#nikki reagan

[bluebloodsgurl]

Lifeline: Part 2

Characters: Jamie Reagan, Reader, Frank, Danny, Erin, Diana (OFC)

Mentioned- Henry, Linda, Jack, Sean, Rourke, Brian (OMC), Ryan (OMC)

Starting Paring: Jamie X Sydney, Reader X OC Paramedic Brian

Word Count: 4600

Warning: Language, Angst, Reader being an ass, Mentions of a Dead Parent, Asshole Father, A little bit of Fluff.

A/N: This is part 2 of Lifeline. I still don’t know how many there will be as of this moment.

Also, I’m sorry it took me so long to get something out. Life has been kicking my ass. Hopefully, I will be posting more but I am not making any promises.

Feedback is always welcome. The Good and The Bad. Requests are also open.

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By the time you got home that morning, you were completely exhausted. You dropped your bag by the front door, not caring where it landed. Then your boots followed quickly after, just like your bag not caring where they ended up. Walking over and throwing yourself over the back of the couch, pulling the blanket down over you as you went. You just let the couch swallow you up. As you were on the cusp of falling asleep, your phone starts going off. You shift to pull your phone out of your pocket, looking at the screen before answering it.

“You better be dying or dead.”

“Well good morning to you too Sunshine.”

“Jamie, it’s not a good time right now.” You let out a sigh. “What did you need?”

“I was going to see if you wanted to get breakfast before both of us went to work. I also wanted to see how the night shift went.”

“Oh, it was great.” Sarcasm was dripping from your mouth.

“Wow. Really?”

“Well, if you call getting myself suspended great, then I had a grand ol’ time.”

“Wait, are you serious?”

“Jamie, I’m tired and I don’t want to talk about this right now.”

“Well either you come with me to breakfast willingly, or I will come into your house and drag your ass out kicking and screaming. What’s it gonna be?”

“I hate you, and I want my key back.”

“I know you do. Yeah, good luck getting the key from me, you will have to pry it from my cold dead hands.” He let out a laugh. “I’ll be there in about five minutes to get you. So, hurry up.”

You hung up the phone, grunting as you got up from your couch and throwing your blanket down. You quickly went to your room to change out of your work clothes. You knew Jamie wasn’t joking when he said he would drag you out. He has done it before; he will do it again. You changed into a pair of joggers and a FDNY shirt just to mess with him. You were pulling on your socks when you heard your front door open and Jamie yelling.

“Y/n!” There was a slight pause, before you heard him stumble and curse. “Son of a bitch. Y/n, why didn’t you pick up your damn shoes. Y/n! Don’t make me have to come find you.”

You just laid back on your bed, closing your eyes and rubbing your hands over your face. You heard footsteps heading towards your room, they stopped in your doorway for a second before they came to a stop in front of you.

“You are not wearing that to breakfast.”

You open up your eyes to see him pointing to your shirt. You just closed your eyes and let out another sigh.

“Then I’m not going.” You crossed your arms like a child who was pouting.

You heard him walk away for a second, thinking you had won. Which was a short-lived dream when he came back, he pulled you up into a sitting position, causing you to let out a squeal and open your eyes. Only to have him pulling a hoodie over your head.

“Jamison! Stop it!” You struggled against him, to no avail. Once it was on you looked up at him, with an angry pout. “I am not a child.”

“Then quit acting like one.” He laughed at you.

You stood up and walked out of your room towards the front door. As you did, you looked down at the hoodie. It was Jamie’s old Harvard sweater that he got when he had gotten accepted. He lent it to you one day when you forgot your jacket, and it just never found its way back to him. He never asked for it back, so you just held onto it. At this point if he did ask for it back you wouldn’t be able to give it back.

The two of you left your house and got into Jamie’s car. There wasn’t much conversation, just comfortable silence. You were tired enough that you had started dozing off on the way. Once he pulled up to the curb of your favorite breakfast spot you were completely out. Jamie got out and walked to the passenger side door, slowly opening it not to wake you.

After all of these years, you really should have known better than to fall asleep around Jamie or any of the Reagan siblings for that matter. Jamie leaned in slightly and started screaming and shaking you. Your eyes shot open, screaming yourself. You looked over to see Jamie laughing so hard as you are clutching your chest.

“You’re an ass.”

“Oh, that was so funny.” He got out in between laughs.

He was hunched over with his hands on his knees, not caring that there was quite a few people staring at you. You got out of the car and pushed Jamie, knocking him on his ass.

“Hey!” You stood there just looking down at him. “You just assaulted a police officer ma’am.” He was up in a second.

“You have been a police officer all of two seconds.” You cocked your eyebrow at him. “Besides you wouldn’t arrest your best friend.”

“Are you sure about that?” He was right in your face, trying so hard not to smile.

“Yep.”

“How so?”

“I have friends in high and low places buddy. You don’t want to mess with me.”

“You’re such a dork.” He smile breaking out along with a chuckle. “Come on, let’s go eat and talk about how you got suspended.” He threw his arm over your shoulder as he pulled you into the diner.

Diana greeted you as you both walked into the diner.

“If it isn’t my two favorite troublemakers.” She had a big grin on her face.

“I’m not the troublemaker, she is.” Jamie pointed at you as the two of you sat down.

“What? I am not. You are a hundred percent the troublemaker out of the two of us.”

“No, you are. I’m not the one who got suspended.” He had a big grin on his face.

“What!?”

You gave Jamie the dirtiest look you have ever given anyone. You could feel her eyes starring you down, and it is not a feeling you want to have. Ever since you were young, Diana has been a big part of your lives. The two of you would come in here quite a bit with your families or even just each other. She practically watched the both of you grow up.

“Dude. Why would you say that in front of her?” You whispered harshly. Your eyes haven’t left Jamie’s, in fear of what would happen if you looked over to Diana.

“Y/n, what happened?” You looked up at her slowly, with a shy grin on your face.

“I punched another paramedic in the face.” You said quietly before looking down. “Then I slammed him into the back door of the truck.”

“Woah! What did he do to piss you off?”

“Why would you do that?” She asked while hitting you in the arm.

“Ow! We had a call for a car accident right at the end of our shift. He wanted to take a child away from his mother right after it all happened. He was going to traumatize that poor kid. Then he had the audacity to bring up my mother, then I flipped out on him. I punched him in the face and slammed him up against the back of the truck. Then I got suspended, and I can’t return to work until I take an anger management class.”

“Well then he deserved it.” Diana put her hand on your shoulder. “You don’t do that to a child, and you sure as hell don’t bring up someone’s past trauma.”

“What’s going to happen to him?” Jamie questioned you.

“Tyler texted me earlier saying that he was suspended for a day or some bullshit like that. I don’t know, I’m just hoping I never have to work with him again.”

“That is stupid, he should have to take a class on how to be a decent human.”

“That is absolute bullshit.” Jamie rubbed his hands down his face.

“Yeah, but it is what it is.” You just shrugged. “Can’t take it back now. Then again, I don’t think I would if I could.”

After that, Diana took your order and left the two of you to talk. The two of you sat there for just over an hour, before Jamie had to head into work. After paying and saying a quick goodbye to Diana, the two of you left. Jamie walked around to the driver-side of his car, while you looked around at the busy street. Somehow you aren’t as tired as you were before. You need to clear your head on the early morning events, and there was really only one place you could do that.

“Hey, I think I’m gonna walk.”

“What? Y/n you look like you’re going to pass out. I’m not gonna let you walk home.” He gave you a look like you were crazy.

“I’m fine Jamie. Plus, I’m not going home just yet.”

“Where are you going?” He came back around and stopped in front of you.

“I need to think for a little while, so I’m gonna go visit my mom.” Jamie quickly pulled you into a tight hug.

“What’s going on in that head of yours?”

“I don’t know, I just need to talk to her.” You stood there for a moment longer before you broke the hug.

“Alright, come on. Go to work.”

“I can drop you off.”

“No, I’ll be fine. Besides, you don’t want to be late on your first day, do you?”

“No, I don’t.” He looked at you, with his signature smirk.

“What?”

“Nothing. Look, text me when you get there and…”

“And when I leave, and then when I get home. Ya’ know sometimes it’s like she’s still alive and is just using you as a vessel to make sure I’m okay.”

“Hey, I’m not that bad.” He looked at you like he was a little offended. “I just want you to be safe, I would still be doing this if she was still here.”

