My grandmother loved Lawrence Welk the television show.
It seems like a forgotten curiosity at this moment in time. Most people today have no clue as to what and who Lawrence Welk was.
Back in 1981, when I was living with her for a spell, we would spend an hour or so watching this. It was boring to me, but I did enjoy the moment with my paternal grandmother.
It was a variety show with singing, dancing, skits, and light-hearted jokes. Not my “cup of tea” being in my early 20’s. But was really nice to spend the time with my grandmother. We actually got pretty close.
Here’s a glimpse into what the United States once was…
The Lawrence Welk Show – Big Band Days – 10-13-1973
Gosh. After watching this little youtube segment, I too wish to be teleported back to that time. And live a seemingly much simpler life.
Ah. A much simpler life.
Damn! We had no idea how great we had it, back then.
OMG. A much better time.
*sigh*
Today…
American Reacts to Trip Bitten After 12 Years Abroad
This review and added comments are really gold.
As the tech war between US and China has escalated, the U.S. has banned exports of advanced chips to China and restricted U.S. investments in certain technologies in China? How will it affect both of the two sides?
TSMC being forced to not fabricate chips for Huawei and sell to Huawei was a serious thing
That’s because this was a direct transaction between TSMC & Huawei known as a Nil Distribution Business
Where you directly order from the factory
So if the factory refuses to make products for you and there are no other factories, then you are in trouble
The EUV and DUV restriction are serious
Only 6–7 makers in the entire world and easy enough to nob them
China is needs to by pass these by paying huge prices for second hand equipment
The AI GPU Chip ban is an absolute Joke
In fact it is China that is actively demanding that all local businesses use Chinese made AI Chips & Servers
Chinese Companies using Huawei SSDs with YMTC get many subsidies including a 8 year waiver on Point Sales Tax upto 100 Million Yuan a year
Chinese Engineers working for these companies get a 40,000 Yuan State Bonus plus upto 100,000 Yuan Sign on Bonus to ensure they can put a down payment on a house the minute they join work
That’s because Singapore, HK and Australia are actively selling A100s and H100s to China
The only blip is NO SERVICE WARRANTY OR INSURANCE
Companies in Singapore, HK and Australia openly buy H100s and a bit more cautiously buy A100s and ship them to China
NVDIA says “Ahhh!!!! We can’t sell to Mainland companies but we won’t stop you from selling until Raimondo tells us not to”
Raimondo forgot😁
Australia, Singapore,HK aren’t doing anything Illegal and unless their own Government says it’s against the law to sell A100s and H100s to China, they will continue to sell at as much as 100% profit
In fact the Chinese Government has restricted use of these Chips & Servers in most Government funded projects not the other way round
China isn’t buying fewer A100s and H100s because of the Ban by US
China isn’t buying because it is incentivised to buy Chinese made Chips and servers!!
Restrictions of US Investments is also a Joke
China doesn’t want US Investment into its Technology today
That’s the truth
The Chinese wages are growing at 5% a year when inflation is 0.5% a year
This means the Chinese are flush with cash!!!!
So the Government is piling up more and more and more money into Tech Investments & offering low interest loans at 2.5% a year
The Chinese have a whopping $ 140 Billion for such investments
You would need $ 400–500 Billion in the US for the same things you can do for $ 140 Billion in China
Why take US money when you have Chinese money piling???
Again China is restricting US investments in Technology more than US restricting the same
China only wants collaboration with the West in the areas of PHARMACEUTICALS & HEALTHCARE most of the time
And Green Energy
And Batteries
New trade routes from Brazil and Russia are putting US farmers, ranchers out of business
South Korea – National Assembly Impeaches President Over Failed Putsch Attempt
On December 3 the President of South Korea Yoon Suk Yeol launched a coup against the opposition ruled National Assembly. He declared martial law and ordered military special forces and police units to block law makers from assembling.
But the assembly members did win the race:
Just 150 minutes after the presidential announcement 191 of the 300 members of the National Assembly voted to immediately end the martial law status. Troops and police entered the parliament but the vote against martial law had already taken place.
A lot has happened since. President Yoon’s defense minister and high school buddy Kim Yong-hyun has been arrested for initiating and taking part in the martial law scheme:
Kim has been accused of recommending martial law to Yoon and sending troops to the National Assembly to block lawmakers from voting on it. Enough lawmakers eventually managed to enter a parliament chamber and unanimously rejected Yoon’s decree, forcing the Cabinet to lift it before daybreak on Dec. 4.
Kim has since tried to commit suicide.
Some of the military commanders who were ordered to implement the martial law have since talked to investigators. They revealed that the martial law scheme had been part of a larger, even more crazy plan which could have led to war with North Korea:
The Defense Minister’s original plan was to provoke an attack from North Korea, then use that as an excuse to declare martial law. To that end, South Korean military flew several drones over the Pyongyang sky, spraying propaganda fliers. North Korea did not attack, however.
