#people posting candid photos of him with his family when he’s repeatedly said he wants his children to have a life out of the spotlight

[shiveringsoldier]

Who is the best actor with the worst fanbase and why is it Cillian Murphy

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

deAdder

* * * *

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

August 28, 2024

Heather Cox Richardson

Aug 29, 2024

Former president Trump appears to have slid further since last night’s news about a new grand jury’s superseding indictment of him on charges of trying to overthrow the 2020 presidential election. Over the course of about four hours this morning, Trump posted 50 times on his social media platform, mostly reposting material that was associated with QAnon, violent, authoritarian, or conspiratorial. 

He suggested he is “100% INNOCENT,” and that the indictment is a “Witch Hunt.” He called for trials and jail for special counsel Jack Smith, former president Barack Obama, and the members of Congress who investigated the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. And he reposted a sexual insult about the political careers of both Vice President Kamala Harris and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Meanwhile, Trump’s campaign has today escalated the fight about Trump’s photo op Monday at Arlington National Cemetery, where campaign staff took photos and videos in Section 60, the burial ground of recent veterans, apparently over the strong objections of cemetery officials. Then the campaign released photos and a video from the visit attacking Harris. 

Arlington National Cemetery was established on the former property of General Robert E. Lee in 1864, after the Lee family did not pay their property taxes. At the time, Lee was leading Confederate forces against the United States government, and those buried in the cemetery in its early years were those killed in the Civil War. The cemetery is one of two in the United States that is under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Army, and it is widely considered hallowed ground.  

A statement from the Arlington National Cemetery reiterated: “Federal law prohibits political campaign or election-related activities within Army National Military Cemeteries, to include photographers, content creators or any other persons attending for purposes, or in direct support of a partisan political candidate's campaign. Arlington National Cemetery reinforced and widely shared this law and its prohibitions with all participants. We can confirm there was an incident, and a report was filed.”

Republican vice presidential candidate Senator J.D. Vance of Ohio first said there was a “little disagreement” at the cemetery, but in Erie, Pennsylvania, today he tried to turn the incident into an attack on Harris. “She wants to yell at Donald Trump because he showed up?” Vance said. “She can go to hell.” Harris has not, in fact, commented on the controversy. 

VoteVets, a progressive organization that works to elect veterans to office, called the Arlington episode “sickening.”

In an interview with television personality Dr. Phil that aired last night, Trump suggested that Democrats in California each got seven ballots and that he would win in the state if Jesus Christ counted the votes. As Philip Bump of the Washington Post pointed out today, Trump has always said he could not lose elections unless there was fraud; last night he suggested repeatedly that God wants him to win the 2024 election.  

When asked his opinion of Vice President Harris, Trump once again called her “a Marxist,” a reference that would normally be used to refer to someone who agrees with the basic principles outlined by nineteenth-century philosopher Karl Marx in his theory of how society works. In Marx’s era, people in the U.S. and Europe were grappling with what industrialization would mean for the relationship between individual workers, employers, resources, and society. Marx believed that there was a growing conflict between workers and capitalists that would eventually lead to a revolution in which workers would take over the means of production—factories, farms, and so on—and end economic inequality.

Harris has shown no signs of embracing this philosophy, and on August 15, when Trump talked at reporters for more than an hour at his Bedminster property in front of a table with coffee and breakfast cereal at what was supposed to be a press conference on the economy, he said of his campaign strategy: “All we have to do is define our opponent as being a communist or a socialist or somebody that’s going to destroy our country.” 

Trump uses “Marxist,” “communist,” and “socialist” interchangeably, and when he and his allies accuse Democrats of being one of those things, they are not talking about an economic system in which the people, represented by the government, take control of the means of production. They are using a peculiarly American adaptation of the term “socialist.”

True socialism has never been popular in America. The best it has ever done in a national election was in 1912, when labor organizer Eugene V. Debs, running for president as a Socialist, won 6% of the vote, coming in behind Woodrow Wilson, Theodore Roosevelt, and William Howard Taft. 

What Republicans mean by "socialism" in America is a product of the years immediately after the Civil War, when African American men first got the right to vote. Eager to join the economic system from which they had previously been excluded, these men voted for leaders who promised to rebuild the South, provide schools and hospitals (as well as prosthetics for veterans, a vital need in the post-war U.S.), and develop the economy with railroads to provide an equal opportunity for all men to rise to prosperity. 

Former Confederates loathed the idea of Black men voting almost as much as they hated the idea of equal rights. They insisted that the public programs poorer voters wanted were simply a redistribution of wealth from prosperous white men to undeserving Black Americans who wanted a handout, although white people would also benefit from such programs. Improvements could be paid for only with tax levies, and white men were the only ones with property in the Reconstruction South. Thus, public investments in roads and schools and hospitals would redistribute wealth from propertied men to poor people, from white men to Black people. It was, opponents said, “socialism.” Poor black voters were instituting, one popular magazine wrote, "Socialism in South Carolina" and should be kept from the polls.

This idea that it was dangerous for working people to participate in government caught on in the North as immigrants moved into growing cities to work in the developing factories. Like their counterparts in the South, they voted for roads and schools, and wealthy men insisted these programs meant a redistribution of wealth through tax dollars. They got more concerned still when a majority of Americans began to call for regulation to keep businessmen from gouging consumers, polluting the environment, and poisoning the food supply (the reason you needed to worry about strangers and candy in that era was that candy was often painted with lead paint).

Any attempt to regulate business would impinge on a man's liberty, wealthy men argued, and it would cost tax dollars to hire inspectors. Thus, they said, it was a redistribution of wealth. Long before the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia brought the fears of a workers' government to life, Americans argued that their economy was under siege by socialists. Their conviction did indeed lead to a redistribution of wealth, but as regular Americans were kept from voting, the wealth went dramatically upward, not down.

The powerful formula linking racism to the idea of an active government and arguing that a government that promotes infrastructure, provides a basic social safety net, and regulates business is socialism has shaped American history since Reconstruction. In the modern era the Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court decision of 1954 enabled wealthy men to convince voters that their tax dollars were being taken from them to promote the interests of Black Americans. President Ronald Reagan made that formula central to the Republican Party, and it has lived there ever since, as Republicans call any policy designed to help ordinary Americans “socialism.”

Vice President Harris recently said she would continue the work of the Biden administration and crack down on the price-fixing, price gouging, and corporate mergers that drove high grocery prices in the wake of the pandemic. Such plans have been on the table for a while: Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) noted last year that from July 2020 through July 2022, inflation rose by 14% and corporate profits rose by 75%. He backed a measure introduced by Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA)—who came up with the idea of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau—that would set standards to prevent large corporations from price gouging during an “exceptional market shock” like a power grid failure, a public health emergency, a natural disaster, and so on. Harris’s proposal was met with pushback from opponents saying that such a law would do more harm than good and that post-pandemic high inflation was driven by the market.

Yesterday, during testimony for an antitrust case, an email from the senior director for pricing at the grocery giant Kroger, Andy Groff, to other Kroger executives seemed to prove that those calling out price gouging were at least in part right. In it, Groff wrote: “On milk and eggs, retail inflation has been significantly higher than cost inflation.” 

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

[misfitwashere]

August 28, 2024 

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

AUG 29

Former president Trump appears to have slid further since last night’s news about a new grand jury’s superseding indictment of him on charges of trying to overthrow the 2020 presidential election. Over the course of about four hours this morning, Trump posted 50 times on his social media platform, mostly reposting material that was associated with QAnon, violent, authoritarian, or conspiratorial. 

He suggested he is “100% INNOCENT,” and that the indictment is a “Witch Hunt.” He called for trials and jail for special counsel Jack Smith, former president Barack Obama, and the members of Congress who investigated the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. And he reposted a sexual insult about the political careers of both Vice President Kamala Harris and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Meanwhile, Trump’s campaign has today escalated the fight about Trump’s photo op Monday at Arlington National Cemetery, where campaign staff took photos and videos in Section 60, the burial ground of recent veterans, apparently over the strong objections of cemetery officials. Then the campaign released photos and a video from the visit attacking Harris. 

Arlington National Cemetery was established on the former property of General Robert E. Lee in 1864, after the Lee family did not pay their property taxes. At the time, Lee was leading Confederate forces against the United States government, and those buried in the cemetery in its early years were those killed in the Civil War. The cemetery is one of two in the United States that is under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Army, and it is widely considered hallowed ground.  

A statement from the Arlington National Cemetery reiterated: “Federal law prohibits political campaign or election-related activities within Army National Military Cemeteries, to include photographers, content creators or any other persons attending for purposes, or in direct support of a partisan political candidate's campaign. Arlington National Cemetery reinforced and widely shared this law and its prohibitions with all participants. We can confirm there was an incident, and a report was filed.”

Republican vice presidential candidate Senator J.D. Vance of Ohio first said there was a “little disagreement” at the cemetery, but in Erie, Pennsylvania, today he tried to turn the incident into an attack on Harris. “She wants to yell at Donald Trump because he showed up?” Vance said. “She can go to hell.” Harris has not, in fact, commented on the controversy. 

VoteVets, a progressive organization that works to elect veterans to office, called the Arlington episode “sickening.”

In an interview with television personality Dr. Phil that aired last night, Trump suggested that Democrats in California each got seven ballots and that he would win in the state if Jesus Christ counted the votes. As Philip Bump of the Washington Post pointed out today, Trump has always said he could not lose elections unless there was fraud; last night he suggested repeatedly that God wants him to win the 2024 election.  

When asked his opinion of Vice President Harris, Trump once again called her “a Marxist,” a reference that would normally be used to refer to someone who agrees with the basic principles outlined by nineteenth-century philosopher Karl Marx in his theory of how society works. In Marx’s era, people in the U.S. and Europe were grappling with what industrialization would mean for the relationship between individual workers, employers, resources, and society. Marx believed that there was a growing conflict between workers and capitalists that would eventually lead to a revolution in which workers would take over the means of production—factories, farms, and so on—and end economic inequality.

Harris has shown no signs of embracing this philosophy, and on August 15, when Trump talked at reporters for more than an hour at his Bedminster property in front of a table with coffee and breakfast cereal at what was supposed to be a press conference on the economy, he said of his campaign strategy: “All we have to do is define our opponent as being a communist or a socialist or somebody that’s going to destroy our country.” 

Trump uses “Marxist,” “communist,” and “socialist” interchangeably, and when he and his allies accuse Democrats of being one of those things, they are not talking about an economic system in which the people, represented by the government, take control of the means of production. They are using a peculiarly American adaptation of the term “socialist.”

True socialism has never been popular in America. The best it has ever done in a national election was in 1912, when labor organizer Eugene V. Debs, running for president as a Socialist, won 6% of the vote, coming in behind Woodrow Wilson, Theodore Roosevelt, and William Howard Taft. 

What Republicans mean by "socialism" in America is a product of the years immediately after the Civil War, when African American men first got the right to vote. Eager to join the economic system from which they had previously been excluded, these men voted for leaders who promised to rebuild the South, provide schools and hospitals (as well as prosthetics for veterans, a vital need in the post-war U.S.), and develop the economy with railroads to provide an equal opportunity for all men to rise to prosperity. 

Former Confederates loathed the idea of Black men voting almost as much as they hated the idea of equal rights. They insisted that the public programs poorer voters wanted were simply a redistribution of wealth from prosperous white men to undeserving Black Americans who wanted a handout, although white people would also benefit from such programs. Improvements could be paid for only with tax levies, and white men were the only ones with property in the Reconstruction South. Thus, public investments in roads and schools and hospitals would redistribute wealth from propertied men to poor people, from white men to Black people. It was, opponents said, “socialism.” Poor black voters were instituting, one popular magazine wrote, "Socialism in South Carolina" and should be kept from the polls.

This idea that it was dangerous for working people to participate in government caught on in the North as immigrants moved into growing cities to work in the developing factories. Like their counterparts in the South, they voted for roads and schools, and wealthy men insisted these programs meant a redistribution of wealth through tax dollars. They got more concerned still when a majority of Americans began to call for regulation to keep businessmen from gouging consumers, polluting the environment, and poisoning the food supply (the reason you needed to worry about strangers and candy in that era was that candy was often painted with lead paint).

Any attempt to regulate business would impinge on a man's liberty, wealthy men argued, and it would cost tax dollars to hire inspectors. Thus, they said, it was a redistribution of wealth. Long before the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia brought the fears of a workers' government to life, Americans argued that their economy was under siege by socialists. Their conviction did indeed lead to a redistribution of wealth, but as regular Americans were kept from voting, the wealth went dramatically upward, not down.

