#programming classes dallas

[wbbfannnnnn13]

Thoughts on your takes !!

As much as I agree that dallas taking Azzi would be a great decision for the program because she is literally god and so unbelievably talented, i want to see her thrive somewhere else. Like not from a Pazzi POV and NOTTTT saying Azzi has ever been in Paige’s shadow because it is NOT like that, but i want to see her play somewhere that Paige isn’t for a few years. Build something on her own, establish herself more, etc etc like she will be doing at uConn this year (leadership role too). I also am dying to see them play against each other. But my pazzi heart obviously wants them playing together like nai and lyss eventually made it back to each other. Thoughts?

Yes I can totally appreciate this take! And I don't disagree with any of it really!

If I take the whole pazzi narrative out of the picture, I do think that the Wings best move would be to trade Arike for some veteran bigs/future picks, free up cap space, and draft Azzi:

chemistry in the backcourt straight away

get more experience/talent in the frontcourt b/c Lord knows we need it

if we can get a few picks for 2027 -- could look to get Madison Booker or Addy Brown for forwards... the 2027 draft class is going to be very guard heavy imo

freeing up cap space is never a bad thing when wanting to acquire free agents -- I'll bring up BG again...

Again, no shade on Arike, she is an amazing player, I just really can't see her and Paige meshing well... I'd be happy to eat my words lol

[oopsallgoalies]

Snitches Get Stitches: Prologue

Pairing: Jake "Hangman" Seresin x Reader

Part of the San Diego Dogfighters universe

Summary: Jake Seresin, golden boy of the NHL and Captain of the Dallas Stars makes headlines when he unexpectedly signs with newly-formed San Diego Dogfighters. When your future seems at the verge of crashing down, you receive the opportunity of a lifetime to become the team physician for the Dogfighters. You never expected to be working directly with your favorite hockey player. Jake has a secret and you have a job to do. Will he be able to trust you enough to help and will you be able to trust him with your heart?

Series CW: 18+ ONLY, swearing, car accident, suggestive language, medical inaccuracies, hockey inaccuracies etc. No use of Y/N.

Word Count: 1.3k

A/N: This is a repost of my completed series, Snitches Get Stitches. It was originally posted in October-November 2023, and was lost when my blog was deleted.

Series Masterlist // Next Chapter

Two weeks out from the end of your fellowship should have felt better. Fifteen years of work and you were so close to the finish line that you could taste it. You’d worked your ass off, topped your classes over and over, sacrificing every bit of your social life, sleep, and general welfare to guarantee that you’d have your choice of job once you came out the other end, and you had. That was at least until three months ago when everything came crashing down. A misunderstanding, a miscalculation, something that felt so far beyond your control and the past fifteen years had been swept out from under your feet. Now you refreshed your email in desperation instead of excitement. You were sitting on a dragon’s hoard of student loans and not a single job offer. The downside of being at one of the top fellowship programs in the country was ironically the same as the upside, they were extremely well-connected. As a result, you were basically blacklisted by every potential employer.

Anyone else would question how you did it, getting out of bed like nothing was wrong and going to your fellowship with a professional smile plastered on your face as if everything was right with the world and you’d be on your way to the first day of your dream job in just two short weeks. It turns out that delusion is highly motivating. You’d refresh your email every morning as if an offer was going to suddenly appear, then go about your day as if maybe this evening something would show. At least that’s how most days went. Today everything that could have gone wrong, had. Your alarm hadn’t gone off because your phone was dead, your charging cord seemingly having given up its last breath sometime over the last twenty-four hours. Then the hot water had been out, for the third time this month, so you were shivering like a drowned sewer rat as you hauled yourself into your car, running too late to make your tea.

Even the Anaheim sun couldn’t seem to warm you as you pulled onto the highway toward Los Angeles. Not even five minutes later a piercing chime sounded through the vehicle and your dismayed gaze fell on your gas light, shining bright since last night, when you had been far too exhausted to brave a seedy gas station in the dark, relegating it as a “tomorrow problem.” Tomorrow was here and you swore defeatedly as you made your way to the next exit, issuing irritated commands at your phone to find the nearest gas station. You swore your whole attention was on the road as you did your best to follow the monotone directions from your speakers as you pulled into the gas station when the motorcycle flashed across your field of vision, fast but not fast enough. You screamed as your brain caught up to the sight in front of you. You don’t remember putting the car into park in the middle of the entry to the gas station and vaulting out of the vehicle, burying your panic as you go into doctor mode, rushing to the aid of the driver sitting up on the asphalt.

“Oh my god, I’m so sorry, sir are you alright? I’m a doctor.” You sputtered as he turned to look at you, a rueful smile on his face.

“Oh, no worries, Doc, I’m all good.” He scratched the back of his neck as he looked over to his motorcycle which lay abandoned a few feet away. “I need to remember I’m not twenty-five anymore.”

“Sir I’m afraid I’m going to have to insist that I check to see if you have a concussion.” You glanced around, searching for something. “Especially since you weren’t wearing a helmet.” You couldn’t help the annoyed purse of your lips. He chuckled, nodding as you squat down next to him, fiddling with your phone to turn on the flashlight.

“So, you’re a doctor, huh kid? What kind, if you don’t mind me asking?”

“Sports medicine, and I mean yes I’m a doctor, I’ve graduated from medical school, but I’m still finishing up my fellowship so I’m not employed as one yet per se.” You sat back on your heels, satisfied that he really was alright. His eyes brightened at your words.

“Sports medicine? What sport are you working with?”

“I’ve worked with a bunch of different ones through my fellowship but my dream job is hockey.” If you ever got a job that was.

His face split into a huge grin. “You don’t say? When do you finish your fellowship?”

“Two weeks… why?” You suddenly remembered that this man was a total stranger as his questions became more specific. It was at that moment that your brain finally exited doctor mode that you realized that he was in fact not a total stranger, not really and you recognized exactly who was sitting on the concrete not even five feet from you. “Oh my fucking god, you’re Pete Mitchell.” The words tumbled out of your mouth in a rush before you could stop them. He barked out a laugh as he extended a dusty hand to you.

“The one and only.” You stared at his hand like you were wondering if it was safe to touch, which is ridiculous. You worked with star athletes for a living and you’ve never gotten star-struck. But that was within the four walls of your job, where you were completely and totally in doctor mode, not squatting in the driveway of a gas station. You shook your head, unsure of how long you’d left him hanging before taking his outstretched hand and shaking it, introducing yourself. “It feels ridiculous to ask, but are you an Anaheim fan?” He asked, flashing his signature grin. You flush, embarrassed.

“They’re my second favorite but my dad’s a ride-or-die.” Pete laughed at your brutal honesty. “But, I mean, everyone who’s everyone knows you.” You sputtered. “You have one of the longest records in the NHL. 26 years is a long time, and with three cups on top of that? You’re practically hockey royalty.” He smiled, seemingly amused with your floundering.

He stood then, helping you up with him. “Could I get your information?”

“Oh yeah, of course. I’m so sorry about your bike, is it good to drive?” You gave the abandoned motorcycle a worried look. “I’m sure my insurance can cover whatever repairs you need.”

“Oh, you don’t have to worry about that.” He shook his head gently, laying a fatherly hand on your arm. “I actually wanted to offer you a job. Well, an interview, I’m not actually authorized to offer you a job, not my department.”

“I mean I did hit you with my car, WAIT WHAT?” The full effect of his words hit you like a truck. He laughed again.

“Sweetheart, I promise you I can take care of the damages,” giving you his best I’m a multimillionaire retired athlete look. “And as for the job? I’m serious. You’re clearly responsible, professional, good in a crisis, and the team I’m working with is looking for a physician. Unless of course you’re already committed to another job?”

“No! Uh, no, no I’m not.” Shame crept up your neck. “I really appreciate this, Mr. Mitchell.” You stammered as you fumbled for your wallet and produced a business card that you offered to him, doing your best to hold back the tears of gratefulness threatening to fill your eyes.

“It’s not a problem at all, Doc. I’ll be in touch, and please, call me Mav.” He handed you a piece of paper in return and you stared down to see his signature scrawled across it with a brief note Congratulations on such a talented daughter. - Pete “Maverick” Mitchell “Tell your dad I said hi.” He said with a wink before turning away from you to his motorcycle. You stood there, frozen in shock as he got the bike upright and drove away with a wave. The moment he was out of view, the tears escaped your eyes. You’d been desperate for someone to take a chance on you, but never in your wildest dreams would you have expected that person would be Pete fucking Mitchell.