…
Initial preparation for the coup began as far back as July 2023, as the military compiled the reference materials for operations under a martial law situation and produced a manual around that time.
Last Saturday President Yoon’s People Power Party had blocked an attempt by the National Assembly to impeach President Yoon. But as more details of the attempted coup came out over the week the pressure from the general public on the party increased. Today another vote on impeachment was held. It received the necessary two third majority:
South Korea’s parliament voted to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol on Saturday in an extraordinary rebuke that came about after his own ruling party turned on him following his refusal to resign over his short-lived martial law attempt.It is the second time in less than a decade that a South Korean leader has faced impeachment proceedings in office and means Yoon is suspended from exercising his powers until the decision is finally adjudicated by the country’s Constitutional Court.
Following the vote, which sparked jubilation among protesters outside parliament, Yoon conceded that he will “stop temporarily for now, but the journey to the future that I’ve walked with the people for the past two years should not stop.”
“I will not give up,” he said in a statement shared by the country’s presidential office.
Yoon will try to convince the Constitutional Court that he is not guilty of insurrection and should not be impeached.
The court has a number of vacancies. Currently only six judges are available and to impeach Yoon all six would have to agree.
Yoon will however have difficulties to claim that he is innocent:
Senior government officials have testified at various government hearings over the last week revealing some extraordinary details about the night of the martial law order.Special Warfare Command Commander Kwak Jong-geun testified that he received a direct order from President Yoon to break the doors of the National Assembly and drag out the lawmakers, but he did not comply.
Kwak Jong-geun did not comply with Yoon’s order because it was evidently illegal. Martial law does not include the power to prevent the national assembly from fulfilling its constitutional duty. It is something that Yoon, as a former prosecutor, will surely have known.
Any constitutional court ruling in favor of Yoon would thus be purely political and in contradiction to the law.
The South Korean public would, rightly, go berserk over it.
When You Push a LOYAL Sigma Male Too Far, He Will Do THIS
Barbecued Carne Asada
The secret to this recipe is in the marinade!
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients
Marinade
- 1 cup lime juice
- 1/2 cup vegetable juice cocktail
- 1/4 cup chopped onion
- 1 tablespoon snipped fresh parsley or 1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
Beef
- 1 (1 1/2 pound) beef flank steak
- 2 sweet red or green peppers, cut into thin strips
- 1 large onion, thinly sliced
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 12 (8 inch) flour tortillas
- 3/4 cup salsa
- 3/4 cup prepared guacamole
Instructions
Marinade
- In a medium bowl whisk together all marinade ingredients.
Beef
- Place steak in a resealable plastic bag set into a shallow dish.
- Pour marinade over steak; close bag.
- Marinate in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 hours, turning bag occasionally to distribute marinade.
- Meanwhile, cut an 18-inch square of heavy-duty aluminum foil.
- Place peppers and sliced onion in center of foil. Dot with butter. Bring up 2 opposite edges of foil and, leaving a little space for expansion of steam, tightly seal top, then each end.
- Remove steak from marinade, reserving marinade.
- Place steak in center of cooking grate. Grill for 10 to 15 minutes for rare or 15 to 19 minutes for medium, turning and brushing with reserved marinade once halfway through grilling time.
- Place foil packet of vegetables on the cooking grate beside steak during the last 10 minutes of grilling time.
- Wrap tortillas in heavy-duty aluminum foil; place on cooking grate beside steak during the last 5 minutes of grilling time. Turn tortilla packet once halfway through grilling.
- Slice steak diagonally across the grain into thin slices.
- Serve in tortillas with peppers and onions, salsa and guacamole.
More MM AI art…
5 Myths about the US I no longer believe
Exclusive
Submitted into Contest #207 in response to: A journalist has been granted permission to visit the premises of a lab carrying out top-secret work. They could never have anticipated what they’d find…… view prompt
Chris Miller
“Rufus! Come in. We loved your latest piece on the migrant situation in the Mediterranean. You’re really broadening the horizons of the readers of the Post.”
“Our readers already have pretty broad horizons.”
“Of course they do. They read the Post!”
Rufus sat in a windowless room, empty apart from the plastic chair that he sat on, opposite a man in a white polo shirt and khaki pants. The man wore a lanyard with an empty transparent I.D. wallet and a pen hanging from it. Rufus lived for information, and had almost none. Introductions seemed to be the place to start.
“I’m Rufus Kenton from the Washington Post, and you are?”
“Yes! I am. And you are too, Rufus. Both of us present here today. Thank you for coming along. We love your work and we were very keen that it be you who got access to our facility.”
“Ok. Who’s we? I’m going to assume you’re an agent. May I record this?”
“Record away, Rufus.” The voice was avuncular Texan. The speaker, tightly bald and leather cheeked, leant forward to rest his elbows on his knees. His pen swung on its lanyard and clicked against the cheap plastic seat. Had muscle gone to fat, or was it just undercover? Either way, the man was two of Rufus.
