This week's book club list is as follows (enjoy reading and comment which your favourite is below):
​

1. Nelson: Love and Fame by Mr. Edgar Vincent: Legendary for his exploits in war and love, Admiral Horatio Nelson comes into clear view in this captivating new biography. “This is a wonderful book, the best modern biography of Britain’s greatest admiral.” —John Keegan, Daily Telegraph “A great biography and a poignant love story.”—Benjamin Schwarz, Atlantic Monthly “A masterly biography, cool and sharp in long shots, intimately persuasive in close focus, at all times difficult to put down and as timely as it is suggestive in its implications.” —Hilary Spurling, New York Times Book Review “A splendid biography, not only because it is well written and well researched, but also because it neither seeks to demean the hero nor excuse the man. Heroism becomes the more remarkable when it is shown by people who in other ways are very like ourselves.” —L. G. Mitchell, Times Literary Supplement “Vincent has written a masterful biography of a military man that examines the nuts and bolts of leadership in an entertaining and compelling way. If you only read one biography of Nelson among the hundreds available, it should be this one.”—Paul Carbray, The Gazette (Montreal, Quebec) • Named one of Atlantic Monthly’s Books of the Year • A New York Times Notable Book of the Year Since his retirement as a senior manager from ICI, Edgar Vincent has been researching and writing about Horatio Nelson.
2. Buddha's Brain: The Practical Neuroscience of Happiness, Love, and Wisdom by Rick Hanson: Jesus, Moses, the Buddha, and other great teachers were born with brains built essentially like anyone else's. Then they used their minds to change their brains in ways that changed history. With the new breakthroughs in neuroscience, combined with the insights from thousands of years of contemplative practice, you, too, can shape your own brain for greater happiness, love, and wisdom. Buddha's Brain joins the forces of modern science with ancient teachings to show readers how to have greater emotional balance in turbulent times, as well as healthier relationships, more effective actions, and a deeper religious or spiritual practice. Well-referenced and grounded in science, the book is full of practical tools and skills readers can use in daily life to tap the unused potential of the brain and rewire it over time for greater peace and well-being. If you can change your brain, you can change your life.
3. Live in a Better Way: Reflections on Truth, Love, and Happiness by Dalai Lama: Imbued with a friendly tone and pithy wisdom, this handsome handbook to approaching life "in a better way" includes six of His Holiness The Dalai Lama's most accessible and inspirational public lectures. Following each talk are the original question-and-answer sessions in which His Holiness opens himself up to his listeners and-now-to readers everywhere. His characteristically candid guidance on living fully and responsibly, especially at the start of a new millennium, focuses on specific themes that range from religious tolerance to compassion and nonviolence. The book also includes a practical and highly readable introduction to Buddhism and The Dalai Lama's own spiritual heritage, written by the renowned Lama Thubten Zopa Rinpoche.
4. The Love Playbook: Rules for Love, Sex, and Happiness by La La Anthony, Karen Hunter: Star of VH1’s La La’s Full Court Life, actress, entrepreneur, and wife of New York Knick’s star Carmelo Anthony, La La Anthony found love and success on her own terms. But before La La was a strong woman balancing a growing career, a high-profile marriage, and motherhood, she suffered through bad dates, tumultuous relationships, and backstabbing friends. She learned the hard way how to rise above it all to live the life she loves. And now, for the first time, she channels her most rewarding and challenging lessons into a personal playbook, providing empowering, go-to advice for healthy relationships and a happy life.
5. Absolute Tao. Subtle is the Way to Love, Happiness and Truth by Osho,Osho International Foundation: Moving beyond the usual interpretations of this classic Chinese text — that of using it as an indicator of what to do next or attempting to predict the future — Osho is using the Tao Te Ching as Lao Tzu intended: to ignite the flame of individual awareness and insight. His commentaries on these seven verses burn through every idea we may hold about ourselves until we can see with the same crystal clear light as Lao Tzu.
6. Beyond Willpower: The Secret Principle to Achieving Success in Life, Love, and Happiness by Alexander Loyd PhD. ND: Did you know that most self-help programs that follow the standard success blueprint have a 97% failure rate? The truth is that the typical personal improvement mantra of tapping into your willpower and activating the power of positive thinking is actually a recipe for failure. In Beyond Willpower, bestselling author and psychological counselor Alexander Loyd, PhD, ND, reveals a unique, highly effective program to help you finally achieve the life you want and the success you deserve. Science has proven that stress, or internal fear, is the primary source of virtually any problem we encounter– physical, spiritual, emotional, and even circumstantial. New research has shown that fear is literally programmed into us at the cellular level, which is why most of us are unable to turn off our stress response by willpower alone. For the first time, this book teaches you how to change your cellular programming from fear to love, triggering a natural chemical chain reaction that fuels you for your best success. Rooted in science, ancient wisdom, and proven therapeutic techniques to remove personal obstacles that sabotage us, Beyond Willpower offers a revolutionary 40-day holistic program based on more than 25 years of clinical experience. With this program you will identify and clarify what fundamentally defines success for you. Then you’ll receive the three simple tools you need to internally shift from fear to love physically (using the Energy Medicine tool), mentally (using the Reprogramming Statements tool), and spiritually (using the Heart Screen tool). You'll also have free access to the unprecedented "Success Issues Finder" test, which accurately diagnoses your unconscious and subconscious issues related to success and failure, happiness and unhappiness. No matter how you define success – as wealth, career satisfaction, healing of health issues, or resolution of relationship problems –Beyond Willpower will help you achieve it once and for all, quickly and for the long term.
7. Get the Life You Love, Now: How To Use The Lightning Process® Tool Kit For Happiness And Fullfilment by Phil Parker: This book combines new thinking, cutting edge neuroscience, humour and Phil Parker's upside-down perspective to life's problems and their solutions to help you become happy and fulfilled. This book helps you to learn how to: use the power of language to release 'stuckness' and create change; recognize and interrupt negative thought patterns to change the way your brain works; develop awareness of exactly what you need to do differently, so that you can become your own coach; choose a new future; and make sure that it happens! Based on two decades of research and Phil's world-changing Lightning Process[registered], Get the Life You Love, Now takes you step-by-step on an amazing journey of self-discovery unlike anything you've ever experienced before.
8. Do What You Love: And Other Lies About Success and Happiness by Miya Tokumitsu: The American claim that we should love and be passionate about our job may sound uplifting, or at least, harmless, but Do What You Love exposes the tangible damages such rhetoric has leveled upon contemporary society. Do you love what you do? This mantra is so often repeated that it has become part of the American ethos. Find a career that you’re passionate about. Work hard and maintain a good attitude, be persistent, and all good things will come to you: wealth (or at least material comfort), job satisfaction, a sense of self-worth, and the happiness that comes from achieving success in a profession that you have chosen and find fulfilling. Except, as this penetrating, fact-filled book reveals, most of these ideas are lies, and have been co-opted by corporate interests as a way to pay their employees as little as possible, and to strip away the hard-won benefits and protections that wage earners used to enjoy. After all, if you truly love what you do, pedestrian concerns about salary, health care, and retirement savings can take a back seat. Passion and devotion are what matter. Therefore, unpaid internships abound (they’re opportunities!), full-time positions are being replaced by freelance and contract work (it’s flexible!), and the amount of debt that one has to incur even to get in the game can be crippling. Both a rallying cry for a disempowered workforce to reclaim its footing on the economic ladder, and an eye-opening exposé of the ways that “doing what you love” can actually make your goals less achievable, this compact, insightful, and brilliantly argued call-to-arms might just spark a much-needed workplace revolution.
9. Happiness: Reaching your True Potential by doing what you Love: Dreams, Success, and Self-Esteem by Jackson, Joanna: This book is excellent for you if you wish to Unlock Your Happiness and Discover Your Dreams.
10. The Emotion Code: How to Release Your Trapped Emotions for Abundant Health, Love, and Happiness (Updated and Expanded Edition) by Bradley Nelson: "I believe that the discoveries in this book can change our understanding of how we store emotional experiences and in so doing, change our lives.The Emotion Code has already changed many lives around the world, and it is my hope that millions more will be led to use this simple tool to heal themselves and their loved ones."—Tony Robbins. In this newly revised and expanded edition of The Emotion Code, renowned holistic physician and lecturer Dr. Bradley Nelson skillfully lays bare the inner workings of the subconscious mind. He reveals how emotionally-charged events from your past can still be haunting you in the form of "trapped emotions"—emotional energies that literally inhabit your body. These trapped emotions can fester in your life and body, creating pain, malfunction, and eventual disease. They can also extract a heavy mental and emotional toll on you, impacting how you think, the choices that you make, and the level of success and abundance you are able to achieve. Perhaps most damaging of all, trapped emotional energies can gather around your heart, cutting off your ability to give and receive love. The Emotion Code is a powerful and simple way to rid yourself of this unseen baggage. Dr. Nelson’s method gives you the tools to identify and release the trapped emotions in your life, eliminating your “emotional baggage,” and opening your heart and body to the positive energies of the world. Filled with real-world examples from many years of clinical practice,The Emotion Code is a distinct and authoritative work that has become a classic on self-healing.

So, which one are you picking up next or have read? Let us know with a comment and upvote and share this post and our sub bodychemistry to stay tuned for more reading lists every week!
Love, marmalada

Just prepping for the Gameplay reveal later.

• 24-second Sneak Peek.
  
• Dragon Age: The Veilguard (will just call it DAV) will release in Fall 2024. Not sure if it'll be a specific September, October, November, or even December.
  
• Two companions will be with us when traveling, but possible obligatory third members can join during specific quests (like how Varric is in the 24-second sneak peek).
  
• Schedule of Dragon Age Stuff // June 18 will include a 12-page Game Informer cover story.
  
• Gameplay reveal later will cover 20 minutes rather than the original 15 minutes. No sneak peek of character creation, but maybe someday. Later, will most likely explore the facial animations, too.
  
• The Inquisitor will be back and customizable; so most likely expect American and British female/male VAs back. We will also get to "make some key decisions that will impact how the Veilguard begins."
  
• Six Factions to start as an Origin: Grey Warden, Antivan Crows, Shadow Dragons, possibly Mourn Watch, Lords of Fortune, and Veil Jumpers // Not sure if it we will have a unique prologue like in DA:O (possible implication from these official art) or if we will have a DA:I/BG3-like "Origin" where different NPCs react to our protagonist differently + Exclusive dialogue choices and quests.
  
• Character Creation, we can play as different races: Human, Elf, Qunari, and Dwarf and possible long hair options.
  
• Companions are 2 elves (Bellara and Davrin), 1 Qunari (Taash), 1 Dwarf (Harding), 3 Humans (Neve, Lucanis, Emmerich). Additional companions are Manfred, Emmerich's skeleton assistant and Assan, Davrin's baby Griffon. EA Press delves into the deeper specifics of each companion: https://news.ea.com/press-releases/press-releases-details/2024/Unite-a-Team-of-Heroes-to-Defeat-Rampaging-Elven-Gods-in-Dragon-Age-The-Veilguard-Arriving-in-Fall-2024/
  
• It's still a speculation that all companions are romanceable by any RP Origin. Confirmed are: Lucanis can be romanced by a female Qunari, while Bellara can be romanced by a female elf. )Scout Harding is a confirmed romance companion, but still unsure whether gender-locked or race-locked.*
  
• Companion armours can be changed.
  
• No micro-transactions.
  
• *Interjecting for third to the last previous bullet point, but gamer articles about romance were made from Bioware GM Gary McKay's single comment during the IGN interview. The statement is specifically "you can romance the companions you want," but imo it doesn't reveal anything yet. Initially, this same article was the same post that mentioned "Bioware confirmed" to have seven playable companions but was spontaneously changed to omit the "playable" adjective and added a comment stating that the story 'has been updated with additional clarification on the role that companions play in battle.' If journalist news are fickle to these spontaneous changes for their supposed "confirmed" article, then I think it's better to rely on the game devs and test players' literal insider-info.*
  

Environment In-Game Screenshots:

• Minrathous, Tevinter Capital
  
• Possible Deep Roads snapshot; Confirmed Deep Roads venture in DAV. See also: https://x.com/hrungry/status/1800346892972544477?s=46
  
• Some Tavern
  
• Possibly Nevarra? Not sure.
  
• Docktown, home of Neve
  
• All companions chilling
  

Brewing gameplay questions until we get more reveals and previews:

• Will the Dragon Age Keep *introduce new tiles* to import to DAV? Most likely we'll still be using the Keep to import our saves to DAV, but it's possible they might do a direct transfer from DAI to DAV. The Grey Wardens in DA:O Awakening are still a missing closure, along with some DAI War Table Missions like Protect Clan Lavellan, Varric's Book problem, and maintaining the high morale of Grey Wardens (when the Inqusition allies with them).
  
• Will there be advisors like Cullen, Josy, and Leliana? Maybe Varric can be romanceable as an advisor?
  
• Will the approval system be similar to DAI (no gifts required) or to DA2/DA:O with specific gifts to learn more about them (?)
  
• Confirmation of returning companions from DA:O-DA2? A quick "yes" would already turn the tables.
  
• Can we craft weapons/armor like in DAI? Will there be armour restrictions like in DAI (Qunari vs non-qunari armour).
  
• Will there be a "pseudo-timed" quest like in Mass Effect with Tuchanka/Ranoch quests? Will there be another War Table equivalent? Will there be locked quests like Before The Dawn is not done before What Pride Had Wrought in DAI?
  
• Will there be a Bard specialization? IDK might be fun to sing your heart out while you stab in stealth. Will there be stealth missions where we can actually perform stealth?
  
• Enchantment? (will our boy Sandal be back?).
  

Unless all of these things will be covered in Gamer Informer's cover story, then phew. It's been an adventurous past few days!

Since October 7th last year, the conflict between Israel and Palestine has ravaged the Gaza Strip, according to relevant United Nations agencies, this conflict has resulted in the unfortunate deaths of more than 15,000 children. These children lost their lives in the flames of war, their deaths not only caused grief to their families but also brought a heavy psychological burden to the entire community.
According to a statement by the United Nations, most children have experienced severe psychological trauma during the conflict, and their health has deteriorated. These innocent lives were taken away, they were unable to fulfill their mission in this world, which may lead to resentment and unrest. Some may become wandering spirits seeking revenge, and many more may be unable to rest peacefully.
In order to give these departed lives more respect and blessings, some Taoist organizations and individuals have launched the "Palestinian Children's Superde Day" event. The event is scheduled to be held in mid-July at the main venue in Shenzhen and simultaneously at multiple Taoist temples to conduct superde rituals for children and women who lost their lives in the Israel-Palestine conflict.
In an interview with the BBC, a representative of Taoers.com stated: "Superde is not only to give the departed souls peace, but also the responsibility and mission of us Taoist practitioners. We hope that through this event, we can bring some comfort to the children and women who lost their lives in the conflict, and also convey our respect and condolences to the world."
At the same time, the organizers of this event called on the global community to pay attention to this incident and invited volunteers to participate in superde rituals or provide support. More information about the event can be found on the taoers.com official website or by contacting [service@taoers.com]().
The hosting of this "War Orphan Superde Day" event will be an important initiative of the international community to pay attention to and console the victims of the Israel-Palestine conflict. It is not only a respect for the departed lives but also a call for peace and humanitarianism.

"What distinguished the Indian system from that of the ancient Western world is the absence of slavery. The caste system made formal slavery unnecessary in ancient India." - from The Two Classes of the Four-Fold Caste System, by Sudheer Birodkar.

In Nikken's Threefold World, which is "the world of unenlightened beings who transmigrate within the Six Paths" ** [Hell, Hunger, Animality, Anger, Humanity and Heaven] ... the 3rd chapter describes the structure of Nikken's World of Animality.

