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drunkonaheistinspace · 10 months

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forgotten birthdays and expensive slaps

originally published: November 23rd, 2019

reworked: December 3rd, 2023

Pairing: Illinois x gn!Reader

Rating: General Audience

Tags: fluff, friendship, can be read as platonic

You did not know why you were still following this idiot into life-threatening situations.

Okay, you actually knew it. You just had nothing better to do and he was dumb enough to offer you a job. Other than that, you pretty much had a crush on him. Well, who wouldn’t? He was handsome, educated and a real-life version of Indiana Jones. Only with more muscle.

You expected it to be one of those days when you risk your lives for an antique artifact. But something was different.

Your flight was without any turbulence, Illinois wasn’t involved in any bar fights, and you were not hunted by any criminal organization. But the strangest thing was yet to come. You saw Illinois O'Connell without his precious hat, which he usually did not take off either while sleeping or while showering.

But now he was standing in front of you. Hair neatly combed back and dressed in a suit. This sight was unfamiliar. A pig walking on two legs looked righter than whatever this was.

"Illi? Are you all, right? Should I call a doctor?" You asked anxiously as you continue to mentally process his sight.

The adventurer just looked at you confused. "A doctor? What are you talking about?"

Instead of answering, you simply point to his suit with a look that was a mixture of confusion, astonishment, and horror.

Still confused, he looked down to find the reason for your strange behavior. It took him a moment to understand what you meant.

"Oh, the suit!"

Well, that had taken surprisingly long.

"I go to an auction and as much as I love my hat and my outfit, I thought it would be more appropriate to stick to the dress code," said the adventurer, as he straightened his bow tie.

An auction? If he makes himself so fancy, then it would have to be an auction for the higher social class. In short, the complete opposite of you. But that made you wonder.

You knew he had money. How else would he finance all the travels and give you a generous paycheck every month? But you never really thought about how much money he really had. Let alone how he earned it!

It was completely impossible that your adventures could finance all this, because after all you did not even know what he did with all the stuff you find. Does he donate it to a museum? Does he sell it? Does he keep it? If he keeps it, then where? Does he even have a permanent residence? Where does he come from? So many questions and hardly any answers.

You've known him for almost two years, but you knew so little about him. You did not even know his last name after four months.

This man was an Enigma and that made him even more attractive! If that was even possible.

"What kind of auction?" You asked curiously, as you could not imagine any sort of auction that Illinois would go to.

"An art collector died last month and now his family is auctioning off his collection."

"Art collectors? Since when have you been interested in art? "

You never had the impression that he was a fan of anything that would be classified as ‘modern art’. The only art he seemed interested in was those whose ages were in the triple digits and started at least seven. Or the art which he saw every time in the mirror.

"I do not," he admitted. "I know from a safe source that he has collected valuable paintings as well as some ancient artifacts. I hope to find something special for my collection. "

So, he has a collection. Will he show it to you if you ask nicely?

"And what do I do in the meantime?" You ask. He certainly had a job that you could do during this time.

"Well, you come with me, of course!" He said with a smile. "You are my partner after all!"

It surprised you to hear that he actually intended to take you along. After all, he knew very well that you did not know how to behave at such events, and they would easily recognize you as an outsider.

In fact, the thought of going there made you pretty scared. More scared than that one time Illinois and you were hunted by a bunch of mutant monkeys on lions. The difference was not in the nature of the danger, but in the fact that if you had died back then, then at least you have died the hero's death. At the auction you will most likely die of embarrassment.

"But ... so you know ... well ... I do not really ... have the right ... um ... the right thing to wear! Yes! I just have my usual stuff with me and none of that would fit into such an event! "

You hoped that this excuse helped, because you could not think of anything better. That was not even a lie. You never expected that your boss would ever go to such events and therefore packed only things that are comfortable and robust. You were for climbing a mountain, hiking in the forest and even for a sudden blizzard equipped, but not for an evening with rich people!

Illinois gave you just one of his charming smiles that made you melt each time.

"Do not worry, partner. I've already taken care of everything. "

Before you could understand what, he meant by that, you found yourself in the auction room. You were driven here in a chic limousine, and you probably wore your annual salary in the form of a very simple, but unspeakably comfortable outfit.

The auction was quiet.

So quiet that it bored you.

It started with the countless paintings the deceased had collected over many years. There were some interesting pieces here and there, but you were not interested in buying them.

After almost two hours, the artifacts passed over. For ordinary citizens, these would have been very interesting, but you had already seen better. Not all that was of any value to you, and you were starting to get frustrated. A look at your partner told you that he felt the same way.

You were so bored after a time that you became more and more tired and now sat in your chair half asleep. You've just heard that a ring of unknown origin was presented, and you did not think much of it. You had yourself a bunch of rings lying around that you collected during your adventures. They served as a small investment. You could sell them anytime you needed money.

You were about to fall asleep when Illinois suddenly raised his hand to bid, which startled you so much that you almost fell off your chair.

Suddenly you were wide awake, and you tried to understand what was happening at that moment.

The bid jumped moment by moment from a three-digit amount to a five-digit amount and seemed to have no end. Finally, the adventurer bought the ring for half a million and you just sat there. Shocked and confused. But mostly shocked.

Someone needed to have a small talk with this man about responsible money management!

You waited outside when your boss paid and hoped he did not really carry that much money on him. But who knows?

When he came out, you wanted to confront him about the ring, but your heart stopped momentarily, and you did not get a single word out when he took your hand and put the ring on your finger.

"Happy Birthday, partner!" Was the only thing he said.

It was your birthday? The constant traveling and the following jetlag fucked with your perception of time, which meant that you never knew what day or month it was. There is also the slight chance that this also led to you forgetting that you even had a birthday in the first place.

But now you stood there. Completely perplexed and with a ring on the finger, which could finance your pension without any problems. You did not think when you raised your hand and slapped him. Only then did you realize that you had just struck your own boss with half a million. This thought was both surreal and quite satisfying.

"What was that for?!" he asked, holding his aching cheek.

"Take a fucking guess!"

You're waving your hand in front of his face as clue, but also as a kind of warning that you're always ready to give him one more slap.

"I thought you would like it!"

"I would have loved flowers or a card! Even a cup of coffee would have been enough!"

You take a deep breath and try to calm down a bit. "What I mean is that you should not spend so much money on me. If you want to throw me half a mill, then at least in the form of my paycheck! "

Illinois looked like a beaten puppy, and you regret having raised your hand and your voice against him. You have never experienced him so hurt.

"Forgive me. I should have asked you first ..." he said in a low voice. You feel terrible. "It's just that you survived the longest of all my partners. I just do not want you to change your mind and leave me."

You already knew the story of his other partners. That was pretty much the first one he ever told you.

"I won’t leave you," you said after a long pause, which made him look surprised. "If someone told me five years ago that I would travel around the world and voluntarily collect ancient artefacts from caves and the like, I would have laughed at them. But this is my life now and I love my job because it allows me to see the world and experience everything. And apart from that, I have the best boss in the world!"

A smile bloomed on his face, and you could not help but kiss him on the cheek, causing him to blush.

You smile at him again before you turn away. "But now we are looking for a restaurant! The birthday child is hungry!" You exclaim, as you started walking.

Illinois laughed before running after you.

#ghost writing #illinois x reader #in space with markiplier #a heist with markiplier #ahwm illinois #iswm illinois #fanfiction

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dankusner · 3 months

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Flossmoor auctioning garden art to fund upkeep of public sculptures

Workers install sculptures by artist William O’Brien in May at Brassie Avenue and Flossmoor Road, a busy recreation area in Flossmoor.

The sculptures are among the newest public art pieces in the village. Village of Flossmoor

Flossmoor has long been a center of public art, as one can see by driving around the village, noticing the many sculptures.

There are 12 in the permanent collection and seven in the rotating collection.

Maintaining and obtaining all that public art costs money, and the Flossmoor Public Art Commission, which oversees the collection, could use some help.

So they’re turning to something they know well, auctioning art created for just that purpose.

Nancy Burrows, co-chair of the public arts commission, touched on why this month’s art auction has a key role.

Some public art collections she’s seen in other towns look weathered because of lack of upkeep, and she doesn’t want Flossmoor to fall into that trap. “It’s quite a balancing act,” Burrows said.

Hence, the Garden Art Auction.

“Public art is an important part of Flossmoor’s identity and brand,” she said. “However, it is not funded by the village. The village provides incredible support for the program but the funding is through donations.”

Pieces of art designed by local artists — including one by Flossmoor Mayor Michelle Nelson — will be auctioned this month to raise funding to support the permanent and rotating exhibits.

You can find and bid on artwork by visiting www.ArtFlossmoor.com. Click on “garden art” and then on “garden art online auction.”

There, you will find 34 pieces of art on which to bid. They range from small to large, all with a garden art theme.

There’s even art you can sit on.

Burrows created 16 items for the auction.

“We wanted a theme that worked with the outdoor idea of sculpture. So, we thought that garden art would be a good way to publicize who we are and what we do,” Burrows said.

Many of the pieces sit on stakes, so they can be placed in a garden or yard.

“We even have one piece donated and created by Jason Verbeek, one of the artists in our rotation,” she said. He now has two sculptures in that rotation.

Verbeek donated “Rock Dancer” to the auction.

And as of June 27, that has received the highest bid of any piece at $650.

“The other piece that is getting a lot of play is a downtown scene painted on an Adirondack chair that the mayor, Michelle Nelson, built and painted. She’s very talented,” Burrows said.

The green Adirondack chair Nelson built from scratch had the second-highest bid at $350 as of June 27.

“I enjoy building stuff in my spare time,” said Nelson, a civil engineer by trade. “My chair is painted Flossmoor green. I matched it to the village’s logo color. An Adirondack chair is a little plain, so I painted a scene of our downtown area because it’s so beautiful.”

Downtown architecture, sculptures, flowers “for our green commission,” and “the LGBTQ flag for how welcoming and inclusive we are here in town” are incorporated in the scene.

In a clever touch, the hands of the clock in her painting read 7:24. Why so specific?

“In military time, that’s 19:24, the date of our establishment. It’s our 100-year anniversary,” Nelson said.

Nelson spent about 20 hours building and painting the chair. She added a sealcoat to protect it from the weather.

Flossmoor, the mayor said, is keen on art “because public art sparks conversation and interest.”

“Residents really appreciate the value and beauty it brings to the community. And art does have a wow factor,” said Nelson, who was elected mayor in 2021.

“We are blessed with an incredible art commission with a wide range of expertise. We are so lucky the (seven) commissioners volunteer their time to bring in these beautiful pieces.”

The public art program in Flossmoor was established in 1998 through private donations and an Illinois FIRST grant.

The village added new sculptures to its permanent collection of public art this spring, and it incorporated a new sculpture into its rotational collection.

A 9-foot bronze sculpture called “Paradise” by the late artist Hubert Phipps that evokes the landscape of America’s West was installed at the west end of Flossmoor in Ballantrae Park, 1404 Lanark Ave.

In May, Chicago-based artist William O’Brien came to the village to place three related sculptures together at the southeast corner of Flossmoor Park, at Brassie Avenue and Flossmoor Road.

Burrows said the art commission hopes to raise $6,000 to $10,000 via the auction, which is accepting bids through July 25.

They’re also open to adding more items to sell.

“If more pieces come in, we are accepting them to add to the auction,” Burrows said.

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silent-era-of-cinema · 4 years

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Colleen Moore (born Kathleen Morrison; August 19, 1899 – January 25, 1988) was an American film actress who began her career during the silent film era. Moore became one of the most fashionable (and highly-paid) stars of the era and helped popularize the bobbed haircut.

A huge star in her day, approximately half of Moore's films are now considered lost, including her first talking picture from 1929. What was perhaps her most celebrated film, Flaming Youth (1923), is now mostly lost as well, with only one reel surviving.

Moore took a brief hiatus from acting between 1929 and 1933, just as sound was being added to motion pictures. After the hiatus, her four sound pictures released in 1933 and 1934 were not financial successes. Moore then retired permanently from screen acting.

After her film career, Moore maintained her wealth through astute investments, becoming a partner of Merrill Lynch. She later wrote a "how-to" book about investing in the stock market.