“C.I.A?” said Rufus, keeping his words to a minimum and letting his eyebrows do the heavy lifting.
“I used to be in the C.I.A.,” said the man. The crows feet at his eyes went up a shoe size. “Still am. But I used to be too!” he sat back in his chair grinning. It creaked as he folded livestock arms.
“And you’ve invited me here to work on your tight five-minute stand-up set?” said Rufus, clicking his own pen and opening his note book.
“Relax, Rufus. We love journalists these days, we brought you here so we can work together. We’re on the same side.”
“I’m an independent journalist. I’m on the side of truth.”
“And justice and the American way?” said the agent with a gentle frown of sincerity.
“Sure, but truth comes first. So, what is this place?”
“This, Rufus, is the most secure lab in the world. A football field of razor wire in every direction, anti-drone fields, automated sniper turrets. This place has its own F35 guard dog on round-the-clock standby. It has a bunker from the nineteen fifties which has been pimped with some tech which is still going to look pretty damned impressive in the twenty fifties.”
“Why?”
“Exactly! I knew we had the right man for the job. Anybody in their right mind would ask why, and you, Rufus, are going to tell them.”
“I’m going to tell them the truth.”
“Of course you are. That’s your job. Which theory of truth do you currently subscribe to?”
“Truth, reality, I’m going to tell people what I find here today.”
“Oh, we’re counting on it. Now, I’m a plain old correspondence theory man myself. The truth arises from the correspondence of language, thought and such like, to a mind-independent world. Seems like our world is more mind-independent than ever! Am I right? Ha! Nah, Veritas est adaequatio rei et intellectus – Truth is the adequation of things and intellect; Isaac Israeli via Aquinas.”
“Nice to know they’re teaching Latin at Langley.”
“Surprised? You don’t think they keep me round just ‘cos I can kill a guy with a pen, do you?”
Against his better judgement, Rufus liked the guy. So what if he really could kill him without breaking a sweat? Rufus was not octagon material; it was not that impressive a boast. But Rufus was no coward, so it was not much use as a threat either, if that’s what it was, and not just another joke, not that the two things were mutually exclusive. In conclusion, Rufus just shifted uncomfortably in his chair and looked down at his notepad.
“Relax! I’m only joking,” said the man. “I wouldn’t need a pen. Are you ready to take a look around?”
Rufus had had a bag over his head since he got in a chopper of the roof of the building he’d been told to report to. It had not been removed until he stood outside the room he was now in and he had no idea how much time had elapsed, how far he had travelled or in what direction. He could have been in one of half a dozen states, maybe seven, maybe eight or nine if you counted irritation and confusion, states he seemed to visit with increasing regularity. He was ready to take a look around.
“Let’s go.”
The corridor outside the room was lit by a thin arboreal glow of emergency lighting. The agent walked ahead of him, fleetingly green as they passed under the long passage’s evenly spaced exit signs. After what Rufus judged to have been about a minute, time measured by his unacknowledged humming of The Fugs’ C.I.A. Man, they reached an unmarked door. To Rufus’s left a dark space with a tiny exit sign floating in it, marking the invisible length of a perpendicular corridor. The agent saw Rufus looking to his left at the tiny eye-test of an exit sign.
“No, it’s in here,” said the agent, opening the door and disappearing through it. Rufus followed him into a room which was industrially dark.
“So, you promise to write about what you find here?” asked the agent.
“Certainly,” said Rufus.
“Good! We need it out there. We need the internet full of it. We need…”
“You’re going to get the truth, whether it’s what you need or not. But I guess it would be easy enough for you to silence me if you wanted to? You could do it here and now, with your pen,” said Rufus to a black absence where he imagined the agent might be standing.
“No! No, no, no, Rufus.” The voice came from the opposite direction to the one in which Rufus had pointlessly turned his head. “It’s not like that at all. And anyway, like I said.” The voice now came from behind him. “I wouldn’t need a pen.”
Rufus peered into the black, trying to breathe steadily and control a heartrate that evolution was attempting to increase with every second spent in the vulnerability of sightlessness.
“Now, Rufus, write the truth if you want, but please try and appreciate that in my business it’s really the value of information that matters, regardless of whether it can be proven to be true or not.”
“Surely information is more valuable if it’s true? We have to confirm if things are true.”
“Well, ah, Rufus. So, y’know Socrates, right?”
“I know of him.”
“Well one day one of Socrates’ buddies runs up to him and…”
“Ah Jesus, come on, man.”
“One of his buddies runs up and says, ‘You’ll never guess what I heard about Diogenes.’”
“Just turn the lights on.”
