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arlana-likes-to-write · 10 months

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Resting on Your Shoulder

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Summary: Your sisters decide that a trip to Iowa is exactly what you need to help you work through the effects of Daniel’s interrogation but they didn’t know you were battling with an angel and a devil on your shoulder.

Warning: mention of past torture, past guilt, the Bartons are my favorite people to write, love confession, self-hatred.

Word count: 3.5

You caught the sandbag as it swung back towards you, resting your head on it. Every one of your muscles was screaming for you to take a break; to rest and recover. But you needed your mind to turn off. You needed your mind to stop reliving your interrogation with Daniel. It was a constant battle with the angel and devil on your shoulder as you knew getting him to talk was necessary to save Natasha but did you need to do it? You could have let Steve or Sam handle it and stayed far away from that mindset. However, there was a part of you that craved that power, that control. Oh, how you missed it and that scared you more. “There you are,” you looked over your shoulder to see Natasha walking towards you. You frowned.

“Cho will have a fit if she sees you in here,” your sister rolled her eyes. She was banned from active missions until she was fully healed but you knew she was hitching to get back out there.

“I’m not here to work out,” she said. “I’m here for you.” You raised an eyebrow at her as you bent down to pick up your water bottle.

“What’s up?”

“Since I’m benched I’m thinking about going to Iowa,” you cocked your head to the side. “Clint and his family live there.” That made more sense. “Do you want to come with us?”

“Is that a good idea?” You asked. It was her turn to tilt her head in confusion.

“Why wouldn’t it be?” That was a fair follow-up question. “They’ve been pretty eager to meet you,” you sat down, leaning against the wall. She sighed, sitting in front of you. “Look, it will be good for you to get out of the compound.”

“Nat, I’m fine,” you said, taking another sip of water. She gave you a pointed look but you remained silent.

“I know interrogating Daniel wasn’t easy for you and you don’t have to talk to me but you need to talk to someone about it. I’ve learned that Bartons have a healing presence,” you chuckled, shaking your head.

“Sure I could use a vacation,” you stood up, holding out your hand to help Natasha. “Besides, it will be nice to meet the man who was tasked with killing my sister.” She rolled her eyes, punching you lightly on the shoulder. “When are we leaving?”

“As soon as you shower, you stink,” you pulled Natasha into your arms, hugging her tight. Her laughter filled the quiet gum as she tried to push you away from her. Since the interrogation, Dainel’s screams were no longer in your mind, only the sound of your sister’s laughter.

“Why did they pick Iowa?” You asked as Natasha landed the Quinjet near the wooded area of Barton’s land. “Is it because it’s the Hawkeye state?” You knew it came from the Native American warrior named Black Hawk but it was too much of a conscience to not bring it up. Yelena giggled at your joke.

“I bet he’d love to hear that joke,” Natasha deadpanned. “But Fury set this up for him when he decided to join the team,” she explained. “Only myself, Yelena, and Maria knew about it.” You nodded, you’ve yet to meet Nick Fury. You knew of him. He was a high target for the Red Room and HYDRA.

The Quinjet landed and you met your sisters by the ramp as they collected their stuff and turned off the jet. You were hit with a wave of anxiety.

“Are you ready?” Yelena asked, standing next to you as the ramp descended.

“Yeah,” you told her. “I'm a little nervous.”

“Don’t be,” she said, pumping her shoulder against yours. “They are some of the best people.”

The house was beautiful, painted white with green shutters and a wrapped-around porch. It was a split image of the American dream. Before you could comment the front door of the house swung open and a little boy came running out towards you. “Brace yourself,” you heard Natasha mumble as the boy yelled, “Auntie Nat,” and threw himself into her arms. You caught your sister before she went tumbling to the ground.

“Woah little hawk,” Yelena said. “We have to be careful,” he looked at Yelena with a shy family on his face.

“Sorry Aunt Lena,” Hearing this little boy call your sister's aunts was tugging at your heartstrings.

“It’s okay,” Natasha set him down on the ground. “I'm very excited to see you,” she tapped him on the nose. “I want you to meet someone really important to Yelena and I. Nathaniel, this is our oldest sister.” He hid behind Natasha’s legs but he did give you a small wave.

“Hi, Nate. I’ve heard a lot of great things about you,” you said, kneeling so you were level with him. He still didn’t come out behind Natasha. “I got you something.” You noticed he wasn’t hiding anymore at the mention of a gift but you didn’t draw attention to it. Instead, you took a Lego set out of your duffle bag. “A little birdie told me you like building legos,” he gasped, taking the box from you. “Do you think we can build it together?” He excitedly nodded.

“I don’t have this one,” his eyes were glued to the box. “I have to show you the other ones I have.” You smiled.

“Sounds like a plan, bud.”

“Spoiling my kids already,” you looked at the porch and saw Clint with his wife and two other kids. You stood up, following Nate and your sisters to the house. Nate was already showing his new toy to his siblings.

“I have to make up for the lost time,” you said, handing Lila and Cooper a box. You got Cooper a drone and Lila a new bow and arrow set.

“Why don’t you bring us anything?” Cooper asked Yelena and Natasha. Yelena rolled her eyes, punching him on the shoulder.

“Because I don’t like you anymore,” your youngest sister deadpanned. Cooper smiled. “Meet the other Bartons. Clint, Laura, Cooper, and Lila.” Yelena introduced.

“Welcome to the Family,” Laura said, pulling you into a quick hug. You were shocked by the action, not expecting it from the mother of three but you hugged her back not to make it weird. It was odd how welcoming they were. They knew nothing about you and the darkness you put into the world. The devil on your shoulder began to talk - hurt them, kill them, you’ll enjoy it. The angel was nowhere in sight.

Natasha was right. It was impossible to be so deep inside your head when you were around the Bartons. Nate showed you his Lego collection and explained in great detail each. You enjoyed listening to the stories that Clint told and the banter between Yelena and Cooper. At night when everyone was asleep, you found yourself sitting on the porch with a 6 pack of beer. The stars were beautiful out here, it made you realize how small you were in the universe. You heard the front door open and Laura stood next to you. “Mind if I join you?”

“Your house,” you said as she sat down.

