Tumgik
#WI WEEK 2020
zef-zef · 1 year
Audio
Tumblr media
VA - Spring Snow (Mirae Arts, 2022)
Eight artists from different cultures and musical backgrounds who were asked to freely reflect on the word, nostalgia.
Nice compilaition, from ambient to noise, with mostly female artists.
Li Yilei, Lucy Liyou, Sawako, Gonima, Forest Management, Jiyoung Wi, Gaël Segalen, Evicshen
3 notes · View notes
saywhat-politics · 4 months
Text
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Wisconsin’s Democratic secretary of state on Monday called for a Republican who served as a fake elector for former President Donald Trump and admitted trying to overturn the 2020 election results to be removed from his position on the Wisconsin Elections Commission.
Bob Spindell was one of 10 Republicans who signed certificates in 2020 falsely stating that Trump had won Wisconsin. President Joe Biden won the battleground state.
Spindell and other nine fake electors conceded in a legal settlement last week that Biden had won the state and agreed to not serve as electors in next year’s election or in any in which Trump is running. They also agreed that their actions were “part of an attempt to improperly overturn the 2020 presidential election results.”
373 notes · View notes
otdiaftg · 28 days
Text
Tumblr media Tumblr media
The King's Men - Chapter Eleven
Day: Thursday, February 29th/March, 1st* Time: 10:45 PM EST
By the time the Trojans and Lions hit halftime Neil had forgotten all about Kevin. He'd been so wrapped up in the Foxes' season and the Ravens he'd forgotten how spectacular the rest of the Big Three were. These teams played like they were professionals. They didn't have the Ravens' spotless record but they were only a half-step behind Edgar Allan. Kevin had warned them weeks ago the Foxes weren't ready to face these schools. For once his callous dismissal felt like a gentle understatement. He wasn't the only one who found it a sobering sight. Dan muted the commercials, tapped the remote against her thigh in a nervous rhythm, and said, "So we definitely need to step it up, guys." Kevin frowned at her. "Even if you'd stepped it up when I told you to a year ago, you would have no chance of beating them. There is nothing at all you can do this late in the year. They are better than we are and they always will be." "Do you get off on being such a Debbie Downer?" Nicky asked. "Denial does none of us any good," Kevin said. "We struggled against Nevada. How do you honestly expect us to make it past the Big Three?" "California's overdue for a big earthquake," Nicky pointed out. "That'd take care of USC, at least." "That's a little extreme, don't you think?" Renee asked. "We need something extreme at this point," Allison said. Renee's expression was calm and her tone steady, but Renee didn't need to look disappointed in them for them to get the message. "The Trojans had our backs when we needed them most. Do you really want them to suffer just so we can profit?" "It's just not fair," Nicky said, shying away from her gaze. "Us getting this far and putting up with so much and then losing here, I mean." "We haven't lost yet," Dan said, "but we will lose if you give up right out of the gate." Kevin started to say something Neil knew would be negative and dismissing. Neil reached behind Andrew and popped Kevin in the back of the head to shut him up. Matt choked on a laugh and tried unsuccessfully to pass it off as a cough. Kevin froze for a startled second, then sent Neil a scathing look. "No one wants to hear that right now," Neil said. "If you hit me again," Kevin started. Andrew cut in with a casual, "You'll what?" Kevin shut up but didn't look happy about it.
Art used with permission by Rainbowd00dles. Thank you @rainbowd00dles.
(I merged the og art as well as the re-draw because I adore Andrew's face in the second panel.)
*Due to the Leap Year, I have opted to highlight the day rather than the date to keep the events in occurrence to the 2007 year. I will continue to mark both days accordingly.
365 notes · View notes
triggerblaze345 · 1 year
Text
212 notes · View notes
Text
Former House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) said the indictment of former President Trump on federal charges last week will make him unelectable in 2024 if he wins the GOP’s primary election.
“If we nominate anybody not named Donald Trump, we’re going to beat Joe Biden,” Ryan said Tuesday during an appearance on CBS This Morning, noting the former president had plenty of “baggage” before last week’s indictment was handed down.
“He’s got a great core of support, and in a primary that’s what you build off of. So it does matter,” Ryan said. “But I think the electability argument is going to become more salient with this event and whatever happens in the future … it’s going to make it easier to make the argument to his supporters he’s not electable.”
“He’s going to cost us the Senate again, he’s going to cost us House seats, and we want to win,” he added.
Trump is slated to be arraigned in Miami on Tuesday afternoon on 37 counts related to his handling of classified documents after he left the White House in 2021. Federal prosecutors have alleged Trump put national security at risk and is in violation of the Espionage Act.
The former president has dismissed the accusations against him as political and told his supporters President Biden is “weaponizing” the Justice Department against him to keep him from claiming the White House again.
Trump and Ryan are frequent foes.
The former president has repeatedly attacked the former lawmaker over his seat on the board of Fox Corp., which owns and operates Fox News, an outlet Trump has grown increasingly sour on since his 2020 election loss.
111 notes · View notes
fatehbaz · 1 year
Text
Fort Belknap Indian Community celebrates reintroduction of locally extinct swift fox.
Aaniiih and Nakoda communities have organized the restoration of local native prairie ecosystems in this landscape of the northern Great Plains just north of the Missouri River. In 1997, Fort Belknap Indian Community organized the first-ever reintroduction of locally extinct black-footed ferrets to occur on tribal land. Fort Belknap has also organized the reintroduction of bison. Since 2020, the reservation has also organized the Fort Belknap Grassland Restoration Project, a program designed for Native youth to collect native grass seeds, practice plant identification, and learn about ecology, traditional stories, and Indigenous place names. Swift fox, an indicator species closely tied to the Great Plains, had been eliminated and driven extinct across the northern Great Plains due to US-government-supported wolf- and coyote-killing programs in the twentieth century. Beginning in autumn 2020, Fort Belknap released 27 swift foxes on tribal lands. Now, as of September 2022, there are over 100 swift foxes in this prairie landscape. Between September 2020 and September 2022, Fort Belknap has observed the swift foxes pairing and breeding at 4 den sites, and the birth of 20 swift fox kits. In the next few days, Fort Belknap will release another 28 swift foxes.
Tumblr media
From a press release, September 2022.
Excerpt:
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
Today the Fort Belknap Indian Community commemorated three years of its swift fox recovery program with the release of three swift foxes on Tribal lands, bringing the total to 103 recovered back to these prairie grasslands. Based on post-release monitoring efforts, the native species is reproducing in the wild, which is a critical measure of success for a self-sustaining population.
“After being absent for more than 50 years, the swift fox has returned to the grasslands of Fort Belknap and our people could not be prouder,” said Harold “Jiggs” Main, director of the Fort Belknap Fish and Wildlife Department.
Over the last four years, the Nakoda (Assiniboine) and Aaniiih (Gros Ventre) Tribes of Fort Belknap have worked in collaboration with the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute, Aaniiih Nakoda College, Defenders of Wildlife, American Prairie, World Wildlife Fund and Wilder Institute/Calgary Zoo on this five-year reintroduction effort.
This week, three of 28 foxes trapped in Wyoming will be released during a special ceremony held by the Fort Belknap Indian Community. The remaining 25 foxes will be released later this week. [...]
Monitoring efforts via GPS collar tracking show some foxes traveled long distances, including one documented over 200 miles away, while most have settled on Fort Belknap and the surrounding areas in Phillips and Blaine counties in Montana. At least four females and males (four dens) have been documented pairing up or “denning” and 20 kits have been born in the wild since the original reintroduction of 27 foxes in fall 2020. [...]
“It has been an honor for Defenders to play a role in the Aaniiih and Nakoda effort to bring back swift fox to their lands, and also as a long-term partner to recover buffalo and endangered black-footed ferrets back to their lands,” said Chamois Andersen, Rockies and Plains senior representative at Defenders of Wildlife. “Fort Belknap is truly a model in native plains wildlife conservation.”
The swift fox is the latest extirpated species to return to Fort Belknap, joining other iconic prairie species successfully reintroduced to Indigenous lands under the leadership of the Fort Belknap Fish and Wildlife Department. Historically, swift foxes lived across much of North America’s Great Plains.
