#v: Senator

[cold-dragon-europehsr2]

[loyal-logik]

Pharma likely would need to stop the Senator if he didn't wish to go any further. Shockwave was reletnless in his flirting, and if he was given the chance, he would certainly berth anyone he deemed worthy of his attention.

Another reason why the Senate was watching him with close optics. He was a 'problem' they thought, and too vocal, and too scandalous. Someone that had too much of a voice at times, and was liked by most he came into contact with. Underneath that charm, of course, was a very kind mech who wanted nothing more than for their world to grow with open sparks.

Shockwave's brows raised when the medic guided him along, and he wondered just how far this little meeting of theirs would go. Oh, it was delightful! And Shockwave, himself, was delighted.

Running his servo against the examination table, the Senator inspected it with keen optics before they rose back to the other mech, a little smirk at his lips. "You are pristine, my dear Doctor." He then popped himself up onto the table and sat there, waiting for Pharma to come in nice and close.

"So... what shall you be examining?" His voice turned low and smooth then, his optics halving.

The doctor's optics tracked the senator's, traveling to his own hand. A faint smirk appearing on his face. It was faint but gave off an air of smugness. Apparently Pharma had similar things in mind. Being known for coquettish behaviour like this, Pharma wanted to test exactly how far Shockwave would go exactly until he had to be stopped.

"We have a separate room just to the left here..." Pharma directs Shockwave into said room. The space was almost a blinding white, not a speck of dust in sight, and the smell of disinfectant filled the air. In the center of the room there was a large examination table, The table itself almost blended with the room.

Pharma motioned for Shockwave to take a seat on the table. "Please make yourself comfortable, Senator."

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Sen. Elizabeth Warren: suspend the filibuster to codify Roe v. Wade during the next Democratic trifecta

Alexander Bolton at The Hill:

Progressive Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) announced Wednesday that there are currently enough votes in the Senate to suspend the filibuster to codify Roe v. Wade and abortion rights if Democrats win control of the House and keep the Senate and White House. “We will suspend the filibuster. We have the votes for that on Roe v. Wade,” Warren said on ABC’s “The View.”

She said if Democrats control the White House and both chambers of Congress in 2025, “the first vote Democrats will take in the Senate, the first substantive vote, will be to make Roe v. Wade law of the land again in America.” The Massachusetts Democrat said her party would only need “skinny” majorities in the House and Senate to override the Supreme Court’s 2022 decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which overturned the national right to an abortion established by Roe v. Wade in 1973. “We can make Roe v. Wade law of the land if we have, and I have to be clear, we’ve got to have a majority in the House — skinny majority. We can take a really skinny majority in the Senate, I’ll take fifty. And a Democrat in the White House. We have those three things we will suspend the filibuster,” she said.

Speaking on ABC’s The View Wednesday, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) supports the idea of suspending the filibuster to pass a Codify Roe bill should the Dems get a trifecta.

From the 07.17.2024 edition of ABC's The View:

[tkachuktkaching]

Brothers Brady Tkachuk of the Ottawa Senators and Matthew Tkachuk of the Florida Panthers are interviewed prior to the game at the Amerant Bank Arena on February 8, 2025 in Sunrise, Florida.

(Photo by Joel Auerbach/Getty Images)

[empiredesimparte]

⚜ Le Sacre de Napoléon V | N°16 | Francesim, Paris, 28 Thermidor An 230

On the evening of the coronation, Napoleon V received the most important political representatives of Francesim at the Tuileries Palace. Despite the celebrations, Empress Charlotte could not resist criticising the politicians for their shortcomings. In this way, she hoped to inspire her husband to be more far-sighted in his political dealings.

Beginning ▬ Previous ▬ Next

⚜ Traduction française

Le soir du couronnement, Napoléon V reçoit au palais des Tuileries les plus grands représentants politiques de la Francesim. Malgré les célébrations, l'Impératrice Charlotte ne peut s'empêcher de reprocher aux politiciens leurs manquements. Elle espère ainsi éveiller chez son époux davantage de clairvoyance dans les jeux politiques.

(Sylvie) Votre Majesté, permettez-moi de vous adresser mes sincères félicitations à l'Impératrice et vous. C'est un jour historique pour la Francesim.

(Sylvie) Le Sénat vous assure son soutien entier. (Napoléon V) Merci, Madame la Présidente.

(Napoléon V) J'honorerai la confiance que le Sénat place en moi. L'Impératrice et moi-même sommes déterminés à servir notre Nation avec dévouement.