The powerful formula linking racism to the idea of an active government and arguing that a government that promotes infrastructure, provides a basic social safety net, and regulates business is socialism has shaped American history since Reconstruction. In the modern era the Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court decision of 1954 enabled wealthy men to convince voters that their tax dollars were being taken from them to promote the interests of Black Americans. President Ronald Reagan made that formula central to the Republican Party, and it has lived there ever since, as Republicans call any policy designed to help ordinary Americans “socialism.”

Vice President Harris recently said she would continue the work of the Biden administration and crack down on the price-fixing, price gouging, and corporate mergers that drove high grocery prices in the wake of the pandemic. Such plans have been on the table for a while: Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) noted last year that from July 2020 through July 2022, inflation rose by 14% and corporate profits rose by 75%. He backed a measure introduced by Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA)—who came up with the idea of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau—that would set standards to prevent large corporations from price gouging during an “exceptional market shock” like a power grid failure, a public health emergency, a natural disaster, and so on. Harris’s proposal was met with pushback from opponents saying that such a law would do more harm than good and that post-pandemic high inflation was driven by the market.

Yesterday, during testimony for an antitrust case, an email from the senior director for pricing at the grocery giant Kroger, Andy Groff, to other Kroger executives seemed to prove that those calling out price gouging were at least in part right. In it, Groff wrote: “On milk and eggs, retail inflation has been significantly higher than cost inflation.” 

—

[tomorrowusa]

Discovering that another prominent Trump supporter has racist inclinations is not exactly news. But this guy is running for a Democratic-held Senate seat in a tight race in Montana and deserves special attention.

A Republican candidate in a race that could decide control of the US Senate made disparaging comments about Native Americans at campaign fundraising events, according to recordings disclosed in local media. Tim Sheehy, a wealthy cattle rancher who has been endorsed by Donald Trump in his bid to become senator for Montana, made the remarks repeatedly at a series of gatherings where he boasted of cultivating ties and bonding with members of the Crow Reservation, the official home of the Indigenous Crow tribe. In one clip, Sheehy says he ropes and brands cattle with Crow members and calls it “a great way to bond with all the Indians while they’re drunk at 8am”. In another recording, he says: “ I was actually at the Crow Res and if you want a tough crowd … you miss that double heel shot, there’s a Coors Light can on the side of your head.” The references to a Coors Light can being thrown were recorded at three different gatherings, according to the Char-Koosta News, which covers the Flathead Indian Reservation in Montana. On one occasion, Sheehy says the flying cans are a sign of whether Crow members “like you or not”.

If Sheehy made a racist comment once he might get away with saying he "misspoke" – or that he may (ironically) have been drunk. But when you repeatedly make the same comment, there's no excuse. Sheehy is a racist at heart.

Sheehy, like Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte, is just another Republican carpetbagger from another state.

Sheehy, 37, a former Navy Seal who moved to Montana 10 years ago, is trying to unseat the Democratic Senate incumbent Jon Tester.

Sheehy's comments are standard fare for MAGA.

The GOP candidate’s comments about Crow members are seen as particularly embarrassing because the tribe has been seen as vociferously pro-Trump. Native Americans have been a key voter bloc for Tester in his three previous successful campaigns but he has been warned that their support is not guaranteed. Calvin Lime, who lives on another Indigenous reservation in the state, called Sheehy’s comments “a slap in the face” to Crow members.

If you get a "slap in the face" then the best thing is to slap back even harder

Sheehy is a typical Republican who preaches family values but is far different in reality.

News of Sheehy’s comments is not the first potentially damaging episode of his campaign. Last year, he was forced on the defensive after sexist and racist Facebook posts allegedly written by him came to light. Insiders said the posts – made between 2006 and 2008 and since taken down – were “full of questionable photos” and featured “lewd photos of women, a caricature of Middle Eastern people and homoerotic jokes”.

It's just a matter of time before we learn of even more repulsive behavior by Tim Sheehy.

Montanans who don't want to be represented by a hypocritical, carpetbagging, racist slimeball should re-elect Jon Tester as their US senator.

Montanans for Jon Tester Defending our Montana way of life

EDIT: More Montana reaction to Sheehy's racist comments...

Tribal leaders, legislators respond to Sheehy recordings Lawmakers: Sheehy’s comments 'wrong, derogatory, hurtful'

[lizallanapologist]

The problematic behavior of Tomdaya stans; a thread

Some of you might not be aware of the stalkerish problematic stuff tomdaya stans have done with Tom and Zendaya’s life but it’s gotten to the point where Tom’s own brothers protect with big scrutiny every single female in Tom’s life because they fear they’re going to get bullied or harassed. This is not OK and this has to stop so we’re exposing their toxic behavior. 

This is only to bring awareness and we do not condom any hate or death threats, don’t send hate to tomdaya accounts, either block them or report them but don’t bully them. Many of them might need professional help dealing with the fact that Tom and Z are not together due to the fact that they created an illusion in their heads for a long time but that doesn’t mean some of them aren’t plenty manipulative and love to get away with bullying and harassment. 

If you don’t know, Tom was recently seen with another woman on his instagram, not going to say the name and please don’t try to find out about her, the relevant information is in this post and all of the private information regarding her is being protected for the same reasons. Many stans decided to apply the same treatment to her as they did to Olivia. If you don’t know what happened last year, all information is here. The fact that this kind of bullying and harassment got overlooked is horrifying. 

This specific behavior doesn’t apply to all of the stans but the vast majority is on the same page. 

A big thanks to all the blogs who contributed with information and their writing in this post.

STALKING 

1. Tomdaya stans have made an entire thread/timeline of events in Tom and Zendaya's life that they manipulated so it can be seen as proof of them dating. They stalk every single part of their lives, from paying stalkerish apps to review their instagram activities daily to having a constant GPS to know their exact locations everyday. They ask twitter accs, owners of restaurants/stores, people close to them information about their whereabouts/the things they buy or eat/who they were with, etc.

They order their ‘’interactions’’ with specific dates and they even know information you shouldn’t know about them. 

They pay for apps that helps them stalk their every move. That’s right, they take every like as proof of them being together. 

They hide behind the pretext that they're celebrities and this is what they've signed up for but neither Tom nor Zendaya have signed up for constant daily harassment of their partners in life. 

HARASSMENT OF PARTNERS

Tom was seen last year with a blonde girl called Olivia, everyone speculated that was his girlfriend and that was something everyone should’ve respected since it’s Tom’s life and he’s in control of it, instead, many fans including Tom H. crazy fans and tomdaya stans, decided to stalk and harass Olivia to the point she had to make her account private. They started bullying her by publicly calling her names like ‘’Olive Oil’’, ‘’Ugly old woman’’, ‘’Ugly fake bitch’’ among other names. They continuously compare her with Zendaya and write on her friends and family members’ social media and ask them to tell Olivia nasty things. You really think this is ok? 

Same is happening with the girl Tom was seen with. Tom’s own brothers asked several people to take down and delete the video because they were disrupting her privacy. Many stans didn’t care and started all over again harassing the girl. (I’m not posting images or the identity of this new girl in hopes that this helps maintain a little big of privacy for her.) 

However here are some examples of them harassing Olivia:

’’I saw a troubling post on twitter about this fan dming another fan saying that they’d kill her (Olivia). That they’d find a way. So that “the fans can have him all to ourselves” - source

MANIPULATING THE NARRATIVE

Tomdaya stans and some Tom Holland crazy stans love to harass Tom Holland to the point that they tag family members and friends only because he decided to go out in public with Olivia. They call him cheater, manipulator, a dumbass, made fun of him because Tom is dyslexic calling him an illiterate, mocked him and tried to cancel him in every opportunity given by manipulating everyone into thinking some of these ‘’facts’’ are true. 

Many fans don’t know better and go to social media to frame Tom as a scumbag because many tomdaya stans have convinced the public of this.

This same issue occurs with Zendaya. Her known boyfriend; Jacob Elordi, is frequently called a cheater and is being investigated every five seconds on every social media, candid, interaction ever. Many fans are already calling him cheater, telling everyone Zendaya’s changed her behavior thanks to Jacob and that she needs help. 

Source

BULLYING

The definition of cyberbullying according to Stopbullying.gov:

“Cyberbullying is bullying that takes place over digital devices like cell phones, computers, and tablets. Cyberbullying can occur through SMS, Text, and apps, or online in social media, forums, or gaming where people can view, participate in, or share content. Cyberbullying includes sending, posting, or sharing negative, harmful, false, or mean content about someone else. It can include sharing personal or private information about someone else causing embarrassment or humiliation. Some cyberbullying crosses the line into unlawful or criminal behavior. “

Examples of cyberbullying on Tumblr from good ole Toutdesuite360:

https://toutdesuite360.tumblr.com/post/190572803098/faces-haha-ive-heard-this-has-been-memed-when

Making fun of Jacob Elordi’s wealth… but that isn’t that only thing that the Tomdaya stans have done.

She basically implied that Olivia looked like an elderly lady, and she permitted her followers to humiliate her.

Funny, that a middle aged woman who has never revealed her face on her blog is bullying a young woman.

(She may have deleted the link to save her a** on the post with the Cher pictures, but thankfully @crazypeopleonfandom​ took screenshots of this post; I got most of my photos from them)

The next aren’t pertaining to the ‘innocent’ Toutdesuite360, just some random jerks from Twitter/Instagram. If you have the time, you can read through them.

See the pictures above and below for reference.

Labelling Zendya, Jacob E., Tom, and Olivia as cheaters, when there was no confirmed relationship between Tom and Z, and Jacob broke up with Cari already is plain disrespectful. These are type of claims are considered slander, and I’m surprised that the people who own these accounts haven’t been rightfully sued.

And remember when I talked about the repetition of people tagging Tom and Z’s family for their ‘thoughts’? Why are you tagging Nikki in your post?

Calling Olivia, once again, a vulgar word that shouldn’t be used for any woman.

This person and many other tomdayas are harassing Zendaya and Tom by tagging them repeatedly. Now we know why Tom stopped using Twitter, and why he may be taking breaks from social media.

And, as pointed out in another point on the thread: Tom has dyslexia! I easily ignore the posts that tease him about his lips, but when it comes to his disability, that crosses the line. It is unacceptable to bully someone just because your fantasy relationship doesn’t seem so real now.

Before I finish this point, I just want to remind people that celebrities are humans too. Everyone has feelings, and even if they haven’t seen these posts, it is still harmful to post this kind of information on your account. Fans who are young (or naive) may see these posts, thus making them believe that Tom actually cheated on Z, and that Z is really with Jacob as ‘payback’ to Tom. Bullying is still an ongoing issue, and maybe you should stop harassing/humiliating people on your platform.

DEATH THREATS

Olivia, Tom and his family, friends, Zendaya, Jacob Elordi, etc. They were sent death threats as a result of a fictional ship. This is truly upsetting and we’ve shown some proof of that above and it’s truly sickening how many of them really want to attack Olivia in public only because of a few photographs. 

DEBUNKING EVIDENCE

While we don’t know anything for sure, we need to trust and respect what Tom and Zendaya have said several times: they were never together and they were just friends. This is a topic that makes them feel uncomfortable and tomdaya stans decide to twist their words every time they want to clarify the situation, saying they’re hiding their relationship and that they’ve been hiding it for over 3 years. 

Stop believing everything SpideyParker on YouTube says, that person desperately wants them together so they’ll do anything in their power to make it seem like that they’re ’’still together’’. All of their evidence is also nothing but scraps. I can also make a video cropping out certain individuals from the frame to make it look like Tom is with someone or I can also investigate every tiny detail to a borderline degree to make it seem like Zendaya is dating someone. It’s really easy to manipulate the truth, so don’t fall for these things so easily. Check with the real sources, Tom and Zendaya. Trust and respect what they say it’s not your job to investigate and figure their lives out.

Their evidence of the relationship is ridiculous, stuff like them wearing the same clothes,

because obviously there’s no way this jacket is in any random store in the world...This is a unique jacket, made by Tom and Z specifically...And it’s not even the same jacket. If we’re going by their logic, then

More, more, more and more.

Source

Robert Downey Jr. and Tom have been in a relationship for a long time...

Angourie, Remy and Tom wearing the same jacket.

I have no idea what’s going on with the freaking necklace you swear with blood that Zendaya gave him but that’s hardly something special:

Matching necklace with Olivia.

Avengers necklace.

He likes necklaces, nothing special here.

'’Tom only goes to Zendaya’s home, and only goes out with her!’’