“The vast grasslands on Fort Belknap provide a home to a variety of avian and terrestrial wildlife [...]. With support from numerous partners [...], the Aaniiih and Nakoda people have been bringing Indigenous wildlife back to these native grasslands for over three decades,” said Tim Vosburgh, wildlife biologist with Fort Belknap Fish and Wildlife Department. [...]
“Since its inception, American Prairie has taken inspiration from the land stewardship and rewilding efforts of the Fort Belknap Community. We are proud to stand with our neighbors and support the repatriation of swift fox to their home in Montana's Great Plains,” said Beth Saboe, senior public relations manager for American Prairie.
Swift fox numbers declined precipitously in the late 1800s, mainly due to poisoning intended for coyotes and wolves and the loss of grassland habitat. During this same time, they were also eliminated from the northern portion of their range. Swift foxes made a comeback after successful reintroduction efforts began in 1983 in Canada and on the Blackfeet and Fort Peck Indian communities in Montana. However, these reintroduced populations have yet to reconnect with populations in the southern portion of their historic range. Establishing a population of swift foxes on Fort Belknap’s lands will expand the species’ occupied range in the north and help bridge the distribution gap between existing populations to the north and south.
---
Headline, photos, captions, and text published by: Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute. “Tribes Successful with Swift Fox Reintroduction Program at Fort Belknap.” 28 September 2022.
198 notes · View notes
All the Time in the World - Chapter 10
Birkhall, March 2020
I’ve barely pulled on my clothes to face the morning before the door barges open and he rushes in. We’ve been counting down the days, and the result of that last COVID test took so long, I feel that time is pulling a trick on us and is in fact reversing. I accept his embrace without restraint, needing it as much as him and I reach to push my face into his neck to breathe him in. We stand tangled together for a long time, reaffirming our love for one another in the oldest and simplest of ways. We’ve been avoiding the conversation we’re about to have for the past week, a few more minutes won’t matter as I savour that sense of completeness from being wrapped in his arms, as my hands run up and down his back, relishing having him here to hold, squeezing him as tightly as I can, feeling the returning pressure. We’ve always done the making up from an argument the wrong way round. Any serious conversation has always commenced after we reassure each other how much we love each other. A large part of me would take this love and disregard any conflict but sometimes the strife is necessary to heal, to move forward.
“I love you. You know I love you?”
I hear his whisper and sigh. Here it starts.
“I don’t see a way out of this, my Darling.”
It makes me smile, even as I get a prickle through my skin in anticipation of the awaiting conversation. “You never do see a way out of it. Be more positive, Darling.”
“But this time, I really don’t.”
“By which you mean, you’re not willing to concede anything…”
“Don’t let go of me.”
“Do you remember Penelope?”
“No.”
“Yes, you do, Penelope, you know, tall Penelope…”
“Not helping…”
“Penelope… You know her. She used to be a sucker for the hair magazines and she’d come round to my flat and cut her hair and you’d get annoyed because this short blonde hair was everywhere and I don’t think you quite believed me that it wasn’t another man…”
“Massive boobs.”
“Yes, Penelope!”
“Married an old man…”
“He wasn’t an old man. He was only about twelve years older than her.”
“You’ve not spoken about her in years. You’re really procrastinating.”
“She sent me a letter, I got it yesterday. Her husband’s just died, of COVID. She’s beside herself because she thinks he caught it off her. She’s blaming herself.”
I feel his arms squeezing me tighter. “You always do this.”
“Do what?”
“Make excuses for me. I know what you’re trying to say and I love you for it, but that wasn’t why you were so upset with me.”
“She told me to hold you very tightly when we were together again.”
“I’ll hold you tighter.” There’s a pause as we do indeed hold each other tighter.
“How’s William?”
“He says he’s fine. I don’t think he is. He’s said his wifi isn’t working properly so we can’t video call. I know I’m old but I know an excuse when I hear one. What have you heard?”
“Kate was evasive. I think he’s a lot worse than he’s letting on.”
“It’s not even public that he’s ill.”
“People will worry.”
“When it’s about someone else, you understand duty.”
His words hit me as a blow to my entire body and I pull away from him, holding onto the bedpost to steady myself. “I understand it perfectly.”
“But you suggest you can shirk it because you’re upset? When the rest of the country can’t?”
“Yes. You think I’d just be ‘upset’ if you were dying?”
“Do you think your feelings are stronger than Penelope’s? Or anyone else who has lost their spouse and not been there with them?”
“Yes.”
“That’s incredibly selfish.”
“You don’t get to temper my feelings. Put this the other way round. How would you feel?”
“That’s completely different.”
“How is it any different?”
“I’d be with you.”
“What?”
“I’m not letting you die alone.”
“But that’s exactly what I’m saying!” The indignation at his remark rails my skin into hackles.
“How would it look if I left my wife to die alone in hospital when everyone knows I could bend the rules to see you? I’d look like a coward, and everyone would think I have no heart.”
“So you’d only be with me because it looks better?” My words are very quiet but I see his face and he knows I’m angry.
“I didn’t say that, don’t extrapolate. I’m talking about public perception. Feelings don’t come into it.”
It’s like being shot. I gulp, feeling my temper boiling through me, controlling it with difficulty. “Get out.”
“No.”
“Get out of my room before I completely lose it with you.”
“Lose your temper. I’m not leaving.”
“Fine, I’ll go!” I step forwards towards the door and he grasps onto my wrist. “Get your hands off me!”
I see him hold his hands up. “Don’t walk out on me.”
“If you think I’m staying here a second longer…”
“You can’t go, Darling, it’s lockdown. You can’t leave. We have to talk about it.”
“Just try and stop me!”
“Milla, please…” He swoops to the doorway and stands in front of me. Once, I would have barged past him and marched out into the grounds, storming through the heather, knowing he was behind me, at a distance, watching that I’m safe, waiting for me to calm down. Today, I’m filled with a hopelessness which leaks through my body and turns the anger into despair. The despair is too heavy for my knees and I sit down on the bed as they buckle. I wouldn’t want to become predictable anyway. He paces like I’m a wild animal, not knowing what to do or to say. I lie down on the bed and turn my body away from him. By the time he dares to sit next to me, the tears have started and I push my face into the sheets but when my shoulders give me away, I feel him turning me, lifting me until I’m sobbing against his chest.
2010, Clarence House
He fusses around me so badly sometimes, it’s peaceful to shut the door to my bathroom and block everything else out, the order, the adherence to a schedule, the need for perfection in everything. It extends into the ways he feels things ought to be conducted, some of these opinions I share, others I do not. His insistence on the both of us bathing rather than showering, for instance, is sometimes irritating, but this morning, the hot water warms my aching bones and I lean back gratefully, pleased with the time to myself.
“Darling, where did you put your phone? It’s ringing and it won’t be quiet.”
Standing in place of the door, he looks at me expectantly, a breath of cold air cooling my shoulders, which sit above the water. My peace shattered, I sigh. “Under my pillow.”
“Under your…” His face screws up in distaste. “You know my thoughts about having that too close to your head.”
“Mmmm. Yes, and you know mine…”
He stands, mouth open like a goldfish. “You care that little about what l think?”
“I’m trying to bathe, Darling, to get a modicum of quiet before…” That look on his face. My words trail off as he’s in a different world. He’s not present when his face looks like that. “Darling?” There’s no response. “Darling!”
“Hmmm?”
“Charles!” That did it. His eyes move up to meet mine. “Finished ogling?”
His cheeks flush slightly and he smirks at me.
“Out!” I point to the door and he turns to leave, chuckling.
I sink down into the tub, letting the water submerge me, enjoying the feeling of tranquillity brought about by the cocoon of the water. Holding my breath and with my eyes closed, I can escape from the world here. When I surface, I should feel reborn. I don’t. Every ache and pain remains. My hair needs washing and I can’t be bothered. Nor do I want to get up and dressed and styled. I’d prefer to stay here all day, reading a book, not moving. Eventually, the heat from the water is transferred into the cool of the air and my skin has wrinkled up into prunes. I toy with simply turning on the hot tap but I hear my husband’s dulcet tones. 
“We’re leaving in an hour. You need to hurry up.”