“’Whoa!’ Socrates replies, ‘You gotta pass the Triple Filter Test first,’ and his buddy’s like ‘Triple filter?’ and Socrates is like, ‘I’m going to filter what you say. The first filter is truth. Are you absolutely sure that what you are about to say is true?’ and his buddy’s like, ‘Maybe, dunno, just heard it.’ And then Socrates is like, ‘Ok, possibly not true, so filter two, the goodness filter. Is what you are about to tell me something good?’ and his buddy gets a bit flustered and he’s like, ‘Nah, pretty bad actually.’ And so, Socrates is like ‘Mmhmm, third test; is this information going to be useful to me?’ and his buddy’s pretty embarrassed by now and he’s like, ‘Well, no, not really.’ So, Socrates is like, ‘So you were going to tell me something that might not have been true, good, or useful. Why tell me or anyone else such a thing?’ and the guy’s feeling pretty bad and he realises this must be how come they say Socrates is so wise…”
“And it also explains why Socrates never found out that Diogenes was banging his wife.”
“You heard it! Ha! You do understand.”
“Just turn the lights on.”
“If I do, you’ll see the truth, but not the value. We need you to create the value, Rufus. That’s what you’re here for. We need information out there. Lots of it. Generated from this beautiful big resource magnet of a lab. It doesn’t have to be true, it doesn’t have to be good, but whatever it is, it’ll be useful and it’ll be ours. And it’ll be a good reason for all of our less enthusiastic supporters to keep their eyes on this place, instead of anywhere less convenient.”
“Please just turn the lights on.”
“This room is completely empty, Rufus. I can leave the lights off so you can’t see anything, or I can turn them on, so you can see nothing. Either way, you’re reporting the same truth. You want ‘em on?”
“Please.”
“Happy writing, Rufus.”
An analogue clunk announced a staccato strobe and the room bounced in and out of existence before settling into its vast reality. Rufus stood alone in an echo-ready hall. It was completely empty.
Radio Garden
A website that lets you explore radio stations from around the world through an interactive globe. It’s a great way to discover new music and cultures.
Radio GardenSome examples of the content…
Where Have All The Good Men Gone? They’re Staying Clear Of Worthless Women
Straight. No chaser.
Shorpy
Another Insane Hypersonic Developed By China Shocks The US
Nutri Inc.- 2183
Submitted into Contest #207 in response to: A journalist has been granted permission to visit the premises of a lab carrying out top-secret work. They could never have anticipated what they’d find…… view prompt
Cecilia Englishby
Willforth had left them halfway through the third course, too anxious to eat any more. Without ceremony he pushed aside a delicate plate of bone china, containing partially consumed quail, asparagus and wild rice, and left the room.
Johnathan Jacob Rush, the most virulent Voice of The People yet, would finally give The People exactly what they needed; the Stability and Peace of Royal Order.
Willforth hated the man, but had to admit that Rush touted his trash with flare. The People listened to him.
“Two whiskeys! Neat!” He commanded of a room in shadows; an unseen valet scuttled to acquiesce.
He poured over the data within the folder, not noticing the drinks silently being deposited next to him. Flicking through the contents, settling on the carefully crafted speech they had edited and returned to Rush earlier in the day. He read each line carefully, looking for flaws but found none.
He unwillingly recalled the headlines contained in the spread of newspapers delivered earlier.
**Rush Hour after Curfew – JJR to beat the Clock at Nutri Inc. Live this Friday @ 22:00.**
**Nutri Inc. on the Stand – Rush to Expose All in Rush Report – 20 Sep 2183**
Thinking of them just annoyed him. He’d seen them and approved them as appropriate material for the sanctioned opposition. Just enough to get them all excited. Yet, he now considered them too brash and questioned his decisions.
“Leave us.” The firm voice of a woman used to being obeyed disrupted his reverie. A handful of servants bowed and curtsied out the door. Willforth glanced up at his Heir and eldest child with hidden pride. She appeared regal this evening.
She made her way to the drinks cabinet behind him, and he listened as she loaded a drinks-cart with liquor, mixers, ice, fruit and an assortment of snacks for the evening. She parked it behind her seat, sat down and took up the whiskey he had ordered for her; taking a sip, she exhaled contentedly.
“Relax father.” Her voice was trained silk. “You’ve executed every move perfectly.” She gestured at the speech in his hands. “It’s a masterful blow; not only to Rush, but The Movement as well.”
This relaxed him enough to deposit the speech back on top of some pictures of Rush kissing a woman that wasn’t his wife, and shut the folder, slotting it away in a convenient nook next to his seat.
“I am glad you approve.” He offered blandly, not wanting her to see his relief.
Rush was just the latest voice of descent amongst Willforth’s people, no different from the last, yet… he somehow made Willforth uncomfortable. Willforth had considered silencing him, but had opted for breaking him instead. He wanted the voice of Descent to become one of Order.
“The photos brought it all together” his daughter voiced, disrupting his thoughts once more.” We’ve never been able to get anything on him before them…”
“Evelyn, It took years.” He downed his glass in one gulp. She took it off him and leaned back to fill it as he spoke. “But one lucky lady managed to catch him with his pants down.” He chuckled wryly. “Old Martin told me his face went as white as sun-bleached bread when he showed Rush those photos… He said Rush actually begged!” Willforth didn’t hide his pleasure in knowing that the mighty Rush had been reduced to his knees.