[theanticool]

Libraries and Adult Lonliness

As we all know, making friends as adults is hard. And while the internet has made it easier to make friends with people around the world, actually meeting people you can meet with on a regular basis and just hang out with us tough. The common answer to meeting new people is to find people who are interested in the same stuff as you. As such, finding places to meet new people who may have similar interests to you is important. And that’s why I think the library is a great resource!

As a children’s librarian, one of the things I try to point out to parents when they come in to sign their kids up for the library is that we offer adult programs too. Obviously we have book clubs - my library has 4 different book clubs for people who read different types of books. I’ve posted about it before with knitting/crochet circles. But for people who have or want to explore different interests, and meet new people via that new interest, you may want to check your local library to see their programming. For example:

Hiking: Many libraries offer things like hiking kits. These can be things such as maps for local trails, hiking sticks, a water resistant backpack, binoculars, bird guides, and the like. But some libraries having hiking clubs, such as the Poughkeepsie Public Library Distruct in NY.

Language Learning: Many libraries have access to language learning platforms such as Rosetta Stone or Mango Languages. But many other have dedicated classes where adults can come and learn languages. If you’re in L.A. county, the public library offers classes in beginner Russian, Chinese, Korean, Italian, Armenian, etc!

Music: there are many libraries that have maker spaces where you can go and record music. There’s one in the Newark Library and at a branch of the Brooklyn library. There are also ones that allow you to check out instruments. But there are also ones where you can receive free music lessons, such as the Dallas Public Library (this program was online during the pandemic but is now also offered in person!)

I could keep going.

Singing, dancing, theater, yoga, sketch comedy, creative writing, RC Cars, foraging, cemetery tour groups, jewelry making, baking, woodworking, painting, etc. If you have a niche interest or would like to get into a niche interest, there is a chance your library has had or will have a program about it. And if you’re looking to meet new people, it is a great place to start.

[flyingfortress1]

Reading Islands of the Damned Thoughts Part 1:

so firstly, this is the first book or memoir that I've read so far and shared here that has been co-written- here here, Romus Valton Burgin has co written his memoir with a William Marvel- and honestly, I've heard cowritten books can be a bit hit or miss sometimes, but so far this is generally pretty well written.

The opening of the book starts off with Burgin in Pelelui, and he talks about how 13 is his lucky number - including the number of his LST and a few other dates and things.

For this bit though, I'm going to focus on his upbringing which I think is really interesting. Basically our boy Romus was born in Jewett, Texas- which is actually not that far from Dallas-Fort Worth area, and does not quite look like the railroad stop that he gets off on in the show - I'll tell you as a Texan, that area legitimate looks like North Texas which is like Lubbock and plains area. But then again, I've never been a Jewett just in that Central Texas area. Texas is just a more diverse state than you would think about because we're very big. Anyway, he was born to some very poor farmers who were still very rural at the time, we don't have the rural ectrification programs yet (! They come in the '40s and fifties) so his family don't have any electricity, nor indoor plumbing, and not even an icebox. This is definitely unlike Sledge who came from money, and unlike leckie and Philips who I'm pretty sure were at least middle class. nonetheless, his family keep their son in school - he does go to a one-room schoolhouse at one point, and later in high school, wanting to stay behind for football games (he plays in them) has to walk 8 miles in the dark afterwards home because the bus doesn't run that late. He really enjoyed football.

But, our boy does not want to become a farmer as he sees the difficulties his father has. He graduates high school and actually ends up as a stamp salesman whereupon he travels the country, and gets a nice brand new company car. He really enjoys that, seeing the country and all, but of course Pearl harbor happens.. and he's actually not really sure how that's going to affect him yet. He ends up getting thrown in jail by mistake in Nebraska I think it was because the sheriff thought he and his friend were draft dodgers especially with the nice car. In fact, unlike many of the other Pacific boys that end up going to Guadalcanal, he's pretty good to just wait until he gets called up for the draft - which I think back then was still 21. Eventually, the pressure to enlist increases, and he always just tells people I'm going to join the Marines next Friday - no matter the day of the week or the time.

Eventually, he gets his draft notice - and it's for the army! And if there's one thing that RV Burgin knows, he does not want to end up in the army. Like seriously. I'm not sure how bad the 1940s army is, but I can definitely understand his sentiment about the late 19th century army lol. So he runs down to Texas, goes to Houston, stays with a friend, and goes to the enlistment offices. Tries Air Force but they have a waitlist, tries Navy but he doesn't like the Navy recruiter, and finally tries the Marines. He's able to get his dad's permission and off he goes - he's not actually able to see his family I think before he sets off to the Pacific. So very interesting - you could almost call him just a draftee, but not quite.

Anyway, he ends up at Parris Island and New River - becomes a mortarman, and has a really interesting explanation about the mortar, how it works and honestly why it's so deadly. If I can find the book, I'll probably take a picture of that and upload it.

And lastly, my boy is tall! His father is 6'2, his mother is a mere 5'2 ( half an inch taller than me haha) and he himself is 6'1. He also got his first name because his uncles who were born as twins, got the name Romos and Remus, and his middle name because there was another boy in town with that name and his mom liked it. It is definitely a unique name and not what you'd expect from a poor farm boy from small town Texas lol. But then again, I know kids that have names like Remington or something so what do I know.

[drewsbuzzcut]

blurb of like Dallas doing a day in the life of a married 20 year old still in college

“Good morning,” Dallas yawns, holding her phone up at an angle to catch her untamed, morning hair. Rolling over, she captures Nick who is nestled into her side. His face moves to the crook of her neck and his limbs are thrown over her body.

“He’s such a sleepy baby,” she giggles, carding her fingers through his hair. She abruptly stops when he stirs.

“Who are you talking to?” He mumbles, face moving and burrowing into her chest.

“TikTok,” at Dallas’ words, Nick looks up at the camera to see her recording. He eventually decides he doesn’t care and falls right back to sleep

“Today is a busy day, so unfortunately I have to get up!”

Dallas forces herself out of bed and her husband’s arms. She gets so fluttery on the inside when she remembers that they’re officially married.

She sets up her phone on the bathroom counter while she brushes her teeth and does her skincare.

“So today we have no classes, thank god! I literally cannot fathom having to go to an 8 am. Pro tip: don’t sign up for morning classes because they’ll kick your ass,” she informs while rubbing her moisturizer into her face.

“Anyways back to the agenda, I have to go to a ton of fabric stores, because I just know I won’t find all of what I’m looking for at a singular location. I have an appointment to get my last name changed to Moldenhauer, and then I have to go to the store and buy different necessities. Oh, I also have a pilates class and a test to take, so today should be busy to say the least,” Dallas lists off the different things on her agenda.

She quickly goes into her makeup routine, showing off her favorite products that she uses everyday.

“Wait!” Nick blurts out, scurrying into the restroom with only his underwear on. She’ll have to blur it out later. He hugs her from behind, his arms wrapping around her neck and requests a kiss before she puts on lip gloss.

“I’m going with you, so just let me get ready. I’ll be like 10 minutes,” he says against her lips, a hand coming up to caress her cheek.

Dallas nods her head and kisses him again.

“I love you, husband.” Her cheeks grow red and her eyes turn into hearts.

“I love you, wife.” She wants to jump around and scream; she loves him so much.

-

“We’re here at one of my favorite thrift stores. I usually buy left over fabrics or pieces of clothing that I can incorporate into a different piece. Right now I have over half of my list, which is actually so relieving,” Dallas talks fast while giving an overview of the different things in her basket.

She continues to walk around until she finds Nick looking through a pile of old umich merch.

“Baby, look at this jacket. You’d look so hot in it, especially if you’re wearing your leather pants and those little kitten heels,” Nick announces the outfit he’s picturing in his head.

He holds up the vintage looking, windbreaker with a smirky smile. He drops his eye in a wink and the girl has to stop recording, so she can kiss her husband.

“You’re so hot,” she mutters into his mouth. Her fingers card through his hair, and she has a hard time not pulling him into the restroom at the back of the store.