I sigh. I’ve still not washed my hair. Then the door opens and I consent to help with my hair before being chivvied out of the bath and into my dressing room. It’s a very female sort of peace in here. I’m wrapped in a huge dressing gown as my hairdresser blows my hair dry and styles it, chatting away amiably. Usually, I do my own makeup, but my team have evidently decided that there is not enough time as that’s applied onto me like I’m a doll. My clothes are set out ready for me and I let them dress me, appreciating the help when I can’t summon the energy to do it for myself. Hat affixed, broach pinned on my coat, shoes polished and gloves on, I walk down the stairs towards my impatient husband. He smiles at me, marching down the corridor to help me down the last steps, then kisses my neck, making me chuckle.
“The car’s ready.”
“I’m never late.”
He rolls his eyes at me, “You just enjoy making me panic.”
“Your tie isn’t done correctly.”
“You never think it is.” 
But he smiles down at me, enjoying the fussing as I fix his tie and remove a bit of fluff from his coat, taking pleasure in being able to go to work together, relishing the soft kiss I can give him before I take his arm to walk to the door.
13 notes · View notes
naturalrights-retard · 4 months
Text
TORY AT-A-GLANCE
Mean sperm counts in men around the world have dropped by 51.6% over the past 50 years. Total sperm counts (TSC) are down by 62.3%, and the decline is accelerating
An environmental factor that might play a significant role in this trend is electromagnetic field (EMF) exposures from wireless technologies, also referred to as electromagnetic radiation (EMR) or radiofrequency EMF (RF-EMF)
Recent research found that men who used their cellphones more than 20 times a day had significantly lower sperm concentrations and total sperm counts (TSC) than those who only used them once a week or less, placing them at a 30% increased risk for having sperm concentration below the reference value for fertile men, and a 21% increased risk for having TSC below the fertile range
Previous studies have linked EMR from cellphones to an 8.1% reduction in sperm motility and a 9.1% reduction in sperm viability, as well as significantly higher rates of DNA fragmentation
Wi-Fi-equipped laptop computers have been linked to decreased sperm motility and an increase in sperm DNA fragmentation after just four hours of use
According to a scientific review1 published in November 2022, mean sperm counts in men around the world have dropped by 51.6% over the past 50 years. Total sperm counts (TSC) are down by 62.3%, and the decline is accelerating. Proposed culprits include pollution, alcohol and drug use, stress, poor diet, sedentary lifestyle and chemical exposures.
Another environmental factor that might play a bigger role than people would like to imagine is electromagnetic field (EMF) exposures from wireless technologies, also referred to as electromagnetic radiation (EMR) or radiofrequency EMF (RF-EMF).
EMFs are such an underappreciated health hazard, I spent several years researching and writing the book, "EMF*D," which may be one of the most comprehensive reviews of this pernicious environmental influence to date.
Cellphone Use Takes a Toll on Sperm
Several studies have found that EMFs have a deleterious effect on the reproductive systems of both men and women. Most recently, research2 published online November 1, 2023, found that men who used their cellphones more than 20 times a day had significantly lower sperm counts than those who only used them once a week or less.
Men who used their cellphones more than 20 times a day had a 30% increased risk of having sperm concentration below the reference value for fertile men, and a 21% increased risk for having TSC below the fertile range, compared to men who used their phones once a week or less.
As reported by the authors:3
"A total of 2,759 men answered the question concerning their mobile phone use, and 2,764 gave details on the position of their mobile phone when not in use. In the adjusted linear model, a higher frequency of mobile phone use (>20 times per day) was associated with a lower sperm concentration and a lower TSC [total sperm count].
In the adjusted logistic regression model, this translates to a 30% and 21% increased risk for sperm concentration and TSC to be below the World Health Organization reference values for fertile men, respectively ..."
Previous Studies Confirm EMF Hazards to Men
Previous studies have linked low-level electromagnetic radiation exposure from cellphones to an 8.1% reduction in sperm motility and a 9.1% reduction in sperm viability,4 as well as significantly higher rates of DNA fragmentation.5 Wi-Fi-equipped laptop computers have also been linked to decreased sperm motility and an increase in sperm DNA fragmentation after just four hours of use.6 A mini-review published in 2020 noted:7
"Presently, there is a rise in the use of mobile phones, laptops, and wireless internet technologies such as Wi-Fi and 5G routers/modems across the globe; these devices emit a considerable amount of electromagnetic radiation (EMR) which could interact with the male reproductive system either by thermal or nonthermal mechanisms.
The aim of this review was to examine the effects of mobile phone use on male fertility. Related studies that reported on the effects of EMR from mobile phones on male fertility from 2003 to 2020 were evaluated ...
Based on the outcomes of both human and animal studies analyzed in this review, animal and human spermatozoa exposed to EMR emitted by mobile phones had reduced motility, structural anomalies, and increased oxidative stress due to overproduction of reactive oxygen species.
Scrotal hyperthermia and increased oxidative stress might be the key mechanisms through which EMR affects male fertility. However, these negative effects appear to be associated with the duration of mobile phone use."
That mini-review also cites studies showing:8
A significant association between exposure to EMR and higher rates of childlessness among military men working for the Royal Norwegian Navy.
Cellphone EMR increases production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the mitochondria of human spermatozoa and causes DNA damage.
Long-term exposure to EMR, both high and low frequency, can affect male germ cell in humans
Long-term exposure to mobile phone EMR may reduce serum testosterone levels.
EMR alters normal reproductive processes in male rats; the same might occur in male humans exposed to RF-EMF over a long period of time.
Tumblr media
Download this Article Before it Disappears
Download PDF
EMF Exposure During Pregnancy Raises Miscarriage Risk
Women also need to be mindful of their EMF/EMR exposure, especially during pregnancy, as studies have found prenatal exposure to power-frequency fields can nearly triple a pregnant woman’s risk of miscarriage.9 As noted by senior research scientist at Kaiser Permanente’s research division, Dr. De-Kun Li:10
"This study provides fresh evidence, directly from a human population, that magnetic field exposure in daily life could have adverse health impacts."
According to Li, there are also at least six other studies, in addition to two of his own, showing this link.11,12,13,14,15
EMFs Produce Potent Oxidant Stressors
Martin Pall, Ph.D., a professor emeritus of biochemistry at Washington State University and a specialist in chronic fatigue syndrome, multiple chemical sensitivity and the effects of low-intensity microwave frequency EMFs on the human body, has identified and published several papers16,17,18,19 describing the likely molecular mechanisms of how EMFs from cellphones and wireless technologies damage plants, animals and humans.
The process begins when low−frequency microwave radiation activates voltage-gated calcium channels (VGCCs)20 — channels in the outer membrane of your cells. Once activated, the VGCCs open up, allowing an abnormal influx of calcium ions into the cell.
This increased intracellular calcium and the accompanying increase in calcium signaling appears to be responsible for most of the damage that occurs.
Tumblr media
The excess calcium activates nitric oxide that then reacts with superoxide to produce peroxynitrites — extremely potent oxidant stressors believed to be a root cause for many of today’s chronic diseases.21 Nitric oxide is the only molecule in your body produced at high enough concentrations to outcompete other molecules for superoxide and is a precursor for peroxynitrite.22
Inside your body, peroxynitrites modify tyrosine molecules in proteins to create a new substance, nitrotyrosine and nitration of structural protein.23 Changes from nitration are visible in human biopsy of atherosclerosis, myocardial ischemia, inflammatory bowel disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and septic lung disease.24
Significant oxidative stress from peroxynitrites may also result in single-strand breaks of DNA.25 This pathway of oxidative destruction — triggered by low−frequency radiation emitted from mobile devices — may at least partially explain the unprecedented growth rate of chronic disease since 1990.26
Other mechanisms of effect have been complied and published in the European Journal of Oncology in collaboration with the International Commission for Electromagnetic Safety (ICEMS) and the Ramazzini Institute.27 Thousands of studies showing biological effects from low-intensity EMF were also summarized in the 2012 BioInitiative Report, demonstrating immune system effects, neurological effects, cognitive effects and much more.28
How EMFs Damage Sperm
As suggested by the studies cited above, EMR-induced oxidative stress may also be part of the explanation for the dramatic rise in infertility among men. Figure 2 in the mini-review29 quoted from earlier illustrates how EMR from wireless devices increases ROS in Leydig cells, thereby inhibiting testosterone production.