Moore also nurtured a passion for dollhouses throughout her life and helped design and curate The Colleen Moore Dollhouse, which has been a featured exhibit at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, Illinois since the early 1950s. The dollhouse, measuring 9 square feet (0.84 m2), was estimated in 1985 to be worth of $7 million, and it is seen by 1.5 million people annually.

Moore was born Kathleen Morrison on August 19, 1899, (according to the bulk of the official records;[4] the date which she insisted was correct in her autobiography, Silent Star, was 1902)[5] in Port Huron, Michigan,[6] Moore was the eldest child of Charles R. and Agnes Kelly Morrison. The family remained in Port Huron during the early years of Moore's life, at first living with her grandmother Mary Kelly (often spelled Kelley) and then with at least one of Moore's aunts.

By 1905, the family moved to Hillsdale, Michigan, where they remained for over two years. They relocated to Atlanta, Georgia, by 1908. They are listed at three different addresses during their stay in Atlanta (From the Atlanta-Fulton Public Library city directories): 301 Capitol Avenue −1908; 41 Linden Avenue – 1909; 240 N. Jackson Street – 1910. They then lived briefly — probably less than a year — in Warren, Pennsylvania, and by 1911, they had settled in Tampa, Florida.

At age 15 she was taking her first step in Hollywood. Her uncle arranged a screen test with director D.W. Griffith. She wanted to be a second Lillian Gish but instead, she found herself playing heroines in Westerns with stars such as Tom Mix.

Two of Moore's great passions were dolls and movies; each would play a great role in her later life. She and her brother began their own stock company, reputedly performing on a stage created from a piano packing crate. Her aunts, who doted on her, indulged her other great passion and often bought her miniature furniture on their many trips, with which she furnished the first of a succession of dollhouses. Moore's family summered in Chicago, where Moore enjoyed baseball and the company of her Aunt Lib (Elizabeth, who changed her name to "Liberty", Lib for short) and Lib's husband Walter Howey. Howey was the managing editor of the Chicago Examiner and an important newspaper editor in the publishing empire of William Randolph Hearst, and was the inspiration for Walter Burns, the fictional Chicago newspaper editor in the play and the film, The Front Page.

Early years

Essanay Studios was within walking distance of the Northwestern L, which ran right past the Howey residence. (They occupied at least two residences between 1910 and 1916: 4161 Sheridan and 4942 Sheridan.) In interviews later in her silent film career, Moore claimed she had appeared in the background of several Essanay films, usually as a face in a crowd. One story has it she had gotten into the Essanay studios and waited in line to be an extra with Helen Ferguson: in an interview with Kevin Brownlow many years later, Ferguson told a story that substantially confirmed many details of the claim, though it is not certain if she was referring to Moore's stints as a background extra (if she really was one) or to her film test there prior to her departure for Hollywood in November 1917. Film producer D.W. Griffith was in debt to Howey, who had helped him to get both The Birth of a Nation and Intolerance through the Chicago censorship board.

"I was being sent to Hollywood - not because anybody out there thought I was any good, but simply to pay off a favor".

The contract to Griffith's Triangle-Fine Arts was conditional on passing a film test to ensure that her heterochromia (she had one brown eye, one blue eye) would not be a distraction in close-up shots. Her eyes passed the test, so she left for Hollywood with her grandmother and her mother as chaperones. Moore made her first credited film appearance in 1917 in The Bad Boy for Triangle Fine Arts, and for the next few years appeared in small, supporting roles gradually attracting the attention of the public.

The Bad Boy was released on February 18, and featured Robert Harron, Richard Cummings, Josephine Crowell, and Mildred Harris (who would later become Charles Chaplin's first wife). Two months later, it was followed by An Old-Fashioned Young Man, again with Robert Harron. Moore’s third film was Hands Up! filmed in part in the vicinity of the Seven Oaks (a popular location for productions that required dramatic vistas). This was her first true western. The film’s scenario was written by Wilfred Lucas from a story by Al Jennings, the famous outlaw who had been freed from jail by presidential pardon by Theodore Roosevelt in 1907. Monte Blue was in the cast and noticed Moore could not mount her horse, though horseback riding was required for the part (during casting for the part she neglected to mention she did not know how to ride). Blue gave her a quick lesson essentially consisting of how to mount the horse and how to hold on.

On May 3, 1917, the Chicago Daily Tribune said: "Colleen Moore contributes some remarkable bits of acting. She is very sweet as she goes trustingly to her bandit hero, and, O, so pitiful, when finally realizing the character of the man, she goes into a hysteria of terror, and, shrieking 'Daddy, Daddy, Daddy!' beats futilely on a bolted door, a panic-stricken little human animal, who had not known before that there was aught but kindness in the world." About the time her first six-month contract was extended an additional six months, she requested and received a five weeks release to do a film for Universal's Bluebird division, released under the name The Savage. This was her fourth film, and she was only needed for two weeks. Upon her return to the Fine Arts lot, she spent several weeks trying to get her to pay for the three weeks she had been available for work for Triangle (finally getting her pay in December of that year).

Soon after, the Triangle Company went bust, and while her contract was honored, she found herself scrambling to find her next job. With a reel of her performance in Hands Up! under her arm, Colin Campbell arranged for her to get a contract with Selig Polyscope. She was very likely at work on A Hoosier Romance before The Savage was released in November. After A Hoosier Romance, she went to work on Little Orphant Annie. Both films were based upon poems by James Whitcomb Riley, and both proved to be very popular. It was her first real taste of popularity.

Little Orphant Annie was released in December. The Chicago Daily Tribune wrote of Moore, "She was a lovely and unspoiled child the last time I saw her. Let’s hope commendation hasn’t turned her head." Despite her good notices, her luck took a turn for the worse when Selig Polyscope went bust. Once again Moore found herself unemployed, but she had begun to make a name for herself by 1919. She had a series of films lined up. She went to Flagstaff, Arizona for location work on The Wilderness Trail, another western, this time with Tom Mix. Her mother went along as a chaperone. Moore wrote that while she had a crush on Mix, he only had eyes for her mother. The Wilderness Trail was a Fox Film Corporation production, and while it had started production earlier, it would not be released until after The Busher, which was released on May 18. The Busher was an H. Ince Productions-Famous Players-Lasky production; it was a baseball film wherein the hero was played by John Gilbert. The Wilderness Trail followed on July 6, another Fox film. A few weeks later, The Man in the Moonlight, a Universal Film Manufacturing Company film was released on July 28. The Egg Crate Wallop was a Famous Players-Lasky production released by Paramount Pictures on September 28.

The next stage of her career was with the Christie Film Company, a move she made when she decided she needed comic training. While with Christie, she made Her Bridal Nightmare, A Roman Scandal, and So Long Letty. At the same time as she was working on these films, she worked on The Devil's Claim with Sessue Hayakawa, in which she played a Persian woman, When Dawn Came, and His Nibs (1921) with Chic Sale. All the while, Marshall Neilan had been attempting to get Moore released from her contract so she could work for him. He was successful and made Dinty with Moore, releasing near the end of 1920, followed by When Dawn Came.

For all his efforts to win Moore away from Christie, it seems Neilan loaned Moore to other studios most of the time. He loaned her out to King Vidor for The Sky Pilot, released in May 1921, yet another Western. After working on The Sky Pilot on location in the snows of Truckee, she was off to Catalina Island for work on The Lotus Eater with John Barrymore. In October 1921, His Nibs was released, her only film to be released that year besides The Sky Pilot. In His Nibs, Moore actually appeared in a film within the film; the framing film was a comedy vehicle for Chic Sales. The film it framed was a spoof on films of the time. 1922 proved to be an eventful year for Moore as she was named a WAMPAS Baby Star during a "frolic" at the Ambassador Hotel which became an annual event, in recognition of her growing popularity.[13] In early 1922, Come On Over was released, made from a Rupert Hughes story and directed by Alfred E. Green. Hughes directed Moore himself in The Wallflower, released that same year. In addition, Neilan introduced her to John McCormick, a publicist who had had his eye on Moore ever since he had first seen her photograph. He had prodded Marshall into an introduction. The two hit it off, and before long they were engaged. By the end of that year, three more of her films were released: Forsaking All Others, The Ninety and Nine, and Broken Chains.

Look Your Best and The Nth Commandment were released in early 1923, followed by two Cosmopolitan Productions, The Nth Commandment and Through the Dark. By this time, Moore had publicly confirmed her engagement to McCormick, a fact that she had been coy about to the press previously. Before mid-year, she had signed a contract with First National Pictures, and her first two films were slated to be The Huntress and Flaming Youth. Slippy McGee came out in June, followed by Broken Hearts of Broadway.

Moore and John McCormick married while Flaming Youth was still in production, and just before the release of The Savage. When it was finally released in 1923, Flaming Youth, in which she starred opposite actor Milton Sills, was a hit. The controversial story put Moore in focus as a flapper, but after Clara Bow took the stage in Black Oxen in December, she gradually lost her momentum. In spring 1924 she made a good but unsuccessful effort to top Bow in The Perfect Flapper, and soon after she dismissed the whole flapper vogue; "No more flappers...people are tired of soda-pop love affairs." Decades later Moore stated Bow was her "chief rival."

Through the Dark, originally shot under the name Daughter of Mother McGinn, was released during the height of the Flaming Youth furor in January 1924. Three weeks later, Painted People was released. After that, she was to star in Counterfeit. The film went through a number of title changes before being released as Flirting with Love in August. In October, First National purchased the rights to Sally for Moore's next film. It would be a challenge, as Sally was a musical comedy. In December, First National purchased the rights to Desert Flower and in so doing had mapped out Moore's schedule for 1925: Sally would be filmed first, followed by The Desert Flower.

By the late 1920s, she had accomplished dramatic roles in films such as So Big, where Moore aged through a stretch of decades, and was also well received in light comedies such as Irene. An overseas tour was planned to coincide with the release of So Big in Europe, and Moore saw the tour as her first real opportunity to spend time with her husband, John McCormick. Both she and John McCormick were dedicated to their careers, and their hectic schedules had kept them from spending any quality time together. Moore wanted a family; it was one of her goals.

Plans for the trip were put in jeopardy when she injured her neck during the filming of The Desert Flower. Her injury forced the production to shut down while Moore spent six weeks in a body cast in bed. Once out of the cast, she completed the film and left for Europe on a triumphal tour. When she returned, she negotiated a new contract with First National. Her films had been great hits, so her terms were very generous. Her first film upon her return to the States was We Moderns, set in England with location work done in London during the tour. It was a comedy, essentially a retelling of Flaming Youth from an English perspective. This was followed by Irene (another musical in the style of the very popular Sally) and Ella Cinders, a straight comedy that featured a cameo appearance by comedian Harry Langdon. It Must Be Love was a romantic comedy with dramatic undertones, and it was followed by Twinkletoes, a dramatic film that featured Moore as a young dancer in London's Limehouse district during the previous century. Orchids and Ermine was released in 1927, filmed in part in New York, a thinly veiled Cinderella story.

In 1927, Moore split from her studio after her husband suddenly quit. It is rumored that John McCormick was about to be fired for his drinking and that she left as a means of leveraging her husband back into a position at First National. It worked, and McCormick found himself as Moore's sole producer. Moore's popularity allowed her productions to become very large and lavish. Lilac Time was one of the bigger productions of the era, a World War I drama. A million dollar film, it made back every penny spent within months. Prior to its release, Warner Bros. had taken control of First National and were less than interested in maintaining the terms of her contract until the numbers started to roll in for Lilac Time. The film was such a hit that Moore managed to retain generous terms in her next contract and her husband as her producer.

In 1928, inspired by her father and with help from her former set designer, a dollhouse was constructed by her father, which was 9 square feet with the tallest tower 12 feet high. The interior of The Colleen Moore Dollhouse, designed by Harold Grieve, features miniature bear skin rugs and detailed furniture and art. Moore's dollhouse has been a featured exhibit at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, Illinois since October 30, 1949, where according to the museum, it is seen by 1.5 million people each year and would be worth $7 million. Moore continued working on it and contributing artifacts to it until her death.

