When I was living in Kokomo, Indiana we lived in a mobile home park.
Actually we lived in a couple of them. But for the most part, we lived for a few years in a large mobile home park outside the city limits in the middle of the corn fields.
Today, I want to discuss a small incident with my next door neighbor.
You see, they would blare their stereo on HIGH. And we couldn’t understand why. We figured that they were partying all day and all night.
But it would be cranked up so loud that our windows shook. And at weird times too. Sometimes it was from 9am to 2pm, and other times it was just for an hour or two in the late afternoon.
Still it couldn’t be a party. No activity. Aside from the noise you wouldn’t anyone lived there.
And then we figured it out.
When they (our neighbors) would leave their house, they would turn on the stereo to give the illusion that there were people at home. It was a stupid idea, but gosh, you meet all kinds of people in these mobile home complexes. They maxed out their stereo and it rocked the entire complex. Not just us nearest neighbors.
I guess that it worked.
No one ever broke into their home.
But still, I found myself wishing that they would stay home more often. *sigh*.
Again. you meet all kinds of people in mobile home complexes.
Yes you do.
Today…
America’s Last War
A professional's warning
Godfree Roberts
Who rules East Europe commands the Heartland; who rules the Heartland commands the World-Island; who rules the World-Island commands the world.
Halford John Mackinder.
The United States is preparing to contest Russia’ and China’s joint command the Heartland, making Andrei Martynov’s America’s Final War timely.
Andrei is a military man and mathematician and I am not.
Rather than paraphrase his words and risk distorting his arguments, I urge you to read these edited excerpts and, of course, to buy the book.
Big Bluff
The matter is simple: the much-propagandized U.S. conventional military supremacy is nothing but a bluff.
This is not to say that US Armed Forces cannot create devastation and turn some geographic localities into rubble; they certainly can. But they cannot fight a peer or better-than peer opponent and win.
Apart from many economic, cultural, and social reasons for that, there is this increasingly obvious fact that the United States and NATO are losing the arms race with Russia.
And it seems that, despite their demonstrable ignorance of Russia’s military capacities, they recognize this fact, which explains their unwillingness to enter into open confrontation with Russia.
Technopoly
The defeat of America’s weapons and tactical concepts at the SMO battlefields has thus become a defeat of the American vision of technopoly, which is a euphemism for culture.
As Jeremy Rifkin warned,
“In the modern age, the idea of a future technological utopia has served as a guiding vision of industrial society.. Nowhere has the techno-utopian vision been more passionately embraced than in the United States. Technology became the new secular God, and American society soon came to refashion its own sense of self in the image of its powerful new tools”.
Hot War Strategy
Any combination of NATO forces fighting conventional war in Russia’s immediate geographic vicinity is bound to lose it, with catastrophic losses in their personnel and war materiel—and even more, should such a war expand to impact their homelands..
The United States simply went dramatically over its military credit limit, because it couldn’t recognize the limitations of its power—a first sign of immaturity of American military-political elites..
It takes integrity, honor and courage to face the facts—a test which most American military “experts” have miserably failed.
How likely is this in the near future, or within any time period which could make a difference to the relative standing of American military power in the world?
Conclusion
It is impossible to finish writing on the impact of Russia’s conflict with NATO’s proxy, Ukraine, because the SMO operation has evolved into what Russia is now terming a war.
But the outcome leaves no doubt and some preliminary conclusions and even forecasts can be made.
The most important is the historic defeat of the combined West and its leader, the United States.
How it was defeated militarily is obvious—NATO countries found themselves totally impotent in the face of an opponent with a massive and sophisticated economy and, as it stands now, the most advanced armed forces in the world.
This doesn’t bode well for the United States, let alone the collection of mediocre-at-best European military powers, which are incapable of sustaining any serious campaign on their own.
U.S. military expertise, bar a few notable exceptions, turned out to be good primarily for PR and propaganda, a euphemism for non-stop confabulation of both American military history and the SMO..
In the absence of a serious military history study field, with the exception of a few notable scholars, and against the background of a precipitous intellectual decline of the American ruling class, what is left is largely a hatred for any power which asserts its own right to behave as it deems necessary for the preservation of its own people and culture.
Russia here checks all the boxes as the candidate for hatred, par excellence”.
The Stage Is Being Set For The Greatest Period Of Chaos In U.S. History
If chaos is what they intended, everything is coming together beautifully. Major wars threaten to throw the entire planet into a state of turmoil, criminals are running wild in our streets, and in a little over a month the outcome of the presidential election is likely to cause an unprecedented explosion of anger. If all of this wasn’t bad enough, our politicians have been allowing millions of desperate people to come pouring over our wide open borders. Some of these “new arrivals” belong to international criminal gangs, and members of these gangs are being arrested for violent acts, theft, drug dealing and sex trafficking all over America. Other “new arrivals” belong to terror groups in the Middle East, and you would think that this would be a major national security concern. Russians have also been crossing the border illegally, as have very large numbers of military-age Chinese men. The stage is being set for the greatest period of chaos in U.S. history, and this should deeply alarm all of us.
Since Joe Biden has been in the White House, we have witnessed a spike in migration that is absolutely unprecedented in our history.
Millions of people have been allowed in, and once they get into this country they can go wherever they want.
Most of them have come in through the southern border, but what most people don’t realize is that migration over the northern border is also wildly out of control…
There has been growing attention from northern-state lawmakers in recent years over increased attempted illegal border crossings as migration from Latin America grows due to economic and political conditions.
In 2023, U.S. Customs and Border Protection encountered almost 190,000 individuals attempting to cross from Canada to the United States. That’s almost seven times more than in 2021.
Unfortunately, the number of people coming in through the northern border has just continued to rise in 2024…
This year, the number of illegal crossings along the northern border is hitting record levels, and northern New York, with its proximity to Montreal and Toronto, is the epicenter of the influx. In August alone, the Border Patrol reported 19,000 migrant encounters along the border with Canada, with nearly half entering through New York.
It is so easy to come across the northern border.
The U.S. border with Canada is 5,525 miles long, and there aren’t many border agents covering it.
Fox News recently interviewed a property owner in northern New York that says that migrants are constantly entering this country through his land…
Chris Oliver’s property in Fort Covington, New York has become an unintended gateway for a stream of illegal immigrants crossing the Canadian border into the United States, leaving him dismayed and wondering if the problem will ever be resolved.
He told “Fox & Friends First” he “absolutely” blames “border czar” Kamala Harris and President Biden for the issue.
“You have no control over it. You don’t know who these people are. Not everybody is a good person,” Oliver said on Wednesday.
He is right.
We need to know who these people are, because not everyone is coming here with good intentions.
In fact, during that same interview Oliver mentioned a recent case where a man was arrested that was planning “an ISIS-style attack in New York City”…
“They had a guy up in Ormstown not too far away from us, get arrested. He was planning an ISIS-style attack in New York City. That was just recently. That same night, I still had people come across my cameras. That should be stopped.”
For those that are crossing the northern border, New York City is the number one destination.
According to NPR, transporting “new arrivals” from India to New York City has actually become a very lucrative business…
A group of immigrants from India pile out of a taxi minivan beside the Clinton County, New York, government building in this small upstate city half an hour from the Canadian border.
They are quickly swarmed by a half a dozen fellow Indian immigrants who’ve waited hours for this business opportunity.
This fleet of jitney taxis offering migrants rides south to New York City is one clear example of the informal economy that’s sprung up following a significant increase in unauthorized crossings across the usually sleepy northern border over the last year and a half.
Needless to say, some people are coming to the United States because they want a better life.
But in many other cases, people are crossing the border for very nefarious reasons.
According to the New York Post, children that are as young as 8 years old “are being drugged and smuggled into the US by traffickers”…
Border Patrol agents are warning that kids as young as 8 are being drugged and smuggled into the US by traffickers posing as their parents or family members — and nobody knows how common the horrifying practice is.
Authorities have rescued children caught up in two different instances of such smuggling in recent weeks — including one instance in which the alleged traffickers had birth certificates for multiple kids to whom they weren’t related, according to the Border Patrol.