“Back to our regularly scheduled program, Nick is almost a better thrifter than I am. He, not only found two of the fabrics I was looking for, but some statement pieces for some game day fits. He learned from the best,” she whispers into the mic of her phone as she records Nick showing off what he found. He’s so proud of himself and it’s the cutest thing ever.

“I think I deserve a kiss for all my hard work,” Nick hums and pulls his wife into his chest.

They share a sweet kiss that’s interrupted by their giggling and wide smiles. They do a little kiss for the camera and Dallas knows she’s so insanely lucky to have him by her side.

-

Dallas pulls Nick away from the camera, getting him to spin her around. She burns red with the way his eyes focus on her and the way she twirls around. She truly feels like the only girl in the world when she’s with Nick.

Dallas strikes a pose and Nick falls in line without even being told. They show off their outfits and do a little dance together.

“I think everyone should leave a compliment, telling her how beautiful and sexy and hot she is. But she’s mine!” Nick jokes. Well, Dallas thinks it’s a joke, but knowing him, he’d probably get jealous of the comments.

“No one leave comments about my husband, because he’s mine and no one else can look at him,” Dallas counters Nick’s words, giving her man a glimpse of her very well hidden jealousy. Even if it’s a joke, she wants him to know that she can also match his possessiveness. Not that he minds.

Nick flashes a smirk at the camera and cops a squeeze of her ass, making her gasp and turn her backside away from the camera.

“You all did not see that,” she says through a laugh.

Her hockey player doesn’t care, though, so he slaps her ass and kisses on her neck until she’s squirming.

-

“I’m so excited! I have been looking forward to this all day. We’re here at our local courthouse to file paperwork to change my last name. It’s the reason why I’m wearing slacks and a button up; i have to look professional. Since I’m only 20, I’ve received a lot of hate for being married already.”

“It’s bull. She should not be getting any hate for being in love. People who have something bad to say are just jealous,” Nick chimes in, putting an appreciative smile on his wife’s face.

She finds herself smiling a lot since meeting him and since marrying him.

The camera pans to the doors of the courthouse and their intertwined hands. Her pearl ring and floral engraved band shine in the sun.

“Hi, June Blankenburg. I’m here to file the required paperwork to change my last name.”

Now Nick’s holding the camera, flipping it back and forth between Dallas and his excited reaction.

“I can’t believe the love of my life is changing her last name to mine. I can’t believe I get to be married to her for the rest of my life,” he whispers, camera pointed at his wife as she hands over her paperwork.

“Soon I’ll officially be June Dallas Moldenhauer on every legal document! I’m so excited,” Dallas cheers, holding up her ring finger as she skips over to Nick.

They share one last kiss before she stops recording for the moment.

-

“Hi, beautiful people in my phone. You might be noticing that it’s later in the day as the sky is dark. I just got out of my pilates class, hence the sweat. I couldn’t vlog because I had to hurry and eat before my test, and then my test ran longer than expected so I had to rush to my workout class. I’m on my way to the sophomore house for dinner. It’s actually one of our last dinners before the school year ends, so that’s kind of sad,” Dallas rants breathlessly, phone capturing her sweaty face and messy updo.

“D!” Multiple hockey boys cheer in unison upon seeing her walk up the driveway.

Baby duke is on the grill and the others are just hanging around.

“Hello, Mrs. Moldenhauer,” Nick grins, pulling her into a hug.

The boy holds onto her camera, so it can film them kissing once again.

“Get a room!” Rutger yells, but comes up to the couple to bring them into a group hug.

“Everyone say hi to Rutger, he’s our son,” Dallas jokes which earns her a playful eye roll from the boy.

Dallas moves away from him, dragging Nick with her inside the house. She takes a look around the surprisingly clean area and the boys who are lounging around.

“Wow! It’s so sparkly in here,” she teases, getting sarcastic laughs in response.

“We knew Mrs. Moldenhauer was coming over and that she’d have our heads if it wasn’t clean,” Luca muses.

“Awww. You all love me,” she gives Luca a tight hug.

“Say hi to the vlog,” she turns the camera to his face.

“Help me, she’s holding me hostage,” Luca screams, making her push him away with a full belly laugh.

She moves with Nick to any empty spot on the couch. She easily falls into his lap with his chin resting on her shoulder.

“It’s time to say bye. I hope you all enjoyed seeing what a day in my life looks like. It’s definitely chaotic, but it’s also comforting. I need to eat and spend time with my family. Bye, have a good night!” Dallas says and blows air kisses to those watching her behind their screens.

a/n: This is a little longer than a blurb, but enjoy!!!

[d-towncrossfit]

D-Town Crossfit is a dynamic fitness facility in Dallas, Texas, that offers Crossfit training and a community-centered workout experience. The gym focuses on functional fitness, strength training, and conditioning and is known for its well-rounded programming, which caters to athletes of all levels, from beginners to experienced CrossFit competitors.

At D-Town Crossfit, members engage in high-intensity workouts designed to improve endurance, strength, flexibility, and overall fitness. The training incorporates a variety of exercises, such as weightlifting, cardio, gymnastics, and bodyweight movements, all aimed at functional strength development.

One of the key elements that sets D-Town Crossfit apart is its supportive and motivational community. Coaches and fellow athletes work together to push each other to reach their fitness goals, creating an atmosphere of camaraderie and teamwork. The experienced coaching staff emphasizes proper form, technique, and injury prevention to ensure that members train safely and effectively.

D-Town Crossfit also offers tailored programs like personal training, specialized classes for weightlifting, gymnastics and nutrition coaching. Whether you're looking to improve athletic performance, build muscle, lose weight, or simply stay fit, D-Town CrossFit provides a structured and challenging environment for all fitness enthusiasts.

Their facility is well-equipped, featuring top-tier Crossfit gear, a spacious workout area, and regularly updated programming to keep members engaged and progressing in their fitness journey.

[bm2ab]

Arrivals & Departures . (29 May 1917 – 22 November 1963) . John Fitzgerald Kennedy 

John Fitzgerald Kennedy , also known as JFK, was the 35th president of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963. He was the first Roman Catholic and youngest person elected president at 43 years. Kennedy served at the height of the Cold War, and the majority of his foreign policy concerned relations with the Soviet Union and Cuba. A member of the Democratic Party, Kennedy represented Massachusetts in both houses of the United States Congress prior to his presidency.

Born into the prominent Kennedy family in Brookline, Massachusetts, Kennedy graduated from Harvard University in 1940, joining the U.S. Naval Reserve the following year. During World War II, he commanded PT boats in the Pacific theater. Kennedy's survival following the sinking of PT-109 and his rescue of his fellow sailors made him a war hero and earned the Navy and Marine Corps Medal, but left him with serious injuries. After a brief stint in journalism, Kennedy represented a working-class Boston district in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1947 to 1953. He was subsequently elected to the U.S. Senate, serving as the junior senator for Massachusetts from 1953 to 1960. While in the Senate, Kennedy published his book, Profiles in Courage, which won a Pulitzer Prize. Kennedy ran in the 1960 presidential election. His campaign gained momentum after the first televised presidential debates in American history, and he was elected president, narrowly defeating Republican opponent Richard Nixon, the incumbent vice president.

Kennedy's presidency saw high tensions with communist states in the Cold War. He increased the number of American military advisers in South Vietnam, and the Strategic Hamlet Program began during his presidency. In 1961, he authorized attempts to overthrow the Cuban government of Fidel Castro in the failed Bay of Pigs Invasion and Operation Mongoose. In October 1962, U.S. spy planes discovered Soviet missile bases had been deployed in Cuba. The resulting period of tensions, termed the Cuban Missile Crisis, nearly resulted in nuclear war. In August 1961, after East German troops erected the Berlin Wall, Kennedy sent an army convoy to reassure West Berliners of U.S. support, and delivered one of his most famous speeches in West Berlin in June 1963. In 1963, Kennedy signed the first nuclear weapons treaty. He presided over the establishment of the Peace Corps, Alliance for Progress with Latin America, and the continuation of the Apollo program with the goal of landing a man on the Moon before 1970. He supported the civil rights movement but was only somewhat successful in passing his New Frontier domestic policies.