Tom Holland went to RDJ's house to watch Black Panther with him.

Tom and RDJ facetime daily.

Obviously, his only friend is Zendaya...

Look at him and Zendaya there, wow.

‘‘Tom looks at her with heart eyes and in a very special way!’‘

Excuse me, what is he supposed to do? Ignore Zendaya and look somewhere else every time she talks?  

MORE

He literally looks at everyone the same way.

‘‘He only does Spider-Man because he wants to be the Peter Parker to his Mary Jane, one of the most romantic comic book couples!’‘

I can’t believe I once read this as proof but I haven’t forgotten about it.

Interview with Tom and Laura:

“Is Zendaya’s character Mary Jane Watson?’’

Tom Holland: “No, no! This is one of those rumours, that like, we’ve all said it’s not true.

Laura Harrier: It’s not true!

Tom Holland: Like, we keep on… You guys keep building yourselves up for disappointment.

Laura Harrier: Unless we don’t know how this started? Because you guys are gonna see this movie and be like “…Ugh.” She’s Michelle!

Tom Holland: She’s a character called Michelle.

Laura Harrier: She’s playing Michelle.

Tom Holland: 100%. Hands down. Her character’s called Michelle. And she’s sort of this weird, quirky one in the friendship group that Peter has. She’s funny, but she’s super strange.

Laura Harrier: Yeah, super dry humour.

Tom Holland: She’s 100% not Mary Jane. It’s funny, everyone’s like “Is she Mary Jane?” and I’m like NO, I’M TELLING YOU! SHE’S NOT MARY JANE!

Source

‘‘He did the Will Smith thing with her, he loves her!’‘

‘’He only ever talks about her! He only praises her!’’

Angourie Rice.

Robert Downey Jr, 2, 3

Laura Harrier, 2

Elizabeth Olsen.

Jacob Batalon.

Chris Hemsworth.

Jake Gyllenhaal.

And the list goes on and on.

‘‘He always goes to her special events only! He only goes to her parties! He only goes to hospitals with her! He was on the set of Euphoria with her!’‘

How about, he goes out with her and everyone else in group and individually? He goes out with Harrison alone, with Jacob alone, with Laura alone, etc. I love how many of them love to leave out certain people to make everyone believe it’s only the two of them. And he doesn’t only goes to hospitals with her, he’s gone with many other people and he does it because he’s a good person, not because he’s on a date with Zendaya. 

Tom AND Jacob visit Zendaya on the set of the Greatest Showman.

Tom and friends celebrating Harrison’s birthday party.

Tom on a double date.

Tom going to Joe Russo’s restaurant to get an exclusive cooking lesson from Jessica Largey.

Tom on birthday parties.

Tom, Laura, Harrison and Harry out for dinner in Brazil.

Tom, Brie Larson, Tessa Thompson, and Zachary Levi in a club in Brazil.

Tom, Laura, Jacob, Harrison in a pool party.

RDJ & Tom Holland visit Jon’s restaurant and participate on his show.

Tom Holland visits Doctor Strange’s set.

Tom Holland, Ciara Bravo, Joe Russo visit haunted attraction.

He’s a good person and loves supporting his friends.

‘‘He only has chemistry with her!’‘

Tom and RDJ’s extraordinary chemistry.

Tom and Jake’s chemistry.

Tom and Jacob’s chemistry.

Tom and Laura’s chemistry.

Tom and Daisy’s chemistry.

Tom and Chris Pratt’s chemistry.

Also Will Smith, Chris Hemsworth, etc. 

Look below for Ciara and Tom’s chemistry.

Like I said before, maybe he’s a good actor and that’s it? 

‘‘Their FFH kiss was too real and magical!’‘

Spoiler alert for Cherry

Fan about witnessing Tom’s kiss with Ciara Bravo:

His reaction about kissing Laura Harrier:

‘‘He LOVES touching her’‘

I’m sorry, is he supposed to be scared of touching people?

This is it. This is the big touch they always talk about and the only times they’ve ever held hands is in manips or in FFH, but that doesn’t count, those are fictional characters. Well...

Maybe he’s a touchy person. Consider that.

’’She’s the only one that knows him well!’’

How well do Zendaya, Jacob, & Laura know Tom?

I’m sure Harrison, RDJ, his friends and others know him pretty well too. 

And only because he knows she likes ice cream doesn't mean she’s his ultimate soulmate or something blown out of proportion.

‘‘He’s only a gentleman with her!’‘

Tom saves Gina Rodriguez

Tom rescues fan

Karen Gillan

‘‘He looked way too in love with MJ to be fake’‘

Nope.

Nope 2

Nope 3

It’s called acting, pretty sure you guys know by now he’s good.

‘’They’re inseparable!’‘

Jacob, Tom and Harrison 

Also, why is it that every female in his life is his cousin, aunt, close childhood friend or ‘’he probably hates her’’ for you? 

They’ve said this multiple times but:

In an interview with Elle, Tom said he is not involved with anyone at the moment but is "definitely a relationship person." And when addressing the rumors, he says it’s uncomfortable and annoying when people ship him and Zendaya together. 

Zendaya also denied the claims, telling Variety Magazine that she and Tom were simply ‘just friends’. 

You can ship them if you want, as a bromance or cute chemistry, but not at the expense of someone else. Not when you violate their privacy, their lives and specially not when you bully, harass and stalk every detail of their lives.

Zendaya is clearly very happy with Jacob Elordi:

Let her have that. No, she doesn’t look miserable with him, no, he didn’t change her style or her personality. No, she doesn’t dress differently because of him. She is the same as always, she looks even happier. Let her be. This is good for her. She has every right to go out in public with her boyfriend. And for the love of god, stop commenting on her instagram posts ‘’warning’’ her that Jacob is going to cheat on her. Hopefully that won’t happen ever. 

And no, they’re not going to magically ’’get back together’’ when Spider-Man 3 starts filming, stop wishing bad luck on Zendaya and Jacob’s relationship. Tom is not going to magically realize how ‘’wrong’’ he was for ‘’leaving’’ Zendaya. He never left her, he’s her friend. 

All of this have gotten to the point where Tom can’t have a friendship with a female and he has to ‘’protect’’ them every time he wants to interact with them. Do you guys seriously think this is ok? Are you really a fan of his if this is how you want him to live? Controlling him all the time? 

Do you realize how wrong and unfair it is for the other partner every time you comment in every single picture on instagram, twitter, etc about how ‘’cute’’ Tom and Zendaya are? About how ‘’ugly’’ Olivia is? How about when you compare Zendaya and Olivia, or every single female in Tom’s life? Or when you comment on Zendaya’s instagram telling her she is different now and that you don’t like her now because she’s changed for Jacob? Telling her that Jacob is going to cheat on her? Stop sending death threats to the partners, stop tagging their families in your ‘’evidence/proof’’ posts/tweets. Just because they don’t voice these things doesn’t mean they don’t read them. 

Being sincere, if you all, as a collective; really, genuinely cared about Tom, this is the last thing you would wanna pull. In your endless obsession with thinking you have a right to dictate the life of a man simply because he's famous; actually stopped once to consider how this is possibly making Tom and Zendaya feel?? You are basically sending the message that nobody is enough, that him being happy isn't enough, that he won't ever be allowed to be happy until he gets with the person YOU think is best for him. Fucking abhorrent, how they don't have a choice on who they choose to fucking love. This is how you make a celebrity jaded. THIS is how you make a celebrity hate you. And he will, unless you stop your bullshit, and treat him; and whoever he decides to be with, like human beings.

When you focus only on two people it’s easy to believe anything, try and see the bigger picture. Allow Zendaya and Tom to enjoy their lives without harassing them and their partners.

[writinginstardust]

Say Yes

Pairing: Alex Claremont-Diaz x Henry Fox-Montchristen-Windsor

Prompt:  “I thought we weren’t doing gifts!”

Warnings: It’s a little smutty towards the beginning but not explicit

A/N: No one actually requested this prompt but I was looking through them and inspiration hit and I just had to write this.

Word Count: 1727

*

Christmas morning started the same as every other. Henry woke with Alex in his arms, face buried in his chest, snoring softly. That moment never lasted long, Alex seemingly sensing Henry waking up and rousing soon after, but Henry was determined to savour every second of it today. After today, things would be different. A bit, at least.

He'd thought a lot about how he wanted to do this over the last year. Nothing too dramatic or public would do he'd decided, but he wasn't sure quite how to do it for the longest time. It was cliched doing it on Christmas but since they'd agreed not to do presents this year - why, Henry couldn't remember - Henry had been inspired and come up with an idea to give them both a gift on the anniversary of when he'd made the decision. Alex couldn't be mad at him for breaking their pact for this.

Alex stirred in his arms, mumbling sleepily and nuzzling into Henry's neck. His heart stuttered at the action as always and he brought a hand up to run through Alex’s messy hair, tilting his head down to press a light kiss to his forehead as he slowly woke up. Eyelashes fluttered but refused to open as Alex shifted and pressed a kiss to Henry’s jaw, quickly following it with another, and another, and another as he blindly searched for Henry’s lips, smiling when he finally got there and kissed Henry properly.

His kisses were softer in the morning, sleep clinging to him and slowing his movements, connecting lightly and lingering wherever they landed. Henry loved it. He’d never thought he’d get to have anything like this, be allowed to feel this deeply and freely and have someone return it. He’d certainly never imagined he’d get to have this with Alex of all people and he wanted it forever. Hence Alex’s Christmas present.

“Mornin’ baby,” Alex mumbled sleepily against his lips.

“Good morning.”

“Wha’ time ‘s it?” Henry blindly reached for his phone on the nightstand to check.

“Half seven.”

“What time do we have to get up?” Alex asked, becoming a bit more coherent as his brain kicked into gear, though clearly not enough since he hadn’t twigged what day it was.

“Whenever you want, love. It’s Christmas. We don’t have to do anything.” Alex blinked up at him, the words taking a second to process, before realisation dawned. It was equal parts funny and adorable and Henry let out a little huff of laughter before kissing Alex quickly again.

“Well, merry Christmas then, I guess.” Alex was smiling now, his eyes bright and alert at last.

“Merry Chri-” Alex cut him off with a kiss, one with more purpose than all his previous ones, and Henry melted into it, hands gravitating towards his waist to hold him tight against his body.

“I know...we said...no gifts,” Alex murmured between the kisses he’d started leaving down Henry’s throat, his hand sliding lightly down the length of his body and making Henry’s breathing become more ragged every second. “But I’ve got you a little something. Would you like it now?” Alex’s hand paused at Henry’s pelvis, his knuckles brushing back and forth over soft pale skin as he waited for Henry’s answer.

“Is it really a present if you enjoy it as much as I do?” He asked with a teasing smirk that dropped from his face quickly as he let out a shuddering breath when Alex moved his hand closer to where he wanted it.

“It’s a loophole in our agreement. Do you want it or not?” He scowled up at the pedantic prince. He knew the answer of course, but now he wanted Henry to say it.

“Yes. Thank you.” Alex grinned and finally wrapped a hand around him, watching as Henry’s eyes fluttered shut and his lips parted on a near silent gasp.

He took his time unravelling Henry with his hands and mouth and Henry happily returned the favour afterwards, both of them left warm, contented, and sleepy when it was over. Henry would have given anything to stay wrapped up with Alex like this forever, but he couldn’t. Not now at least. Maybe later. If all went well anyway.

He wasn’t really worried about it, he tried to tell himself. He knew Alex loved him, had admitted to ‘feeling forever’ about him early on in their relationship, and would almost definitely say yes. But there was a slither of doubt and anxiety he just couldn’t shake. After a lifetime of never feeling worthy, it was hard to believe.

*

Watching Alex opening his presents with a fond smile, having already finished with his own, Henry fiddled with the little box in the pocket of his bathrobe. The waiting was killing him but he was going to stick to his plan. A few minutes longer with Alex as his boyfriend rather than his fiance wasn’t the end of the world. Finally, Alex was finished.

June shot a glance his way and he nodded subtly. She slid off the sofa and retrieved the final present from where it was hidden around the back of the tree.

“There’s another one for you Alex,” she said, pretending to read the label. “It’s from Henry.”

Alex took the box from his sister, not noticing as she pulled out her phone and started to sneakily record the whole thing. She was sure they’d want to remember this.

“I thought we said no gifts!” He said incredulously as he turned to his boyfriend. “Now I feel bad.” Henry smiled softly and rolled his eyes.

“Just open it.”