Table of Contents

1. Notable Purges In History
2. Stalin And The Moscow Trials
3. The Wider Purge
4. The Purge You Didn't Notice
5. Obayashi As First Kulak
6. Definition of Animality (Chikusho)
7. Getting Some Help
8. The Survivor Gita

1. Notable Purges In History

From the Wikipedia ... (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Purge)
In the era of Republican Rome, Marius proscribed Sullan supporters after he and Cinna ousted Cnaeus Octavius; Sulla followed with even more brutal proscriptions against Marian supporters when he came into the dictatorship. The Second Triumvirate instituted more proscriptions some forty years afterward after taking control of Rome from Caesar's murderers.
The earliest use of the term itself was the English Civil War's Pride's Purge. In 1648, the moderate members of the English Long Parliament were purged by the army. Parliament would suffer subsequent purges under the Commonwealth including the purge of the entire House of Lords. Counter- revolutionaries such as royalists were purged as well as more radical revolutionaries such as the Levellers. After the Restoration, obstinate republicans were purged while some fled to New England.
The French Revolution saw revolutionary factions purging each other. The most famous purge was Robespierre's Terror which ended with him being purged as well. After the fall of Napoleon, all those associated with revolutionary activity were purged.
Purges are often associated with the Stalinist and Maoist regimes. Those who were purged (among them artists, scientists, teachers, people in the military, but also many long-time communists who dared to disagree with the party leadership) were sent to labor camps or executed. The most notorious purge was the Great Purge initiated by Joseph Stalin during the 1930s. Deng Xiaoping was known for the distinction of returning to power multiple times after surviving multiple purges.
The Nazis also engaged in purges, most notably in the Night of the Long Knives (1934) and the mass reprisals against Adolf Hitler's opponents following the July Plot (1944).
Of these kinds of purges, the purge most likely surrounding a shaky succession [like the hand-off of the imaginary Transfer Box, between Nikken Abe 67th and Nichinyo/Gikan Hayase 68th] ... is the Stalinist Purge.

2. Stalin And The Moscow Trials

From the Wikipedia ... (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great\_Purge)

Between 1936 and 1938 three Moscow Trials of former senior Communist Party leaders were held. The defendants were accused of conspiring with the western powers to assassinate Stalin and other Soviet leaders, dismember the Soviet Union and restore capitalism.

Thus, accusations of dealings with the Soka Gakkai or the Reform Priests, whether true or not, become sufficient proof to render one of the priests, vulnerable to a purge.

The first trial was of 16 members of the so-called "Trotskyite-Zinovievite Terrorist Centre," held in August 1936, at which the chief defendants were Grigory Zinoviev and Lev Kamenev, two of the most prominent former party leaders. All were sentenced to death and executed.

The accusations of misconduct are immaterial. The clearing out of opposition to the changes being brought about in the next stage, which is the consolidation of power, will affect anyone who is not a complete and utter minion of the power elite.

The second trial in January 1937 involved 17 lesser figures including Karl Radek, Yuri Piatakov and Grigory Sokolnikov. Thirteen defendants were shot, the remainder received terms of imprisonment in labor camps where they soon died.
The third trial, in March 1938, included 21 defendants alleged to belong to the so-called "Bloc of Rightists and Trotskyites," led by Nikolai Bukharin, former head of the Communist International, former Prime Minister Alexei Rykov, Christian Rakovsky, Nikolai Krestinsky and Yagoda. All the leading defendants were executed.
There was also a secret trial before a military tribunal of a group of Red Army generals, including Mikhail Tukhachevsky, in June 1937.
Some Western observers who attended the trials said that they were fair and that the guilt of the accused had been established. They based this assessment on the confessions of the accused, which were freely given in open court, without any apparent evidence that they had been extracted by torture or drugging.
The British lawyer and MP Denis Pritt, for example, wrote: "Once again the more faint-hearted socialists are beset with doubts and anxieties," but "once again we can feel confident that when the smoke has rolled away from the battlefield of controversy it will be realized that the charge was true, the confessions correct and the prosecution fairly conducted."
It is now known that the confessions were given only after great psychological pressure had been applied to the defendants. From the accounts of former OGPU officer Alexander Orlov and others the methods used to extract the confessions are known: repeated beatings, torture, making prisoners stand or go without sleep for days on end, and threats to arrest and execute the prisoners' families. For example, Kamenev's teenage son was arrested and charged with terrorism. After months of such interrogation, the defendants were driven to despair and exhaustion.

Once the political enemies are finished off, the sense of relief in everyone else who is a "Survivor" is palpable.
This relief is short-lived, however. The worst has not yet begun.

3. The Wider Purge

Eventually almost all of the Bolsheviks who had played prominent roles during the Russian Revolution of 1917, or in Lenin's Soviet government afterwards, were executed. Out of six members of the original Politburo during the 1917 October Revolution who lived until the Great Purge, Stalin himself was the only one who survived. Four of the other five were executed. The fifth, Leon Trotsky, went into exile in Mexico after being expelled from the Party but was murdered by a Soviet agent in 1940. Of the seven members elected to the Politburo between the October Revolution and Lenin's death in 1924, four were executed, one (Tomsky) committed suicide and two (Molotov and Kalinin) lived. Of 1,966 delegates to the 17th Communist Party congress in 1934 (the last congress before the trials), 1,108 were arrested and nearly all died.
The trials and executions of the former Bolshevik leaders were, however, only a minor part of the purges ...
While kulaks were "liquidated as class", on July 30, 1937 the NKVD Order no. 00447 was issued, directed against "ex-kulaks" and "kulak helpers", among other anti-Soviet elements, see NKVD troika. This order was notable in several respects, becoming a blueprint for a number of other actions of NKVD targeting specific categories of people.

The Kulak's worst crime was of being competent in commerce. Their ability to do commerce on the local level was the possible seed for a counter-revolution. Therefore, they had to go.

A series of national operations of the NKVD was carried out during 1937-1940, justified by the fear of the fifth column in the expectation of war with "the most probable adversary", i.e., Germany, as well as according to the notion of the "hostile capitalist surrounding", which wants to destabilize the country. Polish operation of the NKVD was the first of this kind, setting an example of dealing with other targeted minorities. Many such operations were conducted on a quota system. NKVD local officials were mandated to arrest and execute a specific number of "counter-revolutionaries," produced by upper officials based on various statistics. .

So, in the end, the thing that threatens an incompetent elite that wields power ... is any competent sub-group that does not.
And a competent sub-group that can be crushed, MUST be crushed. The drive to crush the potential threat is overwhelming. Any vehicle will do, and most likely the one that does the job finally, is only the last in a series of failed attempts. And that ultimate successful subjugation is done with a vengeance.

4. The Purge You Didn't Notice

There was a purge done in Nichiren Shoshu that you may have only partly noticed.
Of course, there was the embarrassing growth and success of the competent Soka Gakkai, that showed the Nichiren Shoshu Priesthood for the negligent and lazy parasites that they were. Then, specious charges were flung at President Ikeda, which didn't do it at first, then later something stuck well enough, and the Soka Gakkai was purged completely in the hope that some would submit, but the numbers of cowards and traitors to the Law itself, were too small. Those purges were ineffectual because of the strength and core determination of the membership to do Kosen Rufu.
But that's not the purge that I'm talking about.
The purge that I'm talking about was completely effective and was done IN PLAIN SIGHT, but went unrecognized for what it was.
Only now, in the light of the story of the missing Transfer Box, which is the heritage of the High Priest of Nichiren Shoshu, is it possible to understand the methods and purpose of the seemingly insane actions of Nikken Abe, the 67th High Priest of Nichiren Shoshu.
Now, for the first time, the truth can be seen for what it is !!!
Only the Transfer Box could give Nikken an unchallengable hold on the past, present and the future of the Nichiren Shoshu Priesthood. Without it, his hold would remain tenuous, and his legacy of control, insecure.
In the prologue to the book "The Self-Appointed High Priest", is recorded only the FIRST effort to retrieve the Transfer Box by the false High Priest two days after the death of the previous High Priest Nittatsu, by attempting to extract it from Nittatsu's family in the person of his son-in-law Sugano.
After that failure to retrieve the Transfer Box, and in a pattern of terrorist actions that only the mind of Nikken Abe and the Al Qaeda commander of Iraq, Zarqawi, could understand ... the legacy of Nittatsu Shonin the 66th High Priest of Nichiren Shoshu was destroyed, piece by piece, until the last and greatest piece, the Sho Hondo, was the last remaining hostage that Nikken Abe held a knife to the throat of. True to his brother Zarqawi, Nikken acted grimly, as the butcher he is.
Without ever going public, the Hosoi sons and Nittatsu's son-in-law watched in horror as Nikken Abe unspeakably reduced every edifice and every single cherry tree that Nittatsu ever built or planted to rubble and kindling, and yet they would not give up the one thing that Nikken would destroy everything for, the legitimizing possession of the Transfer Box for Nichiren Shoshu.
And they were right not to, for having gained possession of the Transfer Box, Nikken would have had to proceed to do the exact same series of actions, so as not to appear guilty of extortion. And of course, there is the evil joy of gloating over subjugated victims, by teaching them a lesson in persistent determination.
So, this is real reason why the Sho Hondo had to go. In true funeral Buddhist tradition, Nikken purged his dead mentor.
The Soka Gakkai was not even part of it !! We were just some extra pieces on the Go playing board.
Atari !!!

5. Obayashi As First Kulak

Someone finally perceived the threat that Obayashi, as head of the Overseas Bureau, posed to any succession of the High Priest. As a competent and corrupt head of a network of priests around the world, any small set of temples in Japan could be joined with the network under his control and that would be seen as Nichiren Shoshu. Indeed, after the departure of several temples in Japan to the reform movement, that clearly IS NICHIREN SHOSHU !!
Thus, whither goest the Overseas Bureau, goest Nichiren Shoshu.
This was too much of a threat and so in August, 2 months after the publishing in English of "The Self-Appointed High Priest", and 3 months before the announcement of Nikken's handover of the High Priest's position to Gikan Hayase, Obayashi got canned in a forced retirement. And this was a castration to Nichijyun Fujimoto's hopes for an after-succession coup d'etat. [He's speaking in a subdued and higher pitch now, I'll wager.]
And Obayashi was replaced at the head of the Overseas Bureau by a handsome fellow (clearly the recipient of the eye operation), who is unconnected by any close family ties, and who can be easily controlled or disposed of.
[This introduces an inherent weakness and inefficiency in the organization. But control isn't everything, it's the ONLY thing.]
Having lost three temples in court challenges when the Transfer Box could not be produced, Nichiren Shoshu is now in trouble and must seize the remaining temples under close family control, before any more important temples are lost.
Shiba in San Francisco and Kawabe in Washington were only the ignorable beginning. It is only a matter of a very brief time before all the major temples not now under the control of the extended group of the 6 clans (Hayase, Abe/Takanos, Ishii, Kimura, Imano) ... will be brought under direct control of family members.
The window of opportunity for the exodus of those vulnerable, non-family priests in those temples is quickly closing.
However, the issue of the Transfer Box being published in Japanese and now in English, makes a successful court challenge possible and even likely for both Overseas Bureau temples and Nichiren Shoshu temples in Japan, for the first time. This is precisely BECAUSE it is internationally public and cannot be hidden any more from the view of non-Japanese eyes.
Now is the time to take your temple over to the other side. After the consolidation, it will be too late. Then the next and closer consolidation will occur, as the old Hokikai faction finally reaps the benefits of a century of maneuvering ...

6. Definition of World of Animals (Chikusho)

From the SGI Dictionary:
http://www.nichirenlibrary.org/en/dic/Content/W/46#para-0
world of animals ［畜生界］ (Jpn chikushō-kai): Also, realm of animals or world of animality. The third of the Ten Worlds and one of the three, and the four, evil paths. When viewed as a state of life, the world of animals is a condition governed by instinct, in which one has no sense of reason or morality. Beings or persons in this world stand in fear of the strong but despise and prey upon those weaker than themselves. In The Object of Devotion for Observing the Mind, Nichiren defines the characteristic of this world as "foolishness," which is one of the three poisons.

7. Getting Some Help

If you are a Nichiren Shoshu Priest, or a Hokkeko member from anywhere in the world, and are thinking about switching to the SGI call (310) 260-8900 or contact the Headquarters at SGI Plaza.
Tell them that you are a Nichiren Shoshu Priest or Hokkeko member, and wish to speak to someone about the SGI, and what to do.

8. The Survivor Gita

Nikken, the self-appointed Usurper King of the Rats at Taisekiji, has been replaced by Nichinyo, who is an angry member of the elite, due to too many blows to the head in fights. A little punchy, he rules from weakness, since Nikken publicly had plans for his son to take over.
One thing that is known for certain: There will be a new Rat King. And then there will be another.
Another thing that is known for certain: All the alliances will change, and more than once. Anyone that has watched Survivor knows this.
Rule Number Zero:
The War of the Rodents can only be won by ... King Rat.
More to come ... These questions will be answered !!!

Haiiii it’s ur flop news reporter!! I’m here because there has been a BANK ROBBERY in Eastern Floptropica! The Floptropican Jiafei bank has been robbed by Daboyz’s military at Jun 9 2024 at 8:04, having stolen 800,000 floptropican dollars! The culprits had been arrested at the scene 20 minutes after the robbery had occurred. The National Cupcakke police force had handled the situation and took matters into their own hands. The criminals will face 400 floptropican years in prison. Stay safe out there flops!
Moving on to the next bit of news, we have President Jiafei make a few statements. We didn’t catch the on camera however she made a comment about Daboyz that made their leader mad. The next thing that happened was mind blowing. Daboyz tried to initiate another Badussy war. Luckily our fellow flops managed to prevent that from happening. GoOD ByE FlOpS! 💅💅❤️❤️❤️👠👠👠💕💕💕🥰🥰😏😏💕💕😘😘😘