“My beer too,” she smiled, taking one. You chuckled.

“I made a mental note to buy you guys some more,” it was Laura’s turn to laugh. You both sat in silence, drinking beer and looking up at the stars. “You have a beautiful family,” you said, breaking the silence. “Thank you for opening it up to me.”

“It’s your home too,” she smiled.

“Not sure how smart it is to offer your home to a stranger,” you joked. “I could be a killer and endanger your entire family.” She smiled.

“Do you think you're a danger to my family?” She questioned. “Or your sisters?” ‘We have the same level of darkness inside of us,’ Daniel taunted. ‘You could conquer the world, burn it down, and rebuild it. If you just embraced it.’ You could never hurt your sisters or anyone innocent. But the devil on your shoulder wasn’t going away. It was so loud.

“I’d never hurt them,” you finally said. “Them or your family.” Laura nodded. Another beat of silence passed. “Sometimes I worry,” you told her and took a sip of your beer. “That they broke something inside me. It scares me.”

“What did he say to you?” She asked. You weren’t surprised that she knew what happened. Finally, you looked at her.

“He said that he and I were the same,” you said. “We have the same level of darkness. I could set the world on fire and rebuild it from the ashes,” you looked away. “He was right in a way, you know? Drekyov trained us to bring down empires. Maybe that’s all I’m good for.” Laura was quiet. Both her hands wrapped around her beer bottle as she stared ahead.

“Have you seen the Harry Potter movies?” She asked. You shook your head. You knew they were on Yelena’s list to show you. “There is a quote that describes you and the other Widows - ‘You’re a very good person, who had bad things happen to you. Besides, the world isn’t split between good people and Death Eaters. We’ve all got both light and dark inside us.” You frowned, letting what she said to sit with you.

“Which one do I listen to? The angel or the devil?” Laura smiled.

“You’ve already beaten one devil,” she said, standing up. She stifled a yawn and you felt a little guilty for keeping her up. “Another one can’t be that hard, right?” You smiled, nodding your head. “From what Yelena and Natasha have told us, that angel is a lot louder than you think.”

“Thank you, Laura.”

“Get some sleep and come get me if you need anything,” she squeezed your shoulder as she walked back into the house. You sighed, finishing the rest of your beer and placing it in the holder. You looked up at the stairs. It was so easy to see them. Were they always this bright or were you too busy to look up?

“Has anyone seen my sister?” Natasha asked, walking into the kitchen. The kids were already eating breakfast and Yelena was working on a mission report for Maria that Natasha told her to get done before they came. She wasn’t surprised that it wasn’t done. Natasha knocked on your door for breakfast but the room was empty.

“She was up early,” Clint said, pouring himself a cup of coffee. “She went on one of the trail runs.” The two sisters looked at each other. It was like at the compound. They’ve had to drag you out of the training room most days to eat or sleep.

“Not sure how much sleep she got,” Laura said, passing by Natasha with a gentle hand on her back. “We were up late talking.” Before Natasha could question what they talked about, she heard the front door open. You walked into the kitchen with a smile and sneaked a sausage link from Cooper’s plate.

“I thought you were never going to wake up,” you teased, filling up a glass of water and downing it quickly.

“You know some people like to sleep in when they go away.” Natasha countered. You laughed.

“Breakfast is ready,” Laura said. “Help yourself.” You smiled.

“Let me shower and I’ll be back down.” You said. Before you headed upstairs, Natasha grabbed onto your arm.

“If you aren’t back in 10 minutes I’m dragging you back down here,” she threatened. You smiled.

“I would expect nothing less, Natalie, but I’m okay,” that was up for some debate but Natasha let go of your room. She watched you go upstairs, suppressing a sigh.

“Sestra,” she turned to face Yelena. “She’ll be okay, we’ll make sure of it.”

You sat on the edge of the bed, freshly showered, and with a new set of clothes on. You were taking care of some cuts on your knuckles. On your run, you got so lost in a memory that you punched a tree. You were a little surprised your sisters didn’t see it. Dreyokv brought you into a room where a Red Room guard and a fellow Widow were handcuffed to the ground. Her name was Anastasia and she was a few years younger than you. The man’s name was a mystery but you’ve seen him around. Dreyokv told you that the pair were in love and were plotting to escape, your job was to get them to talk and tell them the details of their plan. So you tortured them. You could see the blood on your hands. Their screams made your heart pound and you felt the adrenaline rush through your veins. When they gave in and told you everything, Dreyokv still made you kill them.

“Hey sestra, are you with us?” You glanced up, getting pulled out of your thoughts, and saw your sisters kneeling in front of you. God, how many times have they been in this position? You needed to get your shit together. You nodded, pressing the palm of your hands to your eyes.

“I lied,” you said, bringing your hands down to look at them. “I don’t think I’m okay.” Yelena smiled.

“Yeah,” she whispered. “We know.” You chuckled. Of course, they knew. Your sisters were so much smarter than you.

“Come with us,” Natasha said, holding out her hand. “We want to show you something.” And you took your hand without hesitation.

They brought you to a secluded part of the Barton’s property where they had a small swimming pond. Yelena laid out a picnic blanket and you sat down looking at the water. “Can you imagine having a place like this?” You asked as they sat down.

“I’ve thought about it,” Natasha admitted. “Leaving the team and getting a house big enough for all of us.” Yelena leaned back on her hands and looked at the view.

“I couldn’t live out in the country,” she said. “But a house of my own does sound nice.” You let the silence fall between you and your sisters. It was peaceful as a nice breeze blew through.

“Did you watch it?” You asked Natasha. “Did you watch me torture him?” The redhead nodded, pulling one of her knees to her chest. You knew the entire thing was recorded and it wasn’t a surprise Natasha watched it. “Originally, Steve and Sam were going to talk to him but I said it should be me to do it. I convinced them that he wouldn’t talk under normal circumstances but I could break him.”

“And you did,” you nodded. “You did it to save me, that doesn’t make you a monster.” She was right.

“But the thoughts I’ve been having after do,” you said. “A dark part of me missed it, you know? That control, the power, and that adrenaline rush,” you shook your head. “I wasn’t lying when I told him that my bite kills. No matter who Dreykov sat in front of me I could break - men, women, or another Willow.” You sighed, running your hand through the grass.

