Keven Fitzpatrick #44 • Motorcycle Grand Tour Of Texas • Grand Saline Texas
Stopped by Grand Saline Texas Stop #7 and ran into four Grand Tourers.
Motorcycle Grand Tour Of Texas: https://motorcyclegrandtouroftexas.com
Grand Celine Texas: https://maps.app.goo.gl/Y68KhwEMcNFt96Hx6
Grand Celine Texas History: Grand Saline's first settlers were the ancient Caddo and Cherokee Indian tribes, who discovered and made use of a large salt prairie south of the town. The Native Americans used evaporated salt, from the brine stream that flows over the flats, as a commodity they traded for other needed goods. In the mid-nineteenth century, the tribes moved southeast, having been forced out of the area by Mirabeau B. Lamar, second president of the Republic of Texas, and by general anti-Indian sentiment. Only a few years after the Indians left the salt prairie behind, a new group of settlers arrived. A settler named John Jordan and other newcomers brought their families and set up a primitive salt works. The community named Jordan's Saline quickly became the center of Van Zandt County and was, for a while, the county seat. There were formerly numerous salt companies in Grand Saline, including the Richardson Salt works, which had drilled the first salt well; the Lone Star Salt Company; Kleer Salt Works, the first steam-powered salt plant; and the Grand Saline Salt Company, which later became part of the Morton Salt Company. During the late 1920s, the discovery of the nearby Van oil field brought companies that provided needed supplies. In the 1930s Grand Saline had twelve petroleum supply companies and five lumber companies. In the Depression years, local sewing rooms made garments for the poor. During World War II, a workers' strike at Morton Salt led the town to form the Grand Saline Industrial Foundation to attract new business to town. Their efforts produced clothing manufacturers, sulfur processing and meat packing companies. Grand Saline was also known for its Lone Star Hotel, which was, for a brief time, the home of Hollywood starlet Louise Fazenda, the wife of Warner Brothers executive Hal Wallis. Agriculture, farming and ranching have long been a major part of the economic life in Grand Saline. Crops have included sweet potatoes and other truck crops. A cotton gin built south of town in 1890 marked the beginning of many years of cotton production. Poultry, livestock, dairy products, lumber and an ice house all played a role in the formation and history of the town.
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The defense and the prosecution today made their closing statements in the New York criminal case against Trump for falsifying business records to hide a $130,000 payment to adult film actress Stephanie Clifford, also known as Stormy Daniels. The payment was intended to stop her account of her sexual encounter with Trump from becoming public in the days before the 2016 election, when the Trump campaign was already reeling from the Access Hollywood tape showing Trump boasting of sexual assault.
The Biden-Harris campaign showed up at the trial today with veteran actor Robert DeNiro and former police officers Michael Fanone and Harry Dunn, who protected the U.S. Capitol and members of Congress from rioters on January 6, 2021. In words seemingly calculated to get under Trump’s skin, DeNiro said, “We New Yorkers used to tolerate him when he was just another grubby real estate hustler masquerading as a big shot,” and called him a coward.
When Robert Costa of CBS News asked campaign spokesperson Michael Tyler why they had shown up at the trial, Tyler answered: “Because you all are here. You’ve been incessantly covering this day in and day out, and we want to remind the American people ahead of the…first debate on June 27 of the unique, persistent, and growing threat that Donald Trump poses to the American people and to our democracy. So since you all are here, we’re here communicating that message.”
Yesterday, in remarks at Arlington National Cemetery in observance of Memorial Day, President Joe Biden honored “the sacrifice of the hundreds of thousands of women and men who’ve given their lives for this nation. Each one…a link in the chain of honor stretching back to our founding days. Each one bound by common commitment—not to a place, not to a person, not to a President, but to an idea unlike any idea in human history: the idea of the United States of America.”
“[F]reedom has never been guaranteed,” Biden said. “Every generation has to earn it; fight for it; defend it in battle between autocracy and democracy, between the greed of a few and the rights of many…. And just as our fallen heroes have kept the ultimate faith with our country and our democracy, we must keep faith with them,” he said.
His speech at Arlington echoed the message he delivered to this year’s graduating class at the United States Military Academy at West Point, where he urged the graduates to hold fast to their oaths. “On your very first day at West Point, you raised your right hands and took an oath—not to a political party, not to a president, but to the Constitution of the United States of America—against all enemies, foreign and domestic,” he said to applause. Soldiers “have given their lives for that Constitution. They have fought to defend the freedoms that it protects: the right to vote, the right to worship, the right to raise your voice in protest. They have saved and sacrificed to ensure, as President Lincoln said, a ‘government of the people, by the people, and for the people shall not perish from the Earth.’”
“[N]othing is guaranteed about our democracy in America. Every generation has an obligation to defend it, to protect it, to preserve it, to choose it,” he said. “Now, it’s your turn.” Biden spent more than an hour saluting and shaking the hand of each graduate.
In contrast, Trump ushered in Memorial Day with a post on his social media company, saying: “Happy Memorial Day to All, including the Human Scum that is working so hard to destroy our Once Great Country, & to the Radical Left, Trump Hating Federal Judge in New York that presided over, get this, TWO separate trials, that awarded a woman, who I never met before (a quick handshake at a celebrity event, 25 years ago, doesn’t count!), 91 MILLION DOLLARS for “DEFAMATION.” He then continued to attack E. Jean Carroll, the writer who successfully sued him for defamation, before turning to attack Judge Arthur Engoron, who presided over the civil case of Trump and the Trump Organization falsifying documents, and Judge Juan Merchan, who is presiding over the current criminal case in New York.
The message behind this extraordinary post was twofold: Trump can think of nothing but himself…and he appears to be terrified.
On Saturday, May 25, Trump had an experience quite different from his usual reception at rallies of hand-picked supporters. He was resoundingly booed at the national convention of the Libertarian Party in Washington, D.C., where Secret Service agents confiscated squeaky rubber chickens before his speech. Attendees jeered Trump’s order, “You have to combine with us,” even when he reminded them of his libertarian credentials—tax cuts and defunding of federal equality programs—and promised to pardon the January 6 rioters who attacked the U.S. Capitol.
Trump also promised to pardon Ross Ulbricht, who founded and from January 2011 to October 2013 ran an online criminal marketplace called Silk Road, where more than $200 million in illegal drugs and other illicit goods and services, such as computer hacking, were bought and sold. Most of the sales were of drugs, with the Silk Road home page listing nearly 13,000 options, including heroin, cocaine, ecstasy, and LSD. The wares were linked to at least six deaths from overdose around the world. In May 2015, Ulbricht was sentenced to life in prison and was ordered to forfeit more than $180 million.
Libertarians want Ulbricht released because they support drug legalization on the grounds that people should be able to make their own choices and they see Ulbricht’s sentence as government overreach. Trump has repeatedly called for the death penalty for drug dealers, making his promise to pardon Ulbricht an illustration of just how badly he thinks he needs the support of Libertarian voters. But they refused to endorse him.
Trump appeared angry, and on Sunday, as Greg Sargent reported in The New Republic, he reposted a video of a man raging at MSNBC host Joe Scarborough. In it, the man says that when Trump is reelected: “He’ll get rid of all you f*cking liberals. You liberals are gone when he f*cking wins. You f*cking blowjob liberals are done. Uncle Donnie’s gonna take this election—landslide. Landslide, you f*cking half a blowjob. Landslide. Get the f*ck out of here, you scumbag.”
Trump’s elevation of this video, Sargent notes, is a dangerous escalation of his already violent rhetoric, and yet it has gotten very little media attention.
Last November, Matt Gertz of Media Matters reported that ABC News, CBS News, and NBC News provided 18 times more coverage of 2016 Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton’s comment at a fundraising event that “you could put half of Trump’s supporters into what I call the basket of deplorables” who are “racist, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic, Islamophobic,” than they provided of Trump’s November 2023 promise to “root out the communist, Marxist, fascist and the radical left thugs that live like vermin within the confines of our country.”
CNN, the Fox News Channel, and MSNBC mentioned the “deplorables” comment nearly 9 times more than Trump’s “vermin” language. The ratio for the five highest-circulating U.S. newspapers was 29:1.
Clinton’s statement was consistent with polling, and she added that the rest of Trump’s supporters were “people who feel that the government has let them down, the economy has let them down, nobody cares about them, nobody worries about what happens to their lives and their futures, and they’re just desperate for change.” She said: “Those are people we have to understand and empathize with as well.”
Sargent noted that news stories require context and that Trump’s elevation of the violent video should be placed alongside his many threats to prosecute his enemies. While there is often concern over disrespect toward right-wing voters, Sargent writes, there has been very little attention to the presumptive Republican presidential nominee’s posting of “a video that declares a large ideological subgroup of Americans ‘done’ and ‘gone’ if he is elected.”
Scott MacFarlane of CBS News reported yesterday that Republicans have ignored a law passed in March 2022 requiring the placement of a small plaque honoring police officers who protected the U.S. Capitol and the lawmakers and staffers there on January 6, 2021. It was supposed to be in place by March 2023 but has not gone up. A spokesperson for House speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) says his office is working on it. Kayla Tausche of CNN reported today that three of the police officers at the Capitol that day—Sergeant Aquilino Gonell and Officer Harry Dunn, both retired, and Officer Daniel Hodges, who is still with the Washington, D.C., metropolitan police—will be traveling to swing states for the Biden campaign to tell voters that Trump threatens Americans’ fundamental rights.
Finally, today, Melinda French Gates, co-founder of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, announced $1 billion in new spending over the next two years “for people and organizations working on behalf of women and families around the world, including on reproductive rights in the United States.” Only 2% of charitable giving in the U.S. goes to these organizations, she wrote the New York Times, and “[f]or too long, a lack of money has forced organizations fighting for women's rights into a defensive posture while the enemies of progress play offense. I want to help even the match.”
—
Notes:
https://www.politico.com/news/2024/05/26/libertarians-reject-trump-rfk-chase-oliver-presidential-nominee-00160040
https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/speeches-remarks/2024/05/27/remarks-by-president-biden-at-the-156th-national-memorial-day-observance-arlington-va/
https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/speeches-remarks/2024/05/25/remarks-by-president-biden-in-commencement-address-to-the-united-states-military-academy-at-west-point-west-point-ny/
https://newrepublic.com/article/181973/trump-media-attacks-media-dangerous-turn
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/congress-fails-to-install-plaque-honoring-jan-6-police-officers/
https://www.cnn.com/2024/05/28/politics/biden-campaign-january-6-officers/index.html
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c722qy5dzlgo
https://www.politico.com/news/2024/05/25/trump-commute-ross-ulbricht-sentence-libertarian-convention-00160025
https://www.ice.gov/news/releases/ross-ulbricht-aka-dread-pirate-roberts-sentenced-life-federal-prison-creating
https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-is-spotlighting-ross-ulbricht-silk-road-appeal-to-libertarians-2024
https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/4305566-trump-doubles-down-death-penalty-for-drug-dealers/
https://www.mediamatters.org/donald-trump/major-news-outlets-gave-much-less-coverage-trumps-vermin-attack-then-they-did-clintons
https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/4687060-donald-trump-squeaky-chicken-libertarian-controversy/
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/28/opinion/melinda-french-gates-reproductive-rights.html
The Dworkin ReportDe Niro and Jan 6 Heroes Unload on Trump Outside NY TrialRobert De Niro just showed up outside the New York City courthouse, where Trump is facing 34 felony counts. Rightwing lunatics are already trying to start conspiracy theories lying and saying that thi…Read more8 hours ago · 765 likes · 132 comments · Scott Dworkin
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Hello, I wanna be able to complete my AA/AS (idk what the difference is) by fall 2024. I have plans on transferring to another college for spring 2025. But I only have 59 credits applied as of right now, and I need one more. I’m a sophomore and biomed major. My fall classes are looking pretty hard right now. Are there any easy 1 or 2 credit courses (preferably online) that I can take for fall? Thank you for any help!