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7
The things I've seen, God damn. My morning today began with a cold splash of water to the face. I bolted upright, gasping to see Erickson standing in my room with some security.
“Good morning, Gus, I hope you slept well.”
I had especially since we'd spent the last few nights before then outside, but I chose not to comment on that.
“Where’s Drake?” I inquired.
“All in due time, my friend. I can assure you he is doing fine. Now, I'm sure you must be famished.”
Erickson snapped his fingers and someone stepped forward, extending what appeared to be a chocolate protein shake, an apple, a banana, and a strawberry multigrain bar. I stared at both hesitantly.
“Come, now, do you think I would go through all this trouble just to poison you here? I'm more creative than that.”
“What are you planning on doing with us then?”
All I received in return was a knowing smile. I took the food and then Erickson and the others left. The first bite I took broke the dam on my hunger. I scarfed down the rest of it, chasing it with the protein shake. As soon as I finished, the door opened again.
“Did you enjoy your breakfast?” Erickson asked.
“Yeah, it was alright, I guess.”
Erickson stared at me, smiling.
“Is something supposed to happen?” I asked after several moments of awkward silence.
His expression faltered and he turned to one of the guards.
“You did remember to drug his food, correct?”
“Yes sir, I made sure of it.”
“What pills did you use?”
The guard thought for a moment.
“The white flat round ones, sir.”
“You, idiot,” Erickson snapped, chastizing him, “those were the caffeine pills.”
He let out a sigh of annoyance.
“Knock him out again,” he ordered with a dismissive hand wave.
Once again, my face got acquainted with the butt of a rifle. This time I woke up in a dimly lit room. The first thing I noticed when my vision cleared was the reflection of flurocensent lights on the floor. The second was Drake picking himself up. He ran over, helping me up.
“Gus, are you okay?”
“I’ve been better. What about you?”
“They drugged me.”
“Same, except they gave me the wrong thing and then hit me in the face again.”
“Damn, that sucks, man.”
“It’s about to get worse,” Erickson interrupted from behind, making us jump.
We whirled around to find Erickson standing behind what we originally thought to be a mirror. In front of him was a control panel. With him was Schneider and the woman who looked like Hilary Clinton.
“Apologies for not bringing you here last night. This took more time to set up than we planned,”
“That’s it,” Drake said, raising his voice. “Why don’t you quit jerking us around?”
“Drake, such vulgar language, but if you insist. All questions shall be answered.”
He explained what happened to him following his arrest two years ago.
“To think, me the genius would have to spend half a year in that filthy penitentiary. They even took away my beloved.”
My empathy goes out to whoever had to share a cell with that man.
“How did you escape?” I asked.
“I can answer that,” Schneider replied. “You see, Erickson and I used to be college roommates.”
“Was he a fucking nut back then too?” Drake interrupted.
Erickson shot him a glare as Schneider went on, ignoring the interjection.
“Even back then, it was clear his intelligence far exceeded that of his peers which is why I’ve been funding his research. When I heard of his arrest, I came to visit him in prison. There, we set this all up and the first step was me becoming mayor of your town.”
“Wait, that doesn’t make any sense,” I said. “How did you know which town we were living in?”
“There’s a saying,” Erickson told me. “It’s not what you know. It’s who you know. I think that’s incorrect. The real saying should be it’s what and who you know. My web of connections runs deep.”
“That’s right,” Schneider said. “My father is a powerful man and it didn’t take long to track you down. After that, it was only a matter of time to put this all in motion, Where we are now was intended to work as a system of bunkers during the Cold War and we’ve expanded it.”
“Okay, well, what about her?” Drake asked, pointing to the woman who looked like Hilary Clinton.
There was a glint of greed in her eyes as her lips curved upward.
“My name is Karen McConnell and I'm the owner of your neighborhood,” she said, even sounding similar to Clinton.
“Hold the phone,” I said. “You're the one in charge of our apartment?”
“That's right.”
“Do you know how much shit we've had to deal with? Leaks from the fridge and dishwasher, the AC and heat not working, mold in the walls, and roaches everywhere.”
She appeared bored by my words and that further infuriated me.
“Where the Hell do you get off charging people that much for rent?” I screamed at her.
“Well, Erickson needs a lot of funds for his projects.”
“Excuse me?”
“Why do you think I kept raising the rent and never fixing anything?”
The implication of those words shocked us to our core.
“You mean you've been using our money to pay for this?” I said.
“And for what will happen to you next. Erickson here has promised the mayor and I that what we put in will be repaid tripled.”
“You are a special kind of bitch. You know that?” Drake told her.
Her grin increased.
“Tell me something I don't know. Now then, Erickson, if you would be so kind.”
“With pleasure.”
He pressed a button, resulting in the wall behind us rising. In its place was another window to a room akin to ours. Nobody in it noticed us, which made us infer that two-way glass was also being used for it. There were two people in the room, a man and who we guessed was his girlfriend or wife. A glass wall separated them that had a single door in the center.
“Erickson, what are you about to do?” I asked, not liking where this was going.
“Initially, I was going to have the reanimated rip you two apart. “
“Most people would call them zombies,” Drake said.
“Most people are morons. As I was saying, the more I thought about it, the more I realized such an end would be far too merciful for the likes of you. Before you is a preview of the torture two years in the making.”
Erickson hit a button. Green gas filled the area on the woman's side and we observed her beginning to convulse. The guy was pounding frantically against the glass and appeared to be shouting her name. Through the gas her silhouette was changing, becoming taller. Her arms were also growing, reaching disproportionate lengths compared to her body.
“It took us a while to perfect the formula,” Erickson explained. “The one used to contaminate the town’s water supply was a weaker version which is why it created less advanced variants of the reanimated such as the one you are seeing now.”
We could only watch in horrific disbelief at what transpired next. The gas cleared. The woman before was now a monstrosity with pale skin as if she had just crawled out of her own grave. It was falling off in some places and squirming in others. Her hair had faded to whisps and her hands ended in claws.
She stared at the man, sizing up her meal. He stared back with a terror-stricken grief. The door between them opened. The woman came through it. Her movements were unnerving.
Picture the way a gorilla moves except jittery. The guy backed away, shaking his head. The woman moved closer. He turned, dashing to the door that led out of the room in a futile escape attempt. Seeing how it was locked, though, he could only hit and claw at it.
She spun him around, yelling in his face before picking him up and throwing him to the floor. She pounced on him and what followed was like seeing someone get put through a human-sized garbage disposal. Flesh and bone were being shredded in seconds. All the while, the man’s mouth hung open in an agonized scream. To make it even more fucked up, she was only attacking below his neck.
If she started by ripping open his head, he’d at least have already been dead before what was happening to him. Instead, he was forced to watch the person he once knew eat him out, and not in the good way. She was scarfing down his organs faster than a snake in a hen house. Soon, the guy’s shrieks faded into dying gurgles. At last, he was granted some mercy when she brought his face to hers, almost as if they were about to kiss.
Then she chomped her teeth into his skull, exploding it in a burst of bones, blood, and grey matter. The woman was looking around wildly. I knew she couldn’t see us and yet it almost felt as if she was somehow sensing our presence. Her eyes contained a chilling awareness. Erickosn’s cackling cut through our stunned silence
“Now you understand what’s in store for you,” he said.
“What happened to him is going to happen to us?” I replied.
“No, Gus, not what happened to him, but what has happened to her. You see, to enact my original revenge plan I need those that are reliable and strong. These specimens are perfect for it, Not only are they physically capable, they’ll also be able to follow orders.”
“Wait, what do you mean by that?” Drake asked.
“Isn’t it obvious? The gas I used contains nanobots meant for rewiring the brain and making it susceptible to my directives. The mind, however, is still intact.”
“So that means….”
My voice trailed off as the statement settled over us like a blanket of ice.
“That’s right. You’ll be passengers in your own bodies as it tears apart the people you care about. Once you are changed, it will be a simple matter to keep you here and track them down. Then, well, let’s just what you witnessed mere moments ago will be child’s play in comparison.”
We looked back at the woman who now sat subdued with her arms wrapped around her knees in the red puddle that used to be her lover.
“You know, in a way, I must thank you,” Erickson told us. “If not for what happened at the hospital, none of this would have happened and I wouldn’t be any closer to completing my revenge.”
“You could thank us by letting us go,” Drake suggested.
“Yeah, and we promise not to tell anyone anything,” I added.
Erickson let out another sigh. This time it was the one of someone with their hands tied.
“I’m afraid I can’t do that, not after what you did to her.”
Erickson helped up the container with the severed head.
“Does that mean if we apologize we’ll be let go?” I asked.
He turned to the head, staring at a for a couple seconds. Drake and I exchanged a glance.
“Very well,” he answered.
“Yep, we’re sorry about that,” Drake said. “Really, we feel horrible about it.”
“We’d take it back if we could,” I told Erickson and the head. “We hope you’re doing better now.”
Erickson nodded thoughtfully.
“I must say, that was moving. What do you think, honey?”
As he was having another silent conversation, I wondered how Bill and Karen were keeping it together around him. My guess is if they didn’t, they’d end up in me and Drake’s position. He turned back to us.
“Good news, I am not going to kill you.”
It was as if someone threw us a life preserver…
“But I am still going to release the gas.”
With a grenade attached to it.
“You said you wouldn't kill us,” Drake yelled, accusingly.
“And I won't, but I never said anything about allowing you to live. Did I?”
He was about to hit the button that would fill our room with gas when suddenly the place shook.
“What in the world was that?” Bill demanded.
“Relax, it's probably nothing,” Erickson replied only for it to occur again. “Someone, bring up the outside cameras.”
“My God, they're at the entrances,” someone said.
“Erickson, what's the meaning of this?” Karen asked, now agitated
“Would everyone keep your heads on? I assure you it's under control. I made sure to install a failsafe in case of scenarios such as this.”
Erickson started hitting more buttons on the panel. One, in particular, made a distinct noise. He looked at the zombified woman in the other room who was still sitting up. He hit the same button once more. Again, nothing changed.
A bead of sweat trickled down his face. Things were not under control. Everyone was focusing on Erickson. He opened his mouth to say something and then shut it, repeating this action several times.
“Is there something you want to share with us?” Karen icily asked Erickson.
“Yes, I have thought up a brilliant new idea and that is for us to get the hell out of here.”
The ensuing panic was difficult to follow. People were fighting each other to get to the exit. The zombified woman bolted to her feet out of nowhere, lunging at the window, causing Me and Drake to yell in unison. Her fists were pounding at the glass.
“Does she know we're in here?” Drake asked in surprise.
“Even if she does, we should be alright,” I replied. “It's reinforced.”
A small crack in the center appeared.
Note to self: “Learn when to keep your Goddamn mouth shut”.
As she went on, shards were breaking away. We were like a fish in a pond with a hungry cat staring at us. Then somehow in the commotion on Erickson's side, a switch was hit that opened the door leading out of our room. We rushed to it as the woman punched through. I risked a look back. Her eyes made contact with mine.
It was the equivalent of blood in a shark-filled ocean. We ran out of the room, slamming the door behind us and locking it. We knew it wouldn't hold her long as we raced through the corridor. Erickson mentioned us being in a bunker so we needed to go up. We came to a pathway that split into three directions.
“Which way?” I asked.
Then we heard a rumbling which turned out to be a horde of zombies coming from the center and another coming from the right.
“Left it is,” I said.
We came to an elevator door and were frantically hitting the button to open it as the zombies were rapidly closing the gap.
“Open, you piece of shit,” Drake screamed.
Finally, the light above us came on and the door slid open. We nearly tripped over each other getting into it. Then Drake hit the button. The zombies reached the door right after it closed, making several dents in the metal.
“Oh, fuck, that was close,” I said, leaning against the wall to catch my breath. “This is insane. We don’t even have a plan to make it out of the woods if we even escape this place.”
“One thing at a time, man.”
“Yeah, I guess you’re right. I think as long as we can get a pair of wheels, we’ll be good.”
Erickson's voice sounded over the intercom.
“Attention personnel, due to circumstances outside my control which means one of you incompetent buffoons messed up, I was forced to activate the self-destruct sequence. Please make your way to the nearest exit within ten minutes.”
“You have go to be fucking kidding me,” I said with exasperation.
When I finished saying this, there was a noise from below us. It sounded like something climbing. The zombie woman’s clawed hand burst through the floor. We screamed as we came to a stop. We didn’t even wait for the door to open fully.
We put our fingers in the crack, pushing it the rest of the way. The floor we ended up on contained numerous armed personnel who were surprised to see two escapees. They forgot about us when they saw what was on our tail. Someone yelled fire and we hit the floor right before bullets began flying. The good news was her attention was no longer on us.
The bad news is the guards didn’t stand a chance against her. She was tearing them apart left and right. All the while, we were crawling along the floor. At one point, someone landed in front of us, well, the lower half of them anyway. Seeing the car keys on their belt, we snatched them up.
Then we fished through their pockets, pulling out a key card. We also got some guns off the people who fell victim. Although, if what was happening was any indicator, they may as well have been paperweights. We were about to get out of dodge when we spotted a table that was stacked with briefcases. We didn't know what they contained.
However, seeing how important things are kept in briefcases we decided to grab some. At the very least, we could crack zombies across the face with them. We got out of there and into another hall.
“Where’s the damn exit?” I wondered aloud in frustration.
“Gus.”
Drake was pointing to a sign labeled “Exit” with an arrow underneath it.
“Oh, I guess we should go that way.”
“How much time do we have left?” Drake asked as we were moving.
Checking my phone showed we only had four minutes left from Erickson's announcement. If the self-destruct was going to unfold how we thought, not only did we need to go outside, we also had to be a safe distance away. The Exit door was our light at the end of the tunnel. Bursting through it, we tasted fresh air. Drake hit the button on the keys and we heard a beep nearby.
The keys were to an SUV that we used to make our escape. We got in and sped away. Other vehicles were on the road with us. One of them had Erickson, Karen, and Bill as passengers. The SUV we were in had tinted windows.
That meant nobody could tell who was in it. That gave us the opportunity for a little payback. Drake signaled to me. We grabbed our guns and rolled down our windows. Drake hit the gas and as we were passing by, we shot out their tires and flipped them off.
I wish I could have taken a picture of their faces because they were priceless. After everything they put us through, that was like water at the finish of a marathon. We drove past them and on the path going to a main road. Then we watched what happened to them in the rearview. While their vehicle wasn't consumed by the explosion, the shock of it did send it upward.
“Holy shit,” I said, watching it fly through the air before falling into a lake.
The bumper stayed above the surface for a few seconds before sinking along with the rest of the car. We had to stop again, simply to process everything. Luckily, Erickson had the foresight to have a lot of the trees around the area removed to mitigate the risk of wildfire. That said, it was burning bright. In the flames, humanoid shapes were running around.
They didn't get far before collapsing. Whether they were human or zombie, I don't want to know. Without another word, we got back in the SUV and drove off. Down the road, it occurred to me to check what was in the briefcases. There was no combination on it so I undid the latches and lifted it.
What was inside of it made my heart stop. For once, I mean that in a good way.
“Drake,” I said, having to force out his name.
His reaction upon seeing what I had was to slam on the brakes. I nearly hit my head on the dashboard when he did, but I didn't care. We had two briefcases full of hundred-dollar bills. Presumably, Erickson would have used it to make a deal with someone. Too bad for them, it's ours now.
We didn't know how much money was in there, only that it was a lot.
“Okay, we need a plan,” Drake said. “We can't be carrying all of this around in a vehicle we don't even own.”
He was right. If a cop pulled us over, it would be hard to explain ourselves. I remembered something then. Patting myself, I realized I still had my keys. I showed them to him and he grinned. Then we made our way to Walmart where my car was still parked.
“Hang on,” I said after we got out.
“What?”
“I figured, while we're here.”
I gestured to the store. Half an hour later, I was driving us along the highway with our new money buried under a pile of groceries. We drove about twelve hours before stopping at a hotel where we are currently. Drake was outside earlier, talking to his cousin. He cooked up some story about us being let go from our jobs and then our complex burning down.
His cousin told us he'd gladly take us in so long as we could pay for expenses. We don’t have any objections to that. As far as we can tell, it's better to keep our newfound wealth on the down low. We'll stay at Drake's cousin's place for a while and then get homes of our own. God damn, this week has been nuts.
Speaking of, I hope what happened to Erickson was enough to put him down for good. Maybe we should put changing our names on our to-do list on the off chance it isn't. Oh well, that's something we can take care of at a later time. For now, it's been a long day and I am exhausted. If I have to post here again about some other horse shit, it'll be too soon.
This is Gus saying, have a good one, everybody.