(Charlotte) Madame, ne faisiez-vous pas partie de ceux qui s'opposaient aux réformes policières de feu l'Empereur Napoléon IV ?

(Sylvie) Votre Majesté, les journalistes m'ont demandé mon opinion et je l'ai donnée.

(Charlotte) Si j'étais vous, je m'excuserai devant l'Empereur avant tout. C'est inadmissible.

(Sylvie) Les temps ont changé si vite. Le Sénat est prêt à soutenir l'Empereur dans toutes ses décisions.

(Napoléon V) Je l'espère, Madame.

[loyal-logik]

Orion was the sweetest thing he'd ever seen. Especially that little blush at his cheeks. He was far too easy to tease! Then again, what was a big name Senator doing with a lowly archivist? Not that Shockwave considered Orion lowly by any means. His work was very important, and one day, they would all read the history that was recorded here. Plus, it kept Orion humble, and that was something that Shockwave admired in the other mech. It was also why he knew he would make a great Prime to house the Matrix eventually. One day... when that time came. For now, the war had not yet broken out.

"Perhaps that is entirely my intentions," he replied with a laugh. He pulled Orion's arm just a little closer to him as they walked. "You need to relax more. All this time locked away in the archives... you need fresh air on your chassis." His arm went out to indicate the world around them. "You're huddled in closed doors too much. And there are so many beautiful things to see out there. Such as myself, of course."

Shockwave's expression turned to one of pride as he puffed his chest out. He was a handsome mech, and he knew it. How easy it was to find company, and someone to berth. But if he were to fall head over heels for anyone... it was likely the mech he was linked arms with. Orion kept him grounded, and reminded him that sometimes, it was good to be humble.

"So, why not turn your optics from all of those datapads, and focus on what's in front of you for a moment, yes?"

Orion couldn’t help it, Shockwave was smooth as hell and even he had to agree with that notion. Who wouldn’t like being ogled in a respectful manner, and being showered in compliments even if one didn’t ask for them? It was pleasant that was for sure. Well at least to him anyways. But he’d get the other to blush one day! He will try! Yeah that may take him some time. But he was determined! But it was good to show that confidence. It really caught Orion’s optics after all, what he wouldn’t give to be that confident some day. But he digressed.

“In that caseee, I would love to to Shockwave, but hmm, I maybe a little bit.~ But am I so wrong about that?~”

The archivist couldn’t help but to ask, sounding playful of course, but at the comment of his blush, his face brightened up more, and he let out a loud engine purr, smiling in a nervous manner, but clearly he enjoyed that. And he happily took the others offer of their arm.

“Aww Shocky, common now, quit it! At this point you’re just flattering me!~”

Orion chuckled, he was so sweet to him, really. He was going to very much enjoy tonight, and right now, the senate problems could wait, let them have this.

[stromuprisahat]

Dolgoruky always dared to tell Peter the truth. Once, late in the reign, Dolgoruky actually tore up a decree because he believed that the Emperor had not reflected on it. The decree had commanded all landowners in the governments of St. Petersburg and Novgorod to send serfs to dig the Ladoga Canal. Dolgoruky had been absent on the day the decree was signed, and the following morning, when he read it, he protested loudly. The other senators looked uncomfortable, but warned that it was too late to object, as the Emperor had already signed it. Whereupon, in a spasm of disgust, Dolgoruky ripped the edict in half. Stunned, the other senators stood up, demanding to know if he realized what he had done. "Yes," said Dolgoruky passionately, "and I will answer for it before God, the Emperor and my country." At this moment, Peter walked into the room. Surprised to see the entire Senate standing, he asked what had happened. In a trembling voice, one member told him. His expression grim, Peter turned to the eighty-three-year-old Dolgoruky and demanded an explanation. "It is my zeal for your honor and the good of your subjects," Dolgoruky replied. "Do not be angry, Peter Alexeevich, that I have too much confidence in your wisdom to think you wish, like Charles XII, to desolate your country. You have not reflected on the situation of the two governments your decree regards. Do you not know that they have suffered more in the war than all the provinces of your empire together, that many of their inhabitants have perished, and are you unacquainted with the present miserable state of the people? What is there to hinder you from taking a small number of men from each province to dig this canal, which is certainly necessary? The other provinces are more populous than the two in question and can easily furnish you with laborers. Besides, have you not Swedish prisoners enough to employ without oppressing your subjects with works like these?" Peter listened to Dolgoruky's appeal and then turned calmly to the other senators. "Let the decree be suspended," he said. "I will consider this matter further and let you know my intentions." Soon after, several thousand Swedish prisoners were transferred to work on the Ladoga Canal.