It also increases ROS in Sertoli cells and seminiferous tubules, both of which have crucial roles in the creation of healthy sperm.30 The seminiferous tubules are the site of germination and maturation of sperm cells in the male testes.
The tubules are made up of Sertoli cells, which help transform germ cells into spermatozoa, in part via direct contact, and in part by controlling the environment within the seminiferous tubules.
Spermatogenesis — the development of sperm from germ cells — is regulated by testosterone’s action on the Sertoli cells. This is why low testosterone alone can adversely impact a man’s fertility. So, in summary, EMR can impair male fertility through three primary mechanisms: By inhibiting production of testosterone, and by damaging the Sertoli cells and seminiferous tubules through oxidative stress. The end result is reduced sperm count, motility and viability.
EMFs Also Implicated in Brain and Heart Dysfunction
That male fertility would be imperiled by EMFs is also predicted by Pall’s theory. He proposed that the physical locations where VGCCs are the densest would be indicative of the diseases you might expect from chronic excessive exposure to EMFs.
As it turns out, the highest density of VGCCs are found in your nervous system, the pacemaker in your heart — and in male testes. As a result, EMFs are likely to contribute to neurological and neuropsychiatric problems, heart issues and male reproductive problems.
Indeed, studies dating back to the 1950s and ‘60s show the nervous system is the organ most sensitive to EMFs. Some of these studies show massive changes in the structure of neurons, including cell death and synaptic dysfunction.
When VGCCs are activated in the brain they release neurotransmitters and neuroendocrine hormones. In animals exposed to EMFs there are massive, cumulative effects in the brain. Genetic polymorphism studies also show that elevated VGCC activity in certain parts of the brain produces a variety of neuropsychiatric effects. Hence, Pall predicted that chronic EMF exposure could result in anxiety, depression, autism, and Alzheimer’s disease.31
Male Fertility in Jeopardy
Pall also warned that unchecked proliferation of wireless technologies poses a significant threat to fertility. In a 2017 commentary on the health and safety of Wi-Fi, Pall wrote:32
"The FCC guidelines as are many other such guidelines, are based on the assumption that only heating effects of microwave/lower frequency EMFs can have biological effects. However, that assumption has been falsified by thousands of studies published from the 1950’s to the present, each showing that non-thermal levels of exposure often produce biological effects.
For example, in 1971, the U.S. Office of Naval Medical Research produced a document reporting over 100 different non-thermal effects ... Changes affecting fertility including tubular degeneration in the testis, decreased spermatogenesis, altered sex ratio, altered menstrual activity, altered fetal development, programmed cell death (what is now known as apoptosis) and decreased lactation ...
Wi-Fi exposures produce impact on the testis leading to lowered male fertility ... We are, of course, seeing major lowering of sperm counts and sperm quality in many countries around the world; given the major impact of EMF exposures on sperm count and quality in human and in animal studies, the pattern of evidence is very worrying."
Come See Me Speak Live Sunday In Miami
This Sunday I will be speaking at the Everything Matters Event in Miami. It will be a very small event of only a few hundred people at the Sacred Space in Miami and we will be diving deep into the world of quantum healing and spiritual connection. For the first time ever I will be sharing my spiritual journey and my latest insights on how to optimize your health through bioidentical progesterone therapy that I just learned last week and am using myself to balance my hormones.
It is a rare opportunity to hear me speak as the next time I am scheduled to speak will be at Biohacking in June next year. You will also have an opportunity to have dinner with me on Sunday evening. And one of the biggest surprises is that the tickets for this event are 95% less expensive than Biohacking. The dinner and admission is only $200 next week and is $5000 at Biohacking. My guess is that tickets for the event will sell out today.
So come and see me speak live and have dinner with me next Sunday at the Everything Matters Event in Miami. You can enjoy the warm weather and sunshine with temperatures projected to be 82 for a high and 72 for a low in lovely south Florida. It will likely be the last opportunity to hear me speak before the next crisis hits. Hope to see you there.
Remedial Strategies to Lower EMF Exposure
If you are planning to have a baby, or are struggling with infertility, definitely look around and assess your EMF exposures. Chances are you’re bathing in wireless radiation 24/7, and if that’s the case, you need to do something about that if you want to optimize your odds of having a baby, let alone a healthy one. Below are several suggestions that will help reduce your EMF exposure.
You can also find guidance and solutions for mitigating electric and magnetic fields at the end of "Healthy Wiring Practices,"33 a document created by building biologist Oram Miller. In this document, he also details specific workarounds for various devices, including cellphones, MacBooks, Roku and Apple TV.
Nighttime remediation
Use filters to remove voltage transients from your electricity; use meters to confirm that they are in a safe range.
Use a battery-powered alarm clock.
Consider moving your baby’s bed into your room instead of using a wireless baby monitor. Alternatively, use a hard-wired monitor.
If you must use Wi-Fi, shut it off when not in use, especially at night when you are sleeping. Ideally, work toward hardwiring your house so you can eliminate Wi-Fi altogether. It’s important to realize that if you have a Wi-Fi router, you have a cellphone tower inside your home.
If you absolutely must have a router, you can place it inside a shielded bag when not in use. You can find shielded items online, or make your own using Swiss Shield fabric. If you have a notebook without any Ethernet ports, a USB Ethernet adapter will allow you to connect to the internet with a wired connection.
For more extensive shielding, you can consider painting your bedroom walls and ceiling with special shielding paint, which will block RF from outside sources, such as cell towers, smart meters and radio/TV towers. Windows can be covered with metal window screen or film. For your bed, consider a shielding bed canopy.
Daytime strategies to reduce unnecessary EMF exposure
To reduce EMF exposure during the daytime, consider using Stetzer filters to decrease the level of dirty electricity or electromagnetic interference being generated. You can also take these with you to work or when you travel. This may be the single best strategy to reduce the damage from EMF exposure since it appears that most of it is generated by the frequencies that the filters remove.
Connect your desktop computer to the internet via a wired Ethernet connection and be sure to put your desktop in airplane mode. Also avoid wireless keyboards, trackballs, mice, game systems, printers and portable house phones. Opt for the wired versions.
Avoid carrying your cellphone on your body and never sleep with it in your bedroom unless it is in airplane mode. Even in airplane mode it can emit signals, which is why I put my phone in a Faraday bag.34
When using your cellphone, use the speaker phone and hold the phone at least 3 feet away from you. Seek to radically decrease your time on the cellphone. Instead, use VoIP software phones that you can use while connected to the internet via a wired connection, or better yet, use a landline telephone.
General household remediation
If you still use a microwave oven, consider replacing it with a steam convection oven, which will heat your food as quickly and far more safely.
Avoid using "smart" appliances and thermostats that depend on wireless signaling. This would include all new "smart" TVs. They are called smart because they emit a Wi-Fi signal and, unlike your computer, you cannot shut the Wi-Fi signal off. Consider using a large computer monitor as your TV instead, as they don’t emit Wi-Fi.
Replace CFL bulbs with incandescent bulbs. Ideally remove all fluorescent lights from your house. Not only do they emit unhealthy light, but more importantly, they will actually transfer current to your body just being close to the bulbs.
Dimmer switches are a source of dirty electricity, so consider installing regular on/off switches rather than dimmer switches.
Refuse smart meters as long as you can, or add a shield to an existing smart meter, some of which have been shown to reduce radiation by 98% to 99%.35
10 notes · View notes
omarandjohnny · 5 months
Note
hi! I hope this is ok to ask and please of course feel free to not answer if it's too personal. I look up to your perpetual halloween lifestyle, and i'm also immunocompromised now because of covid. I was wondering if you had any tips or plans for how to celebrate spooky season safely at home, since.. well... it just doesn't seem like going out to a halloween show or something is worth dying, you know? :\ I thought if anyone would know how to halloween party it up at home it would be you.
Tumblr media
First off, ALL THE HUGS <33333333333333333333333333
The Plaguetimes have certainly thrown a wrench in the spoopy season for us, that's for sure.
