Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has been the standard measure of economic growth since World War II. It is widely believed that accelerating economic growth as measured by the GDP will translate into improved living standards. However, this view is being challenged with the argument that it is better to focus on measures of wellbeing than GDP because, despite robust economic growth over the past several decades, there are still millions of citizens living in poverty.Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has been the standard measure of economic growth since World War II. It is widely believed that accelerating economic growth as measured by the GDP will translate into improved living standards. However, this view is being challenged with the argument that it is better to focus on measures of wellbeing than GDP because, despite robust economic growth over the past several decades, there are still millions of citizens living in poverty.

Besides, GDP measures perpetual growth, which is unattainable. Because GDP is an outdated proxy measure of economic growth, wellbeing, which is a multidimensional approach of measuring the most important aspects of people’s life, is gaining popularity.

Perpetual Growth

Stagflation is simultaneous economic stagnation combined with high inflation. In the long run, economic growth is dependent on two drivers; productivity and labor (Dolar). Productivity is affected by multiple factors. Improvements in many facets of productivity growth have decreased or reversed since the global financial crisis. The foremost factor is the demographic crisis of western countries that threatens the growth of GDP. Developed countries have experienced deceleration of working-age population, stabilization of educational attainment, and expansion into various forms of production. Furthermore, labor reallocation from less productive to more productive sectors has decelerated since the global financial crisis. Besides, radical disruptions to education and income losses are likely to affect human capital negatively. The waning demographics of western countries imply that acceleration of productivity growth is needed. The McKinsey Global Institute projected that 80% productivity growth is required to mitigate the effects of changing demographics (49). This projection is unlikely to be achieved given the dwindling working-age population in western countries. On the contrary, productivity growth is likely to continue decreasing because of the significant changes in the demographics unless the working-age population begins to grow again.

Perpetual Growth

GDP as a measurement is very outdated because it does not measure wellbeing. It is a statistical tool used to measure how well the economy is performing. However, it neglects important factors that determine the wellbeing, such as inequality and environmental services (Gallup). GDP as a proxy measure of economic growth ignores certain aspects that do not involve monetary transactions, does not assess changes in human capital, does not discriminate activities that enhance welfare from activities that reduce welfare, does not account for cultural difference, and omits the environmental costs and rates of depletion of resources (Giannetti et al. 14). The Measure of Economic Welfare is one of the alternatives for a gross domestic product as it measures consumption in the economy as a proxy for economic welfare. It adds up the benefits of goods and services consumption and subtracts the costs associated with the consumption, such as environmental pollution, providing a picture of economic welfare. Other economic welfare measures were developed after the Measure of Economic Welfare, such as the Index of the Economic Aspects of Welfare which incorporates environmental costs in estimating economic welfare (Giannetti et al. 15). Index of Sustainable Economic Welfare is an index developed to account for the current environmental issues while addressing the long-term ecosystem and natural resource sustainable use. More indices were developed with recent ones such as the State of Global Well-Being, the Better Life Index, and the Global Well-Being Index measuring a myriad of aspects of wellbeing. The Gallup Global Well-Being measures the behavioral economics of gross domestic product growth. It estimates the percentage “thriving,” “struggling,” and “suffering” of individuals in different countries and regions (Gallup). The indexes focus on the percent thriving in at least elements of wellbeing such as purpose (liking what they do), social (supportive relationships), physical (good health), community (liking the surrounding community), and financial (managing economic life well) aspects.
One in six adults worldwide are considered thriving – or strong and consistent — in at least three of the five elements of well-being, as measured by the Gallup-Healthways Global Well-Being Index. For example residents of the Singapore score quite low at the 19%, while New Zealand leads in Asia – Pacific with 67%.
The Gallup Global Well-Being measures have opened up new opportunities to study issues that affect people in different communities around the world in ways that GDP would not. For example, life satisfaction aspects of the Gallup World Poll data have been exploited to measure inequality in the distribution of subjective wellbeing (Gluzmann & Gasparini 2). Measuring inequality in subjective wellbeing might be complementary to the various approaches aimed at computing unfairness in a society because it may in some way have benefits over the usual income inequality measurements. Some perceived income inequalities may arise due to personal choices if all constraints are observed thus cannot be considered unfair. A case in point is when two individuals facing similar opportunities make different choices. One choice might lead to a better, healthier lifestyle while the other subjects the individual to poverty. Free choices resulting in socially acceptable income inequality should not be regarded as unfair. The assessment of subjective wellbeing is less likely to be susceptible to such differences. Under evaluation of subjective wellbeing, differences in perceived happiness may better estimate social unfairness rather than income unfairness (Gluzmann & Gasparini 4). Gallup World Poll provides data that can be used to compare wellbeing in different countries. It cures one of the most significant problems associated with compering inequality across countries and regions, namely, the generation of homogenous information. The poll poses the same question across all countries in all areas, which significantly reduces spurious differences in estimating comparisons. This reduces sources of measurement error significantly. It is noteworthy that people may not interpret and answer the standardized questions the same in different countries, leading to additional errors. However, the advantages of estimating subjective wellbeing and its rising popularity imply that improvements in the measurements will yield better results.

Technological Revolution

Usually, information and communication technologies are considered a key driver of economic growth and productivity. Different reviews indicate that technological effects tend to be positive at the organizational level (United Nations Conference on Trade and Development [UNCTAD 34]). However, it has been reported that productivity tends to drop as economies entrench technologies in every sector. In other words, the rapid digitization of economies has not translated into strong productivity. On the contrary, productivity growth appears to have stunted over the past few decades, with the slowdown more pronounced in developed countries and also in developing countries (UNCTAD 34). This is a productivity paradox because as technological advancement and use have increased, productivity growth has decreased, which is contrary to popular expectations (Remes et al.). The digitization of economies into digital economies has thus far not translated into increased productivity. The paradox in the digital economy is attributed to different reasons. A more pessimistic perspective considers the technological effects on productivity as having fewer impacts on productivity growth than the revolutionary technological advances of the past (UNCTAD 34). A more optimistic view links the slow growth of productivity to the time lags between the time the technologies are introduced and the time actual effects are felt (European CEO). As a result, more visible impacts on productivity will occur when technologies are adopted widely within the economy. An additional contributing factor to the productivity paradox is the difficulties associated with measuring the digital economy. The slow growth in productivity might be explained by the lack of proper recording of technological activities in that in overall GDP estimation. Consequently, the proper measurement would be reflected in increased productivity. In developed countries, demographic factors associated with the aging population are also linked to the slow growth in productivity (UNCTAD 34). Therefore, the productivity paradox related to the technological revolution arises from multiple factors.

Quality of the GDP

Measuring economic growth in purely quantitative categories diminishes the significance of “high-quality growth.” High-quality growth encompasses increased technological self-reliance, significant production and welfare transformation, the establishment of a comprehensive safety net for the citizens, enhancement of quality healthcare, education, and employment, and reduction of inequality across regions and various demographic characteristics (Wärtsilä). It reflects a policy change that focuses on investment areas that guarantee increased productivity, such as production, consumption, healthcare, and education (Pfeffer). The concept of high-quality growth is being advanced by China to reorganize the economy in a way that focus on increased domestic consumption and investing in productive sectors to drive the overall economic growth. For example, after decades of heavy investments in infrastructural projects and the manufacturing sector, the country realizes that roads and bridges are not productive but rather facilitates productivity. Policy change to shift investment into more productive sectors of the economy might bring sustainable economic growth and wellbeing. At the sectorial level, administrative job control is one of the main factors impacting the health of the employees (Pfeffer). The return of line of sight to the work, workplace flexibility, autonomous fusion teams, fluidity in work practices, and organizational health can elevate the personal wellbeing of the employees. The functional organization provides an environment with less stress caused by micromanagement demands from the employees. Therefore, wellbeing is a product of economic policy at the national level and the contribution of the private sector in nurturing the wellbeing of employees.

Conclusion

The failure of GDP as a measurement proxy of economic growth is less effective in contemporary society. It assumes that an economy will experience perpetual growth, which is a difficult achievement. Even where economies have experienced phenomenal growth over the years, the economic expansion failed to transform the lives of millions of citizens. The technological revolution also has been unable to expand the GDP as it was initially believed despite the fact that the significant impacts technology has had on society. It led to the conclusion that GDP has limitations as a measure of economic growth because it does not account for the non-monetary aspects that matter to people. As a result, new indexes such as the Gallup Global Wellbeing have been developed and are experiencing rising popularity due to their ability to compute wellbeing. In particular, the estimation of subjective wellbeing creates opportunities for improved measurement of social inequality. Furthermore, the realization that wellbeing is important to citizens is supporting new ideas of measuring national economic growth. China’s shift to the assessment of the quality of economic growth indicates a paradigm shift where countries focus on national statistics that reflect their economic realities.

References

Dolar, Veronika. “Why stagflation is an economic nightmare – and could become a real headache for Biden and the Fed if it emerges in the US.” The Conversation (2022). https://theconversation.com/why-stagflation-is-an-economic-nightmare-and-could-become-a-real-headache-for-biden-and-the-fed-if-it-emerges-in-the-us-179036. Accessed 21 Mar. 2022.
European CEO. “Giving a voice to the digital revolution’s silent majority.” (2019). https://www.europeanceo.com/industry-outlook/giving-a-voice-to-the-digital-revolutions-silent-majority/. Accessed 21 Mar. 2022.
Gallup. “2014 Country Well-Being Rankings.”
Giannetti, Biagio F., et al. “A review of limitations of GDP and alternative indices to monitor human wellbeing and to manage ecosystem functionality.” Journal of cleaner production 87 (2015): 11-25.
Gluzmann, Pablo, and Leonardo Gasparini. “International inequality in subjective well‐being: An exploration with the Gallup World Poll.” Review of Development Economics 22.2 (2018): 610-631.
McKinsey Global Institute – “Global growth: Can productivity save the day in an aging world?” page 49
Pfeffer, Jeffrey. “The overlooked essentials of employee wellbeing.” McKinsey Global Institute (2018). https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/people-and-organizational-performance/our-insights/the-overlooked-essentials-of-employee-well-being. Accessed 21 Mar. 2022.
Remes, Jaana et al. “Solving the productivity puzzle.” McKinsey Global Institute (2018). https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/regions-in-focus/solving-the-productivity-puzzle. Accessed 21 Mar. 2022.
Wärtsilä. “Going beyond GDP: China targets a new path to growth.” (2021). https://www.wartsila.com/insights/article/going-beyond-gdp-china-targets-a-new-path-to-growth. Accessed 21 Mar. 2022.
Authors

Paul Lalovich

Organizational Effectiveness and Strategy Execution Practice

Tesha Teshanovich

Organizational Effectiveness and Strategy Execution Practice

I was reading through some job descriptions recently and was interested to learn that G7 is the starting point for people who have done one of the Civil Service accelerator courses - fast stream, TSP, training contracts. This surprised me. Not because I don't think it's fair wage for those skilled workers - arguably the Civil Service still underpays, especially for people like tech, tax and legal specialists - but because I'd got it into my head that G7 was a really quite lofty managerial grade, a sort of lifetime goal that is worked up to slowly and over a long period of time for a lot of people. This perception is doubtless influenced by my own background in Operations, where a G7 is someone responsible for whole regions of offices and with hundreds of people beneath them, as compared to fields like Policy where you can be a G7 with no line management.
I'd seen G7 as something of the pinnacle of the Civil Service for people who didn't want to do ministerial work in Whitehall or manage entire departments, but realising how many G7 roles seem to go to people in their mid 20s or so, because they have the right degree background (I say that with no disparagement - I wish I'd had my head screwed on enough to do a more vocational degree lol) and a couple of years in the CS under their belts has made me question this a bit. Is G7 a really substantive role for a graduate? What sort of achievement level does it represent compared to say the private sector? Can you compare, or are the differences between sectors and indeed even between different CS areas e.g. Digital vs Ops so different that it's meaningless? It seems that in law G7 is actually quite a junior grade, whereas in Ops it's nearly the end of the line.
EDIT: See I'm getting a lot of downvotes for some reason. I should clarify: I have no ambitions or expectations of reaching G7 anytime soon myself. I'm not posting this out of presumption on my part, just genuine curiosity as to what the general perception of the grade is and to better understand Civil Service structuring.

Writing is wonderful, isn't it?
I'm Zach. I'm in the information technology sector by trade, but a writer otherwise. I work with interactive fiction, currently delving into two of my latest projects (one based in my high-fantasy universe that's been in development for over ten years!)
Anyways. That's a small tidbit, but I've got something better formatted.
What's my Age?: Twenty-Five (25).
Where am I located?: Columbus, Ohio!
Why'd I make this post?: The truth is simple. I'm looking for friends, people that I can grow with, get to know, and if something further emerges - so be it. Above all, personality is a key cornerstone for me. I can work with differing hobbies, cultures, and lifestyles, as long as you can do the same.
What's my Fatal-Flaw?: I'm loyal to a fault. It's screwed me over a bit in the past, but I've since worked to correct it. Nonetheless, I stick my neck out for those I've grown to care for.
How about some hobbies?: Alright, let's line 'em up!

• Writing. I've adored working with interactive fiction, and have multiple novels in development and in the publishing stages. With a little magic and a bit of luck, I'll be a published name pretty soon.
  
• Gaming. I'm into a variety of genres. These range from strategy to RPG, to MMO, to shooters, and beyond. Co-op tends to be a specialty of mine, though I'm quite flexible.
  
• Game-Development. This binds together with writing - especially interactive fiction. I love crafting interactive universes that others can delve into. Dynamic stories filled with choice and riveting corners down every turn. There are so many options to explore, so many characters to meet, befriend, antagonize, and more!
  
• Walks. I love exploring, and taking random walks throughout areas is a favorite of mine. Especially if there's food around to grab a bite of!
  
• Travel. Similar to above. Traveling is a favorite. I'd love to take a trip throughout Europe eventually, or one that winds through the entirety of the U.S. over a two-week extravaganza. What's your dream destination?
  
• Cheese-Making. This one's pretty new, and I'm still in the studying stages. I'm planning on getting into the craft of making cheese. Working with the cultures, ensuring I can create different types, and taste-testing with others. My goal in the long term is to create an artisan business if I can!
  

What's your career?: Currently, I work in the information technology field as a Support Engineer. I'm still quite passionate about what I do, but my long-term goal is to create a self-sustainable income from my writing endeavors.
Lastly, what are some random fun facts about you?: Lining them up!

• I'm credited in a critically acclaimed video game.
  
• My friends find me weird for adoring cottage cheese.
  
• I'm an avid dog lover who has a pitty-girl that's a rescue!
  
• Lastly, I can spend an entire night talking about anything at random, especially if a friend needs a distraction.
  

Anyways. It's been fun. I'd love to get to know you, so feel free to send me a message! Take care, and have a wonderful afternoon!
~Zach

Writing is wonderful, isn't it?
I'm Zach. I'm in the information technology sector by trade, but a writer otherwise. I work with interactive fiction, currently delving into two of my latest projects (one based in my high-fantasy universe that's been in development for over ten years!)
Anyways. That's a small tidbit, but I've got something better formatted.
What's my Age?: Twenty-Five (25).
Where am I located?: Columbus, Ohio!
Why'd I make this post?: The truth is simple. I'm looking for friends, people that I can grow with, get to know, and if something further emerges - so be it. Above all, personality is a key cornerstone for me. I can work with differing hobbies, cultures, and lifestyles, as long as you can do the same.
What's my Fatal-Flaw?: I'm loyal to a fault. It's screwed me over a bit in the past, but I've since worked to correct it. Nonetheless, I stick my neck out for those I've grown to care for.
How about some hobbies?: Alright, let's line 'em up!

• Writing. I've adored working with interactive fiction, and have multiple novels in development and in the publishing stages. With a little magic and a bit of luck, I'll be a published name pretty soon.
  
• Gaming. I'm into a variety of genres. These range from strategy to RPG, to MMO, to shooters, and beyond. Co-op tends to be a specialty of mine, though I'm quite flexible.
  