“You did what you had to do to survive,” Yelena said as if it was the simplest answer behind everything you did.

“And what about now?” You questioned. “What’s the reasoning for these thoughts? I have an angel and devil resting on my shoulder and I don’t know who to listen to. I’m afraid they broke something that can’t be fixed,” you admitted. You sighed, picking up a nearby rock. It was smooth against your fingers as you twirled it around. “I wonder if they were always there.” You looked back at your sisters. Yelena had her knees to her chest, resting her chin on her knees. She was looking at the swimming hole. But Natasha was looking right at you.

“Nothing about you is broken,” she finally said. You scuffed, looking away. “I’m telling you the truth. I have those same thoughts,” Natasha sighed. Out of the corner of your eye, you watched her run her hands through her hair. “When Loki kidnapped and brainwashed Clint I was ready to kill everyone in my sight and when you were kidnapped I was ready to burn the compound to the ground if they got in my way.” you chuckled. “We go back to that mindset when things get out of control. It’s how we cope.”

“Fucked up way to cope,” you mumbled, leaning back on your hands.

“We had a pretty fucked up childhood,” Yelena smiled. “But I think we turned out okay.” You smiled.

“Yeah, we did.”

“How’s Iowa?” Carol asked. Once again you found yourself sitting outside the Barton’s house but you felt different, lighter almost. You were video-calling Carol, who was laying in her bed at the compound. You smiled.

“It’s nice,” you said. “And quiet. I needed this more than I realized.” She smiled.

“Good, I’m glad you are enjoying yourself.” You looked past your phone into the vast darkness. Your mind couldn’t help but wonder and dream of owning a place like this. “What’s got you thinking so hard, pretty girl?” You blushed, biting your lip.

“I was just thinking,” she gave you a look for you to continue as she sat up in bed. She was wearing a tank top and you were slightly distracted by her muscles. She smirked.

“See something you like, baby girl,” she teased.

“Shut up,” you mumbled, cheeks feeling hot from embarrassment. Carol chuckled. “Anyways, I was thinking about the life Clint built out here. One day I want to have something like this,” you looked into the vast darkness. “A place to call my own away from all the fighting.”

“You know,” she said slowly, causing you to look back at her. “No one would be upset with you if you walked away from the fight. You’ve spent your entire life following orders. You can live for yourself.” You smiled, it wasn’t happy.

“I can’t,” you whispered. “Not yet at least,” you looked down at the steps you were sitting on. “I’ve done a lot of bad stuff. There is so much red on my ledger. I can’t stop.”

“Sweetheart, can you look at me?” It took a minute for you to look at her. There was a look in her eyes that you couldn’t pinpoint the emotion. You saw it when Maria looked at Natasha when Alexei looked at Melina, and now when Clint looked at Laura. Love. Did she love you? “Why are you being the judge, jury, and executioner of your fate?” You didn’t answer. “The way I see it you paid your dues and if you want to stop, you can be done.” You chuckled.

“What gives you the right to be my judge?” You asked. You didn’t ask it to be mean or rude but you were curious. She looked shy all of a sudden, scratching the back of your head.

“Because I love you,” you felt your stomach drop at her admission. It was different hearing those three words coming from someone that wasn’t your family. It wasn’t a bad difference, just different. “And all I want for you is to be happy and safe. So if that means tomorrow you hand up your suit and get a 9 to 5,” you laughed, throwing your head back. “Then I’ll support you and I will always remind you that you deserve a chance to walk away from all of this.” You were stunned into a shocked silence at everything she said. But there was a part of you that felt the same, somewhere deep inside you knew that you loved Carol. ‘Tell her. Be happy and tell her.’ for once the angel was louder than the devil.

“I love you too,” you whispered like it was a secret for only you, her, and the stars could know about. “Thank you.”

“Why are you thanking me?” She asked.

“For loving me and all of my scars.” She chuckled, shaking her head slightly.

“You do not need to thank me,” she said. “I should be thanking you.” You looked at her confused. “You opened yourself up to me and made yourself vulnerable. Loving you is a gift I’ll treasure forever.” You smiled.

“You are a sap.”

“Only for you,” you tried to cover your mouth as you yawned. “Go get some sleep, baby girl.” You stood up.

“Will you stay on the phone till I fall asleep?” You asked, gently walking back into the farmhouse. You saw her nod her head. You opened the door to the guest room you were staying in and immediately climbed underneath the covers, placing your phone on your nightstand. “I love you,” you said again. Oh, how good it felt to say.

“I love you too. Goodnight, sweetheart,” you closed your eyes. The devil on your shoulder was silent and you no longer heard Daniel’s screams. You smiled as you weren’t afraid to fall asleep.

Tag list: @ cd-4848

I have such an idea for a longer work for this AU where something happens to the Reader and she becomes the next villain the Avengers have to fight. Idk if I have time to write it so send me asks and I would love to talk about it more.

Like my writing support the author and buy a kofi

#family is more than blood au #yelena belova x natasha romanoff x reader #natasha romanoff x reader #yelena belova x reader #black widow sisters #black widow fanfiction #clint barton x laura barton #laura barton x reader #carol danvers x reader #carol danvers x you #carol danvers x y/n #yelena belova x natasha romanoff

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fatehbaz · 1 year

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Avocado orchards had carpeted the gently undulating hills around the sacred lake of Pátzcuaro with stodgy green bushes. Here, before the cataclysmic arrival of the first envoys dispatched by Hernando Cortes from the Aztec capital over the mountains to the East, [...] the Purépecha had sown maize, amaranth, zucchini, cacao, cotton, tomato, beans, a dozen types of chili, and much more.