This dollhouse was the eighth one Moore owned. The first dollhouse, she wrote in her autobiography Silent Star (1968), evolved from a cabinet that held her collection of miniature furniture. It was supposedly built from a cigar box. Kitty Lorgnette wrote in the Saturday, August 13, 1938 edition of The Evening News (Tampa) that the first dollhouse was purchased by Oraleze O'Brien (Mrs. Frank J. Knight) in 1916 when Moore (then Kathleen) left Tampa. Oraleze was too big for dollhouses, however, and she sold it again after her cat had kittens in it, and from there she lost track of it. The third house was possibly given to the daughter of Moore's good friend, author Adela Rogers St. Johns. The fourth survives and remains on display in the living room of a relative.

With the advent of talking pictures in 1929, Moore took a hiatus from acting. After divorcing McCormick in 1930, Moore married prominent New York-based stockbroker Albert Parker Scott in 1932. The couple lived at that time in a lavish home at 345 St. Pierre Road in Bel Air, where they hosted parties for and were supporters of the U.S. Olympic team, especially the yachting team, during the 1932 Summer Olympics held in Los Angeles.

In 1934, Moore, by then divorced from Albert Parker Scott, returned to work in Hollywood. She appeared in three films, none of which was successful, and Moore retired. Her last film was a version of The Scarlet Letter in 1934. She later married the widower Homer Hargrave and raised his children (she never had children of her own) from a previous marriage, with whom she maintained a lifelong close relationship. Throughout her life she also maintained close friendships with other colleagues from the silent film era, such as King Vidor and Mary Pickford.

In the 1960s, Moore formed a television production company with King Vidor with whom she had worked in the 1920s. She also published two books in the late 1960s, her autobiography Silent Star: Colleen Moore Talks About Her Hollywood (1968) and How Women Can Make Money in the Stock Market (1969). She also figures prominently alongside King Vidor in Sidney D. Kirkpatrick's book, A Cast of Killers, which recounts Vidor's attempt to make a film of and solve the murder of William Desmond Taylor. In that book, she is recalled as having been a successful real estate broker in Chicago and partner in the investment firm Merrill Lynch after her film career.

Many of Moore's films deteriorated, but not due to her own neglect, after she had sent them to be preserved at the Museum of Modern Art. Some time later, Warner Brothers asked for their nitrate materials to be returned to them. Moore's earlier First National films were also sent, since Warners later acquired First National. Upon their arrival, the custodian at MOMA, not seeing the films on the manifest, put them to one side and never went back to them. Many years later, Moore inquired about her collection and MOMA found the films languishing unprotected. When the films were examined, they had decomposed past the point of preservation. Heartbroken, she tried in vain to retrieve any prints she could from several sources without much success. In 1956, the material from WB and FN was sold to Associated Artists Productions, later to MGM/UA and then, Turner Entertainment.

At the height of her fame, Moore was earning $12,500 per week. She was an astute investor, and through her investments, remained wealthy for the rest of her life. In her later years she would frequently attend film festivals, and was a popular interview subject always willing to discuss her Hollywood career. She was a participant in the documentary series Hollywood (1980), providing her recollections of Hollywood's silent film era.

Moore was married four times. Her first marriage was to John McCormick of First National Studios. They married in 1923 and divorced in 1930. In 1932, Moore married stockbroker Albert P. Scott. This union ended in divorce in 1934. Moore's third marriage was to Homer Hargrave, whom she married in 1936; he provided funding for her dollhouse and she adopted his son, Homer Hargrave, Jr and his daughter, Judy Hargrave. They remained married until Hargrave's death in 1965. In 1982, Moore married her final husband, builder Paul Magenot. They were married until Moore's death in 1988.

On January 25, 1988, Moore died from cancer in Paso Robles, California, aged 88. For her contribution to the motion picture industry, Colleen Moore has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1551 Vine Street.

F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote of her: "I was the spark that lit up Flaming Youth, Colleen Moore was the torch. What little things we are to have caused all that trouble."

#colleen moore #silent era #silent hollywood #silent movie stars #1910s movies #1920s hollywood #golden age of hollywood #classic movie stars #classic hollywood #1930s hollywood #flapper #roaring 20s

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kcrinas · 4 years

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hi sexies ! i’m dani ( she/her ) , 21 & i’m from the gta aka ur messy canadian wassup 🤠 thank u guys sm for applying all ur muses are so beautiful & im sm in love already ! i rly wanna plot w every single one of u so pls give this a like for permission for me 2 come bug u for plots ! 🖤 karina’s info & wanted connections r under the cut !

karina maji was spotted in the fashion district adorning gucci leather ankle boots , with some airpod pros on . they’re most likely listening to don’t stop by meg thee stallion . you may know them as @karina or as that mishti rahman lookalike . their twenty - fourth birthday just passed . while living in tribeca , they’ve gained a bit of a reputation . they’re known to be tenacious but on the other hand quixotic . wonder if they’ll be the next person to hit the headlines . ( cisfemale / she/her + dani / 21 / she/her )

* 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐬 :

full name : karina aarvi maji .

nicknames : kar , rina , maji

age : twenty - four .

gender : cisfemale , she/her .

sexual orientation : pansexual .

hometown : chicago , illinois .

occupation : professional mma fighter / instagram model .

zodiac chart : aquarius sun , gemini moon , scorpio rising .

character inspo : alicia mendez ( kingdom ) , cristina yang ( grey’s anatomy ) , princess jasmine ( aladdin ) , megara ( hercules ) , alyssa ( the end of the f*cking world ) , kat stratford ( 10 things i hate about you )

* 𝐛𝐢𝐨𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐩𝐡𝐲 :

tw : death , accident , drugs .

karina’s life began in chicago , illinois . born where her parents spent their life , grew up together & eventually ended up married . it was the perfect love story , best friends - then lovers - then soulmates . tied for life , married young , in their mid 20′s . but the love between the two of them never faltering once even after another 10 years pass .

her mother , was a highly sought after model . her father , one of the most legendary ufc fighters in the league . the maji’s were considered royalty to the tabloids , their love story inspiring many . their life was seemingly so perfect , a dream to many . & when they found themselves blessed with a little girl after five years of marriage , it just made them an even more “ perfect ” family .

karina was treated like a princess , her parents adored the ground she walked on & karina did the same with them . she was well - behaved growing up , knowing how lucky she was to be living so luxurious , something her parents taught her to appreciate since she was old enough to understand . they drilled gratefulness into her head by the age of five . it was a very rare occurrence where karina would fight or disrespect her parents .

they lived in chicago for many years , a way for them to keep their roots established while raising karina . & have more privacy than living in their career hubs would give them - aka , nyc or la . it was much more accessible for her father to work out of chicago , but for her mother , there were many hours spent travelling between chicago & new york . too many .

( tw death , plane crash ) it was the mere age of 17 , when karina’s loving mother never returned home from her trip to new york . tragedy struck when her plane crashed due to pilot error . the day that changed not only karina’s life permanently , but her father too . both their hearts broke into two that day .

she wondered for months how she could possibly continue life & living without her mom in it . & the older she got , the more & more the feeling invaded her . through every life experience she had afterwards she wished with everything in her that her mom was there next to her .

karina went from a happy , extroverted & polite girl to a closed off , sardonic & enigmatic woman . it was as if the light was taken out of her body & she turned into someone unrecognizable .

( tw drugs ) it tore her dad apart , after taking a year off to mend , he fell into a spiral of alcohol & drugs , and he never went back . his career completely ended . to this day , her dad hasn’t stepped foot in the ring since her mother’s death .

her senior year of high school - karina fell into that same spiral . using cocaine , xanax , weed & booze to cure her broken heart . & she felt like it did , for a little while anyway . by some miracle , she graduated with her diploma . but that didn’t mean much anyway , karina wasn’t going to college , she knew exactly what she wanted to do with the rest of her life .

karina grew up religiously watching her dad fight , she’d seen tapes of every single one of his fights before she was old enough to watch them & from before she was born . religiously trained & boxed with her father every sunday since she was eleven . she learned the ins & out at a young age , & fell in love with the sport the second she took her first swing .

she fell even more heavily into training after her mom passed , spending practically every single day honing her skills & building herself to follow in her dad’s footsteps & become one of the best fighters the ufc has ever seen .

began building her career at eighteen by moving to new york city , she was signed by the age of 20 . suddenly appearing in the tabloids , there was something about her that seemed to bring in people’s attention . mma fans or not , she gained a large following on social media .

suddenly , she was getting sponsorship offers left & right . whether it was mma related or sugarbear hair , she was getting them . karina took the ones that paid her well , & her following just seemed to keep rising every day after that , basically became considered an “ influencer ” along with her other title .

at the age of 21 , karina became one of the youngest female ever to be signed by the UFC . this was a big deal to her , as it’s a dream so many fighters wish for . something it takes years of hard work & dedication to accomplish . something she worked her entire life for .

she’s been fighting with the ufc for the last three years , loving every minute of it . the intense training , the fights , the interviews , it all gives her a rush she can’t explain . something drugs couldn’t give her , which she’s required to get tested for every once in a while , usually before a fight . she’s found her ways around using without it ruining her career and/or getting caught . let’s see how long that lasts .. ; - ) ksjndfsfd

with all the money that she’s reigned in the last few years from the ufc along with her instagram sponsorships , she’s sending a lot of it to her father , considering his “retirement” fund is basically non - existent while he stays cooped up in their chicago family home , surrounded by memories of her mother . while karina stays resided in her cozy tribeca home , only steps away from her training gym .

* 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 :

karina is a v hard nut 2 crack . she’s closed off , sardonic & doesn’t really converse much with strangers

it’s basically been her & her dad since her mom’s passing , so she’s very hard to get close to . but once u do , she’ll never let u go .

she’s loyal to a fault , because she’s always afraid of people leaving / d*ing .

she’s trying to branch out & make more friends since moving to tribeca , but she truly doesn’t open up to anyone . if she opens up to you about her life or her past , she truly trusts u , & that means something

she tends to come off as intimidating or .. bitchy , even when she doesn’t mean to . her personality just tends to be dry . she tends to have dark humour , so she has to be careful who she makes jokes around skndfkk

sometimes tends 2 stir up drama even by accident . nskjkf

if she’s not training for a fight , she’ll be out partying every night . dancing on tables & probably getting herself kicked out of whatever bar/club she found herself in that night . doing what she can to get drunk or feel any type of high , whether that be drugs or waking up next to a stranger .

she’s heavily into fashion & always posting cute outfits on instagram , something that caused her following to grow .

she’s lowkey a hopeless romantic ... seeing how her parents fell in love , but it scares tf out of her because of their ending . & she’d literally never admit this to anyone ever .

she’s a new muse & i’m still developing her but i have sm muse so i’m very excited & i rly hope you guys like her !

* 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 :

ok hello if u read that long ass messy shit ur a baddie 🖤 anyway , for wc’s , i literally have so many !! they are all listed here @karinawcs , so take a peek & if you like any of them lmk bc i have tons of headcannons / ideas for all those ! hehe ily let’s plot

#10 yrs later hfdkskf #sry this got so fkn long ...#plot w me pls 🥺🖤#wealthyhq:intro

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ozma914 · 3 years

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The Newsletter Travels to the Past, and Hoosiers Are Still Hysterical

It was ten years ago this summer when my first novel, Storm Chaser, was published. Almost exactly a year before that I received the publishing offer, an event I envisioned as going very differently than it did. I told that story in our latest newsletter:

https://mailchi.mp/200abd2041ac/ten-years-published

Don't forget to subscribe, and in return I'll try to be entertaining. And no, I don't sell my e-mail list to anyone, although I suppose the NSA already has it.

Meanwhile, since then we've (Emily is invaluable) had ten more works published. One of them is Hoosier Hysterical: How the West Became the Midwest Without Moving At All. I'm highlighting it because today it appears on the Fussy Librarian website, which you'll find at https://www.thefussylibrarian.com/

You can get it at the same price on the website or Amazon (it's illustrated and everything!) at just $2.99 as an e-book and $10.00 in paperback. You could even hand me the cash and I'll hand you a book--I won't tell.

It's a little silly, but I like to see how many I can sell in a short period of time. I have a theory that if you sell two books on Amazon within an hour, you'll end up in the top ten, and selling ten in that time gives you the ability to brag about being a best seller. Nobody really understands their algorithm, so why not?

If you choose to accept that experiment, the link is here:

https://www.amazon.com/Hoosier-Hysterical-became-midwist-without-ebook/dp/B01H7YJNFE

Or, as usual, you can buy it direct from us here:

http://www.markrhunter.com/

It's well know, of course, that Hoosier Hysterical is among the top ten humorous Indiana history and trivia books ever written, so far this decade. And to prove it, below the obligatory cover posting is a new excerpt from the book, one which I assume is quite funny. Although as I write this I haven't picked it out, yet, so I could be wrong.