• Game-Development. This binds together with writing - especially interactive fiction. I love crafting interactive universes that others can delve into. Dynamic stories filled with choice and riveting corners down every turn. There are so many options to explore, so many characters to meet, befriend, antagonize, and more!
  
• Walks. I love exploring, and taking random walks throughout areas is a favorite of mine. Especially if there's food around to grab a bite of!
  
• Travel. Similar to above. Traveling is a favorite. I'd love to take a trip throughout Europe eventually, or one that winds through the entirety of the U.S. over a two-week extravaganza. What's your dream destination?
  
• Cheese-Making. This one's pretty new, and I'm still in the studying stages. I'm planning on getting into the craft of making cheese. Working with the cultures, ensuring I can create different types, and taste-testing with others. My goal in the long term is to create an artisan business if I can!
  

What's your career?: Currently, I work in the information technology field as a Support Engineer. I'm still quite passionate about what I do, but my long-term goal is to create a self-sustainable income from my writing endeavors.
Lastly, what are some random fun facts about you?: Lining them up!

• I'm credited in a critically acclaimed video game.
  
• My friends find me weird for adoring cottage cheese.
  
• I'm an avid dog lover who has a pitty-girl that's a rescue!
  
• Lastly, I can spend an entire night talking about anything at random, especially if a friend needs a distraction.
  

Anyways. It's been fun. I'd love to get to know you, so feel free to send me a message! Take care, and have a wonderful day!
~Zach

Writing is wonderful, isn't it?
I'm Zach. I'm in the information technology sector by trade, but a writer otherwise. I work with interactive fiction, currently delving into two of my latest projects (one based in my high-fantasy universe that's been in development for over ten years!)
Anyways. That's a small tidbit, but I've got something better formatted.
What's my Age?: Twenty-Five (25).
Where am I located?: Columbus, Ohio!
Why'd I make this post?: The truth is simple. I'm looking for friends, people that I can grow with, get to know, and if something further emerges - so be it. Above all, personality is a key cornerstone for me. I can work with differing hobbies, cultures, and lifestyles, as long as you can do the same.
What's my Fatal-Flaw?: I'm loyal to a fault. It's screwed me over a bit in the past, but I've since worked to correct it. Nonetheless, I stick my neck out for those I've grown to care for.
How about some hobbies?: Alright, let's line 'em up!

• Writing. I've adored working with interactive fiction, and have multiple novels in development and in the publishing stages. With a little magic and a bit of luck, I'll be a published name pretty soon.
  
• Gaming. I'm into a variety of genres. These range from strategy to RPG, to MMO, to shooters, and beyond. Co-op tends to be a specialty of mine, though I'm quite flexible.
  
• Game-Development. This binds together with writing - especially interactive fiction. I love crafting interactive universes that others can delve into. Dynamic stories filled with choice and riveting corners down every turn. There are so many options to explore, so many characters to meet, befriend, antagonize, and more!
  
• Walks. I love exploring, and taking random walks throughout areas is a favorite of mine. Especially if there's food around to grab a bite of!
  
• Travel. Similar to above. Traveling is a favorite. I'd love to take a trip throughout Europe eventually, or one that winds through the entirety of the U.S. over a two-week extravaganza. What's your dream destination?
  
• Cheese-Making. This one's pretty new, and I'm still in the studying stages. I'm planning on getting into the craft of making cheese. Working with the cultures, ensuring I can create different types, and taste-testing with others. My goal in the long term is to create an artisan business if I can!
  

What's your career?: Currently, I work in the information technology field as a Support Engineer. I'm still quite passionate about what I do, but my long-term goal is to create a self-sustainable income from my writing endeavors.
Lastly, what are some random fun facts about you?: Lining them up!

• I'm credited in a critically acclaimed video game.
  
• My friends find me weird for adoring cottage cheese.
  
• I'm an avid dog lover who has a pitty-girl that's a rescue!
  
• Lastly, I can spend an entire night talking about anything at random, especially if a friend needs a distraction.
  

Anyways. It's been fun. I'd love to get to know you, so feel free to send me a message! Take care, and have a wonderful day!
~Zach

Writing is wonderful, isn't it?
I'm Zach. I'm in the information technology sector by trade, but a writer otherwise. I work with interactive fiction, currently delving into two of my latest projects (one based in my high-fantasy universe that's been in development for over ten years!)
Anyways. That's a small tidbit, but I've got something better formatted.
What's my Age?: Twenty-Five (25).
Where am I located?: Columbus, Ohio!
Why'd I make this post?: The truth is simple. I'm looking for friends, people that I can grow with, get to know, and if something further emerges - so be it. Above all, personality is a key cornerstone for me. I can work with differing hobbies, cultures, and lifestyles, as long as you can do the same.
What's my Fatal-Flaw?: I'm loyal to a fault. It's screwed me over a bit in the past, but I've since worked to correct it. Nonetheless, I stick my neck out for those I've grown to care for.
How about some hobbies?: Alright, let's line 'em up!

• Writing. I've adored working with interactive fiction, and have multiple novels in development and in the publishing stages. With a little magic and a bit of luck, I'll be a published name pretty soon.
  
• Gaming. I'm into a variety of genres. These range from strategy to RPG, to MMO, to shooters, and beyond. Co-op tends to be a specialty of mine, though I'm quite flexible.
  
• Game-Development. This binds together with writing - especially interactive fiction. I love crafting interactive universes that others can delve into. Dynamic stories filled with choice and riveting corners down every turn. There are so many options to explore, so many characters to meet, befriend, antagonize, and more!
  
• Walks. I love exploring, and taking random walks throughout areas is a favorite of mine. Especially if there's food around to grab a bite of!
  
• Travel. Similar to above. Traveling is a favorite. I'd love to take a trip throughout Europe eventually, or one that winds through the entirety of the U.S. over a two-week extravaganza. What's your dream destination?
  
• Cheese-Making. This one's pretty new, and I'm still in the studying stages. I'm planning on getting into the craft of making cheese. Working with the cultures, ensuring I can create different types, and taste-testing with others. My goal in the long term is to create an artisan business if I can!
  

What's your career?: Currently, I work in the information technology field as a Support Engineer. I'm still quite passionate about what I do, but my long-term goal is to create a self-sustainable income from my writing endeavors.
Lastly, what are some random fun facts about you?: Lining them up!

• I'm credited in a critically acclaimed video game.
  
• My friends find me weird for adoring cottage cheese.
  
• I'm an avid dog lover who has a pitty-girl that's a rescue!
  
• Lastly, I can spend an entire night talking about anything at random, especially if a friend needs a distraction.
  

Anyways. It's been fun. I'd love to get to know you, so feel free to send me a message! Take care, and have a wonderful day!
~Zach

Writing is wonderful, isn't it?
I'm Zach. I'm in the information technology sector by trade, but a writer otherwise. I work with interactive fiction, currently delving into two of my latest projects (one based in my high-fantasy universe that's been in development for over ten years!)
Anyways. That's a small tidbit, but I've got something better formatted.
What's my Age?: Twenty-Five (25).
Where am I located?: Columbus, Ohio!
Why'd I make this post?: The truth is simple. I'm looking for friends, people that I can grow with, get to know, and if something further emerges - so be it. Above all, personality is a key cornerstone for me. I can work with differing hobbies, cultures, and lifestyles, as long as you can do the same.
What's my Fatal-Flaw?: I'm loyal to a fault. It's screwed me over a bit in the past, but I've since worked to correct it. Nonetheless, I stick my neck out for those I've grown to care for.
How about some hobbies?: Alright, let's line 'em up!

• Writing. I've adored working with interactive fiction, and have multiple novels in development and in the publishing stages. With a little magic and a bit of luck, I'll be a published name pretty soon.
  
• Gaming. I'm into a variety of genres. These range from strategy to RPG, to MMO, to shooters, and beyond. Co-op tends to be a specialty of mine, though I'm quite flexible.
  
• Game-Development. This binds together with writing - especially interactive fiction. I love crafting interactive universes that others can delve into. Dynamic stories filled with choice and riveting corners down every turn. There are so many options to explore, so many characters to meet, befriend, antagonize, and more!
  
• Walks. I love exploring, and taking random walks throughout areas is a favorite of mine. Especially if there's food around to grab a bite of!
  
• Travel. Similar to above. Traveling is a favorite. I'd love to take a trip throughout Europe eventually, or one that winds through the entirety of the U.S. over a two-week extravaganza. What's your dream destination?
  
• Cheese-Making. This one's pretty new, and I'm still in the studying stages. I'm planning on getting into the craft of making cheese. Working with the cultures, ensuring I can create different types, and taste-testing with others. My goal in the long term is to create an artisan business if I can!
  

What's your career?: Currently, I work in the information technology field as a Support Engineer. I'm still quite passionate about what I do, but my long-term goal is to create a self-sustainable income from my writing endeavors.
Lastly, what are some random fun facts about you?: Lining them up!

• I'm credited in a critically acclaimed video game.
  
• My friends find me weird for adoring cottage cheese.
  
• I'm an avid dog lover who has a pitty-girl that's a rescue!
  
• Lastly, I can spend an entire night talking about anything at random, especially if a friend needs a distraction.
  

Anyways. It's been fun. I'd love to get to know you, so feel free to send me a message! Take care, and have a wonderful evening!
~Zach

Writing is wonderful, isn't it?
I'm Zach. I'm in the information technology sector by trade, but a writer otherwise. I work with interactive fiction, currently delving into two of my latest projects (one based in my high-fantasy universe that's been in development for over ten years!)
Anyways. That's a small tidbit, but I've got something better formatted.
What's my Age?: Twenty-Five (25).
Where am I located?: Columbus, Ohio!
Why'd I make this post?: The truth is simple. I'm looking for friends, people that I can grow with, get to know, and if something further emerges - so be it. Above all, personality is a key cornerstone for me. I can work with differing hobbies, cultures, and lifestyles, as long as you can do the same.
What's my Fatal-Flaw?: I'm loyal to a fault. It's screwed me over a bit in the past, but I've since worked to correct it. Nonetheless, I stick my neck out for those I've grown to care for.
How about some hobbies?: Alright, let's line 'em up!

• Writing. I've adored working with interactive fiction, and have multiple novels in development and in the publishing stages. With a little magic and a bit of luck, I'll be a published name pretty soon.
  
• Gaming. I'm into a variety of genres. These range from strategy to RPG, to MMO, to shooters, and beyond. Co-op tends to be a specialty of mine, though I'm quite flexible.
  
• Game-Development. This binds together with writing - especially interactive fiction. I love crafting interactive universes that others can delve into. Dynamic stories filled with choice and riveting corners down every turn. There are so many options to explore, so many characters to meet, befriend, antagonize, and more!
  
• Walks. I love exploring, and taking random walks throughout areas is a favorite of mine. Especially if there's food around to grab a bite of!
  
• Travel. Similar to above. Traveling is a favorite. I'd love to take a trip throughout Europe eventually, or one that winds through the entirety of the U.S. over a two-week extravaganza. What's your dream destination?
  
• Cheese-Making. This one's pretty new, and I'm still in the studying stages. I'm planning on getting into the craft of making cheese. Working with the cultures, ensuring I can create different types, and taste-testing with others. My goal in the long term is to create an artisan business if I can!
  

What's your career?: Currently, I work in the information technology field as a Support Engineer. I'm still quite passionate about what I do, but my long-term goal is to create a self-sustainable income from my writing endeavors.
Lastly, what are some random fun facts about you?: Lining them up!

• I'm credited in a critically acclaimed video game.
  
• My friends find me weird for adoring cottage cheese.
  
• I'm an avid dog lover who has a pitty-girl that's a rescue!
  
• Lastly, I can spend an entire night talking about anything at random, especially if a friend needs a distraction.
  

Anyways. It's been fun. I'd love to get to know you, so feel free to send me a message! Take care, and have a wonderful evening!
~Zach

Consumer behavior is the cornerstone of economic demand. This demand-type microeconomic comportment shapes the basic economic system that exists in the contemporary world. Consumption goods constitute a substantial proportion of economic activity. Therefore, it is important for businesses to understand the fundamental drivers in order to support the creation of a sustainable economy naturally, free of state tax substitutes and mandates from supernational entities.

For the last decades, the economies of many industrialised countries have been characterised by a combination of continuously high resource consumption with related high waste volumes, of rising public debt often accompanied by persistent unemployment and slow economic growth. Performance economies are built on sustainability by allowing the efficient use of existing resources and embracing product-use extension over the fast replacement of products. The natural resources are finite while the demand is increasing. The trajectory has spearheaded a move to the service economy, guided by a paradigm shift from industrialization and manufacturing to services. The role of technology, especially artificial intelligence and blockchain, is critical in providing improved security, increased efficiency, enhanced transparency, better traceability, and reduced cost. The modern economy is characterized by the shift from quantity and price sensitivity into servicisation, product quality, sustainability, and product ownership, which guides any country’s success.

Performance Economy

The current performance economies rely on blockchain technology, artificial intelligence, sock market, and Q & Q stocks to drive servicisation and the natural economy. Markets are growing beyond the material economy and consumption-driven concept. Therefore, it is essential to shift from industry-driven and material consumption and embrace sustainability. The shift can be successfully executed through the creation of products that last for a long time. Besides, capital owners should maintain ownership while the returns on capital ownership ought to be adjusted to realize sustainable economies. Achieving economic growth naturally needs a critical adherence to sustainability practices that revolve around re-use, recycle, and reduce (Gelbmann and Hammerl 52). Particularly, the concept of clean water, sustainable energy, and sanitation play an important role in the process.

Contribution of Circular Economy to Performance Economy

Contribution of Circular Economy to Performance Economy
The circular market economy creates an avenue for the capitalist system of the economy to thrive. Consequently, it achieved significant success for a few capitalists but with little regard for the general welfare. Under a circular capitalist system and open market, where little intervention on production is involved, the value of ecosystem and biodiversity is consistently undervalued. However, generational equity is hardly achieved where minerals, water, and the ecosystem are exploited for the short-term benefit without compensation for future sustainability (Staheel 2). Performance economy is built on resource use efficiency and policy frameworks that promote labor as a resource, personal sustainability in the process, and the general will of key sector players in building a sustainable economy (Nygård 7). Geissdoerfer et al. provide the approaches that private sector players in the circular economy should embrace to promote sustainability through business models that are guided by principles of re-use, repair, recycle and remanufacture as opposed to replace (759). Labour, as human capital, is a critical element in the new business models that seek to promote sustainability. For instance, technological advancement, including the expertise use of artificial intelligence, blockchain technology, and smart assistance, are critical aspects in improving efficiency. Businesses train their employees on new technology of production, how to remain environmentally efficient, and the effectiveness of converting resources into profit for the realization of short-term and long-term sustainability (Huang and Rice 479). At a time when the production and businesses environment is dynamic, the role of human resources is paramount to achieving the needed sustainable productivity. Imparting new skills to employees improves their efficiency and reduces wasteful production.
A circular economy seeks to achieve stock optimization and profit maximization. The three loops of production and the service-life extension result in significant benefits to companies and organizations. Stock optimization and service economy have gained further popularity over value-added production because capital owners have an opportunity to create value by extending the useful life of the capital asset rather than increasing the assets through use and replacement. Therefore, the utilization value replaces the product and exchange value as the cost of input in the latter is higher, but it takes a relatively long time to depreciate (Cooper 33). The shift to the extension of the useful life is backed by a sustainable society, mainly because the world’s resources are becoming progressively finite (Moreno et al. 78). Moreover, the increasing role of private sector developers with the new business model based on the 3R principles of re-use, recycle, and remanufacture has proved vital to the current economy. The move has enabled manufacturers to realize more utility from extended use of resources and stock optimization than they would receive in low-quality products. The new business model is important for sustainability because the useful life of a product determines its replacement speed and the rate of use of the resources (Stahel 5). The level of consumption of natural resources is directly proportional to the amount of waste production. Therefore, extending the useful life of means of production promotes sustainability and reduces waste. Therefore, the current performance economy seeks to naturally support the economy through product-life extension rather in place of a fast replacement approach. Product life extension increases wealth. On the other hand, shortening the life cycle upsurges the demand for replacement escalates the rate of natural resource utilization, and leads to increased waste (Kjaer 22). The growing importance of the new business model based on circular economy finds innumerable opportunities in every sector’s activities such as repair, re-use, recycle, and reconditioning. It is applicable mainly in manufacturing, finance, and research and development.