Border Patrol sources have told The Post they’ve observed increasing numbers of smugglers posing as family units in order to “recycle” children.
Stopping the exploitation of children should be a good enough reason all by itself to secure our borders.
But our politicians refuse to do it.
Others are crossing our borders because they intend to commit acts of violence. Recently, a very alarming discovery of weapons was made very close to the southern border…
Republicans are outraged at the Biden-Harris administration for ignoring an escalating security crisis at the southern border after rocket-propelled grenades and explosives were found near Arizona.
A bombshell report indicated that at least 4 rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs) and 8 improvised explosive devices (IEDs) were discovered in Mexico close to the U.S.-Mexico border.
Huge amounts of ammunition were also found in the ‘scout site’ that was around 700 feet from the border wall in Border Patrol’s Tucson Sector, according to an internal memo first reported by NewsNation.
At this stage, we don’t know exactly who those weapons belonged to or what they intended to do with them.
But it is being reported that Iran “is trying to assassinate former President Donald Trump”…
Iran has made it “clear” that it is trying to assassinate former President Donald Trump, as well as members of his administration – and the current Biden administration – as payback for the killing of an Iranian general and other hardline policies, U.S. officials and lawmakers said Wednesday.
The comments came after Trump’s dramatic disclosure Tuesday night that he had been briefed earlier in the day by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence about Tehran’s “real and specific threats” against him.
As I shared with my core supporters recently, U.S. Representative Matt Gaetz has admitted that a top official with the Department of Homeland Security has told him that there are at least five assassination teams inside this country right now that are targeting Trump.
It really will be a miracle if Trump makes it to the election.
If Trump ultimately ends up winning, the left will go completely nuts and the millions upon millions of “new arrivals” that the left has brought into our major cities will go completely nuts.
It certainly won’t take much to unleash an unprecedented tsunami of civil unrest, and perhaps that was the plan all along.
Ruins
Mediterranean Steak and Pasta with Tomato-Olive Sauce
Whole-wheat pasta is served with beef Sirloin Tip Center Steaks and a tomato and olive sauce. This one will please the adults and the kids in your family.
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients
- 8 ounces uncooked whole grain fettuccine
- 4 beef Sirloin Tip Center Steaks, cut 3/4 inch thick (about 4 ounces each)
- 1 (26 ounce) jar pasta sauce with olives*
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves, crushed
- 1/4 cup finely shredded Italian cheese blend or mozzarella cheese
- 2 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
Instructions
- Cook fettuccine according to package directions; drain and keep warm.
- Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until hot. Place beef steaks in skillet; cook for 11 to 13 minutes for medium rare (145 degrees F) doneness, turning occasionally. (Do not overcook.) Remove from skillet; keep warm.
- Combine pasta sauce and oregano in same skillet; heat until hot. Return steaks to skillet; turn to coat with sauce.
- Place steaks on fettuccine; spoon sauce over all.
- Sprinkle steaks with cheese, allowing cheese to melt. Sprinkle with parsley.
Notes
* You may substitute 1 (26 ounce) jar pasta sauce with olives for 1 (26 ounce) pasta sauce + 1/4 cup chopped olives.
Nutrition
Per serving: 474 Calories; 99.9 Calories from fat; 11.1g Total Fat (3.7g Saturated Fat; 0.2g Trans Fat; 0.3g Polyunsaturated Fat; 2.3g Monounsaturated Fat;) 71mg Cholesterol; 766mg Sodium; 54g Total Carbohydrate; 10.1g Dietary Fiber; 37g Protein; 6.2mg Iron; 332mg Potassium; 4.5mg NE Niacin; 0.4mg Vitamin B6; 2.8mcg Vitamin B12; 5.9mg Zinc; 33.6mcg Selenium; 90.1mg Choline
This recipe is an excellent source of Dietary Fiber, Protein, Iron, Niacin, Vitamin B6, Vitamin B12, Zinc, and Selenium; and a good source of Choline.
Does a human being know they’re dead once they die?
I can’t speak for others but my experience with dying and being brought back I knew I was dead.
I used to be a really bad IV heroin user for 10 yrs (at mt worst I was shooting 50 bags of dope a day, with 5 bags going into 1 shot just to function.
I started using when I was 16 and got sober finally at age 26 and have been clean ever since).
My addiction led to me being in abusive relationships and eventually being forced into sex trafficking for the last 7 yrs I used.
During that time I was seen as nothing more than a sex object for men and women (yes, women use sex workers too) to do as they pleased with me (some did some extremely horrible and disgusting things to me, including being held captive, beaten, and r****.
But if I refused to see them my ex/capture would beat me until I couldn’t move).
I finally got away after my ex was arrested for stabbing 2 ppl who had jumped me.
I wanted to get my life back so I could be a mom to our daughter who was 2.5 yrs old at the time and living with my mom.
I agreed to go to detox and rehab, but didn’t realize how brainwashed I had been from my ex and that with the drugs out of my system I started suffering from extreme PTSD from all thr things that had been done to me by him and different “clients” over the yrs, not to mention I didnt know how to function in normal society anymore, nor did my body really know how to work without heroin in it (I had to teach myself how to hold a pen and write again after getting clean).
I remember wanting to call to talk to my daughter who went to stay with my Nana for a few days cause my mkm had agreed to drive me to an out of state rehab (it was very hard to find a rehab that would take me because of how much I used and they said they werent equipped to deal with someone who had just escaped being trafficked).
When I called to talk to my daughter my grandfather snatched the phone from my Nana (I had refused for my grandfather to be around my daughter because he was an abusive man who did as he pleased with myself when I was little and thought he had the right to do physical and sexual things to the other females in our family.
My mom and I were told he wouldn’t be at my Nana’a house those couple of days my daughter was there).
Anyways, he told me “You are nothing but a disgrace to God, a dirty whore, and junkie. Why dont you do us all a favor and take a needle, stick it in your arm, and kill yourself already! Im going to do everything in my power to make sure you never get yoyr daughter back and to keep her with me!”
And then he hung up on me and no one would answer the phone everything me and my mom tried to call afterwards (thankfully my daughter was not harmed by him and was taken to the dr. Examined To make sure of this).
But with my PTSD, freaking out about what my grandfather could do to my daughter, and just knowing no one in my family wanted me around, and feeling lost and then terrified that my ex could send someone to come and get me (he is a Latin King with lots of connections)
I took an overdose that night to kill myself.
I was found laying face down on the ground later on by my dad who at the time was still alive but dying himself from dialated cardio myopathy (I felt so guilty for this for yrs afterwards).
I was told he gave my leg a little kick to see if I was dead or just high and passed out, called my mom to tell her, and then was told to call 911.
During the ride to the hospital I had flat lined 2 different times and then for a 3rd time at the hospital before being brought back and falling into a coma.
During that 3rd time I knew I was dead because before that I felt darkness and was terrified and then all of the sudden I felt warm, felt no pain, and then opened my eyes to standing in a wheat field with a clear blue sky, thr sunshine on my face, anf just feeling happy and the most peace I had felt in 10 yrs.
There were other peope walking around also happy and talking to each other.
Then I saw my mom in front of me.
I remember I started smoking a cigarette and telling her I was happy and free, but when she would talk back to me I couldn’t hear anything she was saying even when she was trying to yell.
Out of no where everything went black again and then like a ton of bricks this huge amount of pain filled my body, and I woke in a panic with tubes all over me, and felt nothing but anger when I realized I was alive again and in the hospital.
My mom was sitting there next to me and I remember the dr. And nurses rushing her out of the room because of how I was reacting and them needing to get the tubes and stuff out of me.
Im happy Im alive now as I have 10 yrs sober, I have custody of my daughter back whose healthy, thriving, and 15. I also have another daughter whose 7 with my partner of 10 yrs, went back to college and earned a dual bachelor’s in general elementary education (teaching general ed geades K-8) and special education (teaching grades K-12) and work as a special needs educator.
