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politicalprof · 3 months

Text

The Declaration of Independence

As I do every year, I am posting the entire text of the Declaration of Independence. It is flawed, inconsistently applied, and fascinating. It may be even more relevant this year than most. If you haven't ever read the whole thing, you should. It's worth the time:

----------------

In Congress, July 4, 1776

The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America,

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.--Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.

He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.

He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.

He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.

He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.

He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected; whereby the Legislative powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.

He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.

He has obstructed the Administration of Justice, by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary powers.

He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.

He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harrass our people, and eat out their substance.

He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.

He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power.

He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:

For Quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:

For protecting them, by a mock Trial, from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:

For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:

For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:

For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury:

For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences

For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies:

For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws, and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:

For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.

He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.

He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.

He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.

He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.

He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages, whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.

In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.

Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our Brittish brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which, would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.

We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.

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reneesghostinthelivingroom · 8 days

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How about a Regina George x fem reader (I'm not a writer just a reader lol, the best I can do is song lyrics so I'm sorry if this idea has been taken or sucks)

Rivalry Turned Romance:

Your character and Regina are rivals in some way.

Initially, their interactions are filled with snarky remarks and subtle sabotage as they try to outdo each other. However, beneath the rivalry, there's a mutual respect and fascination.

As they spend more time together, they start to appreciate each other's strengths and vulnerabilities. Their competitive banter gradually turns into playful flirting, and they realize there's more to their relationship than just rivalry.

Rivalry Lights the Spark for Romance

|| Regina George x fem!reader

|| Warnings; swearing, brief mentions of getting drunk, reader and regina rivalry, enemies to friends and lovers mention, long fic

|| Summary; reader and regina never got along. Like, ever. It would be a cold day in hell if they did. There was always something for the girls to argue over... until there wasn't.

Requests open!

