There seem to be a large number of people who believe that the purpose of the Bill of Rights was to grant and guarantee rights to the American people. Furthermore, I have heard many people claim that the Bill of Rights is entirely a list of specifically individual rights of American citizens. It puzzles me why these beliefs continue to persist, because the historical record indicates that there is no reason to believe these descriptions of the Bill of Rights. There is a more than adequate amount of historical evidence to corroborate my conclusion. The first and most direct evidence is the very preamble to the Bill of Rights itself. The original preamble of the Bill of Rights begins with a paragraph explaining the document’s purpose; it goes as follows:

The Conventions of a number of the States, having at the time of their adopting the Constitution, expressed a desire, in order to prevent misconstruction or abuse of its powers, that further declaratory and restrictive clauses should be added: And as extending the ground of public confidence in the Government, will best ensure the beneficent ends of its institution.

I think the three most important phrases in this paragraph are “in order to prevent misconstruction or abuse of its powers”, “declaratory and restrictive clauses”, and “extending the ground of public confidence in the Government”. These three phrases seem to best sum up what the Bill of Rights was originally meant to accomplish: it is a list of declaratory and restrictive clauses whose purpose is to prevent the misconstruction or abuse of the Constitution’s powers, and to increase public confidence in the federal government. And if one were to look at the Bill of Rights, its text would seem to be in harmony with this statement of purpose. The Bill of Rights consists mostly of negative clauses which put restrictions on the federal government; it states what shall not happen or what shall not be done by Congress, such as prohibiting freedom of religion, abridging freedom of speech, infringing the right to keep and bear arms, violating the right to be secure in property, etc. And the ninth and tenth amendments do not mention any particular rights whatsoever, and clearly just serve the purpose of preventing the Constitution from being misconstrued or abused to diminish the rights of the states and the people, and to prevent granting the federal government more power than the Constitution meant for it to have. The phrase “extending the ground of public confidence in the Government” further indicates that the Bill of Rights was not really meant to add rights not already stipulated in the Constitution, but was only meant to reinforce trust in the federal government at the time of the Founding. The Bill of Rights was not meant to add any substantive articles to the Constitution, but rather it consisted of articles whose purpose was to reinforce the articles that had already been established, and prevent them from being misinterpreted in the future by any unscrupulous members of the federal government. Also notice that there is nothing written here in the preamble about granting rights to the American people, let alone granting specifically individual rights to the American people: you would think if the framers of the Bill of Rights had meant for this to be the document’s effect, they would have stated so clearly in the preamble.
Another piece of evidence for my conclusion comes in an address given by James Madison -- the author of the Bill of Rights -- in the House of Representatives on June 8, 1789. This address involved an early proposal of amendments to the Constitution. Before listing his various propositions for amending the Constitution, Madison said this:

There have been objections of various kinds made against the Constitution. Some were levelled against its structure because the President was without a council; because the Senate, which is a legislative body, had judicial powers in trials on impeachments; and because the powers of that body were compounded in other respects, in a manner that did not correspond with a particular theory; because it grants more power than is supposed to be necessary for every good purpose, and controls the ordinary powers of the State Governments. I know some respectable characters who opposed this Government on these grounds; but I believe that the great mass of the people who opposed it, disliked it because it did not contain effectual provisions against encroachments on particular rights, and those safeguards which they have been long accustomed to have interposed between them and the magistrate who exercises the sovereign power; nor ought we to consider them safe, while a great number of our fellow-citizens think these securities necessary.

The part I've put in italics indicates that the major purpose of the amendments to the Constitution was to reassure citizens that effective protections were put in place to prevent the “magistrate who exercises the sovereign power” from encroaching upon their rights. Notice there is nothing written here about granting rights to the people, only protecting the people's pre-existing rights from the federal government.
Following the above statement, Madison begins to list a variety of proposed additions to the Constitution, and he proposes the additions be inserted into the body of the Constitution itself, at various sections. Ultimately, he begins to propose a certain list of amendments to be inserted within article 1, section 9; and this particular list happens to correspond to most of the articles which comprise the Bill of Rights as it exists today:

Fourthly. That in article 1st, section 9, between clauses 3 and 4, be inserted these clauses, to wit: The civil rights of none shall be abridged on account of religious belief or worship, nor shall any national religion be established, nor shall the full and equal rights of conscience be in any manner, or on any pretext, infringed.
The people shall not be deprived or abridged of their right to speak, to write, or to publish their sentiments; and the freedom of the press, as one of the great bulwarks of liberty, shall be inviolable.
The people shall not be restrained from peaceably assembling and consulting for their common good; nor from applying to the Legislature by petitions, or remonstrances, for redress of their grievances.
The right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed; a well armed and well regulated militia being the best security of a free country: but no person religiously scrupulous of bearing arms shall be compelled to render military service in person.
No soldier shall in time of peace be quartered in any house without the consent of the owner; nor at any time, but in a manner warranted by law.
No person shall be subject, except in cases of impeachment, to more than one punishment or one trial for the same offence; nor shall be compelled to be a witness against himself; nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor be obliged to relinquish his property, where it may be necessary for public use, without a just compensation.
Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.
The rights of the people to be secured in their persons; their houses, their papers, and their other property, from all unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated by warrants issued without probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, or not particularly describing the places to be searched, or the persons or things to be seized.
In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, to be informed of the cause and nature of the accusation, to be confronted with his accusers, and the witnesses against him; to have a compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor; and to have the assistance of counsel for his defence.
The exceptions here or elsewhere in the Constitution, made in favor of particular rights, shall not be so construed as to diminish the just importance of other rights retained by the people, or as to enlarge the powers delegated by the Constitution; but either as actual limitations of such powers, or as inserted merely for greater caution.

It is notable to consider that Madison initially proposed the Bill of Rights to be integrated into the Constitution itself, rather than to be a separate document. But what is even more notable is the specific location it was proposed to be inserted in. Article 1, section 9 is specifically the location of the Constitution dedicated to enumerating the prohibitions upon the power of Congress. What this means is that the original plan for the amendments currently appearing in the Bill of Rights was for them to merely be a list of stipulations regarding what Congress was not allowed to do. Thus, it would make no sense for those same clauses today to be construed as being themselves grants of rights to individual American citizens, anymore than other articles within this same section -- such as Congress being prohibited from abolishing the slave trade before 1808, or laying taxes on state exports -- could themselves be considered grants of individual rights to American citizens.
Another piece of evidence can be found in the 1833 Supreme Court case Barron v Baltimore. This case essentially makes explicit that which was originally understood about the Bill of Rights -- that it was meant only as a list of prohibitions upon Congress. The following excerpt makes this clear:

Had the framers of these amendments intended them to be limitations on the powers of the State governments, they would have imitated the framers of the original Constitution, and have expressed that intention. Had Congress engaged in the extraordinary occupation of improving the Constitutions of the several States by affording the people additional protection from the exercise of power by their own governments in matters which concerned themselves alone, they would have declared this purpose in plain and intelligible language.
But it is universally understood, it is a part of the history of the day, that the great revolution which established the Constitution of the United States was not effected without immense opposition. Serious fears were extensively entertained that those powers which the patriot statesmen who then watched over the interests of our country deemed essential to union, and to the attainment of those invaluable objects for which union was sought, might be exercised in a manner dangerous to liberty. In almost every convention by which the Constitution was adopted, amendments to guard against the abuse of power were recommended. These amendments demanded security against the apprehended encroachments of the General Government -- not against those of the local governments. In compliance with a sentiment thus generally expressed, to quiet fears thus extensively entertained, amendments were proposed by the required majority in Congress and adopted by the States. These amendments contain no expression indicating an intention to apply them to the State governments. This court cannot so apply them.

And then the aforementioned case was subsequently referenced by the 1875 Supreme Court case US v Cruikshank, which further reinforced the same conclusion while addressing the first and second amendments of the Bill of Rights:

The first amendment to the Constitution prohibits Congress from abridging "the right of the people to assemble and to petition the government for a redress of grievances." This, like the other amendments proposed and adopted at the same time, was not intended to limit the powers of the State governments in respect to their own citizens, but to operate upon the National Government alone. [. . .] It is now too late to question the correctness of this construction. As was said by the late Chief Justice, in Twitchell v. The Commonwealth (#325), 7 Wall. 325, "the scope and application of these amendments are no longer subjects of discussion here." They left the authority of the States just where they found it, and added nothing to the already existing powers of the United States.
The particular amendment now under consideration assumes the existence of the right of the people to assemble for lawful purposes, and protects it against encroachment by Congress. The right was not created by the amendment; neither was its continuance guaranteed, except as against congressional interference. For their protection in its enjoyment, therefore, the people must look to the States. The power for that purpose was originally placed there, and it has never been surrendered to the United States.
The second and tenth counts are equally defective. The right there specified is that of "bearing arms for a lawful purpose." This is not a right granted by the Constitution. Neither is it in any manner dependent upon that instrument for its existence. The second amendment declares that it shall not be infringed, but this, as has been seen, means no more than that it shall not be infringed by Congress. This is one of the amendments that has no other effect than to restrict the powers of the national government, leaving the people to look for their protection against any violation by their fellow citizens of the rights it recognizes, to what is called, in The City of New York v. Miln (#139), 11 Pet. 139, the "powers which relate to merely municipal legislation, or what was, perhaps, more properly called internal police," "not surrendered or restrained" by the Constitution of the United States.

So as you can see, it was well-established from the time of the country’s founding that the Bill of Rights was never meant to itself be a grant or guarantee of rights to the American people. The official function of the Bill of Rights was always prohibitive rather than affirmative: the purpose was to restrain the federal government, rather than to endow something to American citizens. So what I don’t understand is: how has the Bill of Rights become so misunderstood and misapplied? Why is it that, from the layman even to the level of the modern-day Supreme Court, it is believed that the Bill of Rights is meant to grant or guarantee rights to individual American citizens, when this conclusion is unequivocally unsupported by the historical record? And not only is this conclusion not supported by the historical evidence, but I would argue that it contradicts the very purpose of the Bill of Rights; the whole point of the document was to limit the power of Congress, but interpreting the document to be a federal guarantee of rights to the people is, in effect, a transference of power to the federal government never stipulated in the Constitution, and is in violation of the tenth amendment.
The Bill of Rights, according to its original design, is essentially superfluous; effectively declaring nothing in itself, and only serving to clarify the intent of the Constitution, prevent it from being adversely misinterpreted, and to make explicit what was implicitly acknowledged regarding the boundaries of congressional power. There had been much debate among the Founders regarding whether the Bill of Rights should even exist at all. So how is it that a document whose original purpose was to be nothing more than a protection of civil rights has now become interpreted effectively as the source of the people's civil rights?

Hey guys,
I applied for the GC through marriage based, my husband is a US citizen and we recently got a RFE that we're not sure how to deal with.
Here's the case, my husband didn't make enough income in 2022 since he left his job that year, however he started his own business in 2023 and made enough income, we both together made 75k in taxable income from the business in 2023, however we sent the application before April so we ended up not using his 2023 taxes.
For safety, we used his mom as a joint sponsor, she doesn't work and she's retired (has SSA benefits, but not a enough), she makes 6 figures a year based on interest from the bank, long short story, her husband passed away in 2022 and left her with a good amount of money on the bank (around 3million USD), she lives of interest from this money on the bank.
I sent to USCIS as proof of income her just 2022 tax transcripts since she doesn't have income based on W-2s. They for sure sent us a RFE asking for proof of current income. I am able to get her 1099 INT from the bank and the bank statements, that's all we can provide. Is that enough? Does money made from interest classifies as assets when filling the form again? I am very confused in how to reply or if it would be safer get another joint sponsor (it isnt really a good option since we dont have anyone else).

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The Big List

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MISC

Barbie 4K [2023] $6 (MA)
Batwoman season 1 HD [2019] $6 (Vudu)
Supergirl season 5 HD $6 (Vudu)
X-Men Trilogy HD [X-Men, X2 & The Last Stand] $8 (MA)

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$5 4K UHD

Blackkklansman (MA)
John Wick 1-3 (iTunes)

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$4 4K UHD

Alien [1979] (iTunes/ports)
Aliens [1986] (iTunes/ports)
Big Lebowski, The (iTunes/ports)
Black Panther (MA + 200 points)
Captain Marvel (MA + 200 points)
Despicable Me [2010] (iTunes/ports)
Dredd (Vudu)
Expendables 4 (Vudu or iTunes)
Frozen 2 [2019] (MA + 200 points)
Gone Girl [2014] (iTunes/ports)
Guardians Of The Galaxy [2014] (MA + 200 points)
Halloween [2018] (MA)
Jungleland [2020] (iTunes)
Maleficent: Mistress Of Evil (MA + 200 points)
Scream [2022] (Vudu or iTunes)
Silent Night [2023] (Vudu or iTunes)
Sonic The Hedgehog 2 (Vudu or iTunes)
Tangled [2010] (iTunes/ports + 150 points)
Titanic [1997] (iTunes)

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$5 HD

Adventures Of Ichabod & Mr. Toad, The [1949] (MA + 150 points)
Banshee season 2 (iTunes)
Fear The Walking Dead season 2 (Vudu)
Fear The Walking Dead season 4 (Vudu)
Fear The Walking Dead season 5 (Vudu)
Fear The Walking Dead season 6 (Vudu)
Fear The Walking Dead season 7 (Vudu)
Five Nights At Freddy's [2023] (MA)
Groundhog Day [1993] + Stripes [1981] double feature (MA)
Hunchback Of Notre Dame, The [1996] (MA + 150 points)
Hunchback Of Notre Dame 2, The [2002] (MA + 150 points)
Lady & The Tramp II: Scamps Adventure [2001] (MA + 150 points)
Marvels, The [2023] (MA + 150 points)
Oppenheimer (MA)
Rob Zombie Trilogy [House Of 1,000 Corpses, The Devil's Rejects [Unrated] & 3 From Hell [Unrated] (MA)
Silent Night, Deadly Night 3,4 & 5 (Vudu)
Veep season 5 (iTunes)
Veep season 6 (iTunes)

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$4 HD

300 Spartans, The (MA)
Barbie [2023] (MA)
BFG, The [2016] (MA + 150 points)
Color Purple, The [2023] (MA)
Fox & The Hound 2, The [2006] (MA + 150 points)
Lady & The Tramp [1955] (MA + 150 points)
Ruby Gillman: Teenage Kraken [2023] (MA)

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$3 Movies

$3 4K UHD

Aladdin [2019] (iTunes/ports + 150 points)
Angel Has Fallen (Vudu or iTunes)
Baywatch (Vudu)
Birth Of A Nation, The (iTunes/ports)
Bourne Identity, The [2002] (iTunes/ports)
Cabin In The Woods, The (Vudu)
Doctor Strange (iTunes/ports + 150 points)
Frozen 2 [2019] (iTunes/ports + 150 points)
Guardians Of The Galaxy [2014] (iTunes/ports + 150 points)
Interstellar (iTunes)
Logan Lucky [2017] (iTunes/ports)
Moana (iTunes/ports + 150 points)
mother! [2017] (iTunes)
Prometheus [2012] (iTunes/ports)
Robin Hood [2018] (Vudu)
Sicario (Vudu)
Spy Who Dumped Me, The (Vudu or iTunes)
Star Wars: The Last Jedi (MA + 200 points)
Thor: The Dark World (iTunes/ports + 150 points)
Top Gun (iTunes)

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$3 HD

Avatar: The Way Of Water (MA + 150 points)
Baby Driver [2017] (MA + Sony points)
Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, The (MA or Google Play/ports)
Birds Of Prey [2020] (MA)
Bloodshot [2020] (MA + Sony points)
Bridge Of Spies [2015] (MA + 150 points)
Call Me By Your Name (MA + Sony points)
Candyman: Day Of The Dead (Vudu or Google Play)
Cats & Dogs 3: Paws Unite (MA)
Desperation Road [2023 (Vudu HD or iTunes 4K)
Disneynature: Bears [2014] (MA + 150 points)
Divergent Series Trilogy, The [Divergent, Insurgent & Allegiant] (Vudu or Google Play)
Equalizer 3, The [2023] (MA + Sony points)
Exorcist: Believer, The [2023] (MA)
Fast X [2023] (MA + Universal Rewards points)
Fruitvale Station (Vudu)
Glass [2019] (MA)
Goosebumps [2018] (MA + Sony points)
Grand Budapest Hotel, The (MA or Google Play/ports)
Grown Ups 2 (MA + Sony points)
Halloween Kills [2021] (MA)
Hocus Pocus (MA + 150 points/no iTunes option)
Holmes & Watson [2018] (MA + Sony points)
Hundred Foot Journey, The [2014] (MA + 150 points)
Insidious: Chapter 3 (MA + Sony points)
Into The Woods [2014] (MA + 150 points)
Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (Vudu)
Killing Gunther (Vudu)
Lion King, The [1994] (MA + 150 points)
Little House On The Prairie season 5 (Vudu)
Midsommar [A24] (Vudu or Google Play)
Mindcage (Vudu or iTunes)
Money Monster [2016] (MA + Sony points)
Nurse Jackie season 7 (Vudu)
Orange Is The New Black season 1 (Vudu)
Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters (iTunes/ports)
Pete's Dragon [2016] (MA + 150 points)
Planes: Fire & Rescue [2014] (MA + 150 points)
Pride + Prejudice + Zombies [2016] (MA + Sony points)
Public Enemies [2009] (MA or iTunes/ports)
Punisher, The [2004] (Vudu or Google Play)
Queen Of Katwe [2016] (MA + 150 points)
Robin Hood [1973] (MA + 150 points)
Scoob! [2020] (MA)
Secret Life Of Pets 2, The [2019] (MA)
Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs [1937] (MA + 150 points)
Spider-Man: Into The Spiderverse (MA + Sony points)
Secret: Dare To Dream, The (Vudu, iTunes or Google Play)
Super Mario Bros. Movie, The [2023] (MA)
Tyler Perry's Diary Of A Mad Black Woman [2005] (Vudu)
Tyler Perry's Madea Goes To Jail (Vudu or Google Play)
Us [2019] (MA)
Vanishing, The [2019] (Vudu or Google Play)
Venture Bros: Radiant Is The Blood Of The Baboon Heart [2023] (MA)
Walking Dead season 9, The (Vudu or Google Play)
Walking Dead season 10, The (Vudu or Google Play)
Way Way Back, The [2013] (MA or Google Play/ports)
Whiplash [2014] (MA + Sony points)