The Role of Artificial Intelligence and Blockchain Technology

The Role of Artificial Intelligence and Blockchain Technology
Artificial intelligence and blockchain technology are instrumental in improving the resilience of the world economies in the face of pandemics and resource depletion. The shift towards a service economy and stock optimization is expected to propagate with the support from new technology. Particularly, blockchain and artificial intelligence can increase the speed of access to new markets new ways of production and stimulate productivity. The contribution of blockchain technology in keeping data secure in the service economy is paramount. The financial segment and stock market sector advance when private sector players are assured of the security of their investment. Blockchain and artificial intelligence provide security through authentication and facial identification (Ramadoss et al. 57). In addition, blockchain has enabled financial inclusion by reducing the cost of transactions and improving the speed with which many players in the economy access financial services. The era of new and advanced technology is necessary for natural economy performance based on the service economy to grow. Therefore, blockchain and artificial intelligence are critical in enabling the shift from the fast-replacement production to the new product- life extension and service economy, which is more sustainable than the traditional system due to the finite nature of natural resources.
Artificial intelligence and blockchain technology are instrumental in improving the resilience of the world economies in the face of pandemics and resource depletion. The shift towards a service economy and stock optimization is expected to propagate with the support from new technology. Particularly, blockchain and artificial intelligence can increase the speed of access to new markets new ways of production and stimulate productivity. The contribution of blockchain technology in keeping data secure in the service economy is paramount. The financial segment and stock market sector advance when private sector players are assured of the security of their investment. Blockchain and artificial intelligence provide security through authentication and facial identification (Ramadoss et al. 57). In addition, blockchain has enabled financial inclusion by reducing the cost of transactions and improving the speed with which many players in the economy access financial services. The era of new and advanced technology is necessary for natural economy performance based on the service economy to grow. Therefore, blockchain and artificial intelligence are critical in enabling the shift from the fast-replacement production to the new product- life extension and service economy, which is more sustainable than the traditional system due to the finite nature of natural resources.
As the world marks a significant economic paradigm shift, blockchain and artificial intelligence offer solutions to existing problems. The advantages of these new technologies cannot be overlooked if an economy is to achieve a complete change towards a service economy, extended life products, and stock optimization. Specifically, blockchain technology offers improved security, increased efficiency, greater transparency, traceability, and reduced costs (Swan 125). Artificial intelligence and blockchain technology combine to effectively provide economical solutions and upgrade supply chain, financial inclusion, health records, and even medical royalties critical in the service economy (Marwala and Xing 25). Artificial intelligence specifically supports blockchain by facilitating decentralized blockchain infrastructure and verifying authenticity. Thus, artificial intelligence and blockchain work collaboratively to enable the service economy to perform naturally, guarantee sustainability, and promote economic viability for future generations.
The blockchain economy is taking over fiat and monetary systems. The technology facilitates exchange between distant players guided by equality of ownership shared governance among members. Blockchain and artificial intelligence are the centers of the new performance economies. They break border barriers and allow transactions between people in different countries at low costs and a fast rate. Artificial intelligence promotes trust by providing authenticity to transactions and eradicating the involvement of third parties in international trade and transactions.
The use of artificial intelligence, blockchain technology, and smart assistance has changed the way nations seek to promote natural growth. Furthermore, globalization and the growth of an open market economy have reduced the international boundaries in trade and what countries do to gain the balance of trade. As such, nations are finding it increasingly difficult to grow by themselves, especially given the rise in the international supply chain. Competitive advantage in production plays a significant role in what countries produce and how they balance their foreign exchange. The cutthroat competition and globalization have led to a new concept of sustainability that economies embrace to remain competitive in the going concern. For instance, a significant paradigm shift from industrialization to the service economy seeks to promote stock management over asset ownership to reduce the preference of quantity products over quality, which can last for long and guarantee a return on investment to the capital owners.

Conclusion

Performance economies seek to promote sustainability by allowing the efficient use of present resources. The product-life extension of fast-product replacement is encouraged as it leads to a lower rate of resource utilization and relatively low waste during production. Therefore, traditional means of production, where resources such as land, labor, and minerals were made for short-term use, are being replaced with products that take reasonably long to wear out or replace. The concept of stock optimization has evolved over time. Besides, the role of technology and the contribution of research and development in the performance economy cannot be overstated. The technology gained from research and development may not benefit the economy in the short term, but it contributes to economic growth in the long run. Research into new production methods, better products, and waste management play a key role in promoting sustainability, given the limited resources. Blockchain and artificial technology are now at the center of the service economy. Overall, they offer improved security, increased efficiency, greater transparency, better traceability, and reduced costs.

References

Cooper, Tim. “The Significance of Product Longevity.” Longer Lasting Products. Routledge, 2016.
Geissdoerfer, Martin et al. “The Circular Economy – A New Sustainability Paradigm?”. Journal of Cleaner Production, vol 143, 2017, pp. 757-768., doi: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2016.12.048.
Gelbmann, Ulrike, and Barbara Hammerl. “Integrative Re-Use Systems as Innovative Business Models for Devising Sustainable Product–Service-Systems”. Journal of Cleaner Production, vol 97, 2015, pp. 50-60., doi: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2014.01.104.
Huang, Fang, and John Rice. “The Role of Absorptive Capacity in Facilitating “Open Innovation” Outcomes: A Study of Australian SMEs in The Manufacturing Sector”. International Journal of Innovation Management, vol 13, no. 02, 2009, pp. 201-220., doi:10.1142/s1363919609002261.
Kjaer, Louise Laumann et al. “Product/Service‐Systems for A Circular Economy: The Route to Decoupling Economic Growth From Resource Consumption?”. Journal of Industrial Ecology, vol 23, no. 1, 2018, pp. 22-35., doi:10.1111/jiec.12747.
Marwala, Tshilidzi, and Bo Xing. “Blockchain and artificial intelligence.” arXiv preprint arXiv:1802.04451, 2018. doi:10.48550/arXiv.1802.04451
Moreno, Mariale et al. “A Conceptual Framework for Circular Design”. Sustainability, vol 8, no. 9, 2016, p. 937., doi:10.3390/su8090937.
Nygård, Håvard Mokleiv. “Achieving The Sustainable Development Agenda: The Governance–Conflict Nexus.” International Area Studies Review, vol. 20, no.1, 2017, p. 3-18.
Ramadoss, Tamil Selvan, Hilaal Alam, and Ramakrishna Seeram. “Artificial Intelligence and Internet of Things Enabled Circular Economy.” The International Journal of Engineering and Science, vol. 7, no. 9, 2018, pp. 55-63.
Stahel, Walter. “The Business Angle of a Circular Economy–Higher Competitiveness, Higher Resource Security and Material Efficiency.” A New Dynamic: Effective Business in A Circular Economy, vol.1, 2013.
Swan, Melanie. “Blockchain for Business: Next-Generation Enterprise Artificial Intelligence Systems.” Advances in Computers. vol. 111, 2018, pp. 121-162.
Authors

Paul Lalovich

Organizational Effectiveness and Strategy Execution Practice

Tesha Teshanovich

[ [FIRST] [NEXT>]

Season 10 “Days of Fury” - Episode 2 “Visiting Omen”