On November 22, 1963, Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas. His vice president, Lyndon B. Johnson, assumed the presidency. Lee Harvey Oswald was arrested for the assassination, but he was shot and killed by Jack Ruby two days later. The FBI and the Warren Commission both concluded Oswald had acted alone, but conspiracy theories about the assassination persist. After Kennedy's death, Congress enacted many of his proposals, including the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Revenue Act of 1964. Kennedy ranks highly in polls of U.S. presidents with historians and the general public. His personal life has been the focus of considerable sustained interest following public revelations in the 1970s of his chronic health ailments and extramarital affairs. Kennedy is the most recent U.S. president to have died in office.

[popmuzikloverr]

As a ballerina living in NYC, what ballet programs or schools do you recommend for young dancers wanting to focus on ballet. Please don’t include Bayer, Osipova, Dallas Conserv, MBA, Moga, Dimitri, or ECC as I already know about them.

The well known top tier ones are SAB, ABT, Ellison, Joffrey, Ballet Academy East,

There’s also Ballet Hispanico, Brooklyn ballet, The Rock school has as NYC branch, Art of motion, Manhattan youth ballet, ballet tech, Ailey studios, downtown dance factory.

Steps and BDC have great open classes aswell in all styles.

[emodivorceddad]

What are some negative traits/flaws of ur ocs 🤔💭😲💡☝️💚💓❣️

First ask yay!!! I’ll have everyone listed below xx

(i started this when i got the ask and am just getting around to posting hours later lol)

Dallas

-lowkey racist! he doesn’t mean to be but when you’re raised in the environment…

-he forgets to have an inside voice due to yelling on the ranch so often

-has called matt a f** on accident (again, raised in the environment, he’s trying to be better for his pals)

-he snores. loudly

-i dont think he ever passed a class when he went to school (for like the 6 years he was there consistently - went to home school in 7th grade cause the family ranch needed him)

Matt

-very pushy

-much like Dallas, loud

-obnoxious and can act ‘better than thou’ without meaning to those that he might see as ‘lesser’ (kids and ranch hands typically)

-don’t have him fully fleshed out but i’m working on it

Sofia

-brash

-a little transphobic (which Brian gets onto her for)

-a bully in school, she actually got kicked from a nursing program for it!

-has a very high pitched and annoying voice, which is fully done on purpose, her actual voice is rather smooth

Jason

-sadly he’s not fully fleshed out enough for this </3

Greyson

-yapper

-sings in the shower (LOUDLY)

-has ‘accidentally’ sprayed a person with a fire hose (had to go through a lot of training for that one)

-not the best with personal space, ESPECIALLY with Andrew (he loves his little brother but the kid ain’t the biggest on him)

-doesn’t like cats

Tyler

-was so homophobic he turned gay!

-can not be trusted around sharp objects, known for cutting himself on accident

-been fired from several jobs, he wants to be a police officer but the social services shit is the only thing he can do at the moment

-criminal record

-lots of robberies under his belt (how do you think he met the family)

Andrew

-too big of a heart

-brings home too many injured animals expecting Brian to heal them even if he can’t

Ashley

-she’s a kid, kids are demons, especially MD’s kids, what hasn’t she done

Salem

-it’s a dog, he’s loud and barks

-doesn’t know personal space (another Andrew fan)

-used to run away a lot before finding Andrew to be his companion

-bites

Brian

-selfish

-greedy

-can’t always take the word no as an answer

-stubborn

-always tries to do good even if truly, it isn’t good that he’s doing

-fights people if they insult his family (depends on what you consider negative for this one)

-crushed on MD for years, and any relationship he tried before getting with MD was a disaster for the other person once they discovered his heart wasn’t for them

-bit of a thief in his youth despite being a wealthy nepo baby (gave most of it up for MD and his family, would rather love than hide)

-was honestly just lowkey a bad person growing up and becoming the character he is now

Mad-dog

-ohhh buddy

-obsessive

-has murdered

-has broken out of jail

-WHORE (slept with way too many people through the ages of 16-21 - stopped for Brian then got w him after)

-prolly has way more kids than Ashley that he wont ever find out about

-while he got through school quick and graduated a few years early (at 14) he still got in tons of fights over trivial reasons

-when he first met Jason he pulled a gun on him

-he burps loudly

-beg hog (Brian keeps his own sheets at this point)

-clumsy as hell, he almost took out his other eye by tripping once

-honestly he has a lot of flaws that i can’t remember at the moment + don’t feel like listing!

[wrestlinghistorywithkay]

I am saddened to learn of the death of legendary news reporter and World Class Championship Wrestling Play-By-Play announcer and interviewer, Bill Mercer. He passed away earlier today at the age of 99. This article will be about his life and celebrating his contributions to the wrestling business.

William Mercer was born on February 13,1926 in Muskogee, Oklahoma. Before he had a career in broadcasting , Mercer served in the United States Navy from 1943-1946. He would work aboard ships such as the USS ‘ Rixey ’ , and USS ‘ LCIG ’ —439. The job he would have was a signalman. This means that he would be a sailor that would have a speciality in visual communication. After the war ended, he would begin college at Northeastern State College, located in Tahlequah , Oklahoma. Thus , in 1949, Mercer would go on to earn his Bachelor’s Degree from the University of Denver. He would also earn his Master’s Degree from North Texas State University in 1966.

As a reporter for KRLD, a TV station in Dallas,Texas , Mercer would cover one of his first major news stories . He would cover the Assassination of President John F.Kennedy on November 22,1963. Years later , Mercer and three other reporters would write a book about their experiences covering different topics , including the JFK Assassination. Mercer would write a separate book , detailing his time about being a sports broadcaster. He would also work as a sports anchor for KVIL, a Dallas-Fort Worth radio station during the 1970s and the 1980s. He would also become a teacher at the University of North Texas. He would work in Radio/Broadcasting department for over 30 years. The University of Texas at Dallas would recognize Mercer for his involvement during their broadcasts of their sports’ program. Mercer would also go on to cover Minor League Baseball , Major League Baseball, college football and basketball, and the NFL, covering the Dallas Texans and The Dallas Cowboys .

As a commentator for UNT, he would cover games in which Steve Willams , better known in wrestling as ‘ Dr.Death ’ Steve Williams , and Kevin Adkisson , better known as Kevin Von Erich. In 1959, he would be the commentator when Abner Haynes would break the color barrier in Texas and become a household name of the new Dallas Texans team, later to be called the Kansas City Chiefs.

Bill Mercer would be known to wrestling fans as the announcer for Fritz Von Erich’s World Class Championship Wrestling ( WCCW ), from 1982 to 1987. WCCW was based out of Dallas, Texas. He would cover matches and interview wrestlers such as the Von Erich brothers , The Fabulous Freebirds, and Chris Adams. He would have experience calling wrestling , calling wrestling matches in the 1950s in his hometown. He would retire from broadcasting after working in pro wrestling .

Michael Harney portrays Bill Mercer in the 2023 biopic about the Von Erichs , ‘ The Iron Claw ’.

My Final Thoughts:

Before there was Michael Cole , there was Bill Mercer. Bill had one hell of a career. I’m currently watching WCCW and just hearing how good he was at his job inspires me . Godspeed, Bill Mercer, and thank you ! I hope you are reunited with the Von Erichs. My condolences are with his family and his friends.

[imaginespazzi]

Bestie! Im here Im here!

Ok, first, Im glad that you posted because I was literally about to write in as it appears my last ask sent in ~10 days ago never reached you. May have gotten buried amongst the tide of bookclub stuff that came in after. Swear I sent.

Im off in tourney mode at the moment so will leave you with something brief and cutesy for now. (Tho most everyone has surely seen..)