I was watching a YouTube documentary by a Russian woman who visited the Republic of Kalmykia, which is the only region in Europe where Buddhism is the dominant religion. I was struck by how distinctly non-Russian it looked, with a capital city filled with pagodas and Buddhist architecture, and the majority of locals having a Mongolian or Asiatic appearance. Here is the video if you're interested: https://youtu.be/nhHvBQi7kDM?si=Yip0_fRfbB2DhFIq
I couldn't help but be curious...what are some other examples of regions that are technically administered by a larger state but have a look or feel so distinct they're almost like their own "mini country"? Obviously thousands of provinces and regions have their own local cultures with distinct cuisine, dialects, music, geography, etc, but I'm talking about another level of distinctness. I'm looking for regions that are much more than just variations on a common/national theme, but which possess a look and feel completely at odds with the nation at large. Any ideas?

Hello again to Anthony's post-college sale! I will also be travelling to Korea on the 31st of May, so figured, with today and the two days after, to get some of my last sales done. To be transparent, I have been trying to get some more Chinese and Annamnese (Vietnamnese) coins in the near future, so I have to offload some of my stuff to get towards my collecting goals. Got some cool coins lined up in my collection and wanted to offset the cost.
These are all NEW items, mostly from my personal collection of raw inventory, as this sale is mostly raw coins with four nicely graded and slabbed silver pieces of Joseon Korea and of course, Qing and Republican China. Some of the highlights include a NGC AU 58 rare Korean 1 Chon with black enamelling or cloisonne, the only type in the world that would constitute the Taedong series of 1882-83. Quite scarce and nicely toned and sharp for this cast silver issue! There is also a NGC MS 63 Chekiang 10 cent with a much above average strike! And in the realm of PCGS slabs, there is a nice MS 64 blast white Kwangtung 10 Cents, a more uncommon denomination compared to the 20 cents, from the Kuang Hsu era, also ex. personal collection. Lastly, we have a rather large 5 miscals, or half a tael/sar, Sinkiang ration silver xiang yin from the Tihwa Mint, graded XF details. Still a very sharp piece with a authentic LOL Sinkiang black staining on the reverse. Quite unique. I believe this would be hornsilver. Lastly, in terms of raw coinage, we have some nice mini lots of copper cash, including Sinkiang Red Cash and Empire/Provincial 5 cash--a more elusive denomination. We also have a good amount of silver, such as a 1899 Old Kiangnan 20 Cents, ex. Dan Ching, a rare date 1907 Kirin 5 Cents in silver, and three Manchurian Provinces silver 20 cents from my personal collection. There is also a 100 mun from Korea too! All in all, please take a look and let me know if these Asian numismatics and classics in the field interest you!
Thank you all! I hope you all can enjoy these coins from my personal collection! :D
Proof: https://imgur.com/a/BjGDiIA Please Private Message (and not DM) me to order. Also, be sure to put a comment on this post with a "PM" so that I can respond to it before and after the trade is verified.

• In terms of payment, I accept the following: Zelle (Preferred), PPFF (No Notes), Venmo, Cashapp.
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  • To be transparent, I like to ask for email because that is not only for my email PDF invoice, but allows me to plug it into Pirate Ship.
• I will then send you an invoice, in PDF form, from my email inbox to yours. My payment information to allow you to remit payment to me will be in the invoice.
• In terms of shipping, I will ship each order with free, USPS Ground Advantage tracked shipping in a padded envelope, unless stated otherwise.
  • For international orders, including Canada and UK, shipping is not included, and I will quote the actual rate via PirateShip.
  • My handling time is 1(aka, the next business day) to, at most, 3 days.
  • I always like to stay in touch with you all via email!

INVENTORY - Guaranteed GENUINE and FOUR are Certified:
LOTS (in Letter Form):
Lot A: Two Rolls of UNC 1960 D Lincoln Memorial Cents

• Images: https://imgur.com/a/RILEsBp
• Rolls are pretty sure not fully filled. hence, NOT 100 total coins. I think when I was in fifth grade, I took some out as I was curious.
• I will assume that, conservatively, there are 90 coins there. They are ALL the same date and UNC. Lustrous. I do not even collect American coins and found these in my desk drawer below some invoices from years past. I am trying to get rid of them.
• Price: 9 USD shipped (reduced from 11 shipped)

Lot B: 1924 (Year 13) Chekiang (republic) 10 Cents - SILVER - NGC MS 63 - white, nice strike and strong, without weakness as generally seen. Hangchow (Hangzhou) Mint - Lin and Ma 289

• Images: https://imgur.com/a/bCkcLGI
• NGC Certification Page: https://www.ngccoin.com/certlookup/6463097-013/63/
• Nice cartwheel luster, even strike with some minor toning, but overall, is white. Crossed flags are sharp and very little chatter, hence, choice for the grade and much better than some, in, say, PCGS holders, with central weakness on the character side and the dot in the center of the reverse.
• Elusive Republican issued 10 cents silver minor, the only one struck during that time, unlike the 5, 10, and 20 cents issued in the Qing Dynasty with dragons on them.
• Price: 250 USD shipped

Lot C: MS 64 PCGS Kwangtung 10 Cents - Blast White, Very Sharp and Lustrous, Full Scales, near-Choice. An excellent addition to any collection! :D

• Images: https://imgur.com/a/lIUZu0X
• PCGS Certification Page: https://www.pcgs.com/cert/46088562
• Strong cartwheel luster for this type and the second smallest of the denomination, in silver, for this 1890-1908 general issue series. More scarce than the 20 cents!
• Blast white with no tone, and excellent surfaces with sharp dragon scales and no major flaws or chatter (clean fields) and sharp denticles and characters.
• Price: 400 shipped

Lot D: PCGS XF Details (97) - Excessive Corrosion / ED - Sinkiang Ration Silver 5 Mace - rare type and very nice, above average strike on the dragon's scales!

• Images:
• PCGS Certification Page: https://www.pcgs.com/cert/47368560
• Check out that die break! Makes it a lightning dragon LOL.
• This coin was submitted by me! :D And it came originally from a NGC AU Details holder, for Environmental Damage. This is the typical Sinkiang ration silver issue, from the Tihwa Mint, featuring the dragon and of course, weighing slightly higher than 3 mace and 6 candareens---the standard issue of Imperial half dollars. This is due to Sinkiang using the Mace/Miscal and SaTael system!
• Scarce issue and harder to find in higher grades. Really unique "black bone patina" according to Chinese collectors where the obverse, character side is all black. Unique out of my inventory, as most of mine are cleaned and kinda weak scales for a XF. Nearly full dragon scale here.
• Popular half dollar issue from an uncommon Sinkiang Province of Qing Dynasty Imperial China.
• Price: 150 shipped

Lot E: RARE 1882-1883 Taedong Treasury Department - KOREA Silver (Cast) 1 Chon - Black Enamel**. NGC AU 58**

• Images: https://imgur.com/a/p7fhDro
• NGC Certification Page: https://www.ngccoin.com/certlookup/6394230-013/58/
• An elusive issue of the popular one year type from the Joseon Dynasty. THE ONLY CLOISONNE COIN in the world LOL, featuring enamelling in the center. This is the black enamel and there is a good amount present in the central HO (户) character, representing the treasury. Scarce issue and with a premium due to the enamelling being present.
• Nice patina with old cabinet tones, a contrast to the generally silvery and white specimens I see in auction. Sharp strike with nice outer rim to the coin, and lightly circulated. Evenly toned, with some underlying luster.
• Price: 720 shipped

Lot F: 1907 Kirin Province (丁未) - Ting Wei 5 Cents - toned, small scratch on obverse. KEY DATE YEAR

• Images: https://imgur.com/a/SGqRyRN
• Grades FINE with two minor scratches on the already tiny 5 cent's obverse (character side). Nice and circy patina and this is the KEY DATE of the series, as by 1908, the Kirin mint would stop making the Kuang Hsu issues. An affordable way to get this elusive piece.
• Price: 40 usd shipped

Lot G: 1899 (己亥) - 20 Cents Old Kiangnan Lao Kiangnan - ex. Dan Ching (Kraft Envelope Included) - SCARCE!

• Images: https://imgur.com/a/GWC4zik
• References: Krause Y 143a.2 (as in envelope), and Lin and Ma 225. Ex. Dan Ching Collection. Ex. Scott Semans. Purchased in 2016.
• Old cleaning and grades about VF. Toned over nicely as it was stored in a wooden box, and featuring nice details on the dragon and the characters. A popular series when considering the 1 dollar denomination. This 20 cents is much more scarce than the 20 cents you would see in other provinces! :D
• Price: 50 usd shipped

Lot H: 1908 (dated 33rd Year of Kuang Hsu**) Manchurian Provinces 20 Cents - sharp XF**

• Images: https://imgur.com/a/zmu9EYH
• References: Krause Y210a.2, Lin and Ma 491 - six pointed rosettes!
• harder to find Kuang Hsu (1875-1908) dated 20 Cents, which are more scarce than the later issued Hsuan Tung pieces, which were struck well into the republican era.
• Excellent and sharp dragon scales and even denticles and nice characters. Old cleaning toned over nicely with gunmetal elements.
• Price: 48 usd shipped

Lot I: Manchurian 20 Cents - Choice AU/UNC - Lustrous, with sharp dragon scales, and CHERRY BLOSSOM CENTER type, and a later issue, circa 1914. A more uncommon type and harder to find in choice AU to UNC grade as this one. - Hsuan Tung Issue

• Images: https://imgur.com/a/UwQXbL2
• Really sharp strike, was considering sending this to grading!
• References: Lin and Ma 497, cherry or plum flower center (not blank, flower with dot, or manchu script types); Purchased raw by me in 2017!
• Price: 48 USD shipped

Lot J: Manchurian 20 Cents - AU - old cleaning - RARE Variety with DOT in CENTER FLOWER, sharp scales and purchased in 2017 ex. Hong Kong auction - Hsuan Tung Issue

• Images: https://imgur.com/a/wUOqvv2
• This is a much more rare variety and features a dot in the flower of the center of this 20 cent piece. Struck most likely in 1914, again, from unused dies and hence, a republican issue even though there is emperor Hsuan Tung on it! LOL!
• There are tons of varieties for the Hsuan Tung era issues, and this is the second scarcest type. The most scarce is one that I have graded AU 53, which is a dot in the center of the rosette as well as dots below the rosettes that flank the sides of the character side. I know it is a mouthful and I write very verbose, but I wanted to elucidate the variety analysis for these Hsuan Tung era issues.
• Old tone from an old cleaning, retoned and sharp denticles, dragon scales.
• Price: 42 shipped

Lot K: 7 coin lot of struck chinese qing and republican copper and brass! rare denominations including 1 cash!