“I know. You have been protecting me since we were seventeen. Hell, maybe even before that and I was just too stubborn to notice.”

“Yeah, you were.”

“Hey!” You went to hit him in the arm, he was quickly able to dodge your hand before it made contact. He moved to the front of his car. “Get out of here, before I personally call the commissioner and tell him that one of his officers is causing as scene instead of going into work.”

“You wouldn’t.” He narrowed his eyes at you.

“Try me.” You pulled your phone out of your pocket, holding it up and waving it back and forth.

“Umm… Y/n?”

He pointed to your phone; you gave him a confused look before looking at your phone.

“Speak of the devil.”

You quickly looked back at him before answering.

“Hello, Commissioner Reagan.”

“Y/n, we have talked about this. Call me Frank.”

“Sorry Frank, how are you?”

“I am doing good. How are you?”

“Funny you should ask because I was just talking about you.”

“Oh, to who?”

“One of your officers, who is bound to be late for his first day of work if he doesn’t leave me alone.” You had a smirk on your face, while Jamie gave you an annoyed look.

“Can you hand the phone to Officer Reagan.”

“Sure.” You walked over to Jamie. “He would like to talk to you.”

He slowly took the phone and put it to his ear.

“Hello.”

You watched as the conversation unfolded. Jamie was just nodding his head and saying “Yes, Sir.” Soon he handed you the phone back.

“I have to go brat. Text me, call me if you need anything, okay?” He pulled you into another quick hug before heading to get into his car.

“I will. Bye.”

“Bye.”

Once he was gone, you quickly turned your attention to your phone.

“So, what’s going on Frank?”

“Well, I was just wondering how you were doing this morning.”

“You talked to Rourke didn’t you.”

“I may have.” You rolled your eyes.

“Frank, I really don’t want to get into this. I’m sure you got all of this information from Rourke but, Ryan pissed me off and now I’m suspended until I take an anger management class. It happened and now I have to deal with the consequences of my actions.”

“I know what happened, I’m still wondering how you are doing. Which you still haven’t answered by the way.”

“I’m fine.”

“Y/n, I have known you long enough to know when you aren’t telling me the truth.”

“Frank, I appreciate you checking up on me, but I am not one of your kids that you have to check up on when something pops up, okay. I’m a big girl, I can take care of myself. I have been doing that for a long time, longer than you probably realize.”

“I know that. You are a strong person. I just…” You cut him off.

“I have to go. I have things that I have to deal with. I will talk to you later.”

“Okay. Bye kiddo.”

As soon as you hung up the phone, you felt like a complete ass. Frank has been there for you more times than you could count. He was just being the friend to you that he always has been. This is the man that helped you get through things when your own father couldn’t. He welcomed you into his home and his family all those years ago and you just threw it back in his face.

“Fuck.”

You haled a cab, then you made your way to the cemetery. When you found your mom, you sat down next to her. You pulled your legs up and wrapped your arms around them. You just sat there for a little while not speaking.

“Hi mom. I really fucked up big this time. I got suspended because some jackass decided that it would be a clever idea to take a child away from his mother right after a car accident. He also brought up you and I lost it on him. I’m honestly surprised that I held back. Then I got a call from Frank, he was just trying to check up on me and I took it out on him. I know I shouldn’t have but I did.”

You had tears forming in your eyes, threatening to fall at any second. You looked up to the sky, before leaning back to lay on the grass. You laid there for a little while just talking to her about other things that were going on. You also tried to figure out a way to apologize to Frank. After a few hours of sitting there, you said your goodbyes to her and got up and went to get another cab.

You had the cab drop you off at a store, so you could pick up the ingredients for your mother’s cheesecake, that you know Frank loves. When you got everything home, you got to work. After it was finished baking, you let it cool while you lay down on the couch to take a long-awaited nap.

When you woke up you had quite a few missed calls and unread text messages. Most of them were from Jamie, which you should have expected since you didn’t text him when you got to or left the cemetery. There was also a couple of missed calls from your father and a text from Erin.

You decided to get the more unpleasant phone call over with first.

“Hello?”

“Hi dad.”

“You wanna tell me what the hell is going on?”

“Excuse you?”

“Y/n, what did you do at work?”

“Ya’know, I had a shitty night, thanks for asking.”

“Seriously, that’s how you’re gonna act right now?

“What do you want me to say? Huh. Do you want me to tell you that I got suspended because some asshole thought it was a good idea to traumatize a child, then bring up my past trauma because he fucking felt like it? Is that what you wanted to hear?”

You were met with silence, which didn’t surprise you at all. Ever since you mother died, he has only ever called to complain or yell at you.

“Y/n…”

“Don’t. Don’t even pretend that you care. I know where I stand in your life. I wasn’t able to help or save mom and now you blame me every chance you can for her death. So why don’t you just stop pretending to care about me. You leave me alone; I will leave you alone.” You hung up the phone, not wanting to deal with him anymore, the sad part is that no matter what if he needed help and called you. You would be there for him, even after all the shit he put you through.

You sent a quick text to Erin, saying:

Y: Sorry Erin. I had a rough night; I was sleeping it off when you texted me. I’m doing okay now. Thanks for checking up on me.

Then you texted Jamie.

Y: Sorry, I’m home and I fell asleep.

J: That’s it…

You have been MIA for five hours and all I get is I fell asleep.

Y: Jamie please don’t do this right now. I already feel like crap. Please don’t make it worse.

Instead of getting a text back, Jamie’s face popped up on your phone. You stared at it for a second before picking it up. You stayed quiet and waited for him to talk first.

“Are you okay? What happened? You seemed to be doing better at breakfast.”

“I’m an asshole, and I am so done with peoples shit.”

“You are not an asshole, and people are stupid.”

“Well, you’re only half wrong. People are stupid, but I am an asshole.”

“Why do you say that?”

“I took my anger out on one of the few people who actually care about me. When all they were doing was making sure I was okay.”

“Y/n you had a bad night, no one is going to hold that against you.”

“That’s not the point Jamie.” You let out a frustrated sigh. “I’m not really in the mood for this right now. I have things I have to get done. I will talk to you later.”

You hung up before he had a chance to talk. Throwing your phone onto the coffee table, ignoring the ringing. You got up and walk back to your kitchen. You pull the cheesecake out of the fridge, making sure it has fully set before wrapping it up to take over to Frank’s.

Before you decided to take it over there, there was a few things you needed to do. The main one being find an anger management class, so you could get it over and done with. Once you were all signed up, you put on some music and started cleaning.

It was about five when you decided to head over to Franks. When you got there you notice the extra vehicles that were there. You almost turned around, but luck wasn’t on your side today. The front door opened as you went to grab your trucks door handle.

“Y/n?”

You looked up to see Danny standing in the doorway. You looked down at your hand and just let it fall from the handle. You heard the door close and footsteps coming towards you. You turned to see Danny leaning on your truck.

“What’s going on slugger?”

“Oh God! Not you too.”

“Come on did you really expect to keep this quiet. Especially around here?” He pointed to the house. “Everyone’s in there talking about it.”

You were just hoping the ground would swallow you up, right there and then. You leaned forward leaning your forehead on the door frame and let out a big sigh.

“I wasn’t expecting everyone to be here when I showed up.” You turned your head to the side to look at him.

“I bet. Well, it’s too late to leave now.” He points to the house, you lifted your head off the truck and looked at the house to see Erin, Henry, Frank, and Jamie looking out the window.

“Of course, it is.” You gave them a quick wave. “Or… You could take this inside to your dad and let him know that I’m sorry and I will call him later.” You had a big smile on your face, as you lifted the cheesecake up into his line of sight.

“Not gonna happen.”

“Ugh.” You dropped the smile and lowered the cheesecake. “It was worth a shot.”

You walked past Danny as he laughed at your reaction. The two of you walked up to the door and it opened just as you got to the top step. Frank was standing there with a smile on his face. Danny slipped inside as you stood on the front step.

“Hi.” All of a sudden felt like you were the shy teenager you used to be all over again.

“Hi.” He just smiled at you. “So are you going to just stand there or are you going to come inside.”

“Actually, I came to apologize for today.”

“You don’t need to do that.”

“Yes, I do. I was a complete asshole to you, and you were just trying to look out for me. I took my anger and frustrations out on you. I am so sorry Frank. I know it won’t fix anything, but I made you this.” You lifted the cheesecake for him to take. “I know you like this one, it’s my mother’s recipe.”