2020 was obviously the most difficult, but my brother and I celebrated by resurrecting an old favorite October activity: Every Saturday is Halloween! We dressed up in themed costumes every Saturday of the month, got together (safely), took pics, and then watched that week's film.
2021 we only dressed up on the day, but still kept the celebration here at home- made a big dinner so it felt like A Real Holiday, and then watched a movie.
2022 we ventured out on a day trip on the 30th, but kept it safe by visiting outdoor locations (we hit up Delavan, WI to take some pics with circus themed statues, we walked through a quiet park to get some autumnal vibes, we did our usual slow drive through a graveyard, and then ate dinner in the car outside a building that looks like a castle)
Tumblr media Tumblr media
2023 is going to be more of the same- if it's not raining on the 31st, we're going to get our costumes on and go take some pics outside our local courthouse (they've got decorated pumpkins on the front lawn from a recent fall festival) and then we're gonna try to hit up an location about an hour away to take a few more outdoor shots. If there's too many folks around we'll stay in the car, but if there's little to no foot traffic then I'm gonna try to get my pic taken next to one of these fellas:
Tumblr media
As for celebrations entirely at home, having a themed movie night really does make it feel like An Event- we dressed up as aliens for Spaced Invaders night, as Adam and Delia for Beetlejuice night, as Tangina and Kane for Poltergeist night, Fester and Pugsley for Addams Family night.
Even when I've celebrated solo (back when Joelie was younger and more out and about) I've done a themed night. Costume, snacks, some cheap decorations that all fit with the movie- it's simple but it really does bring out the Forever Halloween Kid in me 🎃🖤
If you do end up having a Themed Halloween, I wanna hear all about it! <333333333333
8 notes · View notes
a-silent-symphony · 1 year
Text
Nightwish's Floor Jansen: "Life is short. Time is not endless"
Floor Jansen opens up on her battle with breast cancer, going solo and what we can expect from the next Nightwish album
Tumblr media
It’s Friday April 22, 2022 at Nokia Arena in Tampere, Finland. Fifteen thousand Nightwish fans await a much-delayed live taste of their heroes’ ninth album, Human. :II: Nature., released as the world shut down in 2020. Anticipation is high. The stage will soon be engulfed in enough fire to obliterate a small village. Aside from a handful of dates in Finland in 2021, this is Nightwish’s first full-scale show in more than three years.
Backstage, Floor Jansen feels like death. In her stage armour she looks fearsome – a tattooed Boudica for the modern age. Such a gig wouldn’t normally faze her. Floor, 41,has been fronting metal bands since she was 16. But just now she’s come down with a virulent stomach flu at the worst possible time, and she’s wondering how the hell she’ll get through the next two hours onstage.
“It was unlike anything I’ve ever done,” she says of the stomach flu that almost derailed that post-Covid comeback. “I mean, you get sick now and then, but this was brutal. I don’t know what kind of virus I picked up, but it was a very violent one. I was up all night, and then I still had to travel from Berlin to Tampere. It was horrible.” She shrugs. “But yeah, what can you do?”
It’s not hard to see why Floor gets called a ‘powerhouse’. Part opera singer, several parts rock star – with the dynamism of both – she exudes indestructibility. If Bruce Dickinson had a daughter with Xena: Warrior Princess, it would have been Floor. But there are other sides to her: different personas that reveal a more complex, interesting picture of a ‘powerhouse’ lead singer.
There’s the animal-loving homebody. The thrillseeker. The proud vegetarian. The whiskey drinker. The metal icon with a solo pop album on the way. The Highly Sensitive Person, whose hyper-stimulated sense of the world shines through her performances. The person who, just three weeks before headlining Wembley Arena with Nightwish, underwent surgery for breast cancer.
“I’m always myself,” she summarises, simply. “So whether I run around in jeans fixing a fence, or ride my horse, or go onstage in warrior outfits… it’s all the same. It’s just a different side, as you can see.”
We meet Floor over Zoom in December, as she wrestles with dodgy wi-fi backstage in Milan. “Is it noisy for you, in the background?” she asks in perturbed Dutch tones. “It’s basically one big open box here…” Dark-eyed and slightly frazzled in a grey hoodie, Floor has a business-like streak that softens as talk turns to things like her solo music, her bandmates and the cigars she enjoys with her husband, Sabaton drummer Hannes Van Dahl.
On another day she might have come in from feeding the horses at her rural property on Sweden’s west coast. You wouldn’t fuck with her, but you’d gladly go for a drink with her. Out on the road with Nightwish, there’s a decent amount of the latter. The band “wobble” around Christmas markets drinking glühwein. They rate vegetarian food in Indian restaurants as part of a longstanding curry club. The shows themselves have been jubilant affairs.
“Last night we were surprised with some bottles of champagne,” she grins, “which we then drank, and became very happy…”
It’s all so far removed from lingering notions of Nightwish as some sort of dictatorship or soap opera, with singers driven away by its founder’s maniacal demands. They seem like friends – as in, actual friends.
“It’s absolute genuine fun,” she nods. “We’ve always had that. And there are always ups and downs; it’s like a big marriage. But we’ve been longing for this tour a lot. Especially after the pandemic, we don’t take it for granted at all.”
For Floor, the isolation of lockdown reinforced her ties to the band, but it also kickstarted her solo work. She’d begun to think of it in 2019, following an appearance on Dutch TV show Beste Zangers (‘Best Singers’), but she was still very much a band person, with a new Nightwish album cycle around the corner. Come March 2020, for the first time in her career, she found herself separated from that group mentality.
She spent time with her husband and daughter, now five. She grew vegetables and looked after her horses, cats and enormous Irish wolfhound. She worked on her online profile, communicating with her fans on a regular, down-to-earth level. At the same time, she began working with collaborators on solo material. An alternative, poppier sound started to brew.
In spring 2022 she appeared on Germany’s Beste Zangers equivalent, Sing Meinen Song, for which she sang in German (one of the four languages she speaks in addition to Dutch, English and Swedish). Gradually, a standalone Floor Jansen was evolving.
“My desire from the get-go was to find a sound that fits with me, not something created around me. But how do you do that? So I used up a large part of the pandemic in a trial-and-error search for this sound.”
It wasn’t easy. Ten years of bringing Tuomas Holopainen’s visions to life had left her with phenomenal vocal skills, but limited songwriting practice. Her first ideas, she says, “weren’t that great”.
“I’ve done it [songwriting], but I haven’t been doing much in the last 10 years,” she admits. “Plus I’m in a band with someone like Tuomas. It makes me feel very small, like, ‘What do I have to add to a world full of music?’ So from that insecurity I had to find my way and accept that I am more limited, and that I have different ideas.”
Teaming up with Dutch producer Gordon Groothedde (Snoop Dogg; Katie Melua; Floor’s previous band, After Forever) was a turning point. The first song they wrote together was Fire. A darkly atmospheric, orchestral swirl of intelligent modern pop, with the grandeur of Florence & The Machine’s cover of 1986 dance hit You’ve Got The Love, it ignited Floor’s confidence as a creator in her own right.
“I have a really hard time with love songs,” she says. “I know the majority of pop music is about love songs, and that’s also why I find it boring to listen to. So I wanted to create something that still has a message.”
Accordingly, her solo album, Paragon, shuns frothy clichés in favour of meatier subjects. Fire is about returning to life after lockdown. One song, Invincible, was written for the injured war veterans at Prince Harry’s Invictus Games – originally planned to take place in 2020 in the Hague until the pandemic got in the way.
“It’s inspired by the idea of being physically or mentally wounded, after you’ve just given everything you have,” she explains, “and something that’s left of you has to pick up life, and recover from something that you never really wanted to recover from. I want to raise awareness of the fact that this happens so incredibly often, but also to empower them. Like, ‘You already went through Hell, now you’re on your way back, you are invincible.’”
Tumblr media
It’s hard to hear this story now without thinking of Floor’s recent health issues. Diagnosed in October 2022 at a routine mammogram screening, her breast cancer came as a total shock – two weeks before Nightwish were due to fly to South America.