Peter the Great: His Life and World (Robert K. Massie)

Such an amazing use of flattery, elegantly wrapping a good advice.

[vultures-and-scavengers]

i'll be honest, i just really need an office space style sitcom regarding the Force-null civilians managing the Jedi Order's HR, PR, and acquisitions/quartermaster offices.

[ozsvessalius]

like what even is the point of the adult timeline idgi being a thing. like yes it establishes even as middle aged adults they're still haunted by the wilderness & their consequences followed them but like. ????? that rly isn't given as much focus as it should be given. there's too much random other shit going on. there's too many outta nowhere things. esp w other survivors showing up just to fucking die one season later. none of the mysteries in the adult timeline feel worth it being there. the adult casting is Great, & i wish i could like it solely for that, but man. even when i start to like it, some decision is made that turns me right back off to it. :/

i stay for the teen timeline bc i rly feel like despite some minor, minor qualms, it's genuinely super well done & interesting. truly an incredibly gripping mystery that keeps me on the edge of my seat, & makes me gasp, but that i can easily follow bc all the beats Make Sense.

but bc of how good it is, im just like. man i rly wish Both timelines had that much care put into them instead of making me wonder why there's two timelines at all

[askbensolo]

hey a bit of job app advice - much much MUCH better to apply two or three times and put more effort into it, than to apply hundreds of times. Also, I know talking to people is hard but if you can actually go to the workplace and talk to the people who will be looking at your app and establish a relationship or show that you're genuinely interested? MUCH more likely to give your app a decent shot. Quality over quantity :D

Hey—thanks bud! Appreciate the advice!

Actually...I kinda think one has to use a combination of those two approaches. In an ideal galaxy, you could just send out two or three job applications and put a lot of effort into them and someone would actually read them and get back to you. I really wish it worked like that.

But, the job market right now freaking sucks. All the kids from the post-Galactic Civil War baby boom are grown-up now and scrambling for jobs just like me. And my field in particular super sucks, because everyone and their mother's tooka are all obsessed with text-gen droids and ARGH I'm breaking out in hives—

I had this one job I really wanted, that I actually got an interview for. It was a scriptwriting position for a political audiocast. I had a really good feeling about it, and it seemed like they liked me, too. But then they told me later that I “wasn't a good fit,” and...I kind of think it's because of who my mom is.

Not that they were gonna tell me that, of course.

Speaking of Mom...her offer to have me join as one of her staff still stands. Her very aggressive offer, I might add.

She lets me hang out in her office to work on job apps sometimes, and drink unlimited free caf. (Although? The caf she keeps in her office is EVEN WORSE than the caf she makes at home. Literal brown water.) I think she’s hoping that the longer I hang around her office, the more I’ll warm up to the idea of working for her.

Mom has an intern named Korrie, who always seems like she’s afraid of me. And then there’s Greer Sonnel—Mom’s chief of staff—who is most definitely not afraid of me.

“Just think about it, honey,” Mom said to me on one particularly busy day, as she was rushing out to a meeting. “We could really use your help around here!”

Greer raised an eyebrow, and Korrie didn’t say anything. But I got the impression that they could not, in fact, really use my help around there.

[tkachuktkaching]

Matthew going for a pre game fist pump. 👊

[dontmean2bepoliticalbut]

[tomorrowusa]

Abortion is the major issue in Virginia's state legislative elections on Tuesday.

Republicans control the governor's office and the House of Delegates – the lower chamber of the Virginia legislature. Democrats hold a narrow majority in the Senate – the upper chamber.

Virginia is the only state in the South which observes full reproductive freedom. GOP Gov. Glenn Youngkin (AKA: Glenn Trumpkin) is pushing a measure to restrict abortion. Trumpkin has national ambitions and wants to re-enforce his hardline credentials by pandering to the MAGA crowd.

If Democrats do not end up with control of at least one chamber of the legislature after Tuesday's election then Virginia will join the rest of the South as a place where Republican officials have a virtual regulator in every OBGYN office in the state.

Legislative elections can be decided by very narrow margins. And the tightest race for the Virginia Senate seems to be the 24th Senate District where incumbent Democrat Monty Mason is fighting a challenge by Republican J.D. Diggs. In a Washington Post article about the race in the 24th district, Karen Tumulty reports...