“He’s human after all!” Evelyn cheered. “And where there is smoke, there’s fire… I bet there are other women out there…”
Willforth just smiled at his Heir, she certainly understood the value of a hefty blackmail folder.
“You know; all we really need is the one true story.” He tried to sound wise. “Rush is ego driven, and has staked everything on a pristine reputation. People like that trip easily, and they fall hard.”
“I suppose we could get a collection of fakes set up. If we spin the one solid bit of evidence as though he’s actually a rotting corpse of a degenerate….” The wheels in her mind were spinning. “Then Old Martin should have no problem recruiting a couple of vultures to add voices to those lies.”
“That’s a good idea. If he ever steps out of line, we’ll bury him.”
“Hmmm.” Evelyn affirmed through pressed lips as she took another sip of her whiskey. “Till the day that becomes necessary, his pristine reputation is Ours to utilize.”
Lights flicked on brightly as a young man stepped into the room, smiling widely at them as he did so. Willforth caught sight of the Three Blooms of The Movement pinned to his lapel and suppressed his frustration, choosing to ignore their presence instead, as he had been for weeks.
“He certainly has the Ear of The People.” He chimed.
Willforth felt he loved all his children equally, other than Evelyn of course; a King’s love for his Heir exceeds all other forms of love. However, he had to admit that his youngest son Gregory inspired nothing but contempt from him.
“Now, thanks to some indiscriminate pictures, he’s going to bend that Ear to our lips.” Gregory sauntered over to the cart and poured himself a generous portion of rum into a waiting tumbler, topping it off with cola, ice and lemon. Willforth wondered just how much of their conversation his son had heard.
Gregory’s views and opinions had darkened the wool of his character within The Family’s social circle, yet he seemed to relish his post as the Black-Sheep.
“Evelyn is not wrong. I personally think your best move was giving him full journalistic access to the labs at Nutri Inc., exactly what he wanted from the beginning.” He strolled to a chair waiting in the back of the room and flopped into it nonchalantly.
Evelyn retaliated. “Exactly why Father’s move is so brilliant! We are giving The People exactly what they wanted, not knowing their Righteous Voice is nothing but a puppet tied with Our strings.”
Willforth continued. “Need I remind you Gregory; we confiscated every scrap of footage from his team that day? He left with our approved content only. The Censors were efficient.”
“Thank you, father.” Gregory replied through a chuckle. “But tell me; is that marionette really all that well strung?”
Willforth didn’t get a chance to respond; his Queen had entered, his remaining children filing in behind her. They were closely followed by the six highest ranking members of his Council; Finance, Energy, Tech, Food, Medicine and Entertainment. The servants reappeared to serve them all drinks as they caught up on how each other’s interests were fairing, only really caring as their own were inextricably linked to theirs. The Queen took her seat opposite her husband near the fire, once settled; the rest of the room found and took their allocated seats as well.
Willforth nodded at Evelyn, satisfied that The Family were present. She rose dutifully and looked at the servants. “Leave us, and close the door firmly on your way.”
She locked the door behind them and dimmed the lights; grabbing the remote from the side-table, leaving the door key in its place. Evelyn switched on the HoloScreen. An advert of Nutri Inc.’s latest beef flavored protein burgers materialized within the room. It was almost time.
The advert faded and Willforth found himself staring at the self-satisfied and smug face of Johnathan Jacob Rush. Willforth found joy in knowing it was just a facade. That perfect face wearing his forties with ease was nothing more than a shiny little arrow resting in a Royal quiver.
For fifty minutes, The Rush Report ran as scripted; officially approved reports followed officially approved interviews.
Then at last, the reason they had gathered at all this evening, finally dawned…
“I think we’ve all waited long enough”
Rush opened in honeyed tones.
“The curfew’s in force, and you my enlightened audience, have nowhere else to be. For the next ten minutes, you have nothing else you need to do… The kids don’t need to be in bed yet… the droids can deactivate themselves…”
Willforth felt himself leaning in a bit, hoping no one noticed.
“I promised you all that I would get into Nutri Inc.”
Rush leaned in towards the camera conspiratorially, as if in response to Willforth’s unwitting invitation.
“That, I would show you the Truth. Well, I have finally delivered!”
A hollow backing track followed Rush’s words. Willforth smiled as the effect cheapened the delivery.
“So, without further ado, I will take you on my journey!”
More canned applause rang through the sound-system.
“Before I begin, can I just say thank you to the lovely employees who made my time at Nutri Inc. so memorable.”
Sanctioned videos of staff blended over his words as he faded from the projection; smiling faces working productively at their stations, lab technicians loading petri dishes on official looking shelves.
“As we all know, Traditional farming has been impossible for over a century.”
Rush didn’t miss a line. Willforth felt captivated and wondered how Rush’s magic was working for his audience this evening.
“Resources that once sustained nations diminished as our population grew. Land that once maintained the relevant agriculture to feed us had to be sacrificed for essential infrastructure; schools, hospitals, entertainment complexes, roads, housing… you get the picture.”