Alex tore the paper off and pulled the lid off the box inside, frowning at the folded piece of paper he was greeted with. He looked at Henry, question held in his eyes, but Henry just gestured for him to read the note he’d written. Hesitantly, Alex unfolded the paper and began to read.

Henry watched his face carefully, seeing his reactions play out freely as he focused on the love letter, not noticing Henry slip off his armchair and kneel in front of him. He pulled the the box from his pocket and opened it, not saying a word, just waiting patiently for Alex to finish reading. There were tears forming in the corners of his eyes now and Henry watched him trying to keep them at bay, failing completely by the time he got to the end. He put the paper down, finally laying eyes on Henry and the ring in his hands. He stared for a long moment in silence before whispering a single word.

“Yes.” 

Henry’s lips twitched and a little huff of laughter escaped.

“I haven’t even asked you yet.”

“Well then hurry up and ask me!” Alex slid off the couch to kneel in front of him, linking his fingers with Henry’s free hand and staring into his eyes.

“Alexander Gabriel Claremont-Diaz, pain in my ass, love of my life, ...will you marry me?” He barely finished the question before Alex was throwing himself into his arms and crying yes repeatedly, only stopping to kiss him senseless. The unexpected force knocked Henry onto his ass but Alex didn’t stop kissing him for a second, climbing into his lap and threading his fingers through soft blond hair.

Henry slid his hands to Alex’s waist and pulled him closer as he kissed back with the same passion Alex was using, neither of them caring that the whole family was there, and June stopped recording. With their permission, she’d share the video later and the world didn’t need to see all that. Finally, with flushed cheeks and elated smiles, they broke apart and Henry slid the ring onto Alex’s finger, a quick snap telling them June had captured the moment.

More snaps followed as Alex cupped Henry’s jaw and kissed him again, gentler, slower, but just as loving as before. He’d never felt so happy. He’d said before that Henry was his forever but now there was no question about it. He was Henry’s forever as well.

Later, when they were both out of their pyjamas and media appropriate, June took cheesy but classic couple engagement announcement pictures for them to post on Instagram, sending the ones she’d taken in the morning alongside them. Alex spent a long time looking at the picture of them kissing in their pyjamas when he and Henry snuggled into bed that night. The ring was clearly visible where he was holding Henry’s face and the love and joy seemed to radiate out of the photo, touching his heart and making him relive the moment in vivid detail. There was no way the royal or white house PR teams would be happy about him sharing such a messy, private, candid moment on social media but that was the real them. 

Normally he didn’t want the world glimpsing too much of their private life, happy to play the role he’d perfected over the years, the more media friendly version of himself. But there was something about this moment and this photo. This was them. This was something that meant the world to him and he wanted memorialised in some small way, shared so everyone would know how happy Henry made him. 

Forgoing the rules and the perfectly cute and acceptable options at his disposal, Alex uploaded the photo, only writing the shortest of captions before posting and putting his phone aside. It needed no explanation after all. 

Henry was looking at him fondly when Alex rolled onto his side to face him. He linked their fingers together, gaze catching on the ring once more before Henry tilted his face back towards his own and brought their lips together. They both ignored the incessant buzzing of their phones as they blew up, losing themselves in each other for a while instead. 

“I love you,” Alex whispered when they stopped.

“I love you too.” Alex looked down at the ring again, smiling softly and running his thumb over the smooth gold.

“That was the best Christmas present I’ve ever gotten. I don’t know how I’m meant to top that.”

“You already have.” Alex flicked his eyes back to Henry’s, a hint of confusion in them. Henry moved his face close to Alex’s again, pausing a breath away. “You said yes,” he whispered and kissed him.

*

Tag Lists: (send an ask if you want to be added!)

Everything: @wonderfilledness @writingbychelle @ad-astraaaa @moderngenius94

Firstprince: @alex-g-claremont-diaz

[bloojayoolie]

Af, Bad, and Children: NICK FREITAS U.S. SENATE Friend There are tmes in life when you are called to service in unexpected ways. I have lived my life answering that call 8s an Army vet, serving two tours in Iraq, as a member of the Virginia House of Delegates, and now as a candidate for the Republican nomination for US, Senate in Virginia. While I'm focusing on defeating Tim Kaine in the fall, it is first my duty to call out and defeat those who promate the shredding of our shared Amenican values In the closing days of this primary, one thing has become clear Corey Stewart has repeatedly made serious lapses in judgment with the people he associates with politically. This pattern of behavior is especially disqualifying for a candidate seeking higher office. During his 2017 campaign for Governor, Corey Stewart openly associated with and refused to disavow a number of bad actors while enabling and advancing their platfoms. At the Inauguration for President Trump-after Corey was fired months prior as Donald Trump's Virginia Campaign Chair-Corey Stewart recorded a video with Paul Nehlen, the candidate who got 18% of the vote against Paul Ryan in the 2016 Wisconsin Primary. In this video, he said that Paul Nchlen was a "hero" of his and that he was "inspired" by him racist You may nat have seen Nehlen's racist post of Meghan Markle (and I won't nclude it here), but no political gain is worth sharing the ignorant degradation of another human being The Repubican Party is the party of family values, and as a father of three those are not the values I want my children to learn. It is well past time we defeat the hate mongers and say this is enough. There is more... US THE BN SHAPINO SHOW EP: 954-THE COMING APOCAL WATCH: VA Senate Candidate Corey Stewart Calls Anti-Semite Paul Nehlen 'Hero İRGINIA MEN FOR During his failed attempt to win the Republican primary for Gavernor, Corey Stewart started appearing at campaign with Jason Kessler If you dont know, Jason Kessler organized the torch rally at the Universty of Vrgina in May, and later the mfamous บnite the Right' Raly which ended in muitple deaths, including those of law enforcement officers. Corey Stewart raised Jasons profile, shared his platform with him, and afler the torch raly, refused to denounce his activities. Corey Stewart even held a press conference where everyone was lead to believe there wouid be a danouncement of the events that precededbut then failed to denounce Jason Kessler And it continues. This year, Corey Stewart has employed individusis who have routinely engaged in derogatory behavior on social media His top volunteers (volunteer of the weekl) have even pushed memes of the founder of the American Nazi Party. If you don't know, the man smoking the corn cob pipe in the photos included in this article is none ather than George Lincoin Rockwell, the founder of the American Nazi Party. It is our job, not only as Republicans but as Americans, to defeat those who elevate and associate with and-Semites & racists. And that is wihy l am asking for your vote on June 12th. We must bring our country back to a place where there is no tolerance for this type of bigotry. Anyone who views a racist and ant- Semite as a hero has no place in the halls of our Congress. The Republican Party was founded on the idea of ending slavery. It is the party that fought Jim Crow. It is the party that fought for Civil Rights and helped to end institutionaized racism in this country If we are to continue our party's legacy, we must reject Corey Stewart's dog-whisting af White supremacists, ant-Semites, and racists. This race is I hope you can stand with me as we fight against people who continue to divide this country like Coney Stewart I hope I can count on your support in the Mirginia Republican Primary for US Senate on June 12th. Thank you, Nick Freitas Candidate for the Republican Nomination for U.S. Senale, VA

[dipulb3]

Then-candidate Joe Biden made a secret hospital visit to meet a wounded police officer

New Post has been published on https://appradab.com/then-candidate-joe-biden-made-a-secret-hospital-visit-to-meet-a-wounded-police-officer/

Then-candidate Joe Biden made a secret hospital visit to meet a wounded police officer

Roccaforte was even more surprised that the future president wanted to keep the 2019 visit a secret.

“It was a very small meeting for just me and my very close, immediate family,” Roccaforte said. “He visited with me for for a little bit and it was just nice. It was very, very private, but very intimate.”

The visit was kept under wraps until Inauguration Day, when Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo shared the story and photos of the meeting on Twitter.

Acevedo said Biden called him to check on Roccaforte and said he’d like to meet him if that “would be helpful to his spirit and recovery.”

“The visit took place during a campaign, yet not a peep of the visit went public. The officer, his family, & hospital staff were all lifted by the visit.

“I share this today to illustrate the decency of the man who we now call Mr. President, although he prefers to be called Joe,” Acevedo wrote.

‘It wasn’t political’

Samuel Roccaforte, Taylor’s father and a 43-year veteran in the Houston Police Department, told Appradab affiliate KPRC that the meeting was very calming to his son.

“He didn’t want anybody to know about it,” he told KPRC. “He just wanted to lift his spirits. It wasn’t political.”

Roccaforte said Biden came into the room with a single Secret Service agent and gave him a vice presidential challenge coin and signed his pillow with the message “we owe you.”

“I was not used as a political stunt,” Taylor Roccaforte said. “That’s what made it such a special thing for me. It was something for me and my family and it was very, just very genuine.”

Roccaforte said Biden tried to comfort his entire family and repeatedly said he was grateful that he would be OK.

The visit lasted about 10 or 15 minutes, Roccaforte said.

Roccaforte was able to walk out of the hospital after a week and spent six months recovering at home.

He’s back on the job as a K-9 officer.

‘This is Joe Biden’

Roccaforte got another surprise about a year after the shooting when he answered a phone call from an unfamiliar number.

“He said ‘This is Joe Biden,’ and then, as if he had to clarify, said ‘this is former Vice President Joe Biden,'” Roccaforte said. “And I said, ‘Wow, I was not expecting that, sir.'”

He said Biden told him he’d been thinking about him and wanted to see how he was doing.

“He was deep in the middle of his campaign at that point, so for him to –out of all the people he’s met — for him to remember meeting me, and then remember enough to even call me, of all people, and check up on me, that was huge.”

Roccaforte said he’s not a political person, but he decided to share his story now, so people on all sides of the aisle can see what sort of person President Joe Biden is.

“We’re in a very turbulent time right now and there’s a lot of division,” Roccaforte said. “I think it’s neat to have a story like this to where you can appreciate it, regardless of your political affiliation, to where it’s just somebody who did something out of the kindness of their heart for someone else.”

[d2kvirus]

Dickheads of the Month: November 2020

As it seems that there are people who say or do things that are remarkably dickheaded yet somehow people try to make excuses for them or pretend it never happened, here is a collection of some of the dickheaded actions we saw in the month of November 2020 to make sure that they are never forgotten.

Nobody was expecting Donald Trump to concede defeat gracefully, but bloody hell, between the completely batshit insane conspiracy theory bollocks from himself and the rancid Trump offspring to Rudy Giuliani making complete fools of themselves even before he had to give a press conference from the parking lot of a landscaping firm as nobody checked which Four Seasons it was, before threatening to outlaw Twitter because people made fun of his little table (yes, that sentence does make sense), nobody could have expected just how tempramental toddlers are now thinking it's a bit much

...although somehow the Tory government managed to have an even worse response, because not only did posting a boilerplate jpeg to congratulate Joe Biden for his victory the laziest response possible, but then it turned out that they only had a celebratory jpeg for a Trump victory and hastily edited it on Paint so that Biden’s name was on there, but did a cack-handed job of it even though a.) Common sense dictates you have one for each candidate ready in advance, and b.) Given they had several days to accept which way the wind was blowing, the fact they did the most cack-handed job says everything you need to know 

Smirking cretin Priti Patel has bullied Home Office staff and, having initially tried to bury the report, the best the Tory government could come up with to try and make this go away was claim that she was bullying her subordinates by accident while proven liar Boris Johnson claimed she had done nothing wrong, numerous members of the Tory government either said that as they hadn’t seen her bullying anyone she must be innocent or tried claiming she was “accused” of bullying instead of found guilty of bullying, and to top it all off we had Michael Gove’s wife Sarah Vine accused anyone calling Patel of being a bully racist while Alison Pearson said Patel can’t be a bully as she isn’t tall enough. Also, did I mention this came out during national Bullying Week?