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$2 Codes

💲2 HD

13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers Of Benghazi (iTunes 4K)
2 Guns [2013] (iTunes/ports 4K)
31 [2016] (Vudu)
3 From Hell [Unrated] (Vudu 4K or iTunes 4K)
About Last Night [2014] (MA + Sony points)
Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (MA)
Action Point [2018] (iTunes 4K)
Admission [2013] (iTunes/ports)
Adventures Of Tintin, The (Vudu or iTunes)
After Earth [2013] (MA + Sony points)
Age Of Adaline, The (Vudu, iTunes or Google Play)
Alien Covenant (iTunes/ports 4K or HD MA/GP)
Allied [2016] (iTunes 4K or Vudu HD)
Aloha [2015] (MA + Sony points)
Alpha [2018] (MA + Sony points)
Alpha & Omega 2: A Howl-lday Adventure (Vudu)
Alvin & The Chipmunks: The Road Chip (iTunes/ports 4K or HD MA)
American Girl: Isabelle Dances Into The Spotlight (MA)
American Hustle [2013] (MA + Sony points)
American Reunion [Unrated] (MA or iTunes/ports)
Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues (Vudu or iTunes)
Annie [2014] (MA + Sony points)
Arrival [2016] (Vudu)
Art Of Self-Defense, The [2019] (MA)
Assassin's Creed (iTunes/ports 4K or HD MA)
Atomic Blonde (MA)
Avengers: Infinity War (MA + 150 points/no iTunes option)
Battleship [2012] (iTunes/ports 4K)
Baywatch (iTunes 4K)
Beauty & The Beast [2017] (MA + 150 points/iTunes option is expired)
Beguiled, The [2017] (MA or iTunes/ports)
Beirut [2018] (MA)
Ben-Hur [2016] (Vudu)
Best Man Holiday, The [2013] (MA or iTunes/ports)
Blackhat [2015] (iTunes/ports)
Black Panther [2018] (MA + 150 points/no iTunes option)
Bohemian Rhapsody (MA or Google Play/ports)
Book Club [2018] (iTunes 4K)
Boss Baby, The [2017] (MA)
Bourne Legacy, The (iTunes/ports 4K)
Boy, The [2016] (MA or iTunes/ports)
Boyhood [2014] (iTunes)
Boy Next Door, The [2015] (iTunes/ports)
Breakthrough [2019] (MA or Google Play/ports)
Bridesmaids [Theatrical] (iTunes/ports)
Broken City [2013] (MA)
Bumblebee (iTunes 4K or Vudu HD)
Cabin In The Woods, The (Vudu/GP HD or iTunes 4K)
Captain America: Civil War (MA only/no points or iTunes option)
Captain Phillips [2013] (MA + Sony points)
Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie (MA)
Case For Christ, The [2017] (MA)
Choice, The [2016] (Vudu or iTunes)
Company Of Heroes [2013] (MA)
Contraband (iTunes/ports)
Cowboys & Aliens [Theatrical] (iTunes/ports)
Curse Of Chucky [2013] [Unrated] (MA or iTunes/ports)
Daddy's Home (iTunes 4K)
Dark Tower, The [2017] (MA + Sony points)
Dead Again In Tombstone [2017] (MA)
Dead In Tombstone [Unrated] (MA or iTunes/ports)
Dead Man Down [2013] (MA)
Deepwater Horizon (iTunes 4K or Vudu/GP HD)
Despicable Me 2 (iTunes/ports 4K)
Despicable Me 3 (iTunes/ports 4K or HD MA)
Devil's Due [2014] (MA or Google Play/ports)
Diary Of A Wimpy Kid: Dog Days (MA, iTunes or Google Play/ports)
Diary Of A Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul (MA, iTunes or Google Play/ports)
Django Unchained (Vudu)
Downsizing (iTunes 4K)
Downton Abbey [2019] (MA)
Dracula Untold (iTunes/ports 4K)
Dragonheart 3: The Sorcerer's Curse (iTunes/ports)
Dredd [2012] (Vudu)
Dr. Seuss’ How The Grinch Stole Christmas [2000] (MA)
Duff, The (iTunes or Google Play)
Edward Scissorhands (MA or Google Play/ports)
Emoji Movie, The [2017] (MA + Sony points)
Ender's Game (iTunes 4K or Vudu/GP HD)
Epic [2013] (MA)
Equalizer, The [2014] (MA + Sony points)
Equalizer 2, The (MA + Sony points)
Escape From Planet Earth (Vudu)
Everest [2015] (iTunes/ports 4K)
Ex Machina (Vudu)
Exodus: Gods & Kings (iTunes/ports 4K or HD MA)
F9: The Fast Saga [2021] [Theatrical & Extended] (MA + Universal Rewards points)
Fast & Furious [2009] (iTunes/ports 4K)
Fast & The Furious, The [2001] (iTunes/ports 4K)
Fast & The Furious: Tokyo Drift, The (iTunes/ports 4K)
Fate Of The Furious [F8] [Theatrical] (MA 4K)
Fences [2016] (iTunes 4K or Vudu HD)
Fifty Shades Darker [2017] [Unrated] (MA 4K)
Fifty Shades Of Grey (iTunes/ports 4K)
Finding Dory (iTunes/ports 4K or HD MA + 150 points)
Flight [2012] (Vudu or iTunes)
Fortress [2021] (Vudu or Google Play)
Frozen [2013] (iTunes/ports 4K+ 150 points)
Fury [2014] (MA + Sony points)
Game Of Thrones season 1 (iTunes)
Get Out [2017] (MA)
Ghost Team One [2013] (Vudu or iTunes)
Gifted [2017] (MA or Google Play/ports, iTunes option is expired)
God Bless The Broken Road (Vudu or Google Play)
Gods Not Dead 2 [2016] (MA or iTunes/ports)
Gods Of Egypt (Vudu/GP HD or iTunes 4K)
Great Wall, The [2017] (MA)
Grey, The [2012] (MA or iTunes/ports)
Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol.2 (MA + 150 points/no iTunes option)
Guilt Trip, The [2012] (Vudu)
Hacksaw Ridge (Vudu or Google Play/iTunes option expired)
Hail, Caesar [2016] (MA or iTunes/ports)
Halloween [2018] (MA)
Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters [Unrated] (Vudu or iTunes)
Hateful Eight, The (Vudu or Google Play)
Heat, The [2013] [Theatrical] (MA or Google Play/ports)
Hell Or High Water (Vudu or Google Play)
Hercules [2014] (iTunes 4K or Vudu HD)
Hitman's Bodyguard, The (Vudu or Google Play/iTunes option is expired)
Hobbs & Shaw [2019] (MA)
Home [2015] [DreamWorks] (MA)
Home Alone [1990] (iTunes/ports 4K or HD MA)
Homefront [2013] (MA or iTunes/ports)
Honey 2 [2011] (MA or iTunes/ports)
How To Train Your Dragon 2 (MA)
Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1, The (iTunes 4K or Google Play HD)
Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2, The (Vudu)
I Am Wrath (Vudu)
Instant Family (iTunes 4K or Vudu HD)
Internship, The [2013] (MA or Google Play/ports)
Invisible Man, The [1933] (MA)
I Still Believe [2020] (iTunes 4K or Vudu/GP HD)
It Follows [2015] (Vudu)
Jackass 3 [Theatrical] (Vudu or iTunes)
Jack Reacher (Vudu)
Jack Reacher: Never Go Back (Vudu)
Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit (iTunes 4K)
Jason Bourne [2016] (iTunes/ports 4K)
John Henry [2020] (Vudu)
John Wick (iTunes 4K)
John Wick 1 & 2 (Vudu or Google Play)
John Wick: Chapter 2 (iTunes 4K)
John Wick Chapter 3: Parabellum (iTunes 4K) or all 3 for $5
Joy [2015] (iTunes/ports 4K or HD MA)
Jumanji: Welcome To The Jungle (MA + Sony points)
Jurassic World (iTunes/ports 4K)
Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (MA)
Justice [2017] (MA or iTunes/ports)
Kick-Ass 2 [2013] (MA)
Kidnap [2017] (iTunes/ports)
Killer Elite (iTunes/ports)
Kingsman: The Golden Circle (iTunes/ports 4K or HD MA)
Kingsman: The Secret Service (iTunes/ports 4K or HD MA)
Last Knights [2015] (Vudu)
Last Vegas [2013] (MA + Sony points)
Last Witch Hunter, The [2015] (iTunes 4K or Google Play)
Let's Be Cops [2014] (iTunes/ports 4K)
Life [2017] (MA + Sony points)
Life Of Pi (iTunes/ports 4K)
Lockout [2012] [Unrated] (MA + Sony points)
Logan [2017] (iTunes/ports 4K or HD MA)
Lone Survivor [2013] (iTunes/ports 4K)
Longest Ride, The (iTunes/ports 4K or HD MA)
Lorax, The [2012] (MA or iTunes/ports)
Love, Simon [2018] (MA)
Lucy [2014] (iTunes/ports 4K)
Maleficent (iTunes/ports 4K + 150 points)
Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again [2018] (MA)
Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom (Vudu)
Man With The Iron Fists, The [2012] [Theatrical] (iTunes/ports)
Marauders (Vudu)
Martian, The [2015] [Theatrical] (iTunes/ports 4K)
Mary Poppins [1964] (MA + 150 points)
Maze Runner, The [2014] (iTunes/ports 4K or HD MA)
Maze Runner: The Death Cure [2018] (MA or Google Play/ports)
Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials (iTunes/ports 4K or HD MA)
Mechanic: Resurrection (Vudu/GP HD or iTunes 4K)
Men In Black 3 (MA + Sony points)
MI-5 [2015] (Vudu)
Mile 22 (iTunes 4K)
Mindgamers [2017] (MA or iTunes/ports)
Miracles From Heaven (MA + Sony points)
Mission Impossible: Fallout (iTunes 4K)
Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation (iTunes 4K)
Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children (iTunes/ports 4K or HD MA)
Moms’ Night Out [2014] (MA)
Monuments Men, The [2014] (MA + Sony points)
Mortal Engines [2018] (MA) PENDING
Mortal Instruments: The City Of Bones, The [2014] (MA + Sony points)
Mother's Day [2016] (MA or iTunes/ports)
Mountain Between Us, The [2017] (iTunes/ports 4K or HD MA)
Mummy, The [2017] (iTunes/ports 4K)
Murder On The Orient Express [2017] (MA or Google Play/ports)
My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2 (iTunes/ports)
Neighbors [2014] (iTunes/ports)
Night At The Museum: Secret Of The Tomb (iTunes/ports 4K or HD MA)
Noah [2014] (Vudu)
Non-Stop [2014] (MA or iTunes/ports)
Norm Of The North (Vudu or iTunes)
Now You See Me 2 (iTunes 4K or Vudu/GP HD)
Nut Job, The [2014] (MA or iTunes/ports)
Oblivion [2013] (iTunes/ports 4K)
Ouija [2014] (MA)
Overlord [2018] (Vudu)
Oz: The Great & Powerful (MA + 100 points)
Paddington (Vudu)
Paranormal Activity [2009] [Theatrical] (iTunes)
Paranormal Activity 2 [Unrated Director's Cut] (Vudu or iTunes)
Paranormal Activity 3 [Extended] (Vudu or iTunes)
Paranormal Activity 4 [Unrated] (iTunes)
Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones [Theatrical] (iTunes)
Passengers [2016] (MA + Sony points)
Percy Jackson: Sea Of Monsters (MA or Google Play/ports)
Pet Sematary [2019] (iTunes 4K or Vudu HD)
Philomena (Vudu)
Pitch Perfect (iTunes/ports 4K)
Playing With Fire (iTunes 4K or Vudu HD)
Predator, The [2018] (MA or Google Play/ports)
Project Almanac (iTunes)
Prometheus (MA or Google Play/ports, no iTunes option)
Proud Mary [2018] (MA)
Purge: Anarchy, The (iTunes/ports 4K)
Quiet Place, A [2018] (iTunes 4K)
Ralph Breaks The Internet (MA + 150 points/no iTunes option)
Red Dawn [2012] (Vudu or Google Play)
Redemption [2013] (Vudu)
Replicas [2019] (iTunes 4K or Vudu/GP HD)
Resident Evil: The Final Chapter [2016] (MA + Sony points)
Riddick [Unrated] (MA or iTunes/ports)
Rings [2017] (Vudu)
R.I.P.D. Rest In Peace Department (iTunes/ports 4K)
Rise Of The Guardians [2011] (MA)
Risen [2016] (MA + Sony points)
Robin Hood [2018] (iTunes 4K or Vudu/GP HD)
Rock Dog (iTunes)
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (iTunes/ports 4K + 150 points)
Roman J. Israel, Esq [2017] (MA + Sony points)
Rush [2013] (MA)
Saban's Power Rangers (iTunes 4K or Vudu/GP HD)
Safe House [2012] (MA or iTunes/ports)
Savages [2012] [Theatrical] (iTunes/ports)
Scorpion King 3: Battle For Redemption (iTunes/ports)
Secret Life Of Pets, The (MA 4K or iTunes/ports 4K)
Secret Life Of Walter Mitty, The (MA or Google Play/ports, iTunes option is expired)
Seventh Son [2015] (iTunes/ports)
Sex Tape [2014] (MA + Sony points)
Show Dogs [2018] (MA)
Silver Linings Playbook (Vudu or Google Play)
Sing [2016] (iTunes/ports 4K)
Sinister (Vudu, iTunes or Google Play)
Sisters [2015] [Unrated] (MA or iTunes/ports)
Skyscraper [2018] (MA)
Sleepless [2017] (iTunes/ports)
Sparkle [2012] (MA)
Spider-Man 2 [2004] [Theatrical & Extended] (MA + Sony points)
Spider-Man: Homecoming [2017] (MA + Sony points)
Spider-Man: No Way Home [2021] (MA + Sony points)
Split [2017] (iTunes/ports 4K or MA HD)
Spy [2015] [Unrated] (MA, iTunes or Google Play/ports)
Star Trek [2009] (iTunes 4K)
Star Wars: The Force Awakens (iTunes/ports 4K or HD MA + 150 points)
Step Up All In [2014] (Vudu)
Step Up Revolution (Vudu or Google Play)
Straight Outta Compton [Unrated] (iTunes/ports 4K)
Super 8 (Vudu)
Super Buddies (MA without points)
Taken 3 [Unrated] (MA, iTunes or Google Play/ports)
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles [2014] (iTunes 4K or Vudu HD)
Terminator: Genisys (iTunes 4K)
The Night Before [2015] (MA + Sony points)
This Is The End [2013] (MA + Sony points)
Top Five [2014] (iTunes)
Top Gun (Vudu)
Total Recall [2012] [Theatrical & Director's Cut] (MA + Sony points)
Tower Heist [Theatrical] (iTunes/ports)
Tremors: A Cold Day In Hell (MA)
True Blood season 4 (iTunes)
True Grit [2010] (Vudu or iTunes)
Tyler Perry's Acrimony (Vudu, iTunes or Google Play)
Tyler Perry's A Madea Family Funeral (Vudu, iTunes or Google Play)
Twilight: Breaking Dawn Part 1 (iTunes 4K)
Uncle Drew [2018] (iTunes 4K or Vudu/GP HD)
Underworld: Blood Wars (MA + Sony points)
Vendetta [2016] (Vudu)
Venom [2018] (MA + Sony points)
Walk Among The Tombstones, A (iTunes/ports)
Walking With Dinosaurs: The Movie (MA, iTunes or Google Play/ports)
War Room [2015] (MA + Sony points)
Why Him? [2016] (iTunes/ports 4K or HD MA)
Wolf Of Wall Street, The (iTunes 4K or Vudu HD)
Woman In Black, The [2012] (MA)
Wonder [2017] (Vudu/GP HD or iTunes 4K)
Wonder Park [2019] (iTunes 4K or Vudu HD)
Woodlawn [2015] (MA or iTunes/ports)
X-Men: Apocalypse (iTunes/ports 4K or HD MA)
X-Men: Days Of Future Past (iTunes/ports 4K or HD MA)
Your Highness [2011] [Unrated] (iTunes/ports)
Zootopia (MA without points)

🦝

💲2 SD

127 Hours (iTunes/ports)
12 Rounds [2009] [Extreme Cut] (iTunes/ports)
Aliens In The Attic (iTunes/ports)
Amelia (iTunes/ports)
Beasts Of The Southern Wild (iTunes/ports)
Black Swan (iTunes/ports)
Date Night [Unrated Extended Edition] (iTunes/ports)
Dr. Seuss’ Horton Hears A Who! (ITunes/ports)
In Time [2011] (iTunes/ports)
Jumper [2008] (iTunes/ports)
Percy Jackson double feature [Lightning Thief & Sea of Monsters] (MA)
Ramona & Beezus (iTunes/ports)
Street Kings (iTunes/ports)
Three Stooges: The Movie, The [2012] (iTunes/ports)
Unstoppable [2010] (iTunes/ports)

🦝

$1 Codes

💲1 HD

13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers Of Benghazi (Vudu)
Alex Cross (Vudu)
Bad Grandpa [Theatrical] (Vudu or iTunes)
Bad Moms (iTunes/ports)
Battleship [2012] (MA)
Big Hero 6 (Google Play/ports)
Book Club (Vudu)
Bourne Legacy, The (MA)
Bring It On: Worldwide Cheersmack [2017] (MA or iTunes/ports)
Deadpool (iTunes/ports 4K or HD MA/GP)
Divergent (iTunes 4K or Vudu/GP HD)
Divergent Series: Insurgent, The (iTunes 4K or Vudu/GP HD)
Duff, The [2015] (Vudu)
Dying Of The Light (Vudu)
Everest [2015] (MA)
Expendables 2, The (iTunes 4K or Vudu/GP HD)
Expendables 3, The [Theatrical] (iTunes 4K or Google Play HD)
Fast & Furious 6, The [Extended] (iTunes/ports 4K)
Fast & The Furious, The [2001] (MA)
Fast & The Furious: Tokyo Drift, The (MA)
Fast Five [Extended] (MA)
Fate Of The Furious, The [8] [Theatrical or Extended] (MA)
Fault In Our Stars, The [2014] (iTunes/ports 4K or HD MA/GP)
Frozen: Sing Along Edition (MA without points)
Furious 7 [Extended] (iTunes/ports 4K)
Ghost In The Shell [2017] (Vudu)
G.I. Joe: Retaliation (Vudu)
Girls Trip [2017] (MA)
Good Day To Die Hard, A [2012] [Extended] (MA or Google Play/ports)
Hidden Figures [2017] (iTunes/ports 4K or HD MA)
Hillsong: Let Hope Rise [2016] (MA or iTunes/ports)
Hugo (Vudu)
Hunger Games, The [2012] (iTunes 4K)
Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1, The (Vudu)
Huntsman: Winter's War, The [2016] [Extended] (MA)
Identity Thief [2013] [Theatrical] (iTunes/ports)
I, Frankenstein (Vudu, iTunes or Google Play)
Inside Out [2015] (Google Play/ports)
Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit (Vudu)
Jason Bourne (MA)
Kevin Hart: Let Me Explain (Vudu)
Leprechaun: Origins (Vudu)
Les Misérables [2012] (MA)
Let's Be Cops [2014] (MA only/no iTunes option)
Lucy (MA)
Minions [2015] (MA)
Mission Impossible: Fallout (Vudu)
Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol (Vudu)
Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation (Vudu) or both for $2.50
Now You See Me [Extended] (Vudu or iTunes)
Parental Guidance [2012] (MA)
Perks Of Being A Wallflower, The (Vudu or Google Play)
Pitch Perfect (MA)
Red 2 (Vudu)
Ride Along 2 (MA)
RIPD Rest In Peace Department (MA)
Safe [2012] (Vudu or Google Play)
Secret Life Of Pets, The (MA)
Selma (iTunes)
Shack, The [2017] (iTunes)
Skyfall (Vudu or Google Play)
Snitch (iTunes 4K or Vudu/Google Play HD)
Star Trek: Beyond (Vudu)
Star Trek: Into Darkness (iTunes 4K)
Taken 2 (MA or Google Play/ports)
Ted [Unrated] (MA) or [Theatrical] (iTunes/ports)
Terminator: Genisys (Vudu)
Transformers: Age Of Extinction (iTunes 4K)
Transformers: Dark Of The Moon (Vudu)
Trolls [2017] (MA)
Twilight: Breaking Dawn Part 2 (iTunes 4K)
Tyler Perry's Madea's Witness Protection (iTunes)
Tyler Perry's Temptation: Confessions Of A Marriage Counselor (Vudu or Google Play)
Unbroken [2014] (MA)
Warm Bodies (Vudu)
What To Expect When You're Expecting (iTunes)
World War Z (Vudu)
Zootopia (Google Play/ports)