Across Virginia, abortion has become the overriding issue on the airwaves for the Democrats, highlighted in more than 40 percent of their ads. Republicans are talking about it in only 3 percent of theirs, according to the tracking firm AdImpact. But Mason noted: “People bring it up to me. I don’t have to lead with it in a lot of places.” That is because Virginia is the last Southern state where the procedure has remained widely available after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022. Abortion in Virginia is legal up to 26 weeks of gestation.

A vote in the Virginia legislative election is important anywhere in the state. But it's even more important in these swing districts.

^^^ those charts come from this excellent article at the UVA Center for Politics.

The Race for Virginia’s Legislature, Part Two

If you'd like to know which legislative districts you're in, in Virginia or ANY state, find out here.

Find Your Legislators Look your legislators up by address or use your current location.

There's statistical evidence that Virginia voters in the 18 to 29 group can swing an election.

In 2020, Democrat Joe Biden easily carried Virginia in the presidential election; voters 18 to 29 overall made up 14.6% of the Virginians who took part in that election. In 2021, Republican Glenn Youngkin/Trumpkin won the race for Virginia governor; 18 to 29 voters were just 9.1% of the Virginia voters in that election. (source)

VOTE! If you live outside Virginia but know people there, send them a quick message to remind them to vote.

There's no such thing as an unimportant election.

[autonom-us-project]

Speak Up: Email or Call Your Elected Official!

When we elect our representatives into office, they have a duty to represent the interests of us, the voters. A simple and free way to do this is by contacting them when we have concerns or feel they aren’t acting in our best interests. Especially in states with restrictive reproductive healthcare laws, voicing your concerns via email or phone ensures your voice is heard. Remember, these officials work for you, the constituents who put them in office to begin with!

If you need help getting started, check out the links below for some scripts you can use to write up your message to your state’s elected officials. 

Find Your Representative

This tool from the US House of Representatives will help you locate your representative based on your ZIP code, and provide their website and contact information.

Emailing Your Legislators 101

This resource from Planned Parenthood outlines in detail where to locate your representative’s contact information, tips for how to structure your message, and where that email goes after you send it. Additionally, it provides an email template at the bottom for added guidance. 

ACLU- Defend Reproductive Freedom Now

This page from the ACLU provides another helpful template for crafting your message to the Senator or Representative of your state.  

[kylo-wrecked]

There he was again, the man. Ben recognized him, stranger though he was. He'd appeared suddenly, too suddenly. Sure, Ben paid scant attention to his surroundings (he was more loping through his mind than Central Park East), but their happenstance meeting here felt a little too dreamlike. Ben stopped short of the curb with the weight of an incubus on his chest and a sour ball in his stomach.  

He couldn't remember the man's name. Ben remembered his face, the blond dollop of hair. The expectant air about him. He'd have recognized his teeth from several yards down this paved path. But those, that. That could only have been a dream. 

They'd crossed paths a few times now. What was his name? At Strand bookshop, which seemed a likelihood since they'd met, where? At some literati function on Frankin Avenue. It'd been too hot that night, the reading room overcrowded with heat and bodies. They were crushed into the corner bar-top arm-to-arm. Ben's brow was damp, and he was on drink three. The other man seemed cool in the city stew, wore sunglasses and an easy smile. He joked about the tight squeeze. What had he said? 

He'd offered to buy Ben a drink, and Ben had shrugged it right off his cotton shoulders. Oh, no. No thanks. The dark, rooty aperitivo was his third and final. 

Ben wasn't used to getting looks like that from—anyone? 

Men. 

Then the nightmares began, and Ben saw him again. Well, not all in that particular order, but sort of. At Strand and in his sleep. The dreams were always woven in the same fashion, with lurid alterations here and there. Mouths meeting mouths when they shouldn't, mouths where mouths shouldn't be. Existing in places they shouldn't. He'd wake in a cold sweat, revulsed by himself. 

No, this was not for his therapist to know. Ever? He thought, oddly, now as he willed himself to see if the man had moved. The lamp-posts bloomed as he sauntered over. Their light didn't comfort Ben one iota. In a sense, the yellowing orbs made the moment too real.

Ever. 

Freeze mode chose for him. No, Ben only swallowed and waited in vain for his Chucks to take his feet somewhere up or down this hex-paved road. 

They did no such thing, of course. And Ben was a 6'4" pillar of nerves digging the hard-bitten crescents of his nails into his palms' heels. 

"Uh..." was all he managed. It was such a failure of sound, he could've laughed. 

@eyeless-smiles

[friendlyneighbourhoodelf]

thinking about padme and gender (and costumes) again