INDIANA FACTS:

“He’s Our President! No, He’s Ours!”

Three states can lay claim to Abraham Lincoln. You could say he was born in Kentucky, grew up in Indiana, and did all his adult stuff as an Illinois resident.

Well, you can say it if you want—who am I to stop you? It’s a free country, partially thanks to Abe.

A lot of the stuff you hear about Abe Lincoln is, surprisingly, true. His family got to America in 1637, and Thomas Lincoln’s father, the original Abraham, moved his family to Kentucky in 1782. So it took them almost 150 years to reach the Bluegrass State and produce little Abe, but hey—travel took longer back then.

Unfortunately, four years after they arrived Grandpa Abe Lincoln was killed by American Indians, because, after all, he stepped on their proverbial lawn. But Thomas grew up, married Nancy Hanks, and bought a farm near Hodgenville. Hodgenville is south of Louisville along the Lincoln Parkway, although it’s safe to assume the highway didn’t exist at the time.

Just like in the stories, Abraham Lincoln was born in a one-room log cabin, and later attended school in a log schoolhouse. They laid a lot of logs back then.

In 1816—the same year Indiana became a state—the Lincoln family crossed the Ohio River and settled in Indiana. Abe was six, so we Hoosiers can claim some of his formative years.

And formative they were. At age seven he shot a wild turkey, which upset him so much he never hunted again. It was February, after all, and with no way to keep the turkey until next Thanksgiving, it was wasted.

The next year he got kicked in the head by a horse, and for a time everyone thought he was dead. Personally, that would have put me back on to shooting animals. That same year his mother did die, permanently, from a medical condition called milk sickness.

Like Lincoln, milk sickness was uniquely American—this is the only continent it happened on. It came when cows ate a plant called white snakeroot, and wouldn’t you think the name alone would keep the cows away from it? That’s why learning to read is so important. Today milk sickness is almost unheard of, so we use fast cars to control the population.

Lincoln didn’t attend school much, but he developed a love for reading and would borrow books whenever he could. This was because they had no electricity for his PlayStation. You can’t power a videogame console with candles, but you can sure as heck read by them.

He also got to travel a bit, something many people never did. In 1828 he helped crew a flatboat down the Mississippi, and got his first taste of slavery when he saw a slave auction in progress. During the same trip seven black men tried to rob the flatboat, which could be called ironic. After he fought them off Lincoln didn’t hold a grudge.

Then, in 1830, the Lincoln family moved 200 miles, into Illinois. Abraham Lincoln was never heard from again.

Okay, not really. In fact, that same year Lincoln made his first speech, which urged navigation improvements on the Sangamon River, near Decatur. Over the next several years he read, enlisted in the military, read, ran a business into the ground, read, became a postmaster, got elected to the state legislature, and realized he’d read so much he could start studying law.

So it all worked out pretty well for him.

Okay, there were bumps along the way. He had bouts of depression, lost an election, was unlucky in love, and almost got into a sword duel. All because he left Indiana, so let that be a lesson to you.

In 1900 Lincoln’s son, Todd, gave $1,000 to take care of his grandmother’s Indiana grave. Spencer County officials gave another $800, and bought 16 acres around the gravesite. That place is now the Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial. I understand there’s also a monument for Abe in Washington.

#hoosier hysterical #humor #indiana #writing #history #non-fiction

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fluorescentpipedream · 4 years

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Aidan Marcone - 1st son of Emma and Christian Marcone. Aidan is as much his father as he isn’t, if that makes sense....after a rough patch in his teen years he decides he’d rather go into business for himself than take over the family mob business and forms a side project with a handful of his friends. I think they’re into real estate and night clubs though I’m not completely sure. While in California for a business meeting he finds himself back in old trappings, with a woman he never stopped thinking about and credits with his desire to be better than the man he calls his father.

Carter Davidson - Carter believes in love wholly and fully though he’s never really had anything permanent. Willing to work as a boyfriend for hire, he goes by the name Giacomo Casanova though he will be anyone you want him to be, often creating a new persona depending on who he’s going to be working for/with. Carter sees the best in people, and often has a way of bringing it out through the genuine care and love he provides.

Casper Madsen - Casper is the principal of O Fallon Township High School in O Fallon, Illinois. He was best friends with Lily Barnes’ father and is actually her godfather as well and in that tries to make sure that Lily has everything she needs to succeed in her life. He tries to make sure the school is a safe place for all of his students as well and when he found out that two of the people working there were pedophiles he was mortified and disgusted, doing everything in his power to make sure they were held responsible for their actions and someone better was put in their place.

Corey Snow - finally looks the way he should. Corey is a pop musician, extremely kind hearted and genuinely loving to anyone that comes into his path. Part of this has to do with his mother’s raising to accept everyone for who they are inside rather than what you see on the outside (she has dwarfism and he had to deal with teasing when he was younger because his mom was a “freak”) Corey has been in love with the same person since he was a boy and the two have been together and are generally inseparable from one another. He loves Lillian (Lili) through thick and thin, she’s accepting of his bisexuality and seems to be okay with the few times he’s been with men (from what I’ve picked up he’s never actually had an official boyfriend, but has been with other men and there’s pictures of several of them on his private instagram. He has two of them, one he gives to fans, the other is for people he’s close to) Corey would do anything for her, and a good portion of his songs are about her in some way or another.

David Bournecelli - poor David. He’s been through a few character looks over the years but this one hit home. The only son of Liam’s youngest brother, David was abused by his parents and sequestered in a small mental hospital in Sicily where he was treated to horrendous medical procedures, possibly in hopes of triggering his change, though one can never be sure. I know one of the main ones was electro-shock treatment which has given him seizures and generally took away his ability to speak for several years of his life. David is known to bite, scratch and claw at people, even if they’re trying to help him. Most of his anger is that he’s 19 years old and trapped inside of his own mind with no way of getting out of it. He’s often found lying beside a large sheepdog (his uncle), and though he lashes out at people mostly beyond his own control, he doesn’t seem to hurt animals and is usually pretty calm around them. He likes being outside too.

Dimitri, Liam’s eldest son and the Alpha of the Bournecelli family seems to believe his latent animal form can be triggered, and that’s part of what would help him heal, though I’m not sure what he is yet or how exactly Dimitri expects to trigger it, except perhaps he may scratch the boy in his garou form and draw it out.

Liam Bournecelli - Liam isn’t a new character but he did need an update in appearances, like his nephew. Kind hearted, loving, stoic and calm, Liam is the oldest of his four brothers and the one that’s been the most undramatic. His youngest brother is David’s father and following his rather untimely death a few years ago, Liam was told about the nephew no one knew about being held in a remote mental facility in Sicily. When Liam rescued the boy, he was a mess, but the kindness he had in his eyes for the young man seemed to soothe some of the madness. Liam brought David to the United States to live with his ‘girlfriend” at the time, Sylvia Summers and to have him stay as a resident at the home she runs for children with disabilities. Liam has been in love with Sylvia for many years and after losing his first wife he finally sought her out, wanting to rekindle the love they’d had together once, if it was possible. Like most of the Bournecellis, Liam has an animal form as well, though his presents itself much like his personality. Fiercely loyal, but calm, sweet and loving, he’s a old sheepdog. When David is having a particularly bad day, his uncle lays down beside him in his dog form so the boy can still be close to something warm.

Jay Kulina - I’ve been fighting off actually making Jay for a while, he’s there and then he’s not there so I never know if he’s actually a character or an NPC type situation. He is Zoe’s eldest brother from Alvey Kulina, a former MMA fighter with a past heavy into drugs, alcohol, sex addiction...you name it he’s probably had a problem with it. After accidentally hurting his sister when he was supposed to be watching her, Jay was taken out of the equation by Alvey who told him simply, either he cleans up his act or he gets the hell out of her life. He sobered up for a while, got married and had a kid of his own, which seemed to help him for a while but it didn’t last, like so many things with him. His wife divorced him recently, her reasoning is that he was violent and abusive towards her and their daughter with down syndrome, his reason is that she’s a gold-digging cunt that didn’t want to put forth the effort to actually care for their son and he’s not making any money anymore so she wanted something else. He is currently fighting for custody of his daughter but with his current situation he’s not sure if A) he’s the best environment for her and B) if he can keep his head above water long enough to care for someone other than himself.

#Johnathan Tucker #Harry Styles #Sam Elliott #Henry Cavill #Gustaf Skarsgard

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dipulb3 · 4 years

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House to take up immigration bills amid influx of migrants crossing US-Mexico border

New Post has been published on https://appradab.com/house-to-take-up-immigration-bills-amid-influx-of-migrants-crossing-us-mexico-border/

House to take up immigration bills amid influx of migrants crossing US-Mexico border

The House will vote on H.R. 6, the American Dream and Promise Act of 2021, sponsored by Democratic Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard of California. It would provide a pathway to citizenship for the young undocumented immigrants known as “Dreamers” as well as for Temporary Protected Status recipients and Deferred Enforced Departure beneficiaries. The legislation stands to make up to 4.4 million individuals eligible for permanent residence, according to the Migration Policy Institute.

The House is also slated to vote on H.R. 1603, the Farm Workforce Modernization Act, bipartisan legislation from Democratic Rep. Zoe Lofgren of California and Republican Rep. Dan Newhouse of Washington. The bill would permit farm workers, and their spouses and children, to earn legal status through continued employment in the agricultural sector, and would make changes to the H-2A agricultural guest worker program.

“This is a very special day for us,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said ahead of the vote. “We are making a very big difference in how we respect the beautiful diversity of America, how we respect the fact that immigration is the constant reinvigoration of America.”

Both of these bills have already been passed by the House in previous years but are being voted on again with Democrats holding slim majorities in the House and Senate. They’re both expected to pass the House again but hit a wall in the Senate.

The chances of these bills getting enough Republican support to reach 60 votes in the Senate is very low, renewing debate among Democrats about ending the filibuster. That would allow legislation to pass with a lower vote threshold, but also appears unlikely to happen.

House Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler said ahead of the votes, “the House will send a clear message that we believe in a just, rational and humane immigration system. I hope that our Senate colleagues will hear us on the other side of the Capitol and will take similar action.”

Democrats are facing increasing scrutiny over their handling of immigration amid a recent surge in border crossings that Republicans have argued is a serious crisis.

House Republicans have been hitting the Biden administration on the influx of migrants crossing the border in recent weeks, including the large increase in unaccompanied minors making the trek into the United States.

Many of those migrants crossing the border have said they believe the Biden administration will be more welcoming than the Trump administration, which had adopted a more hardline posture.

“It’s more than a crisis. This is a human heartbreak,” House GOP leader Kevin McCarthy said at a news briefing on a trip to the border this week. “The sad part about all this, it didn’t have to happen. This crisis is created by the presidential policies of this new administration. There’s no other way to claim it than a Biden border crisis.”

The push to pass these two bills will give House Democrats an opportunity to say they are working to advance immigration reforms, but questions remain over the fate of broader efforts to overhaul the nation’s immigration system.

And while some progressive Democrats would have liked to see comprehensive immigration reform legislation rather than these two piecemeal bills, other Democrats have thrown cold water on the idea, underscoring how much of an uphill climb it would be to pass a broader immigration package.

Senate Judiciary Chairman Dick Durbin told Appradab earlier this week that he doesn’t believe there’s enough support in this Congress to pass a full-blown immigration bill with a pathway to citizenship for 11 million undocumented immigrants, a key pillar of Biden’s immigration plan.

“I don’t see a means for reaching that,” the Illinois Democrat said. “I want it. I think we are much more likely to deal with discrete elements.”

Weighing in on the House effort to move immigration bills, Durbin said, “I think Speaker Pelosi has discovered that she doesn’t have support for the comprehensive bill in the House,” Durbin said. “And it indicates where it is in the Senate as well.”

On Thursday, Appradab asked Raul Ruiz, the chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, about Durbin’s comments.

“There’s different multiple routes that we are going to advocate for. We can advocate it through the budget reconciliation process,” he said.

When asked if budget reconciliation is possible for an immigration bill, Ruiz responded there’s “political will” to do so.