Countries across the world watch as hundreds of paratroopers drop into Washington DC. America, once the stalwart of Liberalism, Republicanism, and the shining beacon of freedom for the world has now devolved into a nation on the brink of civil war once again as her own political institutions weaken and crumble. Her enemies watch hopeful that this is Columbias last stand and that the American experiment crumbles under its own weight, however others wish to see America remain strong in fear of bigger predators on the world stage.
One such nation is South Africa, a country built on racism and oppression. Prime Minister Daniël François Malan. The leader of the Dominion has long believed America as an important nation for South Africa to be allied with. He saw the United States as the western world’s best stand against communism and French war posturing. He long wished for an alliance with the United States, however the outgoing President Philip La Follette had denounced Malan and his National Party, declaring Apartheid an “abhorrent system” and “a relic of the past.” And refused to do any sort of diplomacy with the nation, openly slighting South Africa in the process. However with a power change involved Malan now saw his opportunity
When it was reported Quesada had won the election in November D.F Malan had a childish grin, believing this was South Africa’s chance to secure a strong ally and get onto the world stage. However, he became increasingly concerned over the following weeks as the White House refused to concede. Eventually the dam broke on Christmas Eve.
Despite wishing to remain undisturbed on Christmas Eve, Malan was reluctantly woken up by a phone call at approximately 4:30 AM Christmas Morning. The grumpy Minister held the phone up and heard none other than the minister of Defense yelling into the phone “Prime Minister! It’s urgent!”
Malan was quite upset; he was disturbed from his sleep. Being the leader of a nation he often doesn’t get much time to rest, however Christmas is always a day he can count on to be peaceful, but that was not the case this year. “François, it's 4:30 in the morning! What is so important you are waking me up from my slumber!?” He angrily whispered into the phone trying to not wake his wife.
The minister of defense, F.C Erasmus in fact did not entirely consider the time. For the holiday he had taken himself and his family to New York to spend time away from Cape Town and escape the Christmas Heatwave of 52. To him it was ‘only’ about about 10:30, a mere 20 minutes following the shot that shook Columbia. “Sir, the Fox has been shot and is in critical condition. People are starting to panic and riot.”
The Prime Minister furrowed his eye brows. “What do you mean ‘The Fox has been shot?’”
“The President just had an attempt on his life. La Follette is currently in a hospital. I’m seeing it on the news currently. Musmanno has taken charge.”
Malan flinches back a bit “That (Petain) ape has taken command?”
“Yes sir, he’s given an address to the country from the White House. From the looks of it many are suspicious of him. He does not recognize Quesada as the winner of the election. I fear he may be trying to seize power for himself.” The Minister of Defense states, almost stumbling over his words.
Malan wipes his face with his hand and exhales. “We must act quickly, without America we will remain a pariah on the world stage. You need to come back home now. We need to assemble the cabinet as soon as possible.”
December 26th, 3:30 PM House of Parliament, office of the Prime Minister
The Prime Minister's office is usually quiet, however today it is not so. The South African cabinet members are rumbling and shouting about the American crisis and how to handle it. Malan walks in and the crowd swiftly quiets.
“The situation in America has become worse. I’ve just received word that over Washington there are thousands of troops parachuting into the city to meet fascist paramilitaries. As well as from some colleagues in the states I am also being told that politicians are being arrested by the government and homes are being broken into.”
“What does that matter!?” Minister S. P. Le Croux questions.
“It matters because the leadership of the United States is important to the future security of South Africa.” Minister Erasmus states. “We are a pariah on our own continent and the world, the Soviets are actively meddling in our elections, the French are looming down south considering expanding their own territory and the British are growing tired of the very systems this country relies on!”
Le Croux responds, “so we are here to discuss some political spat in a country that doesn’t care about us?”
“No” cuts in Malan. “We are here to discuss an opportunity.” He begins circling the table. “General Elwood R. Quesada did in fact win the presidential election. Right now most of the world would prefer La Follette and the fascist establishment remain in power because they would rather the Americans sit on their asses and remain in isolation rather than stand to the plate and throw their weight around.” He takes a breath. “Quesada provides an opportunity to awaken the sleeping giant of America and mobilize the country to combat the very forces we also face threat to.”
Minister of Education J. H. Viljoen asks Malan “So what are you suggesting we do? We cannot fund or supply a civil war on the other side of the world.”
“Correct!” Malan states. “However, we will give Quesada something better than guns.” The Prime Minister grins. “We will give him legitimacy.”
“Legitimacy?” Le Croux responds intrigued.
“Yes, as stated many countries are sitting idly by in hopes Quesada folds because they want America handicapped. However, if we were to recognize Quesada as President, or rather President elect, it not only gives legitimacy to his claim but also puts us in immense good will.”
“So your plan to become friends with someone who might not even take office?” C. R. Stewart chirps back with an attitude.
“Yes” Malan says, staring his defense minister in the face. “As it looks now Quesada will most likely win this power struggle and take office. He has the support of the military it seems and even Musmanno’s own party is suspicious of his involvement in the assassination. If we become the first to recognize the new American president it will give us good standing to make relations. We broadly share the same goals, we can use this situation to forge an alliance with America!”
The triumphal statement from the Prime Minister has the cabinet intrigued. “We’ve needed a situation like this to arise. If we secure America then we can rise to be equal to that of the British and French empires! They would no longer be able to dismiss us and interfere in our politics!”
His cabinet members nod in agreement as Malan takes a seat. “So” he says blatantly. “Shall we take a vote? Raise your hand to recognize Elwood R. Quesada as President of the United States.” All the men in the room raise their hands. With a mildly evil smirk on his face Malan gets up and proudly states. “Well men, I have a call to make.”

Why are food and gas prices so high? If we elect Donald Trump, will he fix the issue? In a word, NO. No President has a magic wand, and no change of administration is suddenly going to make things the way they used to be!
No President can control things such as droughts, floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, wildfires, fruit and vegetable blights, invasive insects that attack crops, unseasonable cold snaps or withering heat waves.
Think about this for a moment: We’ve seen the devastation that tornadoes in the Midwest have left in their wake. What do you think happened to crops and livestock, not to mention refineries and fuel stations during those same events? Equally devastated!
Eggs: There are three factors at play here. First, there was a bout of bird flu, which took out over 55 million chickens (and the eggs they would have laid). Second, the cost of feed is up. Third, demand during Easter led to a temporary rise. The hurricane season slowed transport in the east, and the cost of transport has risen due to the cost of gasoline/diesel.
Milk:That same bird flu has transferred itself to cows and, while not deadly for them, has infected one out of every five cows. The infected cows must be taken out of the production line and the milk destroyed, until they clear the virus. The costs of feed, labor, fuel, and fertilizer (for the growing of feed) are higher. Some dairies have lowered the number of cows to be able to afford the higher cost of feed and transport.
https://www.fb.org/focus-on-agriculture/dairy-farmers-struggle-as-milk-prices-fall-and-costs-climb
Meat:Droughts and floods, high temperatures, and range fires have meant fewer cattle. In addition, some farmers have cut back their herds due to the high cost of feed, drought conditions, and rising costs of raising and maintaining herds. On the Texas Panhandle, fires burned more than a million acres of range land, affecting 85% of Texas’ cattle. The fires ran as fast as three acres per second, which is far faster than cattle can run. Many died, and many more had to be put down due to burn injuries. The fire broke out during calving season. Also, injured or sick cattle cannot be put into the food chain. Add that to the cost of transport. Prices went up.
~https://www.texastribune.org/2024/03/15/texas-wildfires-ranch-cattle-rebuilding/~
Wheat,Corn and Soybean:Those and other grain crops cost more. There are several reasons for this. The price of growing and shipping is higher. The pandemic caused the supply chain to slow, while demand remained high. Beyond that, there were droughts, floods, hurricanes and tornadoes in growing regions throughout the world, causing yields to be smaller. Trade restrictions, and the War in Ukraine (the “bread basket” of Europe) caused further shortages. Here in the US, we’ve had disastrous tornadoes, floods, and droughts, all of which affect the size of harvests, and the corresponding rise in consumer costs.
This also affects the prices of bread, baked goods, cereal and snacks.
~https://www.bls.gov/opub/btn/volume-12/high-grain-prices-rippled-throughout-the-economy.htm~
Fresh Fruits and Vegetables:Fruits and vegetables are also prone to diseases like citrus greening disease and other fungal and bacteriological diseases, invasive insects, as well as droughts, floods, freezes and other weather conditions. These reduce the volume of fruits and vegetables, despite demand that is constant for some and seasonal for others.
~https://extension.psu.edu/2024-disease-update-conditions-continue-to-favor-fungal-and-bacterial-tree-fruit-diseases~
~https://extension.psu.edu/forage-and-food-crops/fruit/pests-and-diseases~
Gas Prices:
Again, there are multiple factors at play here.
First of all, there is a season for gas. The winter fuel mix, designed for colder weather, is less expensive, and there is less demand for it. The summer blend is more expensive to produce, and is adjusted for the travel season. Supply and demand is also a factor. More people drive in the summer than in the winter, so the price is higher during the summer months, on top of the cost of manufacture.
The extreme cold in the winter conditions of January knocked some refineries offline. That limited supply. We also import some refined oil here in the US.
Another factor is the price set by the Oil Cartel, if/when we buy internationally, which we do for some types of refined oil products.
Member countries include Algeria. Congo. Equatorial Guinea. Gabon. Iran. Iraq. Kuwait. Libya. Nigeria. Saudi Arabia. United Arab Emirates. Venezuela, with Saudi Arabia the largest producer. The international price of oil from member countries is set by the Oil Cartel. They regulate how much oil the Arab nations produce, to keep the price stable and above the cost of production. This can affect the price of oil.
Second, there are three wars going on, which also affect the production, transportation, and processing of oil. They are the war in Ukraine, for which there is an embargo on Russian oil and a cessation of Ukrainian oil, lowering supply. There is war in the Middle east between Israel and Gaza, which affects transport of oil and fuel in that area, as well as the war waged by the Houthi militia around the Strait of Hormuz, which affects, not only the cost of oil, but any and all goods transported through the Suez Canal.
If the US produces more oil, the other oil producing countries produce less to make the price stay at a profitable level. The other factor is supply and demand. More demand in the US means higher prices.
(As a Historical Reference: In October of 1973 through January of 1974, President Nixon gave monetary support to Israel in the Yom Kipper War. The Oil Cartel set an embargo on any oil sales to the US, causing higher prices. We had 10% inflation at the time. Devaluation of the dollar in the early 1970’s also was a factor. Since that time, we have become much less reliant on foreign oil.)
~https://www.federalreservehistory.org/essays/oil-shock-of-1973-74~
If we move to non-gas vehicles, we will not be as reliant on gas, and the Oil Cartels will have less influence.
Those who drive gas powered cars should be overjoyed at the prospect of the addition of electric and hybrid vehicles, as they use less gas, which should mean lower prices for those driving gas vehicles due to lower demand. However, The American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers have a misleading ad out right now denouncing the increase in production of electric vehicles.
“Don’t Ban Our Cars” ads have been running, extolling the populace to “stop President Biden’s policies aimed at banning most new gas cars. Urge them to do the right thing and vote to protect your consumer freedom.”
Gas powered cars are NOT being banned. They simply are going to be one of three options available to car buyers: gas powered, still the majority of cars until at least 2035, though hybrids, and electric vehicles will be more readily available in the future, and more refined in efficiency, as well as more charging stations.
No one is going around taking people’s existing vehicles, preventing owners from selling new or used gas powered cars, or keeping people from buying a used car that is gas powered. As far as “protecting consumer freedom,” the oil companies don’t want any competition, and are trying to reframe the issue into one of ‘taking away your freedom to choose” rather than lose any revenue to EV’s and hybrids.
If we cease making electric powered vehicles, our market for export will dry up, as the trend in Europe and other places is for electric vehicles. It makes good business sense to make products for export where there is a market for them.
~https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/oil-and-petroleum-products/imports-and-exports.php#:~:text=Although%20U.S.%20annual%20total%20petroleum,and%20to%20supply%20international%20markets~.
~https://www.statista.com/topics/1830/opec/#topicOverview~

[First Contact] [Dark Ages] [First] [Prev] [Next] [wiki]
Doing diplomatic work on Terra is like waking up drunk on the floor of a flat you have never seen before, wearing someone else's pants, with only one shoe, missing your shirt, with a half empty bottle of narcobrew in your hand and your datalink telling you that you have an incoming vid-call for a job. - Dreams of Something More, Mantid Diplomat, Second Precursor War
Ensuring that he was expressing pleasure, Violet Flowers Line Paths to Peace straightened up and nodded to the technician. The gold Mantid, Finds Peace in the Maelstrom, who was Violet's lead assistant, looked a bit worried but kept it to herself.
The technician nodded back, his face invisible behind a featureless white mask of a Terran face, and pressed the button.
There was a chime and the large holotank in front of Violet powered up. The holofield was blue, easily large enough for a ground car to be parked in, with silver and red text down the side displaying resolution, power, bandwidth, and contents.
The tank sat silent for a moment.
Violet waited patiently.
A figure rezzed into being. A Terran made entirely out of code, whose face looked slightly stubborn, careworn lines around their eyes and the corners of their mouths. Slightly behind him and to the right a figure appeared, mostly in shadow. It had the head of a tesem, a Terran body, and was clad in a knee length skirt-like garment that had gold and copper and bronze plates and decorations. The canine-headed being has a necklace that covered most of the upper chest and featured two discs representing the sun.
"Honorable Gestalt," Violet said, expressing humility and pleasure. "And?"
"Anpu the tpy-djuf," the man of code said. His voice was flat, expressionless.
Violet knew that the Terran's voice was flat to hide anger, not out of an inability to express emotion.
"I greet you, Anpu," Violet said.
The canine headed Terran merely nodded.
"You requested to see me," the Terran Gestalt said slowly. "Why?"
"You are the amalgamation of the consensus of humanity. Not just Terrans, but Earthlings, Humans, and more. From the digital to the artificial biologic, you are the consensus. They trust you with their thoughts, feelings, and opinions," Violet said. "I have talked to diplomats, researchers, and others. I've been on talk shows and interviews," Violet motioned at Finds Peace in the Maelstrom, "My assistant has also been touring the talk shows and news opinion and interview shows."
The Terran just nodded, his face still expressionless.
"However, anything I say to the population of Terra, the population of the Sol System, undergoes who knows how many editors and censors," Violet said. "Several times interviews have been edited so that it appeared that I made a statement diametrically opposed to my true statement."
The Terran nodded. "Yeah, that happens," he gave a short, rough chuckle. "You think you hate journalists enough, but you really don't."
Violet nodded.
The Terran made of code stared at him for a long moment. "And?"
Violet put up an emoji of a thoughtful face between his antenna. "I wished to speak with you, to the human overall conscious gestalt."
The Terran of code frowned. "Instead, you're just going to stare at me?"
Violet carefully waved one bladearm in negation. "No. I am merely taking stock of you. In your appearance, in how your code flows, in your expression and body language, as well as tone and word choice."
The Terran lifted the side of one lip in a sneer. "And what have you learned?"
Violet expressed pleasure and put up an emoji of a greenie in a graduation cap. "You are rightfully angry, having expected me to immediately demand that you turn over the afterlife records of all non-Terran sentients to their respective species governments. You brought along a representative of the dead to hear my validations and justifications of why those people should have to be turned over to their species."
Violet combed one antenna. "You were ready to be belligerent, as you are still angry that the other gestalt's first thought was not 'wow, thank you for extending such a literal miracle achieved through technology to us, so that we know that we continue once our allotted lifespan has empty, but rather they demanded that you return the deceased in order to use them to make the lives of the living easier."
"Yes," the Terran said.
"You history, like every other sentient being, is replete with slavery. From basic 'Ugg spare you now you do work Ugg no want to' to the Corporate Town to the Company Store to debt slavery, every species has bloody appendages where this subject is concerned," Violet stated. "Only, it wasn't that long ago for you."
"No," the Terran said. "The Fourth Biological Sentience War happened after the founding of the Confederacy. The Mithril Nebula and Clownface Nebula Conflicts are within living memory for us."
Violet nodded again, cleaning his other antenna. "Your own potential for such things makes you all the more sensitive to it."
The Terran nodded. "Perhaps."
"It is the official policy of "We Live Here Now and Enjoy This Place as a Bastion of Goodness", my homeworld, that such a thing is to be avoided at all costs," Violet allowed himself to show slight embarassment. "Forty-thousands years ago, the Omniqueen came and enslaved us all. Because my people's Speakers are not externally psionic, the Omniqueen sent her own Speakers to us."
Violet combed his antenna.
"Enslaving us all. I do not remember, I am too young, but I have tasted memory crystals of that time," he said.
"How did you get out of it?" the Terran asked.
"Stellar geometry more than anything, but also armed resistance," Violet said. "Another reason it was good of the Confederate Diplomatic Corps to send me."
The Terran nodded.
"Senior species representatives have spoken with me, assured me that they too view the return of those who have lived a full natural lifespan to serve 'the Needs of the People' to be little more than slavery," Violet stated.
"Even death would be no respite," the Terran said. He stared for a long moment. "Perhaps, just perhaps, allowing you to experience the system, to see the system, will help you understand. Help you explain it to everyone."
Violet managed to keep from showing shock only due to decades of sensitive diplomacy. Still, it was an opening. "Would you be willing to rejoin the Gestalt channels if I agree?"
The Terran thought for a moment. "Yes, although I reserve the right to revoke consent at any time."
"Of course," Violet said. "Uh, I won't need to die, will I?"
The Terran shook his head. "No. That's why I brought Anpu with me. Just grant him access to your datalink. That will be enough."
Violet was nervous, but agreed, accepting the incoming maintenance request.
He closed his eyes when instructed.
He appeared in the holotank.
Both the Terrans in the holotank and Violet vanished.
For nearly an hour he stood there, unmoving, while technicians monitored him. Other diplomats shifted nervously as the massive Mantid just stood still, breathing slowly and deeply.
Finally, Violet opened his eyes.
"I..." he stated. He rubbed his bladearms together. "I have seen eternity."
He slumped down in a faint.
0-0-0-0-0
HAT WEARING AUNTIE
The Mar-gite are still moving into the spur by the thousands of constructs.
We're trying to form a defensive line, but we're getting overwhelmed.
---NOTHING FOLLOWS---
TREANA'AD HIVE WORLDS
The time to form a defensive line was fifty years ago.
---NOTHING FOLLOWS---
CHANSERV>TERRASOL HAS LOGGED ON
TERRASOL
Don't. Just... don't.
/////////
LANKY LANKY YOUR NAME IS FRANKY
Welcome back.
---NOTHING FOLLOWS---
HAT WEARING AUNTIE
How are you?
---NOTHING FOLLOWS---
TERRASOL
Not sure if I want to punch all of you out.
I'm gone and you let everything turn into a shitshow.
The first thing you demand when I get back is I turn over what is a profound duty to all of you when you don't even comprehend the first thing about it aside from the fact I have something you want.
I'm still pissed at all of you.
You older ones especially. You know better than to let it get like this.
Now I'm back and everything is on fire.
So, I'm still pissed.
/////////
RIGEL
We figured if we let everything catch on fire until the fire was big enough maybe you'd notice us again.
---NOTHING FOLLOWS---
TERRASOL