...and just a thought for Jess Phillips after she decided to weigh in, considering it’s on record that you bullied Diane Abbott (and have gleefully said how you told her to “Fuck off” on various occasions) it's not a good idea for you to try and act as you’re above bullying as you will get called out for your hypocrisy

Murderer Amanda Knox thought it would be a really funny joke to suggest that, no matter what the election result, the next four years couldn’t be as bad as the four years she spent studying abroad.  You know, those four years where she murdered Meredith Kercher and got away with it

So it turns out that the moral compass of the Tory government says that it is fine for Dominic Cummings to be happy to sacrifice the elderly if it protects the economy during a pandemic while displaying that he doesn’t know how herd immunity works, purging 21 MPs from the party for not buying into his No Deal Britait Jonestown, siphoning hundreds of millions of pounds into the pockets of his mates in various dodgy contracts, or flagrantly violating the lockdown rules by driving several hundred miles to Durham (where he owns a house he doesn't pay council tax for) after testing positive for Covid - but as soon as he calls Carrie Symonds “Princess Nut Nuts” he’s out the door...for a staged photo op, even though he is remaining in his job until December, which is when he was going to leave anyway

...and we should mention Laura Kuenssberg bullishly stating that Cummings was going nowhere in the wake of Lee Cain being told he could leave when his contract is up in December but they want to make it look like he is being fired, but within twelve hours saying that Cummings would always be leaving in December as a blog post in January stated, which not only asks if anyone has checked the archived version of that blog in case any edits were made in mid-November, but also how she can justify her £290k a year salary if she can get a story that badly wrong that Cummings’ blog disagreed with her

There’s a reason why Lindsey Graham isn't popular in the Senate and it isn’t because he questions if Biden won the election, it's because he’s telling people to “misplace” the votes for Biden which they are counting so that Trump could claim that he won Georgia instead of losing Georgia, demanding a recount, then losing Georgia

Once again proven liar Boris Johnson demonstrated that lockdown rules apply to the little people but not to him or his inner circle, as he met with fellow Tory MP Lee Anderson in person rather than via Zoom as the lockdown rules state, didn't wear a mask as lockdown rules state, and clearly didn’t social distance as a picture of him with Anderson taken during the meetings shows they are not two metres apart as lockdown rules state, which means that he had to spend two weeks self-isolating as a direct result 

Has anyone told Keir Starmer that The Board of Deputies weren’t on the ballot for Labour leadership?  Because by his performative act of refusing to restore the party whip to Jeremy Corbyn after his performative suspension, which he did after the BoD stamped their feet and demanded the whip not be restored, he’s not doing a good job of demonstrating leadership

First of all it was news that Steve Bannon uses Twitter, as surely he should have flounced off for Parler years ago.  But secondly, the real news is how he used his Twitter account to call for Anthony Fauci to be beheaded - at which point he suddenly couldn’t use his Twitter account anymore

According to Iain Duncan Smith putting the UK into a second lockdown is “giving in to the scientific advisors” as if during a pandemic, which the last time I checked was a scientific matter, you should instead be listening to Julia Halfwit-Brewer, Dan Wootton, Alison Pearson or Isabel Oakeshott rather than people qualified to talk about what to do in the face of a global pandemic 

Nice Guy Rishi Sunak proposed a return of Eat Out To Help Out for Christmas.  You know, the thing which has been directly linked with causing a spike in Covid numbers in August?

Tory arrogance was neatly summed up by George Eustace casually saying that, if Lurpak didn’t want to incur the massive price hikes of Britain crashing out of the EU without a paddle, all they have to do is move their entire base of operations to the UK

The fact that Disney have been trying to justify their refusal to even issue royalty statements to Alan Dean Foster for his novelisations of the Star Wars and Alien franchises and have simply been pocketing the revenue made by the books continued sales by claiming they only purchased the license and not the liability, which is a particularly unique interpretation of copyright law

It was only a matter of time before The Daily Mail started trying to create dirt about Marcus Rashford because he has the sheer gall to say that feeding children is not a bad thing, which they did by reporting the horrors of him...buying a house for his mother

Twitter troll Ben Bradley had a stellar month, first by standing up in Commons and asking why there isn't a Minister for Women while also showing a terrifying inability to understand what equality is, and soon followed that up by quoting Martin Luther King’s “I have a dream” speech by claiming that it was about equality - only for Bernice King to tell him that, no, her father’s speech was about eliminating racism from our society

I think that it's time for The Daily Express to admit that, when they're running articles saying that it’s Remainers who are to blame for Trump getting dumped onto the street, that maybe they have a problem

The Streisand Effect still hasn’t reached WWE judging by their continuing to double down on demanding their employees independent contractors stop earning money via third-party platforms manifested in their releasing Thea Trinidad from her contract in spite her Twitch account always being under her real name and not her WWE moniker of Zelina Vega

It was a coincidence that the Jewish Labour Movement decided to hold their annual conference on the Palestinian Day of Solidarity.  Of course it was...

This month it was Fin Taylor who demonstrated just how far from satire HIGNFY has strayed with his “Bomb Glastonbury and kill all Jeremy Corbyn supporters” joke in response to Joan Bakewell lying about Corbyn breaking the law - and, afterwards, Taylor was generally being a smug twat about it on his Twitter - which also serves to show how Tim Davie is fine with booking comedians whose acts have plenty of questionable content contained within it if it guarantees the Tories escape criticism

This month’s example of Steve Baker making himself a walking punchline with no self-awareness came from him howling that further lockdown measures would be a violation of terms set out by the European Convention on Human Rights - yes, the exact same convention that Baker has a.) Repeatedly accused of meddling with British affairs and is an example of the EU nanny state, and b.) Frowns upon things such as Steve Baker repeatedly voting against allowing child refugees to be reunited with their families

Nothing says “worker happiness” quite like GameStop running a competition for their stores to post Tik Tok dances where the store which is voted the winner receives prizes such as an Amazon Echo, a Visa gift card, and the privilege of working an additional ten hours during the week of Black Friday.  Wait, did I say “worker happiness”?  I meant to say “Dickensian shithousery” where employees are expected to compete so they can work more hours

Of course the “We’re not racist”s of Twitter had an issue with Sainsburys Christmas ad because it didn’t appeal to white men due to having a black family, in much the same way that Compare the Market’s ads don't appeal to white men as they’re not Russian meerkats

Professional victim Laurence Fox thought it would be a good idea to get into a slanging match with The Pogues while lying that Fairytale of New York would be banned from the airwaves.  It went about as well as could be expected

It wouldn’t be Remembrance Day without The Sun or The Daily Mail exploiting it for some obvious ragebait, and this year was no exception with both “papers” posting a photo of Extinction Rebellion posting with a banner in front of the Cenotaph protesting climate change - a photo taken two days earlier, but they held off on posting it until the day itself to get the rage flowing, because they needed something as neither Jeremy Corbyn nor Meghan Markle were within a mile of Whitehall

This month it was Ernest Cline who demonstrated a lack of understanding of the Streisand Effect by ordering DMCA takedowns on anyone who posted an excerpt of Ready Player Two online, which mainly served to help the internet realise which the actual excerpts were and which the parody versions were - because it was pretty hard to tell them apart otherwise...

“I’ve been silenced”, shrieked Suzanne Moore in an interview with the Telegraph, fatally undermining her argument in the process.  Funny how the people who have been “silenced” keep doing that, isn’t it?

Because we haven’t heard anything idiotic from Jake Paul in a while, Jake Paul decided to say Covid isn’t real and flu has killed just as many people.  So I give it a week before his older brother Logan feels he has to one-up this and say the Holocaust was fake...

And finally, not for much longer, is Donald Trump and his complicity in trying to organise a coup - but not a very good coup, as his minions at Fox News had to exaggerate how many people were actually protesting about him losing an election and crying about it - which was further undermined by his inability to tell Michigan and Minnesota apart

[daemonmatthias]

Wedding Things Update

Well, we decided to give up on the hotel block. The two places that are in the best location are too expensive even with the discounted rate, and the closest regular-priced hotel won’t get back to us! I feel REALLY awkward about having put up this giant memo on our website that says “check back for hotel block!” (which was already awkward because we were already behind on that instead of having everything situated before invites went out) and then just taking the memo down without setting up a hotel block.... But that’s what Robert said to do and to just let him handle it if people ask. It was really for his family anyway as my family is all getting airbnbs.

We still haven’t tracked down the mystery RSVP. It wasn’t my brother, it wasn’t Robert’s family friend... so now I need to contact my family friend to see if it was her. (Any body have any idea how big the “Rio Grande” district is for USPS?)

We received another mystery RSVP, this time without a single mark on it, not even to indicate how many people would be coming. Robert’s job, though, since it’s his family (only people we know in that state).

Seriously... I didn’t think these RSVPs would be this confusing to people. They’re a little pre-stamped post card that also has our address printed on the front. Apparently I should have put lines to help people remember to write their return address on the front, just like a regular envelope. The other side of the post card says “____ out of _____ will attend” or “____ regretfully decline”. We filled in the second blank since we didn’t do inner envelopes. (So it reads ____ out of 2 will attend” for single people that were offered a guest.) All people need to do is write a number or a x and their return address. 

We tried the probable rehearsal dinner spot again last night. Robert and his mother loved it. I’m still not sold. I mean, like the atmosphere and the service and everything, but the first time the food wasn’t my favorite. This time my stomach started bothering me. I was eating things I’m not “supposed” to eat but that I thought my stomach could handle. I’m gonna eat the leftovers for lunch to see if it was the food or if I was just tired because we were out on a friday night after the first week back to school. Plus there was an issue with my probiotic the day before that might have made me feel weird too.

I’m afraid there’s gonna be drama at the rehearsal dinner over alcohol. Robert’s family has some issues with alcoholism so his mom doesn’t really want any there (understandable), but my family, especially my grandparents, drink a LOT (responsibly). His mom is thinking about buying a bottle for toasts but like... my grandparents will think it’s super weird to have a nice meal without wine... so idk. I’m just worried people are going to be upset no matter what we do.

I had my first alterations appointment this morning! The lady was amazing. She was super nice and made me feel much more at ease than I expected. (A feat in of itself, tbh.) She was extremely knowledgeable and helpful. She used to work for Alfred Angelo so she knows my dress anyway, she offered her assessment of my veil that was purchased online (it is very well constructed), she said she sees a lot of Azazie dresses (my bridesmaids ordered from there) and they they are very well made and the custom measurements are usually close, plus she was happy to (repeatedly offering, actually) to pin and repin and repin as much as needed to get everything just right. She was pleasant and chatted with me without being overly talkative. Turns out I worked in my university’s school of music while her daughter was there for opera. He daughter, her daughter’s boyfriend, Robert, and I were all there at the same time. Her daughter graduated high school one year before me. But anyway, she was great and the dress is going to be PERFECT and she gave me a couple of discounts.

We received my wedding band in the mail! We ordered it on etsy. The seller had taken down the listing for the ring I wanted in yellow gold, but said they could make it again when I messaged them about the rose gold version. So, we were surprised that it came it so quickly! But it’s beautiful and perfect and came with gemstone appraisal paperwork and everything.

We also received the lanterns I ordered intending to use the largest one as our card holder. They are exactly what I wanted! I had to assemble them myself, but it’s the right size and look and a perfect compromise between what I wanted and what Robert wanted. And only $60 for all three instead of the $90 Amazon was selling them for.

After MUCH back and forth and a bit of stress, the day of hair and make up stuff has been set. First they said 6:30 or 7am start time based on if I need to be out AT or BY 9:30am. They they said 6 or 6:30am and I was kind stressing when they finally situated things to be a 6:45 call time for a 7 start. I paid the deposit this morning.

I booked my videographer. We were kinda hesitant because of cost, but I really feel like we need the coverage because our photographer is just one person. We LOVE them and their work and are definitely not willing to compromise on that for a company with more photographers, so I went looking for videography. I found a guy that only charges $975 for two HD cameras, a 5 hour time block that starts 1hr before your ceremony, a fully edited ceremony and reception highlights video, the raw footage, and usually anywhere between 25-50 candid photos. Plus his example videos are all excellent and clearly tailored to the couple’s personality. So I’ve been emailing with him and getting that set up.

So yeah, that’s what’s been happening in my life this week. lol

[adelaidecity]

Meet some of Australia's most high-profile legal pests

Posted June 27, 2019 06:34:13 Australians who have been declared vexatious litigants are diverse they include a successful South Australian winemaker, a Melbourne mass murderer and a Northern Territory "rubbish warrior". Key points:At least 173 people have been declared vexatious litigants in AustraliaHoddle Street killer Julian Knight is a vexatious litigant, launching 40 lawsuits over 10 yearsAustralia's first vexatious litigant, Rupert Frederick Millane, was declared in 1930 But they have one thing in common. They believe they have been wronged in some way and want a court order to say so. There have been 99 people declared "vexatious litigants" by state-based Australian courts, including seven in South Australia, 21 in Victoria and 43 in New South Wales. The term refers to people who repeatedly launch lawsuits without having reasonable grounds, or for an ulterior purpose. The High Court has declared four people serial litigants, while the Federal Court has 49 people on its internal register of vexatious litigants. The Family Court was unable to provide a figure. Simon Smith, an adjunct professor and leading legal history scholar at Victoria University, said there has been a surge in serial litigants because of an "explosion of law" since the 1970s. "The Commonwealth has become a much bigger player and we now have all these tribunals and all of these laws that we didn't have before," he said. "There's so much more scope for dispute."

