for the boy below to wrap his legs around Henry and flip them. The Greek holds a dagger to his neck.

“Listen here, pretty boy, are we going to talk or am I going to go all American Revolution on your British-ass?” He presses the dagger, and Henry yelps.

The boy’s brown eyes peer into Henry’s, and some strange part of him likes it. The Greek looks about his age and, while clearly not as capable as he, definitely has some fight in him.

“I’d like to see you try, graecus. But be forewarned, if you send me to the Underworld, I’ll drag you and your camp down with me.” He keeps his face plain and uncaring, though he can feel the heat in his cheeks. Apollo help him.

The girl interrupts them to remind her partner what they’re here to do. She sheaths her sword and closes the door.

He’s called Alex. Henry swallows. And they need information.

Alex releases him. The two get up off the ground. No one moves to sit or get more comfortable. The boys just stare at each other, long and cold.

Henry can tell this guy is a complete and total arse, and yet he can’t shake the swirling feeling in his stomach. A memory from a quest eighteen months ago flashes in his mind. In Vegas, a priest of Venus dressed like Elvis told him great tragedy would befall his love life, but with the goddess’s blessing, he’d find happiness again.

He already lost someone. The demigod who found him, Daniel, son of Ceres, his sponsor when he joined the camp, his Centurion. Everything was quiet between them—few words needed for mutual understanding. Daniel brought him fresh lavender; Henry played him a tune on the lute. But then the Titan war came. And Daniel disobeyed the Praetors’ orders to save the boy he loved. Henry barely had time to grieve before he took control of the 3rd cohort and lost four other demigods in the process. Not a day goes by when he doesn’t think of the five who died because of him. Because of love.

No. This feeling he has is the desire to beat the Greeks, nothing more. He doesn’t give a damn about happiness in love or this obnoxiously hot demigod before him. Like even as Alex breaks eye contact first, puts his sheathed dagger in his boot, ruffles his hair, puts his hands on his hips, and sighs, Henry feels nothing. Elvis can go fuck himself.

“So,” Alex says, “what do you have planned, and how can we convince you to stop? We’d really like to prevent another demigod civil war.”

Henry laughs, and even though nothing would make him happier than to stop fighting, to rest as Chiron suggested, he tells Alex, “You’re really a dickhead if you think I’m giving you anything.”

•••

“It was an accident!”

“You expect me to believe with our two camps in a centuries-long feud that the one time we let down our defenses, your lot just attacked us on accident? Right, and I suppose Pluto is actually a sweet guy once you get to know him, too?”

“My buddy Leo was being controlled by Gaia!”

“Your mate Leo should come up with a better lie.”

“You’re impossible!” Gods, Alex really hates this guy. “Nora, can’t we just—”

She shakes her head before he can finish. He’s not really sure what he was going to say. Have Drew come back and charmspeak him? Feed him to the harpies? Pin him down again? Wait—what?

“Listen, dude. We’re really on the same side here. Right now, both Greeks and Romans demigods—our friends—are fighting against a greater threat than the world has seen since the beginning of time. That’s got to count for something,” he says.

The Roman is quiet. Alex hates how he looks like a goddamn prince even after a fight. But maybe he got through to him. After all, it is true. For all the shit he talks about Romans, he knows they’re not bad, just different. They actually have more in common than they’d like to acknowledge. Jason Grace taught him that. If there was ever a Roman WASP he could get behind, it’s Jason.

So Alex tries a different approach. He gestures to the bed. “You want to?” The blond boy stiffens, and Alex clarifies, “Sit?”

“How about we start over?” He sits. Nora takes the opportunity to march to the other side and bellyflops onto the bed. “I’m Alex, son of Themis, the goddess of justice. And you are?”

He watches the Roman look from the undefended door to Alex and back again.

“You could run,” Alex says. “But then we’d have no chance to broker peace. Hera thought she could do it by trading heroes, but I think you and I both know it takes more than one person to heal two armies.”

Power swells in his chest. Alex can’t know for sure, but maybe his mother is looking out for him. This is how he can bring the demigods justice for Gaia’s destruction. June would be the better choice, but Alex is here and he has to try.

“Let’s work together. Or at least, get along long enough for the prophesized seven to come back home,” he says.