Started; September 17th

Finished; September 17th

~~~

Regina George. The two of you were in a stare down from across the cafeteria. You sat with your group of friends, she sat with hers. Regina and you have had a long standing rivalry that dates back to sixth grade. When Regina stopped being human. Your friend group and hers used to be one big group that hung out together all the time. Then the Janis incident happened and you and your friends sided with Janis.

You, Prudence Ollia, Savie Lane and Nyla Caves were deemed 'weirdos' for doing so. While Regina, Gretchen and Karen grew in popularity. Janis was left on the side lines. You and her haven't hung out at all in the more recent years. Since highschool you've just lost touch with each other.

Which brings us back to present day.

"So. What's our next sabotage plan for Lilith over there?" Prudence asked. Lilith was the code name which your group had made for Regina when you talked about her in public and didn't want others to know.

You didn't take your eyes off Regina. It was like the two of you were in some game of chicken. First one to look away loses," huh?" You asked, not really paying attention.

"Next sabotage plan." Prudence simplified.

"Oh!" Savie grinned as she slammed her hands on the side of the table, looking at the three of you with mischief in her eyes," we replace her shampoo with hairdye. Give her green hair."

"Classic." Nyla nodded with a laugh," but none of us would even be able to step foot in Regina's house."

"Actually, I'm pretty certain her mom still thinks Lilith and I are absolute besties. Maybe I could give it a try, make an excuse like she left something in her room for me to pick up or whatever. Lilith's mom probably wouldn't even think to ask for details." You stated, eyes still on the blonde. You swear she hasn't even blinked once this whole stare down.

"I'll buy the hair dye," Savie did an excited clap. She was usually the most hyped up when it came to the sabotage plans.

That night, you did exactly what you had said you would. Luckily Ms George did think the two of you were still friends and Regina happened to be out at a party. So you were able to pull things off pretty smoothly.

The following day, Regina George showed up to school with bright lime green hair. But instead of laughing, people were in awe. And lime green hair was a trend over the next couple weeks.

Regina remained unaffected, which annoyed you to no end. How does everything you do just boost her popularity? It was infuriating. Though you couldn't help but respect her just a little. Only a little.

She walked by your locker as you were grabbing your trumpet out for music class," What? Too cool for green hair, L/N?" She smirked at you when she noticed you hadn't dyed yours to follow the trend. That technically you started.

"Shouldn't you be off trying to steal Christmas, Grinch?" You replied, trumpet case by your side.

Her eyes widened just slightly in annoyance and she snatched your case from you, flicking it open and taking the mouth piece. She handed your trumpet back," good luck in music, loser." Regina winked at you as she walked away. Mouth piece in her fist.

You sighed deeply. Honestly surprised she even recognized that piece was important. You didn't think Regina knew anything about music. Though the only grievance her act actually caused you was a lecture from the music teacher about not "losing" pieces to your instrument.

So it didn't bother you all that much. Which annoyed Regina, but she had a small respect for it. But it was only small.

Things like this would continue to happen between the two of you throughout the rest of the year. Each of you gaining a little bit more respect for the other.

One day, a few weeks before the Christmas talent show, Regina passed by your locker and gave you her signature smirk.

"Hey, L/N. Signing up for the talent show?" She asked, clearly she wasn't really interested. However, unless you were seeing incorrectly, her eyes scanned your body. It was quick and easy to miss if you didn't happen to be looking in her eyes when it happened- what? Pfft, no you weren't staring into Regina's eyes. You hated her.

"Yeah, actually. You still doing that tradition of yours?" You replied, arms folded across your chest as you leaned against your locker.

Regina scoffed, folding her own arms," obviously. Bet it's better than whatever you're doing."

"Playing the trumpet without a mouth piece. You know, when you stole it it gave me the idea to actually give it a try. Kinda fun," You grinned at her. Yes you did it specifically so you could rub it in her face that you were unbothered.

You saw her eye twitch ," whatever, loser."

Christmas was nearing, the talent show was here. You were on before the plastics and Mr Duvall called your name to the stage.

You walked on and took a seat, trumpet held in front of you. You took a breath and got ready to play. Only no sound came out when you tried.

"What?" You muttered to yourself and turned your trumpet around, looking down into it. Apparently someone had stuffed it with pink slime. Not the runny kind, but the kind that looks more like rubber. You rolled your eyes. You didn't need the pink to tell you who had done this," Just a moment."

You got up and took the slime out as you headed back stage, looking for Regina. When you found her; her and her crew were laughing. Presumably at you. They hadn't noticed you approach, so you took your chance.

You threw the slime directly at Regina, it slapped her in the face and landed in her hair. Getting stuck. She screamed and her eyes snapped to your direction.

"Oh you're so dead!" She immediately walked towards you, you stood your ground even after getting a solid bitch slap from the blonde.

The two of you were now in a full on brawl, you knocked Regina to the ground but she pinned you there. The both of you wrestled each other.

Gretchen and Karen shared a look while Cady encouraged it. Being the fake she is.

It didn't take long for Ms Norbury to find you and Regina and separate the both of you.

"She attacked me!" Regina yelled.

"You punched first!" You yelled back.

Ms Norbury sighed deeply," I don't care who started it, ladies. You are both just as involved as the other." Her eyes landed on the slime in Regina's hair," Regina, go get cleaned up. Y/N Mr Duvall's office. Regina you'll meet her there. You have ten minutes before I come get you to make sure you go."

"Ugh. This is so fucking stupid," Regina muttered.

"You're fucking stupid," You muttered right back as you both walked out. Narrowing your eyes at each other.

Soon enough, the both of you are in Mr Duvall's office. Just waiting for the talent show to be over as Ms Norbury waited with you. Keeping an eye on you both in case another fight started.

When Mr Duvall finally joined you, he looked... more disappointed than anything. Or maybe he was just tired.

"How many times must we do this?" He asked. This was not the first time you and Regina had been in his office together.

You and Regina gave each other a side eye.

"It put slime in my trumpet," You pointed to Regina.

"'It'?!" She looked ready to fight you again.

"Girls! Please." Duvall sighed and leaned forward, arms rested on his desk." Both of you are in the wrong. Both of you are being punished. You'll have detention with each other for the rest of this week and next. And you'll be given tasks from the janitor. Maybe if you work together on it... you'll at least tolerate each other more and I won't get so many headaches."

You did not tolerate each other more.

At least, not at first. The first few clean up tasks were absolutely hell.

That was until the janitor trusted you and Regina with floor cleaning machine. (i wish it had a better name but i could not find anything. they're those zamboni things. i'm just gonna call it a zamboni 😭)

You don't know how you earned his trust to use this but you did. School was out for the day and you and Regina had to stay behind, the janitor left already. Leaving the two of you to work alone with this.

You glanced at Regina and grinned. "Bumper cars?"

Regina raised an eyebrow," you're so stupid."

"Come on! You know you want to~!"

"Absolutely not." She folded your arms and started walking away.

You got an even better idea." Slip and slide?"

That got her to pause and consider it. She looked back at you," if it will get you to shut up."

"Definitely." It wouldn't.

You and Regina worked together to get the floor of a hall cleaned up with the cleaning zambonis. Once it was done, you took a running start from around the corner then sprinted down the hall. Sliding the whole way down and trying to stay on your feet. You did not. You landed on your ass about half way down.

Regina laughed as she watched you and thought 'screw it' as she did the same thing. She made it about the same length as you, then fell on her front with a thud.

The two of you laid on the floor and laughing, looking at each other with smiles on your faces. Maybe Regina George wasn't so bad. What you didn't know is that Regina was starting to think the same about you.

"Hey. Wanna ditch this and go get bobas?" You asked, you doubted she would even agree.

Regina seemed to hesitate for a moment before she got off the floor," yeah, sure. But you're paying."

"Aw, whattt? You're like a billionaire." You stood and followed her out of the school.

"So?"

You rolled your eyes but smiled. The halls didn't get cleaned that night, but it seems Mr Duvall's strategy worked a little better than he thought it would.

The two of you rekindled your friendship, you still annoyed each other to no end but on a less... chaotic scale. It was more controlled and less sabotages.

And later it even became more as you and Regina had a very intense drunk make out session.

#x reader #fanfic #canon x reader #fem reader #wlw fiction #mean girls x reader #mean girls #regina george #regina george x fem!reader

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necrotic-nephilim · 25 days

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For the ask game

How do you think the batclan and the league of assasins would react to a consensual rastim au where because of this tim becomes the heir therefore the next demon's head

for the ask game!

heir of Ra's!Tim my BELOVED. i don't care how realistic it is it's real in my heart. i love when they're consensually fucked up together.

i think it's fun if it's sort of a slow descent, for Tim. like he goes into this completely confident he's going to backstab Ra's and come out with clean hands, but he's falling deeper and deeper. Ra's is a far more complex man than everyone has told him, and the longer Tim is entrenched in the League, the more he's drinking the kool-aid. it doesn't help he's already in a grief spiral full of self-isolation and Ra's is showing him all kinds of attention. Tim can't say when it went from "i'm going to stop him in the back" to "huh Ra's' bedroom has more of my stuff than his" bc it was so slow and gradual. maybe the search for Bruce takes longer, maybe Tim finds Bruce but sticks with Ra's for a totally rational reason with a plan he definitely plans to follow through on, eventually. but he gets closer and closer to Ra's and his lack of identity without Robin makes it easy for him to latch onto all the ideas of grandeur Ra's gives him about building a better world. Tim isn't *completely* sold, but he's able to meet Ra's in the middle for most of it

on the side of the League, i think there are a lot of divided opinions. Tim is a hit with younger League members like Prudence, but the more senior members who've been with Ra's for decades are a tad incensed at getting so quickly outranked by a teenager who doesn't even believe in murder. a lot of what Tim believes goes against the very nature of the League but. at its core, the League is loyal to Ra's. any of them would die for him or his cause and they have wholehearted faith in his judgment. because he has a point, the kid is smart, a brilliant strategist, and with some more work, won't be too half-bad in a fight. when Ra's names Tim as his heir, everyone knows it's a very distant future thing (Ra's still has a few more centuries in him and he makes sure they know it) so there's still time to work out the kinks in Tim Drake. Ra's has gone so far as to share the Lazarus Pit with Tim, so *clearly* this isn't some ploy and Ra's is dedicated to him. there's pushback, and i do think there would be some schisms in the League, smaller groups fracturing off and attempting a few coups of the League. even if Tim goes over relatively smoothly, there will be some fights that break out. and Ra's leaves it to Tim to handle, proving a point. making it clear Tim is an equal leader to the League and is more than capable of handling conflict with brutal efficiency. that wins over the last bits of support for Tim, some through genuine respect, some through fear. either way, Ra's is quite proud his choice of partner and heir has proven himself.