OK.
I've looked it over. It's pretty bad.
Not hopeless, but pretty bad.
It has the potential to be a lot lot worse.
We can win this war and end up with an even larger problem that will tear apart everything and everyone.
The Mar-gite. Whoever is kicking the crap out of the Ornislap. Whoever is building the fence.
They're the Enemy. They just exist to be destroyed. We'll find them, rip them apart, and finish this fight.
It's afterwards that is the big problem.
You older ones should know.
/////////
TELKAN FORGE WORLDS
What big problem?
---NOTHING FOLLOWS---
RIGEL
Once the war is over, if you use the rebirth system the way the Terrans do, what are you going to do with everyone you consigned to lifetimes of warfare, where not even death would be a respite from the horrors of interstellar warfare?
Put them back? Ahem, sorry, 'return them to their previous existence' as one of you put it?
That's just a fancy way of saying "War is over. Please face wall now."
You'll have civil wars within seconds.
How will you handle people that were killed over and over again in order to win just one battle.
---NOTHING FOLLOWS---
TNVARU GRIPPING HANDS
Terra does it. Why can't we?
---NOTHING FOLLOWS---
TERRASOL
Because you're not me.
Tell me, how many of your people have volunteered and then qualified to go Clone War Lyfe? How many of your people have qualified to be Monster Class Infantry? How many of your people can even comprehend the kind of mindset you need to have to crawl over your own dead body to fight the enemy?
Tell me.
If any of you have, raise your hands.
/////////
...
...
...
TREANA'AD HIVE WORLDS
To add on to what TerraSol is saying: How would your societies handle having the dead return to life? The Worker Caste who was killed in an industrial accident is one of the biggest celebrities we have right now. The Telkana who returned is the exact same.
Or at least, she was, before she died in that car accident.
Which, to be honest, with the other news we're getting, we're a little suspicious of.
---NOTHING FOLLOWS---
TELKAN FORGE WORLDS
It was investigated pretty thoroughly, it was an accident.
---NOTHING FOLLOWS---
RIGEL
Yeah.
I'm sure it was.
---NOTHING FOLLOWS---
SAURIAN COMPACT
Totally not suspicious.
---NOTHING FOLLOWS---
GREAT GALLOPING GESTALT OF GREATNESS
So, are you back?
---NOTHING FOLLOWS---
TERRASOL
Unless you guys insult the shit out of me or try to force me to do something again.
I don't take well to people trying to force me to do anything.
Just ask Lanky there.
////////
GESTALT OF GREAT THOUGHTS BY A GREAT PEOPLE WHO THINK AND DO GREAT THINGS
True story.
Hey, it's kind of funny to see Ba'ahnya'ahrd.
He's a Senator in the Hamburger Kingdom now, huh?
That's pretty funny.
I'm sure he'll figure out a way to defeat you any second now.
---NOTHING FOLLOWS---
TERRASOL
Hey, now. Senator Ya'ahrd was instrumental in the Galloping Plains Cease Fire agreements.
Who would have thought that Lanaktallan would bring back mounted cavalry, in a way, to do warfare?
/////////
AKLTAK SOARING WORLDS
Wait, has Ba'ahnya'ard or any other Lanaktallan ever been killed and brought back?
---NOTHING FOLLOWS---
TERRASOL
That's covered under Private Medical Information. You'd have to ask him directly.
/////////
HAT WEARING AUNTIE
Aside from all of this.
What are the chances you'll be able to help with everything happening?
It's looking back. We've got thousands of Mar-gite clusters coming in still.
---NOTHING FOLLOWS---
TREANA'AD HIVE WORLDS
Estimations say that in less than 20 years approximately two thousand Giga-Clusters will hit Fortress Sol.
---NOTHING FOLLOWS---
TERRASOL
Yeah.
We're going to stop them before that.
/////////
TUKNA'RN GESTALT
How will we do that?
---NOTHING FOLLOWS---
TERRASOL
You won't like the answer.
[First Contact] [Dark Ages] [First] [Prev] [Next] [wiki]

hi everyone. so i (23F) and my best friend (also 23F) have been best friends since high school. we’re both jewish, although notably i’m only half and wasn’t raised in a religious household at all, so i consider myself more culturally jewish if anything. she on the other hand comes from a conservative jewish family, she and her siblings were babat mitzvah’d, they’re expected to marry jewish, etc. i personally feel no connection with israel, probably because i wasn’t raised religious, and have been pretty firmly pro-palestine since the war started, along with my family and most other people i know. until recently, i thought my best friend felt the same. she did express a nervousness about the rise in antisemitism surrounding the conflict, which i thought was a valid reaction from a jewish person despite which side she stood on, so i didn’t think much of it. however, recently we hung out and the topic was brought up and i started to realize that she did not see things the same way i do, and all of this was cemented a few days ago when i was at her house hanging out with her family and they began having a very spirited and pro-israel discussion, and my best friend has mentioned a zionist instagram groupchat that she’d been added to.
it’s worth noting, i think, that she is an incredibly kindhearted person, and i know that sounds like i’m just trying to defend my friend, but i’ve known her for over a decade and have genuinely never seen her even consider taking any action that might hurt someone, even when she was being relentlessly bullied in school. she’s also always (though very smart and talented) been a bit oblivious and naive to the realities of the world. it’s clear that she feels a loyalty to her family and to her people, which i understand and can see how it would be exacerbated by growing up deeply entrenched in jewish culture and religion. i can tell that she thinks she’s doing right by her people by supporting israel, and that these feelings are born of a very real history of antisemitism and fear that the jewish people still hold. being partially jewish myself, i’ve heard this rhetoric and have witnessed the generational trauma that’s present in all jewish spaces. i completely understand the sentiment and how hamas’ statements against jews have sparked this fear anew.
what she doesn’t seem to understand is that pro-palestine doesn’t equal pro-hamas, and i don’t know how to get across the fact that her judaism and love for her people and culture can coexist with a hatred for what israel is doing to the palestinian people. there’s so much more i could say here but it’s getting very long so i just want to ask for advice. i know her very very well and she’s not the type of person to support what’s actually going on, so i can only assume she doesn’t. in that case, what do i do? should i try to talk to her? lay low until everything calms down? send her sources that dispute what she’s saying? i’ve been thinking about this for days and just really needed to get it off my chest so thank you if you actually read all of this and please lmk your thoughts.

hello. i am nadia. remember when i made that post awhile back where i couldn’t think of a single thing to introduce myself? no? that’s alright. why would you? im not famous and you’ve never met me a day in your life.
i made a reference to the fact that i was an english major who focused on language development and word usage, rada rada rada, so you may be excited to know that i finally graduated and got my degree—or not. again, you don’t know me. but i still haven’t been able to use that degree to announce any particular thing about me that a single one of you strangers around the world would genuinely care about.
but the thesis statement of this post is that im funny, sort of cool, and now that i have a degree, sort of smart. so go ahead and make me your screensaver since we’re friends now or something idk.

Date: 06/11/2024

Reading time: 8 minutes, 1707 words

🏛️ Politics & Government

Armenian opposition sets up tents outside parliament demanding Pashinyan's resignation

Supporters of opposition movement seeking resignation of Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan have set up tents at the intersection of Baghramyan Avenue and Demirchyan Street in Yerevan. The situation periodically escalated during the night, with localized clashes and verbal altercations between police and protesters, including between Deputy Interior Minister and Police Chief Aram Hovhannisyan and Archbishop Bagrat.

ArkaAm

Will work together to advance Indian-Armenian cooperation - Indian Foreign Minister

Subrahmanyam Jaishankar has responded to congratulations from his Armenian counterpart, Ararat Mirzoyan, on his reappointment as Foreign Minister of India. "Will work together to advance Indian-Armenian cooperation," he said.

Armenpress, Armenian Defense Minister extends congratulations to Indian counterpart, Ararat Mirzoyan congratulates Indian counterpart on reappointment as Foreign Minister

Turkey, Azerbaijan Presidents discuss bilateral cooperation

Presidents Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey and Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan discussed bilateral cooperation and a number of regional issues. They discussed the expansion of energy, transportation, and trade relations between the two countries.

Armenpress, Ilham Aliyev arrives in Turkey at invitation of Erdogan, Aliyev travels to Turkey at Erdogan's invitation

Armenia Parliament Speaker, US Ambassador discuss the security situation in the South Caucasus

Armenian National Assembly President Alen Simonyan received the U.S. Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Republic of Armenia Kristina Kvien. The security situation in the South Caucasus, the process of the Armenian-Azerbaijani negotiations, the problems of the return of Armenian prisoners of war illegally held in Azerbaijan were discussed.

Armenpress, Vahagn Khachaturyan received the ambassador of Georgia to Armenia

Armenia Parliament Council rejects opposition's petition for extraordinary session

Opposition factions "Armenia" and "I Have Honor" had submitted petition to the NA Council demanding to convene extraordinary session as soon as possible. The agenda of the extraordinary session would include a message about the resignation of the government. Hayk Konjoryan: "That extraordinary session may or may not take place. We do not have such an agenda, with the resulting consequences"

Armenpress, Armenian National Assembly Speaker says Council will reject the proposal to convene an extraordinary session, Opposition seeks extraordinary session of parliament to demand dissolution of Pashinyan government, Artsvik Minasyan: The petition with the signatures of 33 MPs was submitted to the National Assembly to convene an extraordinary session of the National Assembly

Capstone meeting of the Armenia-US Strategic Dialogue to be held in Yerevan

Capstone meeting of the Armenia-US Strategic Dialogue will be held in Yerevan on June 11. The session will start with the meeting of Foreign Minister of the Republic of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan and the Assistant Secretary of State for Europe and Eurasia James C. O’Brien.

Armenpress, Yerevan to host capstone meeting of the Armenia-US Strategic Dialogue

FM Mirzoyan, Armenian Assembly of America leadership discuss Armenia-Azerbaijan normalization process

Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan received the leadership of the Armenian Assembly of America on June 10. There was an exchange of views on the political dialogue between Armenia and the United States, as well as on regional developments, the foreign ministry said.

Armenpress

The NA Council rejected the motion to convene an extraordinary session on the issue of the resignation of the government

Council of the National Assembly rejected the motion of the opposition to convene an extraordinary session earlier on the issue of the government's resignation message. Hayk Konjoryan, the leader of the ruling "Civil Agreement" ; faction, said this in a conversation with journalists in the parliament on June 10. According to the Law on the Regulations of the. National Assembly, an. extraordinary session will be held on the 5th working day i.e. on June 17.

CivilNet

What should be known about the housing program for Artsakh residents, the Deputy Prime Minister explains

The housing provision program for forcibly displaced people from Nagorno-Karabakh was adopted on May 16. The amount of support is determined by the chosen residence, it is 2-5 million drams for each family member. The first phase of the program starts on June 15 for those families who will buy a ready-made apartment or house from the secondary market.

CivilNet

Because of Armenia, the CSTO budget is being adjusted. Russian Foreign Ministry

The CSTO budget for the current year is being adjusted because the Armenian leadership refused to pay the calculated fee. Yerevan intends to refrain from participating in the financing of CSTO activities. There is no question of redistributing investments, the Russian Foreign Ministry noted.

CivilNet, CSTO budget “to be adjusted due to Yerevan’s non-payment of contributions”

Preparations under way for opening of Armenian Consulate General in Tabriz – Kanaani

The Armenian side is making necessary preparations for the opening of Consulate General in Tabriz, Nasser Kanaani, the spokesman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Iran said at a briefing today. Iran and Armenia had signed an agreement on opening of consulates in Kapan and Tabriz in the past years.

ArmRadio

Yerevan to host conference on effective approaches to rehabilitation in criminal justice

The event will be held in Yerevan, Armenia, on June 11, 2018. It is part of the Council of Europe’s plan to strengthen the protection of the rights of persons in rehabilitation in the country. The conference will be open to the media and participants will discuss topics.

ArmRadio

Russian Government deceived Armenia and left us alone -Alen Simonyan

Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs sent a letter of protest to the Armenian Foreign Ministry regarding the Armenian delegation's visit to Bucha, Ukraine. The Russian Foreign Ministry described the visit as an "unfriendly move by Yerevan" National Assembly Speaker Alen Simonyan: Armenia has always behaved as a loyal partner in relations with Russia.

Armenpress, Russia sends note of protest to Armenia over envoy’s trip to Ukraine’s Bucha

France's Macron calls a snap legislative election after defeat in EU vote

French President Macron dissolves the National Assembly and calls a snap legislative election. The far-right National Rally is projected to win the European election with 31.5 percent of the vote.

Armenpress, Macron calls snap parliament election as French far right dominate EU vote

Several roads closed across Armenia

A partial collapse occurred on the bridge located near the village of Getapnya, Ararat region. The Vanadzor-Alaverdi-Ayrum-Bagratashen highway is accessible only to passenger cars. The section of M-4 highway from Dilijan to Ijevan is passable.