The category is - flirty fighting:

https://www.tumblr.com/scooby1723/777282444114247680?source=share

https://www.tumblr.com/scooby1723/777017443021389824/full-vid-is-out?source=share

Loved the conclusion to GH as well as Ch 5! My previous ask starred below for you :) Take care and I'll be back before long

**HOLA BESTIE

Thank you 🙂

This college season has been so interesting in the sense of no single team (or a select few) being clearly great/dominant. I'd just say a number of really good ones. And no program seems to have this perfectly clear upward trajectory of peaking for March. It will be Madness indeed! I was so happy having a bunch of close games to follow on Sunday! Most especially enjoyed that double OT ;). And who couldnt love Carol making her return to play!! 🫶

Playoffs ya, Hoooty Hoooo! Heck of a showing after the first loss. Oh goodness the Mist (my #2).. Here hoping for a win tonight. One game at a time 🙁

Alright WOW I asked for the Mystics to do just a little something and boy did they take action. First of all having the 3rd, 4th, and 6th pick in the First Round is just crazy 🤯. And while I couldnt begin to truly complain, part of me wishes it were a slightly deeper/better class to really ensure that its a coup. But obvs have no way of predicting how things really end up turning out. Should be said, I'll miss Ariel Atkins in the DMV.

https://www.tumblr.com/akaz2908/776394383211757568?source=share

⬆️ In other (personal?) news, wifey and I are sadly apparently going to be continuing the looong distance. She could be making a smart move in the short term, as much as I hate to see it. Especially considering the CBA change up to come in '26. Hope it ends up being a good thing for her career wise in the end. But shame she wont be in Dallas for Paige. Oh the opportunity Ive lost to WAG with Az 🥲

https://www.tumblr.com/impushing20/776399337612869632/liz-and-van-girl-in-thebellairs-newest-tiktok?source=share

https://www.tumblr.com/impushing20/776323128372674560/liz-giving-us-queens-of-cassell-crumbs-im-sick?source=share

⬆️ Yeah this Liz stuff all feels a little speculative/early, def just keeping an eye on things for now. BUT look at this here! 🚨Dying to know whether she was mostly supporting Kenny, booing Amoore, or pure hate watching LSU. And also would love to know how many UK games shes actually watched this season. Also purely in the interest of drama, I love thinking of a wild scenario where Georgia somehow ends up in Vegas.

Bitsy Pazzi recap to end on a high note:

https://www.tumblr.com/mygaynesshasnolimits/776311073817116672/pls-pls-look-at-the-account-on-tiktok?source=share

https://www.tumblr.com/bueckersfavv/776224322286157824/just-gonna-leave-this-here?source=share

https://www.tumblr.com/mygaynesshasnolimits/776227919359016960?source=share

Hope that your week starts off great!**

-☕️

HI LOVIEE

Ugh I'm sorry I feel like I keep missing your asks but am very glad you send them again <3

I'm so sad we're missing out on Lou and Paige again but I agree, I don't know if Dallas were ever gonna give her a fair shot + now she gets to wait for the new CBA like you said and she's balling out overseas so good for her!

Speaking Georgia to Vegas agenda for the drama, did you see Chelsea Gray post about her? Like ion think she's gonna fall that far tbh but if it happened? OH THE DRAMA. Especially with that story of Liz tagging Clara but not Georgia? Definitely would be a high drama situation.

Also March is MARCHING except these almost upsets are killing me like I need someone to please just finish the job (NOT YOU ST. JOHNS) and knock one of these people off. I can't lie no one is really impressing me and I think the field is the most open it's been in years.

[k1ngofdallas]

LA Task 1.1

PART 1: THE BASICS

What is your full name? Blair Josiah Morris

Where and when were you born? Feb 9th, 2000 at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas, Texas.

Who are/were your parents? (Know their names, occupations, personalities, etc.) Mom: Tahiry Morris/1st grade teacher/stern, spiritual, and nurtuing Dad: Marshawn Morris / College Coach/ straight-forward, competitive spirit, and resourceful

Do you have any siblings? What are/were they like? 4 siblings in total, 2 brothers and 2 sisters. They are really close despite growing up in different households

Where do you live now, and with whom? Describe the place and the person/people. He lives alone in a 4 bedroom home. The decor gives bachelor vibes for sure. The neighborhood is relatively quiet and safe.

What is your occupation? Actor

Write a full physical description of yourself. You might want to consider factors such as: height, weight, race, hair and eye color, style of dress, and any tattoos, scars, or distinguishing marks. He's black and filipino, 6'2, about 195 with an athletic build. His fashion alternates between streetwear, trendy items, and for the occasion. He has no tattoos as of yet.

To which social class do you belong? He belongs to upper class thanks to booking a lead role in a polar tv show.

Do you have any allergies, diseases, or other physical weaknesses? He has a nut allergy.

Are you right- or left-handed? He is left-handed.

What does your voice sound like? He has a slight southern accent, with a modulated tone.

What words and/or phrases do you use very frequently? Right quick, Interesting, Uh huh

What do you have in your pockets? Wallet, gum, and 2 phones

Do you have any quirks, strange mannerisms, annoying habits, or other defining characteristics? He's always doing impressions of his friends and family

PART 2: GROWING UP

How would you describe your childhood in general? I would say I had a pretty good childhood, my parents did a honest job raising me and supporting me. I would say I grew up somewhat privileged but my parents made sure I understood hardwork

What is your earliest memory? Spending weekends with my grandma, going to various parks and museums

How much schooling have you had? I've graduated from college with a Bachelor's in Fine Arts

Did you enjoy school? I enjoyed school until I felt like it was getting in the way of my interest. In college I enjoyed the experience more than actual classes

Where did you learn most of your skills and other abilities? A mix of natural talent and performing arts summer programs and extracurricular activities through his adolescent years

While growing up, did you have any role models? If so, describe them. My dad has always been a role model for me. I looked up to my dad because he was always there for me, guiding me through life. He showed me what hard work looks like, and how to be kind, patient, and responsible. He didn’t just tell me what to do; he led by example. Whether it was how he treated others with respect, how he handled challenges, or how he made time for family, I saw that every action he took had meaning behind it.

While growing up, how did you get along with the other members of your family? I’d say I had a bit of an unconventional relationship with my family. I’ve always been a bit of a thinker—someone who tends to observe, question things, and sometimes think outside the box. My family wasn’t always on the same wavelength as me, and I could be a little misunderstood because of that. But despite that, I generally got along well with them.

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up? As a child I was pretty sure I would be a firefighter

As a child, what were your favorite activities? I loved spending time with my older brother, playing hoops at the gym, and going to museums with my nana

As a child, what kinds of personality traits did you display? Independent, forward-thinking, curious, and sociable

As a child, were you popular? Who were your friends, and what were they like? He was pretty popular due to being on his school sport's team and being a bit of a class clown. Some of his friends were his teammates and he always made sure to be cool with the smart kids who could help him keep his grades up

When and with whom was your first kiss? 1st grade with Mckayla Dickens, my classmate

Are you a virgin? If not, when and with whom did you lose your virginity? No, I lost my virginity after my high-school sophomore ball with my girlfriend at the time

PART 3: PAST INFLUENCES

What do you consider the most important event of your life so far? Booking my first recurring role on a show .

Who has had the most influence on you? My parents.

What do you consider your greatest achievement? I would say my greatest achieve has been overcoming the challenges of fame and finding balance between work and my personal life.

What is your greatest regret? Letting my ego get in the way of opportunities.

What is the most evil thing you have ever done? Senior prank that involved putting baby oil on the hallway floors

Do you have a criminal record of any kind? No

When was the time you were the most frightened? During the COVID pandemic

What is the most embarrassing thing ever to happen to you? Stuttering on live tv

If you could change one thing from your past, what would it be, and why? My senior year injury, maybe I would've had a shot at going pro

What is your best memory? Winning the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor

What is your worst memory? My parent's divorce and first few years that followed

[dailyanarchistposts]

I have previously pointed out that the on-the-ground efforts in Rojava and Cooperation Jackson in Mississippi can be seen as…

attempting, as Wesley Morgan describes, “to create ‘dual power’ through the creation of cooperatives.” Morgan disapprovingly terms this “market syndicalism” and critiques it for simply creating “units in a market economy” and still relying “upon access to the market.” However, this opinion does not take into account the unification of this praxis within broader pushes for anti-statist autonomy such as large-scale community self-defense that, like in Rojava, are creating space for non-capitalist markets. Such a method would not be dissimilar to the call by Samuel Edward Konkin III for “agorist protection and arbitration agencies” and “protection company syndicates” to defend market growing outside of the state capitalist economy and contain “the State by defending those who have signed up for protection-insurance.”