He had hoped for a boring day. Boring days are good at work, and Santos was already expecting to not have many of them for a while.
The first couple of days were boring, as usual- Blackriver is a small town, and the worst that had happened was Nila and Kessa making a few wellness checks after worried calls from neighbors. A couple of people in denial, a few ashamed at their own violent outbursts and a stern warning to Tamm about painting others’ properties without asking first.
This morning, however, began with an all-hands meeting. There were no meeting rooms in the office, so they made do in the general workspace room, they all stood there at the center while Keya looked them over.
“We have received a report from a neighboring city about a convoy of protestors making its way to Blackriver” she describes without tone. At this point nobody bothers interrupting.
“This convoy is comprised of approximately four hundred and seventy eight individuals of multiple species, primarily human and venlil but with operationally relevant representations of the entire spectrum of size and mobility types” her paws are behind her back, her ears focused directly ahead, her eyes centered to keep the entire team on the core of her focus “They have crossed multiple cities already, generally engaging in verbal sparring with any figure of authority, parading signs and banners denouncing all manners of authorities as well as occasionally engaging in physical altercations with officers.”
“They are also known to engage in vandalism. Though primarily aimed at exterminator and police precincts as well as public offices, they have already caused considerable collateral to others they have identified as ‘collaborators’” there’s a single heartbeat of waiting for breath before she continues “They have, however, not shown to be an incredibly organized group or one with a clear goal and objective. The convoy appears to contain only extremely emotionally charged people with no clear overarching goal.”
“We are incapable of dealing with the situation should they turn aggressive, as such we will be simply maintaining watch and relocating the populace should they become a problem.” Then, she picks up her holopad and passes it to Lunek beside her “They can only follow one path with the entire convoy, the central street, therefore I have divided it into four sectors. One of each will be assigned to a sector.”
First her ears turn to the first target “Lunek, sector one at the entrance. As the most approachable member of the precinct your task is to give an initial image of harmlessness. Do not engage first, do not take initiative against them. Ensure the members of the herd in the area are warned of their approach. If they become aggressive, retreat and focus on the escape of the herd.”
She tilts her head a little bit, turning her ears the other way “Marik, sector two. Mostly the commercial area, your task is ostensive protection to lower the chances of them initiating aggression. Whereas protection of the herd is first priority your second priority is ensuring Tenve’s Hardware Store as well as Sunbreeze Meals and Watchful Café remain capable of providing anyone whose residences become damaged.” suddenly, she turns her head entirely to face Marik “Ostensive protection means dissuasion, ensure that they know they are not under threat and as long as those specific areas are not engaged, do not provoke”
Next in her line of fire is Santos “As our human officer you will be in sector three, nearby the precinct. They are liable to become most agitated in this area and your presence may serve to calm them. You are not to engage, if deemed necessary the precinct’s materials are considered expendable, do not attempt to stop them”
“Sector four, the exit of town, will be with me to ensure that they have fully left Blackriver and will not attempt to turn back” then she tilts her ears again “Aren, you will gear up with a CCG and remain out of view range, your task will be quick emergency response should the need arise.” she then points her tail at the last three officers “Vess, your task will be to inform the herd and ensure a clear path for the convoy while Nila and Kessa will gather all of our medical supplies and set a staging area out of the convoy’s range. Organize ambulance assistance from Striped Hill and Everrain”
Then, she turns her ears around to focus each one in turn “As any attempt at aggression will end only in negative consequences, and in order to reduce the apparent levels of threat you will be unarmed. The estimated time of arrival is a third of a claw, ready yourselves and be at your post in time. Dismissed.”
“Not sure if I like or I don’t that we had the cold bastard right now” Aren says, as soon as Keya had left the room “Maybe we should move in closer when the convoy gets to sector four?”
“Probably a good idea to be nearby” Santos adds with a sigh “They might take umbrage with her demeanor, hopefully they won’t be set off too hard.”
And with silent signs of agreement all of the officers of Blackriver depart for preparations. The first ones to leave the precinct are the ones in charge of support, the two girls set off early to find someone willing to permit usage of their lawn as a possible impromptu field hospital and a little while later Aren leaves with a heavy CCG.
Slowly, the clock ticks to the appointed claw… And soon enough, Lunek can see in the distance the incoming omen of people. At first a distant line in the horizon, slowly the dark mark on the road coalesces into distinct shapes, the shapes of hundreds of vehicles slowly rolling down the road.
When the first few get close to the initial buildings of the main street, the entire convoy slows down. Their process of preparation is seemingly laborious, each vehicle houses multiple people at a time, smaller cars full to the brim, flatbeds with more people on their cargo space than can safely be contained, even buses conscripted for the effort. They carry with them signs, flags, a multitude of symbols as they dismount their vehicles and start spreading out to fill the street.
They seem to naturally form two distinct yet highly mixed groups, at its most distinctive is the pack of humans who keep a good distance from each other. But they are not alone in this group as takkan, mazic, yotul, zurulian and even drilvar form this central group. But flowing around them, not avoiding their presence but never infringing in their space is the grey mass of venlil, packed tight together, and mixed in there adding color to the monochromatic flux are krakotl, tilfish, sulean, iftali, sivkit and even a seemingly very confused duerten.
And at the very core of the moving group are their vehicles, which gently start rolling forward again as the group starts moving. Lunek simply waits, silently, by the side of the road, his ears attentively swiveling from one side to the other, expression having given way to function. Before the first of the convoy even arrives close he turns to the side, making a pointing sign with his tail. A woman who had been watching from her yard flicks her right ear and runs back inside.
He continues to wait, scanning around at all times for the presence of… Anything. The street is empty of locals when the first visitors start to alight. The convoy is loud, their symbols carry a loudness of colors and their vehicles make as much noise as they can to draw attention, but those who walk seem content in allowing their tools to speak for them, for now. Lunek tries to make sense of the banners and signs, but the messages are disparate as the group- Some speak of injustices against their people, some speak of anger at invaders, some speak of betrayal.
“Fuck off, fireman!” comes the harsh bark of a human, causing Lunek to flinch. But flinch is all he does, he simply starts walking alongside the moving convoy.
The exterminator’s attention is drawn to the details of the few people he can distinguish amongst the mass. Something tickles at his pattern-recognition but he cannot quite ascertain what for a while, until a lightly limping mazic makes her way to the edge of the mass “Want to finish the job?!” she trumpets, her form towering over his.
“I’m just observing, ma’am.” Though the tremor of his voice is noticeable, he remains stoic. But her proximity makes him notice something about her body, marks in her wrists, neck and feet. Though mazic have powerful wrists and knuckles upon which they support the front half of their weight, her left wrist seems completely incapable of it, giving her a limp particular to a three-point walk. “To make sure there’s no impediment on your path” he notices the leathery skin around her left wrist is deeply blackened.
“Oh, ‘no impediment’ is that it? So everyone that lives here is an impediment?!” her voice booms.
“Ma’am” still, he does not yield nor does he break his pace following the convoy “We have not done anything other than inform our people of your presence…” for a half second all he hears is the sound of his own heart “We can’t do anything else.”
Those words, then, sealed his fate. The first shout to echo in his direction was a yotul howling “Yeah you’re useless!” and soon the avalanche came in multiple voices and languages “Can’t do shit!” “You’re just here to hurt people!” “Useless crap!” “Idiot!” and many more.
With every step and twitch the very average exterminator puts all of his focus on just being there. He lets himself cower a little bit, against the barrage it is difficult not to, but he continues to accompany. A few curious coats step out from their houses to watch, but the front of the convoy seems far too focused on the sole exterminator in view to bother anyone else.
A few steps ahead, an older venlil with a cane has moved the closest to the convoy as any watcher has up to now. Seeing her proximity to the increasingly rowdy crowd causes Lunek to speed up, quickly approaching her “Leva-”
But his words are stalled when she puts a paw on his shoulder, she gently puts her head against his for just a second “You’re doing good pup, keep at it” she mutters to him before breaking contact and turning around to walk back inside. He can spy her grandchildren looking on through the door. Lunek looks back at the still-shouting moving convoy, takes a deep breath, and continues to accompany them forward. A small pawful of them, however, seem to have fallen silent.
Once having reached the limit of his assigned zone, however, Lunek stops. He watches the convoy move forward, past the houses, now noisier than before. The initial hollering at him had turned into disjointed screams at some indistinct foe- Though the herd had been noticed of a foe, it was yet unaware of who, or what, said foe was. So for now it howled at the ineptitude of… Someone. And as the last of the convoy passes beyond the imaginary line of his duty, Lunek lets out a deep sigh and allows himself to sit down on the ground.
He stays there for a moment, without thought, simply letting the tension, confusion and fear permeate his body until a gentle paw touches his arm. He doesn’t need to look to identify it, he lets his lover use her strength to prop him up, raising him to his feet “Keina you shouldn’t-”
“Neighbor’s looking over Tiss” his wife wraps her arms and tail around him “I’m not leaving you alone.” she stays like that for a second, before breaking off “Do you need to go after them?”
“No”
Marik stalks through the sidewalk, moving with energy. His speed outpaces the movement of the convoy, his paws twitch to grasp at something that isn’t there and a deep and intense motion makes his short fur stand on end. He had let the convoy’s head move in front of him, simply standing still as he assessed as many as he could in the mass, and now he had begun to move towards the front again.
As he stalked forward he focused his sight on every member of the convoy that seemed of interest. A human whose clothes seemed suspiciously loose, a venlil whose movements were far too stiff, a gojid who kept his claws behind his back. He stared at each like they were his quarry, analyzing every piece of movement they made for threats, and yet aside from the challenge in the human’s gaze he saw no danger arise.
Tenve had closed his shop, so as the convoy moved forward Marik simply continued to follow along, scanning the crowd for threats. But the next point of interest arrives, and he rushes ahead placing himself in front of the only restaurant of the town. Sunbreeze Meals wasn’t a very common sort of restaurant, Blackriver did not have enough visitors for a normal restaurant to be profitable and was small enough most people had their meals at home, it most often served takeout for those farmers who’d spend so long in the field they would return home without the energy to feed themselves.
Sparing a look inside at the only five tables, Marik couldn’t keep a small thought away from his mind. How most who got their meals from Sunbreeze these days did so because they enjoyed the cooking rather than their need of work, ever since the sunspeck population has been brought under control and the maintenance of the fields had become much smaller. He feels the presence long before he can recognize what led him to feel it and turns to stare at a group of six that approach the entrance: Two humans, a tilfish, two gojids and a takkan had broken off from the convoy and approached the restaurant.
He traces his color band over each in turn, and they all bristle at his stare. One of the humans hesitates before continuing to walk inside, and Marik simply remains by the door with his arms crossed, left ear twisted as far back as he could to listen to the inside.
“What have you got here?”
“W-we mostly ha-have ready ma-made meals to go or- or- Or you can look over the menu”
“There’s no need to stutter, y’know”
“So-sorry-”
“Really, after everything y’all are still with this predator crap?”
The chimes on the door echo for the second time in sequence as Marik makes his way inside. The tilfish had started to lean over the counter while the other five had arrayed themselves behind her. They all turn their attention to him as he enters, including the venlil manning the counter. Marik keeps his gaze directly on the tilfish for a few uncomfortable seconds, before looking at the man behind the counter and making a simple sign with his tail, a short vertical bob with the tip and a slow horizontal swipe. It’s meaning simple: >Safe<.
After a few seconds someone else appears from the kitchen. The tall venlil carries a large stack of plastic boxes in his arms, all of them seemingly designed to attach to themselves so as to be carried with ease. He puts them down with a resounding crash on the counter, and opens up his voice with ice “Farmer’s Pots, good meal when you’re working and can’t go home.” With each word the owner of the restaurant and main cook comes closer and closer to the tilfish, until the last “Ten credits each.”
Nobody moves for a couple of seconds, and then one of the humans steps closer and brings a holopad over to the credit reader. There’s a noise indicating payment, and then the owner raises his head and tilts it to focus his favored eye and both of his ears at the man who paid “Now,” he shifts register in his voice and the language he speaks in “fuck off” he finishes.
With no small amount of surprise the group of six retrieve the stack of packaged meals, carefully walking out and back into the convoy. Marik stays behind for a moment “Didn’t know you spoke human”
“Pup’s enamored with their languages. Of course, first greek words he learns is swearing.”
Outside, Marik stalks further ahead to the next point of interest. He moves faster than the convoy, and has time to move in front of it. For a few meters the street is still clear as he arrives to find a group of people standing in front of the Watchful. Standing there were all of its employees, and even all of its regulars, twenty people total standing there as if they were having the most normal day. If not for their raised ears tracking every noise coming from down the street and their swaying tails swinging about like angry beasts.
One of them simply points his tail at the other side of the street as Marik comes closer, and the hunter doesn’t need a second command to understand the meaning. They have this, he has a less practical but just as important duty. He crosses the street quickly before the convoy starts coming closer, and heads towards the park.
As the regulars of the Watchful had feared, it took little time until a large group had broken off from the convoy. With the town on alert about the convoy they had found themselves bereft of prey and now this group had set out to find some, anyone who might be willing, or not, to listen to their grievances. And what is clearly a place designed for people to congregate looked most appetizing.
Marik shadowed the group as they moved through the park, but they were accompanied by nothing but silence. It wasn’t until they ran into the centerpiece of the park that he took initiative, stepping ahead of the group and simply… Standing there a distance away from the tree of many scions, between it and the group.
“What’s so important over there, fireman?” it was a venlil who asked, but his usage of an english word was not lost on Marik.
“A place you will respect” the exterminator has his arms crossed, the one good portion of his gaze set on the man who asked “This is a grave.”
Though the group that now prowled was large, those who heard were taken aback. One such, however, approaches closer. He was a venlil whose fur shifted between a soft, brownish color and a dirty white “A tradition of the tenets right? One of those family trees?” The man would have been distinctive in any other group due to his missing patches of fur around neck, wrists, even portions around his head. But such signs of long term damage were common in the convoy.
Interest. They had shown true interest, or at least one of them had. “No, but similar… The forgotten tree is a grave for the forgotten.” He felt like these people, at least the ones before him, could probably understand the meaning of this place “It is of no tradition. Someone, a long time ago, wanted to honor someone who was gone but whose name was not meant to be remembered. Someone who had disappeared in the system… So they borrowed on another’s tradition, and added a scion to this tree, with something in their memory. Others have done so similarly, until it became… A grave for the forgotten”
“Didn’t think you’d be worried about this kind of place” it’s a human that speaks up this time
“Our duty is to protect this town, what you think-” but Marik’s words are interrupted by that same venlil who had asked before. His demeanor suddenly shifts, his ears perk up and his entire body shifts forward for a moment. He hesitates, for a second everyone’s focus is on him, and then he runs towards the tree.
Marik follows behind, stopping just by the man’s side as he finds himself at the base of the tree. The man makes a direct line to somewhere, something he had found from the distance, as if it had called him. He finds a thick and heavy branch that had been bent down by the weight of its scions and memories, near its base and speaking of a memory left behind long ago is a braid of fur made of three colors, a dirty white, a soft brown and a dark grey, bound by the braids are two beads.
The man raises up a paw, but does not touch it. As if cradling it, he recites the words engraved in one of the beads “I will cross every star to return home” others have come closer to listen to the man’s hoarse voice “There will always be a home for you” he reads of the second one. The names on the beads have been scratched out. The man falls on his knees “S-she kept her promise and… I couldn’t keep mine…”
Marik steps back as he watches two others come closer to comfort the man. He looks as a few others approach with more caution, looking up at the tree with a bit more reverence than they had before. Then, he turns around and starts heading back towards the main street.
Gazing out as the convoy gains a new flux, some leave it as it passes to move towards the park while others leave the park to rejoin the convoy, Marik simply stays there at the side of the street looking as stern as he could. Though the noise of the convoy remains great, here in this portion it seems to die down a little. A thought crosses his mind as he turns an ear as far back as he can, a thought he can’t help but voice “I wonder how many are looking at their own graves…”
As the convoy progresses, Santos simply stands by the front of the precinct, hands in his pockets. He watches the convoy arrive, heart beating fast, constrained hands the only reason he hasn't started shaking quite yet. He starts tapping his right foot as he watches the first few people cross by without noticing what this place is yet, everyone knows where the precinct is, so aside from the words printed on the sign by the entrance there is no other marker of what this building’s purpose might be.
Of course, it is impossible for nobody to notice. The entire convoy seems to stop as soon as a zurulian riding on the shoulders of a human points a claw at the building and says something. A large group breaks away at the command, all of them holding disparate signs and messages. They turn on the building with enough roars that whatever they are attempting to transmit is lost on him.
Santos is thankful his hearing isn’t nearly as good as his coworkers’, as the cacophony is already overwhelming him. He changes stances slightly, taking his hands out of his pockets and crossing his arms. This prompts a small group to turn their looks at him, the focus easily identifiable with the humans in their midst, focus which made the hair in the back of Santos’ neck stand on end. Living in this place had refined his sense of danger, but he didn’t need that to realize what could happen.
It was a group of five that approached, four humans and a venlil. “Didn’t think they’d be letting humans live out here in the boonies” said one of his kin.
Santos just shrugs “Got hired to work here. Honestly, rural folk get a needlessly bad reputation, most of the time they just don’t care as long as you’re not bothering them”
“Really? In my-”
Santos interrupts the man “Cut it out” there are many ways in which humans make themselves obvious, many of which are their eyes. Santos did understand the fear of them and why it was primal, it was not the fear of the eyes but the fear of attention, it was knowing you were under the scrutiny and judgment of another that set off that emotion. It was rarely the eyes that showed this attention for most species, but for humans it was, and the man’s clear gaze on his badge made the entire situation clear to him “Stop beating around the bush and say it already.”
Someone else is who speaks. The tall woman starts not with words, however, but by spitting on Santos’ uniform “You fucking traitor” her voice is both fierce and cold at the same time. A very emotional coldness.
“There we go” he sighs “Just… Move on. We’re not getting anything out of this conversation”
“Why?” It was the venlil in the group that started this time “These people hate you, they hate you for what you are! Why do you work for them?!”
Santos rubs his eyes and sighs “Because someone has to. Change only happens when you make it happen, simple as that”
“Change?!” another one of the humans howls “Do you think those people can change?! You know the truth, those fuckers have never done anything good!”
“You know, if you had read your history books…” Santos stares at the one who had just had their outburst “You’d remember that we once thought the very same about the police” there’s the sound of glass breaking, but he doesn’t reaction “And a lot of us still do”
The human staring him down shifts their gaze slightly at the broken window of the precinct, then back at Santos “A broken window is easy to fix” he shrugs “As I was saying. Same shit.” he crosses his arms again “There’s a role those people play, a role that needs to be played because it’s important. Different name, different problems, still the same shit. Gotta fix this, I’m doing my part” he then stares at the venlil in the group “You do yours. Simple as that.”
“Role?!” the venlil of the group steps closer “What role could they possibly have?! They only exist to hurt people!”
Santos steps back, and raises his eyes a little bit. Of course, the classics had shown themselves in this instance. With as many humans as there are in the crowd there were now quite a few objects in the air, most clearly aimed at the precinct behind him. Though given the failed arc of some of them it was clearly not just the humans indulging in such a tried and true method.
“I used to be a wildlife preserve ranger” Santos then focuses his gaze on the aggravated venlil “This is a frontier town, if you walk in the brushes with shorts you’ll walk out with your ankles numb. The athai out there are rather harmless, but they keep the sunspecks under control.” He takes another step back “Since coming here I’ve been pest control, had to catch an exotic animal set loose, investigated a murder, helped stop a child from taking her own life, stopped large scale fights, helped a dozen people avoid being arrested for self defense and helped break a fucking siege”
Santos cracks his knuckles “There’s roles. Jobs that need done and there is one fucking organization doing it all. That is a problem.” Then, he sighs and takes a few more steps to the side, offering indifference from this point on “There’s nothing I can say that would make you calm down.” he says one final time “Just make sure not to injure yourselves in the process, alright?” His words seemed to be enough to make the small group cease trying to interact, as the convoy had begun moving again. Though the one human who had called him a traitor gets one final parting shot at the precinct “Where the hell did you get an egg in this planet…” Santos says with a raised eyebrow as the projectile impacts the front door.
Keya stands by a large sign, the same one that welcomes you into Blackriver on one side and sees you out at the other, the official limit of the town. Her arms behind her back, her attention directly towards the front of the convoy as they march. Something gains the whole of her attention, the car in the front. Someone draws her focus, a human with a megaphone on top of the car. The man shouts words of encouragement at the people behind him with the megaphone before turning to his holopad, then he bends over downwards to discuss something with the driver.
She simply remains there, waiting for the convoy to pass. But instead of moving on out of the city, here the convoy stops completely. Keya observes as the further end of the convoy starts to slowly compact upon itself, and her ears pick up something “Alright everyone, start getting ready, next town over is more than a claw away, make sure you’ve left nothing behind” the words were not meant for her, nor for anyone too far. They come from the same man she had seen standing on top of the car, but he had now climbed down and was talking with a group of multiple species.
It is clear they have some degree of leadership, though the convoy does not stop cleanly nor does it begin to organize with alacrity they do respond to the group’s organization. So Keya keeps her focus on them as they point, wave and talk between themselves, others and devices. But at least one of them has noticed her attention, a gangly and light-skinned human with fire-red hair, the man that was atop the car. He starts walking in her direction, before turning around for one final set of commands as he walks backwards “And make sure the guys at the back got all the crap! We’re here to be heard, not to trash the city!” he says before turning back again to head towards her. A venlil with pure white fur erupts from inside the car he was riding, quickly dashing to his side as they notice where he was going.
In a few moments both have come up to her, the human looking down at her with the venlil bristles at his side “Saw anything interesting, fireman?”
“What are you doing here?”
“What? Isn’t it obvious?!” it was the venlil that roared a response “You saw all of it! You know what they’ve done to us! What they’ve done to everyone! And you still work for those brahking monsters! It’s like you’re thankful they made you a cripple!”
The human puts a hand on the venlil’s shoulder, calming her demeanor just a little bit “We’re here because honestly, we’re all too tired of being fucking ignored is what. So what the fuck are you gonna do?!”
“I have put the wrong emphasis” Keya says with her lack of tone. She can see the human shiver just a little bit “My task is to ensure the safety of this town. Your convoy is a danger. We have eight field-capable officers, we cannot ensure the safety of the residents against a group like yours. People will take actions for reasons, you have broadcast your reasons clearly. You have chosen this place for a reason which I cannot ascertain.”
She makes sure her ears are trained towards both the human and the venlil, an action which causes the venlil to cower behind her partner “We do not house government agencies. This is a farming town of little note. The local precinct is a simple precinct, we have no regulatory or command authority. The town population is approximately double that of the number of your convoy. We have no individuals of appreciable social or political reach. There is nothing in Blackriver of interest to people attempting to change government policy, nor have there been actions taken here that I can identify as being cause for retaliatory actions within the context of your message.”
“I must ensure this does not happen again and the only way of doing so is minimizing our attractivity as targets. A logical assumption of your choice of quarry would be a town with the presence of politicians, a large city with constant news coverage, cities housing important government agencies or those containing the Regional Firebases”
“So I ask again. What are you doing here?”
The two remain silent for a few seconds, before the human turns around with a mouth noise “Whatever, I don’t need to explain myself to someone that won’t listen. Come on!” he starts to stalk back towards the car, but stops once he notices his venlil companion wasn’t moving.
The snow-white venlil has their focus on Keya, who offers a simple low forward swipe of her tail, a sign to proceed. Still, the venlil seems frozen in place until the human comes back and grabs hold of their paw with a gentle touch. At which point both finally return to the convoy.
Keya remains at the side of the road, watching as the convoy readies itself again to leave. People get back inside cars, they hop on the back of trucks and load themselves into buses. She continues to watch as the convoy takes its time riding out, making their way out of the town.
Once it is finally gone, multiple footsteps sound behind her. When she turns around she meets her officers, having returned from their assigned positions “They have left. I expect your reports of what happened in each sector by the end of your shifts” she states plainly, before looking at Santos “They did not appear to have a specific reason for targeting Blackriver.” The question remains unspoken.
The human officer just shrugs “Sometimes, you don’t know what you’re doing. We’re just a little town, I doubt they even know what exactly they’re angry about.” He looks at the tail end of the convoy as it leaves “Town was probably just a place they felt safe going to.”
“D-do you think we might get more like that” Lunek says, at the back of the group.
“Who knows…” Santos sighs “But if human history applies anywhere here… This is just a sign of worse things to come”
[ [FIRST] [NEXT>]
And thus the omen passes by. Feelings, emotions of all sorts, without a plan or a reason other than just their own rage and distress.
Did any of these even know what they were doing? And how much worse can it be when they do?