🦝

💲1 SD

21 Jump Street (MA + Sony points)
Act Of Valor (iTunes)
After Earth [2013] (MA + Sony points)
Alpha [2018] (MA + Sony points)
Amazing Spider-Man 2, The [2014] (MA + Sony points)
American Hustle [2013] (MA + Sony points)
Bad Boys For Life [2020] (MA + Sony points)
Big Mommas Like Father, Like Son (iTunes/ports)
Captain Phillips (MA + Sony points)
Charlie's Angels [2019] (MA + Sony points)
Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs 2 [2013] (MA + Sony points)
Concussion [2015] (MA + Sony points)
Dirty 30 (Vudu)
Dog's Way Home, A [2019] (MA + Sony points)
Equalizer, The [2014] (MA + Sony points)
Equalizer 2, The (MA + Sony points)
Evil Dead [2013] (MA + Sony points)
Family, The [2013] (iTunes)
Forbidden Kingdom, The (iTunes)
Glee: The Concert (iTunes/ports)
Goosebumps 2 [2018] (MA + Sony points)
Grown Ups 2 (MA + Sony points)
Hangover, The [2009] [Theatrical] (iTunes/ports)
Haywire (iTunes)
Heat, The [2013] (iTunes/ports SD)
Here Comes The Boom [2012] (MA + Sony points)
Hotel Transylvania 3 (MA + Sony points)
Hours [2013] (Vudu)
Ice Age: Dawn Of The Dinosaurs (iTunes/ports)
Immortals [2011] (iTunes)
Insidious: Chapter 3 (MA + Sony points)
Insidious: The Last Key (MA + Sony points)
Insidious: The Red Door [2023] (MA + Sony points)
Interview, The [2014] (MA + Sony points)
Journey To Bethlehem [2023] (MA + Sony points)
Jumanji: The Next Level (MA + Sony points)
Knight & Day (iTunes/ports)
Looper (MA + Sony points)
Men In Black III [2012] (MA + Sony points)
Mirror Mirror [2012] (iTunes)
Mortal Instruments: The City Of Bones (MA + Sony points)
Night At The Museum: Battle Of The Smithsonian (iTunes/ports)
Once Upon A Time In Hollywood [2019] (MA + Sony points)
Olympus Has Fallen (MA + Sony points)
Orange Is The New Black season 1 (Vudu)
Overcomer [2019] (MA + Sony points)
Parker [2013] (MA + Sony points)
Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief (iTunes/ports)
Perfect Guy, The [2015] (MA + Sony points)
Perks Of Being A Wallflower, The (iTunes SD only)
Peter Rabbit [2018] (MA + Sony points)
Pixels [2015] (MA + Sony points)
Predators [2010] (iTunes/ports)
Public Enemies [2009] (iTunes/ports)
Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes (iTunes/ports)
Robin Hood [2010] [Unrated] (iTunes/ports)
Safe Haven (iTunes)
Scoob [2020] (MA)
Shallows, The [2016] (MA + 150 points)
Sicario: Day Of The Soldado (MA + Sony points)
Sparkle [2012] (MA)
Spider-Man: Far From Home [2019] (MA + Sony points)
Spider-Man: Into The Spiderverse (MA + Sony points)
Spider-Man: No Way Home [2021] (MA + Sony points)
Star, The [2017] (MA + Sony points)
Still Alice [2015] (MA + Sony points)
Taken [2009] [Extended Cut] (iTunes/ports)
Thousand Words, A [2012] (Vudu)
Twilight: Breaking Dawn Part 1 (Vudu SD only or iTunes SD only)
Tyler Perry's Madea's Tough Love (Vudu)
Underworld: Awakening (MA + Sony points)
Venom: Let There Be Carnage (MA + Sony points)
Vow, The [2012] (MA + Sony points)
When The Bough Breaks (MA + Sony points)
Zombieland: Double Tap (MA + Sony points)

🦝

Super Cheap SD & HD Codes

All movies are 3 for $1 each/must spend at least $1 on total order.
Cabin In The Woods, The (Vudu SD only)
Croods, The (iTunes/ports SD)
Diary Of A Wimpy Kid: Dog Days (iTunes/ports SD)
Expendables 2, The (Vudu SD only or iTunes SD only)
Expendables 3, The [Unrated] (iTunes HD only)
Fast & Furious 6 [Extended] (MA ports HD)
Fast Five [Extended] (iTunes/ports HD)
Furious 7 [Extended] (MA ports HD)
Hunger Games, The (Vudu SD or iTunes SD only)
Hunger Games: Catching Fire, The (Vudu HD only)
John Wick 3 (Google Play HD only)
Jurassic World (MA ports HD)
Life Of Pi (iTunes/ports SD)
Mechanic: Resurrection (Vudu SD only)
Now You See Me 2 (Vudu SD only)
Star Trek: Into Darkness (Vudu HD only)
Star Wars: The Force Awakens (Google Play/ports HD)
Transformers: Age Of Extinction (Vudu HD only)
Twilight: Breaking Dawn Part 1 (Vudu SD only)
Twilight: Breaking Dawn Part 2 (Vudu SD only)

Hello,
I’m 23 f and I have at least 3 women I know who are most likely in abusive relationships. One of them is my friend, one of them is my aunt, one of them is boss. All three of them I’ve had a situation where I witnessed a clear sign of abuse. This is a long one. But I feel like each situation matters.
The first one is my best friend. She would tell me all types of events that happened between them where he was not a good man. Mostly cheating. I tell her to leave him multiple times. Next thing you know she’s pregnant and they move in together. He didn’t change though. Next thing you know they were fighting and he hit her in the car, bruising her. I beg her to leave. She doesn’t. The next event that happens is that they’re arguing in the house and he pulls a knife on her threatening her. He eventually gets mad and throws their baby onto the bed and storms out the apartment. She sent me the footage and I tell her to please leave for the safety of her baby and call the police. The police didn’t do anything but make his whole family mad at her. The police did not care at all. She tells me she’s going to have her dad get her a ticket to leave and move in with her dad. I kept asking about how that’s going everyday. And it turns into a month afterwards. She stayed. She gets pregnant again. And her boyfriend hates me and told me if I go to her baby shower he won’t be there and neither will his family. So I don’t go because of this and also because I’m scared he’ll hurt me too. She doesn’t tell me about what happens with him anymore. I feel like through speaking up and trying to help I made her situation worse.
The second woman is my auntie. She’s not my aunt by blood and not even by marriage but she has my biological uncles children. You can’t go anywhere with them without them arguing at the end of the night. They’re both still young and only 4-5 years older than me and they both have a drug addiction with coke. However, I notice he gives her coke more than he does it himself. He goes out of his way to embarrass her, call her names, and ruin the night. He doesn’t care whose it’s in front of. I’ve never seen him physically hit her, but I wouldn’t doubt for a second he does. Nobody in my family speaks up because he’s blood. And they’ll always take his side because they just see her as the coke head baby mom. And she does have her issues. She’s had fights with other members of my family because of them. And I don’t excuse her from them. But I think the way my uncle talks to her is unacceptable and verbally abusive. Not only does he do it front of our family, but he does it in front of his own kids who are all girls. One night we’re all getting back from somewhere and they start fighting and he’s just berating her over nothing all because she asked if I wanted to go get something to eat. I tell him calm down it’s okay it’s not that deep and then he tells me “you’re not helping at all”. I’m not a very confrontational person. I’m often scared to be the one to speak up. So I put my hand on her should and tell her it’s okay. And he gets mad at me and tells me “you’re not helping AT ALL stay out of it”. It’s a quiet way back home. Weeks pass and it’s my birthday so we’re all playing board games having a good time and drinking. Me and my aunt start talking about mental health and stuff and my uncle doesn’t like it so he tells her it’s time to go to bed. And my aunt is like we’re talking and we’re about to watch another movie. I agree and my uncle gets mad at both of us. When he walks out we talk about him being weird and he starts blowing up when he gets back. I’m drunk and I’m like this is the moment I speak up because this is not okay. I stand my ground and I continue watching the movie with her even though he’s throwing a fit in the background. Eventually he just shuts the tv off. And I turn it back on. Eventually we’re fighting over the buttons and he tells me you’re my niece and you’re turning against me don’t ever ask me for anything ever again. My dad wakes up and tells us all to be quiet. And he tells ME to calm down. When this all started because of him. I go and hug my aunt and just go to bed. The next morning they’re laid up together again and they’re both not talking to me. And the rest of my family tells me I should’ve just minded my business and to stay out of peoples relationships. But how can I stay silent seeing this happen? This scars me because It felt like everyone turned against me instead of the obvious abuser. My aunties smiles at me, but she wont speak to me because it’ll start another fight with my uncle. We eventually hang out again but I feel discouraged for speaking up anymore. Because nothing changes.
The next person is my boss. I know this is odd. And I’m not that close to my boss. And I don’t know what happens when she’s at home with her husband. But there was a work trip and my boyfriend and I go to the event in her husbands car to carpool. I’m the car I guess she gave the wrong directions on accident. He starts driving crazy yelling at her and calling her stupid. The way he was driving at that moment you would’ve thought he was drunk. He’s driving over sidewalks, speeding on city roads cutting off other people while berating her. She just stays silent. And I stay silent. My boyfriend stays silent. I’m scared to speak up anymore. Because I know nothing will change. But something needs to be said. But if I feel like if said anything I would’ve caused more trouble.
What am I supposed to do in situations like these? Do I really say nothing? It’s like every part of my body is fighting to speak up but the only person who gets punished is me and the victim. But never the abuser. What do I do when witnessing this?

sorry this is long. I need advice on how to handle a situation. I'm in a construction training program through my local community college and we're at the 10 week mark with 3 weeks until graduation. It's a new program so we're the pilot class...of only 7 students. 3 women and 4 men, and 5 of us are black or Hispanic.
First let me say about myself, I'm probably the most outgoing student in the class (unusual for me), the oldest, and most experienced in the trades. I've been very proactive and involved in class projects. I speak my mind and ask questions, make suggestions. I would call myself a bit cheeky and strong willed, yet I don't think I'm disrespectful or inappropriate. Though yes absolutely I have my limit for bs.
Anyway, the program is admittedly not what I imagined it'd be. It's a 4hr class M-F and there are often days students are left to study their text for 2hrs while the instructor (big/tall 60's Caucasian male) gets his own paperwork prepped for review, in the same room. He's rarely woken them up and has given me the impression he just doesn't care and is ill equipped for the job. There's times I'll look around class and 3 students will be asleep all at once. It's disappointing. Sometimes the class will be split up- some of us in the shop while others are left to "study". I've just tried to be grateful the program is free and not complain, but ..
Besides that, our instructor has a habit of referring to the men in our class as "girls" or "ladies", and I'm dead sick of it. No one laughs and I'm the only one who's said anything. Even then I didn't have the strength to address it directly. I just asked him, "What's wrong with girls?" Hoping he'd get that I understood what he's implying by using "girls" to insult men. He just muttered, "Nothing, I was just saying..."
Another fucked up thing. A couple weeks ago we were discussing the roof we have to build for our shed, and one of the Black students (who I believe has a developmental disorder) who has done roofing once before spoke up. He expressed concern with how he'll be kept safe while on the roof. Well, our instructor decided it a good idea to joke that he'd tie a rope around the students neck to keep him from falling, and reiterated himself, laughing... :/ And silence followed. One of those moments you can't believe you're hearing what you're hearing. I just blanked.
On top of those issues...There have been a few instances where I've felt our instructor has spoken to me a bit aggressively and condescending, as if to shut me down/intimidate me when I said something he didn't like. I've not heard him speak to anyone else in that manner. I won't go deep into details, but last Thursday was the worst of it. My instructor basically tried to gaslight me about something he agreed with but went back on. Another student witnessed it and made a supporting statement for me, otherwise quiet. I managed to keep my cool and stood up for myself but couldn't hide the frustration on my face. My instructor asked, "Why are you getting pissy?" "Do you think I'm being unreasonable?" Just his fucking tone... And I just made myself shut up because I do have a temper and want to complete the program.
Anyway, I've not felt great about going back to class since. Friday he was out and we had anothet guy fill in, and I wasn't present at all and couldn't concentrate. Part of me feels like I'm the problem and I just need to keep my mouth shut and check out for the next 3 weeks.g But the other part of me knows I'm not the problem and I shouldn't have to tolerate being uncomfortable in class, nor anyone else. I suppose since all the other students don't 'seem' bothered, I'm conflicted. I did remark to a couple students I'm closer to that the guy filling in Friday should've been our instructor, and they agreed. And I told them I'd be reporting him to the trades coordinator at the end of the program.
But now I don't know if I can wait til then. I'm having anxiety. I've cried 🙄 I know I'm not going to be able to be myself around him as before or be as engaged in the class, or look him in the eye. Worried he may try to get a reaction out of me or he'll say something that will trigger me and I'll react inappropriately. I really don't deal well with men trying to intimidate me. I don't know how reporting him will affect the other students and our remainder of the program. What do I do?

There seem to be a large number of people who believe that the purpose of the Bill of Rights was to grant and guarantee rights to the American people. Furthermore, I have heard many people claim that the Bill of Rights is entirely a list of specifically individual rights of American citizens. It puzzles me why these beliefs continue to persist, because the historical record indicates that there is no reason to believe these descriptions of the Bill of Rights. There is a more than adequate amount of historical evidence to corroborate my conclusion. The first and most direct evidence is the very preamble to the Bill of Rights itself. The original preamble of the Bill of Rights begins with a paragraph explaining the document’s purpose; it goes as follows:

The Conventions of a number of the States, having at the time of their adopting the Constitution, expressed a desire, in order to prevent misconstruction or abuse of its powers, that further declaratory and restrictive clauses should be added: And as extending the ground of public confidence in the Government, will best ensure the beneficent ends of its institution.

I think the three most important phrases in this paragraph are “in order to prevent misconstruction or abuse of its powers”, “declaratory and restrictive clauses”, and “extending the ground of public confidence in the Government”. These three phrases seem to best sum up what the Bill of Rights was originally meant to accomplish: it is a list of declaratory and restrictive clauses whose purpose is to prevent the misconstruction or abuse of the Constitution’s powers, and to increase public confidence in the federal government. And if one were to look at the Bill of Rights, its text would seem to be in harmony with this statement of purpose. The Bill of Rights consists mostly of negative clauses which put restrictions on the federal government; it states what shall not happen or what shall not be done by Congress, such as prohibiting freedom of religion, abridging freedom of speech, infringing the right to keep and bear arms, violating the right to be secure in property, etc. And the ninth and tenth amendments do not mention any particular rights whatsoever, and clearly just serve the purpose of preventing the Constitution from being misconstrued or abused to diminish the rights of the states and the people, and to prevent granting the federal government more power than the Constitution meant for it to have. The phrase “extending the ground of public confidence in the Government” further indicates that the Bill of Rights was not really meant to add rights not already stipulated in the Constitution, but was only meant to reinforce trust in the federal government at the time of the Founding. The Bill of Rights was not meant to add any substantive articles to the Constitution, but rather it consisted of articles whose purpose was to reinforce the articles that had already been established, and prevent them from being misinterpreted in the future by any unscrupulous members of the federal government. Also notice that there is nothing written here in the preamble about granting rights to the American people, let alone granting specifically individual rights to the American people: you would think if the framers of the Bill of Rights had meant for this to be the document’s effect, they would have stated so clearly in the preamble.
Another piece of evidence for my conclusion comes in an address given by James Madison -- the author of the Bill of Rights -- in the House of Representatives on June 8, 1789. This address involved an early proposal of amendments to the Constitution. Before listing his various propositions for amending the Constitution, Madison said this:

There have been objections of various kinds made against the Constitution. Some were levelled against its structure because the President was without a council; because the Senate, which is a legislative body, had judicial powers in trials on impeachments; and because the powers of that body were compounded in other respects, in a manner that did not correspond with a particular theory; because it grants more power than is supposed to be necessary for every good purpose, and controls the ordinary powers of the State Governments. I know some respectable characters who opposed this Government on these grounds; but I believe that the great mass of the people who opposed it, disliked it because it did not contain effectual provisions against encroachments on particular rights, and those safeguards which they have been long accustomed to have interposed between them and the magistrate who exercises the sovereign power; nor ought we to consider them safe, while a great number of our fellow-citizens think these securities necessary.

The part I've put in italics indicates that the major purpose of the amendments to the Constitution was to reassure citizens that effective protections were put in place to prevent the “magistrate who exercises the sovereign power” from encroaching upon their rights. Notice there is nothing written here about granting rights to the people, only protecting the people's pre-existing rights from the federal government.
Following the above statement, Madison begins to list a variety of proposed additions to the Constitution, and he proposes the additions be inserted into the body of the Constitution itself, at various sections. Ultimately, he begins to propose a certain list of amendments to be inserted within article 1, section 9; and this particular list happens to correspond to most of the articles which comprise the Bill of Rights as it exists today:

Fourthly. That in article 1st, section 9, between clauses 3 and 4, be inserted these clauses, to wit: The civil rights of none shall be abridged on account of religious belief or worship, nor shall any national religion be established, nor shall the full and equal rights of conscience be in any manner, or on any pretext, infringed.
The people shall not be deprived or abridged of their right to speak, to write, or to publish their sentiments; and the freedom of the press, as one of the great bulwarks of liberty, shall be inviolable.
The people shall not be restrained from peaceably assembling and consulting for their common good; nor from applying to the Legislature by petitions, or remonstrances, for redress of their grievances.
The right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed; a well armed and well regulated militia being the best security of a free country: but no person religiously scrupulous of bearing arms shall be compelled to render military service in person.
No soldier shall in time of peace be quartered in any house without the consent of the owner; nor at any time, but in a manner warranted by law.
No person shall be subject, except in cases of impeachment, to more than one punishment or one trial for the same offence; nor shall be compelled to be a witness against himself; nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor be obliged to relinquish his property, where it may be necessary for public use, without a just compensation.
Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.
The rights of the people to be secured in their persons; their houses, their papers, and their other property, from all unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated by warrants issued without probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, or not particularly describing the places to be searched, or the persons or things to be seized.
In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, to be informed of the cause and nature of the accusation, to be confronted with his accusers, and the witnesses against him; to have a compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor; and to have the assistance of counsel for his defence.
The exceptions here or elsewhere in the Constitution, made in favor of particular rights, shall not be so construed as to diminish the just importance of other rights retained by the people, or as to enlarge the powers delegated by the Constitution; but either as actual limitations of such powers, or as inserted merely for greater caution.

It is notable to consider that Madison initially proposed the Bill of Rights to be integrated into the Constitution itself, rather than to be a separate document. But what is even more notable is the specific location it was proposed to be inserted in. Article 1, section 9 is specifically the location of the Constitution dedicated to enumerating the prohibitions upon the power of Congress. What this means is that the original plan for the amendments currently appearing in the Bill of Rights was for them to merely be a list of stipulations regarding what Congress was not allowed to do. Thus, it would make no sense for those same clauses today to be construed as being themselves grants of rights to individual American citizens, anymore than other articles within this same section -- such as Congress being prohibited from abolishing the slave trade before 1808, or laying taxes on state exports -- could themselves be considered grants of individual rights to American citizens.
Another piece of evidence can be found in the 1833 Supreme Court case Barron v Baltimore. This case essentially makes explicit that which was originally understood about the Bill of Rights -- that it was meant only as a list of prohibitions upon Congress. The following excerpt makes this clear:

Had the framers of these amendments intended them to be limitations on the powers of the State governments, they would have imitated the framers of the original Constitution, and have expressed that intention. Had Congress engaged in the extraordinary occupation of improving the Constitutions of the several States by affording the people additional protection from the exercise of power by their own governments in matters which concerned themselves alone, they would have declared this purpose in plain and intelligible language.
But it is universally understood, it is a part of the history of the day, that the great revolution which established the Constitution of the United States was not effected without immense opposition. Serious fears were extensively entertained that those powers which the patriot statesmen who then watched over the interests of our country deemed essential to union, and to the attainment of those invaluable objects for which union was sought, might be exercised in a manner dangerous to liberty. In almost every convention by which the Constitution was adopted, amendments to guard against the abuse of power were recommended. These amendments demanded security against the apprehended encroachments of the General Government -- not against those of the local governments. In compliance with a sentiment thus generally expressed, to quiet fears thus extensively entertained, amendments were proposed by the required majority in Congress and adopted by the States. These amendments contain no expression indicating an intention to apply them to the State governments. This court cannot so apply them.