“I think that there is political will and so, you know, that’s, that’s a different route, whether … it’s a possibility I think we’ll have to wait and see, but I think it’s a route we’re going to be advocating for,” he responded.

This story has been updated with additional developments Thursday.

Appradab’s Manu Raju contributed to this report.

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xvillanueva · 4 years

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( SHAY MITCHELL + CISFEMALE ) — Have you seen XYLA VILLANUEVA ? This THIRTY year old is a DIGITAL MARKETING MANAGER who resides in MANHATTAN. SHE has been living in NYC for TEN YEARS, and is known to be RESILIENT and QUICK-WITTED, but can also be STUBBORN and PESSIMISTIC, if you cross them. People tend to associate them with GLIMMERING GOLD JEWELRY and CITY LIGHTS AT DUSK — ( gail, 24, she/her, n/a, EST )

When Xyla Villanueva (also known as Xy) was born on a hot August Chicago afternoon in 1992, her family was not prepared for the whirlwind of a woman she would turn out to be. From a young age, Xy was go-go-go. She was the kind of toddler that you always had to keep an eye on, one that but anything into her mouth and cried at the smallest inconvenience just to get your attention. While she was a handful from the very first breath she took, she was also incredibly passionate, caring and bold - something she carried and develop into her teen years.

Family Life

Xyla had an amazing relationship with her mother Isadora, often viewing her more as another, albeit more authoritative sister. She told her mother everything - which boys she thought were cute at school, all the latest gossip and how frustrated her sisters made her. Though Isadora worked a full-time job as a high-school teacher in their neighbourhood, Is always found the time to have dinner with the girls and stay updated with whatever was going on in their lives. As a result, Isadora was, and still is, Xyla’s best friend and closest confidant.

In contrast, Xy’s relationship with her father was nothing but rocky. Maxwell Villanueva worked for a successful IT Company based in Chicago, with offices across the country. Because of his position within the company and the authority he held, he was always jetting off to city after city on work trips and spendings weeks at a time away from his family. But Maxwell had nothing but his family’s best interest in mind. His prestigious and high paying job allowed Xy, her mother and her two sisters, Quinn (22) and Rowan (29) to have everything they could have possibly wanted, as a child, his absence angered her. She often questioned what he was really doing on trips, why he would spend so much time away from their family and if he even cared about them. This caused her to become quite bitter, pessimistic and suspicious well into her adult years. Today, their relationship is much better than it was, however nothing like what she has with her mother.

Xyla is the middle child of three daughters, and far more rebellious and out-spoken than her sisters. Quinn and her parents live in Chicago, while her older sister lives in Montreal with her husband and little girl. They come to visit her every now and then.

Xyla’s Attitude

Growing up with such strong female figures in her life, Xyla grew to develop the no-nonsense, strong willed attitude that her mom and older sister Rowan had. This was something she then instilled in her little sister Quinn.

While she is unequivocally daring, vivacious and a natural leader, Xyla can also be very stubborn, self-centred and impossibly jealous when she doesn't get her way. This mix of such strong personality traits often causes an internal conflict, where in which her heart told her one thing, and her head said another. As a result, she often finds herself in confrontational situations. However, these traits have allowed Xy to thrive in her position as a Digital Marketing Manager.

Her mood greatly depends on the day, the number of emails waiting in her inbox and whether or not she’d had coffee in the morning. To many, Xyla can appear intense, never really bending to fit the needs of others, and not caring much about what others think of her. But if you’re lucky enough to break through her tough shell, she may be one of your best friends.

Xyla’s Career

Xyla always had an affinity for the media industry, and all that went into it. She found herself actively watching advertisements, analyzing designs of bus ads and critiquing the production value of commercials for fun. However, her fascination with the industry stemmed from the strategic manipulation that encompassed the entire industry. This natural interest propelled her into moving from her hometown Chicago, Illinois to New York to pursue a Marketing Concentrated Business degree at NYU.

Present

Xy lives in Manhattan with her French Bulldog, Mr. Butters, and works as a Digital Marketing Manager for an agency in the city. Every second and every minute of her days are occupied with emails, client calls and meetings, drinks with the girls, candle lit dates and launch parties. Xyla can always be found with a perfect deep red manicure, her hair in a near permanent blow-out, heels clicking against the city pavement and purse slung over her shoulder with everything from her laptop to a canned wine, for emergencies of course.

Wanted Connections!!

I’m really open to almost all plots, but these are just some I’ve whipped up off the top of my head. Ofc, we can always brainstorm and come up with some that better fit our muses!

- ex-fling/friends with benefits. give me one of those are-they or aren’t-they plots! let’s blur the line between romance and just hookin up.

- ride-or-die. xy needs a bunch of friends, but this would be her ride-or-die in the city. they can go to each other for any and everything, discussing men, women, work and everything in-between over bottomless mimosas every sunday

- frenemy. they just don’t get along but play nice when necessary. they both secretly, or not-so-secretly detest each other.

- sister. I would love for one of her sisters to make an appearance!

#codintro #about xyla #i would love a billion plots for her!

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creepingsharia · 5 years

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A Month of Islam in America: June 2019

Another month, and another step forward for sharia in America as more censorship was exposed. A whistleblower leak confirmed that @Pinterest protects Muslims and censors any reference to “creeping sharia,” and many other non-liberal topics.

Click any link below for more details and link to original source.

Jihad in America in June

Brooklyn: Muslim Immigrant Sentenced to 20 Years for Attempting to Join Islamic State (ISIS) Mohamed Rafik Naji was sentenced to 20 years’ imprisonment by United States District Judge Frederic Block for attempting to provide material support or resources to the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS), a foreign terrorist organization. Naji pleaded guilty to the charge in February 2018.

Brooklyn: Muslim Woman Who Helped ISIS Gets 4 Years, But Will Be Out in 18 Months

With credit for time served, Sinmyah Amera Caesar will end up only serving about 18 months in prison after pleading guilty to charges accusing her of using social media to help recruit IS fighters under the nom de guerre “Umm Nutella.” She had also admitted violating a cooperation agreement with the government a — betrayal that infuriated prosecutors.

Illinois: Bosnian Muslim refugee and mother of 4 jailed for sending money, supplies to ISIS

Mediha Medy Salkicevic, a/k/a Medy Ummuluna, a/k/a Bosna Mexico, 39, was sentenced to 78 months in prison for conspiring to provide material support to terrorists.

Salkicevic, aka Medy Ummuluna and Bosna Mexico, espoused the ISIS philosophy that infidels should be killed and once said that unbelievers should be buried alive.

At the time of her arrest, she was working for an air cargo company at Chicago O'Hare Airport...

Illinois: Two Muslim converts convicted of aiding Islamic State (ISIS)

Joseph D. Jones and Edward Schimenti proudly waved a terrorist flag during a photo at a Lake Michigan park in Zion, had plotted to attack the Navy’s main U.S. training center near North Chicago and once had their eyes on planting an ISIS flag atop the White House.

Now Jones and Schimenti, both 37, have been found guilty of providing material support to ISIS.

Indiana: Yemeni Muslim who tried to join Islamic State terrorists gets 8 years in prison

U.S. District Court Judge Sarah Evans Barker handed down the 100-month sentence Friday afternoon in the case against 21-year-old Akram Musleh, U.S. Attorney Josh Minkler announced.

He admitted in the plea agreement that from about April 2016 through June 21, 2016, he offered himself to the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham, also known as IS, knowing it was a “designated foreign terrorist organization.”

Pittsburgh: Syrian Muslim Refugee Arrested for Planning Jihad Attack on Christian Church

Mustafa Mousab Alowemer, 21, a resident of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was arrested today based on a federal complaint charging him with one count of attempting to provide material support and resources to the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS), a designated foreign terrorist organization, and two counts of distributing information relating to an explosive, destructive device, or weapon of mass destruction in relation to his plan to attack a church in Pittsburgh.

“Court documents show Mustafa Alowemer planned to attack a church in the name of ISIS, which could have killed or injured many people...”

Ohio: Jordanian Muslim Immigrant Sentenced to 15 Years for Trying to Join Islamic State (ISIS)

A Dayton, Ohio man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court to 180 months in prison and 25 years of supervised release for attempting, and conspiring, to join the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS).

Laith Waleed Alebbini, 28, was convicted following a bench trial in November and December 2018 before U.S. District Judge Walter H. Rice.

Alebbini attempted, and conspired, to provide material support and resources to ISIS in the form of personnel, namely himself.

Alebbini, a citizen of Jordan and a U.S. legal permanent resident, was arrested by the FBI on April 26, 2017, at the Cincinnati/Kentucky International Airport, as he approached the TSA security checkpoint.

South Carolina: Muslim - twice convicted for attempts to join ISIS and kill Americans - gets 20-year prison sentence

A federal judge has sentenced a South Carolina man who tried to join ISIS to 20 years in prison.

Zakaryia Abdin, 20, pleaded guilty in September 2018. The Ladson man was arrested in March 2017.

New York: Bangladeshi Muslim immigrant arrested in Times Square terror plot

Ashiqul Alam was arrested Thursday after arranging through an undercover agent to buy a pair of semiautomatic pistols with obliterated serial numbers, prosecutors said. Police Commissioner James O’Neill said that development was “a clear indicator of (Alam’s) intent to move his plot forward.”

The defendant, a legal resident born in Bangladesh, moved to the U.S. as a child about 12 years ago...

He talked about wanting to “shoot down” gays, referring to them with a slur; using a “rocket launcher, like a huge one,” to cause havoc at the World Trade Center; and obtaining an enhanced driver’s license so he could walk onto a military base and “blow it up,” the documents said.

Illinois: Muslim Arrested for Threatening to Bomb Aurora Casino for Allah

A recently released affidavit and search warrant claimed that 30-year-old Musatdin M. Muadinov, while detained by police on Feb. 12, vowed to “pray to Allah” to “destroy the casino.” He further demanded to meet with President Donald Trump, saying that if his demands were not met, “we would all meet Allah,” according to the affidavit obtained by the Daily Herald.

Muadinov — who was dressed in what police described as “Muslim attire” when arrested — waived his right to remain silent.

More Jihad in America in June

Florida: Suspect sent bomb threats to judges ‘for cause of Islamic State’

Nebraska: Heavily armed Marine arrested trying to enter Air Force Base

Arizona: Muslim shared terror propaganda before attacking police officer

Brooklyn: Muslim in Jail for ISIS Support Pleads Guilty to Slashing Correctional Officer

South Carolina: Man who pledged allegiance to ISIS hid explosive device in teddy bear

Arizona: Witness in probe of 2015 Islamic jihad attack on free speech event convicted of lying to FBI

Libyan National Found Guilty of Terrorism Charges in 2012 Attack on U.S. Facilities in Benghazi

Iraqi Muslim who orchestrated jihad attack that killed 5 U.S. troops gets 26 years prison, then release to Canada

Immigration Jihad in America

Minnesota’s first Somali Muslim cop gets 12 years for murdering Australian woman

Minnesota: St. Paul’s first Somali Muslim city council member says criticizing his homophobic comments is… Islamophobic

New York: Brooklyn Mosque Blasts Islamic Call to Prayer to 20 Block Radius (VIDEO)

Somalis have Changed Minneapolis

New York: Thousands of Muslims take over two city blocks in Brooklyn to pray in the streets

Four Muslim ISIS suspects arrested in Nicaragua, likely headed for US

Islamization of America

Pennsylvania: 167-year-old Catasauqua church will become Islamic mosque

Pennsylvania: Former Easton church is now a Sunni mosque

Pennsylvania: Former daycare in residential Salisbury to become Muslim “community center”

Virginia: Residential home in Annandale to become a Muslim funeral home

Education Jihad in America

New Jersey Public School District to Students: “May Allah Continue to Shower You Love and Wisdom”

Maryland school fails Christian student for refusing Islamic prayer

New York: Cornell Univ. Muslim Students Demand More “Prayer Rooms”

Stanford administrators say advertising for conservative event threatens Muslim students

The Muslim Brotherhood’s Muslim Students Association: What Americans Need to Know

DOE Investigating Elite Colleges For Hiding Saudi, Qatari Cash from Regulators

Islamic Slavery & Sexual Jihad in America

Virginia: Three Muslim family members arrested for conspiracy, forced labor, and document servitude

Detroit Imam: Wife-Beating Serves to Remind Her That She Misbehaved (VIDEO)

Dhimmitude in Elected Office

Trump Admin Sues Greyhound for Banning Muslim Driver from Wearing Full Length Islamic Robe

Democrat majority passes defense authorization bill that funds transfer of remaining Gitmo jihadis to U.S.