The Roman hesitates. Alex can see in his light blue eyes the number of strategies racing through his mind. But ultimately, he decides to sit. Nora snores next to them. Five a.m. and a caffeine/nectar crash will do that to you.

“So your name?” Alex asks. “It’s only fair.” Dumb pun but he winks.

The boy coughs, but then he looks into Alex’s eyes. “I’m—er—Henry, son of Apollo, Centurion of the 3rd cohort.”

so this is a little late but we’re just going to ignore that...

i just finished reading toa a couple of weeks ago, and i can’t stop thinking about it!! so when i saw the meet-cute prompt, i couldn’t resist a percy jackson-ish fic! i hope you enjoyed this little short piece. <3

rwrb romance week | @rwrb-fests

[news-mashable-yahoopartner-blog]

Is it OK to be 420 friendly on main?

It's 4/20 baby!!! It's Saturday, you're lit, brain perfectly calibrated to toasted, sparking your joy, blowing smoke rings so on point it feels criminal not to share on your Instagram story.

But something stops you from posting. And it probably sounds like the voice of your D.A.R.E. teacher yelling about how posting pictures of pot online can get you arrested and ruin your career.

"Even if you just post one picture, it comes back," said Anjela, who is very much not a D.A.R.E. teacher. Preferring to keep her full name separate from her online weed-sona, she's better known as Koala Puffs, a weedfluencer with over half a million Instagram followers. 

"You gotta be sure that's where you wanna take your life before you post. Because you have to be able to take on the judgement that's gonna come with expressing yourself."

View this post on Instagram

Caution, it gets gross 😖😖... I knew I messed up as soon as I put them in.... 😂😂 Old school and new school @stiiizy join powers to get snot out of me in the fastest way 😭😭😭😭

A post shared by Koala Puffs 🐨💨 (@koala.puffss) on Mar 12, 2019 at 1:59pm PDT

You'd think that in the year of our lord 2019 we'd have moved past the taboo of being 420 friendly on main. Cannabis decriminalization across the U.S. is at an all-time high, along with the general population's support for further legalization.

Yet while many of us are passing the blunt (or at least not harshing people's buzz) IRL, the stigma around talking openly about cannabis online remains. 

Elon Musk got the not-so-dank wake up call when he started posting vague (awful) 420 jokes on Twitter, culminating in a smoke sesh no one wanted or asked for that landed him and his company in hot water. Musk also drank alcohol on the same podcast, though, and no one cared two shits about that part.

And if Musk, a person with endless Fuck You Money and fame, doesn't have enough privilege to protect himself from online pot-shaming, who among us mortals does? Not even weed influencers can post to Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, or Facebook without facing repercussions that feel like we're stuck in 1998.

The cost of a pot-sona 

In early 2018, YouTube went on what appeared to be a marijuana-based purge, deleting and giving strikes to swaths of weed influencers' channels. Soon after, it started happening on Instagram. While both companies cited community and user policies about depicting, smoking, and selling drugs on their platforms, others theorized that the crackdown pertained more to advertisers' trepidation after a litany of unrelated scandals from big names like Pewdiepie and Logan Paul. 

But by and large, the fear of being publicly weed-friendly on social media isn't about getting banned. It relates to the unique stigma of making cannabis part of your online persona.

Koala Puffs said the nine months after she quit her corporate job to pursue cannabis influencing was the hardest in her life. Her family, friends, boyfriend, and her boyfriend's family couldn't get behind her pro-bud rebranding.

"Nobody changed their minds until I was 200,000 followers deep," she said. But to this day her mom still thinks she's just outgrowing a college phase.

"I 100 percent still experience stigma from within my family," said Arend Richard, who went from 420 YouTuber to cannabis CEO after launching The Weedtube, a weed-friendly alternative to YouTube that's releasing a new app Saturday in response to the crackdowns. Granted, the weed stigma in his family is only exacerbated by their larger difficulty in accepting another aspect of his identity as a gay man. 

"But I will say, if you want your family to not judge you for using cannabis, just start a cannabis company, and get it written up in Forbes," he joked.

SEE ALSO: OK, everybody: Stop pot-shaming Elon Musk

Since taking on the business side recently, though, even Richard went back and deleted over 200 posts from his Instagram. Because legitimate cannabis businessmen also need to avoid the stereotypes associated with the stoner label, which seems to stick like glue in an age when social media signifiers define so much of how other people perceive you.