He stepped out onto the step with you and took the cheesecake. What you didn’t expect was for him to pull you into a hug. It was one of those big bear hugs, which cradles your entire existence. The kind of hugs really only dads can give.

“Sweetheart, you have nothing to be sorry for. I know you had a difficult day at work. I shouldn’t have overstepped.”

“No, you didn’t overstep. I should feel so lucky to have someone like you to check on me. I was harsh on you, and you didn’t deserve that.” You pulled back to look at him. “Those hooligans in there don’t know how lucky they have a father that checks up on them when they had a bad day or just to see how life is going.” You pulled away from him as soon as you could feel the tears starting to prick at your eyes. “I should get going.” You started backing away.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

“Umm… Home?”

“Nope. You are going to come inside and enjoy a piece of this” He lifted up the cheesecake. “We will talk for a little while, then you can go home.”

“Frank, I really need to get home.”

“Ten minutes, fifteen tops.” He stepped inside the door. “Come on. You know I’m not going to take no for answer.”

“I… Okay.” You walked into the house, and you were greeted by all of the Reagans.

Turns out fifteen minutes actually means three hours in the Reagan world. You did try to leave a few times, but they somehow convinced you to stay. Now you are finally able to leave the house when Danny and Erin said they needed to head out. Quickly that turned into having a chat at your vehicles, then Jamie came out to leave as well.

“I thought all of you needed to get home.”

“We do, we were just saying goodbye.” Erin was the first to address him.

“Well, you’ve been standing out here for like twenty minutes. You don’t seem to be in a rush to me.”

“Has it really been twenty minutes?” You looked at your watch to see it have been. “Wow…”

“I guess that’s what happens when friends get together.”

Danny wrapped his arm around your shoulders and pulled you towards him. You already knew what was going to happen. You tried to get out of it but you were too slow. Next thing you know he had you in a head lock giving you a noggie.

“DANNY! Let me go!”

All while Erin and Jamie are jus laughing their asses off. You struggled against Danny for a little bit before his phone started going off.

“Aww, saved by the bell Y/n.”

“I hate you. This is why Erin is my favorite Reagan.” You started fixing your hair when Jamie spoke up.

“Hey! I thought I was your favorite.” He looked a little offended.

“Nope. After what you did this morning, you were demoted to fourth.”

“Fourth?! Who are the other two ahead of me?”

“Frank and Henry.” You started thinking about it. “Ya’ know you might actually be lower than fourth. I didn’t factor in Nikki, Linda, Jack, and Shawn. You might actually be like eighth. Butthead over there is nineth.” You pointed over to Danny who was still on the phone.

“Wow, after all I have done for you.” Jamie just shook his head; you shrugged your shoulders.

“It happens.”

Danny turns back to the group. “Alright, now I really have to go. I will see you all later.” He went around and gave you and Erin a hug and Jamie a pat on the shoulder before getting into his Jeep.

“I should be going to, I still need to pick up Nikki and make dinner.” Erin turned to you. “We should get lunch soon.”

“Yeah, I have some free time for the next couple of days. My anger management class isn’t until Friday.”

“Okay. How about Thursday?”

“Sounds like a plan.” You smiled as she stared walking to her car. “Bye.”

“Bye.”

You turned and unlocked your truck. When you opened the door and got in, Jamie had his hand on the top of the door to hold it open.

“You were joking when you said that Erin was your favorite right?”

“No.” You just looked at him with the straightest face you had.

“Really?”

“Why are you sad? Jealous? Angry even?”

“No, I just don’t believe you.”

“Well, believe what you want.” You were close to breaking.

“Y/n. I know you better than anyone, so I know when you are lying to me.”

“Goodbye Jamie.” You shook your head, pulling on the door but he wouldn’t let go.

“I want to hear you say it.”

“Fine. I guess you’re my favorite.”

“I didn’t need the sarcasm but ill take it. Bye Y/n.” He closed the door and walked to his car, he watched as you drove away.

Once you got home things went quickly. You greeted Brian and went to the kitchen and started dinner. He came in to help you, then when it was almost done he set the table. The two of you talked about your days. Then you spent time together and watched t.v. for a while before going to bed. That’s how it was with you too as of late. You have tried to change it, but nothing was working. It was like the two of you fell into this comfortable routine, that neither of you wanted to address. After three years together, you started thinking this is all that it would be.

You hate this feeling.

The feeling of something ending.

Tags-

Reagan’s (Everything)

@the-wolfie @navs-bhat @daddyslittlevillain @halstead-severide-fan​ @romanceandsarcasm​  @shelbygeek 

Jamie Reagan Tag

@traceyaudette

@cute-baby-ducks (it won’t let me tag you)

Series Tags

@everythingand-nothing @traceyaudette @1-800-stray-kids @francopasta@goingwiththewind @irrelevant-86

[axelwolf8109]

I love the Reagans

[renardtrickster]

"Irredeemable Media" lists are incredibly funny because it's typically just "[literal baby show], [literal baby show], [media I've never watched and only have it on here cause I dislike a fandom trend], and [literal baby show]"

The subject matter of who gets called Irredeemable Media is pretty interesting (especially when you ask why Steven Universe or Undertale or other implicitly or explicitly progressive stuff gets marked but not shit like Family Guy or South Park which frequently do pretty sketchy stuff), but I think I'm also fascinated with the question of why it is. 'Cos looking at stuff like that list, I think there's basically four categories for why the carrd carriers would call stuff irredeemable.

It is a Literal Baby Show or something equally milquetoast/okay/apolitical but it was made in the late '90s or early 2000s so there's something kind of sketchy in there. And instead of leaving it as a historical curiosity that you handle responsibly and critically a la "hey isn't it kind of fucked up that in early Scooby Doo you could just have the gang run into a bunch of Native Americans who wear feather caps and speak broken english that wouldn't fly today" they toss the baby out with the bathwater. Maybe poor taste acts like wine in that it festers over time and a faux pas, given enough time, turns into They Murdered My Family.

It's okay but made with the expectation that a mature audience will handle it and not a terminally anxious teenager so "here is a fucked up thing I have enough faith in you to understand that this is fucked up" gets construed as "oh my god they're just endorsing it".

A variant of 2 and 3 where it's explicitly progressive, made by and for gay people, or something similarly Really Above Board, but the terminally anxious teenager in this case operates under some sort of moon logic or has impossibly high standards but only for progressive and queer people I wonder why that lets them see "groundbreakingly progressive work of fiction that raises the bar for the entire industry and spurred a positive personal or political journey for thousands" as "nazi propaganda".

Variant of 1 and 3 where there's literally nothing here to get mad at but mind-meltinginly eldritch and esoteric discourse has caused some sort of warping to occur. This is rare I think but it's the only explanation for a Bizarre Take I once saw, where someone played Yume Nikki, did a "Madotsuki as a trans man" reading, interpreted the game as being transphobic in light of this reading, and then accused the creator of being transphobic even though 100% of that legwork was entirely on the person doing the reading.

[comfortfoodcontent]

[nade2308]

Happy Valentine's Day y'all

[juanabaloo]

related to the great "humanizing dictators" sketch on Alternatino, i did watch SNL this weekend. 99% for Ayo, she was good. (JLo was fine but her songs were boring to me)

Nikki Haley made an appearance. i feel like this was SNL "correcting" their mistake of having 45 on before. which just, NO. i guess they haven't internalized the fact that the Republicans are Nazis now. 45 or Nikki? they are both Nazis so while SNL thinks they are cute for making fun of 45, they are just showing they haven't learned their lesson from before. Which, as Alternatino shows, is don't fucking humanize dictators. Don't humanize fascists who want to be the President.

dipshits. that's really the kindest word i can say to SNL mgmt.

(also if you haven't seen the Fallon bit where he talks to 45, do yourself a favor and watch that before you watch the Alternatino sketch. double fuck to Fallon.)

[halfwaybyaccident]

Nonwhite women in the GOP are a special kind of traitor.