Location: Defense Line Husky, Datsot-3

POV: Motsotaer, Malgeir Federation Planetary Defense Force (Rank: Pack Member)
The shrieking whistle of incoming artillery shell was among the most terrifying noises known to living beings.
Sheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeew. Boom. Boom. Boom.
But it meant you were still alive.
Pack Member Motsotaer wondered if the poor pups in the forward trenches heard them coming as the enemy high explosive pounded into their lines.
Boom. Boom. Boom.
One of their anti-aircraft concrete bunkers took a direct hit; its roof collapsed on itself with a loud crumble.
Grass Eater artillery was voluminous, destructive, but scariest of all, it was incredibly precise. Their intelligence assets in orbit knew all, saw all. Their kill chains were short. Once they saw you, they would call it in, and the remainder of your life was measured in minutes and seconds.
There was nothing vegetarian about the efficient and bloodthirsty way the long-eared Grass Eaters fought, and the numerous intelligent predator species they’d exterminated on their way to Datsot… some of those tales gave even Motsotaer nightmares.
The defenders of Datsot had no choice. No choice but to defend their homes against the psychotic enemies pounding their lines to bits. And the ones who remained had learned the hard lessons of war, either through experience earned by blood or via the process of not-so-natural selection.
Motsotaer clutched his rifle against his chest as he laid in his own shallow hole, eyes closed. If the end was going to come for him, there was nothing else he could do but huddle in his freshly-dug grave.
Boom. Boom. Boom.
The blasts continued walking across the defense lines, undoubtedly killing scores of his comrades. But he accompanied each shockwave with a sigh of relief; they let him know that he was still alive. Still breathing.
One final rumble. And then there was silence across the battlefield.
Motsotaer waited a minute before he peeked out — another lesson that smart defenders of Datsot had discovered the hard way. A couple brave medics were already on the move, their shouts left and right, pulling bodies and the groaning injured alike out of the rubble aftermath of the shelling.
With a grunt, he pulled himself out of his hole, rushing towards the neighboring anti-air bunker. The concrete roof had collapsed, but he could still hear cries from the dark. He squeezed through the cluttered entrance.
It was a mess on the inside. The lights were all gone. Scattered sandbags. It smelled like blood and death, and he pushed aside the still body of a Head Pack Leader he only knew of, only to find the corpse of yet another Pack Member, her limbs sprawled in an unnatural position.
“Anyone still alive in here?” he asked in the dark as his eyes adjusted. “Hello?”
There were a series of loud coughs. “I’m here. I’m here.”
“Pack Leader Nidvid!” he shouted as he recognized the familiar shrill voice. “Keep talking! Where are you?”
“Here. I’m here. Help me up.”
As she continued to cough, he had the sense to fish a flashlight out of his pocket, fumbling around until he found the on button. As the light activated, he could see Nidvid half-buried in the dirt, her lower limbs trapped beneath some sand from the broken sandbags.
“Pack Leader!” He got onto his front paws and started digging. “Are you injured?”
“I don’t think so,” she shook her head in the dim lighting as she experimentally wriggled her legs. “Here, I think I’m loose. Help me up.”
Motsotaer grasped her under her arms, and with a heavy grunt, pulled her out of the dirt.
“Whew,” she said, checking her body again for wounds. Nidvid looked around at the other bodies splayed in the bunker. “Oh no… Head Pack Leader…”
“That was a close one. I can’t believe you lived through that!”
“Yeah, me neither… Wait a second,” Nidvid said as she began rummaging through a pile of rubble near the Head Pack Leader’s body. “The radio…”
“What are you looking for?” he asked as he aimed his flashlight towards where she was looking.
“Oh no, no, no…” her voice trailed off as she picked up the device she’d been looking for. “Our hardline communicator…” It was clearly broken from the strike, its shell perforated with a hundred holes and its connection to the landline severed. In disgust, Nidvid threw it back to the ground.
“What uh— what did you need that for?” Motsotaer asked. “Were we supposed to tell them we were being attacked?”
“No… It was— before the strike, we got a high priority order.”
“A high priority order?”
Nidvid recalled, “There’s a special platoon in our salient… We were supposed to get an important message to them!”
“Special platoon?” Motsotaer asked. “Are you okay, Nidvid?”
“Yes, yes,” the Pack leader replied, visibly distraught. “They only had a physical line to us because they’re supposed to be keeping in the dark. Emissions control or something like that so they can activate the flying machine swarm in time. They said this was life and death and our whole defense line hinges on it!”
“Emissions control? Flying machines? Pack Leader, we should get you to a medic,” he said skeptically.
“No! Motsotaer, this is important. We need to get the message to them now. They’re only a couple kilometers south from our position. If we run over to their position now, it might not yet be—”
He looked up at her face in alarm. “Run to another position? Outside the trench line?”
“Yes! We have to go!” she said, as she peeked out of the concrete bunker towards the barren zone ahead of the trenches. “Now! Before they start their offensive.”
Motsotaer began to protest, “But that’s no creature’s land. If we get spotted by their troops, we’ll be hunted down by the Grass Eaters ships in orbit…”
She was insistent, “Pack Member Motsotaer, get it together. We still have a job to do. Are you with me or are you going to sit here and die like a coward to the long-ears?”
“Yes, ma’am,” he said, straightening up. Death or not, he was no coward. “I mean… I’m with you.”
“Good. Then let’s go.”
With a grunt, she leapt out of the trenches and jogged south, keeping to the defensive side of it for the modicum of cover it provided, and Motsotaer quickly followed. As they sprinted away from the tattered defenses, they ran into a thick tree line that hopefully provided them with some concealment from the Grass Eater ships above.
After a couple more minutes of running in the forest, Motsotaer started to tire and pant. He weighed his burning lung and how embarrassed he’d be if he complained. Luckily for his ego, Nidvid gestured for them to stop after another minute and tossed him her canteen. “Take a break before we get going.”
He chugged as much water as he could in a single swig, and returned the canteen to Nidvid. He gasped out, “How much further, Pack Leader?”
“About one more kilometer south,” she said, aiming her snout up at the treetops. “I recognize the smell of this area.”
“What’s this even about? The message… what was it?”
Nidvid exercised her limbs. “That Grass Eater artillery strike… it was to prepare for their offensive on our lines. They’ve gathered an armored division on the other side of that,” she pointed out into the barren fields beyond the trees. “We have an hour at most before they roll over us.”
“An armored division?!” Motsotaer squeaked. The enemy’s Longclaws — their armored vehicles — were legendary. They could kill from kilometers away. And their thick shells protected them against all but the most powerful artillery in the Federation’s arsenal. He’d never seen one of them personally. If he had, he suspected he wouldn’t be alive to tell anyone about it. “What can we do against a Grass Eater armored division?”
“That’s why we have to get to the special platoon,” Nidvid replied. She pointed in the southern direction, “You ready? Let’s go.”
They galloped for a few more minutes. Motsotaer’s limbs tired and his breaths shallowed as his lung burnt. As he was contemplating whether to ask for another break, Nidvid pointed at a shape in the distance. “There, that’s their position!”
He squinted at it. It was not easy to see, but buried in the tree line was what looked like a bunch of out-of-place branches and leaves over a small vehicle. Buoyed by the anticipation of the end of the marathon, he managed to keep up with Nidvid’s pace.
As they approached, there was a loud shout.
“Hi-yah! Stop!”
They halted their steps and looked for the source of the voice.
“Not one more paw step, deserter! This is a restricted area! Turn around or you’ll be shot!”
Motsotaer looked up at the voice hidden up in the branches. After a moment, with some help from his nose, he found the yeller. It was a short, stout middle-aged male with strange-looking green and brown paint smeared all over his fur and face. He had a rifle aimed squarely at the duo.
“Don’t shoot!” Nidvid yelled back. “We’re runners. We’ve got an important message! For your platoon commander.”
The male in the tree looked suspiciously at them as he leapt down. He lowered his rifle, but didn’t seem any less on guard. “A message?”
“Yes, we’ve got an urgent message for Special Platoon Commander Graunsa. Take us to him right now!”
He sized the two of them up. After a moment, he said slowly, “I am Graunsa. Why are you here, and what is the message?”
Nidvid recovered some of her breath and explained, “The Grass Eaters hit us hard with an artillery strike. Our Head Pack Leader is dead. Our landline is gone. We ran all the way over from our lines north of you.”
Graunsa nodded and gestured for her to continue.
“The Grass Eater armored offensive is about to start. They’re moving into position and ready to go, and there’s a special message embedded—”
“Wait a second,” Graunsa interrupted. “Give me the special message exactly, without omission or your own interpretations.”
“Yes, Platoon Commander,” Nidvid nodded. “The message is: bunny water carriers are in play, red-five-zero-eight; come out of the dark and introduce yourself. Authorization is three-three-greyhound.”
Graunsa looked thoughtful for a moment as he pondered it.
“What does the message mean?” Motsotaer whispered at Nidvid.
“I have no idea,” she shrugged, whispering back. “The Head Pack Leader just told me to memorize it.”
The platoon commander seemed to have made up his mind. “Alright, that seems legitimate. Thanks for the message.” He turned around to leave.
Motsotaer shouted behind him, “Wait, what are we supposed to do now?”
Graunsa turned around. “I don’t know. I’m not your commanding officer.” He paused for a moment. “I wouldn’t recommend going back to your lines though. Might not be there when you get back…”
“What?!”
“You can’t just leave us! Where else are we supposed to go?” Nidvid asked.
Graunsa seemed to contemplate the question for a few heartbeats and sighed, “You said you’re from the position up north?”
“Yup,” they replied in unison.
“And you’re a spotter, Pack Member?” he asked, looking at the rank and position patch on Motsotaer’s chest.
“Yes.”
Graunsa relented. “Fine. We might find a use for you. Get into the bunker… before the Grass Eaters in orbit see us dawdling out here.”
“What? Where?”
The officer pointed at a patch of dark green leaves on the forest floor. As they approached it, he grasped a latch and lifted it to reveal a ladder. The three of them descended into the darkness and Graunsa secured it behind them. With a quiet swoosh, a lamp mounted on the wall lit up to reveal a small hallway leading to a heavy-looking door.
Graunsa knocked on it twice. He turned around and looked at Motsotaer and Nidvid. “What you’re about to see in here is of the highest secrecy level of the Malgeir Federation. If you tell anyone what you see in here, you will be executed for treason. Do you understand?”
“Yes, Platoon Commander.”
“Swear it, on your honor.”
“We swear,” they replied in unison, their voices infused with growing excitement.
“Good enough for me.”
The heavy steel door swung open, showing a room that was vastly different from what its primitive exterior suggested. It resembled a command center far more than a field base, and Motsotaer felt a blast of cold air conditioning in his face as he passed the door threshold.
At the front, a main screen showed a map of the defensive lines in the sector. Facing it, two rows of sleek, new computer screens lit up the dark. Their operators worked busily at their controls, and only a couple faces looked their way in mild interest as they entered.
“What is this—” Motsotaer started to ask. Nidvid grasped his shoulder and shushed him.
Graunsa cleared his throat. Several faces looked towards him in anticipation. “Platoon, we just got the message. Activate the FTL handshake and authenticate us in the network.”
“Yes, sir.” A young-looking communication officer near the front operated a few controls on her console. “I’ve got the advisors on the line.”
Motsotaer read his nametag: Gassin. She was a Gamma Leader, much higher ranked than he, but she looked not a day over twenty. He noted that many of the people in the room sported high-ranking insignias despite their apparent youth.
“On screen,” Graunsa ordered.
A communication window appeared on the main screen, streaming video of someone in a jet-black EVA suit.
Motsotaer stiffened. It was obvious that the subject was alien; at around 1.7 or 1.8 meters, it was far too tall for being a Malgeir. Too small for a Granti. And from the side profile of the suit, it didn’t bulge nearly enough for the tails that the Malgeir’s Schpriss neighbors were known for. A strange new species of aliens.
From the blackened visor, it was obvious that whoever that was… it was the reason for all this tight secrecy.
“Special Platoon Commander Graunsa,” it transmitted in perfect Malgeirish. The alien was either a trained-from-birth Federation Channel One newscaster with a perfectly inoffensive accent, or its translator was far better than anything the Malgeir themselves had invented. “This call is encrypted, but the enemy Znosians in orbit are trying to find your location from the signals, so we’ll have to make it as quick as we can. Have your defensive lines completed your preparations?”
Graunsa stepped up to address the screen directly, “Yes, advisor. Our fire support platoon is ready for tasking.”
“Excellent. Transmitting the first batch of targets in your sector now.”
A series of symbols scrolled onto the screen, showing a number of coordinates.
“We’re getting the enemy positions now,” Gassin exclaimed.
Graunsa turned to her and nodded his appreciation, “Sixteen armored targets. Weapons free.”
“Yes, sir. Programming the sequence.”
A camera on the main screen activated, remotely showing a small hole with some machinery in it dug a few hundred meters away just at the edge of the tree line.
“Launching flying machine swarm!”
As Motsotaer watched, a thicket of metal erupted from the hole in a blur, roaring into the sky.
The main screen was replaced by a four-by-four of windows of black and white images. It took him a couple seconds to realize that he was looking at the battlefield from above. The Malgeir had rotary wing, airplanes, and jet — some were even armed, but they were usually much bigger. And their air assets had been grounded since the early days of the battle for Datsot when the enemy took the orbits.
Not these tiny devices though.
He focused on one of the sixteen windows.
The ground sped past below the camera’s vision, tree line after tree line, the flying machine seemed to know where it was going by itself: Motsotaer looked at the other occupants in the room. None of them seemed to be directly controlling it.
He stiffened.
Is this controlled by a thinking machine?
“We’re getting in range of the target coordinates, Platoon Commander,” Gassin updated the room a few minutes later.
As if on cue, the flying machines flew higher, and the trees on the ground grew smaller, as if further away. Until…
“Targets identified!” Gassin reported with excitement in her voice.
As an infantry spotter, Motsotaer had been trained — barely — to identify enemy armored vehicles. As in, he’d been given a cheatsheet containing the silhouettes of the different types of vehicles the enemy drove. But even he couldn’t tell at this distance what the white-hot smudges on the screen were.
The machine had no such issues though.
Several red boxes materialized on the screen, clearly marking several enemy vehicles in the thermal imagery and adorning them with detailed information.
The one Motsotaer was watching said:
Hostile vehicle, Longclaw MK4 (top armor: ~25mm), 4.2 km.
No hostile EW detected.
Without additional prompting, the flying machines raced in towards their targets, each recognizing a different one as its final destination. Afraid to blink, Motsotaer stared intently at one of the video streams.
A new line of text appeared at the top of the screen:
ETA 20 seconds.
It counted down the seconds, number by number.
The enemy Longclaw got larger and larger until… the screen went black, replaced by static. As he looked around, the other windows were similarly replaced with static one-by-one.
Motsotaer frowned, wondering where the videos had gone.
Then, it hit him. The flying machines were on one-way trips.
The sixteen windows disappeared, and another one appeared, showing the enemy assembly area from a much higher perspective. And instead of the vehicles he expected, he counted sixteen burning wrecks, the black smoke from their flames reaching up into the sky in columns.
“Targets destroyed, Commander,” Gassin said. Several of the officers in the room looked at each other excitedly, but their celebration was muted.
Graunsa nodded. “Call our advisors again.”
The alien appeared on the screen again. “Excellent work, Platoon Commander. We’re assessing the lines and getting the second batch of targets to you now.”
“Understood.”
As the new target coordinates scrolled onto the main screen, Gassin didn’t need additional prompting, “Launching flying machines!”
Another sixteen of them flashed out from the pre-dug position. Another sixteen windows appeared on the screen, replacing the odd-looking aliens’ video.
“Wait a minute,” the aliens’ voice cut into the quiet hum of the control room’s operation. “Switch back to the high-altitude drone. Something’s happening.”
The main screen’s image was replaced by the previous camera looking down at enemy lines. There was a flurry of activity in the enemy base area. Numerous dots representing the ground troops moved to-and-fro. And worryingly, the red squares that surrounded enemy armor began appearing en masse as enemy Longclaws drove out of their covered positions into the open.
Dozens of them.
Then, hundreds. And more appeared every second.
“What’s going on?” Graunsa asked, his voice reflecting Motsotaer’s worry.
The alien took a minute to get back to him, its black helmeted face filling up the screen again. “They’re attacking. They don’t know what hit them in the last strike. But they must have realized that they’re not safe in their assembly area, and they’re doing the only thing they can… We estimate they’ll get to your first lines in thirty minutes.”
“Can we stop them?” Graunsa asked. “We can—”
The alien looked directly into the video. “Not sixteen drones at a time. And if you launch the whole swarm at once, it’ll reflect enough signal for them to sniff out where you are with their counter-battery radars and take you out from orbit.”
Graunsa swallowed. “That’s— that’s— The machines can fly themselves without us, right?”
The alien didn’t say anything for a few heartbeats. “Theoretically, yes. But even if you evacuate your position now, your people won’t get out of range from the orbital strike they’ll call in.”
“I understand. Feed us the enemy targets.”
“Delta Leader, we can’t ask you to—”
“I said, feed us the enemy targets,” Graunsa insisted.
Quietly, hundreds of coordinate pairs filed onto the main screen. Graunsa looked at the faces of the young officers under his command. Dozens of them. He turned around to look at his two guests. “I’m sorry,” he said.
“It’s the right choice,” Nidvid replied, shrugging.
Motsotaer nodded at him.
“I know,” Graunsa said, turning back to the main screen. “Just doesn’t make it any easier.”
“Sir, we’re ready to launch,” Gassin reported.
“Weapons free. Release everything.”
“Yes, sir.”
The ground shook and rumbled, hundreds of flying machines leaving their canisters for the sky. They were close enough to hear the outgoing buzzing as the munitions launched. This time, more and more windows filled up the screen with the visuals of the outgoing flying machines — hundreds of them, and Motsotaer was surprised that the computers could even handle it all.
The visage of the alien returned to their screen. It said calmly, “Enemy orbital launch spotted. Multiple launches. High yield. Missiles incoming to your location, ETA twelve minutes.”
“Understood, advisor.”
POV: Slurskoch, Znosian Dominion Marines (Rank: Five Whiskers)
“Scramble! Scramble! Scramble!”
Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiing.
“What’s going on?” Longclaw Commander Slurskoch sat up in his turret cupola as the sirens rang loud through the hull.
“We’re under artillery attack!” his Controller yelled back at him through the roaring startup sequence of the turbine anti-grav engines. “The Lesser Predators… they’ve got some kind of new weapon! Took out a whole battalion’s worth of Longclaws in the 194!”
“But we’re not ready!” his Driver complained. “Our artillery is supposed to pound them for another hour before we—”
Slurskoch shook his head as he checked the friendly force tracker on his screen. “Doesn’t matter! If they’ve got some new weapon, we can’t sit still while we get pounded to bits by whatever they have. We gotta get out there. Hurry it up!”
It took them another two minutes to fully warm up the engines, and with a roar, the Longclaw burst out of its camouflaged emplacement, kicking up a curtain of dirt in front of it.
“Let’s go! Go! Go!” Slurskoch yelled as his lagging Longclaw joined the armored formation already on the move.
The Controller spoke with one of her ears in the radio, “Their artillery just launched… something at us. We’ve pinpointed their location, and orbital support is on its way.”
His Gunner whooped twice, and Slurskoch nodded silently in agreement. That’d flatten those carnivorous abominations where they stood. He drew a few symbols and circles on the digital battlemap as the Longclaws drove toward the enemy lines. “Gunner, watch those potential trench lines in front of us,” he instructed. “Their anti-armor may not look scary on paper, but their infantry can always get a lucky hit in.”
Slurskoch was taught in training that it was better to overestimate the enemy than underestimate them. Luckily, the predators usually fell below expectations, which was why the Dominion controlled the orbits of Datsot now and not them.
His Controller frowned at something in her radio, “They’re saying something about the enemy artillery… The engineers at the base assessed the strike aftermath. There’s something strange in the rubble. The attack was more precise than anything we’d ever seen.”
“What does that mean?” Slurskoch asked in confusion.
“The sensor officer in charge of the assembly area has taken full responsibility. They didn’t see the incoming at all. Higher ups are speculating that the Lesser Predators have a new weapon in their arsenal.”
“The predators made new weapons?” Slurskoch snorted. “Useful ones? That’ll be a first. Well, whatever it is, maybe our Design Bureau will get a good look at it when we finally cleanse this planet of their filth. Make our next battle a little easier when we have to take their home planet.”
His Gunner agreed, “And then, the Prophecy shall be fulfilled.”
A few kilometers into the charge across the open, the Gunner remarked with one eye on her targeting computer, “Looks like even the local winged predators know that there’s about to be a slaughter here.”
The Driver, in his open hatch, looked up at the cloud of them flying over the enemy lines. “Looks like it. A nice juicy feast for them in the coming battle. The irony of the barbaric carnivores being eaten by themselves.”
A few thousand years ago, winged predators would have curdled the blood of any natural-born Znosian. On the original plains of Znos, they were one of the most dangerous threats a lone Znosian faced. Now, that fear had been completely bred out of the gene pool, replaced with contempt for predatory primitivism, the courage to face them in battle, and the drive to exterminate them all.
Curious, Slurskoch stared up into the cloud of winged predators with his Longclaw commander optics. He frowned.
One of them shimmered.
Shimmered.
He zoomed in.
Then, he saw a metallic glint. His whiskers tightened.
“That’s— those aren’t winged predators,” he barely made out in shock. “Incoming!”
“Huh?” his Driver asked, craning his head up to look at the dark shapes in the distance.
“Get inside! Secure the hatch!” Slurskoch shouted at him.
His Driver was not very good at thinking on his own, but he had been bred to follow direct orders without question. He ducked into his seat, quickly securing the hatch above him close with trained claws.
He barely secured the Longclaw as other commanders began yelling out similar instructions on their radios.
“Incoming!” his Controller advised, about ten seconds later than necessary. “Enemy… artillery?!”
“Gunner!” Slurskoch gestured in the general direction of the sky.
“I can’t get a shot on them. They’re too high up!” she screamed back at him.
A trio of air defense vehicles next to him opened up with their six barrels towards the sky, lines of bright tracers stabbing out at the dark swarm. He saw one of the… flying machines hit and fall out of the sky. Then another.
It wasn’t enough.
As Slurskoch’s optics tracked the incoming, he saw them dive. They were fast, and they flew erratic patterns, almost organically, like actual winged beasts. If he hadn’t had that specific fear bred out of his bloodline hundreds of years ago, he would have been frozen in shock. Instead, he yelled out, “Brace! Brace!”
Boom. Boom. Boom.
The world exploded around his Longclaw.
Through his friendly force tracker, Slurskoch watched an entire battalion disappear off the map on his right flank, and two Longclaws in his line of sight brewed up in massive fireballs, throwing their turrets into the sky as their plasma ammunition detonated. One of the anti-air vehicles brewed up next to his, splattering its parts against his hull.
His Driver drove for all he was worth, ducking and weaving in the open field. So did the other Longclaws. Some deployed curtains of smoke in front of them in desperation.
None of it seemed to help.
The shockwaves hit his Longclaw in quick succession, knocking him around the armored cabin and rattling his teeth.
Boom. Boom.
More Longclaws exploded. Many more. They were disappearing off his screen faster than the software could update the signals. He closed his eyes waiting for the end.
It didn’t come.
It was hard for Slurskoch to tell when the last Longclaw near them was hit. His hearing organs must have been damaged some time during the attack. His auditory senses ringed as they returned to normal, recovering when his Controller shook him with a paw on his shoulder. “—Five Whiskers! Five Whiskers!”
“What is it?” he snapped, keeping the quivering out of his voice.
“We’re alone in our company, and I can’t contact the six whiskers! And I’ve been trying to reach battalion without success!”
“Try the regiment commander!” he yelled out against the noise of the anti-grav engine.
“Can’t reach them either!”
“What about division headquarters?!”
“I think division’s gone, sir!”
“What?!”
“Nobody there has been responding. All I’ve got is a seven whiskers in the reserve infantry division behind us! They’re saying they see black smoke in the direction of our division field command!”
“What in the Prophecy? How is that possible?!”
“What do we do, Five Whiskers?”
Slurskoch had been trained for a wide variety of combat scenarios and contingencies, including losing his immediate superiors, losing most of his unit, and losing his communication link to command. But he’d never been trained for all of those combined at once. That was just not something predators were supposed to be able to do to you.
He fell back to the next best thing.
“What’s the combat computer say?” he asked.
His Controller operated the controls on her console, and after half a minute of querying, she replied, reading off the instructions, “Absent orders, continue the attack. Maybe we can push through.”
“What? Did it take our losses into account?” he protested as he checked the battlemap. Of the nearly five hundred Longclaws that had pushed out of the assembly area, only a quarter remained. At most. Some of the signals on the map were flagging themselves as mobility or mission killed.
She shrugged, “It did. That’s what it says.”
He squinted at her screen. That was indeed what it said.
Slurskoch thought for a moment, sighed, and bowed in prayer, “Our lives were forfeited the day we left our hatchling pools.”
The other crew members all did the same, lowering their heads to mutter the familiar mantra.
That ritual out of the way, he drew up to his full height of 1 meter and mustered all the confidence he could into his voice, “Attack! Attack! Attack!”
POV: Graunsa, Malgeir Federation Planetary Defense Force (Rank: Delta Leader)
The command center watched glumly as the hundred or so surviving Grass Eater Longclaws emerged from the wrecks of their comrades and slowly resumed their charge across the open toward the defense lines.
The flying machines had gotten a lot of them. Quite a few disabled too. And they were disorganized from the loss of their command. Yet they still charged. Diminished as their numbers were, they rolled towards the battered defensive lines with psychotic determination.
We’ve failed.
Graunsa sat down heavily into his chair. He brought up his communication console, connecting it to the advisor network.
The alien appeared on the screen, and though he couldn’t see its face, he could hear the sympathy in its translated voice, “You’ve done all you can, Special Platoon Commander.”
“It wasn’t enough,” he said, shaking his ears sadly. “They’re going to break through our line. Our infantry can’t stop them.”
It tilted its head. “I wouldn’t count them out completely, Delta Leader. They might. They might not. But your next defensive line certainly will hold them. The city behind you will be held.”
“Tracking enemy orbit-to-ground. ETA three minutes,” Gassin reported quietly from next to him.
Graunsa sighed. He looked at the alien, “I think I understand your people now, advisor.”
“You… do?”
“Yeah, at first, when we were picked for this mission, I wondered why your people were doing this.”
“Doing this?” the alien asked, seeming confused.
“Helping us. The weapons. The equipment. The training. The targeting. It was all in secret, but you didn’t have to do it. The other species around us didn’t do it. The Schpriss…” Graunsa snorted, “The long-tails can’t even find it in their spines to send us field rations. I thought your species… your people were just generous. Or perhaps you simply enjoyed the craft of war, being so adept at it.”
“Are we… not?”
“Those reasons may be part of it,” he conceded. “But more importantly, I think your people understand one thing the other species don’t… that we might stop the enemy here. Or we might not.”
“We didn’t set you up to fail, if that’s what you think—”
“But the next defensive line certainly will hold them,” Graunsa said, staring the alien in the eye. “You will hold them. Isn’t that right?”
It sighed. “I would be lying if that wasn’t part of the strategic equation. Our star systems are indeed next in line — sometime in the next decade or two, probably — if these bloodthirsty Buns conquered your Federation. That harsh astropolitical realism. But there’s something else too.”
“Is there?”
“Yes,” it nodded its head firmly in a familiar manner. “Yes, there is. We aren’t a particularly long-sighted species, Graunsa. We can plan, yes, but wars are fought by true believers. People don’t sign up to put their lives on the line for a hypothetical, potential invasion of our Republic twenty years in the future. They— we signed up for this because we truly believe what’s happening to your people… it shouldn’t happen to anyone, ever.”
Graunsa looked at the helmeted head for a while, then nodded. “I believe you, advisor.”
“I’m sorry this didn’t pan out, Graunsa. If I could, I’d be down there with you. We’d have made them pay for this.”
Graunsa smiled. “I believe you about that too. Thank you, advisor, whatever your name is.”
“You may call me Kara,” it said simply. A deft snap of its paws — he hadn’t noticed how soft its claws were before — and it released a latch on its helmet with a hiss. Lifting it from its head, it revealed a soft, smooth face without much fur except a bundle of long, brown strands on its scalp tied up in a neat spherical shape. Its hazel forward-facing eyes stared at him with the empathy that only other predators were capable of, filling him with mild relief. “Don’t tell anyone though,” it joked lightly, mirroring his smile back at him.
You’re not as ugly as I thought you’d be. Not nearly.
Graunsa’s grin widened at the thought. He put it out of his mind. “Ah. One last thing, advisor— Kara.”
“Yes?”
His mind drifted to his cubs at home. Perhaps they were still alive. He chose to believe that. “Our people’s clans and packs…”
“We’ll let them know,” she interrupted him softly. “And when the information quarantine is lifted, we’ll let your clans and packs know what you did here — everything.”
“Good. Thank you.”
Gassin sat down next to him, “Delta Leader, enemy missiles incoming. ETA thirty seconds, they’re entering—” She stopped her report and stared at the unmasked alien on his screen with equal parts wonder and sadness.
“Take a closer look, Gassin,” he ordered softly. “That… that is who will avenge us.”
On screen, the alien put its gloved paw up to its temple, forming a stiff triangle with its arm in a recognizable salute. “It was an honor, Graunsa.”
Graunsa returned it crisply, letting a primitive fire shine through his face. “Happy hunting, Kara.”