Reefer gladness

Particularly, Richard doesn't like to post himself in the actual act of smoking, even though a tutorial video teaching people how to smoke was what first began his path into cannabis influencing. That conscious curation is part of a larger shift in how people are expressing their cannabis use online.

"At first, over-consumption was kind of the game in the cannabis industry to get a following. You just did The Most," said Richard. 

When total prohibition was the law of the land in America, seeing copious amounts of weed, bongs, and blunts was an exciting novelty. But now it's possible for just about anyone with enough money in certain states. 

"We're in the biggest change in trends for online cannabis communities right now, moving more toward positivity and less toward over-consumption," said Richard.

Cannabis/beauty/wellness influencer and yoga instructor Brittany Tatiana (or sweettatas) quite literally embodies this positivity movement, by normalizing weed as a lifestyle choice on social media.

She got into weed influencing after a car accident left her with chronic pain. Unable to go back to her corporate job for six months, weed became her best alternative to the opioids doctors prescribed. At the time she'd already began dabbling with modeling and beauty influencing, building a following and doing promotion with a few brands.

But then she made the fateful decision to take the leap into letting her 420 flag fly. "I guarantee you I lost jobs and contracts because of it. Immediately," she said.

"It's been hard for me to represent my full self and not have people judge me based on what they see in one post," Tatiana said. Straddling the more commercial beauty industry and the cannabis-friendly world is like walking a tight rope.

"It's been a real battle with friends and brands. It's a fine line to cross. So I just try to be conscious about what I post."

Tatiana hesitates to post herself smoking too, for example. But overall, "it basically comes down to a day-to-day, case-by-case basis. Am I OK with how this post represents me? Do I believe in it? Would I want my younger self to post it? Is this true to who I am?"

She decides whether or not to post by thinking of her weed habits almost like a diet, or any other wellness lifestyle activity. Would she post a picture of a smoothie because it feels good and is part of her wellness regimen? Is that also the case for her marijuana-related post? 

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Grateful and riding the high from yesterday’s 420 Live! Still time to tune in... @hightimesmagazine #wcw (watch their live stories before 420pm today) w/ host @jenaealt and guests @sanctuaryfw 🔥 #grateful #sweettatas #cbd #hightimes . . . Use my code SWEETTATAS on @cannasmack 🌿 @organicflame 🌿 @foriawellness to receive sweet 420 discounts.

A post shared by Brittany Tatiana (@sweettatas) on Apr 11, 2019 at 10:36am PDT

"It comes down to choosing how you're gonna show it, and what cannabis means to you," she said.

But the risk is always there, especially since the stoner label seems to dominate any other way you define yourself. 

"I worry in general that it'll put me in some sort of box that I don't want to be in. Even though these days, it's becoming a way bigger box."

That caution should be part of everyday people's process for posting 420-friendly stuff on personal social media channels, too — regardless of whether or not they live in legalized states like the influencers we talked to.

The legal case against legalized marijuana

Because any career development expert will warn you that companies do look at your social media before hiring. There have also been a few cases of people getting fired in legalized states like Colorado for using medical marijuana even when they're not on the job.

A 2015 survey from the Society for Human Resource Management found that a vast majority (94 percent) of HR professionals with employees in legalized states still have formal policies against cannabis, with 73 percent in medical marijuana states and 82 percent in recreational states characterizing them as zero tolerance.

This strict approach might be showing signs of changing since 2015, though. More recent suggestions from the HR group advise companies to handle weed in the workplace with more nuance and care. 

It me.

Image: vicky leta / mashable art team

"We've yet to see robust employment protections be adopted across legal markets regarding an individual's cannabis consumption," said Justin Strekal, federal lobbyist at the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws. But there are some emerging cases, like a recent ruling in Massachusetts that sided with an employee suing his company for wrongful termination over medical marijuana.

Still, posting about weed is far more penalized in the workplace than, say, a post about happy hour with your coworkers.

When it comes to criminal persecution, aside from the occasional headline-worthy case, "there's not an epidemic of law enforcement arresting individuals for posting about marijuana online," said Strekal. 