Now the monotonous “green gold” of the avocado boom had colonized the entire Mexican state of Michoacán. [...] [I]t was shocking to think that the cause of the disaster was America’s great patriotic party: the National Football League’s Super Bowl. A flurry of advertising creativity on behalf of the Mexican avocado was unleashed every year during the multi-million-dollar sports broadcast. [...] “Is your life just terrible?” asks the comic actor Chris Elliott, star of Scary Movie 2 and Scary Movie 4, in the 2019 spot. “You deserve more! Spread an avocado on top of everything!” [...] A few days before the Super Bowl, the domestic diva Martha Stewart [...] had released on social networks her latest recipe for guacamole [...]. Guacamole was now an obligatory snack for the 100 million or so Americans who watched the Super Bowl. In February of 2017, 278 million avocados -- most of them from Michoacán -- had been sold during the days before the game in [the US] [...].

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The avocado had become the star product of Mexican food production in the age of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) [...] since NAFTA was signed in 1994 [...]. [Mexican] farmers produced 16 times more than the formerly dominant Californian growers. [...] Moreover, the avocado was now classified as a “superfood” [...].

It had not always been like this. In the 1950s, the avocado was known unsentimentally as the crocodile pear [...]. Imports from Mexico were banned until 1997 [...] . When complete liberalization was announced in 2007, Michoacán had become an unbeatable competitor for the Californian avocado growers. The Mexican producers specialized, like their Californian rivals, in the Hass variety of avocado, more meaty than those that the Purépecha had [...] consumed over the millennia, and with a tough skin that protected the pears during long hauls in chilled container trucks to El Paso or Tijuana and then beyond to the big US consumer markets. [...] [T]he Hass avocado was perfectly suited to the global market [...]. Michoacán, whose crystalline lakes had earned it the name of the “land of fish” in the indigenous language of Tarasco, would never be the same.

By 2020, 80 percent of the avocados consumed in the United States came from Michoacán [...].

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Now in the 21st century, on the outskirts of Uruapan, the frenetic capital del aguacate, the new economy of agribusiness took shape [...]. Further west on the shores of Lake Pátzcuaro, the monoculture had not yet colonized the entire landscape, but the advance of the avocado seemed unstoppable. [...] “Practically everybody here wants an avocado orchard [...],” explained [FFB], a resident of the Purépecha indigenous community of Jarácuaro on the shores of the lake. [...] [H]e was horrified by the extent of environmental destruction. “They pump water from the lake to water the avocado orchards [...]. It’s pillage. [...]”

The falling water level, together with the introduction of the rapacious predator tilapia, had wiped out almost all the [...] [native] fish species. Of the cornucopia of marine life that had fed the Purépecha cities, only the diminutive silvery charal remained. The same occurred at other great freshwater deposits in Michoaczán. [...] The Purépecha communities on the shores of the lake, a landscape of stunning beauty where dense pine and ilex oak forests met white nymphaea lilies floating on turquoise water, were girding themselves for the arrival of the aguacateros, avocado producers [...].

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“They put a gun to your head and tell you to sign the deed before the notary. That’s how the transfer of land is agreed upon,” explained [GV], a sociologist at the University of San Nicolas de Hidalgo in Morelia [...].

Meanwhile, large exporters and avocado brokers -- some of them international brands like Del Monte -- were profiting by purchasing from producers at dirt-cheap prices and reselling to the US supermarket chains at very attractive ones. “They pay a dollar per kilo of avocado here and sell it for eight at a Minnesota W*lmart,” said [GV].

In order not to squander such a reliable source of profits, “transnational corporations, just like the Canadian mining companies in Zacatecas, pay the extortion money [...],” he continued.

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Text by: Andy Robinson. Gold, Oil, and Avocados: A Recent History of Latin America in Sixteen Commodities. 2021. [Bold emphasis and some paragraph breaks added by me.]

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mariacallous · 3 months

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Yevgeny Moiseyev, the mayor of the Russian city of Kislovodsk, announced Sunday that a quote from ballet dancer and choreographer Mikhail Baryshnikov will be removed from a local choreography school because he spoke out against the invasion of Ukraine.

Photos published by the mayor show the following quote from Baryshnikov on one of the school’s walls: “I do not try to dance better than anyone else. I only try to dance better than myself.”

“I’m currently working to figure out who approved the idea to feature a quote from a person who, while he may be a genius, abandoned his native country and doesn’t support it, our heroic boys, or our president in the fight that we all, as a country, and as the entire city of Kislovodsk, are waging for our future, the future of our children, and the entire country,” wrote Moiseyev.

He said he’s ordered for Baryshnikov’s quote to be replaced with “the words of one of our geniuses, a true patriot of their native land.”

Mikhail Baryshnikov was born in Soviet Latvia. In the 1970s, he emigrated to the U.S., where he joined the American Ballet Theatre and began performing in films and on Broadway. He now leads the Baryshnikov Arts Center in New York. After Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Baryshnikov began raising money for Ukrainian refugees along with writer Boris Akunin and economist Sergei Guriev as part of the True Russia project. The Russian authorities have banned the initiative as an “undesirable” organization.

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theivorybilledwoodpecker · 2 years

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I'm not sure how many people saw this. There have been so many SCOTUS rulings lately, and each is enough to make it hard to focus on what else the SCOTUS is doing. But the SCOTUS just ruled that state law enforcement can prosecute non-Native Americans who commit crimes on tribal lands.

This is atrocious because historically this is a right given to tribal authorities. It limits Native American sovereignty. Brett Kavenaugh wrote, "Indian Country is part of a state, not separate from a state.”

This violates precedents and treaties.

Now, as terrifying as this is, it may not be the end of what the SCOTUS does. They are set to review the Indian Child Welfare Act.

This act protects Native American children and culture in that it gives Native Americans control over foster child placement for Native Americans. It was enacted to prevent Native American children from being basically kidnapped and forced to assimilate.

Do you trust that the SCOTUS who took away tribal sovereignty will uphold Native American's rights in this case? I don't.

And while the SCOTUS was targeting everyone with a uterus, the abortion ban will undoubtedly hurt Native Americans. The US used to forcibly sterilize them, and now it is forcing them to be pregnant.

I'll be honest, we're in serious trouble, and I am aware of how much of an understatement that is. I wish I had some quick advice to give on what to do, but I don't.

But we need to fight against this.

Boost the signal. The SCOTUS is counting on no one paying attention to their attacks on Native Americans. They are counting on people being distracted by abortion and not noticing their other decisions.

Donate to Native American tribes and organizations.