“They [the doctors] said, ‘We want you to come back.’ And the thing I thought, in my naïve brain, was, ‘Oh, they fucked up something with the pictures.’ Never, ‘Oh, they found something.’” She shakes her head. “Not a single moment. Until I was there.”
Surgery was planned for the day after they came home. Until then, she says, the intense business of touring Brazil, Argentina, Chile and Mexico proved a good distraction. The pace of it all was brutal but helpful, and reading similar stories from her fans made her feel less alone – “But at the same time, it’s an overwhelming awareness of how many people actually got this fucking disease."
“I put my emotions into the music,” she reasons, “and also had really wonderful conversations within the band, crew, management, everyone has really been there for me. It’s very tough to do it all that fast, but at the same time it helped because I didn’t have to walk around with thoughts of it too long. Because as soon as you know you have a tumour in your body, the only thing you can think of is ‘get it out’. The whole mental aspect of a cancer diagnosis is shit.”
Back at home, she had three weeks after her operation before heading out in Europe and the UK. Scarred, bruised and exhausted, she was grateful for the support of her family.
“Jesus, how I underestimated it,” she half-laughs, of the recovery process. “I was jet-lagged, I barely slept for nights after the surgery because my system was completely upside-down, you get morphine… So everyone’s been really having my back in this.”
Just a couple of days before the Wembley gig, she learned that the operation was successful. It was both a relief and a wake-up call. In Sweden, mammogram screenings start for women at the age of 40. In the Netherlands, her birthplace –and in the UK – it’s 50. Now looked up to by many, as a public figure as well as a musician, she’s determined to persuade more women to go for their scans.
“On a purely personal level it’s a bit weird, because I’m just me,” she says, of her role-model status. “But from this position, I have the power to make a difference every now and then. I wanted to make sure it has this function by saying, ‘Go and get your mammogram done.’ If I had stayed in the Netherlands, this entire thing would have gone undetected. It was so small when they took it out, but it was growing, you know? I’m very lucky.”
Cancer casts a pervasive shadow, even when it’s caught quickly. For Floor, who (when we speak to her) still has three weeks of radiation therapy to complete, it’s realigned her priorities. “It’s not like I think ‘I’m gonna die’ all the time,” she explains, “but I realise how life is short. Time is not endless. We have it now.”
To that end, Floor is making the most of 2023. After her radiotherapy is finally over, she’ll join Nightwish for 70000Tons Of Metal in the Bahamas. Festival shows will follow. In the summer the band will head to the Röskö campsite in Kitee, Finland, to record the next Nightwish album (which will be released at some point in 2024).
Part three of a trilogy that began with Endless Forms Most Beautiful and continued through Human. :II: Nature., the new album will return to themes concerning our planet and our mortality. Sonically, Floor suggests, we can expect aheavy palette.
“I would say it’s a pretty heavy album,” she muses, “but once again, it’s the multicolour diversity that is Nightwish. It’s all there. It’s going to once again take you by the hand through beautiful stories – whether they are stories from this Earth or stories about this Earth. They’re beautiful.”
Creatively, Nightwish is still Tuomas’s brainchild, though there’s a sense of collaboration around this record. Armed with his demos, the band have been working up different parts and exchanging ideas on tour – in hotel rooms and dressing rooms across the world. For Floor, this has been a happy arrangement.
“I think Tuomas has a unique view on the world and has a unique way of putting that into words,” she says, “and I think he’s outdone himself on that end once again. And also visually, the ideas that are bubbling are going to be of a next level. So yeah, there’s lots to look forward to.”
Meanwhile, along with the release of Paragon, she has solo gigs planned in Europe. “And of course it would be wonderful to go to the UK,” she adds, “we are working on that as well.”
If all goes to plan, Floor Jansen could be a name that reaches well beyond metal circles – paving the way for a new kind of pop star with a darker heart. Once again the ‘powerhouse’ label feels apt, with all the truths and misconceptions that come with it.
“Power is often connected to, especially women…” she searches for the words, “…it’s like, ‘powerful women are bitches’, you know? Maybe that’s the misconception of the century. But a powerful woman is also a woman who is intouch withher emotions, and one who can have absolute soft sides and embrace them. The idea that high sensitivity would be a weakness? That is actually the absolute misperception.
“And that goes for men, too: for men to be in touch with their feelings and to be able to communicate them… that is a bigger strength than [makes growling, macho noise]. That’s going to bring us a whole lot further.”
Between travels, Floor will recharge at home in the Swedish countryside. On cold evenings, she and Hannes sometimes retreat to their grillhouse, light the fire and relax over single malts and a cigar – things that bonded them when they first met on tour with Iced Earth. Small connections between worlds.
“I can say that my happiest place is home, but that’s not true because after half a year I’ll claw up the walls,” she laughs. “I can say it’s on tour, but after a month I really want to go home. I can say it’s onstage, but then putting my daughter to bed is equally amazing at times. The ultimate thing is to have the luxury of both.”
21 notes · View notes
coreancitizen · 1 year
Text
Tumblr media
2022 Year in Review: My Korean drama recommendations
2022 went by so quickly, and I think that's partly because almost every week I had new episodes of shows to look forward to. I'm a bit of a contradiction: I don't have the patience to wait for a new show to be completed so I could binge it, but I (maybe not-so) patiently wait for episodes every week, haha. TBH, I find I'm more invested in a show and its characters when I watch a drama weekly. And there were so many characters worth the investment in 2022: Woo Young Woo, Queen Im Hwa Ryeong, the Oh sisters, Kim Yumi, Jin Do Jun and Jang Uk, to name a few.
I just want to make clear that, as in previous years, this is by no means a list of the best Korean dramas of 2022. These are merely my favorites among the ones I watched that premiered in 2022 (or ended in 2022).
You can find my previous roundups here:
2021: Year in Review 2020: Year in Review
Tumblr media
YUMI'S CELLS 2
New season means new love for Kim Yumi (Kim Go Eun) as she begins a romance with co-worker Yoo Babi following her breakup with video game designer Goo Woong. TBH, I wasn't quite sure how I'd feel about the new pairing — I have a soft spot for Ahn Bo Hyun — but Jinyoung charmed me even before the series started. He and Go Eun have a sweet and natural chemistry that made me root for Yumi and Babi, even knowing how the relationship ended in the webtoon. Another thing I love about the series is its portrayal of Yumi's pursuit of her dream to be a writer — from the frustrations of earlier rejections to keeping it positive while faced with criticisms and the satisfaction of another job (book) well done. That shot of her jumping on the bed toward the end of the series was cathartic and the perfect cap to Yumi's growth. (Viki)
Tumblr media
LITTLE WOMEN
This is NOT Louisa May Alcott's famous novel though it does share some themes and puts sisters at the forefront of the story. The Oh sisters — In Joo, In Kyung and In Hye — just want to live a life not steeped in poverty. So when 2 billion won falls on In Joo's lap, their problems are over, right? Nope. A multitude of troubles arrive as the sisters get entangled with a rich, powerful and corrupt family with a lot of unscrupulous allies. This series got me on the edge of my seat from the very first episode and the thrills and tension never let up until the end. I absolutely love how messy and chaotic the sisters and their relationships with each other are. They love but they also fight, annoy and block each other, LOL! Now please cast Kim Go Eun and Wi Ha Joon in an action comedy series or film and give them the ending on the sunny beaches of Greece that their characters deserve. (Netflix)
Tumblr media
BULGASAL: IMMORTAL SOULS
This is the first drama that caught my attention last year, a fantasy with monsters, past lives, immortal love and families. It's the story of how the lives of a man (Lee Jin Wook) who was turned into an immortal monster 600 years ago and a woman (Kwon Na Ra) who has been dying and reincarnating for centuries have been intertwined. The world building is quite interesting and the central mystery keeps you guessing until the very end. Keep an eye out for familiar faces as people from the past emerge in the present. (Netflix)
Tumblr media
A BUSINESS PROPOSAL