[youngbelieverstrawberry]

Katarina rina

Stella cardo

Zazie skymm

Connie carter

Lena Reif

Queenlin

Chole Taylor

Terry Rubens

Marica Chanelle

River Fox

Ruby temptations

Sophia Traxler

Alice wayne

Julia Boin

Haley Cummings

Michele james

Octavia red

Mila Azul

Kira queen

Hazel moore

Kimberly Simon

Tina Ray

Nene Tanaka

Nikky Dream

Jazlyn ray

Jessica Robbin

Alexa black

Angel princess

Alyx star

Nala brooks

Simon kitty

Stella fox

Zhang yunxi

Lady lyne

Clary

Siyaora

Riley reign

Giselle palmer

Kylie page

Violet Myers

Jazlyn Ray

Rae Lil black

Blair Williams

Aria Taylor

Michele james

Lola sin

Blair Williams

Emily Addison

Brandy renee

Hailey Rose

The gorillagripy

Myla angel

Emily Right

Lauren Philips

Shae summers

Molly jane

Taylee wood

Roxxie sinner

Serena salgot

Jessica starling

Keisha grey

Bella Breeze and

Ariana shine

Lola bredly

Skye blue

Jennifer gold

Faye Reagan

Sensual jane

Anna Blaze

Moerelline moore

Miu Arioka

Honoka Tsujii

Rara Anzai

Maria Nagai

Harmony heart

Laura Dickens(sheril blossom)

Lauren pixie

Ava sinclaire

Ava black

Jasmine wilde

[unknowntoyou2205]

In which the Inevitable becomes reality pt 1/3

Info: The youngest Reagan has always been protected from the crimes that her family faced, but sometimes being away from it is inevitable

Relationship: Reagan family x reagan reader

Warning: Mentions of school shooting

Series masterlist

Based on early season

25 year old y/n Reagan was the youngest of Commissioner Frank Reagans kids. Being the youngest her family cared for her deeply. Her life was slightly different than those of her family, being a high school teacher was something she always wanted to do. The family line of cops and army life never appealed to her, so like her sister she steered clear of that workforce. She remembered her beloved deceased brother Joe letting her hold his unloaded gun, and she hated the feel of it. She didn't like the thought of having t put a bullet into someone, even when it was to protect someone else. Y/n thought PE and Biology as well as coached the girls baseball team (one she fought for when she first joined the school) every Wednesday afterschool.

She was closest with her gramps, they often played chess together and many a night Frank would come home from work and see his father and daughter sitting in the living room watching friends ( though if anyone asked Henry would strongly deny it). Her pops often joined her for the coaching sessions before heading back to his where he would cook dinner before she left back to hers.

She was the younger sister that Linda always wished for, and it wouldn't be a surprise to see y/n helping her sister in law around the house or cooking, and Linda always made sure to make time to help y/n get her class room ready for the school year.

Y/n was quiet compared to her older siblings, and because of that Danny had always been overprotective of her. He didn't like her being around cases the family worked on, and often kept her away from the conversations if she could, making dinner conversations of cases short when she was present. Many a time he would meet her for coffee during the week, or bring her some lunch when he had a case that reminded him of her. He made sure that y/n would always text when she was home if she was out late or if a criminal was on the lose.

Jamie had made it a habit to sit down and have drinks with her after a tough day. Despite being there to help her brother, y/n was never told of his day and what lead to him becoming so stressed, which frustrated her but she accepted it none the less.

Being the only two girls of a family of boys, Erin and y/n often spent Sundays doing something together before church and family dinner. Their schedule prevented them from spending much time together so when they could, they would leave for a week, Nikki joining them, and head somewhere they hadn't been before to explore.

Her family always looked after her, and father was no exception. Frank always made sure to check up on her, regardless on what went on that day. He knew the school shootings happening in America effected her, and wanted to make sure that she knew she was safe and nothing would happen to her. He even went so far to make sure that the Reagan family saying 'please don't hurt my family' was drilled in her head. She was well protected and always had someone watching her back.

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

The Reagan family at at the dinner table at Henry and Franks for their weekly Sunday family dinner after church. Y/n sat beside her dad and Erin, picking at her food as she half listened to her family talking about the recent increase of school shootings around the town. Too focused in her own thoughts, she jumped when she was elbowed before glaring at Erin in annoyance.

"Oww, what?" Y/n snapped at her sister before whipping her head to face her dad as he raised a finger in warning.

"Gramps was asking what's wrong with you, your not eating much." Erin stated, tilting her head to the side slightly.

"Sorry Gramps, just thoughts spiraling around my head. Classes have been busy with assessments and we had a practice session today." Y/n explained, watching as her family turned their attention to her, Danny eyeing her with slight concern.

"Teachers have a busy schedule? I always thought they just gave us work and went home to rest." Sean stated causing y/n to laugh slightly.

"Well if you consider grading papers, correcting homework, teaching kids new material, planning classes and making sure that you are all ready for the real world easy, than yeah it's a job for lots of rest." Y/n explained causing Jack to laugh at his brother playfully.

"But compared to dads job it's easy right?" Sean asked, looking towards his aunt.

"Every job is difficult in it's own way Sean, no one has an easier job than anyone else. It may seem like it to you but I'm sure dealing with kids on the daily ain't easy. I mean I only have you and Jack and sometimes I struggle with it." Linda explained to her son.

"So you don't just rest?" Sean asked, second guessing everything he thought.

"God I wish." Y/n stated, stabbing her meat and taking a bite as everyone laughed at her reaction.

"As opposed to your very busy schedule. Everything will work out in the end y/n, your a great teacher and those kids are lucky to have you as their mentor through life." Frank stated, putting a hand on his youngest daughters shoulder as she chuckled lightly.

"Mentor through life, way to be dramatic dad." y/n laughed, taking her glass of wine and taking a sip.

"You seem to forget he's commissioner of police y/n, dramatic is in the job description." Jamie stated and everyone laughed once again.

Y/n shook her head as she laughed with her family, glad to have them around her. She glanced in front of her to see Danny looking at her with a small smile. He winked at her in assurance before taking a bite of his food, and y/n smiled at him before looking down at her plate o continue her own food. Grabbing her glass of wine, she smirked at her pops when he mentioned about needing a rematch on the chess game they had played last week.

"Didn't y/n win that one?" Nikki asked, smirking at y/n who nodded her head in appreciation.

"Nah, I was going easy on her." Henry stated, taking a drink from his own glass.

"Nah, your gramps is just a sore loser, I won fair and square right Jack." Y/n asked, glancing at the boy who had watched their game.

"Right." Jack nodded causing everyone to laugh once again.

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

The following day y/n was teaching her regular PE class, and she watched the group of students as they started to run laps of the court. Hearing footsteps outside the door, she folded her arms and turned her head to the sound. Deciding to check it our, she made her way over to the door, ready to give out to students ditching class, only to see no one. Squinting her eyes in confusion, Ms. Reagan made her way back into the hall, clapping her hands to gain the students attention.

"Alright guys, grab some balls and were gonna do volleyball. One on one." She announced, grabbing the net full of soft balls before placing it in the middle of the floor, allowing students to grab them and pair up. "The rules are...."

Y/n was interrupted by an echoing bang being heard, causing the students to look around the hall. Hearing it again, closer than before, the students flinch at the sound. Y/n's eyes widened as she realized the sound, the sound of a gun. She looked around the hall before seeing the storage unit, knowing it wasn't exactly spacious but she needed to figure out something before the person responsible for the shots found them. They couldn't stay in the hall it was way too open.

"Alright, everyone be calm, we need to find somewhere to hide, no need to panic, just follow me into the storage unit, keep your heads low, does everyone understand me." Y/n explained slowly, indicating for everyone to crouch down, "Treat it like the ones we practiced. Hid behind anything in there, I will lock and block the door once everyone is in there, it's going to be a tight squeeze but make it work."

Y/n watched the students eyes widen in fear as they realized what was happening. Shushing the students who whimpered, and knowing they didn't have much time to waste, she began pushing students towards the unit. Students began to follow each other and y/n ran towards the door to lock it and grabbed the bag which had held the balls to make it more difficult for the shooter to determine people were present.

Upon making it to the unit she locked the door and ordered students to grab some of the ridiculously heavy gym mats to barricade it, blocking the windows that would risk exposure. She sighed deeply and watched students huddle close to their friends, sliding down the mats to be close to the door.

"Okay guys, I know you have phones on you. I need you to contact those who need to know what's going on and put them on silent. Do not tell anyone where you are hiding, we do not know who or where they are, but they may have someone's phone or be able to track our phones, understood." Y/n whispered sternly, trying to keep everyone, and herself, calm.

Y/n grabbed the laptop left at the side of the storage unit for emergencies and checked to see if any emails was out about what was going on. She knew it was only a matter of time till one, or both, f her brothers would catch wind of what was going on and would make their way to aid, her father would no doubt follow. She just needed to keep her students safe and sane until help arrived.