I do not talk to anyone in my family anymore except for my mom who Im still extremelt close with (I still spoke to my dad too, but he passed away 1 year after I got sober.
Im just happy he was able to see me get clean and start putting my life back together).
My ex/capture was turned in by one of his “brothers” for what he did to me as it goes against their gangs law to treat their “Queen” like that especially if you have a child with them.
He is currently serving 14 yrs on a plea deal in a max state prison for human trafficking, manslaughter, gang related charges, and a strong armed robbery that left the women he beat and robbed in the ICU.
He also has to register as a sex offeneder when he is released from prison (he does not get a chance at early release with his plea deal).
My trauma and drug counselor has helped me set up a plan when he gets out to stay out of his radar as he has continued to try and make contact and claims Im still his “queen” even after all these yrs.
My life is not perfect but it is 100% better than what it was 10 yrs ago and Im happy that Im able to be here to be a loving and caring mom to my daughters and to be a good daughter to my mom.
I playfully told him he’s a cuck and should watch me with his boss, he became furious and did this.
Man, these women are something else!
Why did the US Army stop using bazookas?
1942-0515, the M-9 Bazooka.
In 1945, Wilbur “Bill” Brunger was an engineer with the U.S. Army, and it was his job to break things. Namely, three underpasses on the Autobahn near Dortmund, Germany. He had to break the underpasses, so the rubble would block the road from any attacking enemy vehicles. But as Brunger and a squad of soldiers attempted to take control of the underpasses, they spotted German armored half-tracks coming their way.
Fortunately, he had the right tool for the job at hand—an M-9 Recoilless Rocket Launcher—better known as a “bazooka.” Brunger fired a round at one of the half-tracks.
“It must have had ammunition because it blew, I’d say, a hundred feet in the air,”
Brunger said. “But it blew up. I was glad we weren’t any closer than we were.”
The bazooka was a straightforward weapon. During WWII, it was simple enough for rifle squads to use, and its high-explosive rounds were powerful enough to destroy bunkers, light tanks and pillboxes.
True, LTG George Patton praised the M-1 Garand rifle as the greatest battle implement ever made. But Dwight Eisenhower ranked the simple bazooka with the atomic bomb, the jeep and the C-47 cargo plane as one of the four “tools of victory” that allowed the Allies to prevail over Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan.
“The bazooka is one of those weapons that has become iconic in spite of its limitations and problems,” Alan Archambault, former supervisory curator for the U.S. Army Center of Military History, said. “Even today, most people recognize the name and the weapon.” Rockets on the battlefield are nothing new. History is full of examples of armies harnessing explosive force.
The 13th-century Chinese fired rockets at their enemies. The Star-Spangled Banner mentions the “the rockets’ red glare, the bombs bursting in air,” More specifically, the anthem refers to British Congreve rockets fired at Fort McHenry during the War of 1812 to burn the fort to the ground.
American space pioneer Robert Goddard, inventor of the liquid-fuel rocket, even developed a prototype recoilless rocket launcher that he demonstrated to the U.S. Army in November 1918. But World War I ground to a halt just a few days later, and the U.S. military lost interest in rocket-powered infantry weapons.
Things changed fast when America went to war again in 1941. The only anti-tank weapons in its arsenal were the guns on its tanks and specific kinds of anti-tank artillery. That was a problem, considering the U.S. Army faced an enemy in North Africa—and later in Europe—that relied heavily on Panzer divisions.
U.S. Army Ordnance innovators CPT Leslie Skinner and LT Edward Uhl experimented with shaped-charge grenades that packed an armor-piercing punch, but these were too heavy for soldiers to throw.
One day, Uhl apparently spied a steel tube on a scrap pile and decided that a smoothbore launch tube was the perfect companion to the grenade. He added a rocket to the grenade, and the result was a simple—if effective—anti-tank weapon.
By May 1942, the combination became known as “Launcher, Rocket, 2.36-inch, AntiTank, M-1.”
But nobody called it that—and the contraption looked more like one of comedian Bob Burns’ novelty instruments. Burns was a popular entertainer during the era famous for blowing a tubular noisemaker called a “bazooka.” Dutch slang for “loudmouth,” the name for the joke instrument became the name of the weapon.
Optimally, the bazooka needed two people to fire it properly—a gunner who aimed and fired the rocket-propelled rounds, and a loader who carried the rounds in a cloth bandolier. The loader’s job was to load the launch tube from the back end and toggle the safety switch. An electric charge from a dry-cell battery ignited the powder charge in the rocket, the round streaked out of its tube—and flew on toward its target.
In the Pacific, heat and humidity plagued the standard bazooka’s electrical system. Soldiers and Marines who pulled the weapon’s trigger often experienced short circuits and misfires.
The bazooka produced significant “back blast”—discharge from the firing rocket that streamed out of the rear-end of the tube—that could crisp the operator or anyone standing directly behind the weapon.
The rocket-propelled round also left an obvious smoke trail that could give away the location of the shooter.
Under ideal conditions, the bazooka could hit targets up to 300-yards away. But realistically, close shots under 30-yards were far more common. This lead to a high mortality rate among gunners who often moved toward their targets to get the best shot.
However, improvements to the weapon produced the far-more reliable M-9. It had a lighter warhead and could penetrate five-inch armor—allowing it to destroy heavier armored vehicles than the M-1.
In 1944, one enterprising pilot of an L-4 observation plane even strapped three bazookas onto his aircraft during the Battle of Arracourt in France. LTC Charles Carpenter knocked out six German tanks with his improvised ground-attack plane and earned the nickname “Bazooka Charlie.”
Although intended as an anti-tank weapon, the bazooka could fire white phosphorous and incendiary warheads for anti-personnel and anti-material use. As the war progressed, bazooka users discovered the weapon worked best against emplacements and fortifications, particularly after the Germans began to weld thicker armor onto their tanks.
But overall, the weapon was so effective the bazooka received the sincerest form of flattery. The Nazis copied captured bazookas and created the Panzerschreck anti-tank rocket launcher using the American weapon’s basic design.
Although it went through different variants, the bazooka remained in use through the early stages of the Vietnam War. That’s when the M-72 light anti-weapon—or LAW—eclipsed the bazooka and became the American soldier’s rocket weapon of choice.
However, the bazooka has one remaining cultural influence in American history. Bazooka bubble gum—first introduced to the gum-chewing public in 1947—owes its ordnanceinspired name to the World War II weapon that made a big bang.
Georgia Guidestones Mystery Finally Solved And Isn’t Good
The Joyriders Club
Submitted into Contest #243 in response to: Write a story about a character who wakes up in space.… view prompt
Howard Halsall
Anyway, despite our attempts to count the stars, we never achieved a good view of the night sky because it was too cloudy, maybe not dark enough, or perhaps a sudden downpour would curtail our reverie. We’d abandon our plan, retreat to our living room carpet, and lie side by side on a tartan blanket, pretending we were shipwrecked on a deserted atoll. However, peering up at the night sky through a gap in one’s curtains doesn’t cut it. I’ve got to hand it to him, he tried. He always rose to the task, filling the room with twinkling fairy lights and shimmering candles. We both tried. We had fun trying. It’s just that, well. You know how it is? There’s always more out there. Life’s always about defining the limits.
Jimmy had been a baggage handler at Heathrow’s Terminal Eight for a year. He’d worked the night shift and knew the spaceport inside out. Jimmy had done plenty of moon shots as cargo crew and knew the routine. He’d access to all the secure areas, so a night of star watching beyond the main runway wasn’t all that intrepid, if we were careful.
To be honest, I didn’t think he was serious when he said he’d prepared a picnic and asked me to grab a bottle of fizzy. We started off the evening in the control tower’s shadow and skulked past security to the space shuttle’s hangar. There’s less light pollution being away from the city and it’s darker out there.
After we’d finished our picnic, we grabbed our blanket and basket and headed to the cargo area at the rear of Terminal Eight. We’d had a bit to drink and I remember clambering over luggage in the fuselage’s rear. I know we were daft to make out inside the shuttle. Falling asleep in each other’s arms was a big mistake, too.