This romcom is adorable with a capital A. Shin Ha Ri (Kim Se Jeong) shows up to a blind date pretending to be her best friend and does her best to turn off a potential match by behaving outrageously. It's a schtick she and her chaebol best friend had cooked up a long time ago to discourage suitors. Unfortunately, the blind date turns out to be Kang Tae Moo (Ahn Hyo Seop), the young president of the food company where she works. And even more unfortunately, he's interested and now wants to marry her! Hilarious chaos ensues, abetted by the couple's adorable best friends (the second couple), her zany family and his kdrama-loving grandfather. You'll never look at an archaeopteryx (bird-like dinosaur) the same way again. (Netflix)
Tumblr media
TOMORROW
This is a lovely, heartbreaking, oftentimes cathartic drama about people desperate enough to consider taking their own lives and the team of resolute grim reapers who work very hard to prevent their deaths. Comatose Choi Jun Woong (Rowoon) is the newbie in the Risk/Crisis Management Team led by Koo Ryeon (Kim Hee Sun). Lim Ryung Gyu rounds up the team. Head of the Soul Collection Team Park Joong Gil, despite being a fellow grim reaper, is a thorn on the team's side — he has a special animosity for Ryeon that may have something to do with the past. Fortunately, the team has a stalwart supporter in the Jade Emperor (Kim Hae Sook). (Netflix)
Tumblr media
MILITARY PROSECUTOR DOBERMAN
Legal action drama with a touch of comedy is probably the best way to describe this series and it's the perfect leading man vehicle for Ahn Bo Hyun. Do Bae Man passes the bar with basically just a GED and so finds himself unable to find a spot in a decent law firm until he gets an "offer he can't refuse" from corrupt lawyer Yong Moon Go: Serve in the military for five years as a prosecutor and then join his prestigious firm after. The plan is going swimmingly until he crosses paths with another military prosecutor, Cha Woo In (Jo Bo Ah), who is targeting some members of the military brass for revenge after her beloved father's suspicious death. After long-buried secrets begin to emerge, Do Bae Man finds himself reevaluating what it is he really wants to do with his life. (Viki)
Tumblr media
EXTRAORDINARY ATTORNEY WOO
Woo to the Young to the Woo! The series follows Woo Young Woo, a young lawyer on the autism spectrum. She's got a brilliant legal mind, able to see different angles of a case but struggles with day-to-day interactions. Fortunately, she has the people looking out for her, like her dad, her boss/mentor, her law school friend and, of course, the handsome support team member who might just have more than friendship in mind. Park Eun Bin is brilliant as Woo Young Woo, she truly gets you invested in her challenges and triumphs. The legal maneuverings are fairly interesting, especially when they involve a rival law firm and somebody from WYW's past. (Netflix)
Tumblr media
ALCHEMY OF SOULS
In the land of Daeho, an assassin trapped in a blind woman's weak body encounters a young lord from a powerful family who needs help to unlock his powers. Interesting lead and supporting characters, solid world-building, fantastic sword and sorcery action? I was sold from the very beginning. At the end of the second ep, I was absolutely in love with the feisty Mudeok and her rather bratty young master/pupil Jang Uk who just wants his gate of energy opened so he can do what everybody can — cast spells and use a sword. There's a twist at the end of the 20-episode first season, and I guess your enjoyment of the second season would largely depend on how much you accept the change. But in both seasons, the crown prince remains quite the scene stealer and he's possibly my most favorite character of all. (Netflix)
Tumblr media
UNDER THE QUEEN'S UMBRELLA
A truly female-driven drama — from the queen and the queen dowager down to the concubines and, yes, even the court ladies. The series begins with Queen Hwa Ryeong's biggest problem being the four grand princes' rather relaxed approach to their education, lagging behind the other sons of the king via his numerous scheming concubines. But tragedy strikes and the queen and her sons suddenly find themselves fighting to make sure they don't lose not just their positions but their very lives. Kim Hye Soo makes it so easy to root for the embattled queen who wields her position and her eyebrows skillfully to thwart ministers, concubines and her mother-in-law, the queen dowager. I also love that her sons, the four grand princes, are unlike other royal brothers in sageuks — they are close, affectionate and loyal, leaving the dirty tricks to their half-brothers. This series probably has the most satisfying ending among the ones I watched last year. (Netflix)
Tumblr media
REBORN RICH
Yoon Hyun Woo is a hard-working, loyal, no-questions-asked employee of the powerful Jin Family, which controls the Soonyang Group. One day, on an overseas errand to retrieve some secret money, he is betrayed by someone in the family and murdered — but promptly finds himself "waking up" in the body of the youngest grandson of the Jins, back in 1987. How, you ask? I finished the series but that part is still unclear. What's clear is how charismatic and believable Song Joong Ki is as the twentysomething investment whiz Do Jun. And what an amazing actor Lee Sung Min, as Soonyang chairman and patriarch Jin Yang Cheol is. The push-pull in their relationship is what made the series work for 15 episodes. Not that the supporting cast members are slackers. This is one of the best ensembles I've ever seen, the actors really working to make these characters ones you'd love to hate. Some of the business stuff might put off viewers but I found the whole thing fascinating and easily understood. I cheered when Do Jun/Hyun Woo used his knowledge of the future as well as his relatives' greed to take pieces of Soonyang. I'm recommending this series but with a caveat: I found the ending a bit of a mess and rather unsatisfactory. BUT the previous 15 episodes are fantastic and definitely worth a watch. (Viki)
Bonus recommendations
Tumblr media
I recently started dipping my toes into Chinese dramas, even though I'm still intimidated by the episode count. "Love Between Fairy and Devil" is sweet and hilarious and has fantastic special effects. (Netflix and Viki)
Tumblr media
But my heart truly belongs to Li Wei and the sixth young prince of Xin State as they figure out family, politics and love as their "New Life Begins." (Viki)
Tumblr media
Last but certainly not the least, "Pachinko," which even though it stars some of the biggest names in Korean entertainment is not considered K-Drama by its creators. Based on Min Jin Lee's critically acclaimed novel, the series — Youn Yuh Jung, Lee Min Ho and Kim Min Ha are key parts of the ensemble — follows the trial and tribulations of a Korean family over four generations. The story begins in Korea, moves to Japan and eventually spreads to the United States. The story is rich and emotional, the direction precise and the acting superb. It has been recognized in a lot of year-end lists and recently won the Critics Choice Award for best foreign language series. (Apple TV +)
40 notes · View notes
lovesick-gxrls · 1 year
Text
LOVE LIFE
jeon wonwoo x millie kim
february 2016 - july 2018
Tumblr media Tumblr media
millie and wonwoo began dating just a few weeks after she had debuted, they met at inkigayo when she came to support nct’s debut
they were incredibly supportive of one another, and a very cute couple, her parents loved him and were even planning a trip to canada
lots of late night dates and movie nights as they liked to stay in rather than go out
unfortunately as they both got more popular and busier they found it hard to see one another and eventually had to call it quits
wi hajoon x millie kim
april 2019 - october 2019
Tumblr media Tumblr media
the pair met through a mutual friend who works in the industry
their relationship was very fun and playful but didn’t last long as they realised they weren’t ready for a proper relationship at that point in their careers
they went out a lot to bars and restaurants and practically lived together for the six months they were together
towards the end rumours began popping up about them but they just said it was a friendship which worked out well for them both
koo junhoe x millie kim
january 2020 - march 2021
Tumblr media Tumblr media
millie met junhoe at a party and both decided to stick with one another the full night buying each other drinks
they then went on to go on dates and started to have a proper relationship, they were very much in love from the beginning and moved very quickly which concerned a few of millie’s close friends in aomg
the couple was in the honeymoon phase for the first few months until dispatch caught them on a late night walk holding hands, this caused a lot of stress for millie and they began to argue a lot which then caused them to break up which was probably for the best
she misses junhoe a lot and they still try to talk every know and then but agreed to just stay friends
millie m.list | masterlist
40 notes · View notes
saywhat-politics · 11 months
Text
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A Wisconsin judge said Monday he will order that the state elections commission reconsider a complaint filed against fake Republican electors who attempted in 2020 to cast the state's electoral ballots for former President Donald Trump.
But this time, Dane County Circuit Judge Frank Remington said, the commission must consider the complaint without the participation of one of its six commissioners who was also one of the fake electors.
The Wisconsin Elections Commission, Republican commissioner Robert Spindell and those who brought the lawsuit ultimately all agreed that the complaint should be heard again without Spindell's participation.