Photo: Hoddle Street killer Julian Knight being taken to the Supreme Court in 2012. (AAP: Julian Smith) He said his research had found vexatious litigants tended to fit a "profile". They were generally men aged 40-50 who were "absolutely obsessed" with their grievance. "Personally, I just think it's the cost of doing business once you say you're going to give people access to law, you're going to have to deal with it," he said. But he said they drove the judiciary "crazy". "The system doesn't like them they don't fit the traditional mould of a barrister wearing a wig so the system just spits them out and it goes on," he said. The 'prince' of serial litigants was an inventor and pioneer Dr Smith said Australia's "prince of vexatious litigants" was Rupert Frederick Millane an inventor and transport pioneer. He was also the first Australian declared a vexatious litigant. After first appearing in the Melbourne District Court in February 1925, he made nearly daily applications to the court over a three-month period. His legal crusade started when new laws required a public transport "seat tax" and gave control of bus licences, route allocation and passenger limits to the Melbourne City Council, angering bus proprietors. The council lobbied the Victorian Government to pass laws that mirrored the Vexatious Actions Act 1896, from England, in a bid to stop Mr Millane's flood of lawsuits. In September 1930, Mr Millane was declared a vexatious litigant. Since then, each state and territory has passed similar laws. External Link:Vexatious litigants in Australia Someone declared a vexatious litigant is banned from instituting new legal proceedings without special permission from a court. Arguably the most high-profile serial litigant was Hoddle Street mass murderer Julian Knight, who killed seven people and injured 19 during a shooting spree in Melbourne in 1987. He was declared a vexatious litigant in 2016 after launching 40 lawsuits over 10 years. Most of the lawsuits related to his treatment in jail. "Mr Knight's applications, frequently baseless, take up scarce judicial resources and mean that other non-vexatious litigants are delayed in accessing justice," Victorian Supreme Court Justice Jack Forrest said in court documents. The Northern Territory has only one serial litigant failed mayoral candidate and rubbish warrior Trevor Jenkins. Court documents reveal that in July 2018, NT Supreme Court Justice Stephen Southwood found Mr Jenkins had acted violently in court at times, throwing books at the bar table and breaking a lawyer's glasses. "His oral submissions were frequently nothing more than very loud, agitated and abusive gabbling," Justice Southwood said. "His conduct has significantly interfered with the administration of the courts." Mr Jenkins is known as the "rubbish warrior" around Darwin for turning rubbish into roadside sculptures, and in 2018 he missed out on becoming Palmerston City Council mayor. He has tried to sue Supreme Court sheriff Daniel McGregor a number of times.

Photo: Trevor Jenkins outside the Darwin Magistrates Court. (ABC: Clare Rawlinson) In his decision, Justice Southwood found Mr Jenkins had "accused myself and counsel of corruption, hurled racial abuse at court security staff and sexist, Islamophobic abuse at a graduate clerk with the solicitor for the Northern Territory". "Defending the baseless criminal charges [Mr Jenkins] laid against court staff and others has had a detrimental impact on those he chose to pursue," he said. Seven people have been declared vexatious by South Australian courts. SA winemaker ran a 'royal commission' into his own life In one case, former South Australian winemaker Andrew Garrett wrote a 433-page document detailing "scandalous" allegations against the National Australia Bank (NAB), his own lawyers and liquidators. He also claimed Supreme Court judges had spent 10 months trying to "gag" him. When Justice Tim Anderson declared Mr Garrett a vexatious litigant in the SA Supreme Court in 2007, he described the 433-page document as "puzzling" and stated the bankrupt man had wanted to "run a royal commission" into his own life. "Mr Garrett is an intelligent man who has chosen to be stubborn and belligerent in taking on NAB but also many other professional people," he said in his decision. Court documents stated Mr Garrett owed NAB more than $15 million as of January 2006. Mr Garrett launched more than 30 lawsuits between 2004 and 2007. Another SA serial litigant, Kazimir Kowalski, started his legal crusade against Mitsubishi Motors more than 30 years ago. He settled with Mitsubishi Motors in 1998 and received $200,000 in compensation after numerous injury claims from 1986. Despite the settlement, the SA Attorney-General claimed 109 lawsuits initiated by Mr Kowalski in seven different courts and tribunals were vexatious, and Mr Kowalski was declared a vexatious litigant in 2014. SA Attorney-General Vickie Chapman said vexatious litigants "not only clog up the system" but they also cost both the taxpayer and private individuals who may be subject to numerous, baseless claims. "Access to justice in a timely manner is an important part of our civil justice system, which is why it is so important we have laws that help the courts deal with vexatious litigants in an appropriate manner," she said. Topics:law-crime-and-justice,crime,adelaide-5000,sa,australia,nt,darwin-0800,vic,melbourne-3000

[thisdaynews]

Trump’s expansive view of executive power gets a post-impeachment surge

New Post has been published on https://thebiafrastar.com/trumps-expansive-view-of-executive-power-gets-a-post-impeachment-surge/

Trump’s expansive view of executive power gets a post-impeachment surge

President Donald Trump. | Alex Brandon/AP Photo

Pat Cipollone took only a short post-impeachment break.

The White House’s top attorney and other members of President Donald Trump’s legal team attended a private party at the Trump International Hotel to celebrate, just hours after the Senate voted largely along party lines to acquit the president.

Then Cipollone and his team of roughly 40 lawyers returned to their routine business — much of which had been put on pause as the top lawyers defended the president from an effort to oust him from office.

The counsel’s office had hoped Trump would move on, too, after the Senate trial and the president would focus on reelection, the economy or the business of governing, now that he no longer faced the intense pressure of impeachment and the sense that Democrats were out to hurt him and his family.

But Trump had his own ideas. In the days since that acquittal he has engaged in a full-bore revenge victory lap. Now the lawyers, who helped to secure that big victory, are watching the emboldened president push the boundaries of their profession in ways that could reshape the office of the presidency for decades to come.

Trump has fired or pushed out White House staffers who testified against him in the House proceedings, while elevating or re-hiring key aides who he views as loyal. He reminded the attorney general over Twitter that he believes he has the right to interfere in judicial matters — an awkward situation for Cipollone, who remains close to Bill Barr. Trump said in a radio interview he may stop the longstanding practice of having aides listen in on phone calls with foreign leaders since he distrusts so much of his national security staff.

Trump’s expansive view of executive power, long supported by conservatives like Cipollone, is now being put to the test. Trump survived both the Mueller probe and impeachment. He has received almost no pushback from Republican lawmakers. And the White House’s stonewalling of congressional investigations has proven to be politically effective.

“It is beyond anything the presidency has achieved yet and beyond anything Nixon could have imagined,” said Michael Gerhardt, a professor of jurisprudence at the University of North Carolina School of Law whose work centers on constitutional conflicts between presidents and Congress. “There is literally no way to hold the president accountable in Pat Cipollone’s worldview.”

Allies of Cipollone’s say the arguments laid out during Trump’s impeachment trial only maintained the view of executive authority that was also present under President Barack Obama.

“Frankly, we remained faithful to previous precedents, including precedents established by the administrations of both political parties,” said one person close to the legal team. “We would not view it as an expansion of executive power.”

“We defended the president, the presidency and the Constitution,” the person added.

Trump was happy with the outcome of his acquittal but still views it as just a single step toward further vindication, according to several senior administration officials and Republicans close to the White House.

In meetings with senior staff in recent weeks, Trump has asked repeatedly for updates on the Durham investigation into pre-election federal probes of Trump and has expressed frustration it’s not moving along at a faster clip. He wants anyone associated with the origins of the Mueller investigation to be brought to justice.

Some of the questions raised by the impeachment proceedings about the scope of executive authority remain undecided — and will be heard by the courts this spring. “In the short term, the acquittal was a win for presidential power. It strengthened the hand of the presidency and showed you can stonewall and not turn over anything, but that doesn’t mean it will hold,” said one former senior administration official. “So much of it will end up getting sorted out in the courts.”

Cipollone’s “lasting legacy will be getting his client through impeachment and not messing it up,” said Neil Eggleston, Obama’s White House counsel from 2014 to 2017. “He had a jury that was entirely not going to convict the president, so his goal was to get through it and sound credible.”

Cipollone supported the Trump candidacy early on during the 2016 election. But he first came to the attention of Trumpworld late in the cycle when he helped the candidate prepare for debates. The Trump transition also considered him for the job of deputy attorney general under Jeff Sessions, a position that never materialized because Sessions instead wanted to install career prosecutor Rod Rosenstein.

In the fall of 2018, Cipollone left a lucrative partnership in private practice to take the job of White House counsel because he liked Trump’s policy positions and felt he wanted to serve the country that had welcomed his Italian immigrant parents. “The latter may sound hokey but it’s how he feels,” said Laura Ingraham, a Fox News host and close friend of Cipollone’s.

Inside the White House, Cipollone quickly established himself as the opposite of Trump’s first White House counsel, Don McGahn — standing out as an affable presence who enjoyed spending time in the Oval Office and who tried to help implement the president’s wishes as much as he could.

Whereas McGahn focused intently on judicial nominations and deregulation during his time leading the counsel’s office, Cipollone did not enter the job with set policy preferences.

Instead, he followed the president’s lead. Cipollone helped develop the rationale for an emergency declaration that allowed the president to shift money around to fund the border wall. He worked with the president to prepare tariffs on Mexico until the U.S. and Mexico cut a deal to avoid them, and he led the counsel’s office through multiple investigations and eventually the all-consuming Senate impeachment trial.

Cipollone’s allies say he runs the counsel’s office — the “most important law firm in the world” — as an affable leader who is a good listener, said Alan Dershowitz, a friend of the president’s and member of his legal team. “He takes everyone seriously. It was a pleasure to watch.”

Republicans close to the White House say the counsel’s office functions like a tight-knit team.

Inside the broader White House, however, Cipollone has clashed with acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney over the sharing of information and the best person to lead the White House impeachment strategy. Several staffers from other key offices came to view Cipollone as territorial and overly secretive with information — and ill-equipped to handle the political dimensions of an impeachment trial.

His allies argue that keeping tight control over information is typical behavior for any good lawyer, especially one who wants to keep the strategy secret in a White House known for leaks. “Everyone had the info they needed to do their job,” said a second person familiar with the legal team.

During the impeachment proceedings, the president’s relationship with Cipollone had ups and downs. Trump was angry with Cipollone at one point during the House proceedings in December when several administration officials testified as witnesses, said a Republican close to the White House.

Yet during the Senate trial, Trump was pleased with Cipollone’s made-for-TV performance including his emotional and tough exchange at one point with House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler on the Senate floor. During his post-impeachment speech in the East Room, Cipollone was one of the first people Trump singled out for praise.

On the legal team, Cipollone functioned like the “anti-Giuliani,” said one Republican close to the White House, who said Cipollone remained calm, rational and under the radar even while facing intense scrutiny.

“It is highly ironic that the guy who is OK with no one recognizing him or knowing who he is, is front and center on every channel in the world,” said Jonathan Missner, Cipollone’s former partner at the law firm of Stein Mitchell Beato & Missner.

Post-impeachment, several friends and allies of Cipollone’s say he is likely to remain at the White House through the end of the first term. No one knows exactly what he will do after November, be it return to private practice or continue to work for the president if he wins reelection.

Friends say Cipollone often lets his faith guide major career decisions. Allies say he does not think much about his career legacy, and it’s hard to know whether the impeachment and acquittal will end up being the capstone of his time in the White House.

“If you go back to the Clinton impeachment, no one remembers who the White House lawyers are,” one Republican attorney said.

Instead, Cipollone’s legacy may be staying in the president’s good graces for an extended period of time. Maintaining a good and consistent relationship with the president inside the White House has bedeviled other top staffers — including former chief of staff John Kelly, former national security adviser John Bolton and Cipollone’s predecessor, McGahn, who liked to call Trump “King Kong” behind his back.

“Pat has skills that many people do not have,” said Missner, his former law partner. “Whenever everyone else says, ‘You can’t do it this way,’ Pat doesn’t think in those terms. He finds them to be silly. Just follow the path of how he helped to lead the strategy of what you just watched on impeachment. Every pundit said, ‘You can’t do this.’ But it worked.”

Daniel Lippman contributed to this report.

Read More

[fire-fly-in-cimmerian-shade]

Boden & Co.