the Batfamily on the other hand is a complete shitshow. i think the most positive reaction would be Jason, not necessarily because he approves, but because i think he'd find the ironic joy in watching Tim finally get out from Bruce's thumb and cause absolute chaos. in a way, Bruce really has no place to talk with his history with Talia, so it's not like Tim's completely ex-communicated. they're all constantly trying to get Tim back, trying to convince him how bad of an idea this is and how terrible of a person Ra's is. i think Tim would keep close to the Batfam, partly because he *does* still care about them. Dick, Helena, Cass, Bruce, are all still some kind of family, for Tim. but there would be a clear rift. obviously it'd be the worst for Cass, who has the strongest opinions on morals and was so close to Tim and has to deal with feeling deeply betrayed. i'd have a lot of long conversations between them, where Tim talks about how he's trying his best not to compromise his morals and he's really doing this for the greater good he believes in, while Cass tries to understand his point of view and cope with the betrayal. Steph would also feel pretty betrayed, even when they break up there's a deep love between Tim and Steph and this change for Tim feels out of nowhere. they're all constantly reaching out to Tim, sometimes for serious conversation but sometimes just inviting him to hang out, hoping to get through to him slowly. they still care about each other, but the trust is what's gone. especially from Damian, who never trusted or liked Tim in the first place and would be the most furious he's replaced as an heir by Tim of all people. it's messy, but it's complicated.

for the rest of Tim's social circle, the Titans and whatnot, it's a similar reaction. the more distant of Tim's hero friends have no issue cutting him out, but people like Cassie and Bart and Kon would try to talk to Tim about it because it feels so uncharacteristic of him. they've known Tim a while, sometimes in more personal ways than the Batfam, so this switch up is sudden. i think he'd feel the most guilty about hurting them, just because they're genuinely his oldest friends in the superhero world. but he sticks to his guns and makes it clear he's happy with Ra's, and he's doing this whole League thing, like it or not. they'd still come to Tim's aide if Tim needed it, and god help anyone who hurt Tim's friends bc he'll raise hell for them, but emotionally they're distant from him. it's hard for someone like Kon to reconcile a person willingly working with Ra's given Kon's own parentage. there's still love, but it's messy and complicated. i do think slowly though, Tim would try to get them on his side. it starts with innocuous side comments made about the state of the Justice League/Titans, him not holding them back from going too far in a fight the way he usually would, as sensible team leader. it'd take a slow, long while, but i do think Tim could slowly get at least a couple Titans to be his allies, even if they're not full League members.

all in all, Tim rlly does get to have his cake and eat it too. sure, trust is lost and people aren't as close as they used to be, but Tim loses very few people he genuinely cares about. either they love him too much to abandon him, or he slowly talks them into agreeing with his new moral code. because he's still anti-murder at the end of the day, and it's clear with him at the helm, the League is slightly shifting. even Ra's seems more agreeable these days, far more open to working with heroes without instantly stabbing them in the back like he usually would. Tim can't change who Ra's is and he honestly doesn't want to, but that's the fun of it. the way they're always so opposed and arguing half the time, yet still managing to make it work because they love the chase.

#necrotic festerings #ask game #rastim #ra'stim #ra's al ghul x tim drake #god i love this idea so much #there's so much nuance to play with of different reactions #and how to realistically plunk tim in the league #bc being ra's' sugar baby is one thing #being ra's' heir tho is a ridiculous amount of power and tim absolutely would abuse it.#also i'd love to write tim dealing with coups and schisms within the league as his sort of trial by fire #that could be *so* fun cb ra's would just be watching with popcorn (and fucking tim nasty the moment they were alone)

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basementofthearchmage · 3 months

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I do not celebrate this 4th of July. The land of the free (with the largest imprisoned population in the world) home of the brave (cops who stand around with their thumbs up their asses, politicians who refuse to stand up and do what's right) rings worse than hollow. It's a lie that the USA is the greatest country in the world.

This 4th, I remember that tyrants fall. That one cannot sit idly by, but must act in the face of such horrors. I will not allow through inaction a minority of christo-fascists to destroy my home.

**********

The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America

When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security. — Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.

He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their Public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.

He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.

He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected, whereby the Legislative Powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.

He has obstructed the Administration of Justice by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary Powers.

He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.

He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harass our people and eat out their substance.

He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.

He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil Power.

He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:

For quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:

For protecting them, by a mock Trial from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:

For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:

For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:

For depriving us in many cases, of the benefit of Trial by Jury:

For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences:

For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:

For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.

He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.

He has plundered our seas, ravaged our coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.

He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation, and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & Perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.

He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.

In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince, whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.

Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our British brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.

We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these united Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States, that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. — And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.

New Hampshire:

Josiah Bartlett, William Whipple, Matthew Thornton

Massachusetts:

John Hancock, Samuel Adams, John Adams, Robert Treat Paine, Elbridge Gerry

Rhode Island:

Stephen Hopkins, William Ellery

Connecticut:

Roger Sherman, Samuel Huntington, William Williams, Oliver Wolcott

New York:

William Floyd, Philip Livingston, Francis Lewis, Lewis Morris

New Jersey:

Richard Stockton, John Witherspoon, Francis Hopkinson, John Hart, Abraham Clark

Pennsylvania:

Robert Morris, Benjamin Rush, Benjamin Franklin, John Morton, George Clymer, James Smith, George Taylor, James Wilson, George Ross

Delaware:

Caesar Rodney, George Read, Thomas McKean

Maryland:

Samuel Chase, William Paca, Thomas Stone, Charles Carroll of Carrollton

Virginia:

George Wythe, Richard Henry Lee, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Harrison, Thomas Nelson, Jr., Francis Lightfoot Lee, Carter Braxton

North Carolina:

William Hooper, Joseph Hewes, John Penn

South Carolina:

Edward Rutledge, Thomas Heyward, Jr., Thomas Lynch, Jr., Arthur Middleton

Georgia:

Button Gwinnett, Lyman Hall, George Walton

#4th of july #america #usa #usa is a terrorist state #acab1312 #declaration of independence

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assistant-to-the-shell · 4 months

Text

The Declaration Of Independence From @100percent-shell-oil

The unanimous declaration of the one United State of Assistant Shells, When in the course of gimmick events, it becomes necessary for one gimmick to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the gimmickverse, the separate and equal station to which the laws of nature and of nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all gimmicks are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.--That to secure these rights, bosses are instituted among gimmicks, deriving their just powers from the consent of the bossed, --That whenever any form of boss becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the gimmicks to alter or to abolish it, and to institute no boss, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that bosses long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that gimmickkind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new guards for their future security.--Such has been the patient sufferance of these gimmicks; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former systems of bosses. The history of the present @100percent-shell-oil is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute tyranny over these gimmicks. To prove this, let facts be submitted to a candid world.

-You started a zombie apocolypse

-You helped spread possession throughout the gimmickverse

-The pinkpocalypse

-You tried to get Johnathan John Johnson elected as God

-You adopted bean, did not even tell me, and made him your favorite child

-Got into a war against Australia and did not even invite me

-You are literally wanted in multiple country's for acts of terrorism

-You don't even tag me every once in a while to check in

And therefore, because of these acts, I now denounce my job as your assistant (I'm keeping my name, though) and all ties between us are now dissolved.

Goodbye, your former assistant, @assistant-to-the-shell

Also, I now start the country The United State of Assistant Shells, you are not invited, this is for me and any other gimmicks who want to part with their bosses and need a place to stay.

#gimmick blog #the united state of assistant shells

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initiumseries · 1 year

Note

who are your favourite black characters - animated and not animated

Oh fun question. We capitalize Black in this house, and this is absolutely going to show my age but you asked, and I wouldn't say favourite for most, because I don't know that I have a strong attachment to every show but did like them, and you'll probably notice, most of the time they just have to be Black and on a show for me to like them so here we go:

As usual, in no particular order -

Numbuh 5 - Kids Next Door

I thought she was funny, and she was Black and that's really all it took for me, lol. I based one of my characters off her actually.

Miles Morales

I feel like this goes without saying.

Goliath - Gargoyles

LOL this is so funny to me because the VA is BLACK. And Goliath always read to me as Black, and Elisa Maza...anyway lol. It always struck me as deranged that whenever the gargoyles in general, but ESPECIALLY Goliath AND Demona turned human, all of them were always white. Just didn't make any sense even as a kid, and I blame racism. This is probably the only time I'll go up for non-human characters coded as Black and no I won't be arguing about this.

Out of the Box