Armenpress

The opposition brought a draft of the resignation letter, not the impeachment, to the NA agenda

The opposition factions brought to the agenda of the National Assembly not a motion of no confidence in the Prime Minister, but a draft of a resignation letter. The technical difference between expressing no confidence (impeachment) and the message is the votes. The opposition has taken similar initiatives on Armenian-Azerbaijani relations, the border situation and other topics.

CivilNet

Armenia to amend gambling winnings taxation

Armenia's National Assembly approved a bill on gambling regulations in the second reading on Monday. The bill introduces notions of “regular prize” and “large prize’s” Any winnings exceeding 5 million drams will be considered large prizes and will be subject to 5% tax.

ArkaAm

Charges against ex-Armenian Economy Minister Vahan Kerobyan changed - lawyer

Vahan Kerobyan is one of the defendants in the criminal case on abuse of official powers, along with several other officials of the Ministry of Economy, as well as the head and employees of the private company Synergy. He was dismissed on 14 February 2024 and has been under house arrest since 16 February. His arrest followed the detention of his deputy and six other officials linked to the same corruption scandal.

ArkaAm

Number of hired workers in Armenia grew by 5.2% in January-March- Finance Ministry ;

In January-May 2024, the number of hired workers in Armenia grew by 5.2% to 735,000. Deputy Finance Minister Vahan Sirunyan said these citizens were employed in such sectors as trade, education, construction, hotel business, catering and catering.

ArkaAm

The film “Being Human: The Manifesto of Ruben Vardanyan” has been released

The film “Being Human: The Manifesto of Ruben Vardanyan” has been released. The film talks about a number of projects implemented in Armenia, in particular, the “Wings of Tatev” cable car and the ‘Tatev Revival” project. The movie ends with the message: “I am sure that together we will do a lot to make the world a better and kinder place. Let us be ready to give more than we hope to receive in return!”

ArmRadio

Armenia: Protesters march to parliament, some spend the night on street

The protesters did not disperse despite heavy rain that began at around 2 a.m. local time.

PanArmenian

💵 Economy

Armenia and India plan to make active economic ties

Business meeting focused on ways to step up economic ties between Armenia and India. Trade ties can be developed in tourism, healthcare, textile and food industries. "Mutual familiarization opens the way to business," says Shivkumar Eashvaran of Indian Chamber of Commerce.

ArkaAm

Over 167,000 tourists visited Armenia in May

A total of 167,049 tourists visited Armenia in May 2024, compared to 176,384 in May 2023. 42% of tourists were from Russia, 14% were from Georgia, and 7% more came from Iran. Armenia’s Ministry of Economy recently announced a new development program.

ArkaAm

Eurasian Development Bank: Armenia’s price dynamics turnaround caused by slowing deflation in food sector

The recent turnaround in Armenia’s price dynamics was caused by the slowing of deflation in the food sector. The prices in Armenia recently increased for the first time since last November. The key factors for low inflation are the reduction in the cost of imported food amid falling prices on international markets, the strengthening of the Armenian dram exchange rate and tight monetary conditions.

ArkaAm

🧪 Science & Technology

Lease medical equipment at 1% rate

Partnership between Acba Leasing and SZ Pharma will allow Armenia’s medical companies to lease last-gen medical equipment from Europe, Japan, Canada or the US at the rate of only 1%, Acba Bank announced on Monday. SZ has been on the Armenian medical equipment market for 23 years, representing over 100 foreign companies in Armenia.

ArkaAm

🎭 Culture

Concert-exhibitions dedicated to Komitas 155th birthday held in Cardiff and London

Klingen Choir and Cultural Association under the auspices of the Embassy of Armenia to the UK and the Armenian Community Centre Wales presented a concert-exhibition dedicated to Komitas 155th birth anniversary on Saturday 8 June 2024 in St German's Church, Metal St Cardiff for the 1st time in Wales.

Armenpress

Date: 06/09/2024

Reading time: 0 minutes, 94 words

🏛️ Politics & Government

Archbishop Bagrat calls for non-stop protests to begin from 10 June

Bagrat Galstanyan, the Archbishop of the Armenian Apostolic Church, is leading a movement demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan. The archbishop called on his supporters to launch a 96-hour non-stop strike and protests starting tomorrow. He also called on National Assembly deputies to hold an extraordinary session of parliament on June 11 and demand the resignation.

ArkaAm

France and US support establishment of fair and lasting peace in the South Caucasus, Macron and Biden say

The United States and France support the establishment of a fair and lasting peace in the South Caucasus. Joe Biden and Emmanuel Macron said in a joint statement following the 80th anniversary of the Normandy landings.

ArmRadio

Date: 06/08/2024

Reading time: 2 minutes, 438 words

🏛️ Politics & Government

Yerevan reacts to Baku’s proposal to see Minsk Group abolition

Alen Simonyan has declared that Armenia is taking steps aimed at concluding a peace treaty with Azerbaijan.

PanArmenian

U.S. Assistant Secretary of State James C. O’Brien to visit Armenia June 10-112

U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs James C. O’Brien will travel to Yerevan, Armenia June 10-12, 2024. O'Brien will meet with senior government officials to discuss peace talks between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

ArkaAm, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State to travel to Armenia

€3.5 mln EU grant to support justice reforms in Armenia

The European Union has paid €3.5 mln grant to Armenia within a €11mln program on Support to Justice Reforms.

PanArmenian

Pashinyan visits Ayrum community and assesses disaster consequences

Nikol Pashinyan visited the Ayrum community, where the railway bridge collapsed as a result of floods. The customs terminal of the "Damuar Group" LLC was also damaged.

Armenpress, Pashinyan visited Karkop community, Nikol Pashinyan visits flood-isolated Chochkan settlement, Pashinyan visits flood-hit region

The Parliament of Georgia deprived journalists of their accreditation

OC Media Georgia's ruling party revoked accreditation of four TV journalists from critical of the authorities. Pirveli announced on Wednesday that two of its journalists, Nata Kajaya and Maka Chikhladze, have been deprived of their parliamentary accreditation for one month. The Journalists' Ethics Charter condemned the announcement, saying the Georgian Dream-led parliament was using its rules as a "punitive tool against critical media.

CivilNet

Concept to complete Yerevan Cascade discussed at city hall

A conceptual proposal to complete the Cascade complex in downtown Yerevan has been presented by Jean-Michel Wilmotte.

PanArmenian

💵 Economy

Armenia elected member of the UN Economic and Social Council for 2025-2027

Armenia has been elected a member of the UN Economic and Social Council for 2025-2027. Armenia's candidature was supported by 148 countries during the voting held at UN headquarters. Armenia intends to contribute to international cooperation for the implementation of the goals of the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda.

ArkaAm

🧪 Science & Technology

International journalists visit “Wings of Tatev,” aerial tramway and Tatev Monastery

The world’s longest reversible aerial tramway “Wings of Tatev” is in the spotlight of the international media. The group of international journalists from acclaimed media outlets visited Armenia this week.

ArmRadio

🎭 Culture

Yerevan Gastronomic Days-2024 kick off in Armenian capital

Gastronomic Days is taking place in the Armenian capital city of Yerevan. See how the biggest culinary event of the year started. Also share exclusive interviews with famous chefs, including Michelin-starred chef Alen Alexanyan.

ArkaAm, Yerevan Gastronomic Days-2024 (VIDEO)

Donations to Armenia:

Himnadram
ServicemenFund
Armenian Wounded Heroes
ArmeniaFund

Welcome to the "Essay Help by Pros" community group! Writing a great essay can be challenging, but with the right approach, anyone can produce a high-quality piece. Here are some points to follow to write a great essay:

1. Understand the assignment: Before you start writing, make sure you understand the requirements of the essay. Read the instructions carefully, and take note of the topic, format, word count, and any specific guidelines that are provided.
2. Choose a topic: Select a topic that interests you (if this is an option given) and that you have some knowledge about. You'll be more motivated to write, and you'll be able to draw on your existing knowledge to develop your ideas.
3. Research your topic: Conduct thorough research on your topic, using a range of sources. Take notes on your findings and make sure you keep track of your sources so you can properly cite them later.
4. Develop a thesis statement: Your thesis statement is the central idea of your essay. It should be a clear and concise statement that summarizes the main point you want to make in your essay.
5. Create an outline: An outline is a roadmap that helps you organize your thoughts and ideas. It should include an introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion, and each section should have a clear focus.
6. Write your essay: Use your outline to guide your writing. Make sure each paragraph has a clear topic sentence, and that all your ideas are well-supported with evidence.
7. Edit and proofread: Once you've completed your essay, take the time to edit and proofread it. Check for spelling and grammar errors, and make sure your writing is clear and concise.

By following these points, you'll be well on your way to writing a great essay. If you have any questions or need further assistance, feel free to reach out to the community for help!

Context

A lot of pandemic era stocks lacked basic unit economics, and were found out when the funding stopped and subsequently collapsed.
Some had network effects / unit economics, but needed to ‘get fit’ (think Uber and Meta), some have righted their mid-pandemic wrongs with clear turnaround / value creation plans and been rewarded (think Carvana), and some have righted the wrongs but not yet been rewarded. I think Fiverr ($FVRR) sits in this latter category.
Fiverr is a leading freelance marketplace which connects businesses with freelancers offering a wide range of services.

About the company

Founded in 2010 by Micha Kaufman and Shai Winiger in Tel Aviv, Fiverr operates a two-sided marketplace matching small businesses with freelancers.
With approximately 700 employees, Fiverr is listed on the New York Stock Exchange ($FVRR) and had a market cap of just under $1 billion in June 2024, down from about $11 billion during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Problem statement Fiverr solves
Fiverr transforms the opaque and inefficient process of hiring freelancers into a modern, user-friendly e-commerce experience.
Unique Selling Proposition (USP):
Fiverr offers an easy-to-use platform where people can buy and sell small services for a flat starting fee. The platform boasts a comprehensive catalogue of services and well-vetted freelancers.
Potential sources of network effects:

• Buyers: Around 4 million buyers, with approximately 65% of core marketplace revenue from repeat buyers, indicating sustained user engagement.
• Service Categories: Over 700 freelance service categories, including recent additions like AI content and development. Gigs range from $5 to $50,000.
• Freelancers: Approximately 400,000 active freelance sellers.

Investment Thesis

Star Company
Fiverr operates in a profitable and growing market niche (SMB freelance digital services) with growth exceeding 10% per year. It is a leader in its niche, matching freelancers to smaller SMEs effectively. This makes it a ‘Star Company’.

Reasons why I think the stock will rise:

1. Overly Beaten-Down Tech Stock: Fiverr, has seen its share price decline by over 90% from its February 2021 peak. This significant drop – which has also recently been exacerbated by the geopolitical concerns in Israel and Palestine and the disruptive impact of AI on its business – is a common trend among tech stocks that were COVID-19 beneficiaries. What seems to have been overlooked is Fiverr retains a very viable and growing business post pandemic.
2. Shift to Profitability and Cash Generation: Fiverr’s growth has slowed to approximately 10% year-over-year as it has pivoted its focus towards profitability and cash generation, addressing investor demand for a focus on fundamentals. This strategic shift is reflected in improved bottom-line results, including free cash flow (FCF) and earnings per share (EPS), underpinned by key performance indicators like higher average ticket sizes and growing gross margins.
3. Attractive Valuation Metrics: Following recent share price pressures, Fiverr currently trades at a 2024 forecast earnings/enterprise value multiple that is attractive (c. 8.6x) given its 10% growth rate and acceleration in key value creation metrics, including EPS, FCF per share, and return on invested capital (ROIC).
4. AI concerns appear overblown: Investors are concerned AI will disrupt the services provided by freelancers on Fiverr’s platform, but Fiverr’s Q1 2024 results exceeded expectations, leading to raised guidance for the full year. Management has highlighted the net positive impact of AI on the business.
5. Stable Take Rate and Financial Resilience: Fiverr’s take rate remains stable at 30%, it has a $304m net cash position, and the company is free cash flow positive, providing significant financial resilience. I.e. it has gotten beyond ‘default alive’.
6. Dynamic Macro Environment: While the macroeconomic environment remains challenging with constrained budgets in large enterprises and financial pressures on small businesses, Fiverr’s high exposure to smaller businesses positions revenues to rebound quickly as conditions improve.
7. Share Buyback Program: In May 2024, Fiverr initiated a $100 million share buyback program, reflecting management’s belief that the stock is undervalued. They are confident in their cash position and free cash flow generation to support this initiative.
8. Large Short Float: The short float was around 10% as of June 2024, indicating the possibility of large upwards price moves if sentiment on the stock changes, as I think it should.

Overall, Fiverr’s strategic focus on profitability, robust financial health, and proactive management of market challenges make it a compelling investment opportunity.

Things I Don’t Like About the Stock

1. Share-Based Compensation (SBC): The level of share-based compensation appears excessive and results in significant dilution. Deducting SBC from free cash flow results in a near zero number, meaning free cash flow per share is not trending up as quickly as desired.
2. AI Cannibalization threat: AI has the potential to cannibalize certain services offered on Fiverr, such as logo design and article writing, which could impact revenue.
3. Buyer Trends: While the number of buyers has been declining, this has been offset by an increase in the average purchase price. This trend is concerning and needs to be monitored.

Overall - looks like a decent buy at current prices. It currently trades at $24.5. Analyst expectations are $26 on the low end and $45 at the high. My target is late $30s
I placed a limit buy order at $24.5, which filled last night. At the same time I also took a position in Upwork, which has the same business model but is focussed on larger customers and is perhaps better equipped for AI implementation type services.

When the war in Ukraine begun, and the countless videos of Russian war crimes and traumatic personal accounts from our friends began popping up, my mom began helping to pull other people (mostly her relatives) out of Ukraine, commendable right?
Yeah but as she helped others she submerged herself into the politics of the conflict, which was drenched in the Russian "restoration of true Russia" rhetoric of Ukraine not existing. As she dug deeper she found out about Kievan Rus, which alongside with the fact of Russia being a multi-ethnic nation, painted a picture in her mind that the Russian nationality is not real and that Ukrainians are a true, Slavic, master race.
As time went on and news of countless empoverished mobilizing themselves for a paycheck arose, and the lack of resistance from the Russians within Russia. She started to refer to ALL Russian people as "Russian Schwein (pigs)" and started to claim that the reason for Russia's silence is because the people have a "orc-slave mentality" and that they all are inherently nationalistic.
She does not separate the nation from its government, she says that if you identify as Russian, then you are Z, an orc, a pig, etc. I was born in Russia and identify as one but my mom gets passed off when a I say it, saying: "YOU ARE NOT A RUSSIAN PIG, YOU ARE A CIVILIZED ROMANIAN!!!" Eventhough I have not spent a single day in my life in that country whilst I lived my first 6 years in Russia.
She constantly says that me and my father should be ashamed of being Russian because: Russians are slaves, Russians are blood-thirsty orcs, Russians were always ruled by autocrats = slave mentality, Russians never invented anything but stole/used from the West = stupid, Ukraine must Ukrainianize Russia (because Russians are these aforementioned inferiors), etc.
Me and my father are openly anti-putin but no matter what we say, it falls on deaf ears and she says that "you guys are pigs and you should hide the fact that you are Russians because there good Russia to this world and the Russian orcs deserve to be marginalized and discriminated out of the intellectual society (the West)" she basically wishes an anti-Russian Apartheid upon us and other Russians living outside of Russian as punishment for Putin's actions.
The war has CONSUMED her entirely, 60% of all conversations are about it, which serve as a trigger for her statements. She is a caring person and I love her and this racist statements are triggered by politics. My father is apolitical so he dodges the vast majority of her triggers and insults by simply not participating in the debate.
I know that is not who she is or was, and this metamorphosis is scary, what do I do?