"But that still doesn't change the fact that it's their legal right to arrest an individual for smoking cannabis, especially in criminalized jurisdictions. And if you post evidence publicly that could be used against you in a court of law, you are volunteering evidence against yourself," he said. 

Even if the police aren't out to get you, those kinds of posts can add fodder to other legal battles, like child custody. And looking at the racial divides for how marijuana is prosecuted in the real world, it's likely that some of those biases translate into who's more likely to get away with posting about weed, too.

"The application of law enforcement when it comes to cannabis is clearly racist. Full stop," said Strekal, pointing to the ACLU's famous report on how the war on marijuana is racially biased. The 2015 report found, "marijuana use is roughly equal among blacks and whites, yet blacks are 3.73 times as likely to be arrested for marijuana possession."

That also tracks with the general demographics of 420-friendly influencers which, at a cursory glance, tend to be disproportionately white and often female. 

Largely, the answer to whether you should be open about weed through your online persona depends on who you are. Beyond profession, local marijuana rules, and your age, your IRL community is another major factor in determining whether or not it's OK. Because, as Strekal pointed out, social media is mostly regulated by algorithms and abuse reports. 

"So the biggest question an individual needs to ask themselves is how are my friends going to respond to this? Is my social bubble going to report this as abuse to these platforms?"

Tatiana agreed, saying that, "If you live in a community of churchgoers, they won't respond well. And it's going to get around. So it's really a question of who you are, what you're willing to stand up for."

Taking the hit, for a cause

Interestingly, though, despite all these risks, repercussions, and cautions, lots of people still do get 420 friendly on main anyway. Just search 420 on your preferred social media platform. You'll find plenty of weed content.

Let the good vibes roll.

Image: vicky leta / mashable art team

And an overwhelming majority of those posts will be positive, much like what researchers found when they tracked attitudes towards marijuana on Twitter between 2013 and 2016. 

Anecdotally, it feels as if we all live under the hazy threat of social media leading to pot-shaming or worse in the real world. But statistically, positive social media chatter around bud just keeps getting danker.

That is the fundamental tension with cautioning people against sharing their weed consumption. While people should remain mindful of the repercussions, the truth is that fighting the stigma largely takes place in social spheres like Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. At least that's what some recent studies found, suggesting a link between positive social media and support for legalization.

Let's be real

"People are making a point to be more open about it because they're done with that shit. We can all see it for a lie now. And posting, like, 'I'm smoking this joint,' or 'my mom takes CBD pills' — that's people taking back their power. That's sending a message in and of itself," Tatiana said.

As we all know, social media is never a perfect reflection of the world as it is. Like the #FOMO travel pics that dominate your Insta feed, posting is about creating a collective ideal.

Until marijuana is legalized on the federal level, no one can tell you it's perfectly OK to be 420-friendly on main. At the same time, changing public perception by normalizing weed online just might be how we keep the wave of support for decriminalization and legalization alive.

Solving the issues around being weed-friendly online is a chicken and egg problem — or rather, a bud and the flower problem. Because in the world of social media, pretending we all don't smoke weed is so damn tired — but wishing everyone on your feed a happy holidaze is totally wired.

WATCH: Kim Kardashian wants a 'zen-like CBD-themed' baby shower

[queermequeeryou]

Chapter one: Fighter.

Augusta was having a strange day feeling a little dizzy that day when she got a call from el barrio. The truth was that she used to not be at ease for a while now but she got no clearer idea why that was happening. When she heard Diego’s voice, she automatically sat down. Diego has been a long time family friend and what was more important, her husband Manuel’s closest business partner. When she told her that Manuel had been shot, she tried to act emotional but it was hard for her to get into that mood. She decided not to go much into nervous mode because Diego knew her quite well and it was not necessary. At least not while facing him because later she will be forced to be the best drama actress. She lit a cigarette and spent a while in silence looking through the window, quite mute inside.