Reach out to your representatives to demand action.

When you're contacted by campaigns this year, demand to know what the candidates plan to do about Native American rights. Abortion will be their main focus. Remind them that Native American rights are just as important.

Vote for candidates who support BIPOC rights.

Write to companies asking them to support Native American rights. If they have a history of donating to people who oppose Civil Rights, make them tell you why.

Sign petitions for Native American rights.

And protest! While we should be doing everything we can, the usual things like donating and writing representatives aren't enough on their own any more. We need to take to the streets.

#Native Americans #Human rights #SCOTUS

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tomorrowusa · 16 days

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Gov. Kristi Noem, a Trump lickspittle, is banned from 15% of her state of South Dakota. She is one of the contestants for the number two position on Trump's national ticket.

As South Dakota governor Kristi Noem vies for a top position in a second Trump White House, she appears to be more focused on shoring up her vice-presidential chances than on making allies at home — to the point that she is no longer welcome in around 15 percent of the state she governs. Over the past few months, Noem has made several comments about alleged drug trafficking on Native American reservation lands, infuriating a number tribes in the state. In February, the Oglala Sioux Tribe banned her from the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, the fifth largest in the United States, for claiming without evidence that drug cartels were connected to murders on the reservation. The ban did not dissuade her from making more incendiary remarks. In March, Noem said at a community forum in Winner that there are “some tribal leaders that I believe are personally benefiting from cartels being there and that’s why they attack me every day.” When tribal leaders demanded an apology, Noem doubled down, issuing a statement to the tribes to “banish the cartels.” In response, the Cheyenne River Sioux forbade Noem from setting foot on their reservation, the fourth largest in the U.S. On Wednesday, the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, the sixth largest in the U.S., banned her as well. On Thursday, a fourth tribe, the Rosebud Sioux, followed suit.

So far, four tribes are banning Noem:

Oglala Sioux

Rosebud Sioux

Cheyenne River Sioux

Standing Rock Sioux

Alleged drug cartels on tribal lands in South Dakota are the local equivalent of millions of migrants illegally voting in 2020. Bullshit is not just a GOP specialty but a dedicated lifestyle.

#south dakota #kristi noem #drug cartels #bullshit #tribal lands #native americans #noem banned on tribal lands #oglala sioux #standing rock sioux #rosebud sioux #cheyenne river sioux #donald trump #trump running mate #election 2024 #vote blue no matter who

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sixstringphonic · 9 months

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Biden to Designate Monument Near Grand Canyon, Preventing Uranium Mining

Uranium extraction had already been restricted in the area, which Native tribes consider sacred, but the moratorium was set to expire in 2032. Mr. Biden’s designation will make it permanent.

(The New York Times, 8/8/23) President Biden will designate nearly a million acres of land near the Grand Canyon as a new national monument on Tuesday to protect the area from uranium mining, administration officials confirmed on Monday.

Mr. Biden’s visit to Arizona is part of a nationwide blitz by the White House to translate key policy victories to voters — including a law he signed last year to inject $370 billion in tax incentives into wind, solar and other renewable energy — as the 2024 campaign ramps up. Senior cabinet officials are also touring the country this week, highlighting his domestic agenda.

During his first stop of a three-state tour, Mr. Biden will announce that he is creating a national monument — the fifth such designation of his presidency — in an area sacred to Native American tribes, administration officials told reporters on Monday.

“The mining is off limits for future development in that area,” Ali Zaidi, Mr. Biden’s national climate adviser, told reporters on Air Force One. “It’s focused on preserving the historical resources” in the area.

Native tribes and environmental groups have long lobbied for the government to permanently protect the area around the Grand Canyon from uranium mining, which they say would damage the Colorado River watershed as well as areas with great cultural meaning for Native Americans.

Under the proposed designation, all new uranium mining will be blocked. Uranium mining has already been restricted in the area in question since 2012, but that Obama-era moratorium was set to expire in 2032. Mr. Biden’s designation would make the conditions permanent.

Mr. Biden’s visit to Arizona was also an effort to energize crucial constituency groups in the state, even as much of the American public remains skeptical of his domestic agenda.

Mr. Biden has called the Inflation Reduction Act — major legislation he signed last year that aims to cut planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions — “the largest investment ever in clean energy.” Yet 71 percent of Americans say they have heard “little” or “nothing at all” about the package one year later, according to a Washington Post-University of Maryland poll.

And most Americans — 57 percent — disapprove of his handling of climate change, according to the poll. Surveys show young voters, who turned out in force during the 2020 election, are particularly concerned about global warming.

Some environmental groups were left infuriated when Mr. Biden greenlit a drilling project known as Willow on pristine federal land in Alaska and mandated the sale of offshore drilling leases as part of a deal to pass the climate bill, undermining a campaign promise to ban drilling on federal lands.

“We know that polls don’t tell the entire story,” Karine Jean-Pierre, the White House press secretary, said on Monday when asked about why voters seemingly do not know what it is in Mr. Biden’s bills. As the administration continues to enact the various legislative packages, she said, “we’ll see Americans start to feel what we’ve been able to do in Washington.”

Native Americans were also a crucial voting bloc in Arizona in 2020, when the state voted for a Democratic presidential candidate for the first time since 1996. They made up 6 percent of Arizona’s electorate in 2020, larger than Mr. Biden’s margin for victory, according to the National Congress of American Indians.

More than 80 percent of Native American voters in 2020 agreed with the statement that “the federal government should return lands stolen from Native American tribes,” according to a 2022 poll conducted by the African American Research Collaborative.

“It is likely a strategic decision to focus on the Grand Canyon,” said Gabriel Sanchez, a fellow at the Brookings Institution who has researched voting trends among Native Americans.

“Many Native Americans do not vote based on party, but on which candidates will do the most to advance the interests of Native American communities.”

The National Mining Association called the monument designation “unwarranted” and said it would force the United States to rely on imported uranium from countries like Russia. Representative Bruce Westerman, Republican of Arkansas and the chairman of the House Committee on Natural Resources, blasted Mr. Biden for locking up domestic resources.