TL;DR - I cannot summarize this post because I feel that it is necessary to read it entirely in order to fully understand the point I am trying to make. If you do not like this post that is ok, but if you decide to downvote it, please read it entirely before doing so. Thank you.

Call to Action

Since the beginning we have always strived to do everything in our power to protect our investments. We migrated subreddits multiple times, we established backup communication outlets, we moved brokerages and called them to demand our shares not be lent out, we backed up our DD, and eventually we learned about direct registration and DRSed our shares. If we take a step back in time to when we originally started to DRS our shares, there were two main reasons for it: the obvious one was to attempt at locking the float, but the other reason was to protect our shareholders rights. Now that we are in the end game, why should we stop now? I know there are a wide range of opinions on GameStop's recent corporate actions. The events that have occurred over the past few weeks have left thousands of shareholders with concerns. You may not agree with them, but the reality is that they are there, and they are real shareholders. I've read through their comments all over this subreddit, as well as everywhere else. My goal with this post is to remind everyone that we as shareholders have the right to let our voices be heard. We own billions in this company, and our voices are more powerful than some of you may think. This is the exact reason I created this petition, to express my concerns to GameStop. I also emailed GameStop investor relations.

Recent Events

A few weeks ago, Roaring Kitty returned and lit the internet on fire with a barrage of memes on X. Perhaps he knew something was coming. Around the same time, the volume and volatility of the stock came to life like it hasn't in years. It is clear as day that this increase in volume and volatility has nothing to do with Roaring Kitty, but rather there's something under hood occurring that is driving the price action. Whether its obligations from leaps, swaps, ETF rebalancing, or any of the other many possibilities, its clear something big is happening. During the week of May 13-17, the price of GME actually touched $80. By May 17, the price had fallen and was consolidating in the $30 range, when GameStop announced a 45 million share "at-the-market offering" and "first quarter preliminary results". On May 24, GameStop announced the completion of the share offering, having raised $933.4 million. The "acquisitions and investments" language in the filing led many to speculate that maybe GameStop needed to quickly raise capital for a merger deal that was already underway, perhaps to be announced the week of earnings and the annual shareholder's meeting.
After a brief silence, Roaring Kitty posted his absolutely insane position to SuperStonk for the world to see. At this point, the behavior of MSM and various actors on social media made it clear that whoever is on the other side of that bet is very, very scared. This past week, we saw the volume and volatility of the stock begin to churn again. By Thursday, June 6 we were seeing violent upward price action in the stock. After this price action had already begun, Roaring Kitty scheduled a livestream on his YouTube channel for the next day, July 7 at noon est. Again it was clear that something under the hood was driving the stock, as it began before Roaring Kitty posted his livestream. During after hours Thursday night, the price hit over $60. On Friday morning, GameStop announced another 75 million share "at-the-market offering" and disclosed their first quarter results, even though those had previously been scheduled to release on June 11.

The Downsides

Although GameStop adding a few billion dollars to the balance sheet is extremely bullish for the long-term outlook of the company, that doesn't mean it didn't come without downsides. Once the current share offering is completed, the result will be a combined 120 million new shares sold into the market, representing an almost 40% dilution. This obviously adds liquidity to the stock, which is upsetting to many because we spent 3 years DRSing at least 75 million shares, which had resulted in GME becoming very illiquid. In particular, I feel the need to call into question the timing of the second share offering, as that is what bothers me the most. Going into Friday, it really looked like that run had legs, and there was a ton of hype in anticipation of Roaring Kitty's stream. GameStop chose to announce the share offering before pre-market trading on Friday morning, and by market open the price of the stock had fallen dramatically. This resulted in a huge loss of call premium in GME, on a Friday, and the same day as Roaring Kitty's livestream no less. Call holders aside, I have to question this timing even from the perspective of the company's best interest. Could GameStop have raised more capital, with fewer shares, if they had waited until a later time/day? We can tell by the volume on Friday that something was still churning under the hood. Let's imagine the potential if they let the stock run, let Roaring Kitty do his thing, and let all of those calls expire in the money to drive the price action into next week. For me, and many of the comments I've seen, this timing is very troubling.

GameStop vs Roaring Kitty?

The interpretations of Roaring Kitty's ATM meme, his memes the morning of the first 45 million share offering (May 17), and his "Happy Birthday from GameStop" comment in his livestream yesterday are still being debated. To me, his memes the morning of May 17 seemed negative. He posted a crying meme face under the Kitty mask, and the first meme of that morning was the only one off-schedule that entire week. His birthday comment yesterday also seemed like blatant sarcasm to me "wrap it up in a gift or some shit". Thus, I personally think these offerings surprised him, but that is just my opinion, I could be completely wrong.
Is all of this part of some master plan that is yet to be revealed? Is each party simply acting in their own best interest? Or is there something more going on here? Unfortunately, I don't have those answers, but I feel like the question is important at this stage in the game, so I wanted to at least mention it.

MOASS

There's been some controversy lately between those that are more interested in the long-term potential of GameStop vs those who are here for MOASS. For me, it has always been about MOASS, and after MOASS of course a lot of those gains will go right back into GME. If you're in the MOASS camp with me, don't fret, I still think MOASS is very much on the table, it could even be right around the corner. There are a lot of possibilities that could play out over the next few weeks. We know something big is still churning in the stock, Roaring Kitty's 120,000 calls don't expire until June 21, and the shorts are terrified. It is very possible that the stock will start running hard as soon as GameStop lets us know that the share offering is complete.
Although it may seem that way, my main goal with this petition and post is not to criticize GameStop's recent corporate actions, as that won't really result in anything productive anyways. Instead, I want to focus on voicing my concerns about the possibility of similar actions moving forward, particularly the next few weeks. For this reason, I left all of my opinions from this post out of the petition. I tried to keep it to one simple statement that I hope most can agree with. We do not have a once in a lifetime in front of us, we have a once in history opportunity in front of us. Roaring Kitty is back, he holds 120,000, and the stock is alive. It is time for MOASS. It is time to let our voices be heard. Let the stock run.

The Petition

I created a petition through Change.org, here is the url: https://www.change.org/p/petition-to-the-gamestop-board-of-directors
Here are the contents of the petition:
Petition to the GameStop Board of Directors
I am a shareholder of GME stock, and I am petitioning the GameStop Board of Directors to not release another "at-the-market offering" or unscheduled negative press release at a pivotal moment of the next significant movement of the stock.
I want to be clear, I have no intention of seeking or taking any legal action with this petition. I will not be submitting it any court. It is simply a public, online petition that I created to let my voice be heard. I know that many shareholders have chosen to remain anonymous (myself included). If you'd like to sign it, you can sign it with your name or anonymously (I created and signed this petition with the name "Anonymous Shareholder").
If you want to sign it, but you have additional concerns, feel free to express that via the "Reasons for signing" comment section.
If you don't want to sign it, but you have your own concerns, know that you can always email GameStop's investor relations. I did.
If you do not agree with this petition and you don't want to sign it, that is perfectly ok. Please be respectful to those with concerns.

To the Longgggg crowd

I know that some of you have an investment thesis that is more interested in GameStop's long-term potential. You think GameStop will become GameShire Stopaway. I hope you're right, and you have every right to your own investment strategy. However, you have to understand that years ago many got involved in this play for MOASS. We should've been paid in January of 2021, but here we are. We still want see the shorts' demise, and we still want to be paid.

To the Master Plan / Merger Inbound crowd

I know many of you think everything is part of a master plan that has yet to be revealed. Some of you think GameStop is going to announce some kind of merger or acquisition very soon. Well, I hope you guys are right, as I would profit greatly if you are! My argument to you is that if there is already a deal that is done and yet to be announced, or a master plan already in motion, then this petition/post is not going to change that in any way. The goal of this is to simply voice concerns just in case we have fallen off the tracks. I know you're zen, but please don't just downvote this post to oblivion and scream FUD. There are other shareholders out there with concerns who may want to see it.
"Hope for the best, prepare for the worst."

My preemptive answers to the FUD accusations

I know the accusations are coming, but here's the deal, I've been here the whole time. I'm not telling anyone to sell. I'm not price anchoring. I'm not just upset because I lost money on calls. Full disclosure, I sold my call position at market open on Friday for a small profit (although I feel for any of you who didn't make it out ahead, I've been there and I feel your pain). I've held DRS shares for a long time, and I'm not leaving. Roaring Kitty's livestream was amazing. Roaring Kitty is not a market manipulator, he is the most legendary investor of all time and he simply posted his position online for the world to see. MOASS is inevitable. Ape no fight Ape. Wen Lambo.
This is not financial advice. Don't take advice or invest your money based on the speculation and ramblings of a dumb ape on the internet.

Can’t say I have an opinion on the full show based off of just two episodes alone but what they’ve done really well thus far is show just how far the Jedi had fallen by the beginning of the prequel era. Throughout the prequel era we see that the Jedi are heavily tied to the Republic and are often held back and used more as government soldiers & tools than actual Jedi.
So much Star Wars media talks about the fall of the Jedi but doesn’t really illustrate why they were so dominant in the first place and that’s always bothered me, so here it’s really cool to see that not only were the Jedi able to act entirely independent of the republic but there were so many more of them. (to the point where we even see another outpost temple!) It was so cool to see the Jedi serve less as warriors for once and more just as peacekeepers, like master Indara just chilling in a bar or the fact that Kelnacca is just hangin out on a forest planet.
It really shows just how detached the Jedi eventually become from their mission statement by just naturally showing what they were like in the first place and I think that’s really interesting to see!