• Images: https://imgur.com/a/ZwPbO7R
• Highlights include the 1888 Chekiang 1 Cash in UNC, as struck, and milled style, as well as the Kiangnan 1908 1 Cash, and other dragon 10 cash which are from the more uncommon Shangtung Province. All quality pieces with a mix of holed cash and dragon cash, mostly from the Qing era. One interesting Republican era BRASS issue, a scarcer type.
• Price: 30 USD

Lot L: KOREA (Joseon) 1866 Sang Pyong Tong Bo 100 Mun - Nice EF - as cast (Heungson Daewongeun Issue) - large size! Nice characters.

• Images: https://imgur.com/a/knp50rS
• The ever popular Sang Pyong Tong Bo 100 mun series, the largest of the denomination, and cast for the renovations at Gyongbukgung Palace, after a fire. From King Kojong's father, the Heungson Daewongeun.
• Crusty, as usual, and even and dark patina. Sharper than usual characters.
• Price: 32 usd Shipped

Lot M: Copper Nickel Nice AU Year 502 = 1893 1/4 Yang - Rarer Year compared to 1898 Kwangmu 2nd Year - Krause KM 110.

• Images: https://imgur.com/a/Qo6RSDs
• Sharp details on the twin dragons facing each other, kinda look like seahorses! Struck in Korea and NOT in Osaka Japan, and these were from the Joseon Dynasty, as this was before the proclamation of the Daehan Jeguk or the Korean Empire down the road. This is from the Kaeguk 502 (502 years since Joseon's establishment) dating system. We also see CHO SON as well denoting the Joseon Dynasty.
• Nice and original, from an old collection that I got way back in 2017 with other Korea 1 Yangs and 1/4 Yangs, which I sent to ANACS. Nice old envelope tone (light)
• Price: 22 Shipped

Lot N: Lot of THREE Sinkiang Red Cash - all MILLED 10 Cash from the Republican Era (x2 1912, x1 1914) - rare and hard to find compared to other provincial 10 cash!

• Images: https://imgur.com/a/ZPPiaTn
• x1 - Crude FINE/VF AH 1334 = 1914 KASHGAR 10 Cash and x2 FINE - undated but 1912 Crossed Flags 10 Cash - all have nice and original patina for these types; crude and generally, weakly struck and sometimes with planchet flaws.
  • For the undated, crossed flags and struck in 1912 ten RED cashes, One has a staple scratch, and both have original patina and some staining usual for these Sinkiang 10 Cash issues.
• Still an affordable lot to get into the realm of Sinkiang numismatics! Their coins are HEAVIER too lol when we compare a 10 cash from another province or the central mint to a Sinkiang 10 cash.
• ex. personal collection with my notes! :D
• Price for this lot of 3: 30 USD

Lot O: Lot of SIX - assorted and rather uncommon Chinese Dragon 10 Cash - assorted condition from VF to nice AU (brown)

• Images: https://imgur.com/a/6oP6fuc
• Altogether, a really wide ranging dealer's lot of uncommon denomination from rarer provinces for the machine struck cash coins. These are hard to come by when comparing to generic 10 cash coins from Qing era China.
• x1 1905 BRASS Fengtien 20 Cash (Fine), x1 1905 (乙巳) Fengtien TCTK 20 Cash (VF), x1 Chihli Peiyang 20 Cash (SCARCE) - VF+, x1 1903 Hu Poo 20 Cash in nice AU Brown, near UNC; and two Five Cash (rare denomination)
  • Hupeh 1906 5 Cash - old scratch on obverse side (grades aEF), and 1903-05 Hu Poo 5 Cash in VF+ with old minor scratches from handling on the obverse, character side.
• Price: 30 shipped

Hi there. I'm interested on buying some good quality, long lasting t-shirt's for everyday wear without layering.
Last year I bought several dry color crew necks from Uniqlo in size M and I liked how they fit me. For reference I'm 6 feet tall and weigh around 190 pounds. The tees are soft and comfortable and for the most part they have held up reasonably well taking into account their current price point of 9.90 dollars. They are also a bit thin, but that's been great in my case since I live in Dominican Republic and the average temperature here is between 29 and 32 degrees.
Last night I discovered a small hole in the side of one of my tees, most likely due to wear and tear. Now I'm thinking about buying more of this tees before the ones I have start falling apart, but I'm hesitant to buy more of the same tees knowing that they won't last me more than a year.
Another option would be to finally give the famous supima t shirts a try since they're often recommended in this sub, although they seem to be much more expensive now than they were in the past.
My main questions are:
Are they more durable than the dry crew neck t shirts? How long do they tend to last you?
They currently cost 24.90 dollars each, do you think the current prince is reasonable?
How is the fit and sizing?
How do they perform in warmer weather? For reference, I also own a couple of U Alrism Oversized T-shirts and I thought they were too warm for daily use, now I only wear them at night, if at all.

After the revolution of 1918, a new German state has been formed! Whatever you wish to call it — the German Reich, the German Republic, the German People's State, or, as a certain Austrian soldier will famously refer to it, the Weimar Republic — it is the most democratic that Germany has ever been, with all forms of nobility abolished, and all Germans over age 20, including women and soldiers, given the vote. And with democracy comes elections, these elections being especially important as they will determine who writes the constitution. Many groups have different ideas for the overall German state, with both the radical right and radical left opposed to its current form; the left, in particular, has recently made multiple attempts to create communist governments via insurgencies. Moreover, groups that agree on basic governing principles still have different ideas on basic day-to-day policies. So, let's get into the parties!
The Center Party (Zentrumspartei) is Germany's primary Catholic political organization, having re-emerged. It purports to not represent any faction of society, but rather the entire Catholic majority. Ironically, because of this, it is divided into several factions. The party's left wing favors a commitment to republicanism and working with trade unions, a small minority of them supporting a type of Christian socialism. Some also support forming a broader party of all Christians, but such plans have been rejected. The right wing, in contrast, generally denounces democracy as being opposed to Catholic values. Adolf Gröber, the current leader of the party, leans towards the left, supporting trade unions and the republic without going anywhere near socialism. The party's strategy for the election is based on uniting by focusing on what they all oppose: they have utilized attacks on the Church by some Social Democratic officials to fan their Catholic base into fighting a culture war.
The German Democratic Party (Deutsche Demokratische Partei), or DDP for short, represents the left-wing component of German liberalism. Founded almost exactly when the Republic was (in large part by, interestingly enough, Max Weber), it is proud to call itself the party representing the republic and liberal republican ideas of personal freedom. Hence, it is known as the strongest opponent of calls for dictatorship, and is the only party to have no significant wing in favor of replacing democracy with despotism. Let's see how that turns out. While still liberal and in favor of private enterprise in general, it also supports social reforms, a system of negotiations between labor and capital, and even the state takeover of natural monopolies, a policy which has caused much internal controversy. Friedrich von Payer leads the party, with a background having worked to strengthen the legislature and support peace during the Imperial era.
The German People's Party (Deutsche Volkspartei), or DVP for short, represents the right-wing component of German liberalism. Their platform calls for secular education, lower tariffs, conservative values, opposition to welfare spending and agrarian subsidies, and hostility to socialism — a crucial tenet is private property, which they are the only party fully in support of. The DVP emphasizes personal liberty as its utmost priority, viewing excessive state intervention as wrong even when it comes from majority support. To that end, the party is split on whether a constitutional monarchy or a republic would be better safeguards of liberty, a question with an answer that seems obvious but here we are. Unlike other conservatives, they support restoration of great power status via free trade, peace with the United States, and expansion of credit, though they don't oppose radically oppose militarism either. They are led by Rudolf Heinze, a major founder of the party.
The Social Democratic Party (Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands), or SPD for short, is, you guessed it, the party supporting social democracy. Nowadays, social democracy is a vague term, but back then they were sure that it meant...uh...well, they weren't quite sure either. The party contains support for Marxist historiography, such as the idea of class struggle, and they do consider themselves socialists, but they focus more on pragmatic reforms, such as improved working conditions, support for unions, and increased welfare spending. The SPD has come under some controversy from its left for its suppression of anti-democratic leftist radicals seeking to overthrow the state, and the left also still resents the party leadership's support of the Great War. The party is led by Friedrich Ebert, a moderate Social Democrat strongly supportive of democracy, and Philipp Scheidemann, one of the figures who first proclaimed the Republic and a supporter of using the workers councils in the context of parliamentary democracy.
The Independent Social Democratic Party (Unabhängige Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands) or USPD for short, meanwhile, is the front for the aforementioned alienated left-wing social democrats. Founded during the War as unabashed pacifists, they aren't communists, but they are definitely socialists, supporting Soviet Russia, frequently using Marxist language, and advocating for the creation of a full-on socialist economic system. To this end, they are supporters of the movement to form independent councils of workers, though they doubt that those who want to replace the democracy with said councils have correct judgement; after all, they say to themselves, surely the SPD and USPD will easily have a majority when every worker is able to vote! With the Communist Party boycotting the elections, the USPD is likely to gain a large amount of the hardline Marxist vote, but the actual USPD politicians still see themselves as left-wing social democrats above all else. The party is led by Hugo Haase, who is a moderate "revisionist" in the party supportive of reform rather than revolution, and a noted prominent Jew (and much of the criticism against him, even among Social Democrats, is related to that fact).
Last, and probably least, we have the German National People's Party (Deutschnationale Volkspartei), or DNVP for short. This is the most right-wing party, and their three planks are anti-democracy, anti-Catholicism, and anti-Semitism. They buy into the "stabbed-in-the-back" myth about the end of the war, claiming that the loss of the war and founding of the Republic came from intentional sabotage (by, of course, the Jews), and thus seek to restore the Kaiser and reclaim all lost territory. They have a very negative view towards Catholics, who they call "Romish". Unsurprisingly, they have an even more negative view towards Jews: they've banned Jewish membership since their founding, their first ever convention had enthusiastic chants of "without the Jews," and for this election they've produced a pamphlet entitled "The Jews—Germany's vampires!" More women than men vote for the DNVP, and women are very active in the party, particularly those concerned with getting rid of prostitution and pornography. They also have a high farmer presence, and strongly support agricultural tariffs. The DNVP is led by Arthur von Posadowsky-Wehner, a member of the old nobility.
So, who will we vote for to lead our country and write our constitution? Vote here to find out! If no party gets a majority, I'll do a separate post and vote for coalition formation. Try to vote without hindsight.