“This administration’s lack of reason knows no bounds, and their actions suggest that President Biden and his radical advisers won’t be satisfied until the entire federal estate is off limits and America is mired in dependency on our adversaries for our natural resources,” Mr. Westerman said in a statement.

The administration has argued that the proposed monument represents only 1.3 percent of the nation’s known uranium reserves.

“This is going to be a limit on future development in this space while being respectful of existing rights,” Mr. Zaidi said.

The area in question is called Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni — Baaj Nwaavjo, meaning “where tribes roam,” for the Havasupai people, and I’tah Kukveni, or “our footprints,” for the Hopi tribe.

Earlier this year Mr. Biden created a new national monument, Spirit Mountain, in Nevada, insulating from development a half-million acres that are revered by Native Americans. He also restored and expanded protections for Bears Ears National Monument and Grand Staircase-Escalante in Utah, sites that are sacred to Native Americans and that had been opened to mining and drilling by the Trump administration.

In June, the Biden administration banned drilling for 20 years around Chaco Canyon in New Mexico, one of the nation’s oldest and most culturally significant Native American sites. (Source)

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seymour-butz-stuff · 21 hours

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Kristi Noem has done plenty of terrible things as governor of South Dakota. That includes disregarding COVID-19 safety rules and being among the first to treat the whole pandemic as a political opportunity. No pencil-pushing scientist was going to tell her what to do, even if that meant citizens in South Dakota had to be airlifted out of state for treatment due to overcrowding. She’s banned from visiting 10% of the land in her own state because of her continuous disrespect for Native Americans. She insists on staging fireworks displays in the middle of a drought. And she’s currently being sued after doing a commercial for a cosmetic dentist in Texas to pay for her new set of teeth. With all that, Noem had still barely made a dent in the national news until she told a grisly story of how she shot a family dog and tossed its body in a gravel pit when it failed to perform to her satisfaction. But just because she’s been revealed as an empathy-deprived monster, don’t assume that she’s not at the top of Donald Trump’s shortlist for vice president. In 2008, I bundled our 17-year-old golden retriever named Tigger into my arms and took her to the vet. Tigger’s parents had been national champions with more initials after their names than a Harvard professor, but she had been born deaf, making her poorly suited for the whistles and voice commands of retriever trials and agility training. Instead, she came home with us, a tiny yellow fuzzball, to be my son’s dog through every level of school, steal slices of pizza from the table, and shed small mountains of yellow fur. At 17, she was a two-time cancer survivor, missing her tail and with long surgical scars. Now the cancer was back again. For once, she didn’t even want a potato chip. She had been in pain for weeks, trembling, incontinent, and losing weight. But once we were in the room at the vet, she seemed to understand what was going on. She stood up straight, wagged her little nub of a tail, and gave me a look that said, “I’m fine. Let’s go home.” That was, without a doubt, one of the hardest days of my life. I can’t think of it without worrying that I did something unforgivably wrong. A lot of people have stories like mine, which can make Noem’s casual admission about shooting her dog Cricket because it failed to meet her performance standards nothing short of horrifying. Truthfully, it sounds like Cricket was a hoot, and the fact that Noem’s child asked about Cricket the moment she stepped off the school bus certainly suggests that this was more than just one of a pack of hunting dogs that hung around the Noem farm.

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dreamlanders · 5 months

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i think you are blurring the lines between symbolism and propaganda .. toontown cogs r metaphorical characters who laugh at and imitate the capitalistic dull buisness man type imagery.. if anything, toontown is anti capitalist propaganda for how the cogs are villainized throughout the game for their actions . besides, its a little disrespectful to compare real life colonization to a video game like toontown.. i definetly dont think people who enjoy making content abt cogs or anything deserve that kind of slack

lmao ok so heres the thing

im korean right, and as all koreans do, i have MANY family members who have experienced imperialist oppression under both the japanese and the united states’ neoimperialist project. i know a lot of americans or non-asians in general dont really get taught about this, so im gonna summarize this quickly because im not getting into the absolute horror of it all on my goddamn toontown blog

japan annexes korea in 1910 and violently exploits korean land and labor for 35 years, and along the way they attempt to systematically destroy korean culture, language, and history, down to banning the korean language outright and slaughtering native dogs. as is often the case with the imperialist narrative they adopt a false pretense of “modernizing” the “backwards” koreans. anyway they lose ww2 and we all know how that goes, so south korea is under new management from the united states, who installs or backs a long string of authoritarian dictators who wipe out hundreds of villages in jeju island and shoot protestors post korean war. again, a very rough summary

where im going with this is that with my family history in mind (because all of my grandparents lived through the japanese occupation and korean war and have the stories to prove it), i approach a lot of media asking questions about imperialism and exploitation. yeah including the kids mmo, because theres plenty of things that coincide with these in, admittedly, toned down ways (its a kids game)

clash cogs’ motivation is, as far as im aware, to use toontown’s resources for profit by means of fuel. this reminded me of the way korea suffered under japanese occupation, during which koreans were kidnapped by the government and used as unpaid labor for mining and for manufacturing by companies like mitsubishi, on top of the agricultural exploitation and the theft of korean natural resources for both japanese demand and profit

the rewritten cogs have a slightly different motivation, with the same endgoal. by trying to “convert” toons to coggish practices and trying to get them to stop being toony, its an act of cultural destruction. being toony is part of toon culture, using jellybeans for money and hosting parties and doing slapstick comedy are all important parts of toon culture. the chairman is trying to destroy this. this is what sticks out to me the most, because the colonizing bastards tried to beat the culture out of koreans as a whole, and this is whats always been emphasized in the family stories. you think my grandparents know japanese for the fun of it? no, because they were quite literally forbidden from participating in their own cultural practices because someone thought that their culture was superior to ours.

its disrespectful to compare the lived experiences of my fucking flesh and blood to media i consume? disrespectful to who, anon? to fucking who?

anyway i never said toontown was pro capitalist propaganda what the actual fuck. first off symbolism is often present in propagandistic media pieces, but also more to the point, since i would not call toontown propaganda: no shit theyre representative of capitalists, but the problem with capitalism is that it allows for a system of violent colonialism, exploitation, and displacement in the name of profit, and its natural for this to be evident in media focusing on capitalism. and i said this last time, but i dont have a single goddamn problem with people who like the cogs, but 1. im just a little frustrated 2. yall gotta stop making them the good guys and unironically hoping the chairman wins.

donate $100 to palestinian relief efforts or buy the equivalent amount in esim cards for gazans and post the receipt on your public blog if you want to have me answer any more of these kinds of asks. this aint a discourse blog put up or shut up

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usafphantom2 · 5 months

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April 21, 1989, #974” Ichi-Ban” Lost an engine and hydraulic lines we severed due to the shrapnel from the engine hitting the right side, causing a loss of flight control.Pilot Lieutenant Colonel Dan House and RSO Capt. Blair L. Bozek ejected and came down safely in the South China Ocean. It's an exciting story about how fishermen were able to help find the SR 71 in the ocean.