And then the aforementioned case was subsequently referenced by the 1875 Supreme Court case US v Cruikshank, which further reinforced the same conclusion while addressing the first and second amendments of the Bill of Rights:

The first amendment to the Constitution prohibits Congress from abridging "the right of the people to assemble and to petition the government for a redress of grievances." This, like the other amendments proposed and adopted at the same time, was not intended to limit the powers of the State governments in respect to their own citizens, but to operate upon the National Government alone. [. . .] It is now too late to question the correctness of this construction. As was said by the late Chief Justice, in Twitchell v. The Commonwealth (#325), 7 Wall. 325, "the scope and application of these amendments are no longer subjects of discussion here." They left the authority of the States just where they found it, and added nothing to the already existing powers of the United States.
The particular amendment now under consideration assumes the existence of the right of the people to assemble for lawful purposes, and protects it against encroachment by Congress. The right was not created by the amendment; neither was its continuance guaranteed, except as against congressional interference. For their protection in its enjoyment, therefore, the people must look to the States. The power for that purpose was originally placed there, and it has never been surrendered to the United States.
The second and tenth counts are equally defective. The right there specified is that of "bearing arms for a lawful purpose." This is not a right granted by the Constitution. Neither is it in any manner dependent upon that instrument for its existence. The second amendment declares that it shall not be infringed, but this, as has been seen, means no more than that it shall not be infringed by Congress. This is one of the amendments that has no other effect than to restrict the powers of the national government, leaving the people to look for their protection against any violation by their fellow citizens of the rights it recognizes, to what is called, in The City of New York v. Miln (#139), 11 Pet. 139, the "powers which relate to merely municipal legislation, or what was, perhaps, more properly called internal police," "not surrendered or restrained" by the Constitution of the United States.

So as you can see, it was well-established from the time of the country’s founding that the Bill of Rights was never meant to itself be a grant or guarantee of rights to the American people. The official function of the Bill of Rights was always prohibitive rather than affirmative: the purpose was to restrain the federal government, rather than to endow something to American citizens. So what I don’t understand is: how has the Bill of Rights become so misunderstood and misapplied? Why is it that, from the layman even to the level of the modern-day Supreme Court, it is believed that the Bill of Rights is meant to grant or guarantee rights to individual American citizens, when this conclusion is unequivocally unsupported by the historical record? And not only is this conclusion not supported by the historical evidence, but I would argue that it contradicts the very purpose of the Bill of Rights; the whole point of the document was to limit the power of Congress, but interpreting the document to be a federal guarantee of rights to the people is, in effect, a transference of power to the federal government never stipulated in the Constitution, and is in violation of the tenth amendment.
The Bill of Rights, according to its original design, is essentially superfluous; effectively declaring nothing in itself, and only serving to clarify the intent of the Constitution, prevent it from being adversely misinterpreted, and to make explicit what was implicitly acknowledged regarding the boundaries of congressional power. There had been much debate among the Founders regarding whether the Bill of Rights should even exist at all. So how is it that a document whose original purpose was to be nothing more than a protection of civil rights has now become interpreted effectively as the source of the people's civil rights?

We’ve all heard some variation of the following points, from TBM’s, towards exmembers:

• A former member might be dismissed as an “angry exmo” or “anti-mormon”, if this former member criticizes the church
• The following cliche: “You can leave the church but you can’t leave the church alone”
• A member will claim that it doesn’t make sense to be angry at the church, because “The church is a net good in the world and improves people’s lives, regardless of if it is true or not”; they might point out what the church (or its members) does give in the form of charity and service work

Another example: The other week, my TBM family members were disparaging another family member (who is a former member) for being “bitter” towards the church, and implying that there is no reason to be bitter
We see this type of rhetoric from Ward Radio types, and Mormon Twitter, quite often.
One common theme of these statements is that there is often an overt or underlying belief that is being expressed, which is that anger towards the church (from former members) is not valid.
I think we can all agree up to this point, at least that this dynamic exists, and this is a common belief from TBM’s.
Here is my point:
Especially for Libertarian or Conservative-leaning members (really anyone that is more distrusting/critical/resentful towards the government), think about all the instances where you’ve felt negative feelings or spoken out against the government. Why did you feel that way? And what if someone just tried to shut you down by saying that it’s unreasonable to be critical of the government?
After all, the government does a lot of charity in the form of welfare and humanitarian aid. The government puts on a face of altruism. Our leaders in the government say that they have our best interests at heart. There are plenty of anecdotes that we could pull from where the government was responsible for increasing the quality of some people’s lives.
So should all this invalidate your feelings towards the government?
Let’s say you’re sick of the government, and you revoke your citizenship, then move to another country (or maybe you just live off the grid, idk). Yet you still keep up on the politics and news coming from your country of origin. You might even remain critical and/or vocal about your former government. This would be fairly reasonable. Then BAM you’re hit with the good old “You can leave [country_name], but you can’t leave [county_name] alone,” by a feverishly loyal patriot, that is defending the good name of their country.
Feel free to swap out a country with your least favorite political party, who you may have become disenfranchised with.
Now before anyone starts screaming “false equivalence” or “apples and oranges”, let’s spell out what a government and churches (in general) have in common - these are the commonalities that I am highlighting:

• Both exert influence over their membership/citizenship, and that influence “should” be for the betterment of their people
• Both have a contract of sorts with their members/citizens, where money is required from the people, and the handling of the money “should” be handled with certain expectations
• Both have the capacity to harm their membership/citizenship, albeit in different ways
• Both “should” base their decisions for their constituents on truth, equality, and altruism
• Members/citizens are more often than not born into their place within the church or government, implying that their place in this structure of hierarchy is not by choice

Where many frustrations with the government lies (and churches), is citizens expect the government to be X, but really the government is Y, and Y is harmful to the people.
I think what makes religion even more valid as something to resent (for the disenfranchised) is that adherence to follow the religion is based on spiritual threats/rewards, or claims to authority. And if one feels that these claims and promises are baseless, well then it would follow that resentment would occur.
So for those that disparage “vocal” ex members, feel free disagree with the specific points of criticism made by us, but is it reasonable to invalidate our anger in the first place, granted we genuinely don’t believe that the church is what it claims to be? I don’t think so.

My situation is complex. So I'll try and address in specific questions

1. If a Canadian minor (< 21) has TD status and both their parents are Canadian citizens who have their own TN status, how does a person determine which parent is the principal for the child's TD status? In other words, how do you determine if the child is dependent on one parent's TN vs the other parent's?
   
2. If one of the Canadian parents turns out to be a US citizen and wasn't aware of this fact and the child was a dependent on this parent's TN status (which should have never been given because the Canadian is an American as well), then is the child (< 21) barred from adjustment as an immediate relative of the US citizen parent because he wasn't inspected and admitted properly?
   

EDIT: Backstory
Father is American. Mother is foreigner. I was born out of wedlock but my parents married one month after my birth. I was born before 1986. So I am under the "established paternity by legitimation" rule. Looking at case law, there is a pretty good chance I am a US citizen because of my parents marriage. My dad had overwhelmingly more than 10 years of physical presence in the US before he moved abroad. More like 25.

0600 - The Vengeful Spirit

It was supposed to be normal, standard even. A Druhkari attack on the world they were in current diplomatic actions with for their compliance and joining the fold of the Imperium. Surprising, but not shocking, the planetary leaders had mentioned that they had to deal with Druhkari slavers from time to time. This was expected to be rather quick, as this world wanted to join the Imperium, for both protection and resources, so I did not join Hathor planet side.
It was a small detachment of Druhkari slavers, not expecting the Emperors finest. They would push back and eliminate the Druhkari, or as worst set a defensive line and flank. They had everything in advantage, and was mostly expected the Druhkari would retreat when witnessing their disadvantage. So I remained aboard the flagship, sitting near low orbit, passing the time with training.
I felt a sharp pain as the wooden sparring sword dug between his ribs, pulling him from his thoughts, and shoving him to the ground. He laid there wheezing for a moment, trying to catch his breath when the imposing figure of Sargent Decurius loomed into view. Even silhouetted by the light behind the Sargent as he leaned over him, he cloud still see the slow smile draw itself across his face.
"You're distracted sir." He reached out a hand to help me up, the size dwarfing my own as I reached upwards to grab it. He fully clasped his hand around mine, like an adult would a toddler, and gently helped pull me to my feet.
"It's hard not to be." I responded, slowly catching my breath as I leaned on my wooden sword. Though I was drenched in sweat and marred by bruises, the Sargent was untouched by both my sword and fatigue. "Druhkari are viscous things, and not to be underestimated, and we haven't heard from them since the attack begun an hour ago."
"She's fought them before sir, and plenty more things. It's common for the start of the battle to have little communication with the flagship. When they get into a stable position and establish a front line they will disseminate information and dictate further orders for the troops waiting in orbit...just like always sir."
His tone was even, almost logical in nature, yet I understood why. I was letting my emotions get the best of me, he was attempting to ground me by countering my fears with facts. I smiled at the honest attempt walking over to the pitcher of water that awaited the both of us.
"Thank you Sargent. Not too long ago you would have told be to silence my babbling or go find a nursemaid to cry to."
I poured us both a glass as he cringed slightly at the comment. "It's thanks to you sir. My time with Brother Sresh of the Salamanders was most insightful. Without it, I would not have been able to enjoy the time I have shared with you as I do now."
"Don't thank me Sargent. I simply recognized where you could grow, and an environment where you could do it. It is the duty of all of us to learn and improve. Just as I learn the sword, you learn the soul. The difference is that you are a teacher and pupil, where I am just a pupil. Who you should send your thanks to is who taught you." He gave me a strange look as I handed him his glass, though as soon as I noticed it, it vanished.
I had seen a few marines wear a similar look, but it was a flicker of emotion. One that could not be studied or understood without delving into their very mind or questioning them. If a marine purposefully hid an emotion or thought, no question he could ask would drive it out. Still the Sargent held out his glass of water, offering a simple toast. For a second I thought he was holding the pause just before he spoke for a few moments longer than needed as he knew my thirst, but he finally relented.
"To growth." He said holding his glass out. "To growth." I responded, my glass meeting his before it begun the eager journey to quench my thirst. Just as the water was about to touch my lips the doors burst open. Red faced and breathing heavy was a servant, eyes feverishly searching the room until they landed on me.
"SIR REKEM!" He shouted, barely able to force the words out between labored breaths. I withheld me sigh as my glass was pulled from my lips. "Alright calm down now, I can't have you dropping dead from exhaustion. I'm finishing up my sparring so give me some ti-"
"THE COMMANDER IS INJURED." He chocked out once more, a fit of coughing brought on right after. The silence in the room was physical, like a spell everyone and everything seemed to freeze in time as if that statement was a mystical chant to hold the world still.
Time resumed when the glass from my hand shattered on the floor. The Sargent pulled from his daze rushed over to the pitcher and handed it to the exhausted servant. He turned his head to me to seem my robe flutter out the door and down the hallway. Apparently he was calling my name, I wouldn't know. I couldn't hear anything but the blood in my ears.

0610 - The Helm of the Vengeful Spirit

I rushed to the helm as fast as my legs could carry me though the winding hallways of the void ship. As the doors to the helm came into view the two marines standing guard almost made a half step to stop me until they recognized who I was. For their sake I slowed my run to a stalking march as they opened the doors for me. I skipped the usual thanks and conversation I would start with them, hopping they would understand.
The Sargent for his merit was not far behind me, having become my unofficial bodyguard in the times that Hathor was not onboard the ship. The entire helm seemed to hold it's breath as I stormed in, a crowd of marines standing around a holographic map of the supposed battlefield. Among them Loken stepped forward, hands raised with a prepared speech on his lips.
"Loken the only thing that better leave your mouth is what I want to know or it will be sewn shut."
His mouth snapped shut, turmoil crossing his face as he weighed his options before he finally let out a sigh. "We don't know much. Most communications are being blocked across a large sector, our vox operators assume it to be Xeno tech. Certain transmissions seem to be allowed to get through, but from what we can see this leads to confusion and ambushes." He directed me to the map of the battle field, showing the last known positions of various troops.
"Our forces were pulled into the desert just outside the capital to engage the Xeno's. A vox transmission sent from Captian Kibre managed to breech through the static to tell us that the commander was wounded. Before any further information could be relayed the transmission was shut off."
I nodded and scanned the map as he spoke, recalling my sessions with Minerva as I did so. I wish she was here at this moment, her and Juno would be a godsend against the Druhkari. The creeping weight of the severity of the situation was also something I did not know if I could carry alone. I took a deep breath, turning to Loken. "That is what we know, now what do we think."
Loken was a genius, and Captian of the 10th for a reason. As I asked his eyes returned to the map, his focus drew inward as no doubt hundred of possibilities and plans where conjured, analyzed, and discarded in seconds until only a few remained. Finally he spoke, the lighter tone he used when relaying information was gone. No doubt he as well was doing his best to soften the blow of the news, but now that he was asked for answers he would deliver them.
"The primary information given was the fact the Commander was injured. This means that information was the highest priority, given that such a transmission has never happened before, we can assume that the commander is gravely injured." The phrase alone seemed to suck the air out of the room. If anyone else in any other situation had uttered such a thing they would be seen as mad or as disgracing the capabilities of the commander. I gave a single nod to Loken. "Continue."
"We do know that this is a detachment of Druhkari slavers, but we are taking no precautions to hide our forces. Meaning they either attacked knowing they could fight against us, or attacked knowing we where here. The Druhkari could have attacked any other part of the planet and we would have had a delayed response, but they attacked the only part in which there were members of the Imperium."
The weight of the situation seemed to fall past my shoulders and rest somewhere in my stomach, drawing down a deep pit which only seemed to grow as I slowly reached the conclusion that Loken was describing. Still he continued on, and I hoped that he wouldn't say what I was fearing.
"The fact that the commander was both attacked and injured to an extent to relay it to the flagship, makes me think that either her or someone on the flagship is the target of the slavers." On saying someone he turned to me, as seemingly everyone else on the bridge did. My hands tightened on the metal rim of the holographic map, knuckles turning white. Silence once again gripped the room, settling in my throat like a lump that threatened to choke me. I took another deep breath, loosing myself to my emotions wouldn't help the commander, but I also wouldn't forget them.
"Sargant." I barked out, startling some of the helmsmen as i stood ram rod straight. "Prepare a dropship and yourself immediately. Bring five others of your choice, I trust in your judgement. Call for Apothecary Hannibus, he will be joining us as well. I ne-" Loken cut in, stepping forward.
"Sir this could very well be a trap, for you or anyone else that would go. The commander also stated that you were to st-"
I rounded on him, fire in my eyes as rage seemed to burn my skin. "Captain. With the Commander injured and missing, I am taking command of the Vengeful Spirit and the Luna Wolves. As her consort am I not her second in command of all things?"
I could see the conflict in his mind as it crossed his face briefly. My claims stood on little more than ceremony rather than practiced tradition. Any other officer had a stronger claim to take control of the army than I did right now, but although it was a technicality, it still existed in Imperium law. His voice one against dropped into a lighter tone, an attempt at soothing rather than relaying of analytical information.
"Sir I understand how you feel but now is not the time to be rash. The commander has been thr-" I cut him off once more, my voice raising above his gentle tone.
"I am going to save my wife, Captain. Now you can either kill me or join me becuase anything else won't work and is a waste of my time." Shock wove it's way through the room in a wave. I had always been formal with the Commander, and her with me. Outside of those I regularly spoke with, this statement would certainly come as a surprise. Loken gained control of himself quickly, nodding in response. "I am with you sir."
"Good, stay here and take control of the helm." I turned to leave when he raised his voice in confusion.
"But sir you sai-"
"I know what I said Captain, but your place beside me right now is here. There is a reason the Commander left you here and there is a reason I am. I can not control this fleet, nor can I place reinforcements or respond to flanks. I need someone who can, someone with experience, and who has the trust of many to follow these strategies. Can I trust you to do this Captain?" Loken stalled for a moment, no doubt looking at the possibilities of this action, seeking the best choice he could. Finally after a few seconds he smiled and gave a nod. "Yes sir, you can."
"Good, you have the helm. Sargent with me." I turned on my heel, marching out of the helm to gather what I needed and prepare myself. As the doors closed behind us and we distanced ourselves from the guards I heard the Sargant's voice break the rhythmic beat of our footsteps. "That's the first time you addressed the Commander as your wife Sir."
"Is that going to be a problem Sargant?" Even though I did not turn my head I could feel his smile form on his face as he responded. "No Sir."
I nodded at his answer. "Good, becuase your going to be hearing it a lot more. Now, gather your men and the apothecary, we meet at the drop pods in a half hour." The Sargent turned at an intersection, now sprinting down the halls at a speed I could not hope to match as I made my way to my quarters. I could not tell which emotion was greater in me at the moment. The rage that made my blood feel like fire, or the worry that sunk into my stomach like a bottomless pit. Both spurred me to match the Sargant's idea, and broke into a run to my quarters.

(I am SO sorry for the needed lengthy) Back Story & Context Leading To My Decision:
I (33F) have 1 sister, “Sam” (38F). Although we share the same parents, our childhood & the way we were treated was incredibly different. Mainly because Sam had always been favored & treated far better than me. A fact that Sam refuses to acknowledge to this day.
Before & after my parents got married, it was agreed upon that they would not have children, until one day my mother “Susan” (66F) came up with the bright idea that if she gave her parents (“Norma & Gene”) a grand-baby they would finally love her. She went off the pill without telling my father, got pregnant, then had Sam. To no one’s surprise, Susan hated being a mom. So she would ship Sam across the country to Norma & Gene’s constantly, so much so, they saw her as THEIR child. And they showered her with love that Susan never even got a taste of. This led to Susan being aggressively jealous & resentful of her child.
Years later, my dad was tricked again into having me to “save their marriage.” They divorced when I was 3. All Sam ever knew from Susan was neglect, emotional & mental abuse from Susan, which only became worse when she could use “favoring” me as another way to hurt Sam. This was NOT a secret in my family, resulting in maltreatment towards me (either subconsciously or intentionally).
Abuse toward Sam turned physical. My father was given full custody of her when I was 8, and I was left with Susan for the next 2 years until she decided she wanted to move to San Francisco because she “deserved” a more glamorous life. I do not remember the years living with Susan, but recently one of my closest friends (of 25 years) said to me I practically lived at her house & she barely interacted with Susan throughout the entirety of our friendship.
To make up for Susan being an awful parent, Norma & Gene would dote on Sam & shell out a lot of $$$ to give her a very nice life which includes but not limited to; taking her on luxury trips around the world (I was only invited on 1 in the times we lived together), Norma would write her lengthy letters to continue growing their bond, has had so much money spent on her such as down payment on her first house & paid for extravagant events such as majority of the bill for her $50,000 wedding @ 21yo, the rest my father paid for. The only time she worked before graduating with her degree was part time ONE semester in college then quit because it was “so tiring” to work & study. Want to guess who paid her bills & gave her an allowance the rest of the time? Compare this to me when I barley received a kind word. They offered me money ONCE in my early 20’s to pay off my credit card & medical debt I accrued in college as I had to pay all my own bills while working full time (I have been working since I was 15) and going to school full time. I am the only one in the family who worked in college, yet I am still the only one to graduate with honors. I accepted with the condition it would come out of my “inheritance.” I have never asked or been offered money since. I have paid for ALL my own bills since I left home @ 18 years old.
Despite the obvious disparities and constant hurt they put me through, I was an active member of the family who mainly kept her mouth shut. I attended family events unless I could not afford to go, I sent holiday gifts, called between 1-2x per month for an 1 hour+ phone call in which I most often bit my tongue unless it was to defend Sam as Norma & Susan did not agree with her parenting.
Something to note, in May 2021 my father had an accident that would lead to his passing in December 2021. The disagreements & Sam’s nastiness toward me after the accident and then his death further strained our relationship.
Fast forward to March 2023. An explosive incident at Susan’s home. Susan started berating Sam for not allowing Susan to take my oldest nephew cross country for a week. When Sam confronted her on the abuse she endured growing up, and will not subject her kids to that, Susan lost it. Not only did Susan say that Sam made that up (I have the court documents in my possession) she screamed at Sam until she began sobbing in ear shot of her 3 young kids, husband, and my step father. I stood up for Sam as always, which resulted in Susan screaming in my face “I don’t want a relationship with you” with Sam as a witness. I cut ties with Susan in that very moment, then made the family aware of my decision, and everyone, including Norma agreed to respect my decision which she later went back on.
By August 2023, my physical health that had been on a rapid decline since 2019 including 18 out of 23 (78%) of my spinal discs deteriorating without a known cause had become unbearable to manage + time I had to take off because of migraines & doctor’s appointments, I had to quit my corporate desk job. I had enough money saved to tide me over for some time, but as any US adult in their 20’s & 30’s know, it’s been rough the past few years, add in physical disabilities & limited mobility + regular migraines, I was running low on money & needed help. So at the end of December, at the encouragement & insistence of my aunt “Elizabeth” (61F & Susan’s sister) who I had become quite close with over the past few years, I went to Norma & Gene to ask for a LOAN. They had donated $25,000 to Sam’s place of worship on her behalf a few months prior, offered to buy Sam & her husband a house the year prior, paid for Elizabeth’s bills & expensive lifestyle for the last year when she was soul searching on what line of work she wanted to do next, this was after putting a down payment on Elizabeth’s new $470,000 condo + $70,000 of renovations it needed, not to mention the literal hundreds of thousands of dollars that they have given Susan over the years just to pay off her credit card debt (none of which is coming out of their inheritance might I add) she assured me they would absolutely loan their granddaughter with serious health issues money. Elizabeth would talk to them personally about it, just to seal the deal while Sam would help me find cheaper alternatives to my current necessities such as Medicaid.
I make the request, and to my surprise they are more than happy to help me with a loan. But one week later & their phone calls with Susan, they say by email they “love me but cannot continue to financially support my poor decisions.” I call Elizabeth who says, it was not in her best interest to talk to them about helping me as I am “worthless to this family and society while being disabled.” Then adds that she will not let her “mental health deteriorate just to emotionally support me.” I then immediately reach out to Sam who does not even have the guts to talk by phone only text, and says she called Susan to explain my circumstance but “wasn’t going to argue or pick a fight” to help me and that she is sorry that that she “can't show up for me the way I want her to because she needs to maintain her own mental health, relationships and boundaries.” She also threw in that I have “made up this narrative in my head” that they treat her & I different, that she is treated better. This is literally in the same conversation where I already listed how she was treated better.
That day I fully cut contact with Norma, Gene, and Elizabeth. I told them they will not be hearing from me again, and I will not be attending theirs or Susan’s funeral. And I stopped speaking with Sam for the time being. Ironically, what led us to speaking was last month (April 2024) I had begun working on an article about going No Contact with family members. I asked if I could discuss her childhood abuse in a few sentences as part of the article. She agreed and offered to give me quotes. I accepted then interviewed her. From there we began rebuilding our relationship.
Then Wednesday, May 8, Norma passes. I do not attend the funeral that happened on Friday, May 10. My two cousins who I have become very close with in the last 6 months understood why, and supported my decision. I made it clear to Sam, who told Susan I would not be attending and I had made it clear in January that when the time came, I would l not be attending their funerals. Which clearly they saw as an empty threat. But even though I did not go, I continually checked in with them & Sam to ensure they were okay. Not once from Wednesday to yesterday (Tuesday) did Sam reply to a single message. As I was concerned about this, I reached out yesterday morning. She replied in the afternoon. I was incredibly hurt by her very lengthy message. Here are 2 excerpts that led me to full NC.