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

Danny sat at his desk as he worked on some paperwork with Jackie after finishing another case. Turning to his computer he began to look at some evidence from labs when something came over the radio.

"School shooting in operation, Location: Local high school, All units available please respond. Armed forces are required." A dispatcher announced causing Danny's eyes to widen in shock before jumping up.

"Danny, what's up?." Jackie asked, concerned for her partners sudden movement as she also got up.

"Y/n teaches there." He responded, grabbing his gun and putting it in it's holster and clipping his badge in a rush before taking his car keys.

"That's where y/n teaches?" Jackie asked, also getting up and grabbing her gun and badge.

"Yep, now let's go." Danny ordered, before rushing out of the office, Jackie rushing to keep up with him.

"Detective Curatola and Detective Reagan on route to shooting." Jackie reported back to dispatch as she got in the car just in time for Danny to speed off, sirens blaring.

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

Jamie and officer Renzulli sat in their patrol car, watching the city in the corner while eating their lunch. Jamie bit into his sandwich as he listened to his mentor explain his recent dilemma with his wife before stopping as they heard the car radio cackle to life.

"All available units please respond. School shooting in operation, Location: local high school. Armed forces are required."

"Shit." Jamie cursed, pushing his lunch onto the floor , not caring where it went as he heard the school name.

"What's the stress for Reagan, call us in." Officer Renzulli stated, pointing at the radio as he started the car.

"Officer Reagan and Officer Renzulli available on route." Jamie called into the radio before putting on the sirens and answering his mentors question "My sister works there."

"Erin, isn't she a lawyer."

"No my other sister y/n. Can't we go any faster." Jamie asked, agitated to get there.

"I'm going, I'm going. Don't worry I'm sure she'll be in a safe place, don't schools to training for these type of things."

"Yeah, but you and I both know training is nothing like an actual scenario." Jamie explained, not in the mood to be talking.

"True that." Renzulli agreed, realizing Jamie didn't want to talk any more.

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

Frank sat in his office, currently in his latest monthly meeting with the fire commissioner. He loved being commissioner but sometimes these meetings seemed to drag on. He sighed and rubbed his forehead in frustration before his office door opened and Baker came through.

"Baker." Frank stated, looking up at his receptionist.

"Sorry commissioner, emergency within the police districts, dispatch has been asking for any available units to respond to the situation. Said armed forces were required for a school shooting." Baker relayed information to her boss who watched her in thought.

"Oh God." The fire commissioner swore under his breath causing Frank to glance his way before returning his gaze to Baker.

"What school?" He asked, trying to hide the lump formed in his throat."

"The local high school sir." Baker replied, watching as the commissioner took a deep breath and look down, head in his hands.

"Baker, call for a car. I don't need a driver, just the car." Frank ordered softly as he refused to look at anyone.

"Sir?" The woman asked confused, " You can't go, commissioners don't respond to shootings."

"Baker I didn't ask for your input I asked for a car. I need to get there and I don't care how, just find a way." Frank stated sternly, looking ahead of him.

"But sir."

"Baker, my daughter works there and I need to be there to see what's happening, so get me a car and tell them that the commissioner is on his way." Frank ordered, standing up and putting his hands on the table in front of him, looking at her finally.

"Right away sir." Baker responded, knowing no Reagan would take no when it's family involved.

"I'm sorry commissioner but we will need to postpone this meeting." Frank stated, looking at his fellow commissioner as he opened the drawer which contained his gun and badge.

"Don't sweat it sir, I pray for your daughters safety."

"Thank you."

Frank nodded is head at his fellow commissioner and left the office. He sighed in sorrow as thought of his youngest daughter being held hostage in school with a bunch of students under her protection and opted to text her 'y/n, be calm, you will be okay, we will get you and the students out safe'. As the car arrived for him he got into the back before it came to full halt and sat impatiently as they made their way to the scene.

[msweebyness]

Miraculous Second Gen

These are the kiddies that Sparky and me came up with for the Miraculous kiddies! Enjoy! @imsparky2002 @artzychic27

(NOTE: These apply and are canon to my MLB canon and all of Sparky and I’s AU’s, meaning Class of Heroes/Villainy, Monstrous Youths, Ghoul Squad, etc.)

Polycule:

Emma:

She/Her

Age 15

Bio parents Adrien/Marinette

Genki Girl, social media influencer

SO MUCH ENERGY

Deals with OCD

Cat holder

Louie:

He/Him

Age 14

Bio Parents Luka/Kagami

Mellow fellow, wants to be a musician

Can see auras

Serious crush on Darius

Ladybug Holder

Hugo:

He/Him

Age 10

Bio parents Luka/Marinette

Bouncing off the walls

Promising young athlete

Emerging himbo™️

Future dragon holder

Alison:

She/Her

Age 6

Bio parents Kagami/Adrien

Cold and stoic like Kagami

Doesn’t speak unless necessary

Crazy smart and mature for her age

Future snake holder

Alyno:

(Twins)

Cody:

He/Him

Age 16

Chillest dude on Earth, into meditation

Wants to be a writer for comics, Marc is a kind of mentor

Also plays the keyboard

HUGE crush on June

Fox holder

Cecily (“CeCe”):

She/Her

Age 16

Super driven, like her mom

Can be a bit too blunt

Constantly bickering with her twin

Runs a feminist news site, Grrrl

Turtle holder

Julerose:

Marek:

He/They

Age 17

Bio mom is Juleka, with a donor

Super shy like Juleka, loves cute things like Rose

Can and has won a knife fight

Babysits his cousin Alison a lot

Tiger holder

Dating Vicki

Myvan:

Juniper (“June”):

She/Her

Age 16

Ox holder

Has a bit of RBF

Super intimidating mom friend

Has…a bit of a temper, but still as kind as her parents

Activist, wants to be a social worker

Returns Cody’s feelings, but unaware of it

Hector:

He/Him

Age 10

Big and bulky, just like his dad

Gentle Giant, really soft-spoken

Likes working with animals

Best friends with Hugo

Future mouse holder

NathMarc:

Elicia:

She/Her

Age 17

Bio dad is Marc, with a surrogate

Lil Sassy Lassy, always has an opinion

Has a passion for sculpting

High-functioning autistic

Rooster holder

Kimdine:

Victoria (“Vicki”):

She/Her

Age 17

Monkey holder

Basically, Kim but with more common sense

Ridiculously energetic, does a bunch of sports

Works as a model for Mari’s fashion line

Dating Marek

Nicolette (“Nikki”):

She/Her

Age 13

Much more quiet and subdued than her sister

Voice of reason in the fam

Super tech savvy

Deadpan Snarker

Future horse holder, Max is mentoring her

Sabrina/Delmar:

Darius:

He/They

Age 14

Adopted at age 7

SUPER organized like his mom

Really good at public speaking

Wants to go into politics to make a difference

Serious crush on Louie

Dog holder

Alix:

River:

They/Them

Age 13

Adopted at 1 year old

Daredevil like their mama

Snarky lil shit

SUPER smart

Rabbit holder

***BONUS MY OC COUPLES!!!!:***

Breckvie:

Destiny:

She/Her

Age 17

Proper lady like Evie

Ridiculously kind, compulsively cares for others

Also can put her foot down

Kind of has a crush on Elicia

Pig holder, Rose is mentoring her

Reagan:

She/Her

Age 12

Herbo™️

Crazy good cook, wants to be a chef

Big daddy’s girl

Milo:

He/Him

Age 9

Wants to be a vet like his dad

Happiest kid in the world

Randomly befriends and adopts animals

Jessthony:

Warren:

He/They

Age 15

Adopted at 3

Shy like Jesse, but quietly snarky like Anthony

Fidgets a lot

Wants to be a designer, kind of a protege to Mari

Loves hanging out with his cousins, June and Hector (Fred Haprele and Imelda Ortega got married during Jesse and Mylene’s last year of Lycee💖)

Goat holder, Nath helped mentor them

Leave your thoughts in the comments and reblogs!