The same ancient pictures children saw in the history books took shape before them. Satellite images of Earth showing the ever expanding industrial footprint of human activity, concrete and smoke gradually creeping outwards, spreading and choking the planet as the glorious greens and blues faded into obscurity.
“A new solution in maintaining the supply of nutrition was urgently needed. Nutri Inc. provided us with that solution.”
His words were perfectly complimented with a motivational crescendo of music.
“They have since been the leading supplier of all our nutritional needs.”
Controlled pictures of the most common supplements and food items solidified and faded through the display.
“I suppose we all know these, don’t we?”
The HoloScreen image had locked on a picture of Nutri Inc.’s most profitable product; a large bottle of Nutri-Tabs.
“Just one tablet contains all your dietary requirements for an entire day, and works best with plenty of water.”
The journalist droned on in the background about the technical specifics as more images approved by Royal Decree emerged before them. The details were rather tedious as Rush discussed everything from sifters, funnels and the rapid flow of the conveyors taking large quantities of chalk to be mixed with the very best nutritional additives that science had to offer. Pictures flowed harmoniously to support each statement of efficiency and consideration, just as designed.
He leaned back and sighed as Rush moved into the segment on meals. He listened as he enthusiastically discussed how the Government had ensured that everyone could eat at least one complete Nutri-Meal a week, and how it was perfect for the hasty pace of modern life.
“As you can tell, I had a very busy and informative day!”
Willforth made himself comfortable as he recognized Rush was nearing the end. His favorite part was coming up. The part he inserted on the page himself.
Rush was leaning back in his seat with a tired smile on his face. Willforth smiled in reply, eager for him to continue.
“For years now, I’ve been telling all of you that our Royal rulers have been lying to us.” Rush hesitated for several seconds, as if unwilling to continue, but then appeared to pull himself together awkwardly.
“Sorry folks…”
He chuckled, averting his eyes like a child who’s found he’s been caught short.
“It’s just… it’s not easy to admit when one has been fooled, you know?”
Willforth considered it a nice touch of recovery as Rush continued his recitation.
“For years, I have been laying accusations at Nutri Inc.’s door, at many doors if I am to be truthful. I told you they were drugging us, keeping us enslaved. That the most powerful industries weren’t actually operating separately, but together to keep us complicit and numb.”
Another pause, but much shorter this time… it added to the drama of the moment and Willforth felt a sense of victory swell in his chest as Rush’s delivery brought life to his dictation.
“I told you that Tech and Entertainment control what you see and do; that Medicine and Food work together to keep you locked in a cycle of dependency. I’ve mocked how Energy supports them all, and how Finance owns them all. And I’ve mocked you, my audience, by cautioning you that our addiction to this incestuous system would keep us under thumb….”
Another silence followed these words, Rush had averted his eyes, this time just as instructed.
“Yet, my fervent outcries of injustice only fanned the flames of chaos. I never wanted anyone to get hurt…”
Rush had looked up at the camera with sincerity. Willforth was impressed with the journalist’s performance.
“I promised that if I was wrong… I would admit as much, and that I would apologize; Live, to you all; begging forgiveness from my knees.”
Willforth waited, his heart fluttering.
“Did you know that our King still eats actual food? Like, from slaughtered animals and gardens?”
Rush had delivered a rather blunt broadside; the room roared with panicked outcries of disbelief. Willforth emptied the contents of his mouth, spraying whiskey through the HoloScreen’s projection.
“In fact, here is a picture of the Third Course he didn’t finish this evening!”
And there it was; that spiteful quail carcass, left pecked at on a bed of rice, was staring back at him.
“How is this bastard still on the air?!! Willforth roared at the room in general, his eyes locked on his dinner.
“I don’t know father.” Evelyn rushed to the door to unlock it. But the key was not where she’d left it.
She frantically tried to pull it open, yelling for the servants to come.
“Our Royal Rulers and the Ruling Class, the One percent with all the power, eat like this every day! Not a single member of the Royal family have ever once consumed a Nutri-Tab, nor have they had to endure a full spectrum of food that all pretty much kills you. Nor the constant pang of hunger for that matter… Then one has to consider the reason we endure them at all… We, as a species, agreed to stop abusing other living creatures.”
New and unapproved pictures materialized on the HoloScreen. Richly appointed farmlands filtered through the projection matrix, blending into gardens sprawling around palaces and the most affluent areas; all sectioned off and inaccessible to the general public. In the back of the room, Gregory was howling with laughter.
Rush continued to rage at the camera, passionately exclaiming how he had been right all along.
“I confess; I never expected there to be so many ingredients!”
Pictures of substances that had been banned for centuries appeared next to the smiling faces he had thanked earlier, none of them were smiling any more.