Her crew attempted to abort to a base in the Philippines, but as RSO Lt.Col. Blair Bozek put it, “We could have made it on one engine with no problem, but with no hydraulics and no flight controls, the aircraft became derelict, and we were forced to eject. Dan [Lt.Col. Dan House] bailed out first; I wanted to ensure I had good ejection position and had everything aligned properly, and ejected about 3 seconds after him.” Both pilot and RSO ejected safely.

They had been able to broadcast their position before abandoning the Blackbird, and rescue forces were immediately on the way. However, the crew was rescued by a native fisherman and reached the point where they had almost no control at all, so they decided to bail out at Mach 2.

Immediately, ships and aircraft were dispatched to try to locate the crash site and also try to recover the missing crew members

Somewhere in the Philippine Sea, house and Bozek were bobbing around in the water in their full-pressure suits, not the best thing to be wearing while swimming

Now, the search was not limited to just the Americans; by sheer coincidence, a Russian naval ship was also in the area; they would have loved to have captured those two crew members and interrogated them, but they would have had a treasure trove of information had they found the wreckage and unveiled some of the mysteries of this fascinating plane.

Now, it turns out that House and Bozak almost made it to land; they splashed down in the water about 300 yards from the coastline. Fortunately, they didn’t have to swim all the way to shore as some local fishermen saw him come down; they paddled out there, pulled him out of the water, took him to shore, and they ended up in the local village at the mayor’s house.

Search and rescue at this time still had no idea they were safe, much less on land safe and being fed and given drinks by the local mayor.

The crew tried in vain just to telephone Clark Air Force Base to let him know without any luck. Finally, using their emergency radio, they contacted a p3 Orion, which was part of the search team, and HH-53 helicopter was dispatched and picked him up at a nearby rice paddy.

From there, they were flown directly to Clark Air Force bases south of them; they were given an exam. Everything checked out well, but if it weren’t for those quick-acting fishermen, this story would have had a completely different ending.

Meanwhile, the search to find the wreckage of the plane was still on by both the Americans and the Russians. No one seemed to know the exact location where that plane eventually crashed

After nearly a week of searching for the wreckage, they finally had the insight to ask one of the fishermen who rescued the crew

Did you happen to see that plane go down?

One of the fishermen who spoke perfect English said oh, we thought you knew where was that.

I know exactly where it’s at.

What do you mean you know exactly where it’s at?

The fisherman replied yeah, we saw the plane go down, and right before we went out to rescue the crew, I put three sticks in the ground to indicate where the crash site was.

The fisherman took him over to where the sticks were, and it said if you triangulate off these three sticks, the plane is about two miles out in the water there, and that is how they found the missing SR-71.

Linda Sheffield Miller. Photo credit Tony Landis

@Habubrats71 via X

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pixeljade · 4 months

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It really is All Over once you realize the United States of America are truly THE villain of all time

Like everyone thinks of Hitler, and sure. I'm not gonna try and argue he was a good guy or anything of course, he was a monster! But Hitler literally said he *took notes* from the American genocide of indigenous people for what he did. And in that same war, as horrific as the stuff the Nazis did was, America dropped the deadliest weapon in human history. On civilian populations. TWICE!! JUST! To swing our dick around on the global stage!!!! Even our own generals were like "yeah we dont really NEED to do this President Truman the Japanese are ready to surrender", but Truman wanted them to HURT! Heck, if you read on news before pearl harbor, it sounds like if Pearl Harbor hadnt happened, America might have joined the other fucking side. We werent big damn heroes like they tell us in school. We were there for our own interests.

And this is just the clearest example of how atrocious America is. There's also been countless other genocides we've perpetrated WORLDWIDE in order to secure money for our rich and powerful! We waited longer than most western countries to ban slavery, *had a war about it that some people still think shoulda gone the other way*, and even LEFT A LOOPHOLE IN THE LAW BANNING IT so we can enslave prisoners. Then there's the fact that our entire culture was based on puritan christians, which were less an "oppressed religion" and more a monstrous cult that wanted to oppress everyone else. And the fact that our revolution was entirely because a bunch of rich slave owners didnt like taxes. AND those same slave owners DRESSED UP IN REDFACE to commit crimes and blame it on the native population!!! I touched on it earlier but this was amidst the beginning stages of our genocide of that population, which continues to this day, forcing indigenous people out of *quite often not even their historical land because we already took that but shit land we shoved them into because we didnt care* just so we can build more deadly pipelines which will destroy the earth and pollute their water. Oh, and we were MASSIVE pioneers of all the technologies destroying the fucking earth too! Again, all so some rich motherfuckers can sit in their mansions and feel like The Big Man. This is all stuff that we *KNOW* happens! We are participating in THREE GENOCIDES RIGHT NOW!!!! THIS IS ALL STILL JUST OFF THE TOP OF MY HEAD AND NOWHERE NEAR EVERY HORRIFIC EVENT IN OUR HISTORY!!!!!

Once you start actually looking at our history with a critical eye, of ANY kind, the whole thing becomes disgusting and monstrous and outright indefensible. I hope every patriot in this country shits themselves to death.

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beardedmrbean · 11 months

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Leaders of the Navajo Nation, a federally-recognized tribe in the southwest, are heavily criticizing the Biden administration for its action last week banning oil and gas leasing impacting their citizens.