While it is not unusual for the offspring of prominent politicians to capitalise on their family's name, the story of Hunter, the son of former vice president and Democratic presidential candidate, Joe Biden, has all the hallmarks of an international political scandal ironically brought to light by the Dems' impeachment effort against Trump.

"Don’t worry about investors - we've got people all around the world who want to invest in Joe Biden", according to Politico, these words were said by the politician's younger brother, James Biden, when he and his nephew Hunter embarked on a business venture in 2006.

The two bought Paradigm Global Advisors, a hedge fund, at the time when Joseph Biden, who represented Delaware in the US Senate from 1973, was a few months away from assuming a position on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and throwing his hat into the ring during the 2007/2008 presidential election cycle.

By that time Hunter had behind him experience at the Delaware bank MBNA that hired him fresh from Yale Law School in 1996, a few years at the US Department of Commerce, and time spent as a lobbyist at Oldaker, Biden & Belair.

Managing Paradigm Global Advisors was not smooth for the Bidens: the hedge fund repeatedly found itself in troubled waters, accused of both alleged and confirmed frauds. So, in 2010 the uncle and the nephew began unwinding the firm.

Rosemont Seneca, the next endeavour co-founded by Hunter Biden, Christopher Heinz and Devon Archer in 2010 proved much more successful. It managed to strike a $1 billion private equity deal with a state-owned Bank of China subsidiary in December 2013 and gain over $3 million from Ukraine's Burisma Holding in 2015. The striking of lucrative deals by Hunter Biden coincided with his father's tenure as US vice president under Barack Obama.

Burisma Holdings' Muddied Waters

At the time Hunter Biden joined Burisma, the holding had been facing legal difficulties with the UK's Serious Fraud Office (SFO) freezing $23 million in accounts belonging to the company's co-founder, former Ukrainian parliamentarian and government official Mykola Zlochevskiy, under suspicion of corruption.

Zlochevsky established Burisma as an off-shore company in Cyprus in 2002. While serving as a chairman of the State Committee for Natural Resources from 2003 to 2005 under president Leonid Kuchma and then as minister of environmental protection and minister of the environment and natural resources from 2010 to 2012 under President Viktor Yanukovich, Zlochevsky managed to get over three dozen licenses for hydrocarbon production. This allowed his company to embark on gas production in Ukraine’s main basins starting from 2006.

The SFO insisted that the former politician's assets were "unlawfully acquired as a result of misconduct in public office".

Burisma Holdings has always been anything but transparent. The company does not disclose its financial results, while its site does not contain any information concerning its asset history, registration data or financial accounts. While the holding names KPMG – one of the Big Four accounting organisations, along with Deloitte, Ernst & Young, and PricewaterhouseCoopers – as its auditor, it does not release audited statements of its financial condition.

The New Yorker recalled that before joining the holding's board in April 2014, Hunter Biden recommended that New York-based law firm Boies Schiller Flexner where he was "of counsel" assessed Burisma's "history of corruption". To that end Boies Schiller hired the investigative agency Nardello & Co. Three months after Biden assumed a director position in Burisma Nardello warned in a draft report that Zlochevsky could be "vulnerable to investigation for financial crimes" and for "perceived abuse of power." However, none of this discouraged Hunter Biden from serving in the company.

Why Burisma Wanted Hunter

Burisma had good reasons to request help from the well-positioned American. The 2014 February coup in Ukraine, also known as Euromaidan, resulted in the ouster of Viktor Yanukovich and triggered the re-distribution of power and wealth among Ukrainian oligarchs and their cronies. Zlochevsky, who came to prominence as one of Yanukovich's top ministers, found himself on thin ice.

As cited by Reuters, Oleksandr Onyshchenko, a businessman and former member of the Ukrainian parliament, alleged that Zlochevsky brought Biden as well his business associate Devon Archer and former president of Poland Aleksander Kwaśniewski to the board of Burisma "to protect (the company)" from potential prosecution.

In addition, according to a New York Times' December 2015 story, just weeks before Burisma hired Hunter, then Vice President Joe Biden was assigned by President Barack Obama to oversee US-Ukraine relations.

Zlochevsky loosened his purse to fund his "dream team": according to Ukrainian court documents obtained by Novaya Gazeta, between 18 November 2014 and 16 October 2015, the holding sent $3,404,712.82 to Rosemont Seneca for "consultation services", while a further €1,000,000 went to Aleksander Kwaśniewski, the media outlet says.

While later both Joe and Hunter Biden denied that they had ever discussed the Burisma issue, a photo featuring the vice president, his son and Devon Archer, who served on the board of the Ukrainian holding together with Hunter, playing golf in August 2014, appears to prove the opposite.

​The Washington Post remarked at that time: "The appointment of the vice president’s son to a Ukrainian oil board looks nepotistic at best, nefarious at worst".

According to Reuters, sources close to Burisma described Hunter's role in the company as that of a "ceremonial figure". They elaborated that then vice president's son had not visited Ukraine during his five-year contract with the holding, adding that twice a year he attended Burisma’s board meetings all of which were held outside of Ukraine.

He was reportedly paid $83,333 per month having expertise neither in energy business nor in Ukraine's affairs.

Hunter's actual responsibilities at the company also raise questions. On 12 May 2014, Burisma issued a press release saying that Hunter Biden "will be in charge of the holding's legal unit and will provide support for the company among international organisations". However, in his May 2019 interview with The New York Times, Hunter argued that the holding's release was not accurate saying: "At no time was I in charge of the company’s legal affairs".

To add to the controversy shortly before getting the new job in Ukraine, Hunter was discharged from the US Navy Reserves on 18 February after urine tests indicated cocaine in his system.

Moreover, according to Business Insider, since 2003, Hunter "was in and out of multiple rehab centers, achieving sobriety for periods of time before relapsing", ending up with being forced out of the Navy. Later his addiction problems became the trigger for a 2017 divorce from his wife Kathleen Biden, who he was married to for 22 years and had three children with.

The Bidens' 'Shield' & 'Untouchable' Mykola Zlochevsky

While Reuters argues that Hunter failed to shield the holding from a series of criminal investigations into Zlochevsky started by the Ukrainian and British authorities, the truth of the matter is that all of those probes mysteriously fell apart while Biden was at the helm.

According to ex-Ukrainian Prosecutor General Yuri Lutsenko's recollection of events outlined in his May 2019 Facebook post there had been three criminal cases targeting Zlochevsky and Burisma, namely tax evasion allegations (Art. 212 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine), money laundering (Art. 209) and misuse of public funds (Art. 191).

Ukrainian Prosecutor General Vitaly Yarema started looking into the Burisma owner's alleged misconduct in August 2014 and then passed it to Viktor Shokin who became Ukraine’s prosecutor general in February 2015.

A month earlier, on 21 January 2015, the UK's SFO unblocked Zlochevsky's accounts. Although the British law enforcement agency continued the investigation it ultimately stalled after several months. Speaking to the Guardian in May 2015, a SFO spokesperson bemoaned the fact that the British agency "was not provided with the evidence by authorities in the Ukraine necessary to keep this restraint order in place."

One of the cases overseen by Shokin – alleging that Zlochevsky had granted licenses to his own company while being a top government official – was suddenly re-directed to Ukraine's National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) in contradiction to Ukraine's law. Lutsenko noted that NABU eventually swept the case under the rug and later closed it.

According to Shokin's affidavit presented by Donald Trump's attorney Rudy Giuliani earlier this year, the then prosecutor general led a "wide-ranging corruption probe into Burisma Holdings… and Joe Biden's son Hunter Biden [who] was a member of the board of directors".

Shokin was forced to resign in February 2016 "due to pressure from the US Presidential administration, in particular Joe Biden" who was "threatening to withhold $1 billion in subsidies to Ukraine until [Shokin] was removed from office". The prosecutor's affidavit was partly confirmed by Joe Biden himself who openly bragged about blackmailing Kiev into firing "the son of a b**ch".

​As Lutsenko noted in his Facebook post, out of three cases only one, concerning tax evasion, was fullfilled forcing Burisma to pay 180 million hryvnias ($7.17 million) to the state in autumn 2016.

In a strange twist of fate, however, two years after Joe Biden stepped down, Ukrainian prosecutors opened a new probe into the firm linked to Hunter Biden in February 2019, according to The Hill's John Solomon. After that, in April 2019, Hunter Biden left Burisma's board of directors under the pretext of his father running for presidency.

Being deprived of its "protection shield" presumably provided by the Bidens, Burisma came into the crosshairs of the new Ukrainian prosecutor, Ruslan Ryaboshapka, who signalled on 4 October that his office was reviewing 15 previous inquires related to Zlochevsky. For its part, NABU signalled on 27 September that its investigation into Mykola Zlochevsky was up and running, adding, however, that it is limited to the time period from 2010 to 2012.

[newsbiteswithjennysok]

Aug 20, 2019

1. YouTube star PewDiePie has found his sweetie pie. The controversial influencer, known for his widely watched gaming videos and crass humor, married long-time girlfriend and fellow social media star Marzia Bisognin in a London ceremony on Monday — in what could be considered the royal wedding of YouTube.

“We are married!!! I’m the happiest I can be. I’m so lucky to share my life with this amazing woman,” the 29-year-old Swedish vlogger, whose real name is Felix Kjellberg, wrote Tuesday on Instagram. The Italian influencer, 26, also posted tons of shots from the big day to her 6.2 million Instagram followers, revealing that their wedding marked the eighth anniversary of the day they met.

PewDiePie proposed in April 2018 while vacationing in Japan. At the wedding, PewDiePie wore an all-black suit while Bisognin, who has a following in fashion, wore an off-white long-sleeve dress featuring a lace bodice and tulle ballgown with a peplum. 

PewDiePie is one of the world’s highest-paid YouTube stars, earning an estimated $14.5 million a year, but has come under fire for posting several videos featuring anti-Semitic jokes or images related to Nazis in 2017. Despite being booted from YouTube’s Red platform, he still makes millions off the site, though he was bested as the most followed person on the platform after decades at the top spot earlier this year by an Indian music label. PewDiePie’s multi-channel network partner Maker Studios, a subsidiary of Disney, severed ties with him and the Google Preferred program also dropped him. Between them, the couple has 107 million YouTube subscribers, 24 million followers on Instagram and 22 million Twitter followers.

2. A business owner in California says she has been forced to relocate after 15 years because of the growing homelessness crisis in the state. Elizabeth Novak, who owns a hair salon in downtown Sacramento, posted a video on Twitter on Friday describing how she often finds people camping in tents across her front door. She told how the vagrancy epidemic gripping the state is affecting long-standing business owners and that her shop has been broken into and she has even been attacked. Novak, who has run her salon for 15 years, said in her social media message that she often has to clean-up urine, feces and used needles left by rough sleepers on her doorstep.

Addressing her concerns directly to Governor Gavin Newsom, she said in a heart-felt pleas for action: 'I want to know what are you going to do for us Californians? I've had a business in downtown Sacramento for 15 years - a successful business. I now have to leave my place of business, I have to close my shop.

'I just want to tell you what happens when I get to work. I have to clean up the poop and the pee off of my doorstep. I have to clean-up the syringes.

'I have to politely ask the people who I care for, I care for these people that are homeless, to move their tents of of the way of the door to my business.

'I have to fight off people who push their way into my shop who are homeless and on drugs because you won't arrest them for drug offenses. I have to apologize to my clients as to why they can't get into my door because there's someone asleep there and they are not getting the help they need.'

At the beginning of the impassioned clip Novak says has been repeatedly sending videos, emails and tweets as well as numerous calls to Newsom in a bid to get a response.

Novak also slammed the Democrat governor's 'liberal ideology' as 'not working' and criticized him for 'sitting in his million dollar home and not having to look at what we have to look at'.

She added in the video: 'I talk to the police officers, they told me to contact you [Newsom]. They want to do something and they can't, you changed the laws.

'So I want to know what you're going to do for us, the ones that are unhappy? You want to make us a sanctuary state, you want to make it comfortable for everybody except for the people that work hard and have tried their hardest to get along in life and now we have to change that because of your laws.'

Novak's Twitter account is now private, but it was viewed around 25,000 times.

Yesterday Novak told Fox & Friends that she was going to have to relocate her business because of how bad the situation had become.

'A lot of people asked why go directly to the governor, why take it to that level and I think it's an SOS for all small business owners. And not just business owners, but employees in the downtown area.

'When I come into work I'm never sure what I'm going to walk into. I've been broken into, I've had my glass broken. I clean up human excrement off of my doorstep every week, cups of urine, things like that.'

She added: 'A lot of people are saying it's a housing issue - it's a drug issue.'