[hit-song-showdown]

Year-End Poll #38: 1987

[Image description: a collage of photos of the 10 musicians and musical groups featured in this poll. In order from left to right, top to bottom: The Bangles, Heart, Gregory Abbott, Whitney Houston, Starship, Robbie Nevil, Whitesnake, Bruce Hornsby and the Range, Bob Seger, Bon Jovi. End description]

More information about this blog here

Lots of things happening this year. What I want to draw attention to first is the influx of glam metal (or hair metal). Heavy metal as a genre had existed for a few decades by this point, mostly branching off of the blues and psychedelic rock of the late 1960's. To avoid going on an overly-long tangent about metal, I'll leave it at that for now. Glam metal has its roots in the heavy metal sound while also (as the name would suggest) taking additional influences from the glam rock of the 1970's. MTV was very kind to this style of music, and glam metal reached a level of fame where you didn't have to be deep in the metal scene to be exposed to. Other subgenres like thrash and death metal would also grow in popularity around this time, but only to those who were aware of what was going on. Metallica would have to wait to breach the underground and MTV would probably have a hard time getting middle America on board with Necrophagia. So while there was a lot going on in metal throughout the 80s, there's a reason why when most people think of "80s metal", there's a very specific image that comes with that.

But that isn't to suggest that rock music in the mainstream was able to escape controversy by featuring more hairspray and less corpse paint, because there's another moment in music history that will culminate this year. In 1985, the PMRC (Parents Music Resource Center) put together a list called the "Filthy Fifteen", which listed fifteen songs thought to be inappropriate and damaging towards traditional family values. Songs on the list include Prince's Darling Nikki (which seemed to have raised the most ire out of the PMRC's co-founder, Tipper Gore), Mötley Crüe's Bastard, Twisted Sister's We're Not Gonna Take It, and Cyndi Lauper's She Bop. A senate hearing over the matter of explicit lyrics was held in 1985, with musicians Frank Zappa, John Denver, and Twisted Sister's Dee Snider speaking out in opposition to censorship. There is a lot behind this conflict, both inside the courtroom and outside, so I'm aware that I'm giving a very fly-over view of the events for the sake of this poll. I'll just mention that these hearings were sometimes dubbed "The Porn-Rock Hearings", the outcry from these concerned parents groups fit really well in Reagan's America, and Zappa gave this absolute bomb of a quote that has been sitting with me a lot as of late:

"Bad facts make bad law, and people who write bad laws are, in my opinion, more dangerous than songwriters who celebrate sexuality. Freedom of Speech, Freedom of Religious Thought, and the Right to Due Process for composers, performers and retailers are imperiled if the PMRC and the major labels consummate this nasty bargain."

There are so many good quotes, so I linked to the Full Video and Transcript

To make a long story unfortunately short, something of a compromise was reached by requiring musicians and labels to put "parental advisory" stickers on their albums, alerting potential consumers of the "objectionable" material within. Some musicians found the label as a loss for free speech and another example of the U.S. government deciding whose voices get to be considered moral or not. Other musicians predicted that the parental advisory sticker would only make their music more appealing to young people. You probably didn't need me to tell you this, but Tipper Gore and the PMRC did not stop the "moral downfall of America", if such a thing could even be quantified.

So now we all have little black and white stickers on our albums, yay. But this is far from the last time we'll see a major court case over music and obscenity. But we'll go over that next decade.

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Kerry Eleveld at Daily Kos:

Donald Trump's enthusiasm problem persisted in ruby-red Indiana this week, where nearly 22% of Republican primary voters cast a ballot for a onetime presidential hopeful who dropped out of the race two full months ago: zombie candidate Nikki Haley.

While it's easy to frame this persistent trend as a "Haley problem" for Trump, The Dispatch reporter David Drucker painted the pattern as a sign of something much bigger as he spoke to Greg Sargent on “The Daily Blast” podcast. What he described suggested the GOP coalition may be in the process of splintering under Trump. Drucker, a veteran political journalist who has spoken to Republican voters in Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina, said that Haley backers have largely lost their kinship with the Republican Party. "They no longer feel at home in the party," Drucker explained. "It wasn't just about Trump, it was about the new people he had attracted to the party—the populist right, which has ascended within the Republican coalition." In essence, the MAGA contingent’s hostile takeover of the GOP and what it now means to be a "Republican" is truly settling in—and it's not sitting well with Haley voters, who are more traditional Reagan-era conservatives. 

In any other election, Drucker said, he would assume these Haley voters would come home to the GOP in November and vote for Trump. But this cycle, he doesn't believe that can be taken for granted. Instead of seeing a nominee who simply wasn't their first choice, they see someone who doesn't share their worldview. "I talked to a lot of voters who simply do not think that Trump is a good guy, they don't share his values, and they really really wish they had another choice," Drucker said. That doesn't mean they're a lock for President Joe Biden by any stretch, but the Biden-Harris campaign is actively message testing the group, according to Drucker, to pinpoint how they can be persuaded to vote for Biden in November. One positive for Biden is the fact that Haley supporters tend to be suburban voters who are already more engaged and more reachable than Trump’s MAGA supporters, partly because they typically consume a more varied media diet rather than relying on a single source or getting their news through social media. 

Donald Trump continues to lose nearly 20% of the GOP primary vote to long since dropped out Nikki Haley, and Indiana is the latest state.

This is a telltale sign that Trump is in trouble come fall. #INPrimary

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

Mike Luckovich, Atlanta Journal Constitution

* * * *

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

January 24, 2024

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

JAN 25, 2024

The dust is beginning to settle after last night’s New Hampshire primary. Former president Donald Trump won the Republican primary with 54.3% of the vote, netting him 12 delegates to the Republican National Convention. Former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley came in second with 43.3% of the vote, garnering her 9 delegates. Other candidates together took 2.3%, but none of them won any delegates.

There has been a lot of noise today about whether the New Hampshire results spell good news for Trump or bad news. While the result keeps him in the front spot for the Republican nomination, I fall into the category of observers who see bad news: more than 45% of Republican primary voters—those most fervent about the party—chose someone other than Trump. 

As David French pointed out in the New York Times today, Trump is running as a virtual incumbent, and any incumbent facing a challenger who can command 43% of the party faithful is in trouble. President Gerald Ford discovered this equation in 1976 when he faced Ronald Reagan’s insurgency; President George H. W. Bush discovered it in 1992 when he faced a similar challenge from right-wing commentator Patrick Buchanan. While both Ford and Bush went on to win the Republican nomination, they lost the general election. 

More important than opinions or history to indicate what the primary indicated, though, is Trump’s apparent anger about Haley’s showing. Politico’s Playbook noted that he “rage-posted” about Haley’s speech after her strong finish with posts that lasted far into the night. Ron Filipkowski noted that at 2:19 this morning he was still at it, posting: “NIKKI CAME IN LAST, NOT SECOND!”

In addition to attacking her from the podium, Trump appeared to threaten her when he warned her about “very dishonest people” she would have to fight. He said she was not going to win, “but if she did, she would “be under investigation…in fifteen minutes and I could tell you five reasons why already. Not big reasons, a little stuff that she doesn’t want to talk about, but she will be under investigation within minutes, and so would Ron have been, but he decided to get out.”

The tactics Trump might have been suggesting became clear this afternoon, when the chair of the Arizona Republican Party, Jeff DeWit, resigned after a recording that appeared to show him trying to bribe Arizona Senate candidate and fervent Trump supporter Kari Lake to stay out of the Senate race was leaked to the press. The tape itself was clearly contrived to show Lake as if she were in a campaign ad, defending Trump and America, but it includes DeWit’s pleas for her to stand aside for two years, presumably while the Arizona party regroups with less extremist candidates, and his request that she name her price. 

This sordid story reflects a problem in the state Republican parties as MAGA supporters have tried to take over from the party establishment. In Arizona, challenging the 2020 presidential election—remember the “Cyber Ninjas” who audited the Maricopa County vote?—ran the finances of the Arizona party into the ground. Lake has continued to insist, without evidence, that the election was stolen, and she and other MAGA activists have called for purging the party of all but the Trump faithful. The recording positions Lake as a Trump loyalist fighting against party operatives.

In his resignation letter, DeWit claimed the recording had been “taken out of context” and said he had been “set up.” He noted that Lake has “a disturbing tendency to exploit private interactions for personal gain,” calling out “her habit of secretly recording personal and private conversations. This is obviously a concern given how much interaction she has with high profile people including President Trump,” he added. “I believe she orchestrated this entire situation to have control over the state party,” he wrote.

DeWit said he had “received an ultimatum from Lake’s team: resign today or face the release of a new, more damaging recording. I am truly unsure of its contents,” he wrote, “but considering our numerous past open conversations as friends, I have decided not to take the risk. I am resigning as Lake requested.”