For days, Augusta was trying to kill time. Everybody except Diego was thinking that she was moved by Manuel’s dead like every wife ‘should be’. The truth was completely different. She was reflecting on company’s future. Funeral was a huge, tiresome event were Augusta was struggling to look great, strong and also to show that she is broken by her husband’s death. Obviously, she was not crying because even if she would have loved Manuel she would not do that. People knew her as a warrior, fighter. Strong, independent woman who happened to be married with an influential man but was able to direct him the way she wanted. Most of the time. The only exception was his company. Looking up on the burnt ashes of her man, Augusta was thinking only about how much she used to hate him for lying to her til the last breath. Was she missing him and was she wishing that he would not be shot dead? No. However sharp it would be sounding, in Augusta’s eyes Manuel was deserving that. Involving into that business was stupid and greedy at the first place. He has finally received what he was asking for. Nobody in straight senses would be starting dark affairs with some drug creators from the Mexican suburban slums. After the funeral, Augusta planned her few days of detoxication or more forwardly speaking, toxication. She invited show girls, ordered weed and lots of brandy. She smiled to herself while getting her next inhale and kissed the half naked blonde thinking that she won anyway because her secret was never revealed by Manuel. He could go fuck himself now.  Almost two weeks later, she decided to finally call Diego and discuss the future of the company. He arrived very soon. Diego smelt alcohol but he was not drunk. “¿Cómo lo llevas?” he asked her how she was holding up but she bursted into ironic laugh instead of replying at once. “Oh, don’t be stupid, Diego. I wanted to speak with you about the business”.  He lit a cigarette looking compulsively at it instead of meeting Augusta’s eyes. He inhaled it and observed from different angles, than got back to the conversation. “How long do you know?” he asked finally. She laughed nervously again. “How long? You are both stupid imbeciles. Five years? More? You really thought you could hold it from me forever?” Diego rubbed his forehead. “Listen, I told Manuel it’s a bad idea. You are too smart. We should’ve get you involved from the beginning but he said you have a pure heart and he respects you too much to get you into this dirty business.” “My fucking god, he said he respects me too much. Liar. I don’t believe him and you. I don’t trust you anymore”. she took a sip of her drink looking in different direction. “Augusta, that’s something else. Escúchame” Diego looked at his hands nervously because he was unsure if he should bring it up now. “I saw you once with a woman. I left, tried to forget and never told that to Manuel. He never knew because I asked him once if he thinks you’re having affairs like him and he laughed. He said that obviously, you have many younger men because he found some trunks in your closet.” He breathed heavily. “I still think I shouldn’t have lied to him. This was the only time but I couldn’t. I don’t know why. It will burn me down one day.” he focused back on his cigarette. Augusta looked at him trying to figure out why this stupid man was covering her but it impressed her somehow.  “¿Quieres una bebida? she asked him if he fancied a drink and he asked for one.  Then, he started to tell her the entire story about the company. The truth was being revealed finally after all those years and it made Augusta feel angry even more. Her husband has put them all in life risking danger about twenty five years ago just because he wanted to become a millionaire faster. There were now two ways to act. Diego presented to Augusta what could they do now. They could rather expose themselves to the police, get Diego and all the employees imprisoned but stop this procedure. Augusta most likely would not have to respond for Manuel’s crimes by the court because she had no idea nad it was not the hardest to prove it but she was still risking a lot. Other option was to just continue with her as a CEO. She laughed in a cold manner again. “There’s some bad shit but there’s also no coming back, let’s be honest Diego. We’re gonna die because of this one day too. Because of this bastard. I’m taking the board and the company remains intact. I’m gonna pay a visit to this puta who takes care of the production and who also happened to be fucked by my husband” she said  and finished the rest of her drink in one sip. “Augusta, but... what happened? You used to love him once. Like for real.” he asked very calmly. “For what it’s worth, I loved him more than anything in the world. I’m fucking pissed because first of all, I couldn't love him the way I wanted because I prefer sleeping with women and also after I found out this motherfucker is so desperate on money and position. When I met him first he once normal, hard-working, ambitious, educated, smart, loving man. When he saw some money on his accounts, he’s gone completely crazy. It was a toxic love. I hated him probably even more than I loved him”. “He was a motherfucker indeed.” replied Diego. “He was a fucking stupid motherfucker.