Cinnamyl Anthranilate – (Liver Cancer!);
Coumarin – (Liver Toxicity!);
Ethyl Acrylate – (Cancer);
Rush ranted and raved as financial records started emerging. The room grew still and Willforth felt himself sink into his chair, hoping it would swallow him. They were the actual records, connected with convenient emails directly from the Medical board; they would supply these substances for use in Nutri Inc.’s products, ensuring the majority of the public had repeat medical prescriptions by the age of forty.
“You may be wondering how it is that I am still on the air?” He waved a hand and cameras pivoted, showing the studio; the entire crew and security team wore Three Blooms pinned to their lapels. Members within the tiny control office waved at the camera panning over them with obvious delight.
Finally, it turned back to Rush, and he too wore Three Blooms.
“That is because the movement is much bigger than you realize Willforth.”
The room gasped into silence, Rush hadn’t even used a royal moniker.
“If only you had considered feeding more people, this would have been harder for us.”
Rush was smiling gently, his eyes looking weary as he shrugged casually for the camera.
“Your very servants who prepare and serve you those meals haven’t even been allowed to finish your discarded plates! They aren’t coming back Evelyn.”
She had resumed her efforts in opening the door, but stopped, stepping back cautiously.
“Oh! The pictures you have of me?”
As he spoke, those same pictures materialized on the HoloScreen. They blurred into a video of the two, seated on the bed. As their lips parted, the woman removed a blonde wig to release a cascade of rich auburn hair. She got up and proceeded to remove her makeup directly before the lens of the camera. A couple of prosthetics were peeled from her face, diminishing previously highlighted features. Mrs Rush waved for the camera.
Willforth’s heart rate increased as Gregory’s laughter rang through his ears from the back of the room.
“Father?!” It was Evelyn, Willforth turned his head to see her at the window; a red glow had flushed her face. “Father, I think I see…” She stared off into the distance, her mouth slightly agape.
Willforth wanted to feel concern, but he just watched with doe-eyed apathy as Gregory joined her at the window, leaning against the frame. He had his back to his father as he laughed once more, abrading Willforth’s eardrums further. “Well Shit!” He managed at last. “Evelyn sees torches father, lots and lots of torches.”
Joe Rogan: What The Soviets Saw While Diving In The Arctic
Barbacoa De Res (Shredded Beef)
Serve Barbacoa De Res wrapped in a flour tortilla with toppings!
Ingredients
Marinade
- 3 large onions, finely chopped
- 5 plum tomatoes, finely chopped
- 2 cups beef broth
- 1/2 cup fresh lime juice
- 4 jalapeño peppers, seeded, cut into strips
- 2 tablespoons white vinegar
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 2 teaspoons dried thyme leaves
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano leaves
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
Roast
- 1 (4 to 5 pound) beef chuck shoulder pot roast
- 12 (6 inch) tortillas for accompaniment
Optional Toppings
- Chopped onions
- Chopped fresh cilantro
- Salsa
- Guacamole
- Lime wedges
Instructions
Marinade
- Combine ingredients in large bowl.
Roast
- Add beef pot roast; turn to coat. Cover and marinate in refrigerator for 6 hours or as long as overnight, turning occasionally.
- Heat oven to 325 degrees F (160 degrees C).
- Remove pot roast from marinade; reserve marinade.
- Place pot roast in stockpot.
- Pour marinade over pot roast; cover tightly.
- Braise in 325 degrees F (160 degrees C) oven for 4 1/2 to 5 hours or until pot roast is fork to tender.
- Remove pot roast; keep warm. Strain cooking liquid into medium saucepan; skim fat from cooking liquid. Bring to a boil; cook until liquid is reduced to 3 cups.
- Shred pot roast with 2 forks; add to saucepan. Cook and stir until heated through.
- Season with salt and pepper and garnish with Toppings, as desired.
Someone Just Released This Image Of A UFO Drone Taken Out Above New Jersey
How significant is the threat by Donald Trump to impose a 25% tariff on Canadian goods?
Let’s just look at one thing – auto parts.
There have not been any tariffs between the United States and Canada on auto parts since 1965 when it became clear that there simply wasn’t any reason to have two sets of companies making the same part in two different countries for the same vehicles that actually were being made in two different countries.
Nowadays, Canada produces a large proportion of North America’s auto parts because it’s much cheaper. Mexico simply doesn’t have a skilled labour force big enough to make parts in the quantities needed, and the labour costs for the skilled labour in the United States are far too high because these fellows are powerful enough to demand full health care benefits because their services are in high demand. Aviation parts manufacturers can afford those costs, but auto parts manufacturers generally can’t because health care is expensive in the U.S. but inexpensive in Canada.
As such, Canada loses its ability to sell auto parts in the U.S. (for the first time in nearly sixty years) and the United States has to pay 25% extra for the privilege, and then can’t sell the cars they make to Canada or Mexico because it’s almost certain they will retaliate. You can’t simply ramp up parts production in the U.S. (see “shortage of skilled labour” above) or change over factories to produce auto models that are only made in Mexico or Canada.