Minnesota: City of Bloomington allows terror mosque to flout local laws (VIDEO)

Minnesota city council votes 5-0 to ditch Pledge of Allegiance (to avoid offending Muslims)

Diversity is our Strength Alert

Minnesota’s first Somali Muslim cop gets 12 years for murdering Australian woman

Minnesota: St. Paul’s first Somali Muslim city council member says criticizing his homophobic comments is… Islamophobic

Boston Police Dept’s First Muslim Captain Put On Administrative Leave Amid ‘Anti-Corruption’ Investigation

Minnesota: First Muslim congresswoman Ilhan Omar fined by state for unlawful use of campaign funds

Minnesota Muslim Rep. Ilhan Omar filed joint tax returns before she married husband

Fraud for Jihad

Connecticut: Muslim Grocery Store Worker Pleads Guilty in $3.2M Federal Food Stamp Fraud

Massachusetts: Muslim Restaurant Owner Pleads Guilty to Tax Fraud Conspiracy

That’s just what we had time to compile for just the month of June.

Far too many steps forward for the sharia, and only a few pushbacks, but worth noting:

New Jersey: School District Scraps Posters Calling upon “Allah” to “Shower” Students with Blessings After Threat of Lawsuit

Rather Than Go to Trial, Terror-linked CAIR Settles with the Victims They Defrauded

Tunisian Muslim who swore allegiance to ISIS removed from U.S.

New York: Albany mosque imam convicted of terrorism is deported back to Iraq It’s almost midnight and Americans are losing their first amendment rights to sharia supremacists and the big technology, media and politicians who support them.

Please share this report before it’s too late.

#Legal #Jihad #Sharia #News #Politics #Immigration #monthly

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newstfionline · 5 years

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Headlines

In bid to slow coronavirus, Canada shuts borders to foreign nationals (Reuters) Canada closed its borders to all foreign nationals except U.S. citizens and permanent residents on Monday, with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau urging people to stay at home to help stem the spread of the new coronavirus.

States begin imposing harsher measures to contain coronavirus as U.S. cases rise sharply (Washington Post) State officials and mayors critical of the federal response to the coronavirus pandemic began imposing the most severe emergency measures to date on Sunday, with four governors effectively forcing restaurants, bars or other businesses to shut their doors. California’s governor asked all bars, clubs and wineries to close. He recommended that restaurants cut their occupancy in half to minimize patrons’ contact. He also called on everyone older than 65 or with chronic conditions to self-quarantine at home. Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine (R) and Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) went a major step further, shuttering all the bars and restaurants in their states. The move in Illinois lasts through the end of March. In Ohio, it is indefinite. Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker (R) even banned gatherings larger than 25 people, which will affect a wide swath of public and community events, sports games, fitness clubs and theaters. Washington state Gov. Jay Inslee (D) took a similar approach with an emergency proclamation that will close all bars and nightclubs, prohibit dining-in service at restaurants and restrict gatherings to less than 50 people. In New York City, Mayor Bill de Blasio (D) said he will order bars, clubs and movie theaters to close and, beginning Tuesday, will only allow pickup and delivery from restaurants.

Peace Corps evacuating volunteers worldwide amid outbreak (AP) The Peace Corps is telling its volunteers around the world that it is suspending all operations globally and evacuating all volunteers in light of the spread of the new coronavirus. In an open letter to volunteers posted Sunday on its website, the federal agency’s director, Jody Olsen, says the decision follows recent evacuations in China and Mongolia due to the outbreak. Olsen says that with evacuations now underway at other posts and travel becoming more challenging by the day, the agency decided to expand the suspension and evacuations. Olsen says the posts are not closing and that the agency looks forward to returning to normal operations when conditions permit.

Airline cuts and cutbacks (Reuters) Airlines around the world said they would make more drastic cuts to their flying schedules, shed jobs and seek government aid after countries further tightened border restrictions because of the fast spreading coronavirus. “This crisis is moving really quickly,” United Airlines Chief Executive Oscar Munoz and President Scott Kirby said in a memo to employees on Sunday.

Mexico holds big music festival despite coronavirus concerns (AP) While the coronavirus pandemic has led authorities around the globe to cancel concerts and sporting events, and even shut down daily activities in some places, Mexico City is going ahead with Vive Latino--one of the most important music festivals in the country. Some acts backed out, but tens of thousands of music fans flocked on Saturday to the first day of the festival, which still expected Guns N’ Roses, Carlos Vives and Zoe to be among its headliners. Organizers said more than 70,000 tickets had been sold for each of the festival’s two days. Hugo López-Gatell, deputy director of the Health Department, said Friday night that Mexico is still in what is considered phase one of a pandemic, with isolated cases of infections in people who had traveled abroad or in a few cases infected others.

El Salvador judge asks US for records of massacre (NYT) It was the worst massacre in the modern history of Latin America: As many as a thousand Salvadoran civilians, many of them younger than 6, killed by a right-wing military dictatorship backed by the United States. Thirty-nine years later, the suspected killers are on trial, and the judge is seeking a crucial piece of evidence: U.S. government records related to the 1981 El Mozote massacre. The prosecution has been lauded by both the U.S. government and the relatives of victims. Now the Trump administration will have to decide what to hand over.

Argentina’s debt and the coronavirus (Reuters) Argentina’s ambitious target to strike a deal with bondholders to revamp almost $70 billion in debts by the end of March was never going to be easy. Now a coronavirus outbreak and crashing bond markets threaten to complicate things further. The South American country is seeking “substantial relief”, Economy Minister Martin Guzman told Reuters last week, but is far from certain to hit its March 31 deadline for a deal, with meetings with creditors affected by the pandemic.

France and Spain lock down (Foreign Policy) Spain has enacted measures similar to those in force in Italy, calling for a near total lockdown on activity in order to deal with the coronavirus outbreak. All non-essential businesses, including bars and restaurants, have been ordered closed and residents have been ordered to stay at home unless they are conducting essential activities like traveling to work or buying food. France has enacted similar measures as French Prime Minister Édouard Philippe advised residents to stay at home except for food shopping and exercise.

Germany to shutter most shops, bars, churches (Reuters) Germany’s federal and state governments agreed sweeping rules shutting everything from non-essential shops to bars, clubs, theatres, museums, brothels and churches in order to slow the spread of the coronavirus, the federal government said.

Russia bans entry to foreign nationals, closes schools (Reuters) Russian authorities on Monday banned foreign nationals from entering the country, shut state schools and limited public gatherings in Moscow in an effort to curb the spread of coronavirus.

Crowded, poor South Asia sees steady rise in coronavirus cases (Reuters) Health authorities across South Asia reported rising numbers of coronavirus cases on Monday, raising the prospect of rapidly spreading outbreaks overwhelming poor medical facilities in a region that is home to a quarter of the world’s people.

Two Bombs Explode Outside Thai Government Office in Yala, Wounding 18 (Reuters) Two bombs exploded in front of a government office in Thailand’s insurgency-hit southern Yala province on Tuesday, wounding 18 people, a security official said.

Malaysia Closes Borders, Shuts Most Businesses in Lockdown (AP) Malaysia’s leader announced on Monday a drastic two-week lockdown in the country to slow the spread of the new coronavirus following a sharp spike in the number of cases.

The United States and Iran are clashing again in Iraq (NYT) Hostilities continue to flare up months after the escalation that led to the U.S. assassination of Maj. Gen. Qasem Soleimani, a top Iranian commander. On Wednesday, a barrage of rocket fire carried out by a pro-Iran Shiite militia hit a military base in Iraq, killing two Americans and a British soldier stationed there. On Friday, the United States responded with airstrikes targeting positions linked to the militia, Kataib Hezbollah. At least five members of Iraqi security forces were killed in the strikes, prompting outrage from authorities in Baghdad angered once more by the brazen “violation of national sovereignty.” On Saturday, the Iraqi government issued a statement warning against such unilateral American action against Iranian-linked militias. “In doing so, it does not limit these actions, but rather nurtures them, weakens the Iraqi state’s ability to provide its own security, and expects more losses for Iraqis,” the statement read. It reiterated an Iraqi parliamentary demand for the departure of U.S. troops in the country. “This necessitates the speedy implementation of the parliament’s decision on the issue of the coalition’s withdrawal.” The U.S. airstrikes were hardly a deterrent; U.S. and coalition forces stationed in Camp Taji, a base north of Baghdad, faced renewed rocket attacks over the weekend, with at least five injuries reported.

Nigeria gas explosion (Foreign Policy) An explosion at a gas processing plant in Lagos killed 15 people and destroyed over 50 residential buildings, emergency services said. According to the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, a truck apparently hit gas cylinders, igniting the explosion.

#headlines #news

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everyendeavor · 5 years

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The Story of this Blog’s Avatar

The Jade Buddha of Universal Peace*

The purpose of exhibiting the Jade Buddha around the world was to raise awareness of Buddhism and promote peace. During the years of March, 2009 — November, 2014 The Buddha toured the planet, spending a week in each location. In April, 2011, The Jade Buddha sat in magnificent stillness in the front yard of Truc Lam Buddhist Temple in Illinois, U.S.A ... directly across the street from my home and office. I visited often, making offerings of flowers and incense. Lama Zopa Rinpoche has said “ It will illuminate the world and bring inconceivable peace and happiness and help prevent the destruction that is happening so much in the world, including war. I want to emphasize the importance of so many people, I think it seems millions of people, who have seen the statue and have therefore have had strong imprints placed in their minds for enlightenment. … Please remember the benefits to sentient beings in what you are doing with the tour, by people even merely seeing the Jade Buddha, ultimately brings them extensive benefit.” Residing now in its permanent home within the Great Stupa of Universal Compassion in Bendigo, Victoria, Australia, it was consecrated there by The Dalai Lama. *Wikepedia (with personal anecdote from The Dancing Flame)

youtube

#the jade buddha of universal peace #the dancing flame #great stupa of universal compassion #bendigo victoria australia

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berniesrevolution · 6 years

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IN THESE TIMES

When the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) convened its 45th annual meeting of legislators and corporate lobbyists at the swank Hilton New Orleans Riverside hotel on August 8, it served up a veritable banquet of union-busting, gerrymandering, pro-fossil fuel, and school privatization proposals for lawmakers to take back home.

Welcoming the ALEC crowd was Jason Saine, a North Carolina Representative and ALEC’s National Chairman. Earlier this year, CMD reported that Saine used $19,000 from his campaign kitty to order custom-tailored suits.

Other keynote speakers included Secretary of Transportation Elaine L. Chao, Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar, Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards, and White House Special Assistant in the Office of American Innovation Brooke Rollins. Rollins was an aide to former governor Rick Perry, who is now Secretary of Energy.

ALEC’s menu of policy proposals at the New Orleans conference included:

Right to Gerrymander Resolution

With citizens turning to the courts and ballot box in a growing number of states to clamp down on hyper-partisan “gerrymandering” schemes, ALEC members will instead be voting on a resolution to defend the right of politicians to keep hand-picking their voters.

Gerrymandering is the practice of manipulating electoral district boundaries to favor the party in power and minimize the ability of opposing parties or disfavored racial and ethnic constituencies to elect candidates of their choice.

The resolution, entitled “Draft Resolution Reaffirming the Right of State Legislatures to Determine Electoral Districts,” asserts the legislative branch’s “sovereignty” over redistricting and states that the “intervention of state supreme courts to redistrict congressional district maps violates the fundamental right of the residents of a state to republican self-government.”

What has ALEC’s knickers in a twist? In Pennsylvania, Republicans drew such a gerrymandered map in 2011 that it resulted in an astonishing 13-5 congressional district advantage in a state where Democrats won five straight presidential elections. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court intervened to ensure that new maps follow the traditional redistricting criteria of compactness, contiguity, and equality of population. In a blow to the Pennsylvania GOP, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to strike down the more balanced maps created by the court.

Other cases on similar grounds have made their way to the nation’s highest court this year from Wisconsin, Maryland, and North Carolina. But the Supreme Court has so far declined to set clear rules limiting this type of voter manipulation.