Given that agreement, Remington said during oral arguments on Monday that he would write a written order as soon as next week to vacate the commission's unanimous rejection in March 2022 of the complaint against the fake electors and to require it to consider it again without Spindell.
“Surprise, surprise, I'm coming to the same conclusion, as all the parties have, that the appropriate remedy is to vacate the decision of the WEC and remand it back for further proceedings, which don’t include Commissioner Spindell," Remington said.
Spindell is one of three Republican members of the commission that also has three Democratic members. It oversees elections in Wisconsin.
54 notes · View notes
1americanconservative · 10 months
Text
14 notes · View notes
eurotastic · 11 months
Text
Eurovision reviews 2023 - Semi final 1
Eurovision week has officially started, and that means it's about time I write my reviews for Eurovision 2023. I went to the London Eurovision preparty in April, and I had the best time, and for that reason, my opinions are partially based on the live performances that I saw there. As usual, I'm primarily basing my reviews on the song quality (do I want to listen to it outside of the competition?), and the preview videos for the staging - The full package that we're getting in the actual show. I'm also taking general fandom opinions into consideration with some of the songs, in case I think the fandom is overhyping or underrating an entry. I feel like I'm overexplaining the way I judge the songs, mostly it's just based on vibes, but the bottom line is that these are just my personal opinions and you're all free to send me anonymous hate mail if you disagree.
Norway: Queen of Kings - Alessandra
It's one of the catchiest pop songs of the year, so it's the perfect song to open the semi final with. I just wish the staging would have been improved from the NF, because right now it's looking cheap and unimaginative. It's a fast paced europop song with some pirate vibes, it has so much potential for camp but we're getting nothing visually. Cute whistle note though.
7/10
Malta: Dance (Our Own Party) - The Busker
I understand what they're going for, I really do. Introverted nerds need party songs too, but the song isn't good just because the idea for the song is good. The guy says "do you wanna dance", but the song is too slow and low energy to dance too, it just flatlines. At least they're giving us a strong staging gimmick, and Eurovision always needs an epic sax guy, so this entry isn't a complete failure.
4/10
Serbia: Samo mi se spava - Luke Black
The instrumental is fantastic, and the singing is… Is he even singing or is he just doing some sexy moaning and breathing into the microphone? This is definitely a case of style over substance, but it looks so good on stage that I don't care if the songwriting is a little weak.
7/10
Latvia: Aijā - Sudden Lights
I respect this song way more than I actually enjoy it. It's obvious that these guys are really competent musicians, but that doesn't matter when the song is this forgettable.
4/10
Portugal: Ai Coração - Mimicat
This feels like something out of the early 2000s, for better or for worse. I like how Mimicat is doing her own Moulin Rouge type of thing, but that's the problem, it's just a cabaret performance. Once the competition is over, it's not something I'm going to keep listening to.
5/10
Ireland: We Are One - Wild Youth
"We might be different, we might be unique" - No you're not, you're the most generic band on earth.
2/10
Croatia: Mama ŠČ! - Let 3
First there's the authoritatian version of The Village People singing about tractors and morons, then Lenin shows up with some missiles, and then they start singing about a "crocodile psychopath"…It's so beautiful I could cry. It's completely ridiculous and stupid, but it's obvious that it was made by smart people just playing stupid. Also, this does a better job denouncing Putin and the war than any world peace song ever could. It's the first truly great troll entry of the 2020s.
10/10
Switzerland: Watergun - Remo Forrer
This song makes me feel like the type of conservative right wing American who gets really intense about supporting the military, and I don't like it. It's 2023, and in case you haven't noticed, a country participating in Eurovision has been forced into a war for survival. At this moment, the Ukrainian military is the only thing keeping the country from getting wiped out of existance. In case you haven't noticed, it's an ongoing attempt at genocide. With all that said, it looks like someone didn't notice, because here's some Swiss bitch getting on his moral high horse singing some cutesy, whiny little song about how he doesn't want to be a soldier because he doesn't want to "play with real blood"…..Guess what, you're from fucking Switzerland, nobody's ever forcing you to be a soldier, unlike the Ukrainians who don't have a choice! It's a completely tone deaf choice for 2023, especially coming from the country that's using neutrality as an excuse to avoid solidarity with the rest of Europe. I'm getting the same vibe from this as the shitty world peace songs that Russia would send in the 2010s. I hate hate hate hate hate hate this.
0/10
Israel: Unicorn - Noa Kirel
At first I thought this song was the most annoying thing in the world, but after hearing it in approximately 500 recap videos on Youtube I think I got Stockholm syndromed into loving this. It's literally phenomenmenmenemnal.
8/10
Moldova: Soarele și Luna - Pasha Parfeni
Nobody does weird better than Moldova.
Nobody does weird better than Moldova.
7/10
Sweden: Tattoo - Loreen
Loreen is the greatest artist in the history of Eurovision and she deserves to be the first woman to win the whole thing twice.
10/10
Azerbaijan: Tell Me More - TuralTuranX
It's refreshing to get something this completely uncompetitive from Azerbaijan. There's a lot of good songwriting ideas here, I like the laidback vibes, but at the same time it's too bland to stand out.
5/10
Czechia: My Sister's Crown - Vesna
This song felt a lot bigger when it was released a few months ago. I love the aggressive rap parts and the defiant attitude in the beginning of the song, but then there's the "we stand for you" parts…This song is trying to be everything for everyone, and think it would have benefitted from focusing on just being angry without any lines about world peace and holding hands and whatever else. The production is incredible though, I can never get enough of this Eastern European folk hip hop thing.
8/10
Netherlands: Burning Daylight - Mia Nicolai & Dion Cooper
This is the kind of song that I usually can't stand in Eurovision, since it's basically just a bland easy listening radio song. Somehow I don't mind it, it's very well written despite being basic. I'm definitely not voting for it though.
Finland: Cha Cha Cha - Käärijä
It's crazy, it's party, and it's officially my favorite Eurovision song of all time. I love it more than I love Shum, Wild Dances, Rhythm Inside and whichever other song I have called my all time favorite over the years. My favorite things in life outside of Eurovision are professional wrestling and Rammstein, so the music video alone was enough to make me a huge fan of Käärijä. If I see a guy inside a wrestling ring with a huge Rammstein tattoo, obviously that's the guy I'm voting for. It's my most played song of the year on Spotify, and I feel like this whole thing was created in a lab specifically for me. 11/10
14 notes · View notes
cogitoergofun · 9 months
Text
A yearslong U.S. Coast Guard investigation into decades of sexual assault and violence at the Coast Guard Academy went undisclosed to the Senate Commerce Committee until last week, according to a letter lawmakers sent Friday that calls the lack of disclosure “disturbing.”
The letter, signed by Commerce Chair Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) and Senate Oceans, Fisheries, Climate Change and Manufacturing Chair Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), seeks more information to investigate if the agency “complied with the law and to inform potential legislative action.” It was addressed to Coast Guard commanding officer Admiral Linda L. Fagan.
In an inquiry dubbed “Operation Fouled Anchor” from 2014 to 2020, the Coast Guard identified 62 substantiated incidents of rape, sexual assault and sexual harassment at the academy or by its cadets between 1988 and 2006, according to the letter. The agency did not disclose the investigation or its findings to the committee until a briefing last week, the letter said. The briefing occurred only after CNN made inquiries to the Coast Guard into the probe, according to a report the network published Friday.
The investigation identified 42 individuals against whom there may have been substantiated claims of rape, sexual assault and sexual harassment, yet the agency “neglected to pursue disciplinary measures” against “most” of them, the letter said.
Two officers the operation substantiated claims against were allowed to retire as commanders with full benefits, and both were confirmed by the Senate at least once during the probe with the agency failing to disclose they were under investigation, the letter said.
The operation revealed Coast Guard leaders “had knowledge of, and in some cases received formal or informal complaints or other disclosures of rape, sexual assault, and sexual harassment, yet did nothing,” according to the letter.
“More disturbingly, some of these leaders discouraged survivors from filing formal complaints or otherwise disclosing their assaults,” the letter said.
9 notes · View notes