1. “Your perspective on the situation was clear, you werent coming to be with the family and you arent grieving [Norma’s] death at least in the conventional sense. I had to be the one to answer from most of the family why you werent there, it was incredibly awkward and uncomfortable for me.”
2. “Since late January/Early February things have already been really strained between us. I know that most that comes from my point of view and actions were really hurtful to you. I hate that I hurt you and Its been difficult for me to reconcile that I can't show up for you the way you want me to while also maintaining my own mental health, relationships and boundaries.”

She continually says that she cannot show up for me the way I need without affecting her mental health, jeopardizing her relationship with Susan, Gene or Norma, crossing boundaries (boundaries she never clarified or explicitly said to me ONCE) and I am not someone that would ever want to hinder someone else’s life by my presence or cause inner turmoil by associating with me. I let her know this and said I will stop trying to cultivate a relationship and I will step away for good. I said it as kind as possible, taking an hour to craft a message that can only be seen as kind. I told her if she responds I will not be reading it.
I work very hard to stay positive as it’s just me to lean on. When there is something eating at me emotionally, it will drain my energy & have me spiral until it is resolved. I did not want to waste another moment feeling hurt especially when I wasted hours being angry & upset after receiving her text before crafting my reply.
My dad always preached that Sam is “far more sensitive” than me & needs to basically be treated with kid gloves despite her being almost 5 years older (he held this stance until his passing). He would have surely wanted me to apply that rule to this situation by waiting a few weeks to cut ties once she had time to process her grief. As Norma was the closest person to a loving mother Sam consistently had, I cannot help but compare it with my experience of losing my dad. If someone who always supported me esp. with any family issues, cut contact the same week he passed, it would have added a whole other layer of devastation & loneliness to an already difficult time
So, I am torn on whether it was right of me to put myself first or if I should have done what I am known & expected to do which is making Sam’s feelings the priority over mine.
ADDITIONAL ADVICE REQUESTS: 1. If anyone else has gone through a similar situation or has no immediate family, how do you handle it when having to discuss it with others? Such as explaining it to a new S/O’s, or the least complicated version to their family members or my friends who do not know the full back story but will eventually pick up on me not mentioning my sister or my nephews & niece. 2. If anyone is not able bodied or is limited to working options due to health, what you do for your full or extra income (outside of any government assistance)?
TY to all who comment &/or upvote!☺️

The dull thrum of voices, echoing throughout the grand senate hall, slowly died down, as the Emperor rose to speak. All eyes turned to face the figure, at the head of the chamber. Though his expression remained stern and composed, an air of unease flickered behind his large compound eyes.
The Emperor began,
"My fellow senators, yesterday we received grave news from the frontier. Ambassador Grax's statement confirmed, that humans did not wish to cooperate with the empire.
Grax attempted to demand for a tribute to the empire, but humans refused.
He attempted to teach humans a lesson and demonstrate our military power, but in a single combat, nearly three hundred of our finest warships were destroyed."
A collective murmur swept through the assembled Vraxians, at this somber revelation. So many lost in the blink of an eye, at the hands of an outsider species, that has only recently been discovered, and planned by Vrax empire, to be in cooperated, as a new vassals of the emperor.
The Emperor continued, "While the details are still emerging, one fact is clear. We are facing an enemy with capabilities far beyond anything we have previously encountered. One of their war machines alone, decimated over half of Grax's armada before he was forced to surrender."
At this, angry shouts erupted from the hardliner factions. Senator Vortok, a prominent military advocate, slammed his fists on the armrest. "This outrage cannot be tolerated! We must retaliate with our full might, and crush these humans under our heel."
A chorus of approval rose in response. However, others called for restraint. Councilor Trexel of the Diplomatic Legion, projected his voice to be heard over the din.
"While vengeance may assuage our wounded pride, it will not ensure our continued survival. Rushing headlong into battle, could spell the end of our species."
As tensions threatened to boil over, the Emperor raised his hands, and the chamber slowly fell back into an uncomfortable silence. "My friends, in these dark times, we must come together with clear heads, not tear each other apart. Councilor Trexel speaks wisdom, we know little of our new enemies, and acted rashly before. Another hasty demand on humans, could seal our doom."
Senator Vortok spat in disgust. "For generations, we have expanded the borders of our glorious empire, through strength of arms! Now you preach cowardice, and appeasement?"
The Emperor turned to face him directly, his eyes narrowing. "I preach nothing but caution, which has always guided our people through countless wars, and plagues. Would you risk intergalactic war, to soothe your damaged pride? There is too much at stake."
The Emperor's sober words hung heavy in the air, as discussion stirred once more, among the assembled senators. Councilor Trexel spoke up, to address Senator Vortok's outburst.
"Strength alone will not assure victory in this new conflict. These humans overwhelmed Ambassador Grax's fleet, with technology far beyond our own. We know little of their world, their numbers, or their true capabilities. Charging in blind would be the height of foolishness. I say we devote our shipyards to rebuilding our fleet, while spies learn what they can of this race."
"Reconnoiter and rebuild?" scoffed Vortok. "You coddle our warriors with hesitation and fear. Our fleet was taken unawares, next time it will be different. Double our forces and sweep across the frontier. Teach these upstarts the price of defiance."
Trexel shook his head solemnly. "Even doubled, our forces mean nothing, if we do not counter whatever advantage felled Grax. We must understand our enemy, before engaging them at full scale,, or risk obliteration."
Admiral Korfax, commander of the Vraxian fleets, spoke up in support of Trexel. "As the one, tasked with leading our warriors into battle, I say caution is warranted. Superior numbers alone, will not undo an enemy, capable of such devastation. Give me time to analyze the battle and reports, to glean some insight into their tactics and technologies. Only then, can we craft a prudent strategy."
Senator Zornak of the imperial ministry interjected, "And what of our citizens, while we cower in hiding? Word of this disaster will spread; morale and faith in our rule will falter. Inaction, will bleed us dry, as effectively as any foe. We must act, to restore confidence and control!"
Trexel turned to the Emperor. "Noble Zornak raises a fair point. While military strength is crucial, we cannot neglect the spirits of our people, and other species under our protection. I propose a show of resolution, bolster border defenses, reinforce outlying colonies, commission more warships. Let our subjects see we mean to secure our domain, while avoiding reckless attacks that risk further losses."
Vortok snarled in contempt. "Defensive posturing, and reactionary policies? You would have our empire a quivering coward, before these humans. We should meet them head-on, and break their will to fight, as our forebears did to all who opposed us!"
"Or drive them to desperation, where they unleash terror, we cannot imagine," countered Trexel. "The wars of old forged our domain, but brought untold suffering too. Must we court annihilation, to satisfy your thirst for blood?"
The debate raged on, with tensions rising between the militant and cautious factions. No consensus seemed within reach, as positions polarized. Then Admiral Korfax spoke again, his words cutting through the verbal melee.
"My lieutenants have analyzed the parts of the battle, and transmissions from Grax's final battle. The enemy utilized advanced plasma weapons, and shielding far more potent, than any technology we have, according to analyses. Furthermore..." He paused gravely. "Sensors detected over 200 warships orbiting their world, not big as one, that destroyed Grax's fleet. My analytics doesn't think, that those humans have more of the so called Dreadnought ships in orbit.
Murmurs erupted at this revelation. Even Zornak seemed taken aback, at the scale of the human numbers and strength. But they still have only one Dreadnought class ship; if they could disable it in any way, he wondered.
Korfax pressed on.
"I once advocated meeting force with force, but no amount of reinforcements, or bravado can overturn such a gulf. Councilor Trexel is right, we must pull back inside our borders, consolidate our forces, and learn all we can, how to counter, these humans on equal footing. Only then can we ensure victory, instead of futile sacrifice. Anything less could will see our domain, fall to this new power."
A hush fell over the chamber, as the full magnitude of the crisis, took hold. The Emperor rose, and regarded his divided court, with a grim expression.
"Admiral Korfax speaks the bitter truth we must accept, no matter the hurt to our pride. From this day, reconstruction and Intelligence become our highest priorities. All fleets are hereby recalled, to the border systems, for refit and rearmament. Councilor Trexel, the Diplomatic Corps is charged with gathering what information your spies, and envoys can obtain of our new enemy. Only with time, study, and a new approach, will we emerge from this darkness, with our empire intact."
A somber acceptance met his declaration. The Vraxian Empire faced its greatest test, and survival would demand, abandoning old assumptions. War remained an option, but prudence said victory lay down, a different path for now. The humans had thrown down a gauntlet, and the Vraxians' response, would shape their realm's destiny.
As the debate raged on, two young Vraxian warriors watched from the upper viewing balconies, reserved for guests and citizens. Sergeant Maknor gripped the railing tightly, his aged exoskeleton creaking under the pressure. "This Senate squabble will come to nothing. The humans have shamed us, and must answer for it in blood."
His companion, Lieutenant Fylox, was less certain. "And if more of their mighty war machines, stand between us? You saw the footage of the engagement, same as I. One destroyed hundreds, of our finest cruisers, in the span of hours."
Maknor rounded on him fiercely. "So we should cower, like trembling hatchlings, instead of restoring our honor? There are trillions of us, and we command the greatest fleets, the galaxy has ever seen. Numbers and courage will carry the day, as they always have!"
Fylox started to reply, but was cut off, by an eruption of cheers from below. It seemed the hardliners had gained ascendency once more. The Emperor's words of reason, were being drowned out, by collective grievance, and longing for vengeance. As the debate threatened, to boil over into open violence, it seemed war with the aliens from system of Sol, was becoming inevitable.

The dull thrum of voices, echoing throughout the grand senate hall, slowly died down, as the Emperor rose to speak. All eyes turned to face the figure, at the head of the chamber. Though his expression remained stern and composed, an air of unease flickered behind his large compound eyes.
The Emperor began,
"My fellow senators, yesterday we received grave news from the frontier. Ambassador Grax's statement confirmed, that humans did not wish to cooperate with the empire.
Grax attempted to demand for a tribute to the empire, but humans refused.
He attempted to teach humans a lesson and demonstrate our military power, but in a single combat, nearly three hundred of our finest warships were destroyed."
A collective murmur swept through the assembled Vraxians, at this somber revelation. So many lost in the blink of an eye, at the hands of an outsider species, that has only recently been discovered, and planned by Vrax empire, to be in cooperated, as a new vassals of the emperor.
The Emperor continued, "While the details are still emerging, one fact is clear. We are facing an enemy with capabilities far beyond anything we have previously encountered. One of their war machines alone, decimated over half of Grax's armada before he was forced to surrender."
At this, angry shouts erupted from the hardliner factions. Senator Vortok, a prominent military advocate, slammed his fists on the armrest. "This outrage cannot be tolerated! We must retaliate with our full might, and crush these humans under our heel."
A chorus of approval rose in response. However, others called for restraint. Councilor Trexel of the Diplomatic Legion, projected his voice to be heard over the din.
"While vengeance may assuage our wounded pride, it will not ensure our continued survival. Rushing headlong into battle, could spell the end of our species."
As tensions threatened to boil over, the Emperor raised his hands, and the chamber slowly fell back into an uncomfortable silence. "My friends, in these dark times, we must come together with clear heads, not tear each other apart. Councilor Trexel speaks wisdom, we know little of our new enemies, and acted rashly before. Another hasty demand on humans, could seal our doom."
Senator Vortok spat in disgust. "For generations, we have expanded the borders of our glorious empire, through strength of arms! Now you preach cowardice, and appeasement?"
The Emperor turned to face him directly, his eyes narrowing. "I preach nothing but caution, which has always guided our people through countless wars, and plagues. Would you risk intergalactic war, to soothe your damaged pride? There is too much at stake."
The Emperor's sober words hung heavy in the air, as discussion stirred once more, among the assembled senators. Councilor Trexel spoke up, to address Senator Vortok's outburst.
"Strength alone will not assure victory in this new conflict. These humans overwhelmed Ambassador Grax's fleet, with technology far beyond our own. We know little of their world, their numbers, or their true capabilities. Charging in blind would be the height of foolishness. I say we devote our shipyards to rebuilding our fleet, while spies learn what they can of this race."
"Reconnoiter and rebuild?" scoffed Vortok. "You coddle our warriors with hesitation and fear. Our fleet was taken unawares, next time it will be different. Double our forces and sweep across the frontier. Teach these upstarts the price of defiance."
Trexel shook his head solemnly. "Even doubled, our forces mean nothing, if we do not counter whatever advantage felled Grax. We must understand our enemy, before engaging them at full scale,, or risk obliteration."
Admiral Korfax, commander of the Vraxian fleets, spoke up in support of Trexel. "As the one, tasked with leading our warriors into battle, I say caution is warranted. Superior numbers alone, will not undo an enemy, capable of such devastation. Give me time to analyze the battle and reports, to glean some insight into their tactics and technologies. Only then, can we craft a prudent strategy."
Senator Zornak of the imperial ministry interjected, "And what of our citizens, while we cower in hiding? Word of this disaster will spread; morale and faith in our rule will falter. Inaction, will bleed us dry, as effectively as any foe. We must act, to restore confidence and control!"
Trexel turned to the Emperor. "Noble Zornak raises a fair point. While military strength is crucial, we cannot neglect the spirits of our people, and other species under our protection. I propose a show of resolution, bolster border defenses, reinforce outlying colonies, commission more warships. Let our subjects see we mean to secure our domain, while avoiding reckless attacks that risk further losses."
Vortok snarled in contempt. "Defensive posturing, and reactionary policies? You would have our empire a quivering coward, before these humans. We should meet them head-on, and break their will to fight, as our forebears did to all who opposed us!"
"Or drive them to desperation, where they unleash terror, we cannot imagine," countered Trexel. "The wars of old forged our domain, but brought untold suffering too. Must we court annihilation, to satisfy your thirst for blood?"
The debate raged on, with tensions rising between the militant and cautious factions. No consensus seemed within reach, as positions polarized. Then Admiral Korfax spoke again, his words cutting through the verbal melee.
"My lieutenants have analyzed the parts of the battle, and transmissions from Grax's final battle. The enemy utilized advanced plasma weapons, and shielding far more potent, than any technology we have, according to analyses. Furthermore..." He paused gravely. "Sensors detected over 200 warships orbiting their world, not big as one, that destroyed Grax's fleet. My analytics doesn't think, that those humans have more of the so called Dreadnought ships in orbit.
Murmurs erupted at this revelation. Even Zornak seemed taken aback, at the scale of the human numbers and strength. But they still have only one Dreadnought class ship; if they could disable it in any way, he wondered.
Korfax pressed on.
"I once advocated meeting force with force, but no amount of reinforcements, or bravado can overturn such a gulf. Councilor Trexel is right, we must pull back inside our borders, consolidate our forces, and learn all we can, how to counter, these humans on equal footing. Only then can we ensure victory, instead of futile sacrifice. Anything less could will see our domain, fall to this new power."
A hush fell over the chamber, as the full magnitude of the crisis, took hold. The Emperor rose, and regarded his divided court, with a grim expression.
"Admiral Korfax speaks the bitter truth we must accept, no matter the hurt to our pride. From this day, reconstruction and Intelligence become our highest priorities. All fleets are hereby recalled, to the border systems, for refit and rearmament. Councilor Trexel, the Diplomatic Corps is charged with gathering what information your spies, and envoys can obtain of our new enemy. Only with time, study, and a new approach, will we emerge from this darkness, with our empire intact."
A somber acceptance met his declaration. The Vraxian Empire faced its greatest test, and survival would demand, abandoning old assumptions. War remained an option, but prudence said victory lay down, a different path for now. The humans had thrown down a gauntlet, and the Vraxians' response, would shape their realm's destiny.
As the debate raged on, two young Vraxian warriors watched from the upper viewing balconies, reserved for guests and citizens. Sergeant Maknor gripped the railing tightly, his aged exoskeleton creaking under the pressure. "This Senate squabble will come to nothing. The humans have shamed us, and must answer for it in blood."
His companion, Lieutenant Fylox, was less certain. "And if more of their mighty war machines, stand between us? You saw the footage of the engagement, same as I. One destroyed hundreds, of our finest cruisers, in the span of hours."
Maknor rounded on him fiercely. "So we should cower, like trembling hatchlings, instead of restoring our honor? There are trillions of us, and we command the greatest fleets, the galaxy has ever seen. Numbers and courage will carry the day, as they always have!"
Fylox started to reply, but was cut off, by an eruption of cheers from below. It seemed the hardliners had gained ascendency once more. The Emperor's words of reason, were being drowned out, by collective grievance, and longing for vengeance. As the debate threatened, to boil over into open violence, it seemed war with the aliens from system of Sol, was becoming inevitable.