Location: Atlas Naval Command, Luna

POV: “Kara”, Terran Reconnaissance Office
Kara watched solemnly as the green signal blinked off the battlemap. She closed her eyes for a moment in silent prayer for the fallen.
Beep. Beep.
Another light on her console blinked urgently for her attention. Four thousand kilometers from the previous one. The war raged on — day and night — across four continents on the besieged planet. Fifty light years from the Republic, its defenders’ sweat, tears, and blood lined the fields and valleys of the beautiful blue sphere not so different from her own. Tens of millions of them: many who she knew would not see the end of this war.
They didn’t all know it, and some might not have cared, but fifty light years away, someone recorded their names, and someone felt a pang of loss for their sacrifice. In the cold, dark forest of the galaxy, somebody heard their trees fall.
Kara collected her thoughts, adjusted the bun in her hair, and lowered the tinted EVA helmet over her face once more.
She cleared her throat as she glanced at the screen and activated the microphone in her helmet, “Special Platoon Commander Treiriu. This call is encrypted, but the enemy Znosians in orbit are trying to find your location from the signals, so we’ll have to make it as quick as we can. Have your defensive lines completed your preparations?”

Meta

Thanks for reading my story! This is a standalone chapter in my Grass Eaters story, meant to be enjoyable all on its own. If you're interested in more of my writing, please do subscribe to the update waffle bot or check out the rest of the universe in Grass Eaters.
(Grass Eaters posts every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. We are closing in on the end of Book 1.)