Huge shout out to u/ryguy637 & u/-Eterox for helping with Brainstorming and Co-Writing this.
As always, all credits for the original Nature of Predators and it's content goes to Space Paladin15, thank him for allowing artist and writers to use his original work of art for their own uses.
Gaian Ref Sheet-Here, Done by the artist u/Roddcherry
As well as a *Huge* thank you for Julian Sky's for filling in for being an editor again for this chapter! This chapter will be pulling away from the subject memory transcription, instead exploring one of the new regions within the Venian Commonwealth. The "Dark Corner"
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"This program is a special update to the Thafki Advocacy’s situation on their new home world, Ayzife. Originally we here at WTWN had done a piece a couple of years back towards the last days of the War, and now we wanted to send one of our reporters to find out- has anything changed? With that, we'll let Rux Limpbut take it away for this one. And please do be aware, user discretion is advised.”
The date of my arrival to Ayzife, the new Thafki homeworld, had arrived. It was a part formally called by our government the “New Re-Seeding Sector”, but It had gained a painful nickname as quickly as it was given its government one. “The Dark Corner”.
A group of Thafki, listless and confused, is shown, as a small group of Gaians seem to herd them back into a recently finished project. A Gaian man is showing us around, telling us of the hardships, his face has been blurred for their safety.
“What am I to do?” The thick Mountaineer accent rang out from the man’s scarred face. He was one of the first officers that had come across the cattle ranches and the true extent of the horror that laid within them. “The adults can't speak, they can't learn. The children are really the only hope…” his accented voice trails off as he checked within some of the residences, some of the seemingly adult Thafki, stunted and confused, are being hand fed. They do not respond to any orders, at least not to ones in any other language except that of the prey killers, or that of our Horned and able bodied Sister species.
The children are crowded around their parents, speaking in a mix of Thafki and a Piggish- like squealing imitation of Arxur. One approaches me and the cameraman, asking us a question.
“Savageness?” They eek out. Compared to the parents, the children seem blissfully unaware to what they or what their loved ones went through, their eyes shining brightly, even if they're glazed over in a mountain of unrealized horror. Our guide calls over a shabbily dressed Thafki, in an overly large uniform. Hand-me-downs from our sister species. It has been hemmed to solgalik and back, but it was still painfully apparent that it barely fit comfortably.
The Thafki, as I was to learn later, “Guzifi” or police, takes the child away and back into the building we peered into. Our cameraman zooms into the back of their necks, a painfully visible barcode and scratched in number can be seen. I stand aghast, before our guide comes back to us, his eyes sullen and shrunken into his head, hammered with fatigue.
“As I was saying…*most* of them can't do anything. But the ones like Curzix there-” he gestures to the man, who is now knelt down, stroking the child's hair, a faint giggle echoing in the sparse abode “-He escaped early into his stint, it hardened him. He was one of the first to sign up once we finished the terraforming process at the beginning of this year.”
We are hurried on, “Curzix” soon rejoins us as we continue to inspect and report. Only months ago this entire section we were in was a barren wasteland, only recently finished terraforming. Now? It's crammed with tightly knit buildings, services, and other amenities. But it's not enough. “Reservists” from our Sister species, as they called them, are the majority of people dealing with the Thafki here, only a handful of Guzifi are to be seen amongst the crowds and herd of broken.
Soon we find ourselves in a “rehabilitation” facility, so to speak, the local baker is the first to greet us, head to toe in traditional thafkian garb, and a small basket of baked goods they had made earlier this morning. She gestures for us to take some, which me and the cameraman do.
“And this-” the Provincial-Governor who had been tailing with us begins, before the Thafki finishes for him
“I'm Zaifi.” She sticks her hand out, and I do the same in kind. I quickly noted that she seemed to be the only light in this icker of dark, bitter sadness that assuaged us. She turns around and begins to wander through the halls as we begin to trail behind her, questions outpouring.
“Are you one of the Free Thafkis that came here?” I ask, she nods in response while clearing her throat..
“Yes. I might be one of the few to even go so far as to say my life's been better since I came here.” She responds. I nod along, taking her words in as I take a bite of the customary “Cionn” bread.
It's one of the signs of the Thafki Advocacy's-now Thafki Republic-Efforts to Re-Seeding their culture and themselves. I'm later told it's an offshoot of a more savory dinner bread, softer and less sweet called Uniffin'Dath, although I'm also told that that type of bread is used in conjunction with Striou (not Strayu) soup.
While I do so, however, I take glances behind me and to the sides of me. Behind me, the Gaian Sector-Governor, Halim and the Thafki Republic’s first Councilor, Ralikenn are having a heated discussion. Something our camera notices as he increases the sensitivity on the recording equipment.
“...I can't believe you all….a junta that…” are the words picked up from Ralikenn, as Halim begins to frown heavily, and begins to speak back.
“... Can't you… supplies arrived…” The discussion continues as Zaifi grabs my attention, the cameraman I'm with peering into the doors we pass by.
The camera pans to Thafki children, in various states of appearance, are sat down in school desks. At the front of their rooms either a Gaian or Thafki teacher can be seen, teaching anything from their language, their dress code, etiquette and more. Soon the camera pans back to Rux and Zaifi.
“So while I serve the food here, I also try and show them the history of us and our resilient culture through it. The background of it, how it came to be and how it weaves with us.” Zaifi continues as we walk down the hallway, she veers off into one of the rooms, and hesitantly I follow.
The inside was quite well worn for how new the building was, already indentations, marks, and other scratches and scuffs could be seen. Signs of hard work and labor, something that is unsurprising considering Zaifi and her duties. As she begins to work, it's time for me to ask her about her thoughts on the situation.
“Compared to the last couple of decades, where do you think your species is at now? I mean, a lot has changed. From being a species with the large portion of your population being cattle to now having a government and world handed to you, it's got to be a bit jarring?”
Zaifi nods, the trademark pearls on a brooch around her neck click and clack gently together, the synthetic pearls a sign of what the Advocacy group had been able to hold on to throughout the centuries.
“Well-” she starts off, as she begins to knead a greenish-blue dough on the distinctly brown work surface, the faint smell of Saltwine being smelt from where I was standing. “I wish we got a welcome, as good as the Paltans and the Gaians gave us. I mean, they split half and half on things here and there around the village!”
The camera pans around the room, bits and baubles of Zaifi’s own life being dotted around it. A bottle or two of sea wine, a basket of synthetic pearls, hints of oceanic theming bedazzle the room.
Zaifi begins to portion out the Bread-a serving of Cionn. A serving of the more savory Uniffin'Dath. Both are seasoned with a spice that is only rarely mentioned in some cookbooks, “Izuzdath.” The process is lively, a stark contrast to last year's report at a holding world as they finished terraforming here.
If you were to have told me that a Thafki would be smiling while knee deep in this grime that is misery, I would've called you a liar. But apparently…
“So how long have you been around here? Or rather should I say, with the herd?” I ask. It causes Zaifi to stop and look at the basket of pearls. Each of them are inscribed with a loved or close one that died, and the date on which they did so. Many of them aren't her relatives, rather they are the few Thafki she has bonded with while staying here.
“Physically? Only…a year or two. But mentally-” The dull sound of the bread being put upon a pre-oiled stone, an smoothed coral stone no less, echoed softly while the grinding of such a stone sliding into one of the waiting ovens as it did so was a stark contrast. The clasp of the oven door closing caused her to turn back to us. She sighs as she pats down her apron.
“Centuries. I guess we grew accustomed to being the odd ones out. Now that my herd- my people, have a place to call their own…” She is sullen for a moment, before her eyes meet the window, overlooking a courtyard. The smile reappears just as quickly as it disappeared.
“Ya know. I'll take this for now, the funniest thing ya know-” she gestures to me to come over and look. The courtyard has a simple watery filled pit. A “pool” as our sister species had dubbed it, seemed to be the eye and star of this little facility, at least for the attendee's. A whole gaggle of Thafki children, in a wardrobe of mismatched, shabby clothing suited for the water could be seen as they ran about it. What I could only assume was their teacher watched over them.
“Your saplings are quite the good match. Even they seem to want to bring the water to themselves sometimes.” She says to herself now in a far more reassured tone. As I begin to smile myself, just a little, a tap is felt on my shoulder. It's Curzix, the Guzifi that has been assigned to us.
The camera now zooms out from the pool and the other recreational activities happening in the center of the U-shaped facility, and turns around quickly, now focusing on Rux and Curzix.
“We'll we're ready to go when you are, you all wanted to get the full experience yeah?” Curzix stuffs his paws into the oversized and hemmed coats pockets, the armband with the symbol of Guzifi. He meanders off as we begin to follow him, I say my goodbyes to Zaifi, and she returns them in kind as we are led back out of the hallway.
We start off now checking the facility in depth, taken into one classroom in particular. It is here that our cameraman points out something peculiar. The extreme range of coloring in the Thafki children here. Looking past numerous ranch markings, numbering, and a word inscribed on the arm of each in the Ruinous Lizards language, the Thafki children are striking.
The camera makes cuts to each of the Thafki children in the room. The variety of blues is numerous. Some are in a vibrant luscious blue, other ones have a dull, greyer one. And yet these are the least eye-catching ones. Some have sporadic spots. Some have a sickly greenish blue hue. And yet some are completely devoid of their regular blue, replaced with a dull brown. The camera now returns to overlooking the entirety of the room from the doorway.
As I entered the room the teacher, who had requested that their face be blurred, comes to me and shakes my hand. They gesture to the Thafki pupils, who are in varied state of affairs. Some of them are paying attention, while others are far more focused on their desks or some portion of the wall.
“You came in at a good time, we're trying to teach them Thafki. It's been a bit of a struggle, but we've been making some slow and small progress.” the teacher comes alongside one of the brightly colored pupils, resting their hand gently on their shoulder. The child flinches for a bit, expecting something as they tense up, before they relax.
“Are they a handful?” I ask to the teacher as they themselves point onto a piece of paper in front of the pup, pointing something out
“From time to time. But whenever the horned fellows come along they calm down quite a bit.” the Thafki’s eyes dart occasionally from the paper on the desk to the doorway behind us, looking back shows the Sector-Governor that has been with us this entire time.
The last time we had visited a rehabilitation center-albeit it was just after the war had wrapped up-the facility was in a far more ramshackle situation compared to now, but while the situation is improving, there's still more to do.
With our little visit to the center done our entourage made our way outside. As we did so a rumbler, an armored vehicle used by our other half, came rolling by. A gaggle of Thafki on it, a Gaian within the group giving us a glance as they went by.
It's here where the uncomfortable nature and scandalous portion of the Re-Seeding comes in. The Laborer gangs, seen as a solution to perceived laziness on Ayzife from some of the Ex-Cattle. The concept is basic and rudimentary both in premise and execution, anything simple is offered up to the gangs first, before giving up to the more general labor sections assigned to the planet.
We keep trudging along, the plethora of buildings being assembled or constructed is numerous along the trail we're taking. Along our way, Ralikenn begins to talk about how far they've come in such a short time span. He gestures to the buildings before he begins to speak.
“All of this-” Our cameraman moves and angles his camera to the row of unfinished buildings, in various states of construction. “In just about a year, it's nearly unbelievable to be honest. I had, tearfully, resigned myself to a forgone conclusion to our species. But now?-” They begin to tear up clearly overwhelmed at this point, they attempt to speak but all that happens is their mouth staying agape for mere moments, before closing and just shaking their head.
And yet there's still more to see. More to do and more to make right. I only hope we can do it in time, as a herd.