Konkin’s vision is a somewhat cynical speculation in comparison to the lived struggle of the Kurdish fighters, but the comparison lends validity to the case that building a producer-centric cooperative economy is inseparable from direct action like self-defense or setting up networks of counter-economic exchange. For myself, these observations represent a more revolutionary and non-utopian development in the tradition of early North American anarchist Josiah Warren’s non-capitalist market community projects like Utopia, Modern Times, and the Cincinnati Time Store. But these ideas also fall under the umbrella of “liberated zones theory” as theorized (and struggled for) by comrades at Community Movement Builders. I therefore want to ‘advertise’ for their theory and praxis because I really do think it’s just that compelling. And though I will add my own thoughts (if only for the sake of thinking through some things), the real purpose of this piece is to emphasize the work already being done by BIPOC folks. In fact this article is, if anything, demonstrative of the fact that almost anything white settler anarchists like myself propose is already being done by Black and Indigenous communities.

Community Movement Builders is an incredible organization that describe themselves as “a Black member-based collective of community residents and activists serving Black working-class and poor Black communities” that “organizes to bring power to Black communities by challenging existing institutions and creating new ones that our people control.” They have chapters in Atlanta, Dallas, and Detroit, with each one adapting to their own local conditions. Some of the projects that these chapters are undertaking include land trust development, cooperative development, cop-watch programs, community gardens, mutual aid programs, and international alliances with socialist groups like Pati Kan Pèp in Haiti. All of this sits within the framework of “liberated zones theory,” the outline of which—provided by CMB—feels important enough to reproduce in whole here:

Liberated Zones are territories where the masses (the community of people who live in and around a specific area) are in near-complete control over their political and socio-economic destinies because they control the institutions in a specific region, city, town or state. Because liberated zones/territory will exist within larger capitalist economies and hostile state institutions, complete control can’t happen until another later stage of transformation. The control gained exists within a larger strategy of challenging state institutions and capitalism. Economically, the community will run the market system through various worker-controlled enterprises and cooperatives. This is to ensure that the surplus-value of local communities’ labor is controlled within the liberated zones and not exploited by the outside capitalists. For this reason, that surplus can be distributed to developing the community and addressing human needs instead of capitalist wealth. Thus, the communities will be in charge of generating and sustaining economic wealth from within. At a further stage in liberated activity, the state governing apparatus will also be under the control of the people (current institutions or new ones). That can be done through either revolutionary political parties that truly represent the people’s interest, or through the consistent political struggle of the masses. In any case, the state can be used to support cooperative economic activities and the creation of new economies to deter reactionary forces from reentering the liberated zone. The people within the zones will control their local resources such as land, housing, and labor and will be the decision-makers on how these social elements will be maneuvered. Ideologically from our perspective as a Black self-determining organization, the masses will see themselves as a part of a larger pan-African struggle and therefore, embrace the unity and resistance struggles of African people at home and abroad.

When I read this overview, it blew my mind. Here are folks who are doing incredible praxis in the framework of very excellent theory to establish autonomous networks of cooperative—and commons-based—market economies that resist capitalist extraction and legibility. The added (and necessary) elements of anti-racism and anti-colonialism—often somewhat lacking in my own thinking—make it an even more powerful and contextual model for social change.

Admittedly, one element of liberated zones theory that might rub anarchists (and particularly market anarchists) the wrong way is the goal that “the state governing apparatus will also be under the control of the people (current institutions or new ones).” However, I think this is much less of an issue than it might first appear. Even as CMB names “revolutionary political parties that truly represent the people’s interest,” they equally emphasize “consistent political struggle of the masses” and center the “challenging [of] state institutions.” And because of the decentralized approach of liberated zones theory, it becomes less a question of arguing over a single unified tactic and more about what is most appropriate to local conditions. For example, while my work often focuses on building non-state institutions like land trusts, cooperatives, and mutual aid programs, I am also on very good terms with my local branches of the Communist Party of the United States and Democratic Socialists of America and have supported plenty of local socialist candidates. I have no issue with coalitions of leftist parties and candidates winning control over the existing governments of larger urban areas to “support cooperative economic activities and the creation of new economies to deter reactionary forces from reentering the liberated zone.” In fact, this would seem to me to be one of the only ways certain policies like participatory budgeting and effective anti-trust action could be enacted.[1] Control of local government in particular zones also fits very well with Kevin Carson’s model of libertarian municipalism. He argues that cooperative governance structures like Michel Bauwen’s and Cosma Orsi’s “Partner State” do not need to be…

so much a ‘government’ as a system of governance. It need not be a state at all, in the sense of an institution which claims the sole right to initiate force in a given territory. It is, essentially, a nonstate social association—or support platform—for managing the commons, extended to an entire geographical region. . . . In fact, it is arguably quite possible to sever the Partner State altogether from even residual forms of sovereign police power over all the individuals in a contiguous geographical area. It is possible to have an entire polycentric ecosystem of commons-based institutions with self-selected memberships or users of a particular common resource, with substantially overlapping memberships, and large minorities or even majorities of those in the same area being members of most of them. In that case adjudication or negotiation of the relationships between them will cause a body of “common law” to emerge for the system as a whole, with a substantial degree of de facto coordination over a common geographical area.

Carson sees this project as a “municipal level” version of “[t]he Saint-Simonian idea of replacing legislation over human beings with the ‘administration of things;'” an interpretation that is directly (and potentially strategically) related to Friedrich Engels’ withering away of “political rule over men” into “an administration of things and a direction of processes of production,” on the foundation of, he continues elsewhere, “a free and equal association of the producers.” But with the added emphasis on community-specific institutions and the pluralistic overlap of many different governmental and non-governmental cooperative efforts, this and other programs gathered under the umbrella of liberated zones theory allow for common goals and, consequently, immediate collaboration between anarchists, democratic socialists, communists, and even radical libertarians to use local governance to facilitate community-owned and (particularly producer) cooperative networks.

Then there is the fascinating connection between liberated zones theory and Black Panther Huey P. Newton’s theory of “intercommunalism;” an attempt to adapt dialectical materialism to a modern colonial context.[2] Newton writes:

[T]he world today is a dispersed collection of communities. A community is different from a nation. A community is a small unit with a comprehensive collection of institutions that serve to exist a small group of people. And we say further that the struggle in the world today is between the small circle that administers and profits from the empire of the United States, and the peoples of the world who want to determine their own destinies.

Currently we live in an era of “reactionary intercommunalism, in which a ruling circle, a small group of people, control all other people by using their technology.” But…

[a]t the same time, we say that this technology can solve most of the material contradictions people face, that the material conditions exist that would allow the people of the world to develop a culture that is essentially human and would nurture those things that would allow people to resolve contradictions in a way that would not cause the mutual slaughter of all of us. The development of such a culture would be revolutionary intercommunalism.

This logic of community control over the means of production is extremely similar to that expressed in liberated zones theory. Newton even refers to “the people in the liberated zones of South Vietnam” [emphasis added] in his analysis. And in an interview with Millennials are Killing Capitalism, CMB’s Kamau Franklin explicitly outlines how their work is in the lineage of the Black Panther Party as well as identifying a solidarity between struggles of different peoples suffering under colonialism. This international collaboration between not just the working class but all oppressed peoples lends itself, with very little modification, to liberated zones theory being a development on intercommunalism and, consequently, a more contextual and decentralist relative of dialectical materialism as a whole.

Interesting to me as well is that Rukiya Colvin and Richard Feldman, in their outline of various institutions in Detroit pushing for liberated zones, identify certain religious institutions as centers of community development. For example, they write that the Episcopal Church of the Messiah is…

more than a place of worship as they host annual anti-violence rallies, cultivate creativity through makerspaces, promote wellbeing through community gardens, support the need for digital equity through the Equitable Internet Initiative, and hold monthly coalition meetings, while also working to rebuild the neighborhood through the low income housing options they provide. Their space also serves as a small business incubator.

This resonates with me greatly as I have, in the last year or so, brought my views on religious community and collective liberation to the forefront of my mind. But again this sort of thinking has already been covered extensively by Black and Latin American theologians and clergy from Martin Luther King Jr. to James H. Cone to José Míguez Bonino and beyond. So we once again return to the main point: BIPOC folks are already doing the work and thinking outlined in this article. We as leftists need to stop bickering and particularly stop telling BIPOC communities what they should or shouldn’t be doing. Instead, we join in on the effort to establish liberated zones in combination with other strategies like mass labor actions and revolutionary unionism. I would add too that market anarchists have a lot to offer to this struggle, whether it’s perspectives rooted in Hayekian knowledge problems and collective action problems, agorist tactics (as mentioned above), a state-monopolist model of capitalism (à la Benjamin Tucker), or just our bodies and hands. So cooperate! Get to know your neighbor! Learn to defend yourself or strategize to be defended! Bypass state-capitalist legibility! Oh, and if you’re interested in supporting Community Movement Builders check out their donation page!