3. Colton Haynes is looking back in an effort to help others move forward.The 31-year-old actor, who has been candid about his battles with depression and substance abuse, shared a series of images Monday from his hospitalization a year ago, in an effort to help others relate and recover.

'I get immense joy when someone comes up to me & says that my willingness to open up about depression, anxiety, alcoholism, & addiction has helped them in some way,' said Haynes. 'I’m posting these photos to let y’all in on my truth. I’m so grateful to be where I am now ... but man these times were dark. I’m a human being with flaws just like you. If ur in the middle of the dark times...I promise you it doesn’t have to last forever.'

Haynes told Attitude magazine in March that the hospitalization came after a week of heavy boozing while locked in a room at the Beverly Hills Waldorf Astoria. He said when he 'was found' he was heavily bruised, unable to walk, had multiple seizures, lost partial vision temporarily and 'ended up in 5150 psyche hold.'In a series of five images in his post Monday, the Teen Wolf actor was seen in a hospital bed fitted with heart monitors. In other selfies Haynes shared from the time frame, he stared into the camera while in a plane and at a residence.

Haynes made it clear he was concerned with keeping it real on the social media site, as he said he 'no longer [wants] to project a curated life.

'Worrying about what time to post on social media so I can maximize my likes or being mad at myself that I don’t look the same way I did when I was addicted to pills is a complete waste of why I was put on this earth,' he said. 'I don’t want worrying about if I look hot or not on Instagram to be my legacy.'

He continued: 'I don’t want to skirt around the truth to please other people or to gain economic success. I have far more important things to say than what magazine I just shot for or what tv show I’m a part of (Although I’m very thankful I still get to do what I love).'

The Andale, Kansas native told Attitude that he'd entered rehab for four months last year, and had six months sobriety under his belt at the time.

'I got so heavily involved with drugs and alcohol to mask the amount of pain I was feeling that I couldn't even make some decisions for myself,' he said. 'I was drowning in my own s***.'

Haynes told the publication that his 'downward spiral' into drug abuse began three years ago, and was complicated by a series of major life events that transpired in the time frame. The actor married Kardashian family florist Jeff Leatham in October of 2017 only to split less than a year later, and his mother Dana Haynes died in March of 2018.

4. Jada Pinkett Smith opened up about her life, marriage and her new Facebook Watch series Red Table Talk in a new interview. The 47 year old actress revealed in a new interview with The Guardian that she knew she wasn't going to be a traditional wife when she married Will Smith. She also spoke about her new Facebook Watch series was inspired by talks with three friends, Salma Hayek, Pauletta Washington (Denzel Washington's wife) and Ruby Dee.

'I knew that I was not built for conventional marriage,' the actress began. 'Even the word 'wife': it's a golden cage, swallow the key.'      

'Even before I was married, I was like, "That'll kill me." And it damn near did! So why wouldn't you share what you've been through, when you see that other people are out there, trying to figure this crap out?'

'We decided to make it public because it's part of the healing. I feel like if we don't have real understanding about it, I don't know if interpersonal relationships are possible,' she continued.

She clarified that she loves her husband, her 'life partner,' adding she could not have asked for a better one.

'But I can assure you that some of the most powerful women in the world feel caged and tied, because of the sacrifices they have to make to be in that position, she said.

'So I wanted to talk about how we really feel about marriage. How do we really feel about different, unconventional relationships? How do we really feel about raising children? Honestly,' she said, which lead to Red Table Talk being born.

Smith launched her series Red Table Talk in May 2018 on the Facebook Watch streaming platform, and there was quickly an order for additional episodes.

The second season premiered in May 2019, which reportedly is comprised of 20 episodes, featuring Jada and her mother Adrienne sitting around the table with various guests.

Pinkett Smith added that she did pitch Red Table Talk to conventional TV networks and streaming services, but revealed she went with Facebook because they offered the most flexibility.  

'The others all wanted to add a dancing bear to it. So many dancing bears, when I just wanted us sitting around a table,' Smith began.

'And the other reason I couldn’t go to mainstream TV is that Willow is not built for that kind of conventional set-up. She can’t be there every episode – she’s a little butterfly,' she said.

'Something comes up and she says, "Ma I got to go to the mountains for a week," and I got to let her go. That’s part of her mental health, she needs freedom. You’ve just got to let her fly.'

5. 90 Day Fiance star Ashley Martson has officially moved on from troublesome Jay Smith with Christian Estrada. Christian is currently on Bachelor in Paradise but his search for love must not have completed since he went on a date with Ashley. Over the weekend, the two went to the most magical place on earth, Disney World, for a super fun date. Will there be more dates in the future for this cross-over reality television couple?

Before he started dating 90 Day Fiance’s Ashley Martson, Christian Estrada was searching for love on this season of Bachelor in Paradise. This week on the show, Christian and Jordan Kimball get into a huge fight, seemingly over Nicole Lopez-Alvar. The fight quickly turns physical when Jordan actually picks up Christian and throws him to the ground. Watch Bachelor in Paradise Monday and Tuesday at 8 on ABC to see their fight play out.

Most 90 Day Fiance fans were relieved when Ashley Martson kicked Jay Smith to the curb. He had been unfaithful to her and was seeing another woman behind her back. But it wasn’t the first time Jay Smith had been caught cheating on her. His bad behavior was going on three days after he and Ashley got married.

Ashley caught him using a dating app of all things. It was hard for her to give up on their relationship, but Jay pushed her to the edge and she filed for divorce in April 2019. Although she had previously filed in January and withdrew it, this time was for real. Jay Smith was even bailed out of jail by another girl, Kayla Ann O’Brien, that started a GoFundMe to raise the money. Jay and Kayla are rumored to be separated because Jay cheated on her.

[adambstingus]

Prominent Federal Appeals Judge Accused Of Showing Porn To Female Clerks

A prominent federal appeals court judge in California has been accused by several former clerks and junior staff members of sexual misconduct. Six women — two of whom spoke on the record — said Judge Alex Kozinski had “subjected them to a range of inappropriate sexual conduct or comments” over the years, as recently as 2012, The Washington Post reported. 

One ex-clerk said Kozinski, 67, a veteran jurist and former chief judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, repeatedly showed her pornographic images on his computer and asked if she was sexually aroused by them.

“I was in a state of emotional shock,” Heidi Bond, who clerked for Kozinski in 2006 and 2007, told the Post. “What I really wanted to do was be as small as possible and make as few movements as possible and to say as little as possible to get out.” 

Kozinski ― still a judge on the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, the country’s largest federal appeals court ― dismissed the accusations in an interview with the Los Angeles Times over the weekend.

“If this is all they are able to dredge up after 35 years, I am not too worried,” said the judge, who is well known for his candid and colorful court opinions. He said he didn’t remember ever showing porn to his staffers.

Another former clerk, Emily Murphy, told the Post that Kozinski once made a sexually inappropriate comment about her while they were chatting with a group of coworkers. He suggested she exercise naked at the gym, Murphy said, and when others attempted to change the topic, Kozinski continued to belabor the point. 

“It wasn’t just clear that he was imagining me naked, he was trying to invite other people — my professional colleagues — to do so as well,” said Murphy, a professor at the University of California Hastings College of the Law. “That was what was humiliating about it.”

Justin Sullivan via Getty Images

Judge Alex Kozinski, pictured here on March 16, 2017, has served on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit since 1985. The judge is known for his candid and colorful court opinions.

In a detailed blog post, Bond, now a novelist who writes under the pseudonym Courtney Milan, described some of her interactions with Kozinski.

She recalled the judge calling her into his office and asking her to look at “pictures showed a handful of naked college-age people supposedly at a party where other people were clothed and drinking beer. In one of those photos, a man and a woman were sitting naked on a couch.”

He asked if she thought the images were Photoshopped (she did). And then, she said, he asked: “Does this kind of thing turn you on?” 

“I remember feeling that I needed to not move, either physically or emotionally, that if I just treated this like this was normal it would stay normal and not get worse,” Bond wrote. She added that Kozinski showed her pornographic material on at least two other occasions. 

Another former staffer told the Post that she, too, had been asked into Kozinski’s chambers and shown porn.

Bond wrote of another occasion when Kozinski showed her a “piece of paper listing all the girls that he and his friends had banged while they were in college, tracking their conquests.”

“I don’t remember everything he told me. I do remember him talking about how terrible the focus on STDs today was, because nobody was willing to just fuck anymore,” she said. 

In a statement to The Washington Post and The New York Times, Kozinski said it was “regrettable” that some of his former staffers had been offended by his behavior. 

“I have been a judge for 35 years and during that time have had over 500 employees in my chambers,” he said. “I treat all of my employees as family and work very closely with most of them. I would never intentionally do anything to offend anyone and it is regrettable that a handful have been offended by something I may have said or done.”

Back in 2008, the Los Angeles Times reported that Kozinski kept sexually explicit images and video footage on his private, but publicly accessible, website.

At the time, a judicial council rebuked the judge for being careless in allowing the website to be accessed publicly, and for “exhibiting poor judgment … [that] resulted in embarrassment to the institution of the federal judiciary.”

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Prominent Federal Appeals Judge Accused Of Showing Porn To Female Clerks

A prominent federal appeals court judge in California has been accused by several former clerks and junior staff members of sexual misconduct. Six women — two of whom spoke on the record — said Judge Alex Kozinski had “subjected them to a range of inappropriate sexual conduct or comments” over the years, as recently as 2012, The Washington Post reported. 

One ex-clerk said Kozinski, 67, a veteran jurist and former chief judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, repeatedly showed her pornographic images on his computer and asked if she was sexually aroused by them.

“I was in a state of emotional shock,” Heidi Bond, who clerked for Kozinski in 2006 and 2007, told the Post. “What I really wanted to do was be as small as possible and make as few movements as possible and to say as little as possible to get out.” 

Kozinski ― still a judge on the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, the country’s largest federal appeals court ― dismissed the accusations in an interview with the Los Angeles Times over the weekend.

“If this is all they are able to dredge up after 35 years, I am not too worried,” said the judge, who is well known for his candid and colorful court opinions. He said he didn’t remember ever showing porn to his staffers.

Another former clerk, Emily Murphy, told the Post that Kozinski once made a sexually inappropriate comment about her while they were chatting with a group of coworkers. He suggested she exercise naked at the gym, Murphy said, and when others attempted to change the topic, Kozinski continued to belabor the point. 

“It wasn’t just clear that he was imagining me naked, he was trying to invite other people — my professional colleagues — to do so as well,” said Murphy, a professor at the University of California Hastings College of the Law. “That was what was humiliating about it.”

Justin Sullivan via Getty Images

Judge Alex Kozinski, pictured here on March 16, 2017, has served on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit since 1985. The judge is known for his candid and colorful court opinions.

In a detailed blog post, Bond, now a novelist who writes under the pseudonym Courtney Milan, described some of her interactions with Kozinski.

She recalled the judge calling her into his office and asking her to look at “pictures showed a handful of naked college-age people supposedly at a party where other people were clothed and drinking beer. In one of those photos, a man and a woman were sitting naked on a couch.”

He asked if she thought the images were Photoshopped (she did). And then, she said, he asked: “Does this kind of thing turn you on?” 

“I remember feeling that I needed to not move, either physically or emotionally, that if I just treated this like this was normal it would stay normal and not get worse,” Bond wrote. She added that Kozinski showed her pornographic material on at least two other occasions. 

Another former staffer told the Post that she, too, had been asked into Kozinski’s chambers and shown porn.

Bond wrote of another occasion when Kozinski showed her a “piece of paper listing all the girls that he and his friends had banged while they were in college, tracking their conquests.”

“I don’t remember everything he told me. I do remember him talking about how terrible the focus on STDs today was, because nobody was willing to just fuck anymore,” she said. 

In a statement to The Washington Post and The New York Times, Kozinski said it was “regrettable” that some of his former staffers had been offended by his behavior. 

“I have been a judge for 35 years and during that time have had over 500 employees in my chambers,” he said. “I treat all of my employees as family and work very closely with most of them. I would never intentionally do anything to offend anyone and it is regrettable that a handful have been offended by something I may have said or done.”

Back in 2008, the Los Angeles Times reported that Kozinski kept sexually explicit images and video footage on his private, but publicly accessible, website.

At the time, a judicial council rebuked the judge for being careless in allowing the website to be accessed publicly, and for “exhibiting poor judgment … [that] resulted in embarrassment to the institution of the federal judiciary.”

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from All Of Beer http://allofbeer.com/prominent-federal-appeals-judge-accused-of-showing-porn-to-female-clerks/