Introduction
"INTRO Retail mega-giants like Reliance Mall came into being by use of the logging-in digital application system which is causing ripples in the sector thanks to its blending of tech with ease of use, altering the way people shop. In this blog post we shall delve into these facets of RelianceMall login digital app and how globally it has captured the shoppers’ attention so much so they can’t resist its temptation."
A Shopper's Paradise
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Cutting-Edge Technology
At the core of the digital app Reliancemall login are cutting-edge technology features. The shopping center provides an engaging shopping experience conisting of virtual reality experiences as well as interactive displays that immerse the user in the entire process of buying. Virtual clothes can be tried on by customers, while products can be thoroughly tested before purchase. Besides, holographic store assistants come into play. This innovation in merging retail and technology has changed it for those who do their shopping.
Convenience at Its Best
The Reliancemall login digital app is all about maximizing convenience and saving time. It has modern amenities that enable easy shopping. There is excellent parking at the mall, ease of movement e.g., through paths for wheelchairs, coffee shops or cyber cafés, etc. Besides having personal shoppers to assist you while shopping or food orders but deliver right at your doorstep without having to take them in person. Never has shopping been this convenient than now.
Engaging the Senses
Engaging the Five Senses Reliancemall login digital app is not only just about shopping. The mall provides something for all the five senses with a variety of places to eat, entertainment centers, and ongoing activities. In terms of digital restaurants to cinema halls and live acts as well as arts plays there is no single moment when it becomes boring on the Reliancemall login digital app this is really where shop meets fun"
The Future of Retail
The Future of Retail Reliancemall login digital app is like no other shopping mall but rather a signal glimpse of what malls will turn into in future. It has introduced a new level as far as shopping experience goes thanks to its extremely technological incorporation and convenience. As people embrace technology more in this era, it is important to understand that the likes of Reliancemall digital are bound to grow with these changes so that they reflect their requirements.
To get started with Reliancemall login app, follow these steps:

1. Make a visit Plan It is essential to plan your visit before heading to Reliancemall login app. Find out when the mall opens and if there are any special events happening on the day or any art installation or promotion that will interest you. This way, you will be sure of taking full advantage of your stay at the mall.

Step 2: Getting There
Reliancemall login app is conveniently located in the heart of the city. You can easily reach the mall by car, public transportation, or even walking if you're in the vicinity. If you're driving, make sure to check the parking facilities and down rates beforehand.
Step 3: Exploring the Mall
Discover the Mall Once you get to the Reliancemall login page, just set some little time to understand the structure. There are various sections in the shopping mall, each providing a different shopping experience. In case you need help, either peruse through the mall directory or ask someone at the information desk for assistance.
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Shopping In Reliancemall login app, many stores and boutiques which offer cater to different matters are available. Owing to this, if you are searching for fashion, electronics, home decor as well as groceries including video games they are all available. While at Reliance Mall, visit different boutiques before making a decision."
Step 5: Dining Options
Choices of Eating When you are done shopping, you will feel tired hence necessitating some energy to keep you moving. Reliancemall login app is proud to have various restaurants offering different types of food for instances fast food joints, Indian cuisine all the way to Thai dishes and high-end eateries in the surrounding area. Feel free to taste some wonderful dishes during your lunch break or even grab a bite while working in any of the numerous eating joints present
Step 6: Entertainment and Recreation
The Reliancemall login app does is not only limited to shopping and dining. It also offers various entertainment and recreational activities. This might include catching the latest hit in the mall’s movie theatre, enjoying games in a game zone among other forms of art performance for instance live ones. It has all that you might have ever dreamt of in terms of entertainment."
Step 7: Services and Amenities
"The mall management of Reliance Mall login app has realized that customer convenience is very important, hence it provides you with many ways through which we have ensured that you will have an unforgettable shopping experience when visiting this retailer. This includes such things like baby changing rooms or wheelchairs lift so that everybody can access any floor within the building without any problems regarding stairs”
STEP 8: PAYMENT AND CHECKOUT
After completing your shopping and leaving the shop, go to the check-out desks Majority’s stores usually allow cash payments thru Reliancemall login app via UPI and Credit Cards using mobile payment methods through digital payment systems Don’t forget to read stores’ refunding policies especially those where you have made orders in order to return what doesn’t suit you or any other merchandise you may wish exchanged.
Step #9: Feedback and Reviews Following a visit to Reliancemall login app, we would like to know if you would kindly drop some comments on how you found it. If you tell us anything, this will be of great help to us in our bid to do what we can within our means be it improving the services offered by our mall or providing something new thereby enhancing visitor’s satisfaction.
Step 10: Enjoy Your Purchases In conclusion, make sure you celebrate your purchases which were made at the Reliancemall login app. The memories of the good time will always remain fresh regardless of whether it was a new outfit, a gadget, or a special souvenir relish till the end of time.
Conclusion
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This is a throwaway account and a rant, but basically what the title says. I am covering a parental leave at a private school where I am the youngest teacher by far in the department (and one of the youngest teachers overall). My boss seemed hesitant to hire me because of my relative inexperience but my teaching demo went very well and so I'm here.
In general, this department seems to mostly hire older, experienced teachers, which I totally understand, but a week ago, I told my boss that I have an interview at [Good Private School] in the area (since my current position is temporary), and in response to this my boss basically verbally offered me a job after telling me she had spoken with the admin and they all said I seemed to be doing a good job and they wanted me around. It was going to be for a temporary year-long position next year, but then she even said, "In December, we'd look at renewal but there's always a place for talented people." She also told me she'd come in for an observation on Monday and write up a contract by Monday afternoon. I like my current school and was honestly excited for this.
Fast forward to Monday. I was tempted to let go of my interview at the other school on Monday morning, but chose not to because I needed a formal contract. Interview went very well. Monday afternoon I had to teach at my current school and had that observation. This of course happened to be the day my otherwise lovely students decided not to cooperate with me because they didn't know they were starting a new topic, despite the fact that I had emailed them so the week before. I fully expected my boss to be observing me, but I did not expect the admin to be there too. And they were watching as the students sat there gaslighting me and I was holding firm and saying, nope, today isn't a work block.
Now, I think everyone who's taught for any amount of time knows that students try to gaslight their teachers all the time, but after the class, during my debrief with my boss, she basically blamed me for the students not knowing they were starting a new topic. She also blamed me for students seeming disengaged, which -- of course they were! They were mad at me for not giving them a work block. But she told me they were disengaged because I had spent too much time on historical background; for context, the other (more experienced) teacher teaching this class told me that she had spent half that class period on historical background that she felt was excessive. Because that class was an introduction to a new topic, I thought a dry introduction was fine, and while, admittedly, I could have been more prepared on the historical background itself, the class wasn't awful -- in the second half, once they got into the topic, they were very engaged, as even my boss acknowledged (but she said I needed to cut to the chase faster).
She didn't mention anything about the job, which I found suspicious, because she told me she'd get back to me by Monday afternoon. By Tuesday afternoon, the other school offered me a job, and then I emailed my boss, telling her they'd officially offered me a job but that I would prefer to stay at [Current School]. She congratulated me and then told me that actually they were not looking to hire me for the position they had listed, which was going to become two separate positions, one for the fall and one for the spring. She told me they wanted someone with more specific experience for the fall (totally understandable) but that I could apply to the spring position -- which is the same job I am currently in -- if I want, but that they're not "ready" to hire me right now for it.
Everything about this was so completely anger inducing. TBH it's a bullet dodged -- I don't care to work for a boss who expects perfection of this sort and blames student disengagement (for one half of one class period) on me rather than on the students. I guess she sees me as a liability for some reason (probably age, if I had to guess), or maybe admin decided they hated my observation too. But if she was going to make the position contingent on one observation, she should have told me that before giving me a verbal offer.
I think this lack of professionalism flourishes in schools because everyone knows you can't leave the same way you can in corporate. I have less than a month of my contract left; had this been corporate, I would have been out the door already, but because I care about my students, I can't exactly do that.
Oh, and I turned down the other school's offer, too. I'm leaving teaching after this. Have seen enough poorly managed schools and programs despite my young age and this was the last straw, because it's otherwise a good school but the lack of professionalism really pissed me off. I have outside options and, fortunately, have managed to keep one foot in the door of the private sector with some part-time work, and would rather make the switch this early in my career than feel trapped in teaching for a minute longer.

Hi all, I have a few days until an upcoming 2-hour case round (scheduled time). I'm not sure what to expect in terms of the actual case or where I should begin to look in terms of practice as I have no details other than I receive it before the call. From my first interview with the business unit I was told private equity performance improvement may entail a lot of areas not necessarily tied to constant FDD, modelling work, etc. depending on my expertise. My background is a combination of operations, and public sector advisory/consulting where I did a lot of analysis and client-facing tasks but probably not as complex as private equity-related modelling. If anybody can point me in the right direction for resources, prep advice, etc. would be extremely helpful.

Hi, I have an idea for a startup for a niche sector. I believe that I have a rather clear idea of how to develope my idea from a technical point of view, it is an artificial intelligence software solution for an underdeveloped field. It is obvious, that current commercial solutions are far away from what you could do with current technology.
However, it is not realistic to develope this idea solo as it requires too much work in different areas. I am a post-doc, 37 years old, working partially in machine learning, so I have quite a bit of experience in the field. But, I need helping hands in a few areas like smart device development and reducing the computational complexity of deep learning models for deployment, researching some additional solutions.
How do I find coworkers? My colleagues are not interested due to different reasons. None of my friends has suitable skills or are sufficiently reliable to be considered as coworkers for this idea. Unfortunately, I kind of suck at networking. I tried to find interested people through our university forum, but only unsuitable people responded. Perhaps I need to present the idea differently. I am hesitant to reveal too much about the idea, although I am certain that only a very small number of people have the understanding to develope what I have in mind.
I have done some calculations regarding profitability and, using the best numbers I can find, there certainly should be enough money for a 3-5 people company. The market is not hugh, at least based on current solutions and the numbers I have, but you can make a few millions. I think, because the market I have in mind, appears very nichey, people are hesitant to join.
Sorry for the slightly confusion writing, I am unsure how to proceed. I would love to try to make this software solution real, but currently do not see, how I could find suitable coworkers/cofounders.

This appears to be a new thing in D.C. so I wanted to write a really comprehensive summary of my experience trying out a dinner with Timeleft.
I had fun and would recommend it to anyone who might be interested in having dinner with a group of strangers and letting an app choose the restaurant for you.
Last week, I saw this ad on Facebook. If you don't want to click the link, it's a screenshot of the ad I saw. The ad is by Timeleft and it says "Dine with 5 strangers, all matched by our algorithm. Every Wednesday night in your city"
Best case scenario, I have a wonderful meal where I meet interesting people and have the potential to make new friends. Worst case scenario, I get murdered... but like many other millennials, I think I wouldn't mind that so much. My risk-benefit analysis tells me to go for it.
I'll separate the rest of this post by

• providing a general overview of how signing up with Timeleft works
• a summary of my personal experience this past Wednesday
• some more thoughts and hopes for this platform

Overview of Timeleft

Here's the website for Timeleft: https://timeleft.com/
In order to sign up for the next available dinner, you must pay a monthly subscription. It's $26 for one month, $56 for three months, and $86 for 6 months. It appears that Timeleft is not making you pay for a subscription if you can wait one or two weeks to reserve a dinner. Someone can correct me if that's actually not the case.
The subscription is paid to Timeleft. The cost does not go towards your dinner.
When you sign up, it asks you to select what country and city you would like to have your dinner in. Here are the options for the United States: Atlanta, Boston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, Washington D.C.
For D.C. they provide options in these areas:

• Capitol Hill/Navy Yard
• Dupont Circle/Shaw

Timeleft will ask a series of personality-quiz style questions and ask for basic demographic information. Some questions are single-choice and others are choosing a number between 1-10 to indicate how strongly you feel about what's being asked.
Purportedly the app will take your answers and use an algorithm to match you with a dinner group.
It will ask you for your birth year, and this is the only answer that you cannot edit later in your profile. All other answer choices can be edited after initial account set-up.
The only time and date option for reserving a dinner are Wednesdays with a start time of 7pm. At 7pm the night before your dinner, you will be given a summary of your group. The summary it gives you will look something like this:

Industry: % work in this sector, % in that sector, % in other
Nationalities: % American, % Portgugal
Zodiac signs: % Aries, % Gemini, etc
Main language spoken: English

At 9am on the morning of your dinner, you will be notified of what restaurant and table # you're assigned.
After this point, there seems to be differences in feature depending on whether or not you download the Timeleft app. The browser version of Timeleft gave me my restaurant name, address, table #, and the option to confirm my attendance or indicate that I would be late.
If you need to cancel the day-of, you would need to download the app.
If you are late or need to cancel, you can indicate it on the app. The rest of your table will receive a notification about your status. If you have more than two same-day cancellations in one month, Timeleft says they will cancel your subscription. Your table can also tell the app if you were a no-show, so I would assume the same rule applies to no-shows.
At 8pm, Timeleft gives you a recommendation for a spot to head to for after-dinner drinks so that you can continue hanging out with your table.
After the dinner, if you have the app, you would be given the option to connect or not with the other guests you met at dinner. If two people agree to connect with each other, then the app gives you a chat.

My Dinner Experience

When I arrived at the restaurant, I told the hostess that I am here with Timeleft and was assigned Table number #
It's clear that the organizers set this up with the restaurant, because every one who arrived was able to let the restaurant know that they're with Timeleft and which table # they're assigned and there was no confusion.
At my restaurant, there were three tables in total. It looked like everyone was having a great conversation and enjoying themselves. The Timeleft app provides an icebreaker game, so if the conversation dulls, you can just play the game to inspire conversation.
My table had 4 people show up (including me) and 2 no-shows. Of the 4 of us, two had done a Timeleft dinner before and they enjoyed the experience.
From talking to those who had done Timeleft before, it sounds like there are at least two or three restaurants chosen for each neighborhood to be the dinner spot. For the Navy Yard/Capitol Hill option last week, it was Belga Cafe and Ambar.
Of the three tables in my restaurant, it looked like the Timeleft guests were grouped by age. One table seemed to be mid 40s to late 50s, then a table of 30's, and a table of late 20s.
My table all chose to go to the recommended bar after dinner. Of the other two tables, only one person joined us from one table and we did not get to interact with the third table at all.
We just had fun talking and making conversation. We had actual conversations about a variety of things and it never felt like a stale "getting to know you" or "what do you do for work" type of vibe. I had a great time.

My General Thoughts

I thought it was a great feature for the app to allow you to connect with someone from your table through a chat on the app after the dinner. It saves people who are uncomfortable giving away their phone numbers to essential strangers and gives you the opportunity to keep in touch if you forgot to exchange contact information.
I was told from the other guests that the after-dinner drinks place recommended by the app is the same for the guests at other tables and guests at other restaurants in your neighborhood. Those who are dining in Navy Yard/Capitol Hill are given the same bar recommendation and the Dupont/Shaw crowd gets a different recommendation.
So, I'm looking forward to doing more dinners and hopefully getting to meet people from not just my table, but people who were assigned to other tables and restaurants.
I'm guessing that the app's algorithm primarily groups people by age and meal preferences. I might be wrong. But the consensus from the other Timeleft users is that they also notice tables being grouped by age in their previous dinners.
What I love about D.C. is that a lot of people are transient or are new to the city, so it's easy to find a random group to hang out with in general. I have had success meeting people through Meetup.com, discord servers, and just other opportunities the city provides.
Timeleft is another opportunity for that, but I also get to try new restaurants and bars and I don't have to research too much or think about it before hand or make reservations. I can just show up and try to enjoy myself.
What else would I be doing on Wednesday nights anyway? Might as well try out a new restaurant!
Here's an article I found about Timeleft if you're interested in reading: https://www.vice.com/en/article/v7bnpb/timeleft-friend-finding-platform-review

Hello all, 3rd year k-4 specials area teacher (music) in an inner city environment.
Got hired after getting my ce in '21 to do general music at a charter school. Wasn't really mentored they way that I had hoped and im still trying to learn on the fly. We have a 2 adult to a classroom setup (1 certified teacher, 1 instructional assistant) and during specials each classes respective IA is supposed to assist in specials area classes, usually in managing behaviors and materials etc. Our school has a lot of turnover and student behaviors, and over the years I've just felt burnt out and unsure if admin takes our concerns seriously. This year our superintendent terminated our principal who started last year for unclear reasons, and we've lost a ton of funding leading to IA layoffs meaning only k-2 will have the instructional assistants. Which means additional responsibilities for the same amount of money and being alone in a class with classes that quite frankly NEED an extra person in the room. I'm thinking about jumping ship, but I just wanted to clarify if this is a normal experience in public school as well or if I just lost the charter school lottery? The behaviors and lack of adequate sub coverage really have me tweaking, and I want to know if I'm better off sticking it out or making moves to a non education sector? I'm sorry if this is maybe not the right flair, first time poster.