In a highly-anticipated action last week, Interior Secretary Deb Haaland finalized a ban on fossil fuel leasing within 10 miles of the Chaco Culture National Historical Park located near San Juan County, New Mexico. While she said the move would protect the sacred and culturally significant site, Navajo leaders have argued it will wreak economic devastation on tribal members who rely on leasing the land for income.

"I really am emotionally distraught for our constituents that have been impacted by this," Brenda Jesus, who chairs Navajo Nation Council's Resources & Development Committee, told Fox News Digital in an interview.

"Since I've entered the legislative body for my Navajo people, I've listened to a lot of constituents out in that area and, you know, it's just emotional distress, psychologically as well, that they've talked about this – it really disturbs me to know how much more of a hardship that these folks are going to be experiencing out there," she said.

On Wednesday, Jesus led a delegation of Navajo tribal leaders who met with lawmakers on Capitol Hill, making their case against the Department of the Interior's (DOI) action and for a compromise solution. The tribe previously backed a five-mile buffer zone to protect the site while ensuring future drilling on oil-rich allotments.

Navajo Nation leaders have also warned that the federal government failed to properly consult them on the action. They said Haaland never seriously considered their compromise solution and potentially neglected her legal duty to protect rights of Navajo allottees.

"The proper government-to-government tribal consultation has never really taken place at all," Jesus told Fox News Digital. "We're just really advocating on behalf of our constituents. That wasn't really considered – tribal sovereignty."

BIDEN ADMIN HIT WITH LAWSUITS FOR HIDING COMMUNICATIONS INVOLVING CABINET SECRETARY’S DAUGHTER

Overall, the ban amounts to a withdrawal of approximately 336,404 acres of public lands from mineral leasing near Chaco Canyon site.

There are currently 53 Indian allotments located in the so-called 10-mile buffer zone around Chaco Canyon, generating $6.2 million per year in royalties for an estimated 5,462 allottees, according to Navajo Nation data. In addition, there are 418 unleased allotments in the zone that are associated with 16,615 allottees.

According to the Western Energy Alliance, an industry group that represents oil and gas producers in the area, Navajo members will lose an estimated $194 million over the 20 years the action is in place.

"A lot of the allottees themselves rely on these royalties for their livelihood," Carlyle Begay, the federal and state government affairs adviser for the Navajo Nation Council, told Fox News Digital. "Instead of providing our communities and these people directly the opportunity to provide for themselves, they are providing no solutions in how these families are going to compensate for these income losses."

In addition, Navajo Nation President Buu Nygren blasted Haaland for announcing the leasing ban on Treaty Day, which celebrates the signing of the 1868 treaty that formally began the government-to-government relationship between U.S. and the Navajo Nation.

"The Secretary’s action undermines our sovereignty and self-determination," Nygren said in a statement. "Despite my concerns and denunciation, the Department of Interior has moved forward, which is highly disappointing. Secretary Haaland’s decision impacts Navajo allottees but also disregards the tribe’s choice to lease lands for economic development."

NATIVE AMERICAN TRIBES DEPENDENT ON FOSSIL FUEL RESOURCES RIP BIDEN ADMIN FOR DOUBLE STANDARD

He added that the decision "jeopardizes future economic opportunities" and places thousands of Navajo allottees in "dire financial constraints."

Troy Eid, a lawyer who represents Navajo Nation allottees and a former U.S. attorney who was appointed to chair the federal Indian Law and Order Commission, said his clients were prepared to file a lawsuit against Haaland over the action.

"These are among some of the poorest zip codes in the United States. The secretary has decided to steal their mineral rights and it is theft," Eid told Fox News Digital in an interview. "These are rights that were guaranteed to them by federal law in the Hoover administration and the very opening months of the Roosevelt administration – these allotments."

"This order to withdraw land in violation of a Navajo Nation compromise that has been out there for at least two and a half years to come up with a buffer zone that will work for everybody is absolutely outrageous," he continued. "The secretary chose to do this on Treaty Day, our Navajo Nation holiday. She's looking at a lawsuit that I think she's going to have to take very seriously."

While DOI stated Friday that the action won't impact existing leases or production on those leases, Eid and other opponents of the buffer zone said it would indirectly make Indian-owned allotments worthless.

Because drilling on the Navajo allotments requires horizontal crossings that pass through federal land impacted by the ban, the action effectively ends all drilling in the area, he said.

NATIVE AMERICAN TRIBE CONDEMNS BIDEN ADMIN EFFORT TO BAN OIL, GAS LEASING ON LANDS

"If they ban land development on all federal land, you can't have any more continued developments on our parcels. You wind that down, they would get lease payments for the duration of the leases that they have now, but they could no longer get royalties under what she's done," Eid told Fox News Digital.

"The bulk of the compensation that they earn right now – they, the allottees – from their mineral rights are royalties paid by the companies that are developing the oil and have been, for the most part, since the 1950s. There won't be any new development," he added. "There'll be no economic reason or ability for companies to develop the land."

The allotments date back to the early 1900s, when the federal government awarded them to Navajo citizens as a consolation when the tribe's territory was downsized.

Republican lawmakers, meanwhile, said Haaland's action was part of the Biden administration's broader climate change agenda and argued Chaco Canyon is already protected. Rep. Harriet Hageman, R-Wyo., who chairs a House panel on Indian affairs, said it represented a "taking" of tribal lands and vowed congressional action.

"This afternoon I had the opportunity to meet with Navajo tribal leaders and discuss Chaco Canyon and Secretary Haaland’s radical activist decision to create an arbitrary buffer zone around this national park," Hageman told Fox News Digital on Wednesday, "a decision that should rightfully lie with Congress, not the Department of Interior."

"This buffer amounts to a taking of Navajo land, creating economic hardship that will ultimately take money away from much-needed education, medical and infrastructure projects – an estimated $1 billion in revenue," she continued. "The secretary has made this cruel decision without ever speaking with tribal leaders or allottees. We will do whatever we can to stop this taking – whether through my subcommittee or the upcoming appropriations process."

The DOI declined to comment.

#nunyas news #that's puttin them in a pickle #gonna piss people off no matter what now #should have just left things as they were #could blame trump then I think

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