Credit to MarcelusWalrus, who's Fallout Universe map was my point of reference for the placement of a lot of the factions on the map, this is also probably going to be a work in progress, which I'll update depending on both any suggestions or any new canon info that Bethesda releases, since I'm also trying to keep it all somewhat lore accurate to the best of our knowledge of said lore.
This is also largely just my ideas on the state of the ncr, so it's likely going to be much more detailed than most of the others, any ideas on what might flesh other groups out more are very welcome.
NCR: following their loss to the ruler of the strip, and subsequent evacuation, ncr troops returned home to find California in an even worse state, the capital was destroyed nearly exactly as the second battle for the dam took place, and it's destruction plus the armies defeat sent the already struggling ncr economy into a steep decline, seeking a solution, the reformed government attempted another, larger invasion of the mojave a few years later, which led to significant losses on both sides and ultimately another defeat.
This time, troops returned to a nation in near complete chaos. Shortages of food, water, and a now nearly worthless currency led to poverty and famine not seen since the founding of ncr, and riots over said famine, draft protests, and the resurgence of powerful raider gangs meant police and army forces were unable to keep order in many parts of the country, during this time, Brotherhood forces also began to re-emerge, defeating the scattered army in multiple battles. At this point desertion within the ncr military reached its all time high, with thousands of troops either going missing or being confirmed deserters, many of these soldiers would eventually end up forming their own gangs and petty warlord kingdoms within abandoned territories, with most becoming only slightly better than the raiders they were originally supposed to be fighting.
Eventually, the strain on the nation became too much, and the ncr began to officially withdraw from the southern states, with boneyard being one of the first, followed by almost every settlement, one by one, until the line finally held, the new border stretching from Navarro and the coast in the west to the Big Circle and Reno in the east. The ncr was gravely weakened due to its withdrawal, and lost both much of it's citizens as well as much of its industrial and commercial centers, despite this it has consolidated what it does have, and it's remaining cities are enough to keep it standing as one of the major powers of the west, albeit much less capable of its previous feats and ambitions
As of right now, the ncr is pursuing a policy largely of isolationism, and the ideas and ideals of figures like former senator Hanlon and Tandi hold great sway over the republic. Since the collapse the ncr had mainly been forced to focus its energy into rebuilding the north and solving the lingering issues of the food and water supply, and while it still boasts a comparatively formidable army, that army is strictly defensive, with no plans to fight back or reclaim territory being put in motion.
SHI EMPIRE: following the collapse of the ncr, the shi returned largely to a more isolationist stance on the outside world, shutting their gates and sealing San Francisco off from much of the outside world. Despite this, rumors persist about secret weapons deals with various wasteland groups, ranging from particularly influential warlords to the ncr itself, though this is not confirmed
THE HUB: following ncrs withdrawal from the south, the hub fell under the control of a coalition of caravan companies, local officials and army officers, and eventually managed to mitigate the damage of the collapse, soon returning to its role as a hub of trade for southern California, albeit with markedly less profit and stability, they are also one of the only places left in the south that are still in constant communication with ncr proper, with the hub maintaining telegraph lines between the powers in exchange for ncr goods and ammunition.
RENO: during the collapse, New Renos crime families declared independence from ncr, retaking official control over the city and forming a loose alliance to govern it, however this coalition quickly broke down, and the city is currently embroiled in a civil war between the Wrights, who also lead the remnants of the alliance, and the Van Graffs, who are attempting to seize complete control. So far the conflict has remained within the borders of the city and its surroundings, however ncr and Follower presence on the border has increased, both in response to a refugee crisis as well as the possibility of further escalation
WEST COAST BOS: following the decline of ncr, the brotherhood got the breathing space in the war it sorely needed, the west coasts elders and clerics needed only to wait for the ncr to continue to weaken, and following their second loss in Vegas, as well as news from the east of their victories and incoming reinforcements, the western brotherhood pushed back, retaking many of its lost bunkers and pushing ncr forces back. Currently it has merged with a large contingent of the east coast brotherhood, and brotherhood forces have been seen attacking a remnant warlord force in the boneyard area, though the exact reason for this is unknown
NCR REMNANT: largely regarded as a myth or hearsay, rumors persist about a large force of veteran rangers and soldiers who, upon receiving word or the retreat from Baja and later the south, remained in and defended the city of Dayglow, turning the city into a fortress, however due to the presence of multiple hostile groups and the lack of contact from the area, Dayglows remnants are regarded more as a conspiracy theory than an actual unit
WARLORD TERRITORY: warlord territory refers to the largely lawless stretches of former ncr land that have fallen into the control of small territorial groups, whether they be raider gangs, former army units, former brahmin barons, citizens militias or whoever else may have the incentive and manpower to claim territory, quality of life in these areas is still barely better than it was in the collapse, and wars, raids, and starvation are still commonplace, as well as the re-emergence of practices like slavery
NEW VEGAS: following the victory of the ruler of the strip over ncr, little is known in the wider west about the state of Vegas, though it would seem that progress was being made towards greater stability following ncrs retreat, this wouldn't last though, as the second ncr invasion began, and was met with extremely stiff resistance from the securitron army, as well as numerous local groups. Ultimately ncr troops managed to inflicted major casualties on the strip forces, even attacking and breaching the strip itself, and the damage done seems to have shattered Vegas as much as it did the ncr, leaving whatever plans its ruler had unfinished
THE LEGION: following their defeat at hoover dam, as well as the death of Caesar shortly after, the legion began to deteriorate and eventually dissolve, with many of its tribes returning to their former ways or what was left of them, the legion remains however, mainly in and around the capital of Flagstaff, though severely diminished, they have largely taken to ruling over or pillaging the reformed tribal groups and former ncr border settlements. Though many within the legion still hold Caesars ideals, none have been able to recapture what was broken when he died, and so the legion continues to decline.
LEGIO REGRESSUS: the name given by Legion to those who have returned to their former ways following the death of Caesar, vast swaths of the legions subjects attempted to return to their tribes roots, often to little success. Instead forming new tribes that are often completely antithetical to the legions ideals, this has led to the early beginnings of a confederation of tribes and villages that have proven to be a powerful force against the ambitions of the legion and groups like it, using legion tactics and weapons against them in response to slave raids and attempts at reintegration
GREAT KHANATE: following their move to Wyoming, the Khans formed a powerful nomadic empire based off the Mongols of old, so far little is known about their new society, though there have been reports of khan riders as far off as the california coast
EAST COAST BOS: the east coast brotherhood continues to reign as one of the major powers on the eastern seaboard, being the most powerful military force in the area, the commonwealth is the current headquarters of the high elder maxon, as well as his most trusted clerics, choosing it for its abundance of technical artifact over the comparatively safer capital wasteland, however pressure has been mounting for the elder to move once more, as the CPG at large has been becoming much less favorable towards the brotherhood, which it sees as overly protective of its tech and as overstepping its bounds far too frequently
COMMONWEALTH PROVISIONAL GOVERNMENT: following the destruction of the institute the minutemen, alongside the brotherhood and multiple prominent settlements reformed the CPG, a council of representatives from each group who would govern the commonwealth amd surrounding areas, since it's inception the cpg has grown by many settlements, and the minutemen have grown alongside it, developing a standing professional garrison in many major towns, though still relying on its militia as its major military force. Recently the cpg has begun to debate the brotherhoods place on the council, and many councilors are demanding an end to the confiscation of technology from their citizens, with many demanding a right to use force against such attempts or demanding an eviction of the brotherhood from their bases across the commonwealth.

Dr Russel Norman produced this excellent summary of Luxon's War on Nature, links included.
It can be challenging to keep up with this many environmental attacks, coming from different Ministers and in different stages of development. To make it clearer, I have tried to list all the anti-nature policies below, provide some background, and give an indication of their stage in the policy process.
When you list them all like this, it really is entirely fair to describe it as a ‘war on nature’.

1. Fast track approvals bill is a fast track to destruction

The premier vehicle for the government’s anti-environmental war on nature is the Fast Track Approvals Bill, currently before Parliament’s Environment Select Committee. This Bill has been well traversed elsewhere but it is worth noting here a few things.
Firstly, this bill gives three individual ministers with no particular knowledge or expertise the ability to green light pretty much any project they like with almost zero environmental constraints.
There are panels who will provide advice to Ministers on individual projects, however these panels are handpicked by the Ministers and the Ministers are free to ignore the panels’ recommendations. The Ministers have publicly and clearly voiced their disdain for environmental considerations.

No public input

Secondly, there is no opportunity for public input.
They can approve an industrial incinerator next door and you don’t even have the right to make a submission on it. It’s a pretty wild level of disregard for the general public, but of course those who have connections to the government will have plenty of chances to lobby ministers at fundraising dinners and suchlike.
This results in poor decision making. One of the things about public submissions is that information comes to the surface that was otherwise hidden. In the Pakiri sand mining case for instance it was revealed through public submissions that the sandmining company was not telling the truth about its actual sandmining practices and that its expert had overestimated the annual sand replacement by a factor of ten.
Under this regime, it isn’t what you know, or whether you have a good project, it’s who you know.

Court decisions overturned

Thirdly, this process can overturn court decisions in which projects have already been declined due to environmental impacts.
This is patently the case with the South Taranaki seabed mining proposal which was rejected by the Supreme Court. Independent judges who tested evidence submitted and cross examined in open court found that the applicant simply couldn’t demonstrate that their project wouldn’t cause immense harm.
But this is all replaced by closed panels giving advice to Ministers who will make decisions with zero public scrutiny. It’s banana republic stuff.

Blocking renewable energy projects

One of the impacts of this kind of Government-by-Ministerial-Fiat is that that rational and evidence based decision making is put to one side in favour of individual favours.
An example of this is the conflict between seabed mining and offshore wind in the south Taranaki Bight. A normal rational decision-making process could look at both, but in this case, it will come down to which companies can woo the three Ministers the best.

Corruption

Finally, this is a process which is wide open to corruption, as corporations pushing projects that cause environmental harm seek to be placed on the fast track list, with a virtual guarantee of approval.
Ministers could be corruptly influenced by bribes in cash or in kind, by jobs for their families, by jobs for themselves post-politics, or by campaign donations. Advisers who provide access to Ministers and determine which corporations get onto the list will be equally incentivised to act corruptly.
Already, some of the companies that Ministers have invited to apply for fast track are their donors. Mining company executives have had secret dinners with Ministers that were only revealed by accident and journalists asking questions. How many secret dinners will we never find out about?
Even the Ministry for the Environment analysis can be summarised as the bill:
‘could diminish local voices, violate Treaty of Waitangi commitments, significantly impact human and environmental health, open legal risks for the ministers involved, provide an unprecedented back door for prohibited projects, and erode the value of conservation land’
This single bill, if it proceeds and if businesses have the gall to use it, will cause widespread harm. It could include seabed mining, incinerators imposed on local communities, mining most everywhere including the conservation estate, marine farms everywhere, industrial irrigation driving water pollution, etc etc etc. It is a war on nature but it is also diminishing democracy and opening the door to corruption.