*

When Augusta arrived to el barrio with her bodyguard, first feeling she got was embarrassment. She took off the keys from the ignition, looked in the mirror in her car, fixed her lipstick and told the bodyguard to wait in the car.  SHe knocked on the door. It was Chela herself. She was expecting her for almost two weeks but she was kinda expecting police arrest at same strength instead. “Hola” said a cheap looking woman with a challenging facial expression. “¿Qué quieres?  “Hola, puta. I’m Manuel’s wife and I want to talk about the business continuation”.  “Let’s make it quick” said Chela, took a look around outside, held cigarette in her mouth and opened both sides of the door to let her in. Afterwards, she closed them and closed quite a few locks. “Vale, straightly to the facts. I’m the owner of the company now. Diego will still be the main partner. You will still be paid on same rules, you can keep my guards. Export will still work same way. Although, for a change you’re telling everything to me first, do you understand? Not to Diego or anybody else. To me. If you will break this rule, I am exposing everything. I have proofs that my husband have never put me into business. There’s gonna be no sign that I am joining now so you’ll all go to fucking prison expect me. Do you get what I'm talking about?” Chela closed her arms on the breast level why she was listening to her.“Yes, I do and I think I can agree for that”. “Perfectamente.” Augusta took a look inside but Chela stopped her. “Show me the workrooms now”. After that Chela sighed and showed Augusta the way. They went further, ladrona opened another locked doors and revealed a huge room with many tables were there was lots of fume and employers who were working like on production line. Chela stood unimpressed smoking her cigarette while Augusta was having a tour. Few minutes later, the elegant woman decided to leave this dirty, rusty place.  “For the record, I am a lesbian” said Augusta, smiled sharply to Chela and left. 

*

“Honey, you look perfect!” squeaked Coco when she finished fixing her girlfriend’s tie. “You’re going to get this job for sure. But you know, I don’t think you need it. You could do like modelling, or I don’t know. Act in a commercial. No need for that. But you know, how sexy it is that you are so ambitious. My gf is so great and smart. Yasss. She kissed her on the lips. “Be careful, babe. You’re gonna leave me red and I have to go now. The butler is waiting” said Loca and went downstairs. When she arrived at the Lagos headquarters, suddenly lots of pressure floated onto her. All the best educated (or best family status holders) in Mexico were applying there, mostly with no luck. It has made Loca thinking about the years when she was planning the future and education. Would she do anything differently if she could choose again? She was not sure. The rumour had it that it was Augusta Lourdes Lagos herself recruiting because the job had the highest standard and also after her husband’s death, the woman was leading the company on her rules so it was important for her to to this. Loca was overwhelmed by Augusta’s elegant beauty since the first moment she saw her on some of the business events for rich people but her interest was even longer because everybody, especially at Loca’s age, knew who she was. When they called her in she realised the rumour was truth. Lauren immediately loosed one button of her shirt because she felt it was getting hot. Augusta took a look into her resume and then finally, gave her a gaze. She stared for a little longer than it was necessary. “Por favor siéntese” the woman directed her to take a sit and Loca did so. The interview was about an hour. Their talk was showing that Augusta was intrigued by young woman’s story but also the truth was that she had no higher education. For their company it was a no go even if they were inviting those kind of people to the meetings as well if they were born into the so called “right families” but it was just for the commercials. Greatest company en la Ciudad de Mexico gives a chance to everybody and all that shit. They have never really hired anybody with no higher education diploma. Augusta wanted to finally say that so this woman would not have any expectations but surprisingly, she interrupted her. “Okay, I think it’s the time for me to say why I am here. I heard something that made me hard... to fall asleep at night.” Loca stood up thanking herself that she got few shots before going there because it was very risky. She approached Augusta who could not say a word to that yet and and moved her face very close to her own. The masculine perfumes Loca used in the morning were highly recognisable by Augusta. They were very attractive same like this reckless woman.  “Augusta, I didn’t come here because of an interview. My parents are rich and influencing. I don’t need this job nor I have the qualifications. Let’s be honest, I came here because you’re the most seductive woman in Mexico and I want you so badly.” The elder woman closed her eyes feeling the lust growing in her. This girl was either stupid or incredibly bold but very tempting. Augusta attempted to kiss her but Loca withheld her face and touched the women’s neck instead. She moved her fingers lower to her cleavage line. Augusta started to breath heavier and then, Loca put her hand on the older women’s neck, moved it closer to her quickly and kissed with passion. They were both breathing loudly after this. “Would you come up to visit me to discuss the business tonight, then?” asked Augusta, touched Loca’s leg and moved her hand upper until she almost touched the certain place. “Without any doubts, Augusta” replied Loca and kissed her again.