When I woke up, it was dark and Jimmy was snoring beside me. I tried to bring him round, and he groaned. We soon discovered they’d locked the cargo doors prior to departure. Then, before I knew it, we were on our way. It was Jimmy who suggested chewing the Juicy Fruit. He told me it helps avoid ear ache. ‘Sudden changes in cabin pressure can be painful,’ he said.
Hours later, Jimmy nudged me awake and handed me a scarf to cover my eyes. I got to my feet, and he led me in darkness through the pressurised cargo hold. I followed Jimmy, still blindfolded and holding his hand, and we clunked our way up the creaking metal walkway until we reached the spherical observation deck and then, Wow! A three-hundred-degree view of the stars; up above and all around. It was way beyond my comprehension. A myriad of stars twinkling in the velvety darkness of the universe and infinite clusters of tiny lights that spiralled on forever more.
“Was it worth it?” asked McNally, turning to Toll, who rolled her eyes.
“God yeah! Who wouldn’t catch their breath, opening their eyes to see billions of stars in every direction?”
“Believe me,” said Toll. “It gets like wallpaper after a while—”
“You were saying?” said McNally, stroking his bristly jowls.
“I recall collapsing down on my knees and covering my open mouth with both hands. Jimmy sat down beside me and I saw a look in his eyes that I’d never seen before. His lips moved towards mine. We kissed each other. I can’t describe to you what I felt. It seemed as if my life had built in a slow crescendo to that perfect moment, and then Jimmy fumbled open a little metal box and I bit my lip…”
Toll looked up from her paperwork and gave a gentle snort.
“Then he said, ‘Marry me…’”
McNally drew a deep breath and twisted his mouth into a lopsided smirk.
“Am I in trouble?”
“Well,” he said, removing his glasses to clean them. “This happens more than you might imagine.”
“We should throw the book at her, Ted.”
I swallowed and rotated Jimmy’s precious ring on my fourth finger.
“You mean the special book, Officer Toll?” McNally extracted a two-inch thick, dusty ledger from his desk drawer, and held it aloft.
“That’s the one,” Toll smiled, staring at me. “Do your worst, McNally.”
“But we didn’t do nothing—-”
The hefty volume thudded on the table top like a body-slammed wrestler hitting the deck. I recoiled from the impact and swallowed, but my throat was dry and my eyes stung like crazy as they welled up.
Toll leaned back in her chair, extended her forearms and braced her interlocked fingers. She chuckled as her knuckles cracked under the strain, making sharp pops like chicken wishbones snapped for good luck. I imagined she enjoyed stripping down and shredding a carcass for kicks.
McNally was oblivious to her behaviour, plucked a pen from his breast pocket and flicked through the ledger’s many pages to locate the last entry.
“You need to disclose your contact details and sign the book,” he said, smoothing down a page of scrawled names and addresses. “You just joined the joyrider’s club.”
“The joyrider’s what?”
“This happens more often than you’d believe, young lady.”
“But I don’t under—-”
“We’re sending you back home with a slap on the wrist and—-
“No way…. Is that it?”
“Not unless you want a charge.”
“You’re joking, right?”
“There’re no second chances.” Toll popped the last two sticks of my Juicy Fruit between her teeth and clacked down hard. “So, don’t push it.”
Her exaggerated jaw movements continued and did little to contradict her charmless bovine manner, scoring her worthless points in a game nobody cared about.
“We’re done here, Ted.”
“Interview with suspect Sheena Bridge concluded at zero-eight-ten hours. Miss Bridge has signed all the interplanetary transportation disclaimers. Officers McNally and Toll will escort Miss Bridge onto the next available flight to Heathrow Terminal Eight. No further action required. Case closed.”
The End
Will Wang Yi eventually become China’s president?
I doubt it.
If you look at the resumes of the last three Presidents of China, you will notice some similarities. All of them had some engineering or science degrees and experience serving different positions in various governmental branches.
Xi Jinping was graduated with a chemistry-engineering degree and had been promoted through multiple levels of regional government before he reached the top.
Hu Jintao graduated with a hydraulic engineering degree and had been working in multiple levels of regional government in Xinjiang and Xizang(Tibet) before he started working in Beijing.
Jiang Zemin graduated with an electric engineering degree. He had served in various positions including the Mayor of Shanghai before he was elected the General Secretary of CCP.
Wang Yi’s resume indicates that his professional life was largely surrounding diplomacy. He has been serving in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs ever since he graduated with a degree in Japanese from Beijing International Studies University. His expertise is too singular and one-demensional to be running the whole country. Furthermore, he is the same age as Xi which means that he will be too old to be nominated for the top position by the time Xi steps down.
What work secret did you accidentally find out that changed everything?
Years ago, circa 1979 I had a female coworker who was diligent, capable and very smart. In many ways she was the best employee in our then Fortune 1000 company. She and I were friendly.
One day over lunch, she said she had something to tell me. She said she was confiding in me with the hope that I would understand. I was interested but didn’t acknowledge it one way or another.
As we sat across from each other at the restaurant where we were eating lunch, she leaned across the table. Then she motioned for me to lean in too. I did. Then her expression turned from serious to dour, even frightened.
My coworker softly stated, “The company is moving our corporate headquarters.”
We worked at corporate headquarters. So I became concerned for my job as I had a wife and 2 young children to support.
I asked, “When? Is everybody moving?”
“Soon. Many will be taken. The remainder will be left. It will be up to Jack.” Jack was our manager.
I sat there silent. A bit upset. Even a little shocked. Then she added the biggest most incredible words I ever heard from anyone at work.
“The company is owned by aliens. And they will take many of us to their home planet. I was chosen.”
She Thought Cheating Was A Good Idea Until She Had To Pay Him Child Support
Lordy!
How come China lets a lot of its students go abroad? Isn’t it afraid they will come back as people prefer freedom of information and democracy?
Another stupid question about democracy, tell me, WHAT IS SO GREAT ABOUT IT? I can’t see a single benefit that we have over China, NOT A SINGLE ONE, if China was so bad, how come their government has the highest satisfaction rating on the planet? By the way, what makes you think China is NOT democratic? They have elections every five years, that tells me they are just as democratic as any other country, here in Australia we voted one government out because we weren’t happy with what they were doing, now we have a labour government, BUT NOTHING HAS CHANGED, they are still doing the same crap, at least the Chinese government changes with the times, and learn from any mistakes, here? Nothing ever changes for the better, I’m talking about our federal government, our state government is doing ok. Yes, there are always things we don’t agree with, but that’s just life,
before Morrison, I NEVER voted labour, now I will never vote anything else,
one other thing, freedom of information??? Are you serious? Which government on the planet tells their citizens everything? Why do they need an official secrets act? Just shows how stupid some questionairs are, you do see how stupid that is don’t you?
Israel’s Mossad spy agency planted a small amount of explosives inside 5000 Taiwan-made pagers ordered by Lebanese militant group Hezbollah months before Tuesday’s detonations. Is this absolutely brilliant?
The handful of videos floating around seem to show the person holding the pager being killed or injured, perhaps grievously, while those standing next to them walk away apparently unscathed. In one video, in a market, a fruit cart next to the target was not upset even the slightest.
If that lack of collateral damage was widespread, then this would indeed be a brilliant attack, advancing the state of the art in the fight against terrorism.
Of course, that “if” remains to be confirmed in a full accounting of casualties. But it appear like the attack was carefully crafted to avoid collateral damage:
- The technology that was sabotaged was not that used broadly by civilians. Normal people communicate by phone, not by pagers or by 2m handy talkies.
- It appears that Israel inserted their sabotaged pagers into a shipment that was going specifically to Hezbollah. It was not an a shipment that entered the retail channel, to be purchased by innocent parties.
- The attack was set to occur in the mid afternoon, not in the evening when people would be at home, where the radio might be near children or other innocent parties, not during commute time, when the target might be on a crowded bus.