Killer Grips: Anne Maria, Brick, Jasmine, Justin, Millie
Screaming Gaffers: Chase, Izzy, MK, Ripper, Scott
Episode 8: One Flu Over the Cuckoos
"Last time, on Total Drama Action! Imprisoned in a world they didn't create. Forced to ingest deadly foods, and even to taste them twice!"
"Nonetheless, the two courageous teams clawed their way to freedom! And... a lonely Chef made a new friend."
"But prison is no place for law abiding citizens. Even athletic ones. So at the end of the day, it was goodbye, Sky, hello... Izzy?" The camera panned back to show Chris lounging in the control tent. "Yeah. Izzy. That girl is eight shades of nutty. Will she drive everyone else crazy too?"
The scene flashed to a close-up of Chris standing in front of the cast trailers, the camera pulling back with each word of the show's title. "Find out now, on Total! Drama! Action!"
(Theme Song)
The scene faded in to a shot of an owl hooting on a tree branch at night until a few sparks erupted from it and its head popped off on a spring. The camera panned down and to the left, catching the castmates as they made their way back to their trailers; the Gaffers were in front, and the Grips were in the back, though Brick was noticeably absent.
“Everything is so much smaller than I remembered!” Izzy said while looking around.
"I can't believe that you guys eliminated Sky," Chase said as the camera focused on the Gaffers. "She would have continued to help carry us to victory if she was still here."
“I remember that bush! I remember that tree!” Izzy continued to observe her surroundings until she tripped onto the floor, only to get back up. “Oh, I remember that rock! Hey rock!”
“You know,” Scott spoke up, “with Sky gone and Izzy being back, it's like we didn't lose a player.”
“That may be because the teams are still evenly matched,” MK claimed.
"Good night everybody," Millie told the contestants in a tired tone as she took the steps up to the girls' trailer. "I really need to get some rest." She grabbed the door handle and habitually moved to open it, but it didn't budge and she slammed face-first into it.
"First they lock us in," Ripper said as the camera cut over to him pulling on the door handle of the guys' trailer, "and now they're locking us out!" He grunted as he kept trying to open it, but he failed to move it at all.
"Wait, wait," Izzy said from off-screen, "let me try it!" Ripper quickly stepped aside just as Izzy rammed the door and bounced off of it without making a dent.
A loud siren started up as tense music began to play in the background.
“Cops!!!” Izzy panicked soon after getting up and ducked out of the way.
Seconds later, an ambulance drove past, stopping in front of them just long enough for the back doors to open and a covered stretcher to fall out. Siren still blaring, the ambulance drove off and the castmates hesitantly approached its former cargo.
"What is that? A dead body?" Anne Maria asked nervously.
"Or an undead body," Ripper guessed.
Whatever was on the stretcher sat up, and the cover fell away to reveal Chris McLean lying on a colorful stack of books. The castmates gasped and murmured at the dazed-looking host. "...Boo!" the handsome man said suddenly, earning a blank look from MK.
The host then cleared his throat. "Calm yourselves. No one's dead yet," he said with a smile, holding up one of the books. "I'm here to prep you plucky ducks for our most awesome challenge yet! These textbooks hold the sum total of eight years of med school, and each one of you gets one," he explained before tossing the book in his hand to Anne Maria who raised an eyebrow once she caught it, "cause tomorrow, we're gonna play Doctor!" A few deep and tense notes played as Anne Maria rolled her eyes.
Confessional: Anne Maria
"I don't have anything against doctors," Anne Maria confessed. "It is their job to put scalpers and needles onto people, and give advice like “Don't break your leg because you were out late skateboarding,” but playing doctor isn't really in my wheelhouse.”
Confessional: Brick
"If I wanted to, I could be a doctor," Brick explained to the camera. "I've been to the doctor's office countless times because of my many injuries, like a twisted wrist, a joint thumb, bruised ribs, or even my leg getting bit by a dog." He shuddered. “Don't ask. But the military is my top priority.”
Confessionals End
"To win this challenge," Chris said as the footage cut back to him and the castmates, each of whom now held a textbook, "you're gonna want to memorize the entire contents of these textbooks. By morning."
"But it's already late," Millie protested.
"You got that right," Chris answered as a golf cart drove up with a giant pizza slice on the roof and a large stack of pizza boxes in the back. The driver was Chef, who had a pizza delivery hat on. As soon as the cart stopped, Chef got out and carried the comically large stack of pizzas over to Chase. "What med school all-nighter would be complete without pizza?" Chris asked.
Chase was shown dropping his textbook as he accepted the stack in awe, and a harp played in the background as he and Izzy gave it a sniff. He let out an approving sigh as Izzy smiled happily. "Pizza," the daredevil said.
"This has to be a trick," Millie said.
"More like method acting," Chris told them as he walked over to the golf cart and hopped onto the back. "Med school interns consume 850% more pizza than the average human. So, dig in! Cause there's plenty more where that came from!" The cart sputtered away, leaving the castmates by themselves.
Jasmine opened the top box and took out a slice. "Looks okay, smells okay," she said before finally taking a bite. "Tastes...great!"
"How is that even possible?" Anne Maria asked.
The scene flashed over to an unfinished pizza getting tossed into the air, the camera following it as it fell into Brick's hands. The table he was standing at already had four other pizzas on it, and they looked to be complete.
The camera panned right over to Chef with four cooked pizzas at his table as he held a can of parmesan. "Keep 'em comin'," Chef ordered. "I'll add the final cheesy touch," he said deviously while sprinkling the can on one of the pizzas.
"I'm pretty sure my team is going to question where I am," Brick complained.
"Not as long as they're eating, they won't!" Chef got up in Brick's face. "So hush up and spin that dough. Spin like the wind." As Chef went back to his station, the camera zoomed in on Brick's worried face.
The scene flashed to the five Gaffers sitting in chairs by a fire in front of the cast trailers, eating pizza and reading textbooks. The camera focused in on Izzy and Ripper, who were in the two leftmost seats.
"Y'know," Ripper said, "one time me and my brothers ordered ten boxes of pizza in order to see who can eat the most without using their hands." He chuckled. “You should've been there watching us splatter sauce on each other.”
“Let's pretend I was!” Izzy tossed away her book. “Here!” She sprung off her chair, landed next to the pizza box in front of the team, and began to scarf on the pizza without using her hands.
“My three brothers would be jealous to see you do this quicker than them,” Ripper commented.
Grabbing a pizza with her teeth, Izzy started to shake it around like a rabid animal, splattering sauce onto everybody.
“My hat!” MK exclaimed.
“My shirt!” Scott shouted.
“My pizza!” Chase cried out dramatically.
Confessional: Izzy
“I am so glad to be back,” Izzy said. “I was top of my pre-med class before the RCMP started chasing me, so this should be a snap! On the other hand, I'll tone down my impressions since it bothered Ripper the last time I was here, and he's my friend so I'll try to put his feelings into consideration.”
Confessional: Ripper
“It's amazing that Izzy is back in the game, and unlike the first time it happened, I'm around to witness it,” Ripper chimed. “She better not make us call her E-Scope though. That was really bugging me out.”
Confessionals End
The scene moved to the inside of the craft services tent, where four of the Killer Grips were studying at one of the tables. Millie and Anne Maria were on one side of the table, with Justin opposite them and Jasmine standing away from them.
Justin noticed Jasmine's unhappy expression and decided to go over and press the matter. “Is something wrong?” the eye candy asked.
Jasmine was startled by the question and regained her composure. “I'm completely fine. Nothing's bringing me down.”
“Just tell me. I don't blab about secrets,” Justin continued.
“If you must know, Brick's been spending less time with us lately,” Jasmine confessed. “Usually before the challenge, we never even see him.”
“I've noticed as well,” Justin nodded. “And this is bringing you down because?”
“Me and him have a special bond going, and it may lead into something more than that, but how are we supposed to know each other more if he's avoiding us?” Jasmine wondered.
“Brick'll probably explain what's going on to us, but don't badger him,” Justin advised. “It'll most likely cause him to lie.”
“That's a good idea. If there's one thing I do not like, it's when someone is lying to me,” Jasmine admitted.
“Interesting…” Justin mused to himself.
Confessional: Justin
“Jasmine's concern plus Brick's disappearances equals an opportunity for me to cause a little bit of turmoil between them,” Justin calculated. “That way, I could get one of them eliminated with Anne Maria and Millie's help.”
Confessional Ends
"Man, is this pizza delicious or what?" Anne Maria said as she took a bite out of the slice she was holding. "I wish Chef could cook more food like this for us every day."
Jasmine took a bite of her slice and saw Millie focused on reading rather than eating. "Are you not going to nibble at least one slice, Millie?"
Millie looked up from the book she'd been studying and blinked.
Confessional: Millie
"With the challenge that we're going to get, I have to focus on studying all the contexts of that textbook so I won't forget a single detail," Millie told the camera. "And plus, I'm not really a big fan of pizza."
Confessional Ends
A close-up of an open pizza box was shown as Justin reached in to grab one of the last remaining pieces. "If you don't want any pizza, then that means there's more for us," he said.
“Hold on. Brick hasn't had any,” Jasmine interrupted.
"Where is he anyway?" Anne Maria asked.
Brick then peeked out of the counter, and he ducked down, crawled under the table, and popped up in order to act like he just arrived. "Sorry I'm late. I had an urgent bathroom emergency," he said.
"Here's your pizza," Jasmine slid the open box to the end of the table.
Brick picked up a slice, took a bite, and smiled as he chewed it. "My cooking skills are great!"
"I'm stuffed," Anne Maria said as she stood up. "And with tomorrow being a reward challenge and all, I can just go back to my trailer. Good night!" She began to leave.
"I study better when I'm by myself. Nothing personal," Millie told the team and left the tent as well.
Confessional: Jasmine
"I could make them stay," Jasmine said in the make-up trailer, "but there's no point in doing so. Millie is already educated enough to not read the textbook, and Anne Maria is as tough as an untamed crocodile when it comes to talking with her."
Confessional Ends
The scene moved to Anne Maria and Millie as they walked through the film lot to get to their trailer.
"I thought you'd still be studying back at the tent," Anne Maria casted a suspicious look at her teammate. “Why are you following me?”
"I still want to read the textbook. I just want to do it someplace quiet," Millie replied. “What about you?”
“Like I said, I'm going to sleep,” Anne Maria said. “There's no need to give it my all if the challenge won't have an elimination.”
“You may be wrong about that. Chris is very unpredictable when it comes to episodes having eliminations or not,” Millie argued. “Did you at least read some pages of the textbook?”
“Yeah, and I don't want my head to be egg headed like yours is, brainiac,” Anne Maria claimed.
This got a glare from Millie. “Hey, just because I'm smart, doesn't mean I don't have any more depth to me,” the writer scolded.
“If all we're gonna do is argue, then let's keep to ourselves for the rest of the night,” Anne Maria rebutted.
“That's fine by me,” Millie agreed with the tanned girl.
The scene faded forward into a shot of the numbered studios the following day. The camera cut inside, showing the ten castmates lined up in a small room facing a double door, all but Millie and Anne Maria looking exhausted.
"So tired," Jasmine groaned.
"My brain has never been this full," Ripper mumbled.
"You guys should've turned in for the night like I did if you didn't wanna look like zombies," Anne Maria stated, making the others groan at her.
"Morning, competitors!" Chris said in a chipper tone as he slid in through the door. "Or should I say...DOCTORS!" He pulled out a large gun from behind his back, eliciting a gasp from the teens as he pointed it at them. He fired it at them starting with the Gaffers, and the camera focused on Izzy and Scott at the far end of the line as stethoscopes and reflector headband landed on them. Chase, MK, and Ripper were the next to get hit and MK fell to the ground after impact. Brick and Millie followed, then Anne Maria, Jasmine, and Justin.
"Ready for today's big challenge?" Chris asked them with a smile.
“We pulled an all-nighter studying for this," Scott grunted. "Why wouldn't we all be?"
"If only teenagers were as dedicated to their studies as you guys are!" Chris said with a light laugh. "Let's take it inside." He started backing into the room he'd come out of, the castmates following after him.
The camera cut to a close-up of a large compound stage light before zooming out to show the cast assembled in a large room, each team standing by a large green vat of bubbling slime, a ladder leading up to a high dive, and a sort of slanted platform with a person-shaped indent in it.
"Today's challenge is called," Chris said as the background music became low and tense, "Visiting Hours. And only one member of the winning team will get to enjoy the reward." A few drum beats played, and the camera panned over to the Grips on the left.
"Hold up," Anne Maria asked. "Why're we doing this in teams if only one of us gets to win?"
"I guess it's one for all and all for one this time," Jasmine said.
"But who gets to be the one?" Brick wondered aloud.
"Let's leave it to the one who contributes the most," Millie told them.
Confessional: Millie
"Which will likely be me," Millie added in the confessional trailer.
Confessional Ends
"So what is the reward, Chris?" Chase asked.
"You're very perceptive, Chase," Chris told him. "Let's see if that helps you and your team assemble a CADAVER!" A game show jingle played as he made the announcement.
"You're talking about a dead body, right?" Izzy asked.
"No," Chris corrected as the game show jingle played again, "I'm talking about a giant dead body!" The shot zoomed out further than it had before, revealing that the slanted platforms were attached to chains leading up to a reel in the ceiling and two strange devices on mounted either side just below.
"These tanks contain the dismembered parts of two identical cadavers," he explained over an elevator music-like tune. "Each player will climb their respective team ladder, strap on the bungee cord," the shot cut from his close-up to a bungee harness dangling in front of the Gaffers' diving board, "and jump into the tank with hopes of retrieving a body part." The camera panned down to the tank, then over to the slanted platform. "Any parts you find will be snapped in place on the platforms. Use those chains to raise them all the way to the roof," he continued as the camera followed the chain up to the strange device on either side of the gap in the ceiling as a jolt of electricity stream between them, "where they'll be reanimated by a blast of lightning!"
"First team to bring a Franken-Chris back to life wins," the host told them. "First crack goes to the team who can tell me how to treat someone with a bean stuck up their nose." He tapped his nose, and the camera panned over to the Gaffers.
MK was the first to open her mouth. "Administer two ccs of pain meds and probe the affected area with a sterile swab."
"Correctomundo!" Chris said, giving her a pair of finger pistols.
"Yes!" MK cheered.
The footage flashed forward to the AV girl on top of her team's diving board, the bungee harness already secured. She jumped off with a scream and plunged into the vat, popping back up a moment later as she was electrocuted by the electric eel she was now holding. She let the fish go at the peak of her trip back up, and grabbed on to the edge of the diving board. "What the heck was that?!" she asked in shock.
"Oh yeah," Chris said, "I forgot to mention the electric eels. Three zaps for each turn and you're out!"
With a hesitant look on her face, MK allowed herself to drop back into the vat. She emerged holding a grayish and slime-covered leg. "Got it!" she called as the camera cut to Ripper who was standing by the Gaffers' platform with his arms out to catch. He caught the limb, then turned around and fit it into place.
"Okay, next question!" Chris announced. "Your patient has an itchy red inflammation on their butt! Diagnosis?"
"Diaper rash," Brick spoke up first. "Apply salve repeatedly to achieve humectant dispersion."
"Yes!" Chris said, and Brick smiled.
The footage cut forward to him diving off the board and into the vat. He sprung back out holding an eel, and it shocked him. "Sorry!" he said before plunging back down. He came back up a second time, now holding two eels. "Sorry again!" he told them, falling once more after getting shocked. He popped out holding a hand, which he quickly tossed to his team.
"Don't let it touch my hair!" Justin fumbled with the hand a few times before tossing it over to Jasmine, who rolled her eyes and put it in the right-hand slot.
"Next question!" Chris said. "Your patient's got a white tongue, red eyes, and they're oozing gooey crud! Diagnosis?"
"If I'm not wrong, that should be Pinkus Eyeicus," Chase answered. "Treat with two rounds of floppity jibbits."
"Absolutely correct!" Chris told him. The camera zoomed in on him as he slyly added "I messed around with some of the terms in the textbook."
Chase looked down at the vat, then jumped. He fell without a sound, but when he came back up with an eel in each hand, he shrieked and got electrocuted. He plunged back down, and this time came up with another leg. "Hey, I got one this time!" he said with a smile before tossing the limb over to Scott.
Scott jumped for it, then turned around and slammed it into place.
"Smells like ear wax?" Chris asked next, rushing up to Jasmine with a grin on his face.
"Pineapple-itis," Jasmine answered before low-fiving the host.
Jasmine was shown jumping down, and sprung back up to diving board-level seconds later with three eels on her body; she screamed as she was shocked.
"Fur between the toes?" Chris asked, bending down to point at his bare feet, one of which had a tuft of brown hair growing out of it.
"Stick two horse feathers up the whizzbang!" Izzy answered when the host turned to her.
Izzy was shown dropping into the vat and coming back up with a torso and a smile on her face.
A montage of parts getting added was shown next. Millie was first, putting a leg into her team's platform. Second was Chase, slotting one of his team's arms in. Brick added a waist for the Grips, and the clips transitioned to other parts of the challenge.
"Waka-waka two-by-four!" Scott answered.
Anne Maria was shown listening to Chris's chest with her stethoscope before enthusiastically saying "Sissypants McGee!" to the host's brief approval and sudden discomfort.
Ripper was shown trying to strangle one of the eels as it shocked him, then Justin was shown being electrocuted thrice by the eels before eventually holding up a Chris head. He tossed it to Anne Maria, who was sitting on Jasmine's shoulders, and the two turned around to put the piece in – all they were missing now was the left arm and hand.
"The Grips ahead by...a head!" Chris announced, the camera cutting over to the Gaffers' platform and the five teens giving it nervous, annoyed, and uncertain looks – aside from the head, all they were missing was the right arm and hand.
"Alright Gaffers, next question!" the host said as he slid over to the other team. "Your patient's feeling tired, has spongy gums, and a bunch of spots on their thighs. Diagnosis?"
"Scurvy," Ripper said. "Treated with an increase of dietary vitamin C."
"Correct!" Chris announced excitedly.
The footage cut forward, focusing on the Gaffers' vat as Ripper dived into it. He emerged moments later with his team's hand, and threw it over to Izzy who quickly put it into place.
Confessional: Ripper
“I'm not sure if what we studied are actually real life symptoms and diagnoses, but who am I to know?” Ripper shrugged uncaringly. “I'm not one to study for this sort of stuff unless there's a million dollars on the line.”
Confessional Ends
Another skip forward showed Millie plunging into the vat and coming back out with the arm. "Alright, last piece coming your way!" she said excitedly before tossing it to her off-screen teammates.
It was Justin who caught the piece and put it into the only remaining indentation on the platform. "The Grips have their cadaver!" Chris announced in a close-up. "Time to start yanking some chain, and be quick about it 'cause the Gaffers are right behind you!"
Jasmine and Brick began to pull on their team's chain while Anne Maria moved the slanted scaffold out from under the platform and Justin and Millie watched in anticipation as the cadaver-containing platform was rising quickly.
The camera cut over to the Gaffers as Izzy dangled from the bungee harness covered in slime. “I got it! I got it!” She tossed the Chris head over to MK.
MK stopped in front of the platform and drew back her arm, tossing it up to Chase who had climbed the back of the platform in preparation. The daredevil caught it and slotted the part in, then dropped to the ground.
"Now we pull!" MK ordered as Chase joined Ripper and Scott at the chain.
"Heave!" Ripper said as the three started to pull in rhythm. "Ho! Heave!"
"The Gaffers are still in this," Chris told the camera in a close-up. "Whose cadaver will hit the roof first?" he asked with a shrug. "Make sure you come back for all the Total! Drama! Action!" he finished excitedly.
(Commercial Break)

Gratitude to Namo Sakyamuni Buddha!
Gratitude to the Greatly Merciful and Greatly Compassionate Guan Yin Bodhisattva!
Gratitude to all Buddhas and Bodhisattvas from ten directions and three periods of time!
Gratitude to the Dharma protectors!
Gratitude to the selfless, altruistic, and benevolent Master Lu!
Hello everyone, I am fellow practitioner Lijuan Cheng. Today, I'd like to share the topic: Guan Yin Citta Dharma Door is the savior of the common people, and the Little House is incredibly efficacious. My daughter's thrombocytopenic has significantly improved
In 2012, my daughter was 16 years old. One day she suddenly had a nosebleed that wouldn't stop, which frightened our entire family. We rushed her to see a doctor, and after blood tests, we found out that her platelet count was 36, while the normal range is 100-300. The doctor diagnosed her with a type of blood disease: thrombocytopenic. Watching my daughter constantly suffer from nosebleeds and experiencing increased menstrual bleeding, leaving her weak and exhausted, her father and I felt helpless and distressed. Taking her to see Western doctors didn't yield any results, so we tried Chinese medicine, but her platelet count remained around 40-50, refusing to rise. This situation worried our entire family, especially me as a mother, feeling anxious, fearful, and helpless, unable to express it in words. We tried various treatments from both Western and Chinese medicine for 2-3 years, but the results were unsatisfactory, and her platelet count remained between 30-60.
In 2019, a fellow Buddhist practitioner who helped my daughter's aunt in practicing the Guan Yin Citta Dharma Door. My daughter's aunt shared her Buddhist experiences with me since she felt benefited from practicing Buddhism. She mentioned that many individuals, either experiencing afflictions themselves or witnessing family members suffering from illnesses, have found relief and recovery through reciting Buddhist scriptures, making vows, and performing life liberation to alleviate their karma. Encouraged by her words, I decided to also engage in reciting Buddhist scriptures for my child. Growing up with a Buddhist mother, I've always harbored an affinity for Buddhism. While I initially approached it with curiosity, I must admit I struggled with consistency, failing to adhere to daily practices.
After the Chinese New Year in 2020, my daughter's aunt introduced me to Buddhist practitioner Zhang. She also entered the Guan Yin Citta Dharma Door because of her child's illness, and she confirmed the greatness of the Buddha Dharma. We shared similar experiences, and I trusted her deeply. She advised me to persist in doing my daily recitation of Buddhist scriptures for a month to increase my own energy before making vows and reciting the Little House. She said it would be more effective this way. She patiently explained the principles of the Guan Yin Citta Dharma Door to me and taught me how to recite Buddhist scriptures, make vows, and perform life liberation correctly. Her guidance boosted my confidence. I made the following vows before the Bodhisattva:

1. Release fish whenever circumstances allow every month and commit to lifelong life liberation.
   
2. Abstain from meat on the first and fifteenth days of the lunar month and on Buddhist-related holidays, refraining from consuming live seafood.
   