2. Dismantling freshwater protections

One of the truly remarkable things about Aotearoa is the scale of ground and surface water pollution and its impact on biodiversity and human health. This government’s war on nature is set to make it worse.

Things are pretty bad already

The Ministry for the Environment concluded that ‘Most of our indigenous freshwater fish and freshwater bird species… are either threatened with extinction or at risk of becoming threatened’. Intensive industrial dairy has poisoned the well across much of the South Island – Canterbury, Otago and Southland have poisoned rivers and groundwater.
Land and Water Aotearoa found that ‘There is not a single monitored lake shallower than 10 metres in very good condition.’ Environment Canterbury in 2024 found nitrate levels increasing in 60% of the wells it tested. Many parts of the North Island with intensive dairying such as the Waikato are also heavily polluted.
Under pressure from the environment movement and the majority of New Zealanders, the last government brought in a series of national regulations to place some constraints on agribusiness pollution, particularly the National Policy Statement on Freshwater Management. Agribusiness virulently and vociferously opposed these regulations.
The new government is setting about undoing these regulations with its war on nature.

Delaying regional freshwater plans

This began in December 2023 when Andrew Hoggard, the former head of agribusiness lobby group Federated Farmers and now Associate Agriculture Minister, announced that regional councils would be given a further three years to update their freshwater plans to make the plans consistent with the new national regulations introduced by the last government.
The purpose of the delay is to weaken or remove the national regulations before the regional councils develop their new regional freshwater plans which must be consistent with the national regulations.

Replacing the National Policy Statement

He also announced that they would start the process of systematically weakening the national regulations by replacing the National Policy Statement on Freshwater Management (NPSFM) with a weaker version.

Removing rules on intensive winter grazing

This was followed up in April 2024 with the announcement of an amendment to the RMA which will remove the rules controlling intensive winter grazing.
Intensive winter grazing is a widespread practice in Otago and Southland in which feed crops are grazed intensively through winter. This results in cows, often pregnant, living in mud sometimes up to their bellies with massive sediment flows into rivers and lakes. The sediment smothers freshwater ecosystems.

Ensuring Te Mana o Te Wai doesn’t apply to consents

Also included in this amendment to the RMA is a direction to regional councils that a national regulatory instrument called Te Mana o Te Wai must not be applied to the assessment of individual resource consent applications. Te Mana o Te Wai states that, when making decisions on the allocation of freshwater, the needs of ecosystems come first, the needs of human health second, and other uses such as irrigation third.
Te Mana o te Wai was the foundation for hearing panels rejecting applications to take water and cause more pollution in Hawkes Bay and Southland recently. Giant dairy polluter Fonterra and agribusiness lobby groups objected to this use of Te Mana o Te Wai and appealed the decisions.
The new Government aims to ensure that commercial users can get first consideration ahead of ecosystems or human health. This also means the lessons of the world’s biggest crypospridiosis outbreak in Havelock North are abandoned .

Freshwater Farm plans to be weakened or abolished

Alongside this Freshwater Farm Plans, which were a requirement for agribusiness managers to plan to reduce their water pollution, will be weakened if not abolished altogether.
As you can see it is an intensive and extensive attack on the rules protecting freshwater as part of the broader war on nature.

3. Removal of requirement to identify important areas of biodiversity

A large part of New Zealand’s remaining biodiversity is on private land with very little legal protection, which is leading to dramatic losses. This happens through wetland drainage, agricultural intensification, subdivisions etc.
Even as recently as 2009 Landcare Research reported that ‘Agricultural intensification over the past 10 years has led to the highest rate of native vegetation loss since European colonisation.’ Landcare Research was deeply unpopular with the government and agribusiness after making this finding.
In response to the widespread destruction of biodiversity on private land the National Policy Statement on Indigenous Biodiversity was introduced in 2023 after many years of discussion and consultation. The purpose is ‘to maintain indigenous biodiversity across Aotearoa New Zealand so that there is at least no overall loss in indigenous biodiversity’. A part of this national policy statement is a requirement for councils to identify ‘Significant Natural Areas’ in their area as a precursor to providing for their protection.
The idea of rules to protect biodiversity ran up against agribusiness, the key driver of the ‘highest rate of native vegetation loss since European colonisation’, and hence Federated Farmers deeply opposed these rules.
As part of the RMA amendment bill announced in April 2024, the Luxon Government plans to remove the requirement that councils identify ‘’Significant Natural Areas’’, and hence biodiversity on private land will not even be identified let alone protected so its destruction can continue unabated.

4. Transport – more motorways, fewer cycleways and less public transport

Land transport is New Zealand’s second biggest climate polluter after agribusiness and yet this government has embarked on a radical policy agenda to increase pollution. The war on nature can be illustrated just by listing some of the initiatives:

Cuts to public transport

They have cut funding to public transport, walking and cycling and increased funding to motorways as part of the draft Government Policy Statement on land transport. Auckland Council pointed out that entire suburbs would be left without access to public transport as a result of the cuts and that fares would increase.
Across the whole country this draft policy statement will lead to more transport pollution and fewer trips by public transport walking and cycling. It also centralises much of the decision making around transport by preventing Councils from building cycleways alongside roads funded by central government money.
As part of the draft policy statement they removed climate as a requirement for consideration in transport decision making.

Impact on young people

They have removed the subsidies for young people to use public transport at discounted rates, not only making the cost of living crisis harder for them and their families but pushing them towards car transport.
They are moving to increase speeds around schools which not only increases injuries it discourages families from sending their kids to school by bike or foot because they know that speeding cars are more dangerous.
This sits alongside the attacks on traffic calming measures such as raised pedestrian crossings, which the NZ Herald has been busy providing misinformation about. Many Councils are resisting the idiots in Wellington, thank goodness, and are lowering speed limits anyway.

Interisland ferry funding removal

They cut the funding for the interisland ferry terminals and cancelled the new ferries which have lower emissions. The ferries connect the train network as well as the roading network.
Kiwirail lost its Climate Bonds certification as a result and will repay the $350m it borrowed plus interest.
The cost to the Government of breaking the ship build contracts is thought to be in the hundreds of millions. It’s an expensive mistake which a future government will have to fix.

Ending subsidies for low-emissions vehicles

They ended the subsidies for low emissions vehicles resulting in a collapse in EV and small car sales and once again Ford Rangers at the top of the list (guzzling gas and killing pedestrians and cyclists).
While we can’t simply replace traffic jams of internal combustion engine cars with traffic jams of electric cars, nonetheless EVs are part of the low carbon solution.

Removing council’s transport plans

The Government has moved to end Wellington’s transport plan with its focus on public transport walking and cycling and move towards more cars. There remains uncertainty as to the future solution but clearly they want more cars.
They abolished the Auckland Regional Fuel tax of ten cents a litre which was used mostly to fund the building of the first stages of the Eastern Busway and new commuter rail carriages. The Eastern Busway has now been reduced in size, as the fourth phase is unfunded.
They cancelled the Auckland light rail project. This project was troubled, with the previous government heading down the most expensive track, but there are still better options than just cancelling it.
There’s even more but you get the sense of it. Their transport policy is plainly designed to increase climate pollution as part of their war on nature.

5. The war on dolphins, seals and marine life

The government’s war on nature is not only being fought on land. It extends to the oceans too.

Marine biodiversity

The majority of Aotearoa’s biodiversity is to be found in the oceans around us and the main driver of biodiversity destruction in the oceans is the fishing industry.
This is particularly the case for practices like bottom trawling, where heavy nets are dragged along the ocean floor destroying corals and sponges in order to catch fish near the bottom.
Over the last decade the environment movement and the majority of New Zealanders have been slowly pushing governments towards improving oversight of the fishing industry and restrictions on their most destructive practices. But the new government wants to go backwards…

South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organisation

There is an obscure inter-governmental organisation called the South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organisation (SPRFMO) that is meant to regulate fisheries in the international waters of the South Pacific.
The other countries in this forum are trying to restrict bottom trawling because of the immense harm it causes. As the last country actively bottom trawling in the international waters of the South Pacific, New Zealand is opposing these constraints, but under the last government had agreed to some modest restrictions.
The new government has changed its position, opposing protection of vulnerable coral habitats from trawling, and does not support any kind of restrictions on bottom trawling.

Cameras on boats

After the various scandals led to a 2016 Ministerial Inquiry into the Ministry of Primary Industries’ regulation of the fishing industry, the Key Government agreed to implement cameras on boats to better monitor illegal behaviour such as fish dumping, dolphin killing etc.
These cameras were finally rolled out over the last few years to about 120 fishing vessels and have so far resulted in a dramatic increase in reporting of dolphin and bird killings and fish dumping.
But Shane Jones, Minister of Fishing and recipient of seafood industry campaign donations, doesn’t like them and wants to review them. Another option the government is canvassing is to hand them over to Fishserv, the fishing industry owned company that oversees the Quota Management System.
None of these are good options but where it ends is still unclear.

Increasing catch limits

In spite of the collapse of numerous fisheries, the Minister of Fisheries decided to increase catch limits.
The population of one of the species, the southern bluefin tuna, has collapsed 92% since the height of fishing madness in the 1960s. This follows the collapse of orange roughy fishery, hoki, scallops, crayfish etc etc.
And with regard to killing endangered New Zealand sea lions the new Government decided there would no longer be an upper limit on the number of sea lions that the fishing industry can drown in trawl nets.
This will no doubt be the tip of the iceberg as more change emerges from the Minister.

6. Increased climate pollution

Aside from the long list of policies above that will increase climate pollution (e.g. transport), the government has introduced other policies to increase emissions. The impacts from these policies mean the government’s war on nature will be felt internationally.

Restarting offshore oil and gas exploration

The global battle against fossil fuels has both a supply and demand side.
On the demand side are the battles around fossil fuel electricity generation and internal combustion engines vehicles.
But the supply side is also critical because, as the International Energy Agency found back in 2021, we can’t afford to bring more fossil fuel supply online if we are to avoid catastrophic warming. The head of the IEA said: “If governments are serious about the climate crisis, there can be no new investments in oil, gas and coal, from now – from this year.” We know that once oil companies spend vast amounts to find and develop new fossil fuel reserves they will continue to sell them into the global fossil fuel market.
Hence the decision by the New Zealand Government in 2018 to stop issuing new offshore oil and gas exploration permits was a critical step forward in the global fossil fuel battle. Other countries have now joined this movement and there is a growing group of governments and civil society groups supporting a Fossil Fuel Non Proliferation Treaty.
The announcement by the Luxon Government that it will restart the issuance of offshore oil and gas exploration permits is a global leap backwards. It’s another sign that their fighting a war on nature, not fossil fuels
The Government is looking to subsidise the industry by providing insurance against future policy changes. They are also looking to remove the requirement that oil companies provide a clean up bond to cover future clean up costs. These clean up bonds were introduced after Tamarind oil company went bankrupt leaving the taxpayer with a $300m bill to clean up after them.
The Government is falsely claiming that the recent electricity shortages are linked to the 2018 decision to stop issuing new permits for oil and gas exploration – an argument that is transparently false.