It seems clear the Trump team is eager to consolidate power behind him no matter what it takes, especially in the face of what appears to be his weakness. Rising authoritarians depend on the idea they are invincible, so being perceived as vulnerable—or as a loser—hits them much harder than it does a normal political candidate. 

Republican National Committee chair Ronna McDaniel—who was recorded on November 17, 2020, pressuring two Republican officials in Michigan not to certify Joe Biden’s electors in a county he won by 68% and promising the officials to “get you attorneys”—has urged Haley to drop out of the race. Traditionally, party chairs stay neutral in primary contests. Tonight, Trump posted a threat to donors: “Nikki ‘Birdbrain’ Haley is very bad for the Republican Party and, indeed, our Country…. Anybody that makes a ‘Contribution’ to Birdbrain, from this moment forth, will be permanently barred from the MAGA camp. We don’t want them and will not accept them.” 

For her part, Haley has vowed to stay in the contest. While observers point out that there is very little chance she could actually overtake Trump, it’s also true that either Trump’s obvious mental lapses or his legal troubles could knock him out of the race, in which case she would be the most viable candidate standing.

Curiously, what happened to Trump in New Hampshire was what, before the election, pundits suggested could and maybe should happen to President Joe Biden: a challenger would show that he was weak going into the 2024 election. 

Instead, despite dirty-trickster robocalls in a fake Biden voice telling Democratic voters not to show up vote for Biden, he appears to be on track to win 65% of the vote as a write-in candidate—he wasn’t on the ballot—while Representative Dean Phillips and self-help author Marianne Williamson, who were on the ballot, together appear to have garnered just under 25%.. 

On Monday, Miranda Nazzaro of The Hill reported that the creator of ChatGPT banned a super PAC backing Phillips for misusing AI for political purposes. Billionaire Bill Ackman, who has been in the news lately for his fight against diversity, equity, and inclusion programs, attacks on former Harvard president Claudine Gay, and threats to media outlets that pointed out plagiarism in his wife’s doctoral dissertation, donated $1 million to Phillips’s super PAC.  

There was other good news for the Biden camp today, too. Sign-ups for the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, have surged by 80% under Biden, with a record 21 million people enrolling this year. Trump has promised to get rid of the program, saying that “Obamacare Sucks!!!” and that he will replace it with something better, but neither now nor in his four years in office did he produce a plan. 

Biden also received the enthusiastic endorsement today of the United Auto Workers union, whose president, Shawn Fain, had made it clear that any president must earn that endorsement. Biden stood with the union in its negotiations last year with the big three automakers, not only behind the scenes but also in public when he became the first president to join a picket line. “[Trump] went to a nonunion plant, invited by the boss, and trashed our union,” Fain said, “And, here is what Joe Biden did during our stand up strike. He heard the call. And he stood up and he showed up.” “Donald Trump stands against everything we stand for as a society,” Fain told the crowd.

More news dropped today about the damage MAGA Republicans are doing to the United States. A report published today in JAMA Internal Medicine estimates that in the 14 states that outlawed abortion after the Supreme Court’s June 2022 Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision, 64,565 women became pregnant after being raped, “but few (if any) obtained in-state abortions legally.”  

Finally, Jake Sherman and John Bresnahan of Punchbowl News confirmed this evening that although MAGA Republicans have insisted the border is such a crisis that no aid to Ukraine can pass until it is addressed, Trump is preventing congressional action on the border because he wants to run on the issue of immigration. Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) told a closed meeting of Senate Republicans that “the nominee” wants to run his campaign on immigration, adding, “We don’t want to do anything to undermine him.” “We’re in a quandary,” McConnell said. 

Jennifer Bendery and Igor Bobic of HuffPost reported that Trump today reached out to Republican senators to kill the bipartisan border deal being finalized, “because he doesn’t want Biden to have a victory,” one source said. “The rational Republicans want the deal because they want Ukraine and Israel and an actual border solution,” Bendery and Bobic quote the source as saying. “But the others are afraid of Trump, or they’re the chaos caucus who never wants to pass anything.”

“They’re having a little crisis in their conference right now,”

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

[peaceliliesandtea]

5 Songs I’ve Been Listening to Recently:

a big thank you to the lovely @sumire-no-nikki for tagging me in this!

fresh out the slammer - taylor swift

madonna - niamh reagan

didn't wanna have to do it - cass elliot

over my shoulder - i am kloot

dive - olivia dean

special mention to that me espresso: espresso - sabrina carpenter

tagging: @hrimceald @dauen @cebil @aefensteorrra @thesoundofnat and anyone else who would like to do it!

[carolinemillerbooks]

New Post has been published on Books by Caroline Miller

New Post has been published on https://www.booksbycarolinemiller.com/musings/is-trump-more-to-be-pitied/

Is Trump More To Be Pitied?

Watching a reporter interview historian Timothy Snyder one evening, I sat up in my chair when he laid out his thoughts about  Donald Trump’s strategy for the current 2024 Presidential election.  Snyder presumed the former president knew he would lose the contest and was taking unpopular positions against Social Security and the Affordable Care Act not to secure victory but to lay the groundwork for a second insurrection. Insane as the idea sounded, I couldn’t dismiss it out of hand.  A distorted mind might seize upon the claim of being victorious in defeat. Trump had tried it before.  The fear that history might repeat itself set my little grey cells spinning.  The media has paid little attention to the state of Trump’s mind, choosing to focus on the age of his opponent, Joe Biden. Those who speculate that the incumbent is too old to run for a second term forget that a scant three-year difference lies between the two contenders.  Reporters would serve the public better by exploring the difference between an aging brain and a demented one. Biden’s speech gaffs, which many hold against him, aren’t entirely due to his age.  As a child, he stuttered. The impediment reasserts itself on occasion. But it is also true that as a man of 81 years, he speaks slowly and takes mental pauses. These are signs of a brain aging normally, not evidence of one that has lost its reason. Bidne’s verbal mistakes are a far cry from Trump’s failure to distinguish Nikki Haley from Nancy Pelosi or for him to speak as though he were running against Barack Obama. Ronald Reagan’s conduct during his final years in office might be a better measuring stick with which to compare  Trump’s behavior.  The  40th U. S. President also exhibited memory gaps and confusion during public appearances.  Alzheimer’s was never confirmed during his time in office, but members of his staff did report they saw signs of the disease before he returned to private life.    Psychologist, Dr. John Gartner makes no bones about Trump’s mental illness.  He warns that the former president’s outbursts aren’t those of a strong leader flexing his muscles.  They are the tantrums of a diseased brain.    Though he was never Trump’s doctor, Gartner insists what he offers is not an opinion but a diagnosis based on reality.  Others in his field agree but few have spoken out so publically. Gartner believes his colleagues have failed to do so because they are intimidated. Like physicians practicing in anti-abortion states, they’ve come to fear there is a good chance they would lose their jobs if they went on the record, not to mention other forms of retaliation… Some journalists may have remained silent for the same reason. Gartner points out that they make little of Trump’s slurred words, invented words, unfinished sentences, and blank, expressionless pauses. Instead, they characterize the Presidential election as a competition between two old men.  When Regan took office at the age of 73, he was the oldest President to that date. Whether the early stages of Alzheimer’s had set in, we shall never know, but he was wise enough to surround himself with honorable men and women. By contrast, the roll-call of Trump’s many cohorts is a list of disreputables. Should Trump return to power, that number is likely to grow, boding ill for the country. Nor can we overlook the many felony counts against the former president. His legal woes have left him strapped for funds. Winning re-election, he could erase the federal charges against him with a presidential pardon, but he has no power to absolve himself from state charges.  Without sufficient funds to defend himself, Trump is vulnerable to opportunists who are ready to give him cash in exchange for undue influence.    Opportunists are the people we should fear, not members of the Christian Right as many have assumed.  The latter’s objectives are too out of step with the majority of voters.  Their brief hour on the stage will be less than a hiccup in the course of history.    When money and the levers of government become too cozy, says John Grey in his book The New Leviathans, it threatens democracy and encourages the rise of more and not less totalitarianism.   ( “Who’s Afraid of Freedom?” by Helena Rosenblatt, Foreign Affairs, March/April 2024, pg. 154.) The dynamic is simple, the author explains.  Like other animals, humans are addicted to pleasure. Money satisfies that addiction but the pursuit of it has consequences. Those with the most wealth imagine they are better than others–a perspective that encourages them to imagine people in lower economic circumstances are less human. From there, Grey posits, it’s a short hop to inhumanity, a place where the poverty of others is a justification for eliminating them.   (Ibid, pg. 154)  Whether that causal connection between money and tyranny is direct, I don’t know.  But, science has affirmed that wealth and compassion exist in an inverse ratio.  In a capitalist society, greed, if left unchecked, could end in a tug-of-war between those with enough money to influence the government and the majority who are governed by it. A 2019  Gallop Poll confirmed that dynamic.  Concerning the federal budget, the wealthy preferred to see service cuts to social security to sustain it.  A majority of Americans disagreed. Money has a loud voice in politics, though most of us wish it weren’t true.  Nonetheless, we must accept that Trump’s financial setbacks put him at the mercy of oligarchs. No longer able to pose as one of them, he suffers the humiliation of a man stripped of his theater.  His delusions are exposed, and he stands naked before us.  The only words to suit the occasion are these. Thou shouldst not have been old till thou hast been wise.   (King Lear, 1, v.)