[1] See my articles “An Anti-Statist Beginner’s Guide to (Taxation, Public Budgets, and) Participatory Budgeting” and “An Anarchist Take on Antitrust Laws: Dangers and Possibilities.”

[2] Encyclopedia Britannica is correct to end their entry on dialectical materialism with the caveat: “There exists no systematic exposition of dialectical materialism by Marx and Engels, who stated their philosophical views mainly in the course of polemics.” I do however highly recommend Bertell Ollman’s Dance of the Dialectic: Steps in Marx’s Method.

[darkmaga-returns]

Bill Gates has come out to offer his endless support to Kamala Harris, providing her campaign with $50 million. The same news agencies praising Gates for supporting Harris have condemned the likes of Elon Musk for supporting Donald Trump. Gates has been CIVILLY CHARGED in the Netherlands and is perhaps buying favor with the DOJ. If he refuses to show up to testify or be deposed, he could be charged with contempt in the Netherlands, and it would be up to the DOJ if they extradite him or not. Tim Walz even accused Musk of attempting to “buy” the election, but now it’s (D) different.

Musk’s $75 million investment into a GOP super PAC made headlines as most billionaires vote blue. Yes, the same party that touts it must hunt down the rich happen to be supported by the same people. No one has significantly risen taxes on the billionaire elite class. All of those promises and talks of “fair share” are utter propaganda.

The New York Times stated that Bill Gates is primarily concerned about Trump’s global health programs. Gates, who has been in cahoots with foreign labs, creating new vaccines, buying up farmland, and investing in alternative food sources is concerned about global health. Get real. Everyone is acting on the invisible hand in their best interest.

Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan Chase, has offered Kamala his full support. He has a lot riding on the Ukrainian Reconstruction Fund with Blackrock. There are talks of Dimon becoming a Treasury secretary under Harris as well.

Former Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban has been insufferable in his demonization of Trump. “Elon, there will come a time when you need something from Donald Trump. You will think you will have earned the right to ask and receive. You have been a loyal, faithful soldier for him. You have supported him politically with 10s of millions of dollars. Then, at the point you need him the most, you will find out what so many before you have learned, his loyalty is only to himself,” Cuban wrote online.

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Molly Sprayregen at LGBTQ Nation:

In an effort to promote her anti-trans “Protect Children’s Innocence Act,” Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) hurled insults at a mother who has spent years fighting for the right to affirm her trans daughter’s identity. Greene reposted an article from the far-right Dallas Express News — a publication the Texas Observer has described as a “‘pink slime’ media site that launders conservative propaganda” — that claimed Anne Georgulas could soon gain the right to “castrate” her daughter without her ex-husband Jeff Younger’s permission “because she believes her son is transgender.” Greene posted in response that her bill would “stop this evil mentally ill mother from castrating her son.”

“Over 70% of Americans agree with my bill. There’s no excuse as to why my bill has not moved,” Greene added. She did not share where the 70 percent stat came from. The story in the Dallas Express News is about well-known anti-trans activist Jeff Younger — who has been engaged in years of legal battles with Georgulas over how to raise their trans daughter, Luna, whom he consistently misgenders and deadnames. [...] According to the Dallas Express, Georgulas has since moved with her two children to California, where she will have a hearing on April 25 likely regarding access to best-practice gender-affirming care for Luna based on her age, though the far-right publication claims Georgulas is seeking permission to “castrate” her. (Trans youth almost never undergo gender-affirming surgery). In 2022, California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) signed a bill protecting transgender youth and their families fleeing prosecution from states that criminalize gender-affirming care, making the state a sanctuary for trans kids and their families.

[...] Luna’s story has been used by the conservative media over the years to promote the idea that children are being forced by parents to transition medically. The claim that Younger is trying to “save” his child from hormones and surgery, unlikely treatments for a child her age, continues to be perpetuated. Greene’s “Protect Children’s Innocence Act” would make it a Class C felony to provide gender-affirming care to trans minors, make it more difficult for trans adults to access gender-affirming care by banning some health care programs from covering it, and ban medical schools from teaching about gender-affirming care.

In November, Greene lied during testimony in the House when she claimed that there are “many young people that made the tragic mistakes of having mastectomies, having castrations done to them, having genital mutilation surgeries when they were still in their early, uh, teens, um, maybe even before they were teenagers.” As stated above, genital gender-affirming surgery is not performed on minors in the U.S., much less on prepubescent children. Some older teens can sometimes get mastectomies if they meet stringent requirements, but that’s rare. Gender-affirming care for pre-pubescent children involves allowing them to wear the kinds of clothes that they want, calling them by a name and pronouns that affirm their gender identities, and generally supporting their self-expression. Puberty blockers — which have been shown to reduce lifelong suicide risk among trans people — are prescribed after the onset of puberty, and hormone replacement therapy is an option for some trans teens who are a bit older.

Vile anti-trans bigot Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) continues her campaign for her transphobic "Protect Children’s Innocence Act", this time by attacking Anne Georgulas for raising her trans daughter Luna Younger, who has since moved to California to protect her daughter from her anti-trans father Jeffrey.

[if-you-fan-a-fire]

"David Dellinger and his friend Don Benedict caught a ride from New York to Washington, D.C., for the Lincoln’s Birthday weekend of 1940. Who knows where they stayed—on somebody’s floor, probably. It was the Depression, and Dellinger in particular knew all about roughing it. Benedict was hoping to learn from him on that score. They were in Washington because the two of them were part of a youth movement whose eager vanguard had descended on the city to agitate for jobs, rights, peace, and what they saw as justice. Both had backgrounds in the important Christian student movement of the era, Dellinger at Yale and Benedict at Albion, a little Methodist college in Michigan, and both now were graduate students at Union Theological Seminary in New York. There Dellinger had quickly formed a close bond with Benedict and Meredith Dallas, also from Albion. Pacifism, like socialism, was in the air at Union, at least among students.

Members of the American Youth Congress parade in gas masks on Fifth Avenue in New York City February 6, 1940 protesting impending war and publicizing the upcoming youth pilgrimage to Washington, D.C. Acme News Service. Washington Spark Flickr.

It was an exciting time, even if, like W. H. Auden, America’s young, having lived through “a low dishonest decade,” could feel the

Waves of anger and fear Circulate over the bright And darkened lands of the earth, Obsessing our private lives[.]

The students who made their way to Washington that weekend had come of age in the Great Depression. America’s collegians, once apathetic, were now far more conscious of injustice, chafing under the political constraints imposed by paternalistic faculty and administrators—and determined to stay out of war. “It was a time when frats, like the football team, were losing their glamor,” wrote the playwright Arthur Miller, recalling his days at the University of Michigan (Class of 1938):

Instead my generation thirsted for another kind of action, and we took great pleasure in the sit-down strikes that burst loose in Flint and Detroit…We saw a new world coming every third morning.

Many such Americans worried that war would undo whatever progress had been made by the New Deal, while undermining civil liberties. Stuart Chase, a popular economics writer and FDR associate whose 1932 book, A New Deal, provided ideas and a name for the White House program, argued that by avoiding war we might achieve

the abolition of poverty, unprecedented improvements in health and energy, a towering renaissance in the arts, an architecture and an engineering to challenge the gods.

But if war were to come, he wrote, we would see

the liquidation of political democracy, of Congress, the Supreme Court, private enterprise, the banks, free press and free speech; the persecution of German-Americans and Italian-Americans, witch hunts, forced labor, fixed prices, rationing, astronomical debts, and the rest.

Delegates to the American Youth Congress march from the U.S. Capitol to the White House Feb 9, 1940 where they were addressed by President Franklin Roosevelt. International News Photo, Washington Area Spark Flickr.

If Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal didn’t go far enough, it had at least offered hope. But in foreign affairs even this scant comfort was absent. During the thirties students had seen the rise of Hitler, the fascist triumph in the Spanish Civil War, and a series of futile appeasement measures culminating in the Nazi invasion of Poland on September 1, 1939, which triggered war with Britain and France. As Dellinger, Benedict, and thousands like them arrived in Washington, tiny Finland was still fighting with unexpected ferocity to repel an invasion by the Soviet Union, which had cynically agreed with Germany to divide Europe between them. The Red Army even joined in the dismembering of Poland. On the other side of the world, China had been struggling since 1937 against a brutal Japanese invasion.