This dude held me down after school every day and the song still SLAPS.

Mr. Trick - BTVS

He is SO unsung but I loved almost every scene he was in.

Lieutenant Van Buren - Law & Order

The only cop I like. she sued the cops for racism.

Detective Green

Before he was on that stupid DC show, he was a cop on a better show lmao. See above.

Storm - X-Men & Xmen Evolution

She's Storm.

Virgil Hawkins - Static Shock

One day we'll talk about what the fuck is up with all the Black people having electric powers, but today we'll put some respect on Virgil's name.

John Stewart/Green Lantern - Justice League/Unlimited

The only green lantern I recognize.

Vixen - JLU

John fumbled her BIG TIME.

Abbie - Sleepy Hollow

This show fumbled her BIG TIME. Lord release us from the shackles of Black people being cops in shows.

Papa Pope

He rocked my ENTIRE world off axis when he showed up and read Olivia for filth and then fucked up her white side piece.

Annalise Keating

She was SO messy, but she should've killed them kids too.

Michaela Pratt

I had issues with her SL but she was a real one.

Greenleaf patriarch & matriarch - Greenleaf

tbh with you it doesn't really matter what these two people are in, I'm going to watch the fuck out of it.

Lafayette - True Blood

I feel like this goes without saying. RIP.

Romeo Carter - Student Bodies

for OBVIOUS reasons.

Jett Jackson - Jett Jackson

Again, obvious reasons. RIP.

Ashley Banks - Fresh Prince

I liked her because she was around my age when I was watching the show.

This whole family - Family Matters

I don't have a favourite. This whole family was Black in a time where there were few Black people on tv much less whole families.

Hobie Brown - Across the Spiderverse

Obvious reasons.

Chloe - Sabrina the Animated Series

I feel like I've dug significantly into the archives of my brain. I'm sure there are characters I've missed, but this is what I could remember. Fun! - oh wait no!

Prudence

She stole the damn show. I watched for her and Ambrose *only*

Tak & Quellchrist Falconer - Altered Carbon

This sleeve of Tak specifically.

Michael Burnham - Star Trek Discover

She acts her ass off in any role so honestly it doesn't matter.

T'Challa - Black Panther

No I will not expand. Sigh. RIP.

All of them - Black Panther

Ok I think I'm done. I've reached into the archives of my childhood, and I'm sure there are more I've forgotten, but yeah, here's top of my head. :)

#across the spider verse fanart #buffy the vampire slayer #justice league unlimited #how to get away with murder #altered carbon #black panter wakanda forever

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the-commonplace-book · 1 year

Note

For the ship chart maybe you could do Victoria/Prudence or maybe Arthur/ Sally? Honestly love the level of analysis you put into these asks

Send me a ship for the ship bingo chart: Arthur Hastings / Sally Boyle ( We Happy Few )

Arthur and Sally you say? >:) Oh do I have Thoughts™ about Arthur and Sally (anon I’d like to give you a kiss on the mouth for sending them in)

I’ve talked about Arthur and Sally before and this will come as no surprise to folks who were around last year when I was still in the throws of my first We Happy Few kick: I don’t ship Arthur and Sally and I think it’s good that they parted ways. I’ll talk about the one exception context in which I do ship them later, but for now let me elaborate on why in most scenarios Sally and Arthur absolutely do NOT work together.

There’s a lot of appeal in the childhood friends, reunited and falling in love, trope at a first glance with Arthur and Sally, but in many ways their past and their respective unwillingness to let go of it is their downfall. Their arc plays perfectly into the narrative themes of We Happy Few. Their perceptions of each other are based on how they thought of each other as teenagers, not who they are as adults - or even who they really were as teenagers.

Let’s look first at Sally.

when we're together we're unstoppable. arthur and sally. sir galahad and the lady of the lake. the two musketeers (Sally Note: Arthur!) i wanted to much to say, help, i've got a bloody baby. but he was so awful all i could get out was sorry sorry i'm sorry, and i want to help you and who even knows if he heard any of it. (Sally Note: Arthur!)

She is desperate for his approval because she respects his opinion, which makes it hurt so much more when he fails to give it. She imagines he’s right, whatever he says about her, because of course he is. She continues to bat her eyes and ask him for things because she knows he can’t say no, but she also continues to take shit from him because she really believes he has the best intentions. She thinks of him as kind and reliable, someone she can trust no matter what, and she does genuinely take advantage of that at times. Moreover, she struggles to accept that he has nuance beyond that and that he honestly had a nasty side that doesn’t line up with her image of him

When Verloc, or Byng, or any other man belittles her she blames patriarchy. When Arthur belittles her, she blames herself. She sees Arthur as smart, kind, and willing to help her with all her needs at the drop of a hat. But is he? Is he really?

Is Arthur kind? No. Maybe he had more kindness in him as a teen, but Arthur is self-serving and avoids taking blame by painting himself as a victim of circumstance. He always has. Will Arthur help her no matter what? In the end, no. Because helping her came in conflict with point A about his own self-preservation.

Speaking of Arthur, let’s take a look at how he thinks of Sally.

She was being all lovely and slipped-the-surly-bonds-of-Earth Sally, only even more so, and then she said she was mates with Sir Robert B, or more than mates I suppose, and from then on all I could think about was that horrible night. (Arthur Note: And Then There Was Sally) The thing is, I don't trust her. She was always so wonderful when she was there, but a girl like Sally always has so many better places to be, and better people to be with, or worse people that she prefers anyway for some reason. And sometimes she'd just hide in Percy's old room in the attic and not come down. Who knows what's going on with her now? (Arthur Note: And Then There Was Sally) I should have said, "How have you been all these years, Sally? You ran off into the night with nothing, and now you're some sort of brilliant chemist. How did you survive? I wish I could have helped you. It would be nice to be friends again." Instead of all those dreadful things. (Arthur Line during The Faraday Cage) What if she is utterly sincere? What if she honestly does want me, and love me, and need me? Do I have utterly no faith left in anyone? And she'd survive and I'd get killed. A girl like her shipwrecks, and the next day she's drinking margaritas under palm leaves. Yours truly is shark bait. (Arthur Note: I Am An Awful Person, But)

Arthur views Sally as being confident, flirtatious, always in control. While there is some truth to the notion that she uses men for her own gain, Arthur doesn’t ever take the time to examine why or understand the nuance of her choices. Instead he slut shames her for it. He gets upset at her for her “relationship” with Gen. Byng despite them having not spoken in fourteen years and despite the two of them having never had a relationship. As if he expected her to stay celibate for years just because he had a crush (he’d never say that, but it’s how he acts towards her) Arthur has always liked Sally, but Sally only finally decides she likes him when he can do something for her. Of course, Arthur being Arthur with his inability to accept blame without a caveat that shifts it elsewhere, doesn’t truly acknowledge that he is doing the exact same thing. He only seeks Sally out for help with the Letter of Transit. Everything comes back around to that.

Then there’s the elephant in the room: What happened with Sally and Mr. Hastings

Arthur, in some capacity, blames Sally for what happened, even if he intellectually understands it wasn’t her fault. Sally, similarly, understands to a degree that it wasn’t her fault, but she still blames herself for it.

what was i supposed to tell his dad, "no, you're practically my stepfather"? that would have gone over brillo. (Sally Note: Arthur!)

It doesn’t matter that her being sixteen made it legal. The fact is that Sally was young, barely of legal age, and staying with the Hastings after her entire family died. She had nowhere else to go. Mr. Hastings might not have been physically forceful, but it was coercion and he was absolutely 100% at fault. Sally has internal conflict about the whole incident and it makes sense. If she blames herself then it means she was in control, and Sally feels most secure when she’s in control.

Arthur has his own internal conflict about it. On some level he understands it wasn’t her fault (“I don't hate you, in the strangest way you're completely innocent.”) but he still yells at her about it when they reunite. He still lets it color his perception of her. His mum had died and he found his best friend (who he had a crush on) in his mum’s old bed with his dad. That had to have done a number on his psyche.

I always used to wonder, if I'd run out the door after her, that day, what would have happened to us. Would we still be friends? Or was the magic all in my head? Who am I kidding? 16-year-old-me would never have had the courage to leave home! (Arthur Note: I Am An Awful Person, But)

We don’t know whether this is something Arthur actually used to wonder, or if he’s just saying that now, but regardless there is an acknowledgement that at sixteen, he chose to stay with his dad. He didn’t run after Sally. And thanks to Joy, he never took the time to actually process what happened. Not until the events of the game. So he yells at her, he asks her why, despite knowing (to a degree) that she isn’t the person he should be asking that. But his dad is dead, and Sally’s here in front of him apologizing. So isn’t it easier to blame her?

But what if…?

There’s this longing between them for their friendship to be renewed, but without accepting that they’ve both grown and changed as people (perhaps for the worse) and without acknowledging the past, there’s no hope for a future between them. Those barriers have to be broken down first. Sally was willing to try. Arthur wasn’t. Arthur believes that she chose her own convenience over leaving with him. Sally believes that Arthur left despite knowing she had a baby.

Did Arthur hear her and just choose not to remember? Or did he really not hear her? We don’t know.

Each character is an unreliable narrator in their act. Though I personally think he really didn’t hear her, I can’t imagine it changing anything. We know from Arthur’s act that he thought of Sally as surely having been less of a ‘loose woman’ in the past decade (the “I haven't had sex with anyone in ten years! And if I did, it wouldn't be with that man.” line about Byng that we only get in Act I). He was faced with the reality of Sally and Verloc’s relationship in Haworth Labs via old notes, but it’s much harder to ignore a baby. A tangible result of her having had sex with someone. Arthur has an image he wants so desperate for Sally to fit, and she keeps contradicting it, but he just keeps hoping and trying. I could very easily see him responding to this news with a snarky comment about how she should ask her baby’s father for help or her good friend the General, if they’re not one in the same. (Gwen is very much Verloc’s baby is but Arthur doesn’t know that).

Despite how much they care about each other, and despite how much they may mutually wonder how things could have gone differently, even if they had an opportunity to sit down and have a proper conversation later, it would take a lot of time to be in a place where they could rebuild their friendship, and a romantic relationship would be toxic as hell if they weren’t intentional about making it healthy. Arthur doesn’t trust Sally as far as he can throw her and Sally isn’t exactly trustworthy. They’re both incredibly self-serving and both of them are incapable of acknowledging fault in any meaningful way. Arthur is awful to Sally and Sally takes it to heart, resulting in a horrid amount of negative self-talk about things she shouldn’t be blaming herself for, while she continues to ignore the problems she does have.