[the-broken-truth]

So I Member you saying you watch Blue Bloods I was if it's possible to do a male tall Teen reader where he's the Boyfriend of Nikki Regan and is a gamer who for a charity event he plays Resident Evil 2 Remake also brings Nikki on stage where she gets jumped by the Licker

Also question for both you and masky

What is your favorite B.O.W mines Obivualsy Nemesis

Broken (Reading the ask): Hey, Mask! We got an Ask from Wereman!

Mask (Appearing out of nowhere): Really? What's the ask?

Broken: Tall Gamer Boyfriend Reader of Nicky Reagan-Boyle playing Resident Evil 2 for a Charity Event when she gets jumpscared by a Licker.

Mask: A Licker? I really don't like those things.

Broken: There is another part, Wereman was kind enough to send a question for the both of us - A Question for both you and Masky: What are your Favorite B.O.W Mines? Mine's Nemesis.

Mask: Hmmmm... If I were to say, my favorite would be Jack Krauser (If he counts); I would love to fight against him but I think I would defeat him too fast.

Broken: Same here. I want to fight Jack Krauser or Wesker. Now, let the words weave together!

KEY:

[Y/N] - Your Name

[Y/G/N] - Your Gamer Name

[B/F] - Your Best Friend Name

[Y/G/T] - Your Gamer Team

"Hey, [Y/N]! The Members of [Y/G/T] are meeting up to discuss what kind of games each of us is going to be playing for the Charity Event at the Burger Shack! You in?" [B/F] said as he jogged up to [Y/N] - the towering man looking down at his muscular, but smaller friend, causing [B/F] to groan at his best friend's height, "Why the hell are you so tall? Is someone in your family a giant or something?"

"All the men in my family are pretty tall, [B/F], I told you that already. As for meeting at the Burger Shack, can you tell the boss to get me my usual?" [Y/N] asked as he pulled out his phone and started texting his girlfriend that he was going to the Burger Shack to meet with the Members of the Gaming Team to talk about what games each of the 7 Members was going to play for the upcoming Charity Event, he stood there and looked at his phone for a while before a text came back in, causing him to smile at the text:

Regean Rabbit🐇: Okay, Babe. I'll see you at home, later!

[Y/N] closed his eyes as he thought about his loving girlfriend, Nicky Reagan. Although they were around the same age, [Y/N] was much taller than her, and she loved that about him. Whenever they went out on dates, Nicky would sometimes complain about her feet hurting and [Y/N] would carry her princess-style without question. He would tell her that one day, he was going to make her his queen.

Before [Y/N] and Nicky started dating, [Y/N] collected offerings for the Reagan family. He got down on his hands and knees, bowed his head until it touched the ground, and asked for the honor of dating Nicky. At first, Daniel Reagan didn't like the idea of Nicky dating anyone. However, seeing how kind [Y/N] was, and with some convincing from his family, he agreed to let [Y/N] and Nicky date.

When Nicky was kidnapped and later rescued, [Y/N] used his Gamer Funds to buy a 3-bedroom, 2-bathroom apartment that was situated near both their colleges. He designated one room for himself, one for Nicky, and one for his Gaming Room and Office. [Y/N] also ensured that Nicky's room had locks, and he gave her the only key to guarantee her privacy. This made the Reagan Family trust [Y/N] more around Nicky. Apart from working as a gamer, [Y/N] also made animations and had a decent salary, which he used to pay for all the rent and bills. He aimed to provide Nicky with the best life possible and promised to make it even better when he proposed to her.

Currently, Y/N was sitting in the [Y/G/T] booth at Burger Shack. The Leader of the Team paid monthly rent to keep their booth untouched, only allowing it to be used when the place was filled. [Y/N] was munching on his second cheeseburger while listening to his leader and friends talking about the game selection list. Upon seeing that Resident Evil 2 was on the list, [Y/N] swallowed the burger pieces before asking if he could play Resident Evil 2 for his section of the charity event. The leader agreed and reached into his back to pull out the Resident Evil 2 game for PS5, handing it to [Y/N] before giving everyone else their games. Once they finished their food, [Y/N] hopped on his motorcycle and headed to his apartment.

[Timeskip - Brought To You By Angry Wolf Noises]

[Y/N] logged into the Charity Event with his Gamer ID from the [Y/G/T] Membership and looked at the Charity Goal - for his contribution, his goal was a minimum of $10,000 and a maximum of $20,000. When he logged in to start the stream, there were thousands of people already waiting for him; he had his headband on with his team's symbol and greeted the people waiting for him.

"Hello, viewer! [Y/G/N] here with the long-awaited Charity Event Stream! I am hoping to reach a goal of $10,000 for my contribution but if Lady Luck is on our side today, then we can make it all the way to $20,000 for our part! Please, consider donating to the fund via the link in the description and, if you can't donate, please comment and enjoy the stream; your words shall keep me going! Without further ado, let's get gaming!"

Time ticked on, [Y/N] played while taking small breaks to answer questions or take a sip of water [REMEMBER TO HYDRATE EVERYONE!]. So far, the donations exceeded the minimum and they were now flowing to the maximum. [Y/N] was so into the game that he didn't hear his door open until one of the comments told him to look behind him, [Y/N] turned around to see his girlfriend with a plate of [Favorite Food] and a smile on his face as he pulled his headphones off his head and placed them around his neck.

"My Queen, is there something I can help you with?" [Y/N] asked as Nicky placed the food on the serving tray by his setup before kissing him on the cheek.

"I just thought you would want some food for your event, I know how important this is to you." Nicky said before looking at the comments that were asking her who she was and all the cuteness they were; there was even one persona saying that if her boyfriend called her his queen, she would have proposed to him. [Y/N] got an idea and unplugged his headphones and connected his microphone before having Nicky sit on his lap.

"Viewers, I would like all of you to meet Nicky - The Queen of my Heart and Center of my Universe." [Y/N] smiled before kissing the back of Nicky's hand as she used the other one to wave at the camera.

"Hey, everyone!" Nicky said before leaning against her boyfriend's body and asking him if she could watch him play, he said he would be blessed to be in her company.

The game continued while Nicky rested against her boyfriend's body when a cutscene started to introduce a new enemy. Nicky watched and her eyes widened when the new enemy was displayed

"AHHHHH!!!!"

"My Queen?! What's wrong?! WHOA!"

*THUMP*

[Y/N] wrapped his arms around Nicky just as his back hit the ground and he dropped his controller and by some weird stroke of luck, the game paused. [Y/N] looked down at Nicky as she buried her face into his neck, was she scared of the Licker? He started rubbing her back until she calmed down and looked at him.

"My Love, did the Licker scare you?" He asked.

"That thing is called a 'Licker'? With a tongue like that, I can see it." Nicky shivered as she clung to her boyfriend's shirt as he picked both of them up and sat back in the chair before picking up the controller and looking at the comments: all of them asking if The Queen was okay.

"Don't worry, everyone! The Queen is safe, she just doesn't like Lickers." He said.

Comments: WHO DOES?!

"Yeah. Point taken." [Y/N] said before resuming the game and saying every single Licker in the game of his queen. The night ended, and the goal was met, [Y/N] wished everyone a goodnight before logging out and sending his part of the funds to the charity. Nicky refused to let go of him and they decided to sleep on the sofa in the Gaming Officer.

[END]