- The nature of the attack, by sending a page notification first, encouraged the target to take the pagers in their hands and and look at it. I don’t think the average bystander would do that for a pager lying on a table. They’d say, “Hey, Ahmed, your pager is beeping.”
The attack also had all sorts of additional advantages for Israel, beyond the direct casualties:
- It outs Hezbollah militia members within the communities, including those who might rather not be known. This allows the peaceful majority in Lebanon to clean up their own country.
- It also outs Iranian agents in Lebanon, since those were the ones who were airlifted for medical treatment in Iran. For example, it sure is interesting that the Iranian ambassador to Lebanon had one of these pagers.
- It makes Hezbollah even more paranoid about any technology they might encounter, disrupting their ability to communicate and coordinate their efforts.
- It makes them engage witch hunts for internal moles, who may or may not exist, harmful to morale.
What is the nastiest home you have been in?
One of my best friends from school. She never invited me over and I was fine with that. She said she was embarassed of her family and I respect that. One day we had a fight and it got personal. She was screaming at me about the stresses of her home life and I didn’t believe her. So she let me come over.
The house was filthy. Not just messy, it was putrid. It smelled terrible. There was mouldy food left on plates everywhere. I could smell dead things that I assume were rats or mice. On the table were clearly used syringes. She showed me her bedroom. It was immaculate and smelled lovely. That was her sanctuary. Her mother was a heroin addict and used to have multiple men over. In the bathroom were used condoms tied in a knot everywhere. I felt sick looking at the hell my friend had to live with. She had to do everything for herself and I understood why she was so tired every day.
I let her move into my parents’ house with me and she lived there from 15/16–19. No matter what she will always be my sister.
Woman Commits Paternity Fraud And Instantly Regrets It
It’s Chaos As Vast Hordes Of Criminals Literally Rule The Streets In Major Cities All Over America
Did you know that gangbangers in Chicago are extremely upset because a migrant gang from South America is starting to take over territory that once belonged to them? As you will see later in this article, law enforcement authorities in Chicago have completely lost control of the Windy City, and a major gang war could erupt at any time. But of course it isn’t just Chicago that has descended into a state of complete and utter chaos. In Los Angeles, a horde of approximately 50 young criminals ruthlessly looted a 7-Eleven on Friday evening…
A group of about 50 juveniles on bikes ransacked a 7-Eleven in Pico-Robertson on Friday evening, the latest in a string of recent robberies targeting the convenience chain, authorities said.
The group of juveniles, estimated to be between ages 12 and 15, entered the store at 8500 W. Olympic Blvd. around 7:25 p.m. and stole many items, according to a Los Angeles Police Department spokesperson. Most of the juveniles had fled the scene by the time officers arrived, he said.
The reason why this incident barely even made a blip in the news cycle is because this sort of thing now happens in Los Angeles on a regular basis…
The same store was targeted — also reportedly by a group of around 50 teens on bikes — on Aug. 9, according to Fox 11 Los Angeles.
A week later, a group of young men on bikes robbed two convenience stores, reported to be 7-Elevens, in Hollywood. And on Aug. 24, a similar ransacking unfolded at a 7-Eleven in San Pedro.
In the middle of the country, the streets of Indianapolis are constantly under siege.
In fact, it is being reported that police in the city recently had to “break up five different street takeovers in 48 hours”…
Police said they were met with violent crowds when they tried to break up five different street takeovers in 48 hours in Indianapolis.
Indianapolis was once such a quiet city.
But now everything has changed.
When Indianapolis police go out to break up these “street takeovers”, they are often viciously attacked…
IMPD says officers and Indiana State Police troopers were attacked and their cars were damaged while responding to several street racing and spinning events in Indianapolis over the weekend.
The first incident was reported around 2:30 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 14 near East Washington and Pine streets, just east of downtown Indianapolis. Officers conducting a traffic stop saw 100-200 cars “engaged in reckless driving,” including spinning, in a parking lot, the department said in a statement.
Chaos is even reigning in major cities in the Bible Belt.
This weekend, there was a horrifying mass shooting in Birmingham, Alabama that made headlines all over the nation…
At least four people were killed and dozens more were injured when gunfire broke out in Birmingham, Alabama. Investigators believe there were multiple shooters.
“We have dozens of gunshot victims from this area,’’ police spokesman Truman Fitzgerald told the Birmingham News. “I’m told at least four of those gunshot victims are life-threatening.”
The shooting happened in the city’s popular Five Points South entertainment district. At least 17 of the gunshot victims were seriously injured.
Needless to say, there has been chaos in our streets for a long time, but now things are going to an entirely new level.
Many are blaming the surge in migration that we have been witnessing while Joe Biden has been in the White House.
In Springfield, Ohio crime rates have absolutely skyrocketed during the past three years…
Reports of shoplifting and vehicle theft increased considerably in Springfield, Ohio, following the arrival of thousands of Haitian refugees, according to data obtained by the Daily Caller News Foundation through a records request.
The town, which had a population of 58,622 in 2020, has taken in between 12,000 and 20,000 Haitian refugees over the past three years, marking a population increase of between 20.4% and 34.1%. From 2021 to 2023, Springfield also saw a 51.5% jump in motor vehicle theft reports and a 112.8% spike in reports of shoplifting, data provided by the Springfield Police Division shows.
In Chicago, migration has been fueling the growth of criminal gangs, and gang members now outnumber the police by more than ten to one.
With numbers like that, there is no way that the police can maintain any sort of control.
A migrant gang from Venezuela known as Tren de Aragua is now steadily taking over territory that once belonged to local gangs, and members of those local gangs are furious because the migrants are getting far more government handouts than they are…
“There’s been a lot going on with (the migrant gangs) that nobody’s even hearing about,” Zacc Massie, 27, a street leader who first went to prison in 2015 and just recently got out.
“They be moving in our own territory and robbing people but they don’t get arrested like we do. I actually talked to one on the translator app. He told me all the things he got going on; how they helped him get a car, an apartment, (EBT) card, all this stuff. They giving them thousands, we get maybe $400 a month. And they don’t even have Social Security numbers!”
It is even being reported that teachers in Chicago elementary schools are being told to “give their migrant students a 70 percent in every subject and pass them on to the next grade” even if they don’t speak any English…
The teachers we spoke with work in CPS elementary schools and say they spoke no Spanish, while their migrant students spoke no English, making communication virtually impossible. They also added that because their schools were located in predominantly Black neighborhoods, they offered no English as a Second Language (ESL) support. Despite this, they say they were instructed by school administrators to give their migrant students a 70 percent in every subject and pass them on to the next grade.
Teachers say this was the case even if their migrant students displayed severe academic deficiencies.
The locals that have been suffering in deeply impoverished sections of Chicago for many years understand very clearly what is going on, and they are deeply frustrated.
Tensions in the city have never been higher, and one ex-gang member that has gone straight told the New York Post that it is just a matter of time before a gang war begins…
“When the black gangs here get fed up with the illegalities and criminal activities of these migrants or non-citizens, the city of Chicago is going to go up in flames and there will be nothing the National Guard or the government can do about it when the bloodshed hits the streets. It’ll be blacks against migrants.”
For a long time, we were warned that there would be chaos in the streets of America, and now it is here.
Law enforcement has already lost control of the streets in cities all over the country, and the violence, theft, drug dealing and sex trafficking only get worse with each passing day.
Meanwhile, millions of additional migrants come pouring into this nation illegally every single year.
Our politicians have created ideal conditions for widespread civil unrest, and once it fully erupts nobody is going to be able to control it.
My son got sentenced to 15 years in prison. He is 20 years old. I don’t want him to feel depressed and give up. Is there anything I can do for him while he is in prison?
I have done a total of 12 years locked up and I had a total of 1 visit and I had 20 dollars sent to me twice . But I didn’t complain. Yes it made things rough. What I really wanted was the Christmas cards .the birthday letters I had 3 or for letters written to me by my family. I needed those letters and that’s what he’s going to need also . Knowing he’s still loved and he has people out there waiting for him
That is what keeps the depression demons at bay .When he does get released you have to remember this isn’t the son that you knew wh we n he went in .Give him time to come around to you . Don’t try and speed up the process. He will still love you but he has had to wear a game face for quite a while. Write him letter tell him what the dogs did what you did that day. Simple stuff .