3. After my daughter recovers, I will share my experiences to inspire others to practice Buddhism and propagate the Dharma.
   
4. Recite 108 Little Houses for my daughter by the end of 2020.
   

After I began reciting Little Houses, one night I had a dream. In the dream, someone asked me for 159 of something. I responded that I preferred the number 169. The following day, I asked practitioner Zhang about the meaning of this dream. She explained, "It signifies the number of Little Houses that the karmic creditors are requesting." Consequently, I made a vow to recite 169 Little Houses for my karmic creditors by the end of 2020.
During the same period when I was reciting Little Houses for myself, my daughter, who had been taking medication for a long time, was advised by the doctor to stop her medication for a while and resume it later. Therefore, during that time, my daughter stopped taking all her medications.
Later, practitioner Zhang mentioned the importance of reciting Little Houses to help ascend the spirits of my aborted fetuses. She explained that these spirits suffer greatly as they cannot leave their mother’s body and may cause physical ailments, career obstacles, family discord, and even influence the health and behavior of her children. Upon hearing this, I made a vow to recite 49 Little Houses for each of the two aborted fetuses. Although I didn't specify a completion date when making the vow, I made earnest efforts to fulfill it.
The Guan Yin Citta Dharma Door is truly miraculous and efficacious. Not long after I began reciting the Little House for the aborted fetuses, I dreamt of someone getting pregnant (Editor’s note: This signifies a successful ascension, as the spirit is reincarnated into another family as a human). Another time, I dreamt of playing happily with a child, but suddenly, the child disappeared (Editor’s note: This signifies a successful ascension, as the spirit bids farewell to its mother before departing).
After fulfilling all my vows, my daughter's condition started to improve in 2021. Since then, I have been consistently reciting 21 Little Houses for her karmic creditors, one batch after another. Whenever possible, I also engage in life liberation. In 2022, I made a vow to liberate 1200 fish for my daughter.
On October 21, 2022, my daughter underwent a blood routine examination, and the results showed improvements in all indicators. Her platelet count had risen to 92. Tears of joy streamed down our faces as we received the test report. With hands clasped together, we expressed our gratitude to the Greatly Merciful and Greatly Compassionate Guan Yin Bodhisattva for saving us. We are grateful to the Golden Buddhist Practices of the Guan Yin Citta Dharma Door which serve as a beacon of hope for the underprivileged. Gratitude fills our hearts for Master Lu, who brought the Guan Yin Citta Dharma Door to alleviate suffering and hardship in this world, allowing us to find joy amidst hardship. We are also deeply grateful to practitioner Zhang for tirelessly assisting me and my daughter; she truly embodies compassion in this world.
I feel ashamed that I cannot consider myself a diligent practitioner, yet Guan Yin Bodhisattva has never given up on me. Through this experience, I silently resolve to devoutly recite Buddhist scriptures, cultivate my mind, and never regress, aiming to transcend the cycle of rebirth and return to the side of Guan Yin Bodhisattva.
In 2022, I made a vow for my husband, committing to recite 7 Little Houses every month for his karmic creditors, praying for Guan Yin Bodhisattva's blessings to help him resolve his karmic obstacles and ensure smooth work. The compassionate Bodhisattva granted Her blessings, and my husband's business began to improve. A few days ago, while working at the construction site, the ground had some gaps, and one leg of the pump truck sank in. The truck tilted significantly, but miraculously, both my husband and the truck emerged unharmed. I believe this is undoubtedly the result of Guan Yin Bodhisattva's compassionate protection, just as Master Lu teaches that one person practicing Buddhism in a family can protect the entire household.
Previously, my job was demanding, leaving me with little time for reciting Buddhist scriptures, which troubled me deeply. After much contemplation and prayer to Guan Yin Bodhisattva for assistance in finding a less demanding job that would allow time for recitation, my prayers were answered. Soon after resigning, I found a job that not only paid better than my previous one but also afforded me the time to recite scriptures. Moreover, it was conveniently located close to my home. My heart brimmed with Dharma joy. Under the compassionate protection of the Buddha and Bodhisattvas, there are countless blessings and miracles beyond description.
I hope that my sharing can awaken those who do not believe in Buddhism to accept the Dharma and pick up Buddhist scriptures to learn and recite them. I hope to awaken those fellow practitioners who do not persist in reciting scriptures. Diligence is the foundation of Buddhist practice, and it is through the Buddha's guidance that sentient beings can be liberated. We must not allow ourselves to become beings without affinity with Buddha due to laziness. If we gradually drift away and move further from the Buddha and Bodhisattvas, we may lose the chance to turn back. To truly give meaning to our lives, we must embark on the journey to transcend the cycle of life and death. The human existence is rare to obtain, and the opportunity to encounter Dharma teachings is extremely rare. Life is impermanent so we must always practice diligence.
The Five Golden Buddhist Practices of the Guan Yin Citta Dharma Door can indeed solve practical problems in life and change our destiny!
Gratitude to Namo Sakyamuni Buddha!
Gratitude to the Greatly Merciful and Greatly Compassionate Guan Yin Bodhisattva!
Gratitude to all Buddhas and Bodhisattvas from ten directions and three periods of time!
Gratitude to the Dharma protectors!
Gratitude to the benefactor and benevolent father Master Lu!
If there is anything that is not rational or in line with the truth in the presentation, I pray for forgiveness from Namo Sakyamuni Buddha, the Greatly Merciful and Greatly Compassionate Guan Yin Bodhisattva, all Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, Dharma protectors, and Master Jun Hong Lu.
I would appreciate my fellow Buddhist practitioners' critique and correction! I, not my fellow Buddhist practitioners, will be responsible for my own karma!
Buddhist practitioner: Lijuan Cheng, Gratitude and Namaste!
Received: 2022-11-22
Posted: 2023-02-25
Translator: Frank
Published: 2024-04-03
Statement by translator
The story was translated from Chinese into English by meaning, not word by word. If there is anything that is not rational or in line with the true meaning of the Chinese version, I pray for forgiveness from the Greatly Merciful and Greatly Compassionate Guan Yin Bodhisattva, all Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, Dharma protectors and Master Jun Hong Lu.
Propagation
It would be greatly appreciated if you would forward this presentation to all sentient beings you know, sick or healthy. You will accumulate immeasurable merits and virtues. Saving a life is more meritorious than building a seven-floor pagoda!
Would you like to change your destiny?
We will show you how to do the Five Golden Buddhist Practices of Guan Yin Citta Dharma Door: (1) making vows, (2) reciting Buddhist scriptures (sutras and mantras), (3) performing life liberation, (4) reading Buddhism in Plain Terms, and (5) repenting. You will personally witness how you and your family can achieve physical and mental stability, relief from illness and grievances, wisdom growth, academic progress, career advancement, and family happiness through Dharma. It’s free of charge.
Contact
Buddhist practitioner: Lily
Email: [sunnypurplelily@gmail.com](mailto:sunnypurplelily@gmail.com)
WeChat: HanJing20210820
原文如下：
心灵法门是贫民百姓的救星，小房子灵验无比，我女儿多年血小板减少症明显提升
感恩南无释迦牟尼佛！
感恩南无大慈大悲救苦救难广大灵感观世音菩萨摩诃萨！
感恩十方三世一切诸佛菩萨及龙天护法金刚菩萨！
感恩弘法度众舍身忘我的恩师慈父卢军宏台长！
大家好，我是程丽娟同修，今天分享的主题是：心灵法门是贫民百姓的救星，小房子灵验无比，我女儿多年血小板减少症明显提升
2012年我女儿16岁。有一天她突然鼻子流血不止，吓坏了我们全家，赶紧带女儿去看医生。经医生验血检查后得知，女儿血小板是36，正常值为100-300。医生说，我女儿患上血液病的一种：血小板减少症。看着女儿动不动鼻子就血流不止，而且月经量增多，流血流得浑身无力，疲惫憔悴的样子，我和她爸爸心疼得不知如何是好？带女儿看西医不见效果，又去看中医，但是她的血小板就在40-50左右，不往上升，愁坏了我们全家人。特别是作为母亲的我，那种焦虑、害怕、无助，无法用语言来表达。北京各大医院中药西药吃了两三年，疗效也不佳。血小板个数一直在30-60之间徘徊。
2019年，有位师兄度孩子的姑姑学习心灵法门。她感觉受益了就跟我说：心灵法门念小房子特别灵验，很多人都是因为家里有人患病或自己患病，通过念经、许愿、放生，消业还债后都有所好转或康复，让我也帮孩子念一念。我母亲信佛，从小我就对佛教有好感。我想念念试试也行，但是我并没有天天坚持，三天打鱼两天晒网。
在2020年春节后，孩子的姑姑把我引荐给张师兄。这位张师兄也是因为她孩子患病走进心灵法门的，她验证了佛法的伟大。我俩同病相连，我十分信任她。她让我坚持做功课一个月，增加了自己的能量后再许愿念经文组合。她说这样效果好。她耐心给我讲解心灵法门的理念，教我应该怎样正确地念经、许愿、放生。她的引导增加了我的信心。我就在菩萨面前许愿：

1. 每个月都随缘放生鱼，坚持终身放生；
   
2. 初一、十五和有关佛家节日吃素，不吃活的海鲜；
   
3. 孩子病好了我现身说法，弘法度人；
   
4. 为女儿许愿在2020年年底念完108张经文组合。
   

我开始念经文组合后，有天晚上做了一个梦。梦中有人管我要159个什么东西。我说我喜欢169数字。第二天我问张师兄这个梦是什么意思。师兄说：这是要经者要小房子的数量。于是，我向菩萨许愿到2020年年底前给我自己的要经者念送169张经文组合。在我为自己念经文组合的同一时间里，因为女儿已经吃了很长时间的药，医生建议女儿的药停一停，过一段时间再吃。所以，那段时间，女儿所有的药全部停掉了。
后来听师兄说要念经文组合，超度自己堕胎的婴灵。因为堕胎的孩子走不掉很苦的，婴灵不只会使大人身体不好或事业不顺，家庭不和睦，也会找你的孩子让她身体不健康，不听话。我听后向菩萨许愿帮助两个堕胎的孩子各念49张经文组合，许愿时没有许完成时间，但我有努力地在行愿。
心灵法门太神奇了，太灵验了。我帮助堕胎的孩子念小房子没多久就梦到别人怀孕了；还有一次梦到和一个小孩儿玩得很高兴，突然他就不见了。
当我完成了我所有许的愿后，女儿的病情在2021年有所好转。之后，我就一直帮助女儿21张一拨接着一拨地念经文组合。有时间我就去放生。2022年，我许愿帮助女儿放生1200条鱼。
我女儿在2022年10月21日做血常规检查，结果各项指标都有所好转，血小板个数上升到92。拿到化验单后我们高兴得泪流满面。我们双手合十感恩大慈大悲的观世音菩萨慈悲救度！感恩心灵法门的法宝是贫民百姓的救星！感恩师父把心灵法门带到人间救苦救难，让我们离苦得乐！感恩师兄不厌其烦地帮助我和我女儿，真的是人间菩萨。
我很惭愧，算不上是精进的同修，但菩萨妈妈一直不放弃我。通过这件事情，我暗暗下决心，今后一定好好念经，修心修行，永不退转，超脱六道轮回，回到观世音菩萨的身边。
2022年，我帮先生许愿，每个月念7张经文组合，求菩萨保佑先生消业和工作顺利。菩萨慈悲，我先生的生意有所好转。前几天，先生在工地干活。地面有点空隙，泵车一条腿陷了下去，整个车身倾斜很大，但是人和车都没事儿。我想这一定是观世音菩萨慈悲护佑的结果，就像师父讲的一样，家里一人学佛能庇佑全家。
我原来的工作忙，没有多少时间念经。我很苦恼。我想来想去，祈求观世音菩萨帮助我找一份轻松点的工作，能有时间念经。观世音菩萨真的有求必应。我辞职后不久就找到了一份比以前工资还高，又有时间念经的工作，而且离家又很近。真是法喜充满。在佛菩萨慈悲护佑下有说不完的好事。
我希望我的分享能够唤醒在佛门外不信佛的人们早日得闻佛法，捧起经书学佛念经。希望唤醒不坚持念经的师兄们。精进是学佛的根，佛度有缘人。千万不要因为惰性而让自己成为无缘众生。倘若渐行渐远，渐渐离开了佛菩萨，也许就没有机会再回头了。要让自己的生命真正有价值，那就是修道了生脱死。人身难得，佛法难闻，人生无常，所以要常行精进。心灵法门的五大法宝真的能够解决生活中的实际问题，能够改变我们的命运！
再次感恩南无释迦牟尼佛！感恩南无大慈大悲救苦救难广大灵感观世音菩萨摩诃萨！感恩十方三世一切诸佛菩萨及龙天护法金刚菩萨！感恩弘法度众舍身忘我的恩师慈父卢军宏台长！
分享过程中如有不如理不如法之处，请南无释迦牟尼佛慈悲原谅！请南无大慈大悲观世音菩萨慈悲原谅！请十方三世诸佛菩萨和龙天护法菩萨慈悲原谅！请师兄们批评指正！我自己的业障自己背，不让师兄们背！
分享人：程丽娟 感恩合十
2022-11-22 收到
2023-02-25 发布
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The contents of the presentation and answers, including text, images, and other information obtained from Dharma practitioners, are provided strictly for reference purposes. Due to the unique nature of individual karma, results similar to those experienced by the authors may not be replicated. The experiences and advice shared should not be construed as medical advice or a diagnosis.
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O Muslims! Know and be aware that the Qizilbāsh people, whose leader is Ismail son of Ardabil has looked down on our Prophet's laws (Sharia), his custom (sunna), the religion of Islam, the religious science and the Qur'an, which tells us what is right and wrong. They have regarded the prohibitions of God as being allowed. They have offended the Holy Qur'an and burned it by throwing it into the fire. They have even seen their own damned leader as God and prostrated to him. They have cursed and denied the caliphate of the noble Abu Bakr and Umar. They have slandered and cursed the Prophet's wife, our mother Aisha. They intend to eradicate the Prophet's laws (Sharia) and the religion of Islam. Their other offensive statements and behavior similar to what is mentioned here, is known clearly by both me and the rest of the Islamic scholars. We have therefore in accordance with the rules of the religious law (Sharia) and the rights provided in our books, issued a statement (fatwa) towards this population as being infidel and pagan. It is any Muslims duty to destroy such a population. The holy martyr Muslims who die in this connection will achieve the highest paradise (Jannat ul-Ala). The infidels who die, will become contemptible and end up in a place in the deepest hell. The condition of this population is worse than the unbelievers (Christians and Jews). The animals that these people butcher or hunt down are impure (murdar), whether it is by falconry, bow or dog. The marriages they make among each other or with other populations are not valid. They have no right to inheritance. If they live in a village, only the Sultan of Islam, has the right to take over their properties and values and their children by slaughtering all the villagers. These values can only be divided between soldiers of Islam. After this collection, one should not listen to their repentances and regrets, but kill all of them. If it is known that there are any one of them or anyone who supports them here in this town, these must be killed. This kind of population is both incredulous and pagan and at the same time harmful. For these two reasons, it is necessary (vajib) to kill them. God helps those who help the religion and harms those who do harm to a Muslim.

O Muslims! Know and be aware that the Qizilbāsh people, whose leader is Ismail son of Ardabil has looked down on our Prophet's laws (Sharia), his custom (sunna), the religion of Islam, the religious science and the Qur'an, which tells us what is right and wrong. They have regarded the prohibitions of God as being allowed. They have offended the Holy Qur'an and burned it by throwing it into the fire. They have even seen their own damned leader as God and prostrated to him. They have cursed and denied the caliphate of the noble Abu Bakr and Umar. They have slandered and cursed the Prophet's wife, our mother Aisha. They intend to eradicate the Prophet's laws (Sharia) and the religion of Islam. Their other offensive statements and behavior similar to what is mentioned here, is known clearly by both me and the rest of the Islamic scholars. We have therefore in accordance with the rules of the religious law (Sharia) and the rights provided in our books, issued a statement (fatwa) towards this population as being infidel and pagan. It is any Muslims duty to destroy such a population. The holy martyr Muslims who die in this connection will achieve the highest paradise (Jannat ul-Ala). The infidels who die, will become contemptible and end up in a place in the deepest hell. The condition of this population is worse than the unbelievers (Christians and Jews). The animals that these people butcher or hunt down are impure (murdar), whether it is by falconry, bow or dog. The marriages they make among each other or with other populations are not valid. They have no right to inheritance. If they live in a village, only the Sultan of Islam, has the right to take over their properties and values and their children by slaughtering all the villagers. These values can only be divided between soldiers of Islam. After this collection, one should not listen to their repentances and regrets, but kill all of them. If it is known that there are any one of them or anyone who supports them here in this town, these must be killed. This kind of population is both incredulous and pagan and at the same time harmful. For these two reasons, it is necessary (vajib) to kill them. God helps those who help the religion and harms those who do harm to a Muslim.

Hi AskIreland, I need your help tracking down the source of the popular quote attributed to Thomas Davis:

It is not blood that makes you Irish but a willingness to be part of the Irish Nation.

I can't find which essay he wrote it in, and it only shows up on these quote websites without a source. Given that his father was Welsh its definitely possible he said or thought this but I suspect it might be a fake quote misattributed to him, which can happen sometimes. I'm sure some have seen that fake Voltaire quote that antisemites like to post.
I have found some statements he made that were *somewhat* similar such as:

They are a peculiar people—these Wexford men. Their blood is for the most part English and Welsh, though mixed with the Danish and Gaelic, yet they are Irish in thought and feeling.

and

For centuries upon centuries Irish was spoken by men of all bloods in Ireland, and English was unknown, save to a few citizens and nobles of the Pale.