With the Court failing to act, voting rights advocates are pushing hard for reforms. A quarter of U.S. states have already given non-partisan commissions full or partial authority to draw legislative districts, and with initiatives on the ballot this fall in Colorado, Michigan, Missouri, and Utah, more states may join them soon.

Janus v. AFSCME Victory Lap

ALEC has invited Mark Janus, plaintiff in the Janus v. AFSCME case recently decided by the U.S. Supreme Court, to be a keynote speaker. ALEC, along with the State Policy Network (SPN) and the Kochs’ Americans for Prosperity, are key institutions in a multi-pronged strategy to dismantle public sector unions through the courts and state legislatures across the country. CMD’s reporting on this topic in February received national recognition.

Mark Janus was a public worker in Illinois whom groups put forward as a plaintiff in the case after the actual plaintiff, billionaire Republican Governor Bruce Rauner–who had vowed to dismantle unions for partisan political advantage–was found to not have standing. Rauner’s case was originally filed and promoted by two SPN groups in the state, the Illinois Policy Institute and its offshoot, the Liberty Justice Center.

In May 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court used the ginned-up case to strike down agency fees and make it harder for public sector unions to operate. Shortly thereafter, Janus left public employment to take a job at the Illinois Policy Institute.

“As we celebrate 45 years of ALEC, we meet to create solutions for the future,” ALEC CEO Lisa B. Nelson said in a press release about the meeting. But one of the first bills on the ALEC agenda has been on the corporate wish list for a very long time. ALEC’s latest union-busting bill, which would force unions to hold recertification elections every other year, has long been pushed by anti-union PR man Richard Berman and others.

Under the proposed measure, unions would have to get the votes of a majority of all members–not just those showing up to vote–in order to retain their right to represent workers in a bargaining unit. That punitive standard is far more restrictive than anything used in corporate governance or U.S. elections. (Imagine a bill forcing the unseating of corporate directors if the majority of all shareholders, not just those casting ballots, did not vote for management–or a similar standard for politicians.)

Richard Berman’s PR firm, Berman & Company, operates a network of industry front groups and attack-dog web sites that work to counteract minimum wage campaigns, keep wages low for restaurant workers, block paid sick leave laws, and maintain barriers to workplace organizing. Berman, along with U.S. Senator Orin Hatch (R-UT), has pushed a similar decertification bill in Congress, called the “Employee Rights Act.”

In an audio recording obtained by CMD, Berman boasted about his obsession with unions and his attack on their efforts to raise the minimum wage for American workers: “I get up every morning and I try and figure out how to screw with the labor unions,” Berman said.

Keeping Down Pay and Benefits in the Gig Economy

ALEC will also be considering a “Uniform Worker Classification Act” that promotes short-term contracts and freelance work over permanent jobs. The resolution focuses on “uniform standards for determining who is an employee and who is an independent contractor,” but is designed to establish a very broad definition of independent contractor that lets employers off the hook for the rights and benefits enjoyed by traditional employees and prevents union organizing. Misclassifying workers is a classic corporate strategy for short-shrifting employees and has been the subject of much litigation.

While companies such as Uber, Lyft, and TaskRabbit are changing the job market, they typically generate low-paying jobs with few or no benefits. The tenuous relationship between employers and employees in many of these jobs raises a passel of legal issues. Are these contract employees subject to the same wage and hour laws? Are these contract employees eligible for unemployment benefits, job training, workman’s compensation, and other worker protections?

(Continue Reading)

#politics #the left #in these times #ALEC #conservatives #neoliberalism #economic inequality

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newagesispage · 6 years

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FEBRUARY 2019

PAGE RIB

***** I am over the moon at the suggestion of a biopic of Dave Letterman starring Michael Shannon. Will somebody think about really putting this into production??? Please??

***** Criminal Minds will wrap it up after this next and 15th season. The season 14 finale on Feb.6 will have Rossi’s wedding. They will spend the last season chasing after ‘a worthy adversary’ rumored to be played by Harold Perrineau as they jump ahead in time.

***** I am so touched by shows like Grace and Frankie and Schitt’s Creek that look right past the usually discussed issues for interracial and same sex couples . Gee, just think, it’s like we are all the same.

***** If you haven’t seen Michael Bennet and his senate floor speech about Ted Cruz, government shutdowns and Trump, run to C-span and catch it. These things make me proud to be in a DEMOCRACY!

***** Can this be true?? The constitution of Texas states that one can’t hold public office unless they believe in a supreme being??

***** Julian Castro is running for President.

***** Kamala Harris is running for President.

***** Cory Booker is running for President.

***** HGTV is apparently working on a huge publicity stunt and ratings grabber. They have purchased the home whose exterior was used in the Brady Bunch. A show will reunite the cast, bring in some famous fane and remodel the inside to look like the Brady set. At the end they may give the house away.

***** Michael Shannon and Audra McDonald will team up to revive Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune on Broadway.

***** Rashida Jones and Bill Murray will star in Sofia Coppola’s’ On the Rocks.’

***** Why isn’t extreme ironing a bigger sport by now??** And can we make Petanque a bigger thing while we’re at it?

***** Craig Ferguson is selling his LA compound.

***** China has landed on the far side of the moon!!!

***** NASA’s New Horizons has went further than anyone has gone before for our first image of Ultima Thule.

***** Kentucky has introduced a bill to ban abortion in the state.

***** Told to a reporter: “It’s your job to speak truthfully and precisely, not mine.” –Kellyanne Conway** The new book, Team of Vipers, suggests that The Conways are working in concert. It is thought that she is valuable to Trump because she has no qualms about saying anything.

***** Super bowl LIII will host Maroon 5, Travis Scott and Big Boi. They will have no pre- concert interview. It is said that many artists turned down the gig because of the controversy. Maroon 5 has gotten some shit for performing but they caution us to just watch.** Roger Waters has asked Maroon 5 to take a knee during the show.

***** Natasha Lyonne is getting raves for her new show, Russian Doll.

***** Tom Sizemore was arrested for drug possession.

***** 6 NFL coaches were fired in one week!!!

***** Pentagon chief of staff, rear admiral Kevin Sweeney is out.

***** Rod Rosenstein is on the way out.

***** Jaymo’s, a Peoria company is suing Wendy’s over the use of their S’Awesome sauce.

***** We should enact the stop the stupidity act.

***** Why does it seem every other show on the air is sort of an entire season of a Twilight Zone episode?

***** There are more people in the Kremlin than in Washington who know what Trump said to Putin. – Tom Nichols

***** Members of congress can retire at full pay after 1 term. Children of congress members don’t have to pay back student loans. Is that true?? Can this be right??

***** Dupont is laying off workers.

***** Check out love your brain.com.

***** The Golden Globes were held and were hosted by Andy Samberg and Sandra Oh. My best dressed was Isla Fisher, Elizabeth Moss. Danai Gurira, Julia Roberts, Carol Burnett, Emily Blunt, Lupita Nyong’o, Patricia Clarkson, Jamie Lee Curtis, Jameela Jamil, Rosamund Pike, Jim Carrey, Alison Brie, Gemma Chan and Bradley Cooper. Worst dressed goes to Rachel Weisz, Julianne Moore, Layra Dern, Anne Hathaway, Maya Rudolph, Rami Mlek, Molly Sims and Heidi Klum. I was so happy for winners like The Americans (highlight of the evening!!!), Regina King, Lady Gaga, Mahershala Ali, Patricia Clarkson, Darren Criss, Bohemian Rhapsody, Rami Malek, Olivia Colman and Green Book. The Cecil B. DeMille award went to Jeff Bridges. The new Carol Burnett award started off with Carol herself. I was saddened that Bill Hader, Henry Winkler, Kieran Culkin, Keri Russell and Sacha Baron Cohen went home empty handed. The Fiji water girl got most of the press and gave much free advertising to her product. Some of the stars did not like her getting in their shots to push a product without their knowledge, both a clever and sad state of affairs.

***** The Kominsky Method will be back for season 2.

***** The Sag awards had their big night and gave the lifetime achievement to Alan Alda. Winners included Emily Blunt, Darren Criss, Black Panther, Rami Malek and Glenn Close. I was especially thrilled with some love goingto Jason Bateman and Patricia Arquette. Best dressed were Amy Adams, Yara Shahidi, Brian Tyree Henry, Sydelle Noel, Eddie Griffin, Holly Taylor, Sofia Hubitz, Emma Stone, Emily Blunt, Darren Criss, Laverne Cox, Timothee Chalamet, Robin Wright, Lily Tomlin, Chadwick Boseman, Matthew Rhys, Keri Russell, and Catherine Zeta Jones. The WTF award goes to Alison Brie.

***** The Oscar race is on. Best picture could go to Blank Panther, Blackkklansman, Roma, The Favourite, Green Book, Vice, Bohemian Rhapsody and A Star is born. Black Panther also got some love for music and costume design. Fingers crossed for Isle of Dogs in the animated category. Actor nods had a few surprises. Willem Dafoe and Rami Malek , Lady Gaga and Melissa McCarthy are up for leads and supporting mentions are for Mahershala Ali, Regina King, Adam Driver and Sam Elliott. I am so hopeful for Spike Lee and I want to hear that speech.

***** If you haven’t seen Trigger Warning with Killer Mike, you gotta check it out. He and Sarah Silverman should go on a tour of teaching acceptance for their fellow man.

***** So.. Fox news said that Ruth Bader Ginsberg was dead??

***** In sexual harassment news: Harvey Weinstein is hiring new lawyers.** Les Moonves is seeking arbitration with CBS.

***** Cher has sold her Beverly Hills cottage.

***** Cindy Crawford and Randy Gerber’s daughter, Presley was arrested for DUI.

***** CBS news has named its first female President, Susan Zirinsky.

***** What is happening to the butterflies?

***** Illinois has refused a concert permit to R Kelly and Sony has dropped him. The pressure is finally starting to pay off??

***** Get ready for biopics about Harriet Tubman, Elton John and Ted Bundy.

***** NY mayor Bill De Blasio has given healthcare to every resident of NY city.

***** 25% of Russians do not have indoor toilets. Putin and his buddies have about $1trillion tucked away from London to Miami.

***** Days alert: I wonder if Leo’s real name ‘Matthew Cooper’ is a nod to out actor Chad Allen from Dr. Quinn??!! It is also fun to see Judith Chapman take on the role of Leo’s Mama, Diana. The pair played Mother and son previously on The Young and the Restless. Is she really Diana Colville from John’s past??** So Stefan has been played by Tyler Christopher who asked for some time off and a sub was put in place who will take over in March. Since Christopher left, he has since decided that he will leave permanently so things are up in the air. Will Stefan and Gabi hook up? Days has been renewed for season 55. HOORAY!!!! Ratings are up 4%. **Loved the line when Chloe told Rex he should wear a cup. **Leo and Xander’s playful “lust” was so sassy!!

***** Happy Valentine’s Day!

***** Steve Buscemi will play God on tv’s Miracle Workers.

***** So, the new Conan format has ups and downs. I miss the band and the desk but I am Loving the fade in and fade out at commercials. I have always hated the, “We’ll be right back “ nonsense. I was sad to lose a half hour at first but Conan and Andy do seem refreshed.

***** Still waiting for the release of Apple Seed which is written, directed and starring Michael Worth. It is one of the final films of Rance Howard who stars with his son, Clint, Adrienne Barbeau and the other Father and son team of Robby and Zephyr Benson.

***** The January Bob Segar concert in Illinois at the Peoria Civic Center is the top selling concert ever at this venue. Old rock acts take note.

***** Bob Costas is out at NBC after 40 years.

***** Trial and Error has been cancelled. BOO!!!

***** Steve Carell will star in Space Force which he is co-creating with The Office showrunner Greg Daniels.

***** Despite some people I admire that are giving Alexandria Ocasio Cortez a talking to like she’s a child, I say ‘Give ‘em Hell!’ She could well be President so fight girl!!

***** Word is that Karen Pence is now teaching at the Immanuel School in Virginia. The school refuses admission to students who participate in or condone homosexual activity. The application for the school states that misconduct includes heterosexual activity outside of marriage, homosexual activity, polygamy, transgender identity and use of pornographic websites. The application goes on to state that ‘a wife must submit to her husband’ and a pledge must be signed to that effect.