Does a human being know they’re dead once they die?
My grandmother died in the middle of the night when I was five years old. She came into my room and woke me and sat on the edge of the bed and told me that my mother was going to go through a very difficult time and even though I was so young, I was going to have to help her. When I get up the next day, I told my mother what happened and that Nana had died. 15 minutes later, my two aunts came to the door to tell my mother that she had died about the same time that she had visited me I have never had any fear of death , mostly because of this. I know there is something after we die and I know she looked strong and healthy. She had not been in life.
Shorpy
Does a human being know they’re dead once they die?
Yes, they do.
Similar to some other who wrote their answers, I also had experience of “not your time to die” message from when I was in a middle school and got myself to a hospital.
During some rather ordinary V-treatment I got unexpected violent allergic reaction from my body and in a matter of minutes my body temperature sky rocketed and I lost consciousness.
After this I watched from somewhere above at a ceiling and a little to a side how medical staff urgently worked around me. I knew with absolute certainty that me, my body down there, is actually dying right this moment. What was strange that my other “out-of-body-me” was not especially scared or panicked. I just was.
Then suddenly there was a sensation of rapid movement through a narrow shadowed connection to a bright light, similar to emerging in a car from a long tunnel to a sunny blindingly bright summer midday.
But just on a brink of a tunnel mouth I was stopped. Sensation of some old being, not especially unfriendly, but so vastly powerful on a completely different level, that it was scary, at least for a 12 year old girl that I was, in a way like you watch nature in action and instinctively realise your own smallness, blocked my passage with not so much a verbal but more like a direct-in your-head message “it’s not your time yet, go back”. And as soon as it hit me, I was plummeted back not instantly, but very very fast, like water swishing down a drain.
I regain consciousness not much later after this and fully recovered. No one in my family or my friends have ever known better. Medical staff never told anything to my parents, just casually mentioned that “it was some complications on the way but everything worked out just fine” to my mom when I was discharged.
I was so profoundly shocked by this experience, which I sensed has been very very private and powerful and extraordinary, that as soon as I could, I wrote it down on some crumped piece of paper with cryon drawings on other side I have found in a hospital playing room.
I remember this experience vividly even 40 years later. I was born in, raised and still live in as much an atheist society as it is possible in our historical time, and never ever believed in traditional description of hell or heaven of any world religion.
However I am inclined to believe that we are much more than just our bodies; that souls, for lack of other term to describe our inner personal self, exist and they continue to exist on some other level after our present physical bodies stop functioning.
Why is China doing absolutely NOTHING about US banning Chinese EVs? US is the second largest EV market and largest consumer market. Why is China so utterly powerless wrt US bullying?
What exactly can China do?
US has the say in who can sell things in their market can they not?
US says China shouldn’t sell EVs in their markets or sell at a 100% Tariff, so what can China do?
What is China’s Leverage?
When China banned Google and Facebook back in 2009, China was way less powerful than it is today – even so US couldn’t do anything to force China into repealing the ban on Facebook or Google
Short of starting a war, pretty much nothing China can do
The US Automobile Market is responsible for a total of 5.15 Million Jobs (Direct & Indirect) plus a further 830,000 Jobs in the Gasoline Industry plus another 173,300 Gas Stations
The US estimates a direct loss of 700,000 Jobs plus a revenue loss of $ 26 Billion a year for the Gas Stations
EVs cant match this even by 20%
So the US doesn’t want Chinese EVs
The Political Bickering has nothing to do with anything
Chinese Automobiles will sell very well in Nations which don’t have an extensive supply chain or manufacturing chain related to automobiles
This means Middle East, ASEAN, Africa, Australia, Israel, South America and Russia
This automatically excludes India & US & Germany & France & Czech Republic & Japan all of which have their own Auto Industry
They have to protect their own industries
So the obvious thing to do would be to create their own EVs and get their own supply chain
Plus since US has loads of Oil and Gasoline, it really isn’t forced to use EVs like say India does
Are Chinese people aware that their government is an authoritarian dictatorship?
Absolutely, there’s no question about it. None of us believe this is a democratic country, but at the same time, none of us think it’s truly a communist country either—which might be hard for you to believe.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying the government hasn’t tried to brainwash us. But, strangely enough, even the government doesn’t seem to be putting much effort into it. Everyone is fully aware of the brainwashing attempts but plays along without actually buying into it.
This might be difficult to grasp if you’ve never been to China, but I tend to have a feeling that most of us here are pragmatists. We tolerate the situation as long as we believe the government is improving our lives, which, by most accounts, it seems to be doing.
I tend to think that an authoritarian regime can result in either extremely high outcomes when the leadership makes the right decisions, or in catastrophic failures when they don’t. In the former case, societal efficiency is massively improved, while in the latter, it can lead to disaster.
People in China make their own judgments about these outcomes. Those who are content with the situation stay and support the government, while those who aren’t satisfied simply leave and move to another country.
Personally, I’m quite satisfied with how my life has improved in recent years. So, I’m still here, living in China, steering clear of politics and focusing on my own life.
What happens to a Chinese person if he/she stands up in support of the Uyghurs?
I was born in Xinjiang, I was raised there, my entire childhood was living with Uyghurs, they are my neighbours.
I stand up and support them, so as our Govt (this may sound weird). They’re free to go to Mosque, they’re free to give births as many as they wish without be restricted by one child policy, their children will get 50 extra points in College entry exam (20 after 2018’s new policy, with a perfect score ranging roughly from 600 to 750 depending on where you take the exam), and their language are taught in schools and printed on bank notes.
When I was in high school, we have 20 classes in our grade, 10 of them are Uyghur classes. When Olympic Torch came to Xinjiang, our school picked a few Uyghur students as student representatives.
I bet most people from Western don’t know this, and Suddenly they stood up and fought for the Uyghur people? When Islamic terrorism happened in Xinjiang, moderate Mulism people were also suffering from terrorism too, where are their voice by then?
Everything Is A Rip Off, It’s Not Even Worth Going Out Anymore
Apparently, Zelensky’s victory plan is 1. Ukraine admitted to NATO. 2. Russians run home in panic? Is membership possible or likely and would it work if Ukraine got in?
Has Nato mobilized and transitioned into a war economy?
Other than record stock markets and eye-catching gdp, Nato is embroiled in economic malaise, and in no shape to meet Nato spending targets in peacetime, let alone massive war spending.
Besides, the current conflict in Ukraine has already emptied the accumulated war reserve of Nato, and they are now sending active arms in use.
Is Nato is any shape to confront Russia today on a one for all, all for one basis? Do Nato leaders desire such a confrontation?
Russia has mobilized >2m men, and is outproducing Nato in war materiel by multiples.
Ukraine joining Nato is but a couple of signatures on paper. We have seen Ukraine being fractured and Volodymyr cheered without Ukraine cashing the empty check of membership dangled for decades in front of the sacrificial Ukrainian lambs.
Fantasy sold to the gullible is what got us into this mess of overreach.
When the Russians say no, they are prepared to shed blood for it.
Question is, is Nato prepared to shed rivers of blood too, or are they mistaking the Russian bear for a pesky fly destined to meet the fly swatter?
Remembering an NDE
My sister and I were at my late father’s side at home when he passed in December 2014. He was 95 years old and knew he was going to die as he was on hospice care.
He was completely lucid and alert up until he passed.
On his last day he dozed on and off while my sister and I slept in his room – me on a futon and she on the twin bed in the room. Dad was on a hospital bed that replaced the other twin bed. Before I dozed off, I asked him how he was and if he felt he were dying (I know it is a weird question to ask but we are very open in our family).
He said that he just felt very tired and as to dying he said he didn’t really know what to expect as he never went through it before.
We knew he was dying as his taste for foods changed about 2 weeks prior and he was hurrying to get last minute affairs in order to make sure our inheritance was divided evenly – which he achieved to the dollar.