Changing the way methane warming is measured

The global livestock lobby has a policy agenda to change the way that the climate warming of methane is measured. This is to make it look like methane causes less warming than it really does.
They want to move away from the global standard accepted by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, as standard called GWP100. They want the world to adopt a standard called GWP*. Under GWP* New Zealand’s methane is recategorised as not causing warming! Agribusiness likes GWP* because they won’t need to cut emissions!
The New Zealand agribusiness lobby groups are part of this project, and now they have the former head of Federated Farmers in Government, they have their chance to push it. The Government has established a panel to look into the measurement of the warming of methane emissions. I would be very surprised if the panel does not recommend the adoption of GWP*.
Both the Climate Commission and the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment have concluded that there is no basis to review the science around the measurement of the warming effect of methane.

More cash for magic bullets

The New Zealand Government has given hundreds of millions of dollars to look for magic bullets to reduce methane emissions from dairy cattle and other livestock. So far no magic bullets have been discovered but the new Government has thrown another $18m at this greenwashing.
The purpose of all this is to avoid having to cut emissions by doing things that actually work like reducing fertiliser use and stocking rates.

Zero Carbon Act – greenwashing law retained

It is noteworthy that a Government conducting a war on climate and biodiversity policy has kept the Zero Carbon Act (ZCA) in place. But there is a good reason for that – the ZCA was largely a greenwashing exercise as was revealed once it was tested in court.
When Lawyers for Climate Action went to court to try to use the ZCA to actually force emissions cuts on the government, the Climate Minister, James Shaw, went to court to argue that the Paris Agreement climate goals referenced in the ZCA were merely ‘aspirational’ and not binding on the New Zealand government.
This was in spite of Shaw saying publicly that the ZCA made the Paris target legally binding on the government. Shaw won the case and the climate lawyers lost. The new Government is very fond of the ZCA because it is just ‘aspirational’.

He Waka Eke Noa – its job is done

One final piece of the puzzle is pricing agribusiness emissions. This was delayed throughout the course of the last government by the He Waka Eke Noa process. This will now be either quietly euthanised or kept as another greenwashing figleaf, but we can be sure there will be no price on agricultural emissions – they will be subsidised by the rest of us

Update

We have now found out that the politician chairing the select committee considering the fast track bill, David MacLeod, has illegally failed to declare $180,000 in donations. Moreover, some of those donations come from a major shareholder in the seabed mining company TTR. TTR is planning to use the fast track legislation to circumvent the Supreme Court decision blocking its seabed mining plans. In fact one of the decision-making Ministers under the Fast Track law, Chris Bishop, wrote to TTR inviting them to apply to use the fast track. So a major shareholder of TTR gave campaign money to the National Party MP who chaired the select committee on the fast track bill while the National Party Minister invited TTR to apply for a fast track.

9 minutes from Transcaucasian Telegraph.

do not miss the Monday report

here

Armenia marks the Republic Day

The 1918 Republic of Armenia barely lasted two years. It was, however, a historic political entity – the first expression of Armenian sovereignty since 1375.

read the background here
This is a fake day, folks. The actual day is June 4:

1918 թվականի Մայիսի 28-ը թեև համարվում է Հայաստանի անկախության օր, իրականում այդ օրը միայն անուղղակի կապ ունի անկախության հետ:
1918-ի Մայիս 28-ը այն օրն է, երբ Թիֆլիսի Հայոց Ազգային խորհուրդը՝ բազմակուսակցական մի մարմին, քվեարկությամբ որոշեց ընդունել թուրքերի վերջնագիրը և Բաթում ուղարկել պատվիրակություն, որն էլ հունիսի 4-ին Օսմանյան կայսերական կառավարության հետ կնքեց Հաշտության և բարեկամության պայմանագիր Հայաստանի Հանրապետության անունից:
Թուրքական վերջնագիրը կազմված էր երկու հիմնական կետից. Հայաստանը հռչակել անկախ և բանակցությունների նպատակով պատվիրակություն ուղարկել Բաթում:
Մայիսի 28-ին Հայոց Ազգային խորհուրդն ու օրվա հիմնական քաղաքական ուժը՝ ՀՅԴ-ն, քվեարկությամբ դեմ էին արտահայտվել թուրքերի վերջնագրին՝ Հայաստանը հռչակել անկախ: ՀՅԴ-ն անկախությանը դեմ էր արտահայտվել 8 դեմ և 2 կողմ քվեով:
Նույն օրը, երբ ՀՅԴ-ականներ Ալեքսանդր Խատիսյանն ու Հովհաննես Քաջազնունին, ովքեր ժամ առաջ էին վերադարձել էին Բաթումից (որտեղ Անդրկովկասյան պատվիրակության կազմում բանակցություններ էին վարում թուրքերի հետ), հորդորեցին կուսակիցներին, որ Հայաստանի անկախության հռչակումն ու թուրքերի հետ բանակցելու վերջնագիրը ընդունելը այլընտրանք չունեն, կուսակցությունը նոր քվեարկություն կազմակերպեց, որտեղ 9 կողմ և 1 դեմ քվեով ընդունվեց թուրքերի վերջնագիրը:

read the background here,

... no holiday without drama

Last night the ex-regime protest leader Archbishop Galstanyan took a group of followers to the Sardarapat Memorial and announced a plan to camp there all night to prevent PM Pashinyan from visiting the monument on the anniversary of the Republic Day. Galstanyan promised that if Pashinyan visits the Monument on Tuesday, it will be his last visit as the PM.
The following day Galstanyan waited and waited and waited for scumbag Nikol, and after not seeing a shadow of his սֆաթ all morning, he declared mission accomplished and suggested that Nikol was no-show because "foreign forces" [West] might have "instructed" him not to come:

Բագրատ արքեպիսկոպոսի կարծիքով՝ երկու պատճառ կա վարչապետի՝ Սարդարապատ չայցելելու համար. մեկը, որ նա սա արդեն համարում է պատմական հայրենիք, մյուսը, որ հրահանգ է ստացել արտաքին ուժերից:

But Pashinyan visited the monument in the afternoon, shortly after Galstanyan and his followers left, in order to avoid a physical confrontation. He gave a speech in which he called for a Republic that's shaped by the ideas of the people and not the "elites". The Monument was surrounded by police forces for security; they briefly blocked the Church leader Garegin II from approaching the Monument.
On Tuesday Pashinyan and President Khachaturyan held an award ceremony on the occasion of Republic Day. Various ministry and investigative committee officials, some of whom handled the rescue operations in northern Armenia after the Sunday floods, were granted medals and higher ranks for their service.
source, source, video, source, source, video, video, source,

the government began releasing assistance funds for the communities affected by the floods

Several communities in Lori and Tavush were officially declared "disaster zones" on Monday. The government allocated ֏300M to solve the most urgent issues before the implementation of long-term projects.
The infrastructure ministry is making an inventory of the damaged roads, bridges, and personal properties of citizens.
The ministry is gathering volunteers to help in the disaster zone; they need about 300 people. On Sunday they did not call up volunteers due to the danger posed by the rivers but starting Monday/Tuesday the water levels are down and it's safe for volunteers to work there. They had 50 volunteers as of Tuesday morning but the number is expected to rise quickly because they have a pre-approved list of volunteers. The volunteers will enter buildings and shops to clean them up. Anyone who decides to volunteer must contact the authorities to receive instructions, said the Minister.
The cleanup is underway in several communities. They are using heavy equipment and manual labor to remove dirt and debris from streets and buildings. The Red Cross [volunteers]https://youtu.be/XqAq-OHD_38?t=15) and university students and staff from Vanadzor have also joined the efforts; the Education Ministry is forming a larger group of volunteers.
The HETS employees are checking and restoring power cables in the affected areas.
The power was restored in Alaverdi's Debed District. The water is expected to resume in the coming days.
The gas was restored in Akhtala and several districts of Alaverdi.
A group of residents received food and necessities with a zip line: video. Half of the residents were evacuated from there.
The land connection was restored with the villages of Haghpat and Shnogh after the ministry created a temporary road with gravel. For many villages, the issue wasn't the river water, but the physical isolation caused by the collapse of bridges.
source, source, video, video, cleanup crews, Alaverdi central street shops, source, source,

Armenia's water reservoirs haven't held this much water in 3 years: VIDEO

The five largest reservoirs currently hold 652M m³ of water, up from 370M m³ last year.
NATURE MINISTRY OFFICIAL: Akhuryan is 81% full, Arpi Lich 88%, Aparan 53%, Azat 91%, Marmarik 98%. There will be no shortage of water during the irrigation season and they won't have to release additional water from Lake Sevan. These rains have also increased the water levels in Lake Sevan by 7 cm, YoY. The positive trend began on May 14.
River Debed is formed by the merger of Dzoraget and Pambak rivers [near village Dsegh]. Pambak accounts for 40%, and Dzoraget - 60%. Most of the additional water on Saturday came through Dzoraget, with 350 m^3/second, almost a historical high for Dzoraget.
Debed is the most abundant river in Armenia and always causes minor floods in spring but this time it was invigorated by 55 mm of rainfall.
This week expect rains in the late afternoon to evening but nothing major, they won't have a significant impact on the river levels. //
video,

grandpa Bagrat learning how to make a K-Pop finger heart symbol: VIDEO

video,

լավ հըլլը, աԱրա

video of Bagrat Galstanyan's supporters shutting down a road

soon the process will become irreversible: protest co-organizer Suren Petrosyan

interview,

Gagik Tsarukyan loves his homeland just as much as he loves Jesus. Do you understand me?