For example, the best selling vehicle in North America, the Ford F series, is only made at two plants – one in Missouri and one in Michigan. However, a lot of its parts come from Mexico and Canada, and a lot of the market is in Mexico and Canada. No one in Canada is going to pay for an F series truck that has its price raised because of tariffs on the parts, plus another 25% tariff coming in. Building the F series in Oakville (where Ford’s main plant in Canada is) really isn’t an option either.
Which historical military uniform was the most inappropriate for the battlefield?
So, I’ll disagree with a lot of answers here.
Uniforms are a product of their time. Things like the British Redcoats existed for damn good reasons… You had to be able to see your men, and they had to be able to see each other. Hiding from the enemy wasn’t the idea. With the technology and tactics of the time, it was perfectly logical.
Of course, some uniforms are fine at one time, but become obsolete.
And other uniforms aren’t designed for the battlefield at all. “Mess dress” uniforms are designed to go to social functions in, not battle.
So keeping this answer to uniforms that were designed for combat:
- UCP. “Universal Camo pattern”. This pattern was chosen because it looked better in formation, rather than meeting the actual program goals. It’s terrible, and doesn’t really fit in anywhere, except for one notorious couch. It’s my sincere belief that whoever approved this should be shot for treason.
2. The Navy “Blueberry” camo. This pattern was chosen because the Navy wanted a cool looking camo. Never mind that sailors on ships don’t really need camo, because they are on a giant fucking ship. Also note that sometimes they fall overboard, and it’s great to see where they are when they do. Also note that they sometimes are on land, where there isn’t a lot of blue stuff, but they might need actual camo. This was an idea so bad that our do-nothing Congress actually passed a law and told the military to knock it off with the different camo patterns.
3. Air force “blue tiger stripe”: The Air Force likes blue, and so it came up with this, because, and I’m not making this up, it was “distinctive”. Let me repeat that. They selected a camo pattern because it was distinctive.
4. Fortunately, the Air force recognized their error, and now does tiger stripe with UCP colors. Because reasons, yo. Better? Worse? I don’t know. Sad? Hell yes.
Don’t worry, I won’t just pick on the US:
5. This Chinese blue monstrosity. Why??? There’s an earlier version of this camo that’s even worse, believe it or not.
6. The Russians got in on the blue camo thing too:
7. Thankfully moving away from blue, we have Egypt in Yellow:
8. North Korea. I mean, green is a step in the right direction. Just not neon green. Also, sights.
Man Goes From Broke & Directionless To Homeowner In 3 Years, With Determination Etc, So Can You!
Comeback story. Epic.
What’s the saddest case of addiction you have ever come across in another person?
Some really sad stories here. My condolences to you all. But I’ll take the word “saddest” literally and tell you about dry drunks.
Saddos!
These are the people who don’t drink, but absolutely are jealous of, envious of, judgemental of, those of us who do.
They have issues man. Real issues. And think by not drinking they are better than us who do drink. They call us unhealthy, fat, bloated, alcoholics. Yet, we aren’t the ones who have destroyed lives through drink. We also arent the ones falling in and out of AA annually.
Dry drunks are angry people. They are still addicts. They are often high up on the NPD scale. Also.
I did a post the other day about the fact I certainly have alcohol as a habit. I’m not addicted to it. I don’t have hangovers,shakes, DTs, or act out on alcohol. I simply enjoy a few G&Ts every day. I’ve never ever hidden my alcohol consumption. It’s not my style to steal, lie, cheat to get alcohol. If it’s not available I’m not freaking out.
I think this unsettled a lot of dry drunks as I had to turn comments off due to the nastyness from sober people and the gaslighting. I was told I looked 50, am bloated and my internal organs are fucked. I was told it will only escalate.
I’ve drank the exact same amount since I started daily drinking in 2014. In an abusive relationship. It hasn’t escalated. If anything I had a time where I drank more, and cut bacon again and still maintain that. It doesn’t lead to other addictions like smoking or drugging or promiscuity like these nasty people were insisting. And I’m beautiful inside out for 44.
My honesty grated on these people. My ability to drink and not do vile things agitated them. My enjoyment of something they can’t control made them crazy.
That is exactly how Dry Drunks act.
What would happen if you shot a person with a blank at point blank range?
Why don’t we ask this guy?
Actually, you can’t – he’s Jon Erik Hexum, and he’s dead.
He was bored on set one day, filming the TV series “Cover Up”… he took the revolver loaded with blanks he was filming with, removed five of the six blanks from the cylinder, and said to the people around him “Hey, let’s see how lucky I am”, put the gun to his head, and fired.
The expanding gasses and wad from the blank pushed a piece of bone the size of a quarter into his brain.
He died six days later, after extensive brain surgery and intensive care.
Blank cartridges are not harmless and not toys!
NEVER point a blank-loaded firearm at anything you do not wish to destroy – just like live ammunition, or any empty firearm – because safety is a habit, and you build good habits by never violating safety rules.
COMPILATION: The Stories That Made Me a Believer
This is fun.