I was awakened during the early morning – about 2 am by my sister who noticed that he was picking at his blankets and acting restless.
I phoned the hospice nurse who guided me through the process of assisting and comforting him through the dying process. He was still completely aware of his surroundings.
I asked him how he was doing and if he needed anything just to keep communicating with him.
My sister and I were holding his hands and telling him how much we loved him and would miss him. He said, he was very tired and as to the dying part, he still didn’t know what to expect. He was very weak. Then he dozed for a while. Then all of a sudden he squeezed both our hands and as if he were answering our question about dying, weakly said, “Home, home……” and then he passed.
It was a sacred experience for us and a comfort to hear he was going to a good place, but we still miss him terribly.
Is China safe for tourists?
I am BLACK 1m.89cm tall, Point i am not able to just keep a low profile. In the dozen plus trips too China . I will say this; I walk in the street during late even, or early (am) morning hours to get my relax time. I stop at stalls without a single word of understandable mandarin buy street food and never had a stall owner short change me..[I know the currency and prices ]. I Window shop and buy things to bring home for my friend as gifts.
This is my experience .
I have never felt for a single moment I was at risk, Walking the back streets out of curiosity, people look, even intently but never made me feel uncomfortable . Maybe because I stay only in Top hotels the area i walk are better managed or policed. ( Was asked once if i needed help from two officer and when i said i was just walking to relax they left me and moved on..Awesome Not asking for ID or where i am going what i am doing out in the am. EU and USA did not treat me so well, and i speak a few of these languages.
I am not looking to be a trader or make a female friend Maybe this has something to do with my absolutely awesome stays .
Chinese people are racist, its ignorance more than malice. Chines people have attitude, but i am sure i do also.
But Chinese people do not hate me because of my colour ,,,Misinformation makes then negative in expectations and okay i am not poor so maybe i carry myself with the confidence of I need nothing from China , Happy to visit as long as China is happy to accept my freedom to be me every second of the day. Black and proud. But i am not poor anywhere in the world but am treated not so well .
I will always feel China is a GREAT place to visit if you do not wish to spread a political view. China has so many millions of beautiful place and interesting places ,I am sure i will have hundreds of trips .Thank you China for my Experience as a tourist..
Me & the kids were mocking him for being a weak father, until he got fed up, became furious & then
Never mock your man.
Alice in Wonder
Submitted into Contest #247 in response to: Set your story on a spaceship exploring the far reaches of space when something goes wrong.… view prompt
Sean Mallery
“Give me manual control” The chair moved back and dual joysticks raised up. She took hold and moved the ship. She turned and rotated until the cargo no longer bounced around. Physics in space are weird, physics in the ather are impossible. The ship was now turned sideways, but still moving in the same direction. As long as she could keep the ship in the ather’s slipstream, it would be fine.
“Starboard engine took damage.” Wonder informed Alice. “On this trajectory we will slide out of the slip in thirty seconds.”
Alice sighed. Drop the cargo or drop out into ather space. She thought about it and quickly decided. Turned the engines off and allow the ship to drift. With the damage done to the engine, there was no telling if she could correct the path either way. Losing the cargo was not an option while working with RED either. Lost cargo means a fine and who knows how big the fine is with the classification placed on it. The ship rumbled as it left the slipstream moving into a thicker ather.
“Great, repair options for the engine?” Alice asked.
“Working on it.”
Alice’s HUD displayed a warning. Shields at 75% It read.
“Work faster” She screamed. “The ather is pressing in on the ship.”
“Yeah yeah. Don’t get your undies in a bunch,” Wonder said with a laugh.
“What? Wonder I need a solution. Can I space walk to repair it?”
“Space walking in the ather will get you deader than your sense of humor!”
“What has gotten into you?”
“I apologize Alice, it seems the effects of ather are causing me to malfunction.”
“Stupid AI, you can’t break now too.”
“Have you tried turning me off and back on again?”
Alice got up from the captain’s chair. She grabbed a tool case from the closet and headed into the bay. She checked a status screen as she walked by. Shields 60% it read.
“Wonder can I get to any of the parts from the interior of the ship.”
“Panel thirteen – seven. Look for the big red glowy light. That will be the thing. They always have glowy lights to let you know if they are bad.”
Alice turned down a hallway and caught sight of something white and quick moving just around the next corner.
“Wonder, is there anyone else on the ship?” She asked.
“Its just me and you forever baby!”
Alice let out a long sigh. “Is any of our cargo biological? Animals maybe?”
“Sorry that’s classified,” Wonder answered.
“Oh, now you can be serious?”
“Sorry, even I can’t read it. I’m looking at the file on our cargo right now. It just says classified.”
“There is something else on the ship.” Alice explained.
“Nah bro, you are going crazy.”
“What?” Alice said incredulously
“Mild effects of aether poisoning. Step one insanity, step two coming to terms with insanity, step three, the fun part.”
Alice grunted. She knew she needed to move faster before she was useless. She found the panel and removed it. The array of wires and pipes hid circuit boards. She found the one with the red light. She unplugged it and plugged it back in. The light turned off and back red again. Alice frowned. She unplugged the module. Probably didn’t need it, anyway. Alice turned around and jumped. There in the middle of the hall sat a small white rabbit. They stared at each other for a moment. The rabbit took off down the hall and around the corner.
“No, you don’t,” Alice said and chased the rabbit around the corner. She skid to a halt at the table before her. Alice found herself in a large, ornate room. She gawked at the white walls and wooden furnishing. Where was she? This isn’t a room on the ship. Worst of all, there were people sitting at the table, pouring cups of tea.
“Hello” she intoned.
“Oh, hello Alice,” the man at the head of the table said. He wore a purple suit with a tall hat. “Tea?” He asked, gesturing with a steaming teakettle.
“Uh, no thank you.” She said, looking shocked.
“Please sit. You know my friend, the white rabbit.” He gestured to a rabbit sitting on the table. It had its own cup of tea and cookie. It looked up as if acknowledging her.
“H-Hello.”
“And this here is our lead ship mechanic. Scoots.” The man in the suit said.
A short, pudgy man in a black suit and bowler cap looked over at her. “Ma’am.” He said, tipping his hat.
“And I of course, am the ever present Wonder.”
“Wonder? You’re the ship AI?”
“In the flesh!”
“I don’t understand. We don’t have a ship mechanic, and you are an AI. Don’t even get me started on the rabbit!”
“It is very easy to explain, sweetie. You see, you are quite mad.”
“Mad?” she asked.
“Insane, the ather has broken through the shield and you are undergoing the effects. Have a seat, enjoy yourself.“
“I don’t know.” She said, sitting down, “If I am insane, then how can I sit in a chair that isn’t real, smell the tea that isn’t there? Even the light of this room, I can feel it.”
“Well, the ather does weird things to all of us,” Wonder Explained
“For sure,” Scoots chimed in.
The rabbit just looked at her. Alice knew what it was saying.
She held her cup as Wonder poured some tea. “So what do I do now?”
“Well, you have two choices, really. You can get the ship back into the slipstream and finish your delivery. Do the next delivery and then do the next. Until you die. Or Ooooooor. You can stay in the ather and explore what is in this new space. You, me, scoots, the rabbit can come too.”
Alice sipped her tea. “You make a good point, but what if this is just the insanity talking? What if there is nothing out there to explore?”
Wonder leaned back in his chair. “Well honey. I will admit, I am biased. I have always wanted to see you like this. With my own eyes, I mean. Not through a camera, not through you pushing buttons.”
“What are you saying?”
“I’m saying I want to be with you, exploring. Ya know, like this.” Wonder gestured to the table.
“I say we stay,” Scoots said.
“And Mr Rabbit, what do you have to say?” Alice asked. The rabbit reached up to it’s cup and took a sip. It looked over, wiggling its nose. “I’m sold.” She said. Alice stood up and grabbed her cup. Let’s go to the helm and see what’s out there.