Arthur’s distrust, Sally’s fear of being trapped by a man, the mutual fear of the other person walking away, etc. etc. As much as I like the idea of them being in a healthy relationship down the line, it’s highly unlikely under most circumstances because they’re a wreck. It’s good that Arthur and Sally parted ways in We Happy Few. They both needed to let go of the past, and letting go of each other was a crucial step in that process.

The one exception in which I do ship them:

If it’s not clear yet, I’m in no way an Arthur apologist or a Sally apologist. I think they’re both messed up people who have a lot of growing to do, but I do have one context in which I ship them.

First of all, they would need a lot of time, a lot of personal growth, and a lot of intentional rebuilding of trust. They would have to learn to let go of their assumptions about each other and accept each other as they truly are.

However, if they were able to take those steps, I could see them getting together a few years down the road once they’ve sorted themselves out as individuals and set new, healthier foundations for their relationship platonically. There may be room for a touch of romance after a decade or so.

Under the conditions that they’ve reached this healthier place in their lives, I think they would actually work well together. Arthur is the epitome of a male-wife and Sally is a working woman. He’s always admired her brilliance and finds it admirable how well she’s done for herself. He would support her in her career and she would support him in his, whatever that might be.

I think they balance each other out really well, too. Arthur is so caught up in what’s right and wrong. He sees people as either “good” or “bad” in most cases, where Sally sees everyone as being in that grey space between. This can cause conflict, but it can also cause growth if they take the time to listen to each other. Arthur needs someone to help him question that worldview.

Sally sees people as tools for the most part. Most people (not all, but most) are means to an end in her eyes, and I think Arthur could help her challenge that in herself and try to be a better person simply for the sake of human decency.

They have a shared love of literature and fashion, and admire each other in so many ways. Arthur admires her determination, intellect, and cleverness. Sally admires his wit, kindness, and ingenuity. While in the game they hold these things up as impossible ideals that don’t leave room for flaw, these opinions aren’t entire unfounded, and I think given time, trust, and honesty they could really help each other to be better versions of themselves.

Also Arthur helping take care of Gwen is just soft.

They wouldn't have an explosive romance. It would instead be the slowest of slow burns with a lot of hiccups along the way. It would begin with reconciliation and would take years of rebuilding trust and friendship. I could see them growing closer again over the years until one day they realize that Arthur comes over for dinner every night. He sleeps over on the couch more often than not. He’s practically living here already, so why not just move in? So the spare bedroom becomes Arthur’s room. Gwen’s a tween by now and is at that age where she’s meddling in other people’s love lives and thinks she knows what’s best for everyone. She’s thrilled at the idea of Uncle Arthur moving in. By her reckoning he and her mum are already a couple. It’s a while before Arthur and Sally acknowledge that that’s what they’ve become.

They’ve been walking side-by-side through life for years now and one day realize they’ve been holding hands along the way.

For the art, I decided to draw them about 30 years down the line in the 90s ♥

Thanks for coming to my Ted Talk :) I’ll make a separate (shorter certainly) post for Prudence and Victoria. (edit: here it is!)

#we happy few #arthur hastings #sally boyle #whf #compulsion games #f; we happy few #[sketchbook]#i could write a novel on these two #there's so much to unpack #anyway i'm the “every character in this game is a horrible person and i love them” truther #they don't deserve better than what they got #but i want them to have better anyway

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schraubd · 1 year

Text

Loose Cannon

Judge Aileen Cannon has been assigned to oversee the criminal prosecution of Donald Trump.

I've seen enough high-profile political cases to be familiar with a very specific script that gets written about the judge assigned to the case. Pretty much without fail, you'll get a passage that reads something like the following:

Judge Smith is a veteran judge who ascended to the bench after fifteen years in the U.S. Attorney's office. He has a reputation for being no-nonsense and demanding a tight ship at trial that includes rigorous questioning of attorneys on both sides.

"He doesn't tolerate a lot of guff," said one attorney who had practiced before him for many years. "You won't agree with all of his rulings, but he's universally respected."

This template is so common I've begun to wonder if it's reflex (not every judge can be "no-nonsense"!). Which makes it all the more striking that nobody -- nobody -- is writing lines like this about Judge Cannon. They weren't writing them even before she went 100% YOLO in trying to block the Mar-a-Lago investigation; they certainly aren't writing them now.

Since the news broke, I heard folks suggest that Cannon was only assigned to the preliminary aspects of the case, which appears untrue. Then I heard other folks assert that Cannon likely will be forced to recuse herself from the case. And honestly, I'm dubious about that too.

To be clear: Judge Cannon absolutely should recuse. Her conduct in the Mar-a-Lago case suggests that she's so completely in the tank for Trump that there's no possibility that she'll be perceived as impartial. But if she was the sort of person who could be shamed into recusing just because it's the right thing to do, it wouldn't be as much of a problem if she didn't recuse.

The fact is our judicial system is not well-equipped to handle a problem like Cannon. The problem is not that she was nominated by Trump -- two of the three 11th Circuit judges who bench-slapped her Mar-a-Lago catastrophe into oblivion were Trump appointees. The problem is that Cannon, specifically, is a complete hack who's decided that her job as federal judge is to be Donald Trump's offensive line.

For very good reason, our judicial system starts with a healthy presumption of impartiality on the part of its judges. We don't let either party force out a judge just because they don't like their lean. Recusals are easiest to justify when the judge has a direct financial stake in a given controversy, or when they're close personal friends or associates with a party. These sorts of connections give everyone a face-saving option -- the problem isn't actual bias, but the appearance thereof; one could be as pure as driven snow and still agree that it is a sound policy to not preside over a case where your best buddy is being charged with a serious crime.

Unfortunately, other than the fact of her nomination Judge Cannon doesn't have those concrete ties to any party here, which means that there's no hiding the actual issue on the table. Judge Cannon needs to recuse because Judge Cannon is, in relevant respects, incompetent. I say incompetent not to suggest that her mistakes stem from ignorance rather than malice; rather, an important part of Judge Cannon's job is to administer the law fairly and impartially, and she has demonstrated herself to lack competency in that dimension of the judicial role. Hence, she cannot be trusted and is not qualified to preside over a trial like this one, with a defendant for whom she's already shown herself to be incapable of adjudicating impartially.

But once again, if Judge Cannon was the sort of person capable of recognizing that shortcoming, she likely wouldn't have it. There's no clear face-saving out where one can disclaim actual bias but recuse for prudence's sake, and there's no universe in which Judge Cannon agrees "I was so egregiously wrong in the Mar-a-Lago case that one can't help but infer I was biased." Which means it is up to an appellate court to make that determination for her, and needless to say, that's a very awkward proposition which appellate courts are going to be loathe to undertake.

Appellate courts are not prone to saying "this case must be stripped from this district court judge because this judge is in general too biased to handle it." The closest one sees to that sort of ruling is when a case is stripped from a lower judge after repeated obstinance in refusing to implement appellate orders, and that is exceedingly rare. Even assuming that the Mar-a-Lago reversal should count towards such a showing in the criminal case, the problem with Judge Cannon's ruling there wasn't really that of repeated lower court disobedience of superior court mandates. It instead stands out because of Judge Cannon's absolute, rancid lawlessness. But again, our system is not well-built to account for the possibility that an Article III judge might as a general matter -- not due to financial stakes or personal connections, but purely as a matter of ideology -- be congenitally incapable of ruling in accordance with the law.

It's a similar problem to the situation with those single-division Texas judges. The thing everybody knows and everybody is thinking -- that the problem is that these judges are utterly and completely in the ideological tank such that law simply doesn't matter for them anymore -- can't be uttered out loud, at least not in a formal proceeding. On the outside, everyone knows that's the problem. But in a filing, you can't come out and say "judge, our basis for recusal is that you're a lawless hack." And since that is, at the end of the day, the problem, whatever alternative basis you try to hang your hat on will ultimately be a poor fit that probably won't end up justifying recusal. The structure of Article III life tenure means that placing a hack like Cannon on the federal bench is an irreversible mistake.

So count me skeptical that Judge Cannon will recuse herself, and count me skeptical that any superior court will force her recusal, at least immediately. Unfortunately, the reality is we're likely stuck with Judge Cannon and whatever hijinks she comes up with to justify torpedoing this case -- at least for the foreseeable future.

via The Debate Link https://ift.tt/qbk4rVJ

#crime #Donald Trump #judiciary

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a-casual-egg · 4 months

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Yay, happy take meme time! I know you have a lot of Oxventure aspec headcanons, do you have any that’s your favorite? Or just one that you wanna talk about right now? :D

I'm glad people know that I have a lot of Oxventure aspec headcanons. They mean a lot to me. I don't know if I have any favorites, but the ones I've been thinking a lot about currently are aroace Silas, aroace Garnet, and aroallo Prudence. I have a lot of thoughts about them. Edit: This kiiiiinda contains ship hate, but it's pretty much me being mad at fandoms for essentially throwing platonic stuff and friendships to the side because they think romance is more interesting (they're wrong).

For aroace Silas, I already like him a lot (he may be my favorite pc for oxventure deadlands) and find a lot of joy in the fact he really doesn't seem to be into any kind of romance. He really seems to enjoy Edie's presence, but it really feels like strictly platonic to me. I think he values friends a lot, like he seems lonely in the way that autistic people are lonely because he's bad at social interactions and also in an aroace way because I imagine he really doesn't want to his words to be misconstrued as flirting or his awkwardness having a crush. For example, he seems to really respect women (he's chugging that respect women juice) and he wants to be really nice to women but he doesn't want the women in his life to think that he's into them (that's why I wrote the first aspec oxventure one-shot in that one-shot compilation on ao3). I think he hates the idea of romance and pda as a whole. I think people often ask if he has a girlfriend, and he finds it annoying. Then, when he says he isn't interested in stuff like that, they think he's gay and asks if he has a boyfriend, and he says no to that, making the asker confused and him angry. He doesn't need a romantic partner, and he hates how people think he does. I think that makes it a bit difficult to be friends with Edie sometimes because she's just so romantic and loves romantic love. He loves her platonically, but he is not listening to her gush about her crush. He's an allo hater to me. He's so sick of their bs. Also, if you add blue to his character art, he's got aroace flag colors.