Sorry if this sounds selfish but this is really only a one time thing for a friend. I need someone to use there undetectable AI account to paraphrase this please.
IntroductionThe rise of fast food chains in the United States from 2000 to 2010 had an impact on both the culture and economy. This period saw an increase in obesity rates among Americans, which coincided with the growth of these eateries. In this essay we delve into the connection between the expansion of fast food franchises and the obesity epidemic examining factors that influence health. Through an analysis of data, health studies and relevant literature our goal is to provide an understanding of how consuming food has played a role in fueling obesity during this particular decade, in America.The Growth of Fast Food Chains
Between 2000 and 2010 there was a rise in the fast food industry. Popular chains such as McDonalds, Burger King and Subway expanded their reach by opening stores to meet the demand for budget friendly meals. Data from the U.S. Census Bureau shows that the number of fast food eateries increased by around 20% during this timeframe (U.S. Census Bureau, 2011). This expansion made fast food more convenient for a range of people, including kids and teenagers.
Obesity Trends in the U.S. (2000 2010)
The prevalence of obesity in America has been on a trajectory during the early years of the 21st century. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) the rate of obesity among adults rose from 30.5% in 2000 to 35.7% in 2010 (CDC, 2011). Similarly among children and teens aged between 2 and 19 years old obesity rates increased from 13.9% to 16.9% over that period. This continuous increase signals a concerning public health issue with impacts on illness rates, mortality rates and healthcare expenses.
The Impact of Fast Food, on Eating Habits
food is commonly known for its levels of calories, excessive saturated fats, sugars and sodium with little nutritional value. These aspects of food are closely associated with weight gain and obesity. Studies show that regular consumption of food is linked to consuming calories and maintaining poor eating habits (Bowman & Vineyard 2004). Research conducted by Pereira et al. (2005) revealed that individuals who ate food than twice a week were more likely to gain weight and develop insulin resistance compared to those who consumed it less frequently.
Influence of Socioeconomic Factors
The easy availability and affordability of food make it an attractive option for people with incomes. Fast food establishments are often concentrated in low income areas where residents have limited access to dining choices (Powell et al. 2007). This situation, referred to as "food deserts " , worsens the issue of obesity because disadvantaged groups tend to rely on food as their main source of nutrition.
Impact of Advertising and Promotion
The aggressive advertising tactics used by fast food companies also have a significant influence on eating behaviors particularly among young individuals, like children and teenagers.
Many businesses invest sums of money each year in marketing showcasing their products across platforms, like TV, the web and social networks. Kids are especially influenced by these strategies that highlight the appeal and ease of food reinforcing harmful dietary patterns early on.
The impact of obesity, on health is significant and variedObesity is a factor in chronic illnesses like type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke and certain cancers (Flegal et al., 2012). The rise in obesity rates has led to an increase in health issues putting a strain on the healthcare system. The financial implications of obesity are also noteworthy with studies indicating that medical costs linked to obesity made up around 10% of healthcare expenses in the United States during that time (Cawley & Meyerhoefer 2012).
Policies and public health effortsIn response to the escalating obesity crisis, different policies and public health efforts have been put into action at state and local levels. These initiatives aim to encourage eating habits through measures like food labeling requirements, restrictions on advertising foods to children and campaigns raising awareness about the risks of obesity (Koplan et al., 2007). Schools have been a point for intervention well, with endeavors to enhance the nutritional value of school meals and boost physical activity among students.ExamplesVarious real life examples and stories showcase the effectiveness of taking action to address the issue of obesity. For example, New York City put in place a set of strategies to combat obesity, such as displaying calorie information on menus and prohibiting trans fats in restaurant dishes. These initiatives led to improvements in people's eating habits and a slight decrease in obesity levels, within the community (Dumanovsky et al. 2011).ChallengesThe obesity epidemic still poses challenges despite the efforts to address it. Unhealthy eating habits deeply ingrained in society, the presence of the fast food industry and disparities in status all add layers of complexity to this issue. Moving forward it is crucial to focus on creating an environment that encourages choices for vulnerable communities. This entails advocating for policies that restrict the marketing of foods to children, enhancing access to options in low income areas and urging food companies to improve the health profile of their products.
Psychological marketingWhen it comes to food marketing companies go beyond advertising tactics by leveraging deep rooted psychological triggers that influence consumer behavior. Bright colors, catchy tunes and recognizable mascots are commonly used in food ads to build a memorable brand image. This technique is particularly effective with audiences like children and teenagers who're more susceptible and likely to develop lasting brand loyalties. Research indicates that exposure to these advertisements can lead children to prefer calorie, nutrient foods ultimately impacting their dietary decisions and contributing to weight gain (Boyland & Halford 2013).The impact of portion sizes
One overlooked but significant factor contributing to the obesity crisis is the increasing sizes of portions served by food chains. Over time portion sizes have substantially grown, with meals exceeding the recommended calorie intake for a single meal. Young and Nestles (2002) study reveals that fast food item portions have expanded over the years with some items now more than double their size. This phenomenon of "portion distortion" results in calorie consumption as individuals tend to eat when faced with larger servings often underestimating the actual caloric content.
Changes in lifestyle and time constraints
The contemporary way of life characterized by schedules and time limitations has also played a role in the heightened dependence on fast food. With an increase in dual income households and longer work hours many people find themselves lacking the time to cook meals. Fast food emerges as a solution offering cost effective options that align with busy routines. Nonetheless this convenience comes at a price as frequent consumption of food is linked to dietary patterns and increased calorie intake contributing to the surge in obesity rates (Smith, Ng & Popkin 2013).Another significant measure involves restricting the promotion of foods to children. By reducing kids exposure to food ads policymakers aim to lessen the impact of marketing on their eating habits. Some cities have also imposed taxes on beverages and unhealthy foods in an effort to discourage consumption through penalties. While the effectiveness of these strategies may vary they mark progress in combating the obesity crisis.
Approaches Rooted in Communities
Community based strategies for addressing obesity highlight the importance of initiatives and grassroots movements. Programs that concentrate on enhancing access to foods encouraging activity and educating community members about healthy eating have shown positive outcomes. For example community gardens and farmers markets can offer produce to residents living in areas with access to healthy food options promoting better dietary choices. Schools and community centers can also play a role by providing nutrition education and physical activity programs.
The Impact of Technology
Technology has increasingly become an asset in the battle against obesity. Mobile applications and wearable gadgets enable individuals to monitor their calorie intake and exercise levels offering feedback and motivating lifestyle choices.
Furthermore social networking sites can play a role, in advocating for public health initiatives and sharing details on diet and wellness. Although technology isn't a solution to the issue of obesity it provides avenues to involve people and groups in embracing healthier habits (Stephens & Allen 2013).
Future Directions and Recommendations
The approach to tackling obesity needs to be multi-faceted and should involve collaboration between government departments, health workers, local communities, as well as the food industry. In future, there is need for more efforts in creating an atmosphere that supports healthier selections particularly among the disadvantaged groups. This means that one should continue to campaign for policies aimed at reducing children’s exposure to unhealthy food advertisements, improving availability of healthy foods in deprived neighborhoods and encouraging manufacturers in the food sector to change their products into a healthier version.
Further still public health campaigns will try and focus on having balanced diets regularly done exercises. Schools and offices can succeed by developing well-structured meals alongside opportunities for exercising. More research is also needed to understand why some people are poor eaters or overweight than others.
Policy Proposals
To further combat the menace of overweight, policy makers should think about enacting a variety of evidence-based strategies. Some of them could be: Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Taxes: Taxes on sugary drinks can decrease consumption and raise funds for public health projects. Zoning Regulations: By controlling the number of fast food restaurants in given areas, intake will subside and encourage establishment of grocery stores among other healthier alternatives.Menu Labeling Laws: This makes sure that restaurants indicate calorie counts as well as other nutritional information to assist customers in making informed choices. School Nutrition Standards: Schools meals and snacks in the course of learning ought to meet recommended nutrition levels so that students are eating healthy. Addressing Behavioral FactorsBehavioral interventions also play a significant role in dealing with obesity. Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) and other psychological approaches aid individuals to develop better eating habits and deal with triggers involved in overeating. Programs addressing weight control which incorporate behavior change counseling together with diet and exercise components show promise towards helping individuals achieve successful long term weight loss.Long-Term Commitment and Sustainable Change
Society must collectively make a commitment that will last over a long period to reduce obesity rates. The approach should be ongoing and flexible enough to accommodate changing circumstances and new information. For this change to be lasting, there must be continuous investment in public health infrastructure, research, and education. Therefore, significant strides can be achieved in reducing obesity rates by nurturing a culture that appreciates wellness.
Cultural Shifts and Public Perception
In addressing the obesity epidemic another critical factor is shifting public opinion as well as cultural norms with regards to food and health. The acceptance of fast food and oversize portions as normative has been one of the major drivers towards unhealthy eating habits over the past few decades. This would involve public health campaigns focused on what constitutes healthy balanced meals and promoting on good home cooked fresh meal benefits instead. To change public perception cooking classes nutrition workshops media campaign advertising preparation advantages of healthy meals at home for instance.
Strengthening Health Care Interventions
Routine screenings, counseling and support for weight management by health care providers are crucial in handling obesity. Obesity prevention and treatment should be integrated into primary care to ensure consistency and comprehensiveness in people’s health. Personalized advice can be availed by the healthcare practitioners and also set realistic targets as well as referring patients to dietitians or structured weight loss programs.
Advancing Research and Use of Proven Practices
To better understand the intricate contributors to obesity and curate effective interventions, it is important to sustain research. Longitudinal studies that follow diet patterns, activity levels, and disease outcomes offer useful information on how to prevent or reduce obesity. By exploring behavioral, environmental and genetic factors that affect obesity, this will enable us to make interventions that are specific for different populations and situations as well.
Conclusion
The period between 2000 and 2010 registered a sharp increase of obesity rates that is closely linked to the spread of fast food outlets across America. This public health menace can only be fought with multidimensional approaches that will change public attitude, improve education, enhance corporate accountability and support inclusive research plus health care interventions. By creating an environment where good health is appreciated through provision of necessary resources and support, we can achieve significant milestones in curbing cases of obesity within our population as well as overall improvement in their welfare.
Citations:
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Brownell, K.D. & Frieden, T.R., 2009. Ounces of prevention—the public policy case for taxes on sugared beverages. **New England Journal of Medicine**, 360(18), pp.1805-1808.
Drewnowski, A. & Specter, S.E., 2004. Poverty and obesity: the role of energy density and energy costs. **American Journal of Clinical Nutrition**, 79(1), pp.6-16.
Krieger, J.W., Chan, N.L., Saelens, B.E., Ta, M.L., Solet, D. & Fleming, D.W., 2013. Menu labeling regulations and calories purchased at chain restaurants. **American Journal of Preventive Medicine**, 44(6), pp.595-604.
Ogden, C.L., Carroll, M.D., Kit, B.K. & Flegal, K.M., 2014. Prevalence of childhood and adult obesity in the United States, 2011-2012. **JAMA**, 311(8), pp.806-814.
Smith, L.P., Ng, S.W. & Popkin, B.M., 2013. Trends in US home food preparation and consumption: analysis of national nutrition surveys and time use studies from 1965-1966 to 2007-2008. **Nutrition Journal**, 12(1), p.45.
Stephens, J. & Allen, J., 2013. Mobile phone interventions to increase physical activity and reduce weight: a systematic review. **Journal of Cardiovascular Nursing**, 28(4), pp.320-329.
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Walker, R.E., Keane, C.R. & Burke, J.G., 2010. Disparities and access to healthy food in the United States: A review of food deserts literature. **Health & Place**, 16(5), pp.876-884.
Young, L.R. & Nestle, M., 2002. The contribution of expanding portion sizes to the US obesity epidemic. **American Journal of Public Health**, 92(2), pp.246-249.
Fulkerson, J.A., Story, M., Neumark-Sztainer, D. & Rydell, S., 2008. Family meals: Perceptions of benefits and challenges among parents of 8-to 10-year-old children. **Journal of the American Dietetic Association**, 108(4), pp.706-709.
Huang, T.T.K., Drewnowski, A., Kumanyika, S.K. & Glass, T.A., 2009. A systems-oriented multilevel framework for addressing obesity in the 21st century. **Preventing Chronic Disease**, 6(3), A82.
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Apologies for the long description.
Canadian here. I am in the manufacturing operations sector - assembly lines, supply chain, manufacturing engineering, quality management systems - all that good stuff. I have roughly 10 years of experience (9 years excluding my pre-undergraduate internship). I have been in management for the past 4 years - started with the manager title for a little while, and very recently a director as of a few months ago. I consider myself very lucky to have landed a director role (with good compensation) this early on in my career.
I have a bachelor's and a master's degree in mechanical engineering, both from Canada. I was slowly doing my master's degree (course/project based, not the research based) part time while being employed, and got promoted to management when I was in the middle of it. Up until that point, I was fully technical and had full intention of moving towards a senior engineering or technical lead role. I even passed my law and ethics exam to get my P.Eng designation, but just sort of gave up on that afterwards. That promotion changed my career trajectory, but I like it. I can argue that I am no longer doing "engineering" as a director. Engineering is one of the sectors I am overseeing, but I am also responsible for supply chain, quality, service, and many other areas.
I enjoy operations. And I would like to continue to develop my career in this direction. I am thinking of titles like senior director, VP, and maybe even an executive role down the line, but I'll see how far that goes.
I have very little background in the finance and accounting side of things. I am doing costing and budgeting and all that stuff in excel, but I consider this area to be my weakness. Now, I can probably just take a few courses on accounting in one of the continuing education programs for a few hundred dollars, but this is where the MBA comes in. A lot of those senior management roles often have "MBA preferred" in the job description. I believe that with an MBA, I will not only get to strengthen my finance side, but also get to check that MBA box to give myself that edge. I will shamelessly admit that sticking that "MBA" after my name sounds nice.
Now, the options. From searching around, I really see 3 options:

1. Executive MBA (In-Person): $120,000 CAD in Ivey, Kellogg-Schulich, or Rotman
2. Part Time / Weekend / Evening MBA (In-Person): $72,000 in Schulich, $95,000 in Rotman, similar for others
3. Online Part Time MBA: $25,000 USD ($32,000 CAD) in Boston University

Leaving my job and going full-time is not an option. If I were to choose EMBA, I will probably wait another 2-3 years, but even then, I just don't foresee my current company (or any future company) to sponsor even 50% of that cost. A regular part-time in-person MBA is slightly less expensive, but my company will still need to sponsor at least 50% (or preferably more) for me to even consider it. Again, I don't foresee it.
That leaves me with the online MBA, which is a new discovery for me. The one I came across at BU is affordable. I will still approach my employer anyway, but I am comfortable with this amount even with minimal support from my employer.
Of course, I like the in-person experience. My master's in engineering was in-person. I enjoy talking to people. I understand that an online MBA will have very little true networking opportunities. However, given that I am already in a management role, lack of in-person networking is likely not a deal breaker.
Am I missing any options? What type of MBA would you choose? Or would you pursue an MBA at all in this situation?