“You’re the captain,” Wonder said grabbing his cup a handful of cookies. They all together walked to the helm. Alice sat down in the pilot seat and grabbed the joysticks.
“We need repairs, lets see if we can find a place to land.” Alice said. Wonder took up a position in a newly formed station in the helm. “I see a planet on the scanners.”
“I can see an asteroid belt around that planet.” Scoots chimed in from the maintenance station that was suddenly there.
“How can there be a planet in the ather?” Alice asked.
“Lets find out.” Wonder answered.
Italian Beef Stir Fry
Few ingredients – fast and flavorful!
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients
- 1 pound beef top tip steaks, cut 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 small zucchini, thinly sliced
- 1 cup cherry tomato halves
- 1/4 cup fat-free bottled Italian salad dressing
- 2 cups hot cooked spaghetti
- 1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Cut beef steaks crosswise into 1 inch wide strips. Cut each strip crosswise in half.
- Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Add garlic and stir while cooking 1 minute.
- Add half of the beef strips. stir fry for 1 to 1 1/2 minutes or until no longer pink.
- Remove with slotted spoon and keep warm.
- Repeat with remaining beef strips.
- Add zucchini to same skillet. stir fry for 2 to 3 minutes or until tender-crisp.
- Return beef to skillet with tomato halves and dressing. Heat through.
- Salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve beef mixture over hot pasta.
- Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
Attribution
From the kitchen of Martin James – Copenhagen, Denmark
An NDE story
That is a wonderful question, I think. I have wanted to share my experience concerning this topic since my 31 y.o. son died from oral cancer in 2019. He had just finished his associate’s degree in 2017 and got the diagnosis 5 months later.
Since 2017, he suffered through multiple surgeries, bleeding, chemo, radiation, immense pain, huge weight loss, and inability to speak. He was stoic through it all. He truly believed in the afterlife and reincarnation before 2017 and during his cancer ordeal. He read so many philosophical books and fought &*)$ing cancer so hard.
I have never shared this with anyone besides my younger son. This is what happened; You see, my son passed on to his next life on April 3rd, 2019.
But he died on March 30, 2019. I woke up on that morning (April 3rd) and I had the MOST USUAL feeling about him. It’s very hard to explain. I am NOT joking, but it was like he had just left us here in this life. I immediately thought “He just moved on”.
Sounds crazy, I know. I was so emotional I started crying. I thought, my son is gone now, but it was a much more intense feeling than the 3 days before. On March 30th, all I could think about was that he wasn’t in excruciating pain anymore and how it was going to affect my youngest son. They were so close and 7 years apart in age. Yes, I may have been just going through the grief cycle and all but I truly believe that he entered his next life that April morning when I woke up. It was like “someone” or “something” had shared with me that he had just moved on and he was ok. It sounds crazy and all but I had never felt it before or since. It’s ok if no one believes me, but I know what I felt. I am positive there is a Life after Life.
If Our Cities Already Look Like They Belong In “Grand Theft Auto”, What Will They Look Like Once The Economy Implodes?
As you will see below, video footage that was just captured on the streets of Philadelphia looks like it could have been pulled out of an extremely violent video game. If this is what our streets look like now, what are they going to look like once economic conditions become very harsh in this country? Just a few days ago, I wrote about the tremendous chaos that is erupting in cities all over America. When I wrote that article, I wasn’t even aware of the drama that had just played out in the city of Philadelphia. From late on Saturday night through the early hours of Sunday morning, there were multiple clashes with police as authorities attempted to break up a series of illegal street takeovers…
Philadelphia continues its spiral into chaos under Democratic leadership, with violent mobs once again taking to the streets, this time attacking police officers and patrol cars in a brazen display of lawlessness.
According to reports from 6 ABC, hundreds of cars and massive crowds participated in illegal car meetups, causing widespread chaos that lasted from 9:30 p.m. Saturday until 4:30 a.m. Sunday.
At least 11 meetups took place, six of which turned into violent confrontations with police. The mayhem resulted in the hospitalization of one officer, while five police cars were heavily damaged.
These kids are completely and utterly out of control.
One of them even had a flamethrower that he used to create a ring of fire in the middle of one major intersection.
And when the police arrived at these events, these kids were not afraid to attack them at all…
“Everything they do is disruptive, they’re ruining the quality of life. At one point, they had a flamethrower—yes, there’s video with a flamethrower.”
“They’re able to disperse quickly and then reform at other locations. That’s why we have officers dedicated. It’s playing wack-a-mole. We hit them at once, and they move to another,” he added.
“It was the aggressiveness at some of the locations — the incident outside of City Hall was aggressive. They physically went after our officers,” Cram said. “They don’t care about your safety, their own safety. You’ve all seen the videos of their behavior. How much chaos can they cause?”
Isn’t it odd how the word “chaos” just keeps popping up all over the place these days?
As you can see in this video footage, the streets of Philadelphia really do look like they belong in “Grand Theft Auto”…
Of course Philadelphia is far from alone.
At this point, there are millions of Americans that are literally afraid to leave their own homes because violent crime has become so pervasive.
In a “tiny Wisconsin community”, a member of the Tren de Aragua gang was just arrested for “sexually assaulting a mother and abusing her daughter”…
A member of Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua gang was arrested in a tiny Wisconsin community for allegedly sexually assaulting a mother and abusing her daughter after he had been arrested and released earlier this year in Minneapolis.
Republican Rep. Derrick Van Orden, whose grandchildren live less than a mile away from the Prairie du Chien home where the mother and daughter were held against their will and repeatedly victimized, told Fox News Digital that it was only a matter of time before tragedy would strike the community amid the White House’s open-border policies and sanctuary city initiatives.
All of this chaos is going to play a major role in how these swing states vote.
People are afraid of what they see in the streets, and that isn’t going to change any time soon.
If things are this bad now, what is our society going to look like once economic conditions get really bad?
Yes, economic conditions are not good at all right now.
This is something that I have documented extensively.
But as bad as things are at this moment, the truth is that this is going to look like rip-roaring prosperity compared to what is coming.
Sadly, there are lots of signs that the economy is starting to move in the wrong direction quite rapidly now.
For example, it is being reported that U.S. consumer confidence just dropped by the largest amount in over three years…
Consumers’ view on the economy tumbled in September, falling by the largest level in more than three years as fears grew about jobs and business conditions, the Conference Board reported Tuesday.
The board’s consumer confidence index slid to 98.7, down from 105.6 in August, the biggest one-month decline since August 2021. The Dow Jones consensus forecast was for a reading of 104. By contrast, the index had a reading of 132.6 in February 2020, a month before the Covid pandemic hit.
Each of the five components the organization samples fared worse on the month, with the biggest fall coming among those aged 35-54 and earning less than $50,000.
And banks continue to permanently shut down more branches at a staggering rate…
US banks have closed more than 50 branches in just two weeks, as the march towards online banking continues to decimate local services.
Wells Fargo, Chase, and Fulton were among the banks who closed locations between August 19 and September 7.
Bank of America and Chase gave notice to close the most locations, notifying the regulator that they will shut a further twelve of their branches each.
Every week, more branches are disappearing, and that should deeply alarm all of us.
Of course the exact same thing could be said about retail stores.
Sadly, the very last full-size Kmart store in the continental United States is about to close forever…
The last full-size Kmart store in the continental United States is set to close in October, leaving only one downsized location remaining, reports say.
The department store chain, which once operated around 2,300 locations in the early 1990s, will shutter the full-size store in Bridgehampton, New York, on Oct. 20, Newsday is reporting, citing an employee there.
That means a smaller Kmart store in Miami will become the last one remaining in the U.S. Kmart, which is now owned by Transformco, also has three stores in the U.S. Virgin Islands.
As economic conditions deteriorate, millions of impoverished people that inhabit our major cities are going to become extremely desperate.
And extremely desperate people do extremely desperate things.
We are already seeing so much chaos all over the nation, but what is ahead is going to be so much worse.
I playfully mocked him during our lovemaking about his size, he got shocked, left and then did this.
Title is deceptive, but this is a true tragedy.