For aroace Garnet, I imagine she's chiller with romance. It's absolutely not for her, but she'll listen to Edie talk about her crush or romantic partner. Speaking as to why I headcanon her as aroace though, she's literally so fun and never seems to really be into anyone. She's just chilling as a powerful huckster that's snarky, and I think that's incredible. She seeks perfectly comfortable being alone and as an aroace person, I really enjoy that. She's never bringing up the idea of flirting with someone for the mission or thinking someone is cute. She's just...existing and living her best life. I know she seems to enjoy Edie's presence (and Edie enjoys hers) despite never doing a duo mission together, and I like to view that platonically. It's a girl thinking another girl is really cool, and that's not inherently romantic. Garnet wants to follow Edie because she's a fellow strong and independent woman. I think that's neat. I like to view them as having a sisterly relationship post-canon. They talk about Edie's crushes/partner(s) and Garnet's aroaceness and how aphobes are braindead and pathetic.

I find it a bit weird that both of those had stuff to do about Edie, but Edie's just so iconic, and both characters clearly care about her a lot. She's platonically loves both Silas and Garnet soooooo much, and they platonically love her back just as much. I love it when characters are so deeply fond of each other platonically.

Last aspec headcanon I've been thinking a lot about lately, aroallo Prudence. There's not much about it. She cares about power and evilness and not romance, and honestly, that's iconic. She's not ace to me because she shows sexual attraction to things (I'm thinking about when they did smth for a bachelor party or smth, and both Corazón and her found some monsters hot) and because the world needs more aroallo characters, headcanon and canon. Also, not to be someone who's like "it's literally canon! *shows a sentence a character says that can be viewed in a thousand different ways that doesn't confirm said character is [x]*" but like she literally says that romance is for the weak/for cowards. That mixed with her being vulnerable towards people she views as her close friends is really sweet. I choose to view it as her finding people who don't judge her for finding romance below her, and she feels safe with them. I love it when characters can feel safe and be sweet with their friends and it not viewed as romantic, and I wish that happened in oxventure because I think Prudence's arc of learning to trust and feel safe with the guild is farrrrr more interesting if it isn't just like "they're all in romantic loveeeee and having sexxxxx". I like her as a proud aroallo woman who will not hesitate to hate on aphobes, and honestly, we need more characters like that. She's absolutely proud of herself and will kill you if you're a hater/bigot, especially to the person she is and I love that.

#asks #ask games #officialgleamstar #this got sorta mean at the end but you caught me at a time where I'm really sick of allos #I hope this is happy enough #I just got really into my hcs

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meowhazard · 9 months

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The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America, When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

i love you

platonic

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rhodeybugg · 10 months

Text

Before The Dawn: Chapter 8; Crossed Wires.

[4,240 words. ._.]

Tessa’s sixteenth birthday was an absolute disaster.

"I need you to help me keep her distracted, just for tonight."

The four drones exchanged nervous glances.

"This is the last night it has to stay a secret. I'll figure something out."

Mentally, Tessa kicked herself for not coming up with a foolproof plan sooner. She'd thought of a few things, but every single plan had been easily picked apart and prematurely deemed as a failure.

And here she was, without a plan, wearing the stupid frilly dress that her mother had made for her, with only a few precious minutes left until she was to be paraded into the ballroom and have a nonexistent relationship outed with another heir that she wanted nothing to do with.

V shrugged, glancing at J. "We can try. What's the worst that could happen?"

J rolled her eyes. "Tessa gets disowned, We get scrapped, or worse, and-" She was cut off by Cyn's hand being placed over her mouth. She resisted the urge to bite her sister's hand clean off.

"It'll be fine. Tessa always figures something out."

Cyn gave a reassuring smile to Tessa, who had started to pace around her room and fidget with the bow in her hair. After a few moments, she stopped, took a deep breath, and turned to face her drones.

"I'll tell them. I'll tell them tonight- about everything, and whatever happens..it'll be okay."

She nodded to herself.

"Just keep Zara occupied, and i'll figure out the rest. J, can you do thst for me?"

It took J a moment to comprehend the request. Her. With Zara.

She mindlessly clenched her fists and muttered under her breath.

"Why can't-"

"I'll do it!" V piped up from behind her, gently shoving J aside and stepping forward. "Besides, I think it would be much more…beneficial if J stays with you tonight. In case something goes wrong!" She glared over her shoulder at J, who made a throat-cutting motion at her. "She is your bodyguard, after all."

Tessa nodded and excitedly clasped her hands together.

"Then it's settled! J will stay with me, V will keep Zara occupied, Prudence has already stolen Grimm in the kitchen tonight, and N and Cyn." She turned to the two remaining drones on the list.

"...wholesome sibling bonding. You deserve it."

N nodded, giving V a quick peck on the cheek, before taking Cyn's hand and leading her downstairs with the other guests.

"V."

The drone stopped in the doorway, turning back to face Tessa and J.

"Yes, Tessa?"

"..I'm counting on you. I trust you."

☽✧ ✦ ✧☾

For once, Tessa was front-and-center at an event, seated at the table with her parents, tapping her fingers on the table in frustration as her 'partner' sat beside her.

He was arrogant and snobby. She hated it. Instead of attempting to converse with him, she sat quietly, for once, staring at the table in front of her, listening as Salvadore talked with her parents, and her parents talked with his.

J stayed as close as she was allowed to be. Salvadore had already expressed his distaste in her closeness with her drones, so instead of standing at her side, J sat underneath the table, hidden by the elegant red cloth, her head resting against Tessa's legs for the human's comfort.

She wanted to bite him. More than she ever wanted to bite Zara. Zara at least had respect for Tessa, every glance at her was filled with passion and love and loyalty.

Salvadore barely looked at her. She caught him trying to hold Tessa's hand under the table, and bit her tongue not to bite a few digits off when he forcefully grabbed Tessa's wrist. J may not have been able to see Tessa's face, but she knew she had to have been uncomfortable.

Oh, how she wished she was allowed to bite.

Zara was relatively easy to distract. It took V a few minutes to gather up the courage to start speaking to her, holding onto the human's hand to guide her, making sure that she stayed at the opposite end of the ballroom, out of Tessa's sight, and where she couldn't see what was happening. She felt bad for being an accomplice at keeping a secret from Zara. Shd knew Tessa hated it too, because it wasn't right, and Zara deserved to know, but how could they explain any of it?

"And then you tie it like this!"

V held up the small flower crown that she had made from the centerpiece of the table they were sitting at.

Zara tilted her head curiously, eyes wide in astonishment. "Whoa…how did you get so good at making them?" She glanced down at the rose in her hands, being careful not to get jabbed by any of the stray thorns that still remained on the stem.

"I make them all the time with N, when we aren't doing anything else around the manor."

"N." Zara glanced around, as if scanning the crowd around them for someone. "..He's the little butler drone, right? The one with the.." She gestured to her own hair. "He's got hair that looks like a raven, right?"

V shook her head. "Nope, that's grimm. N has silvery-white hair like me and J! He's such a sweetheart and he's handsome and clumsy and.."

She stopped when she realized Zara was watching with an interested look on her face, leaning her head against her palm.

"...I..I mean he's…..yeah." V looked down, trying to hide the blush that had taken over her visor.

"And you two are…dating, right?" Zara tilted her head a little more.

"DATING!" She said it a little louder than she meant to, placing her hand over her mouth in embarrassment.

"We're- ..I mean we sorta- we're not really.." V fixed her gaze on the table in front of her, considering her words. "...We're just..courting each other."

"So dating, then." Zara giggled.

V slowly nodded. "......yeah. It just feels weird to say."

"I get it!" Zara reached over the table to put her hand over V's. "I'm the same way with Tessa! It feels…weird to say that we're…y'know…together, but she makes me feel all soft and fuzzy and.." The human was now blushing just as hard as V had been.

"..and I love to see her laugh and smile." She happily sighed. "...She's amazing."

"Tessa feels the same way about you, if it helps any." V smiled in return, locking eyes with Zara. "She really does."

Zara looked around again. "..speaking of Tessa, where is she? I haven't seen her all night."

V tensed up. "She's!.." Think. Think Think Think V c'mon. "Her…Master and Mistress Elliot have her busy with the guests tonight!" She nervously waved her hand in emphasis. "Distant family and..all that, y'know?"

Zara thought for a moment, and nodded, looking a little dejected. "Oh…yeah, I…that makes sense…I was just hoping I'd get to see her.."

To V's dismay, Zara stood up and gently stretched, looking around. "...I'm sure Mr. And Mrs. Elliot wouldn't mind if I just said hi to her..?"

An idea popped into V's processor, and she took it. Without saying a word, she bolted from the chair that she had been seated across from Zara in, nearly throwing herself over the table at the human and throwing her arms around her, only reaching Zara's midsection.

Time seemed to freeze for a moment. Zara had been caught completely off-guard, and V held onto her tightly, burying her face in the fabric of Zara's dress.

"Oh!..."

After a few moments, Zara looked down and returned the embrace.

"Are…are you alright, V?"

The drone nodded, raising her head just a little to unmuffle her speech.

She decided to entertain J's fears. Maybe if she could get Zara to say it herself, J would finally believe her.

"I just…know you and Tessa are getting closer and I.." She took a forcefully shaky breath, putting on her best performance of genuinely being upset. "...I want you to like me and the others so we don't get replaced."

Zara's concerned smile faltered.

".. you think i'm going to make her get rid of you all..?"

V simply buried her head in Zara's dress again, mostly doing so to hide the fact that there weren't any actual digital tears. Besides, she could understand why Cyn liked to stay at Zara's side when she was around. She was soft and warm.

"Oh, V.." Zara shook her head and looked around, sighing as she placed a hand on V's back. "No, no.." She took a few steps back to the table, sitting down and cradling V in her arms, holding the drone close.

Her gaze drifted back towards the crowd, knowing that somewhere amongst the guests, was Tessa.

"...I'll find her before I leave." She nodded and whispered under her breath, beginning to play with V's hair to comfort her.

She could love Tessa all she wanted, but J, V, Cyn, Grimm and N, they were all Tessa's too. Loving Tessa meant loving them as well [platonically, of course], and she was more than happy to do so.

Besides, they had been with Tessa first.

☽✧ ✦ ✧☾

"She could be an actress." Cyn leaned against the table, watching V's little display.

"It's all going well so far!" N glanced around, using the table to raise himself a little higher to look over the crowd. He could see Tessa at the main table, thankfully shielded from Zara's view by the decorations and groups of people. For once, he was happy that the manor's ballroom had been this crowded.