[theconservativebrief]

On Monday, as reported by the New York Times, nearly 150 companies, including Walmart, Levi Strauss, Lyft, and Southwest Airlines, announced a joint “Time to Vote” campaign, encouraging Americans to vote in the midterm elections coming up on November 6. The campaign includes national ads and company-specific promotions, but it’s mostly about major companies giving employees dedicated time to leave work and go to the polls.

CEOs from participating companies emphasized to the NYT that the effort is nonpartisan, though Patagonia CEO Rose Marcario said in a subsequent LinkedIn blog post, “We know Russia interfered in the last presidential election, and, flush with its success, will likely do so again. That’s why Patagonia is making it a priority to encourage everyone to vote in this year’s enormously important midterm elections.”

Only 56 percent of voting-age Americans voted in the 2016 presidential election

It’s true that Americans are really bad at voting. Only 56 percent of voting-age Americans voted in the 2016 presidential election, which was up from 2012 but still less than 2008. In a midterm year, things are generally worse — only 41.9 percent of eligible voters came to the 2014 midterms, a fairly steep slide from 45.5 percent in 2010 and 47.9 percent in 2006.

But in the Trump era, Americans have gotten really good at talking nonstop about politics, and brands have gotten really good at weighing in. Though, again, this campaign insists it’s “nonpartisan,” the participating brands are largely ones that have seen the #resistance turn into sales or have been applauded by their customers for “taking a stand,” plus a few brands that had been quiet until the full brunt of Trump’s anti-Chinese-imports trade war descended this quarter.

It’s a brave new world: one where brands are the government while the government refuses to be the government.

The vast majority of names on the list of participants have previously expressed some kind of stake in seeing the Trump agenda take a hit, even though today, all they’re expressing is the intention to make it easier for their employees to participate in the midterm elections however they may choose.

The CEO of Kind Snacks has spoken openly about his disgust for Trump’s immigration policies, and the CEO of the coffee company La Colombe said in an interview earlier this summer, “My employees know I’m a fucking commie.” One odd note is the consumer credit report agency Experian, which was one of the main vendors of personal Facebook data solicited by Trump’s presidential campaign but has recently pivoted its “Ask Experian” consumer advice blog away from simple credit card cash-back tips and started publishing things like “Trade War: Here’s a List of Products That Will Cost More.” (Its only comment on the campaign seems to be one vague tweet with a “Vote: It’s really important!” GIF.)

Alongside Patagonia — which has a history of environmental activism and leaned hard into the “brands take on Trump” movement by suing to protect national parks and publishing a letter entitled “The President Stole Your Land” — the list includes dozens of outdoor brands, ranging from giant corporations like the North Face and Dick’s Sporting Goods to local stores like Woodstock, Vermont’s Elevation Clothing, and Jackson, Mississippi’s Buffalo Peak. A fly-fishing shop is on board, as is a zip line company in Las Vegas.

The CEOs of Gap, Eileen Fisher, Levi Strauss, and others participating in Time to Vote were among those who spoke up about Trump pulling the United States out of the Paris climate agreement last March. Last year, Lyft donated $1 million (the company is valued at $7.5 billion) to the American Civil Liberties Union following Trump’s executive order banning travel from seven Muslim-majority countries, and it joined a group of tech CEOs who criticized Trump’s border separation policy earlier this summer.

The list also includes several companies that haven’t weighed in on Trump in the past but have recently seen threats to their profits by way of his proposed litany of new tariffs. That includes companies like Walmart, which still sells plenty of Make America Great Again merchandise on its website and in stores, as well as the frozen food giant Tyson, the home sound system company Sonos, and the iconic early-aughts mall culture brand Abercrombie & Fitch.

Slightly more interesting: The PR and communications firms FleishmanHillard, Golin, Levick, and Peppercomm have also joined. FleishmanHillard has cornered the market on crisis management counseling for companies that invoke the president’s wrath on Twitter. Golin president of global corporate communications Scott Farrell told PR Week in August 2017 (following Trump’s “both sides” comments on the white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia), “Millennials want companies to take a stand. A measured risk needs to be taken, and whichever way you want to go, you can’t sit in the middle anymore.”