When Troy was destroyed Latin tradition claims that Anchises (the father of Aeneas; the early settler of Italy and ancestor of Rome), Aeneas himself and his young son Ascanius – all left Troy and migrated to a non-specified territory to which the gods would have guided them and where they would have started their civilization once again (it was a land promised to Aeneas’ descendants but he didn’t know exactly where it was yet; it would be revealed to him by the gods as he went).
Now, according to native traditions – Anchises almost made it to the land promised to Aeneas and his descendants but he didn’t make it only by a short straw; given that he died and was buried along the way (on the island of Sicily more precisely, which is very close to the Italian peninsula as a whole).
Anchises according to Latin mythology was an artisan who worked wood as well as a shepherd that tended his flocks (which is how he met Aphrodite) – and Terah the father of Abraham was claimed in the Quran (but also in biblical midrashim i.e. inside of what’s called a "midrash" which is a commentary on the Bible given by a rabbi that explains and adds further details/further information) to have been a manufacturer of wooden idols and thus Terah was an early idolater himself because he worked wood and made it into figures of pagan gods. Though god forgave him for his "wrong ways" and decided to have him tag along for the expedition towards the promised land (the land promised to Abraham and Abraham’s descendants) alongside Abraham’s younger nephew Lot. Terah was claimed to be a shepherd as well.
Terah is claimed to have almost made it to the promised land Canaan and to have not made it only by a short straw since he died and was buried along the way (in the city of Haran according to Hebrew tradition, which is very close to the land of Canaan). Haran is said to be located in modern day Iraq; which borders the land of Canaan through Syria and Jordan – and is basically very close.
When the city of Sodom was destroyed – the Bible claims that it was destroyed by "fire" generally speaking; that fire not being further specified, and only stated to have come from God i.e. from the Lord. When the city of Troy was sacked by the Greeks – the Iliad claims that Troy was destroyed by "fire"; though the Iliad doesn’t necessarily say that the Greeks burned Troy to the ground – it only states that the Greeks came and sacked Troy, and along with the Greeks the fire also came, but it doesn’t really specify how. One version claims that it was Jupiter who actually sent the fire that burned Troy to the ground.
We find this version explained by Alcaeus (a 7th century poet from Lesbos) who claims that:
"As the story goes, grief came to Priam and his sons on account of evil deeds, a bitter grief, o Helen, from you, and with fire Zeus destroyed sacred Ilios."
"Ilios" being the alternative name of "Troy" of course (also referred to as "Ilion" or "Ilium" as well).
Then other versions unified the two elements together i.e. that Jupiter sent the fire to destroy Troy and that the Achaeans i.e. the Greeks came to sack Troy in order to execute the will of Zeus – so this made it so that some versions interpreted it as though the Greeks/Achaeans "helped" execute Zeus’ will and thus they also contributed to the fire; but the purest version of the tale claims that the Achaeans only sacked Troy after its destruction – although it was Zeus/Jupiter who sent the fire. (For example in the Aeneid the fire is already happening before the Achaeans even reach Troy – so Aeneas and his family escape early before the sack that happens at the end).
And when Aeneas, Anchises and his younger son Ascanius escape Troy – Creusa who was Aeneas’ wife perished in the flames that consumed the city. When Abraham leaves alongside his younger nephew Lot and his father Terah – Lot’s wife is said to have died because she remained close to the city or simply fell back since she wanted to look at the city one more time – and she was burned by the fire. When the wife of Aeneas Creusa burns to death – she is claimed to have fallen behind because she wanted to have another look at the city and didn’t want to leave her home that easily (since she had affection towards her home). The reason why it’s Lot’s wife and not Abraham’s in the Bible (Abraham corresponding to Aeneas in this case) – is only because as mentioned previously in other posts as well; the characters taken into consideration by ancient cultures were claimed to have lived a very long time and they had the capacity to keep themselves always young in appearance, so sometimes the father or the "son" were confused with each other and they were also called with the same name at different moments due to confusion. So the father plays the role of the "nephew" ("nephew" being an alternative rendition of the fact that he was the "younger relative" – so the Iliad called him the "son" i.e. Ascanius whilst the Bible addressed him as the "nephew" – but "nephews" were considered to be just as close as sons back in the day, so the alternative renditions of the same events still kept intact the fact that he was the "younger" relative) – and thus it became Lot’s wife instead of Abraham’s wife – but the story is the same.
The fact of why they are claimed to be two cities in the Old Testament while Troy is addressed as only one big city in the Iliad will be left for another time – but the general idea is that the term "Trojan" was considered synonymous with the term "Dardanian" which means "from the city of Dardanus"; Dardanus being a city that was founded in the same area as Troy by a mythical ancestor called "Dardanus" himself and that then constituted a single identity with Troy itself because the House of Troy i.e. the Royal Family of Troy – was claimed to be divided in two branches: that of the Trojans (or Ilians according to the name "Ilium" or "Ilios" attributed to Troy) and that of the Dardanians. Although then in Virgil’s Aeneid but even in other sources and within the beliefs of the Roman emperors themselves; the word "Dardanian" or "descendant of the House of Dardanus" became synonymous with saying "descendant of the House of Troy" – to the point that Aeneas in the Aeneid is called both a "Trojan" and "Dardanian" at the same time interchangeably and with no distinction.
So essentially – the city of Dardanus was a second Troy itself (and a slightly older Troy because it was claimed to have been founded a little earlier than Ilium i.e. Troy).
When Ilioneus who’s regarded as an ambassador of Aeneas in the Aeneid – is sent to King Latinus of the Latins in order to explain to him the situation of why Aeneas and his men were there; Ilioneus states the following:
"Majesty, eminent son of Faunus, no darkling storm at sea forced us to come to your country. Our course was not confused by the stars or the shoreline. We're all borne to your city deliberately, freely, though forced from another kingdom, once the supremest viewed by the sun, coming from far-off Olympus. Jupiter founded our nation: Dardanus' children are glad to call Jupiter Grandfather: kingly Aeneas of Troy, who brought us here, is of high Jupiter's bloodline."
Virgil’s Aeneid lines 220-222. Book VII.
This clearly mixes together the identity of being a "Trojan" i.e. "Jupiter founded our nation (referring to Troy)" – and the idea of being a Dardanian i.e. "Dardanus’ children are glad to call Jupiter Grandfather" – as being one and the same thing; and thus this created after a while the general idea in other cultures which still reported the same story but called the names of the cities with different names and addressed the people involved with other names as well (because each culture gave the same characters different names in their own culture and thus addressed the same figures with many different names although they were still one and the same characters nonetheless) – this created the general idea in further iterations of the story that when "Troy" was destroyed; and "Troy" is synonymous also with "Dardanus" – it created the idea that both Troy and Dardanus were destroyed by the fire, since they were regarded as being almost one and the same city or one and the same thing/identity. So both cities were destroyed when the fire came down sent by Zeus – since Troy and Dardanus are the same but they’re still two distinct cities.
The Aeneid furthermore claims:
"How fierce was that storm from mad Mycenae that poured on the plains of Mount Ida! Europe and Asia were driven by Fates — a world was forced to collide with a world there. Even at Earth's extremes they've heard of the conflict, where Ocean is turned back and the immoderate Sun-God centers and cuts off a long tract from four others.
After the storm, conveyed on desolate sea-ways, we searched for a plain home for the Gods of our country, some harmless coast with water and air open to all men. We won't disgrace your kingdom. And word of your kindness will carry weight: such acts won't die or be thankless. It won't bring shame to have taken Troy to Ausonia's breast — I swear by the hand and Fate of our forceful Aeneas, tested in friendship and armed confrontation.
Throngs of people from many nations have wanted to join us themselves. So don't feel scorn if we offer a hand first, if we come with wreaths and proposals. God's word — a rule of its own — has impelled us to look for this ground."
Virgil’s Aeneid, 222-240. Book VII.
Another version translates it as such:
"King, illustrious son of Faunus, no dark tempest, driving us through the waves, forced us onto your shores, no star or coastline deceived us in our course: we travelled to this city by design, and with willing hearts, exiled from our kingdom, that was once the greatest that the sun gazed on, as he travelled from the edge of heaven. The founder of our race is Jove, the sons of Dardanus enjoy Jove as their ancestor, our king himself is of Jove's high race: Trojan, Aeneas, sends us to your threshold. The fury of the storm that poured from fierce Mycenae, and crossed the plains of Ida, and how the two worlds of Europe and Asia clashed, driven by fate, has been heard by those whom the most distant lands banish to where Ocean circles back, and those whom the zone of excessive heat, stretched between the other four, separates from us. Sailing out of that deluge, over many wastes of sea, we ask a humble home for our country's gods, and a harmless stretch of shore, and air and water accessible to all. We'll be no disgrace to the kingdom, nor will your reputation be spoken of lightly, nor gratitude for such an action fade, nor Ausonia regret taking Troy to her breast. I swear by the destiny of Aeneas, and the power of his right hand, whether proven by any man in loyalty, or war and weapons, many are the peoples, many are the nations (do not scorn us because we offer peace-ribbons, and words of prayer, unasked) who themselves sought us and wished to join with us: but through divine destiny we sought out your shores to carry out its commands."
Aeneid – Book VII, lines 213-240.
With "God’s word" – "Jupiter’s word" is intended, Jupiter being the Supreme God. Thus because of "Jupiter’s word" i.e. "God’s word" – the word of this god has impelled Aeneas and his descendants to look for this land ("look for this ground") and they are bound to settle there because the land has been promised to him by Jupiter. (There’s even an episode where Aeneas gets distracted along the way with Queen Dido of Carthage and Jupiter sends Mercury/Hermes as a messenger to Aeneas essentially telling him: "what are you doing? You need to leave Dido and go settle into Italy because that’s the will of Jupiter and you and your descendants will prosper on that land which the gods have promised to you and to your descendants."
This is the exact quote from the original text: "For love of a wife are you now building the foundations of high Carthage and a pleasing city? Alas, forgetful of your kingdom and fate! The king of the gods himself, who bends heaven and earth to his will, has sent me down to you from bright Olympus: he commanded me himself to carry these words through the swift breezes. What do you plan? With what hopes do you waste idle hours in Libya's lands? If you're not stirred by the glory of destiny, and won't exert yourself for your own fame, think of your growing Ascanius, and the expectations of him, as Iulus your heir, to whom will be owed the kingdom of Italy, and the Roman lands."
Aeneid – Book IV, lines 219-278).
The city that was founded i.e. "Rome" – is the same ancient Golden Age city that every single mythology of the earth speaks of, a city which was more important than all the others and spawned a great empire amongst its contemporaries: whether it’s called Babylon, Rome, Jerusalem etc. – an ancient mythological city which spawned the empire of the gods: the Empire of King David in Israel with the "city of god"; the Empire of the gods in Babylon with the so-called "Bab-ilu" i.e. "Gate of the Gods"; the Empire of Romulus and Aeneas (who are actually the same figure) in Rome with the so-called "city of the gods" or "city of Jupiter" etc. and all of these different names that were names for the same exact city which was only one city that was built in very ancient times (in prehistoric times) when the gods used to rule on earth.
This ancient city then became the "template" for all the cities in history – and every single monarch or ruler tried to recreate this mythical city by creating many replicas throughout the world and giving these human replicas of the "godly city" – different names that were all names with which this one single city had been called by the different cultures of the globe: so the Hebrews in their culture called this mythical city Jerusalem and they thus called their own capital "Jerusalem" when they recreated it; the Romans called it Rome so they called their city "Rome" when they recreated it; the Babylonians called it Babylon, the Scandinavians called it "Asgardr" – the Greeks called it "Athens" (the mythological Athens which was claimed by Plato in his "Timaeus and Critias" to have existed at the time when Atlantis itself also existed; and Athens was superior to Atlantis according to Plato) – and this was an "Athens" that wasn’t the one built by humans i.e. built by the Greeks in 1400 B.C. – it was a mythological Athens that existed so long ago that by the time the Greeks spoke about it, it had already become a myth.
But this same exact city was called "Jerusalem" by the Hebrews, "Athens" by the Greeks (the mythological Athens), "Rome" by the Romans (the mythological Rome of course – which existed a very long time ago; not the one Rome which was founded by the Roman Emperors in 753 B.C.) although every human ruler and every human empire that created a new city of their own would call their own capital with the name of this ancient mythical city (and of course they would all call it with the name that this one mythological city was claimed to have had in their own language – because in every language and in every culture of the planet this same city was claimed to have had a different name that changed according to languages and cultures) and they would do this to try to recreate the Golden Age on earth.
Not coincidentally Rome is called the city which was founded on 7 hills and the city of Jerusalem is also claimed to have been founded on 7 hills – this is because they are both human replicas of an ancient "divine" city that was claimed to have been founded on 7 hills by a race of "gods"; and everyone called these gods with different names: "children of Israel", "Olympians", "Aesir" in Scandinavia, "Deva" in India etc. and just as they called these gods with many different names – they also called this original mythical city with many different names as well: "Jerusalem", "Babylon", "Rome" being some of the names with which this ancient city was called by different cultures.

I posted this to both Superstonk and GME, it was removed by the moderators of both subreddits. Posting it to my profile for those who care to see it, and everyone feel free to share it anywhere on Reddit, X, TikTok, YouTube or anywhere else.

TL;DR - I cannot summarize this post because I feel that it is necessary to read it entirely in order to fully understand the point I am trying to make. If you do not like this post that is ok, but if you decide to downvote it, please read it entirely before doing so. Thank you.

Call to Action

SuperStonk, since the beginning we have always strived to do everything in our power to protect our investments. We migrated subreddits multiple times, we established backup communication outlets, we moved brokerages and called them to demand our shares not be lent out, we backed up our DD, and eventually we learned about direct registration and DRSed our shares. If we take a step back in time to when we originally started to DRS our shares, there were two main reasons for it: the obvious one was to attempt at locking the float, but the other reason was to protect our shareholders rights. Now that we are in the end game, why should we stop now? I know there are a wide range of opinions on GameStop's recent corporate actions. The events that have occurred over the past few weeks have left thousands of shareholders with concerns. You may not agree with them, but the reality is that they are there, and they are real shareholders. I've read through their comments all over this subreddit, as well as everywhere else. My goal with this post is to remind everyone that we as shareholders have the right to let our voices be heard. We own billions in this company, and our voices are more powerful than some of you may think. This is the exact reason I created this petition, to express my concerns to GameStop. I also emailed GameStop investor relations.

Recent Events

A few weeks ago, Roaring Kitty returned and lit the internet on fire with a barrage of memes on X. Perhaps he knew something was coming. Around the same time, the volume and volatility of the stock came to life like it hasn't in years. It is clear as day that this increase in volume and volatility has nothing to do with Roaring Kitty, but rather there's something under hood occurring that is driving the price action. Whether its obligations from leaps, swaps, ETF rebalancing, or any of the other many possibilities, its clear something big is happening. During the week of May 13-17, the price of GME actually touched $80. By May 17, the price had fallen and was consolidating in the $30 range, when GameStop announced a 45 million share "at-the-market offering" and "first quarter preliminary results". On May 24, GameStop announced the completion of the share offering, having raised $933.4 million. The "acquisitions and investments" language in the filing led many to speculate that maybe GameStop needed to quickly raise capital for a merger deal that was already underway, perhaps to be announced the week of earnings and the annual shareholder's meeting.
After a brief silence, Roaring Kitty posted his absolutely insane position to SuperStonk for the world to see. At this point, the behavior of MSM and various actors on social media made it clear that whoever is on the other side of that bet is very, very scared. This past week, we saw the volume and volatility of the stock begin to churn again. By Thursday, June 6 we were seeing violent upward price action in the stock. After this price action had already begun, Roaring Kitty scheduled a livestream on his YouTube channel for the next day, July 7 at noon est. Again it was clear that something under the hood was driving the stock, as it began before Roaring Kitty posted his livestream. During after hours Thursday night, the price hit over $60. On Friday morning, GameStop announced another 75 million share "at-the-market offering" and disclosed their first quarter results, even though those had previously been scheduled to release on June 11.

The Downsides

Although GameStop adding a few billion dollars to the balance sheet is extremely bullish for the long-term outlook of the company, that doesn't mean it didn't come without downsides. Once the current share offering is completed, the result will be a combined 120 million new shares sold into the market, representing an almost 40% dilution. This obviously adds liquidity to the stock, which is upsetting to many because we spent 3 years DRSing at least 75 million shares, which had resulted in GME becoming very illiquid. In particular, I feel the need to call into question the timing of the second share offering, as that is what bothers me the most. Going into Friday, it really looked like that run had legs, and there was a ton of hype in anticipation of Roaring Kitty's stream. GameStop chose to announce the share offering before pre-market trading on Friday morning, and by market open the price of the stock had fallen dramatically. This resulted in a huge loss of call premium in GME, on a Friday, and the same day as Roaring Kitty's livestream no less. Call holders aside, I have to question this timing even from the perspective of the company's best interest. Could GameStop have raised more capital, with fewer shares, if they had waited until a later time/day? We can tell by the volume on Friday that something was still churning under the hood. Let's imagine the potential if they let the stock run, let Roaring Kitty do his thing, and let all of those calls expire in the money to drive the price action into next week. For me, and many of the comments I've seen, this timing is very troubling.

GameStop vs Roaring Kitty?

The interpretations of Roaring Kitty's ATM meme, his memes the morning of the first 45 million share offering (May 17), and his "Happy Birthday from GameStop" comment in his livestream yesterday are still being debated. To me, his memes the morning of May 17 seemed negative. He posted a crying meme face under the Kitty mask, and the first meme of that morning was the only one off-schedule that entire week. His birthday comment yesterday also seemed like blatant sarcasm to me "wrap it up in a gift or some shit". Thus, I personally think these offerings surprised him, but that is just my opinion, I could be completely wrong.
Is all of this part of some master plan that is yet to be revealed? Is each party simply acting in their own best interest? Or is there something more going on here? Unfortunately, I don't have those answers, but I feel like the question is important at this stage in the game, so I wanted to at least mention it.

MOASS

There's been some controversy lately between those that are more interested in the long-term potential of GameStop vs those who are here for MOASS. For me, it has always been about MOASS, and after MOASS of course a lot of those gains will go right back into GME. If you're in the MOASS camp with me, don't fret, I still think MOASS is very much on the table, it could even be right around the corner. There are a lot of possibilities that could play out over the next few weeks. We know something big is still churning in the stock, Roaring Kitty's 120,000 calls don't expire until June 21, and the shorts are terrified. It is very possible that the stock will start running hard as soon as GameStop lets us know that the share offering is complete.
Although it may seem that way, my main goal with this petition and post is not to criticize GameStop's recent corporate actions, as that won't really result in anything productive anyways. Instead, I want to focus on voicing my concerns about the possibility of similar actions moving forward, particularly the next few weeks. For this reason, I left all of my opinions from this post out of the petition. I tried to keep it to one simple statement that I hope most can agree with. We do not have a once in a lifetime in front of us, we have a once in history opportunity in front of us. Roaring Kitty is back, he holds 120,000, and the stock is alive. It is time for MOASS. It is time to let our voices be heard. Let the stock run.

The Petition

I created a petition through Change.org, here is the url: https://www.change.org/p/petition-to-the-gamestop-board-of-directors
Here are the contents of the petition:
Petition to the GameStop Board of Directors
I am a shareholder of GME stock, and I am petitioning the GameStop Board of Directors to not release another "at-the-market offering" or unscheduled negative press release at a pivotal moment of the next significant movement of the stock.
I want to be clear, I have no intention of seeking or taking any legal action with this petition. I will not be submitting it any court. It is simply a public, online petition that I created to let my voice be heard. I know that many shareholders have chosen to remain anonymous (myself included). If you'd like to sign it, you can sign it with your name or anonymously (I created and signed this petition with the name "Anonymous Shareholder").
If you want to sign it, but you have additional concerns, feel free to express that via the "Reasons for signing" comment section.
If you don't want to sign it, but you have your own concerns, know that you can always email GameStop's investor relations. I did.
If you do not agree with this petition and you don't want to sign it, that is perfectly ok. Please be respectful to those with concerns.

To the Longgggg crowd

I know that some of you have an investment thesis that is more interested in GameStop's long-term potential. You think GameStop will become GameShire Stopaway. I hope you're right, and you have every right to your own investment strategy. However, you have to understand that years ago many got involved in this play for MOASS. We should've been paid in January of 2021, but here we are. We still want see the shorts' demise, and we still want to be paid.

To the Master Plan / Merger Inbound crowd

I know many of you think everything is part of a master plan that has yet to be revealed. Some of you think GameStop is going to announce some kind of merger or acquisition very soon. Well, I hope you guys are right, as I would profit greatly if you are! My argument to you is that if there is already a deal that is done and yet to be announced, or a master plan already in motion, then this petition/post is not going to change that in any way. The goal of this is to simply voice concerns just in case we have fallen off the tracks. I know you're zen, but please don't just downvote this post to oblivion and scream FUD. There are other shareholders out there with concerns who may want to see it.
"Hope for the best, prepare for the worst."

My preemptive answers to the FUD accusations

I know the accusations are coming, but here's the deal, I've been here the whole time. I'm not telling anyone to sell. I'm not price anchoring. I'm not just upset because I lost money on calls. Full disclosure, I sold my call position at market open on Friday for a small profit (although I feel for any of you who didn't make it out ahead, I've been there and I feel your pain). I've held DRS shares for a long time, and I'm not leaving. Roaring Kitty's livestream was amazing. Roaring Kitty is not a market manipulator, he is the most legendary investor of all time and he simply posted his position online for the world to see. MOASS is inevitable. Ape no fight Ape. Wen Lambo.
This is not financial advice. Don't take advice or invest your money based on the speculation and ramblings of a dumb ape on the internet.