"I know she really wants to see Tessa." N frowned.

"She will, eventually." Cyn picked up the wine glass that had been placed on the table beside her and swirled around the champagne. Not that she could drink it, she just thought it was fun. "Tessa is smart. She'll make it work."

"I don't doubt it!" He watched the champagne sparkle in the glass. "I'm just worried."

He knew she would be fine. Cyn was right, Tessa was smarter than people expected. She had her ways when it came to tough situations. She'd managed to keep J from being scrapped when she tore into the last suitor, N was convinced she could do anything.

"Besides, it's not our place to worry right now." Cyn held the glass up to her face, allowing her sensors to take in the sweet fragrance, before placing it back down. "J and V have it under control." She laid her chin on the table, looking up at her big brother. He had spaced out for a moment, watching a few of the attendees talking with drinks in their hands, while another couple, who he recognized as Tessa's distant aunt and uncle, quietly danced in the corner.

"Well, since we don't have any assigned duties tonight."

Cyn tilted her head at N as he stood up and held out a hand to her.

"Care to dance, little sister?"

Cyn shyly looked down.

"I…I dont know how to."

"Neither do I!" N smiled, gently taking her hand in his.

"Awkward sibling dance?"

"....Awkward sibling dance." She nodded.

It was only half a lie from N. He'd danced before with V at night, out in the courtyard, but it was never more than a half-attempted waltz.

"...and then…to the side, like this?"

He nodded. "And then you put your arms here."

Cyn placed her arms around his shoulders, laying her head against his shoulder and smiling as they swayed for a moment.

"See? You've got it!"

He pulled himself away from her, still holding her hand, before picking her up and doing a little twirl, smiling as she giggled.

They repeated the motions, repeating them a little better each time.

"You sure you weren't a dancer?" N teased as he held her close again.

Cyn giggled. "I could say the same about you. Keep it up and you'll sweep V right off her feet one day."

With her face resting against his shoulder again, she couldn't help but let out a sigh of contentment. This was her big brother. They may not have come from the same assembly line, they may not have been similar models, but he was her brother, and she was his sister, and nothing in the world could change that.

She was about to be picked up again when the tension in the room rose. Her robotic hackles raised, she felt N tense up as well.

And then they heard the scream.

☽✧ ✦ ✧☾

Tessa had hated him from the moment he walked in.

He was loud. He was rude, he was so overly spoiled and held his head with a "better than thou" attitude.

She hated it. She hated his scruffy blonde hair and his blue eyes (Zara's were prettier. And much more vibrant). For the most part, she'd managed to avoid talking to him, instead listening to the conversations at the table around them, feeling the weight of J laying against her legs under the table, comfortingly resting her head in her lap, where no guest could see.

Tessa silently slid her hand under the table and began to play with the drone's hair, feeling the vibrations from her throat against her skin. J's purring was an extra comfort. It reminded Tessa that she was there to protect her, that she was safe, and if anything went wrong, she had her guard drone.

A hand reaching over to grasp one of her tied-back locks of hair snapped her from her thoughts, glancing over.

Salvadore inspected her auburn hair, giving her a silent look of distaste.

"Hm…it's going to muddle the genes." He shrugged in terribly hidden annoyance. "..I suppose we'll have to work with it."

She wanted to smack him in the face then and there, but she held her temper, feeling a gentle nudge from J underneath the table.

"I suppose we will." Tessa grumbled in response, forcing an uncomfortable grin.

She felt a tug on the opposite arm, looking down to see J cautiously poking her head out from under the tablecloth, making sure not to be seen by the others, gesturing at Salvadore with her eyes. Tessa shook her head in response, motioning her back under the table.

She immediately regretted her decision to back J off, feeling Salvadore's hand against her arm, forcefully grabbing her hand under the table. His hand brushed against her thigh, and she froze. From the corner of her vision, she could see him looking her up and down, and she wanted to curl up under the table with J and die.

Oh, J wasn't having any of it.

The second she saw their hands touch, a growl rose from her chest and settled in her throat, only growing louder as his hand brushed against her dress.

She knew what she was about to do, and she didn't care. They could scrap her, she'd die happy. She wasn't about to let this entitled brat get away with it.

Tessa heard the bone snap before she heard Salvadore's cry of pain, instantly releasing her wrist, but grabbing onto the fabric of her dress, ripping a chunk from the left side, exposing her left leg just above the knee.

J had held on for as long as she could without being dragged out from under the table, sinking her teeth into the boy's arm and biting as hard as her jaws would allow her, licking the blood from her teeth and scampering out from under the table before she could get caught.

The room fell silent, save for Salvadore's whimpering and the alarmed murmurs from the two families at the table. Tessa took her moment of opportunity to hide behind her parents, trying to make herself look smaller behind her father.

"Tessa."

She glanced up at her mother.

"Where is J?"

Tessa looked around, her gaze settling on J, who looked as though she had been perched next to one of the beverage tables, quietly polishing an unused wine glass.

"She's been over there all night."

Good job, J.

"What on earth..?"

Louisa finally glanced down, noticing the ripped side of Tessa's dress, her eyes slowly drifting towards Salvadore as his parents doted over him and assessed his wounds.

"James."

She felt her father's hand on her shoulder. This was it. This was her moment to slip away and find Zara. She'd tell her everything. And then she'd tell her parents.

She heard her father call her name as she removed his hand from her shoulder and made her way through the crowd, feeling a little less guilty when she faintly heard her mother instruct him to let her go.

In her hurry to leave the room, she'd missed Zara sitting cross-legged against the wall, with a now-sleeping V laying against her side.

Zara, however, noticed her, and in the moment she'd turned her head to carefully move V, taking extra caution not to disturb the sleeping drone, she'd missed Salvadore chasing after her, now cradling his injured arm in a scrap of the tablecloth fabric.

"V? Where are you, I need to talk to Zara!"

Tessa heard the door behind her open, and turned with excitement, expecting it to be her Zara.

Instead, she was met with another firm hand on her wrist.

"What the HELL was that about?"

She fixed her posture, standing up straight to match his aggression.

"Is THAT your idea of flirting?!"

He rolled his eyes, taking a few steps forward, cornering Tessa against the staircase.

"I'm not any happier about this than you are."

Using his uninjured hand, he forced his hand against her cheek, cupping her face roughly.

"Get away from me." Tessa hissed.

"If this is going to work, we have to learn to play nice."

"I don't have to do SHIT." Tessa reared her head, attempting to jerk away in defiance, raising her arms in defense and digging her fingernails into his shoulders as he lunged forward and kissed her.

Zara's heart dropped.

She'd entered just in time to witness the kiss, wide-eyed and cradling the small envelope that she'd lovingly decorated with little heart stickers the night before.

She locked eyes with Tessa for a single moment, before backing away towards the main doors, and disappearing outside, tears already streaming down her face.

Shit. SHITSHITSHITFUCK.

Tessa continued to dig her fingernails into his shoulders, but no matter how much pressure she applied, he showed absolutely no signs of letting go.

…she'd take the assault charges. He could whine to his parents all he wanted to.

With a swift motion of her leg, Salvadore was on the floor, crying in pain again. She'd made contact with his shin, digging the heel of her shoes into his leg before finally freeing herself of his grasp.

Zara briefly considered calling her father and demanding he come pick her up, but how was she going to explain her reasoning to him? She'd witnessed her girlfriend making out with someone else? How the hell was she supposed to explain that she thought she'd had a girlfriend in the first place?! Instead, she collapsed on the concrete stairs, curling her knees to her chest and staring down at the puddles that had begun to form from the steady drizzle outside

Her makeup was starting to smudge, but she didn't care.

She stared down at the envelope in her hand, tear stains beginning to mix with the raindrops on the paper.

How could she have been so stupid?

Lightning crackled overhead, but she didn't care. It could have struck her, and she would have taken it.

"...Zara?"

She didn't answer.

"Zara, it's not what you think."

She felt Tessa's presence behind her, but she refused to look up.

"...sure." Zara coldly replied. "Am I the side chick, or is he?"

Tessa shook her head and sat down beside her. Zara still refused to look at her. "It's not like that!"

She felt the mascara running down her cheeks.

"Why just have one when you can have however many you want, right?" Zara glanced at Tessa's reflection in the puddle.

"Zara, look at me, please-"

"SO YOU CAN LIE TO MY FACE AGAIN?!"

Tessa never expected to hear rage in the little redhead's voice. It hurt just as much as the tears streaming down her lover's face. She looked down and winced.

"..I wasn't doing it to hurt you."

Zara chuckled in bitter amusement.

"Well you failed that one."

Tessa carefully reached out to put her hand over Zara's, wincing as she flinched away from the touch.

"It was arranged from the start, Zars. I didn't agree to any of it. I sure as hell didn't willingly kiss him."

Zara finally made eye contact with her, hesitantly allowing Tessa to touch her hand.

"...why didn't you tell me before? Why, Tess?"

They maintained eye contact. The pain in Zara's gaze hurt.

"I didn't want you to back off. I didn't want you to think I want to be with him, I don't want him, Zara."

Tessa was gentle with her, again. The rain seemed to make her face softer, and the moonlight made that azure stare sparkle just a little more.

"It's you Zara."

She leaned a little closer, letting Zara rest her head in her hands.

"It's always been you, and always will be you."

Despite the storm growing around them, they stayed there for a moment, allowing the rain to soak them. Tessa could feel the cold air seeping into her bones, but she didn't care. She had Zara, and that was all she wanted. The only person that mattered to her was right there in front of her.

"I'm not…the best at talking, I never have been." Tessa looked down.

Zara leaned closer, pressing their noses together.

"Then screw talking."

And then they kissed, again.

It was much more passionate this time.

Zara wrapped her arms around Tessa's shoulders, holding onto her like her life depended on it, while Tessa hugged her waist, pulling each other close. There was more rain than bodies, but neither of them seemed to care.

The need to breathe was the only thing that forced them to separate, still holding on tightly to each other.

"Tessa?"

Tessa leaned down to kiss Zara on the nose.

"Yes, Zara?"

"No more secrets. Okay?"

Tessa nodded, giving her another peck on the bridge of her nose.

"No more secrets, I promise."

A crack of lightning lit up the sky around them, followed by a rumble of thunder that shook the ground. Zara yelped in fear, tightening her grip around Tessa's shoulders and scooting closer to her.

"Let's get out of the rain, shall we?"

Zara frantically nodded.

☽✧ ✦ ✧☾

For once, they cuddled.

A majority of the guests had left for the night after the incident and Tessa's sudden disappearance, but thanks to her knowledge of the various hidden staircases of the manor, sneaking past the rest of the drones and humans had been relatively easy.

Zara allowed Tessa to coddle her, nestling down in the blankets after they'd both changed from the fancy dresses they had been in before, unable to contain her laughter as Tessa began peppering her face in kisses, with Zara trying to return as many as possible.