***** There is controversy over the bill to give people a day off for Election Day. Many people will still have to work, the country never completely shuts down. How many fucking times do I have to say it: VOTE BY MAIL!!!!!!!!!!!

***** So, Scary clown told us Mexico would pay for ‘the wall’. During the campaign he gave actual ideas for that like Mexico giving us a one time payout or else he would not allow Mexican immigrants to western union money back to Mexico. Another idea was that there would be a great ta on that Western union money. It does not seem like they tried any of that and just decided we would pay for the stupid ‘wall.’ How about the money he makes off Trump merch which his website and hotels still sell to pay for it?? How about the $35 million that Trump sold in real estate in 2018? The ‘Wall’ go fund me did not reach its $1billion goal so the $20 million they did collect is being offered for refunds. Some of those people still want that money to go for its purpose so Trump is creating a non- profit. Can’t we use that money to help the border patrol agents and get the backlog in immigration court moving?? That we are still talking about this ridiculous wall and that it had a go fund me page is enough to boggle the normal brain.** I think Kimmel said it best when he suggested that Trump just tell the red hats that the wall has been built. They believe everything he says so why wouldn’t they believe that?? It would save the country a lot of headaches. ** What the Hell is with his new “wheels and walls” mantra??** Russia caused Brexit too? Putin is a menace.** Another sink hole appeared the White House. WTF?

***** The congressional budget office says the shut down cost the U.S. 11 billion

***** Trump is talking to Herman Cain about a job on the Federal Reserve Board.

***** The GOP is selling fake bricks that cost about 50 cents for $20 each to send to Senate Dems. Some have said that the Dems should sign them and sell them and give the money to government workers. ** Why are Russian jets fucking around on the North American coastline??

***** Roger Stone has been indicted on 5 counts of false statements, 1 count of obstruction and 1 count of witness tampering. The FBI officers who arrested him were part of the shut down and they still did their job!! He publically and privately claimed to have communicated with Russia. Predictions are that many more indictments are coming down the pike that involve many familiar faces.** Roger Stone has a Nixon tattoo on his back. I feel sorry for his cell mate.-Bill Maher

***** Bill Maher got some flak for comments after Stan Lee died. He wasn’t slamming Lee, but wondered about comic book fans putting away childish things. I suppose that could include weed but point taken.

***** Jared Kushner along with 30 other White House staff was denied top secret clearance but Trump advisor Carl Kline overruled that decision and gave it to them anyway. This has never been done before, this is a job for intelligent agencies.

***** Empire star Jussie Smollett was attacked in Chicago in what cops are saying was a possible hate crime. The attackers were yelling that this was MAGA country, poured bleach on him and put a rope around his neck. The actor was previously sent a letter full of homophobic and racist slurs which he FBI had been looking into.

***** Ellen page gave us some memorable, powerful words to chew on with her appearance on Stephen Colbert. I am sure she gave courage to many who suffer because of our hate filled administration.

***** Gwyneth Paltrow is being sued from a 2016 ski incident for 3 mil.

***** I gain more and more respect for Seth Meyers. I did not really understand the choice of him as host in the beginning. His notice of local stations, choice of guests and revolving drummers makes for a great show.

***** A Dutch company may have invented a small device that converts heat into cold and Forbes is saying, ‘it could save the planet.’

***** So looking forward to Ryan Murphy’s The Politician which will star Jessica Lange, Gwyneth Paltrow and January Jones.

***** I know that is has happened little by little and we go thru times in our history when things get worse and then things get better but… When did this country get so fucking corrupt?? I mean seriously.. Why is Brendan Dassey still in prison and why is there no real justice for Teresa Halbach? ** Why is Trump still in the White House?**Why are government workers being told to work for nothing?? Why is R Kelly still living it up?? Why are some states going backward in time when it comes to women’s health?? Why do many corporations care more about their own pockets than the children of their employees or the environment around them??** Why does our justice system so often punish big for small infractions and allow the powerful to do anything they want?? **Why is a wall a better idea than infrastructure or warm beds for the homeless or food for our children and why are so many children in cages??

***** How can it be that we are still in a world where people are not allowed to reach their full potential?? Why do so many selfish humans actually fight to live in a world where they actively hold others back? Shouldn’t we all be concerned about the greater good? We should all be allowed to see a Doctor when we are ill. We should all be able to excel in education if we choose .We should all be able to get a job to fit our skills and work ethic. Opportunities and the pursuit of happiness should be available to all. Why is this so fucking hard for so many to grasp in this world? Imagine!

***** Sundance premiered the new flick, Big time adolescence with Griffin Gluck and Pete Davidson. Pete has since made no bones about filming in Syracuse. He hated it.

***** Jeff Flake will join CBS news as a contributor.

***** Tom Brokaw is in a bit of trouble for saying Hispanics should work harder at assimilation.

***** The Tom Hanks/ Matthew Rhys film, A beautiful day in the neighborhood has pushed back its release date to Nov. 22.

***** People are illogical and self- centered. Love them anyway. -Hedy Lemarr

*****R.I.P. Bob Einstein, Millie Wiesehan, victims of the Torrance. Ca. bowling alley shooting, Captain Darryl Dragon, Jo Andres, Lamin Sanneh, Carol Channing, Sandra Harmon, Bradley Bolke, the victims of Mediterranean shipwreck, Lorna Doom, victims of the Florida bank shooting, Kaye Ballard, Willie York , Barbara Claman , victims of the mining dam collapse in Brazil and James Frawley.

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fumpkins · 2 years

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Concern grows that human monkeypox outbreak will establish virus in animals outside Africa | Science

Eleven days after being bitten by one of her pet prairie dogs, a 3-year-old girl in Wisconsin on 24 May 2003 became the first person outside of Africa to be diagnosed with monkeypox. Two months later, her parents and 69 other people in the United States had suspected or confirmed cases of this disease, which is caused by a relative of the much deadlier smallpox virus. The monkeypox virus is endemic in parts of Africa, and rodents imported from Ghana had apparently infected captive prairie dogs, North American animals, when an animal distributor in Texas housed them together.

The outbreak now underway has affected more people outside of Africa than ever before—nearly 1300 cases as of 7 June, on multiple continents, many of them men who have sex with men. But like the 2003 episode, today’s surge has raised a possibility that makes researchers gulp: Monkeypox virus could take up permanent residence in wildlife outside of Africa, forming a reservoir that could lead to repeated human outbreaks.

No animal reservoir currently exists outside of Africa, but the U.S. outbreak of 2003 was a close call, some scientists suspect, especially because nearly 300 of the animals from Ghana and the exposed prairie dogs were never found. “We narrowly escaped having monkeypox establish itself in a wild animal population” in North America, suggests Anne Rimoin, an epidemiologist at the University of California, Los Angeles, who long has studied the disease in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). In the end, however, surveys of wild animals in Wisconsin and Illinois never found monkeypox virus, none of the infected humans passed on the disease to other people, and worries about this exotic outbreak evaporated.

Will North and South America, Europe, Asia, and Australia—all of which have reported monkeypox cases in this outbreak—be similarly fortunate this time?

Viruses frequently pingpong between humans and other species. Although COVID-19 is widely thought to have resulted from SARS-CoV-2 jumping from a bat or other host into people, humans have, in “reverse zoonoses,” also infected white-tailed deer, minks, cats, and dogs with the virus. One study in Ohio found antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 in more than one-third of 360 wild deer sampled. And in past centuries, when humans carried plague and yellow fever to new continents, those pathogens created reservoirs in rodents and monkeys, respectively—which later infected humans again.

As this outbreak of monkeypox expands, the virus has an unprecedented opportunity to establish itself in non-African species, which could infect humans and provide greater opportunity for more dangerous variants to evolve. “Monkeypox reservoirs in wild animals outside of Africa is a scary scenario,” says Bertram Jacobs, a virologist at Arizona State University (ASU), Tempe, who studies vaccinia, the poxvirus that served as the smallpox vaccine and helped eradicate that devastating virus from humans.

Public health officials in several countries have advised people who have monkeypox lesions to avoid contact with their pets until they heal. Some 80% of the cases have occurred in Europe, and the European Food Safety Authority said no pets or wild animals had been infected as of 24 May. But it added that “close collaboration between human and veterinary public health authorities is needed to manage exposed pets and prevent the disease from being transmitted to wildlife.”

The possibility that humans infected with monkeypox virus will spread it to wildlife outside of Africa “warrants serious concern,” says William Karesh, a veterinarian at the EcoHealth Alliance who last week spoke about this possibility at a consultation on monkeypox research organized by the World Health Organization. For now, he says, the limited number of human cases reduces the odds. But pet rodents are a particular worry, as is the sheer number of wild ones—they make up 40% of all mammals—that frequently raid trash and could become infected by contaminated waste. “That’s a lot of opportunity,” he says.

Studies have yet to pinpoint the African reservoir of the monkeypox virus. Although a lab in Copenhagen, Denmark, in 1958 first identified it in research monkeys from Asia, scientists now believe the primates caught it from an African source. All human cases since the first one was reported in 1970, in the DRC (then Zaire), could be tied to the virus spilling over from animals in Africa.

So far, however, only six wild animals trapped in Africa have yielded the virus: three rope squirrels, a Gambian rat, a shrew, and a sooty mangabey monkey. Antibodies to the monkeypox virus are most abundant in African squirrels. “We still poorly understand the current reservoir other than it’s rodents,” says Grant McFadden, a poxvirus researcher who is also based at ASU.

But it’s clear that monkeypox can infect many other kinds of animals in the wild and captivity. A 1964 outbreak in a Rotterdam, Netherlands, zoo sickened giant anteaters, orangutans, gorillas, chimpanzees, a gibbon, and a marmoset. Researchers have intentionally infected many lab animals, including rabbits, hamsters, guinea pigs, and chickens, although the virus doesn’t reliably cause disease in several of them.

For many viruses, a lock-and-key relationship between viral surface proteins and receptors on host cells determines which animals it can infect; the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2, for example, latches onto angiotensin-converting enzyme 2, a protein that studs a variety of cells in humans, minks, cats, and many other species. But poxviruses don’t seem to require specific host receptors, enabling many to infect a wide range of mammalian cells. Vaccinia, the smallpox vaccine virus, can even infect fruit flies in addition to cows and people, notes David Evans, a poxvirus researcher at the University of Alberta, Edmonton. Bernard Moss, a virologist at the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), has posited that some poxviruses have proteins on their surfaces that form a “hydrophobic face,” a water-repelling area that can bind nonspecifically to hydrophilic cell membranes and initiate the infection process.

But whether a poxvirus can copy itself and, ultimately, persist in a species to create a reservoir depends on how well it fends off the host’s immune attacks. Poxviruses have a relatively large complement of genes, about 200, and roughly half undermine a host’s immune response. “Some viruses run and hide or are stealthy, avoiding direct contact with elements of the immune system,” McFadden says. “Poxviruses by and large stand up and fight.”

Their defense against host immunity appears to rely heavily on a family of genes scattered around their genomes that code for poorly understood proteins containing domains known as ankyrin repeats. Poxvirus proteins containing these repeats act as “molecular flypaper,” Evans says, glomming onto host proteins involved with coordinating the immune response. “Orthopoxviruses have these arrays of ankyrin repeats, and most of them, we don’t really know what they target,” Evans says. “But the bottom line is those probably hold the key to trying to understand why it is some of these viruses have the host range that they do.”

Variola, the smallpox virus, appears to have lost many of these immune-evasion genes. It only persists in humans and has no animal reservoir, which was why the global vaccination campaign could eradicate it. Monkeypox is clearly more promiscuous. But the many questions that remain about it means there’s no telling whether it will create reservoirs in non-African wildlife. “One of the challenges has been a lack of interest,” says Lisa Hensley, a microbiologist at the U.S. Department of Agriculture who began doing monkeypox research in 2001 as part of a U.S. Army lab.

Hensley, who worked on monkeypox at NIAID for nearly a decade and collaborated with Rimoin, urges people to keep an open mind about how the virus behaves and what it might do next. “We’re recognizing that this is a disease we need to worry about and that we really don’t know as much as we think we know.”

New post published on: https://livescience.tech/2022/06/09/concern-grows-that-human-monkeypox-outbreak-will-establish-virus-in-animals-outside-africa-science/

#Africa #animals #Concern #Establish #grows #Human #Monkeypox #outbreak #science #virus

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