Hope springs eternal, but on the morning of Saturday, February 10, 1940, even the nasty weather augured ill. Washington was rainy and cold as a young woman on horseback—dressed as Joan of Arc—led a procession of idealistic young Americans along Constitution Avenue. Many were in fanciful costumes. The rich array included some in chain mail and others dressed as Puritans. A delegation from Kentucky rode mules. Signs and banners held aloft by the students that weekend bore antiwar slogans, including, loans for farms, not arms; jobs not guns; and, in sardonic reference to the discredited crusade of the Great War, the yanks are not coming.

The context of their march was the national struggle over what role America should play in the European war—a war that had happened despite the best efforts of well-meaning people the world over to avoid it by means of rhetoric, law, arms control, appeasement, and every other method short of actually fighting about it. Now that it was at hand, America’s young were far more opposed to intervention than their elders, and this was a source of conflict on campus. At Harvard’s graduation a few months later, class orator Tudor Gardiner reflected the attitudes of many students in calling aid for the Allies “fantastic nonsense” and urging a focus on “making this hemisphere impregnable.” When Gardiner’s predecessor by twenty-five years recalled, at a reunion event, that “We were not too proud to fight then and we are not too proud to fight now,” recent graduates booed. But when commencement speaker Cordell Hull, FDR’s secretary of state, called isolationism “dangerous folly,” Harvard president James Bryant Conant nodded in support. Scenes like this would play out at campuses all across the country.

Delegates to the American Youth Congress with the U.S. Capitol in the background Feb 9, 1940 call for more jobs not war. The image is an undated Harris & Ewing photograph from the Library of Congress.

The students who converged on Washington for the Lincoln’s Birthday weekend brought with them their generation’s disdain for war. Marching in a steady drizzle, they were bound, these tender youths, for the White House, to which they had foolishly been invited by Eleanor Roosevelt—herself an active pacifist during the interwar years. “Almost six thousand young people marched,” her biographer reports, “farmers and sharecroppers, workers and musicians, from high schools and colleges, black and white, Indians and Latinos, Christians and Jews, atheists and agnostics, freethinkers and dreamers, liberals and Communists.”

Dellinger and Benedict were part of this “extraordinary patchwork,” the two seminarians having made the trip from New York by car with some other young people. Dellinger in particular was already being noticed, as he always seemed to be. Years later he would recall (clearly as part of this weekend) being invited by the First Lady to a White House tea in early 1940 with other student leaders who had, as he put it, organized a protest that she supported. Benedict’s memoir recalls that the two of them went to Washington that same month and attended “a huge rally, with thousands massed around the White House” to hear remarks by the president and the First Lady. “Dave and I talked a lot about demonstrating,” Benedict writes, adding: “Both of us knew the value of drama.”

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For the White House, it made sense to pay attention to the young, many of whom would be just old enough to vote in the upcoming presidential election. Before the Depression, college students were solidly Republican, but as the thirties wore on and their social consciousness expanded, they swung increasingly to Roosevelt’s Democrats. The AYC [American Youth Congress] was both a cause and effect of this change and enjoyed the warm support of Eleanor Roosevelt, who over the several years of its existence had raised money for it, defended it in her newspaper columns, procured access to important public figures, and even scheduled face time with the president. For the big weekend event she had gone all out, prevailing on officials, hostesses, and her husband to accommodate the anticipated five thousand young people in every possible way. An army colonel named George S. Patton housed a bunch of the boys in a riding facility the First Lady had recently visited. She lined up buses; helped with costumes and flags, meals and teas; and arranged at least one of the latter at the White House—consistent with Dellinger’s recollection.

The event in Washington was billed as “a monster lobby for jobs, peace, civil liberties, education and health,” but it turned out to be the Götterdämmerung for the youth congress, and a landmark in the decline of America’s vigorous interwar peace movement. Nothing could more effectively symbolize the movement’s tender idealism, fair-weather pacifism, and ecclesiastical aura than an American college student dressed as the Maid of Orleans—a sainted military hero—on horseback, just months before France itself fell to an onslaught of modern mechanized warfare. Of course the American Joan of Arc, whoever she was, can be read as a symbol of hope for France because, in fact, the Yanks were coming, even if most of them didn’t know it yet. On the other hand, hopes for peace were starting to look more like delusions, even to those who held them, and here the symbolism becomes even richer, for Joan embodies three powerful drivers of the era’s American peace movement: She is young, she is female, and she is religious.

A few of the 3,000 youth that arrived for the opening of the three day American Youth Congress February 9, 1940 that will lobby Congress for passage of a youth bill to provide education and jobs. Washington Area Spark Flickr.

Many of these activists regarded abolitionism as the forerunner of their reformist enterprise, so it was fitting that here they were, in 1940, rallying for righteous change on the weekend of Abraham Lincoln’s birthday. By now the students have reached the White House, arriving an hour early to hear the president. They had to leave their banners and placards outside the gates, where the guards on duty counted 4,466 gaining admission to the South Lawn—no doubt including Dellinger and Benedict. They grew colder and wetter as they waited.

After a while the American Youth Congress’s national chairman, Jack McMichael, a southern divinity student who had earlier spoken out against the violent abuse and disenfranchisement of blacks, took the microphone on the South Portico and led the students in singing “America the Beautiful.” And then, at long last, he introduced the president, describing our troubled country as a place where Americans dream of “the land of the free and the home of the brave,” but face the threat of bloodshed.

Now war, which brings nothing but death and degradation to youth and profit and power to a few, reaches out for us. Are we to solve our youth problem by dressing it in uniform and shooting it full of holes? America should welcome and should not fear a young generation aware of its own problems, active in advancing the interests of the entire nation…They are here to discuss their problems and to tell you, Mr. President, and the Congress, their needs and desires…I am happy to present to you, Mr. President, these American youth.

When FDR finally appeared, looking out with Eleanor over a sodden crowd dotted with umbrellas, he wore a strange smile—and gave them a blistering earful, dismissing as “unadulterated twaddle” their concerns about Finland and warning them against meddling in subjects “which you have not thought through and on which you cannot possibly have complete knowledge.” Concerning their cherished Soviet Union, FDR said that in whatever hopes the Soviet “experiment” had begun, today it was “a dictatorship as absolute as any other dictatorship in the world.” It was a shocking public rebuke to the students as well as the First Lady. The young compounded the fiasco by booing and hissing, creating a public relations nightmare in a nation that took a dim view of such a response to the president. Later that afternoon the First Lady had to sit still at an Institute plenary session, calming herself by knitting, while the fiery antiinterventionist John L. Lewis pandered to his student audience by heaping abuse on FDR. He would support Willkie in the coming election.

Besides Dellinger, other future activists who stood in the rain for Roosevelt’s “spanking,” as some newspapers called it, included future Representative Bella Abzug of New York and the writer Joseph Lash, who would win the Pulitzer Prize for his biography of Eleanor Roosevelt and help found with her (and Niebuhr) the liberal but anti-communist Americans for Democratic Action. Woody Guthrie was on hand, too, to write the student movement’s requiem. The folk singer, not yet a celebrity, arrived by riding the rails from Texas. Stunned by the president’s public scolding of the idealistic youngsters, Guthrie wrote a song on the spot entitled, “Why Do You Stand There in the Rain?”

It was raining mighty hard in that old Capitol yard When the young folks gathered at the White House gate. … While they butcher and they kill, Uncle Sam foots the bill With his own dear children standing in the rain.

Without money, Dellinger and Benedict made like Guthrie by riding the rails to get home—a first for Benedict but something Dellinger had been doing on and off for several years. After the excitement of the weekend they entered the railyard in darkness, careful to elude watchmen, and hunted for a train heading north. When they found one, they couldn’t gain access to any of the boxcars, but finally climbed aboard an open coal car, the freezing wind whipping them as they picked up speed, the air thick with choking dust and smoke. Miserable as it was, they were moving too fast to get off. It was an omen, perhaps, of the nature of their journey to come.

- Daniel Akst, War By Other Means: How the Pacifists of World War 2 Changed America for Good. New York: Melville House, 2022. p. 4-6, 7-8, 17-19.