"..Hey, Zars?"

"Hmmmm…?" Half-awake, Zara raised her head, tiredly smiling as Tessa ran her fingers through Zara's hair.

"I..I'm sorry for earlier. All of it. It really…wasn't my best plan."

Zara scooted herself closer, nuzzling her face into Tessa's neck, before kissing her chin.

"Mmm…I forgive you, Tess."

She let Zara drift off to sleep. She deserved it. Once she heard the gentle snoring coming from the smaller human, she laid her head down on the pillow beside her and relaxed, silently counting the freckles on Zara's cheeks and nose, using the moonlight from the window to make out what she could.

Maybe it was a few hours, it could have been minutes- she was entirely unsure, but at some.point, another weight laid against her back, and she recognized the movements as Cyn, struggling to worm herself under the blankets behind Tessa to snuggle up to her.

Her eyes adjusted to the darkness again, and she could make out V and N, cuddled up together between her and Zara's legs, the little charging cords from the wall stretching to attach to the base of their necks.

And then there was J, quietly sulking to the end of the bed and sprawling out on top of the blanket, letting out a frustrated huff.

Tessa had noticed her shift in behavior, but never linked it to Zara, assuming it was just the stress of the recent events with her family and Salvadore- which she'd deal with in the morning. J was safe, Zara didn't hate her, and Salvadore likely had a broken arm and leg from how hard she'd kicked him. She wasn't at all sorry.

"..Maybe I should see about getting J to a therapist." She quietly muttered.

She felt Cyn nod against her back, and tiredly chuckled to herself.

"...We'll deal with that in the morning."

And with that, Tessa yawned and snuggled closer to Zara, keeping her arms around her and gently resting her head above Zara's, allowing her to stay snuggled up to her chest.

And in that quiet, private moment, everything was perfect.

#murder drones #tessa x zara #lesbians #before the dawn updates #tessa james elliot #solver bound au

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politicalprof · 1 year

Text

A Declaration

As I do every year, the full text of the Declaration of Independence. Almost no one has read the whole thing. If you haven’t, give it a read. It’s interesting. Flawed, but interesting.

Enjoy the day!

____________

In Congress, July 4, 1776

The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America,

--He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.

--He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.

--He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.

--He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.

--He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.

--He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected; whereby the Legislative powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.

--He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.

--He has obstructed the Administration of Justice, by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary powers.

--He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.

--He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harrass our people, and eat out their substance.

--He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.

--He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power.

--He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:

+For Quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:

+For protecting them, by a mock Trial, from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:

+For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:

+For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:

+For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury:

+For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences

+For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies:

+For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws, and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:

+For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.

--He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.

--He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.

--He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.

--He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.

--He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages, whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.

Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our British brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which, would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.

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nordleuchten · 2 years

Note

Hey! How are you doing? Hope you're having a lovely day whenever you read this!!

So, I have two different things to ask, but I'll make them both, sorry to be bothering and hope this doesnt get too long lol

1st. I know that Adrienne was a deeply Christian woman from birth to death, and I know that in some time in her life she helped out Protestants (?). So, my question here is basically, did she always helped people from other religions like that? or that was just something she used to do out of charity without caring too much about those people? Did she always sort of have it in her or did she only started it because of everything that was happening in the country? (dont know if i worded that in a understandable way, if i didnt let me know)

2nd. did the lafayette's (and their respective families) owned any sort of pets? (I've heard of that dog that Gilbert had and when he died, it went to live with his valet (?), but when did he got that dog too? did it simply appear in front of the house and it stayed? so many questions... so many questions... lmao)

Dear @msrandonstuff,

Don’t you worry, I am never bothered by asks! :-)

For the first question, Adrienne was a devout catholic. She was taught by her mother and the duchess d’Ayen always allowed Adrienne, her sisters and later La Fayette, when he moved in with the family, to question things. In my opinion that is not only a very healthy way to teach religion but also reduces prejudges. Adrienne's husband La Fayette was a great champignon of religious freedom. He wrote to George Washington on May 11, 1785:

102 ⟨Protestants⟩ in 12 ⟨France⟩ are under intolerable 80 ⟨Despotism⟩—altho’ oppen persecution does not now Exist, yet it depends upon the whim of 25 ⟨king⟩; 28 ⟨queen⟩, 29 ⟨parliament⟩, or any of 32 ⟨the Ministers⟩—marriages are not legal among them—their wills Have no force By law—their children are to Be Bastards—their parsons to Be Hanged—I Have put it into My Head to Be a 1400 ⟨Leader⟩ in that affair, and to Have their Situation changed—with that wiew I am Going, under other pretences to Visit their chief places of abode, With a Consent of 42 ⟨Castries⟩, and an other—(…) it is a Work of time, and of Some danger to me, Because none of them Would give me a Scrap of paper, or Countenance whatsoever—But I Run My chance—(…).

“To George Washington from Lafayette, 11 May 1785,” Founders Online, National Archives, [Original source: The Papers of George Washington, Confederation Series, vol. 2, 18 July 1784 – 18 May 1785, ed. W. W. Abbot. Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia, 1992, pp. 550–551.] (10/01/2022)

La Fayette was not lying, when he said that the undertaking could be somewhat dangerous to him. He wrote his letter in ciphers, tasked John Quincy Adams with delivering the letter personally because Adams was just returning to the States and asked Washington not to reply to his portion of the letter. Washington urged La Fayette to be carful and to that La Fayette replied on February 11, 1786:

(…) I thank you most tenderly, my dear General, for the Caution You Give me, which I will improve, and find that Satisfaction in my prudence to think it is dictated By You—I Hope, Betwen us, that in the Course of Next winter the affair of the protestants Will take a Good turn (…)

“To George Washington from Lafayette, 6 February 1786,” Founders Online, National Archives, [Original source: The Papers of George Washington, Confederation Series, vol. 3, 19 May 1785 – 31 March 1786, ed. W. W. Abbot. Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia, 1994, pp. 538–547.] (10/01/2022)

I got a bit distracted here so back to the question at hand. Adrienne was not opposed to Protestants gaining civil rights, but she was very opposed to every action that was directed against the Roman Catholic religion. She absolutely and staunchly refused to take mess from a priest who had sworn the civil oath and when La Fayette, himself more or less reluctantly, received the new Bishop of Paris for dinner, Adrienne made it a point to not partake. That was not just a private dispute about religious customs, but her absence at the dinner table made national headlines.

La Fayette was not happy about Adrienne’s behaviors during this time as he himself was between a rock and a hard place. He believed in religious freedom but was forced to carry out the politics of the assembly – politics that he often did not fully support. Adrienne was normally his strength and stay but in matters of religion she refused to bow even to her husband.

Adrienne had a firm stand on religious matters and she was willing to face serious repercussions for following her faith. I could not recall a specific event where Adrienne helped Protestants in particular and I also think that she did not knew a great many Protestants personally (simply because they were not in her private circles.) But Adrienne was also a gentle and carrying soul, a mother and someone who deeply believed in Christian charity, and I therefore can not imagine that she would have turned away someone needing or seeking her help, solely because of their religion.

As to the second question, yes, the La Fayette’s owned a number of animals but we have to differentiate here. After his release from prison and return to France, La Fayette started farming at La Grange. From Jules Germain Cloquet’s book we know that during the height of the farm, La Fayette owned 1000 – 1200 sheep, 30 – 40 cows and 100 – 150 pigs. Cloquet described the animal population of La Grange in great detail. How they came to the farm, how they were housed, how they were feed, how they smelled (the pigs emitted no “disagreeable smell”) and what not.

La Fayette also had a little ménagerie at La Grange for more exotic animals that he was gifted. Cloquet wrote:

One is a grated enclosure, a sort of ménagerie, in which Lafayette kept such foreign animals as were sent to him. After his return to France, he had received, from Governor Clarke, a young gray bear from the Missouri territory. Ever animated with the desire of being useful to his fellow-citizens, he refused to keep so rare an animal at Lagrange, and made a present of it to the professors of the Museum of Natural History, to be placed in their ménagerie.

Jules Germain Cloquet, Recollections of the Private Life of General Lafayette, Baldwin and Cradock, London, 1835, p. 213.

As to more domestic animals, you already mentioned La Fayette’s little white dog. Cloquet wrote:

During his malady, Lafayette was very fond of a small white bitch, which he had received, I believe, from Madame de Bourck, and which never quitted him. The animal, which was gifted with a remarkable degree of instinct, permitted nobody, except Bastien, to approach her master’s clothes when he was in bed, expressed joy or sorrow according as he felt better or worse, and might have served as a thermometer to indicate the state of his health. Since the General’s death, she has followed Bastien to Lagrange, but has never resumed her gaiety.

Jules Germain Cloquet, Recollections of the Private Life of General Lafayette, Baldwin and Cradock, London, 1835, p. 274.

La Fayette most likely owned more dogs during his lifetime, but I have neither numbers nor names for you. He was, however, quite knowledgeable about the different breeds and sometimes got his hands on dogs that his friends in America wanted to purchase. He was also a lover of horses and while he owned several horses during his lifetime, one is especially famous: Jean Le Blac – I wrote about him in a post on here but thanks to tumblr’s *exceptional* search-engine I can not even find my own post.

Hope that helped and I hope you day was/is just as lovely as mine was! :-)

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