Earlier Tsarukyan announced a plan to raise a monumental statue of Jesus on Mt. Hatis. The local community gave him 146 hectares of land on the mount. It led to a revolt by nature and culture activists. Tsarukyan has since agreed to return the lands to Akunq village, but only the 2 hectares that house the archaeological site.
source,

Yerevan municipality destroys several illegal garages in Arabkir condo backyard and launches the construction of playground: VIDEO

Residents are seeing the first major revamp in 56 years.
source,

lightning kills one and injures two women in Gegharkunik

The incident happened in the fields between the villages of Karmir and Sarukhan.
source,

Kazakhstan is discussing (resumes discussions) with U.S. firms to build a nuclear power plant

It could be a small modular reactor, said a minister.
source,

several banks in Kazakhstan began to block transfers from Russia to China

Many Russian businesses were using Kazakhstan to pay for the goods imported from China. Kazakh banks explain the ban by citing a high decline rate by Chinese banks that are attempting to avoid transactions for sanctioned items.
source,

Azerbaijan wants to take a $5 billion loan from international organizations over the next 5 years to implement large-scale projects in Karabakh and occupied Nagorno-Karabakh

FINANCE MINISTER: We are facing many big problems with the restoration and reconstruction of Karabakh. These projects would also promote economic growth. //
Azerbaijan's foreign debt is $6.1B. They want to repay $1.4B this year, then bring it to $10B.
source,

Azerbaijani sapper explodes on a landmine during activities near the village of Nor Ghazanchi in ethnically-cleansed Nagorno-Karabakh

source,

Azerbaijani journalists visited the recently delimited 4 Soviet-era villages on the Tavush-Gazakh border

They will record the area and learn about the organization of the border guarding service.
source,

Defense Minister Papikyan is in Brussels to discuss cooperation

He met the Deputy PM David Clarinval to discuss the ongoing reforms in Armenia and potential defense cooperation.
They also discussed cooperation within NATO and the EU, Armenia's Crossroads of Peace project, and the security in Transcaucasia.
MOD Papikyan visited the headquarters of engineering firm John Cockerill and met CEO Thierry Renaudin to discuss the company's products and future projects. An agreement was reached to continue discussions on future cooperation.
source, source, source,

French Senate has been lobbying Macron administration to sell 155 mm CAESAR artillery to Armenia: interview with military expert Leonid Nersisyan

REPORTER: After the supply of French Bastion vehicles and the arrival of that jet loaded with some equipment, we haven't heard new press releases. Has the AM-FR military cooperation cooled off?
LEONID: They could be hiding it from the press. They didn't plan to make the delivery of Bastions public either. We might learn about them after the weapons arrive, like in previous cases.
REPORTER: There were discussions about receiving CAESAR artillery.
LEONID: The French Senate is lobbying to sell CAESAR to Armenia but there is no information about any agreements. I'm actually not sure if Armenia wants CAESAR because a large number of Indian artillery has already been purchased and there are options to buy from other countries as well [for lower price].
full,

ruling party MP demands Galstanyan's protest organizers to pay a tax on the "millions they received from Moscow"

Context on the comments made by a Russian political figure Korotchenko in Monday report.
source,

we see that Pashinyan has retained power, he has very strong positions: Vladimir Jabarov, Russian Senator from the foreign relations committee

VLADIMIR: Russia is interested in a stable situation in Armenia and will work with any government. The most important thing is to avoid human losses. Armenia remains our partner in CSTO despite the recent talks about leaving. Armenia is also a member of the EAEU.
So far we see that Pashinyan has retained power both after the elections and after the second Karabakh war, and he has quite strong positions. We are interested in stability in Armenia.
Any attempt to separate Armenia and Russia will have terrible consequences for Armenia because Russia is Armenia's most loyal ally. //
source,

what Armenia is doing today will lead to success, Armenia will not be abandoned: Mykhailo Podolyak, Zelensky adviser about Armenia's pivot to West

PODOLYAK: I wish Armenia success. Always choose the right allies and do not believe those who are hypocrites. I think that what Armenia is doing today will lead to success. Armenia has chosen the path of independence at the right time. In the modern world, a country with a strong internal will, a strong core, will never be abandoned. It's nice to see this strong inner core, when people know and understand what Armenia is, when they understand the price that Armenia pays to be what it wants to be, to be independent. This is worthy of respect, sympathy, and it forms a desire to support not only with words but also with actions.
Armenia is in a historically important phase and is making the right decision about its future and its direction. The European integration is the right direction. I think Armenia understands the downsides of being in CSTO and other Russian-led organizations. Ukraine will gladly help our Armenian friends and support Armenia's European aspirations.
You cannot have equality by being an ally of Russia. Russia always tries to form organizations and assume the dominant role in the relations by suppressing others. Russia always tries to create economic and internal problems for its partners to increase their dependence on Russia.
Armenia has experience with Russia and understood that the [defense] "agreements" are all fictitious. Armenia has chosen the direction of strengthening ties with others and Ukraine will fully support Armenia here and Ukraine can always provide consultations to Armenia regarding the risks relating to Russia.
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Armenian government suspends the broadcasting of Russia's most popular state channel

High-Tech Minister Mkhitaryan says the Russian first channel has unpaid dues and the suspension on public multiplex will be lifted when they pay it. They haven't paid for 2.5 months.
Weeks earlier Pashinyan promised to suspend Russian channels if they continue to broadcast content that sabotages Armenia's sovereignty.
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Lithuania: we appreciate Armenia‘s commitment to peace, democratic values, and its efforts to bring Armenia closer to EU. Our firm support to Armenia's sovereign, resilient and hopeful future.

Happy Republic Day.
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Georgia's President Zurabishvili calls for a referendum to decide if people want "European future" or "slavery under Russia" after the ruling party bypasses the President's veto on the anti-NGO law

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modern health facilities and doctor retraining; reforms underway

REPORTER: For the reconstruction and modernization of healthcare facilities, the state budget has allocated ֏11B for this year alone.
MINISTER: This is the first time the state is paying special attention to the renovation of ambulatories and polyclinics. We are in the planning phase right now. There are models for ambulatories; they will be built in 26 locations. We are also assessing the polyclinics; tens of medical centers are being constructed right now. We plan to rebuild all provincial medical facilities by 2026. The facilities receive modern equipment and conditions.
Having qualified staff is also important. The certification process is complete, and this year we also adopted a law to establish the institute of individual licensing. Starting in 2025 there will be a licensing for new graduates. That means we will verify their skills in addition to knowledge, to ensure our doctors know how to treat patients and how to communicate with them. Continuous professional education is also on the agenda.
(1) We will encourage doctors to visit provinces for short-term work. Doctors from Yerevan can work in provinces for bonus pay for 6 months without losing their spots in Yerevan.
(2) Targeted ordinatura. We will compensate the entire cost of education under the condition that upon graduation the young specialist will work for 3 years at a facility chosen by us. Over 50 specialists will be chosen annually for this program.
Over 200 doctors from Nagorno-Karabakh have found employment in various medical centers in Armenia. We made exemptions in the certification requirement to allow them a year to receive it. They also receive bonuses.
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So I got my Evvy results about 3 weeks ago. It was majority disruptive bacteria (75%) mainly Gardnerella and the rest was an even amount of L. Crispatus and L. Iners. My symptoms are dryness, itch and occasional foul odor. The Evvy protocol was a week of boric acid to break down any biofilm, a week of vaginal clindamycin to kill the bacteria, and then 2 weeks of vaginal probiotic suppositories. It was also recommended that I start taking oral Lactoferrin (this keeps the good bacteria around) and oral probiotics. I started the Lactoferrin and oral probiotics as soon as I started the boric acid. I was told to take it for 30 days. I am now on the vaginal probiotic suppository phase of this regimen (day 3) and STILL don't feel much difference. The only thing that was eliminated was the odor. The dryness and itch remains. I'm afraid the clindamycin didnt even work, or it only killed whatever was causing the odor. I've read other ladies stories who had similar results to mine and completely turned their biome around with this protocol. Some even got to 95-100% protective bacteria in 2 or 3 months. I just don't understand why it's not working for me. Should I have done boric acid for a longer period of time? Is there something I could've done different? I'm losing my mind.

Hello! I got into both Boston University and Rutgers New Brunswick as a transfer and I am really struggling on making a decision on where to go, and I was hoping to hear some feedback on what to choose (although I know it’s ultimately my decision). I would especially like to hear from Rutgers students as I don’t live nearby so don’t know as much about it compared to BU!
I would be paying ~23k for Boston University vs Rutgers where I would be paying ~31k (out of state tuition). I currently live in Boston and would be entering the schools as a bio major, but I think I might also want to do something with business (more specifically finance), so I may choose to double major or minor.
I never really considered if I wanted a more traditional campus and always thought I wanted to live in the city, but after visiting Rutgers I’m not sure. I just came back from a year in DC and found i really enjoyed living out of state however it was a lot more expensive than I anticipated.
These are currently the pros and cons I have for both schools! (based on tours, admitted students days, and what i’ve read/heard)
RUTGERS
PROS - Has a football team (D1) - Lots of school spirit/campus traditions - Dominican food places/food places NEARBY and open until like 2am (this is important to me as I am Dominican and want to have my culture near me) - Vibrant student/nightlife - Solid Programs in both Business and Bio - Road to silicon valley/road to wall street - Internship/study abroad experiences for Bio - Far from home - 50 min away from NYC w/ train station on campus (where 70% of my friend group lives) - Has everything and more/lots of things to do (i.e. farm, movie theater, etc ON campus) - Pretty Campus - Seems to care more about their students (emphasis on how academic advisors will work with you during admitted student’s day) - Has places where you can borrow professional clothing - Not allowed to pick your major until end of Sophomore year (more flexibility)
CONS - Buses - Most expensive option (31k a year not including out of state travel and expenses) - Not in the city - Will not take my Bio 2 credit; will have to retake Bio
BOSTON UNIVERSITY
PROS - In a city - Proximity to other schools/such a concentration of other schools in the area make it easy to meet other students/always having the opportunity to meet new people - Marine Semester - Well-Rounded Institution - Good Programs in BOTH business and bio - ‘Prestigious’ University - Alumni Network is vast and strong - Good spot for internships - Best option financially - Close to home so travel expenses cut - Could save on food and other out of state living expenses - Has places where you can borrow professional clothing
CONS - Close to home/in-state (idk if i want to be so close to home) - Grade deflation - The T

Hello! I got into both Boston University and Rutgers New Brunswick as a transfer and I am really struggling on making a decision on where to go, and I was hoping to hear some feedback on what to choose (although I know it’s ultimately my decision).
I would be paying ~23k for Boston University vs Rutgers where I would be paying ~31k (out of state tuition). I currently live in Boston and would be entering the schools as a bio major, but I think I might also want to do something with business (more specifically finance), so I may choose to double major or minor.
I never really considered if I wanted a more traditional campus and always thought I wanted to live in the city, but after visiting Rutgers I’m not sure. I just came back from a year in DC and found i really enjoyed living out of state however it was a lot more expensive than I anticipated.
These are currently the pros and cons I have for both schools! (based on tours, admitted students days, and what i’ve read/heard)
RUTGERS
PROS - Has a football team (D1) - Lots of school spirit/campus traditions - Dominican food places/food places NEARBY and open until like 2am (this is important to me as I am Dominican and want to have my culture near me) - Vibrant student/nightlife - Solid Programs in both Business and Bio - Road to silicon valley/road to wall street - Internship/study abroad experiences for Bio - Far from home - 50 min away from NYC w/ train station on campus (where 70% of my friend group lives) - Has everything and more/lots of things to do (i.e. farm, movie theater, etc ON campus) - Pretty Campus - Seems to care more about their students (emphasis on how academic advisors will work with you during admitted student’s day) - Has places where you can borrow professional clothing - Not allowed to pick your major until end of Sophomore year (more flexibility)
CONS - Buses - Most expensive option (31k a year not including out of state travel and expenses) - Not in the city - Will not take my Bio 2 credit; will have to retake Bio
BOSTON UNIVERSITY
PROS - In a city - Proximity to other schools/such a concentration of other schools in the area make it easy to meet other students/always having the opportunity to meet new people - Marine Semester - Well-Rounded Institution - Good Programs in BOTH business and bio - ‘Prestigious’ University - Alumni Network is vast and strong - Good spot for internships - Best option financially - Close to home so travel expenses cut - Could save on food and other out of state living expenses - Has places where you can borrow professional clothing
CONS - Close to home/in-state (idk if i want to be so close to home) - Grade deflation - The T
I’m running on very little sleep so please excuse if some stuff is difficult to understand/doesn’t make sense!