When Nike announced its Colin Kaepernick partnership earlier this month, this is exactly the same sentiment marketing analysts and branding “experts” used to praise it.

Participating companies are taking a range of actions to encourage voting. As reported by the New York Times, Patagonia will shut down all of its stores and its corporate headquarters for all of Election Day, and Levi Strauss will give all employees at least three hours to vote (corporate employees get five, for whatever reason). Lyft is offering ride discounts and giving free rides to the polls for people in “underserved communities”; the company is partnering with the nonprofits Urban League and Voto Latino to decide what falls under this umbrella.

Walmart’s efforts, meanwhile, amount to the company making an informational website with information that is already more than readily available.

Levi Strauss is the only brand (so far) with plans to air a television ad for the campaign — during NFL broadcasts on Fox, no less. Nowhere does this ad say “vote against Trump’s candidates,” but it is soundtracked by Aretha Franklin’s “Think,” which means images mostly of women and people of color, including two women putting on niqabs, play while Franklin sings, “You better think, think what you’re trying to do to me,” in the background (and, of course, “Freedom!”). The ad walks the line between “nonpartisan” and “pointed” about as politely as a brand can without coming off as toothless and smarmy.

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Massive get-out-the-vote campaigns are not new, and brand involvement in them isn’t entirely new either. Rock the Vote started partnering with MTV in the ’90s, and companies like Spotify, Giphy, TaskRabbit, and Western Union sponsored a campaign almost identical to Time to Vote in the lead-up to the 2016 presidential election.

While brand involvement in politics gets more attention now — e.g., publicity firestorms around Nike’s partnership with Kaepernick, the famous fashion houses that refuse to dress Melania Trump, almost every major internet company going head to head with Ajit Pai’s FCC over net neutrality, major airlines publicly severing ties with the National Rifle Association, and so on — big corporations have had the right to deliberately try to sway their employees’ votes since the controversial Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission showdown of 2010.

In 2012, Murray Energy, Koch Industries, AGS Software, and Westgate Resorts openly told their employees to vote for Mitt Romney

In 2010, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the conservative PAC Citizens United, saying that the First Amendment protected political spending as “free speech,” and gave corporations the power to pay for political ads and to explicitly promote candidates to the people they employed. In 2012, Murray Energy, Koch Industries, AGS Software, and Westgate Resorts openly told their employees to vote for Mitt Romney.

This particular campaign looks less like that and more like the vaguer strategies we’ve seen in the past — like “Mine the Vote,” a voter turnout campaign organized by lobbyists for the National Mining Association that primarily encourages employees to take time off and vote (however they want!) and exercise their rights as citizens, but also lists recommended candidates (Republicans and conservative Democrats) on its informational site. It’s been around since 2004 but only recently started using the language “Keep American Mining Great.”

In 2016, Bernie Sanders claimed that when voter turnout is higher, Democrats win. There’s little solid evidence that this is true, though there is plenty of evidence that the GOP believes voter suppression will help it win big at this year’s midterms. If these brands really are signing on in a sincere effort to boost democracy (or thwart the president’s agenda) — not just to snag goodwill and extra cash from millennials — it’s really impossible to say if they’ll be of any help.

Studies have shown that campaigns like these rarely work, mostly because being informed that voter turnout is low has a negative effect on an individual’s perception of the social pressure to vote. We want to be told that voter turnout is high, that we are accountable to the people around us, and that they will notice and be disappointed if we don’t vote.

What could actually make a difference, though, is companies giving their employees time off to get to the polls. Concerns about not being able to leave work or make the time to vote are the number-one reason Americans give for not voting, and if enough big-name companies start explicitly granting that time, it could become the new norm. People are also more likely to vote if they’re pushed to discuss their actual logistical plans for making it to the polls, so in that way, Lyft’s promise of ride discounts is not a bad idea.

In any case, this year’s midterms are shaping up to be different from the midterms of recent memory. Recent Pew polling showed 78 percent of Democrats and 75 percent of Republicans saying the election “really matters” and that the outcome is important to them.

Pew doesn’t poll brands, but you can just follow the money to see how important it is to them as well.

Original Source -> Why do brands care if you vote?

via The Conservative Brief