However these don't fit with the first quote when you consider that he also says:

How unnatural—how corrupting 'tis for us, three-fourths of whom are of Celtic blood, to speak a medley of Teutonic dialects! If we add the Celtic Scots, who came back here from the thirteenth to the seventeenth centuries, and the Celtic Welsh, who colonised many parts of Wexford and other Leinster counties, to the Celts who never left Ireland, probably five-sixths, or more, of us are Celts. What business have we with the Norman-Sassenagh?

and

A people without a language of its own is only half a nation.

And then in other places he makes statements that seem to directly contradict the original quote this post is about:

But even in the seventeenth century, when the footing of the Norman and Saxon in Ireland was as sure as that of the once-invading Milesians themselves, we find the cry purely to the older Irish races, and the bounds of the nation made, not by the island, but by genealogy.
The statues will come in good time, and we hope, and are sure, that Ireland, a nation, will have a national gallery, combining the greatest works of the Celtic and Teutonic races.
The peerage consisted of the best blood, Milesian and Norman, of great wealth and of various creeds.
...we call upon the gentry, if they have any pride of blood, and on the people, if they reverence Old Ireland, to spare and guard every remnant of antiquity.

I haven't seen anyone else posting about this quote either or talking about it outside of just posting the single line without a citation.

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Star Crossed [Multiple Free Sample Chapters] Patreon Subreddit Discord Paperback NOP2 Species Lore
Memory Transcription Subject: Taylor Trench, Human Colonist
Date [standardized human time]: July 15, 2160
With boot camp completed, I was free to leave the base in my off-duty hours. My plan for the rest day was to wander the city with Gress, who was eager to see Lecca and Juvre after weeks separated. His daughter had loved the idea of staying on “the human planet,” so we were heading to a hotel room where his ex-wife had planned a faceless handoff. The Krev hadn’t let me out of his sight since my abduction, because we’d yet to receive any leads on Mafani’s hideout. Where could that former black ops prick even be hiding, and why couldn’t Gress’ contact locate him? My exchange partner was worried the Resket would come back for me, and honestly, I shared those fears. I was jumpy and worried about going anywhere nobody had eyes on me.
It was a waiting game to see my persecutors get their comeuppance, and my patience was waning. General Radai was meticulous with his planning, instead of pressing our advantage before they’d have a chance to send another round of ships into our space. On the subject of lingering fears, when an armada twenty-thousand-strong burst in Tellus’ space, it had brought back memories of how the exterminator fleet had come to Earth. The greatest insult was that the bastards had figured out drones, most likely from studying my own species, so they weren’t pushovers we could use psychological warfare against anymore. Despite the advancements, the Consortium vanquished them; my faith was restored.
It’s cause for celebration. The scales—pun intended—are tipped in our favor. Now, it’s just a matter of waiting for the threefold decapitation strike to make the month-long journey; fighting a war across great distances will require patience. Persistence, some might say.
We hadn’t found too many hints in the wreckage, as the drone parts began to disintegrate almost as soon as their seams were undone. In my mind, there was no doubt they’d used our technology to some extent. Why worry about feckless crews when computers could do their dirty work? What we knew for certain was that their trails led back toward the Federation’s border, which left me wondering if our first strike didn’t need to include the Sivkits. This all started with their arrival, so they must be at the root of this conflict. Whatever General Radai might’ve thought, this proved that destroying their fleet was the right decision—who knew what kind of intel they might’ve gotten, if we spoke to them or allowed them any closer to our new home?
As much as I loved spending time with my Krev friend, perhaps the only person I’d ever felt close to, my heart was right in the thick of the war. No day wandering Tellus with Lecca could have a guarantee of safety, not until we convinced those Feddie bastards not to come knocking on our doors.
“I heard Quana was going on a tour of the caverns. She wanted to see how you lived; told Cherise it was insightful to witness a species’ conditions with your own eyes,” Gress said, as we ascended in the hotel elevator.
I tilted my head. “You two talked, voluntarily? Quana’s been less hostile since she was given the clearance to take Mafani out, but…”
“I overheard her talking with Cherise. Your Jaslip friend was interested in seeing the vault of your keepsakes from Earth. My guess is she likes the idea of making one for Esquo.”
“Jaslips had time to safeguard their artifacts, and plan the transition. I’m not sure what they’d need a vault for; they have more than fucking pictures and empty memories.”
The Krev looked at me with sad eyes, as the doors opened. “If we win this war, or are able to stop by Sol, maybe we could save a few artifacts. There has to be something, even if it’s at the bottom of the ocean, that we can save. I want to help, Taylor; my heart breaks for you and your people.”
“I know. I’m just fucked up, and I don’t know what I believe, other than that I don’t deserve you. Our history is me turning on you, doubting you, assaulting you.”
“You gave me a chance to get it right, like I couldn’t all those years ago. I’m going to save you as many times as it takes, even if it’s from yourself. You can’t push me away, or hide how you really feel.”
“How do I really feel, Gress?”
“I, um…you turned on me because you trusted me and were willing to be vulnerable. Because you care…we care deeply about each other. You express pain by blowing up, so you don’t have to admit it to yourself.”
“It’s not blowing up. I want to do something with my feelings.”
“There are other ways.”
That’s a nice statement from Captain Obvious, though he made it sound quite cryptic. Is there something more he’s not saying?
Gress steered me down the hallway, as I continued on in silence. We unlocked the door to Lecca’s room, and my leg was immediately latched onto by the little Krev. Her claws tore the fabric of my jeans, which caused her father to wince. The kid didn’t notice at all, instead bouncing up and down with excitement. Juvre crawled back into his cage, and began shaking it from the inside; of course the obor was acting possessed at the mere sight of me. He was basically a Fed. If it hadn’t been for how distraught Gress told me he was putting his first obor down, I’d suggest he give this primate some night-night syrup. There were better pets out there.
“Daddy, Daddy!” Lecca finally released me, diving on top of her father’s tail. Who made her so hyper? “Tell me something cute about the humans.”
Gress cast a sly glance at me. “Let’s see. Their celebrities walked down red carpets at big events, and pranced right on down the ‘fancy’ color strip.”
“I wanna see! If I make one for Taylor, can he walk down it? He has to show me!”
“Taylor would love to, wouldn’t he?”
“Absolutely not,” I protested. “What next, do I have to get petted by you?”
“You don’t have to, but…I figured out a way that humans will pay me to pet them. I hear you like massages: if I ran a massage parlor on Tellus, work would just be petting humans for hours. Might go for it after the war.”
“You can’t be serious, Gress.”
“That sounds like a great job, Daddy!” Lecca cheered. “That’s what I wanna do. I can’t believe we used to be scared of them; they’re so squishy, and adorable.”
“Yeah, I think I’m done with that conversation. Call me back when you figure out where Lecca wants to go. I’ll occupy myself snooping through your things.”
Juvre poked his head out of the cage as I ambled away, baring his teeth while on all fours. I found myself imagining the obor painted in clown makeup; perhaps I could persuade Gress’ daughter to do that to him, not knowing the true meaning. I rolled my hands into fists, faked a sad expression, then flapped them around near my eyes in mock crying. The primate made the motions of lunging at me, and I leapt away with a hint of fright. My friend’s worthless pet settled back on his haunches, and snickered in his shrieking register.
Demon. Diabolical little shit; I’m gonna rattle his cage in the middle of the night, right when he’s sleeping.
I took a closer look around the hotel, checking out the accommodations that visitors to Tellus would have; we had more guests on our world than ark settlers. The obor backpack Gress mentioned was sitting out on the couch, revealing a popup book about us for kids. I tugged the print media out, but was too lazy to get a visual translator to read the simplistic words. One picture showed a human kid playing on a swing set, and the child appeared on the next slide wearing a triangular hat and blowing out birthday candles. I turned the page, finding images of jump rope and hopscotch.
My hands slammed the book shut, feeling a bit deflated. We’d never done those kinds of things when I was a child in the caverns; our circumstances robbed me of almost every fun experience I could’ve had. I supposed this hardcover was about how human kids played, so that sated my curiosity. Perhaps it would’ve been better if I hadn’t been reminded about certain parts of our culture that I missed out on. Then again, it was never too late to start playing around and having fun, right? Something on the floor caught my eye; I reached my hand beneath the couch, pulling out some kind of puzzle cube.
“Well, what do we have here?” I picked up a four-sided figure with a few movable L-shapes fitted on the outside. Noticing a faint aroma, I brought it to my nose; it smelled fruity, and I wondered if this was some inverse, puzzle version of a Ring Pop. I shook it, feeling and hearing something inside. “Gotcha. Let’s see how to get this open…it’s like a Rubik’s Cube with an actual incentive.”
I rotated the L pieces enough to free one side, working to shift the square underneath into an upper layer. Getting parts of the cube to flip into an outer shell was easy, but the gaps were only big enough to jam my pinky into; it made a bit of a lattice pattern. I tried attacking it from two sides, freeing part of each surface—the contraption still defied me. Growling in frustration, I placed it between my feet and tried to tug it open. The commotion drew Gress and Lecca over to see what I was up to, and my Krev friend immediately morphed into a melty face. He caught himself, eyes shifting back and forth in a conflicted dance.
Stupid thing. I can’t get it open. This is a time waster: you’d have to be Einsteinian to solve it.
“Um, Taylor?” Gress ventured. “I…it’s natural and totally okay, of course, if you would share interests with other primates, but, well…that’s one of Juvre’s toys.”
I threw the cube away like a hot potato, bringing about a collision with the obor’s cage. “It just looked fun. Like a Rubik’s Cube, but it’s not solvable. Shit, I didn’t know. Only Juvre would be stupid enough to keep working on this; it’s a hamster wheel, man.”
The red-furred obor chittered, picking up the unsolvable puzzle. Juvre began unscrewing the pieces, moving certain blocks upward in various intervals. The primate seemed to be making tangible progress on it, and tinkered with it in silent focus. He screeched happily as he made an incision wide enough to squeeze his hand through. The monkey-like creature waved a red, powdery substance in the air, likely the source of the sugary scent; Gress called out, “Good obor!” There was a triumphant glint in the animal’s binocular eyes, as I gestured to him in indignant outrage; he popped the cookie in his mouth, crunching it in his molars.
“That’s not fair!” I shouted. “The bastard critter cheated. How come Juvre could get it open like nothing? He knows some trick, or gimmick you trained him in. He’s mocking me, chomping away at his treat like he earned it. Circus animal. Food thief gremlin!”
“I…uhhh...” Gress seemed at a loss for words; his tongue hung out of his mouth, twitching. “I can give you an obor treat too?”
“What? I don’t want pet food. Who knows what Krev put in that: you guys eat literal rocks.”
“Because we don’t have teeth. This would be perfectly edible, if that’s what you worried about. I don’t want you feeling, um, left out. There’s enough to go around, and it’s not a competition.”
“If it’s a competition, Juvre would’ve won,” Lecca said unhelpfully.
I scowled at the child. “Did your father teach you to lie? I did most of the hard work for the damn obor. He took what I already did.”
“Which is what exactly?”
“You little—”
Gress retrieved a treat bag from the kitchen, jingling it at me. “Will one of these make you stop arguing with my daughter?”
Juvre curled his lips upward, taunting me as he scooped crumbs off the floor.
“Fine. Give me one, just so that no-good obor can watch me eat it. Show him his place,” I huffed.
Gress’ eyes lit up, though he quickly attempted to mask his happiness. The Krev placed one of the cookies in my palm, and I held it up with suspicion. Maybe I should’ve asked if they’d crushed any dried insects in with the fruit paste, since I knew that was what they fed Juvre quite often. However, not wanting the pet to relish his feeling of superiority, I popped the treat into my mouth while staring right at him. My immediate instinct was to brace myself for a retching sensation, trying to hide my disgust. However, I wasn’t expecting it to taste fucking amazing. It was lighter than flour, singing with the juicy flavors of fruit snacks, then full of sodium in the center, reminding me of salted caramel.
“Shit,” I managed through a mouthful of food, raising my eyebrows at the Krev. “That’s…actually pretty good.”
Lecca stomped her foot, pouting. “Why don’t I get to give Taylor a treat, Daddy? You have all the fun!”
“Well…you can if he wants more, I guess. Just don’t throw it on the floor; hand it to him,” Gress ordered.
I searched for a glass of water, before holding out my palm. “If you want something to hand out at Halloween, this would definitely do. Maybe keep what they are on the down low.”
The Krev kid pranced over to me, carrying the bag. “So you want one?”
“Unfortunately for my little remaining self-respect, yes.”
“Okay then. Taylor, sit!”
I gaped at her. “The fuck did you just say?”
Gress wagged a scolding claw. “Lecca! How would you feel, being given commands like an animal?”
“I get told, ‘do your homework,’ take a bath,’ ‘go to bed’ as my whole life. At least he’ll get something for listening.”
“It’s not acceptable to treat my friend—a sapient being who I care about and respect very much—like Juvre.”
“You don’t care about or respect Juvre?”
“That’s not what I meant. I’m saying Taylor is capable of understanding much more than sit—as are you. Juvre couldn’t understand the concept of ‘do your homework,’ no matter the training he gets. Taylor can. It’s demeaning to the humans, and not how you treat someone as an equal, a friend.”
“I just wanna take care of them and be nice. I know he can talk, but look at him!”
“Lecca, what if there was someone out there who thought the same about Krev? Is it fair to disregard everything else about them?” Gress looked flustered, but walked over to me, placing a paw on my shoulder. “To another set of species, Taylor is a terrifying monster. He lost everyone he had in this universe, because they didn’t care about who he was—only what he was. How we treat people shouldn’t—must not be—based on how they look to us.”
I lowered my head. “Your father is right. I’m a primate, but I don’t want to be some caged animal that does tricks. I was that back in the cavern, going up to follow someone else’s commands. It hurt a part of my soul. Please don’t think of me as a pet. That’s not being nice.”
Lecca sighed, before setting the treat bag down. “I’m sorry. I don’t wanna hurt you, Taylor. Is it…mean that I think you’re reeeeeeally adorable?”
“No. It’s a welcome change after being treated like a monster that didn’t deserve to live, and having people cower at the mere sight of us.”
“Those aliens’ eyes are broken! I just wanted to see what you looked like sitting down, or rolling over.”
“You could’ve asked. I don’t need a treat. It’s enough to make you happy, as long as you don’t treat me like some object to gawk at.”
“Okay. Could you please sit on the floor? I like watching humans just walk around and do simple stuff, so it’d be cool…and I think everything you do is adorable, if that’s a reason?”
I chuckled. “Fine. After that, would you like to go to the playground with the human kids? I saw you liked swing sets, hopscotch, and some other things; if your dad is okay with it, maybe you could try it in real life.”
“Really? Yes! Please, Daddy, can we—can we?”
“Okay, but you’re going to be very careful on the swings. I don’t want you falling off,” Gress responded.
“Yay! Quick, Taylor, sit down so we can go to the playground! I wanna go right now…um, I mean, please do that because it’d be nice and I’m so excited!”
Deciding to humor Lecca since she was at least trying to make it a request, I flopped down on the floor. I didn’t think much about how I situated myself, bending my legs and placing one foot beneath each knee: the familiar diamond shape shown by children in a reading circle in an elementary school classroom. Gress’ expression changed to the annoying one, which meant I’d inadvertently done something cute to him; Lecca rushed to take a picture, and I made no attempt to stop her. The Krev child squealed, flailing her claws around in excitement at my mundane behavior.
Well, this is a new way to make a kid’s day. By…let me check my notes…sitting cross-legged on the ground.
“Is that a normal way that humans sit? Your legs are all folded up and overlapping,” Gress gushed. “And your feet are like little pedestals for your knees; it’d be even cuter if I could see your wiggly toes!”
I facepalmed, standing up in a hurry. “There’s nothing special about this. You can’t be serious. It’s called criss-cross applesauce.”
“Aw, even the name is the cutest thing. I heard that rhyme…and it mentions fruit mash, if ‘applesauce’ translated. I can imagine it smeared all over your face, replacing that fur you shave away, where you coat your chin in that white foam. That made you look more babyish and harmless! I can’t.”
“You’re horrible; and how can you say I’m harmless one sentence, then go ‘primates are violent’ in the next? You know I’m not harmless, because I literally whacked you over the head.”
“I don’t put continuity between one thought and the next, because I’ll think whatever is necessary to make you precious and pettable! You can’t stop me.”
“Precious? Nope, I can and will stop you; I’ll look really sad if you use that to describe me again. I know how to hurt you.”
“But I can hug you if you look sad.”
I scoffed. “Playground. Now.”
The Krev coaxed his daughter out of the hotel room, and I thought to myself that there were worse ways to be spending this limbo, waiting for news on Mafani and the Federation. Human kids playing together with aliens hadn’t been in my wildest imagination four months ago, but now, I could watch other children have the fun times that I never experienced. That was a reason to press on and keep fighting. It was wonderful to have people in my life who cared about me, no matter what happened, and who could explore the new and improved Tellus with me.
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Husband left after finding my books on alcoholism
Sorry for the long post
my husband and I have been Rocky for the last year. We’ve been together more then half of our lives. (25 years we are both in our 50s and first and only marriages for both of us). He was always a drinker from the time we met but I attributed that to being young. We had kids and although he didn’t drink many days in a month when the kids came along, when he did drink it always caused some kind of chaos (ie… drunk driving, bad behaviour, drunk tank, belligerent, responsibilities ignored). It’s just not pleasant when he’s drunk. He slurs his words, stumbles when he walks, seems to go into a trance, it’s just ugly to witness quite frankly.
FF covid. We lost a lot of weight dieting together during covid. He started drinking non alcoholic beers and switching between “lite” beers. I enjoyed covid as I’m an introvert and it kept my Q at home. He seeemed happy too. Then slowly life got back to normal.
He was introduced to a new batch of friends who spend a lot of time drinking at bars. Every night of the week one of the friends is texting their group chat to see “who’s free?” My Q seems to have FOMO as he says “I’m free”. And would go and then once that friend had to go home he’d go down the list of drinking buddies until he found someone who could continue the social stupor.
This went from 4 hours to 8 hours to almost all day drinking 3 or more times a week. For me it was out of control and I was so lonely at nights especially. He came home hammered every time he went out. EVERY TIME. I don’t really drink and to go to a bar for 12 hours isn’t something I want to do day in and day out… and he would say “staying home and watching tv isn’t what I want to do day in and day out”. It never seemed to bother him before.
It feels I guess like we grew apart. If he came home from the bar at a decent hour he’d fall asleep on the couch drunk, still leaving me feeling alone. Then I’d wake up at 3am to him watching shows on his iPad without me and it hurt… like why were you watching shows alone? Do you just not want to be with me anymore? He always denied that and told me he loved me.
We’ve had quite a few bad fights lately. And he’s left twice for a few days. But comes back. We would text and talk. This last time he came back about February, he had just returned and he went to get something from my dresser. I had bought a few books on living with an alcoholic one called “the alcoholic husband primer” and I didn’t put it away because he hadn’t been home, and he saw it.
At this time we also started marriage counselling. He was desperate to get his family back he said. I could feel the desperation but he still continued going to the bar with his friends almost uncontrollably.
Also when he came back I pushed him to go get naltrexone a medication to help reduce drinking. I was trying not to scare him into all or nothing, I was trying to encourage limiting behaviour. His friends all have a shut off valve. I wanted him to have one too. He went and got the prescription. Took it once and the next day he yelled at me that he would never ever take medication like that again and stop trying to control him.
So ff to 9 days ago, he’s left again saying “I’m a drunk even your books say so. And I’m not taking any pills. I am who I am! No one wants me here. I love you but I don’t love you the same. Go be with someone who can make you happy it’s not me. I need to find my happiness.” And he left. He doesn’t reach out.
I am sad today. I feel like I screwed up and pushed too hard… does he really not love me anymore or is it the alcohol talking for him? I wonder if he’s been unfaithful with this back and forth the last couple of months. My friend says even if he was the alcohol is the problem. I know you’re going to say good riddance . I’m just not there yet so please don’t say that it’s not helpful.
Thoughts?