#and then we also get to see 1992 and more about their problems while also seeing kate and jeanette in high school pre-kidnapping

[cookinguptales]

Can I ask you to do a post about Disney & disability please? You mentioned it and I’d love to know more!

Well, my notifications can't get any messier, so why not?

This post got very, very long because I ended up talking about a lot of the accessibility solutions in detail (and... ranting about how accessibility at Universal was so bad that I got physically injured there) so I'm putting it under a cut for you.

To preface this, I have mobility issues (as well as a lot of food intolerances/allergies) and general chronic illness, my sister is Deaf, and I have friends who regularly attend the park with autistic family members with high support needs. These are the disabilities I have experience with, so while I've heard a bit about others (such as portable descriptive devices for visitors with visual impairments) I can't speak as much about those accommodations.

I have also traveled quite a bit, mostly as a disabled adult. I can work from anywhere and my family enjoys traveling, so I've been very lucky in this regard. I also used to live in central Florida, not too far from Disney, and benefited from their FL resident rates.

So I'm coming at this from a person who has a lot of experience traveling while disabled and a fair amount of experience going to WDW, though I haven't been nearly as often since I moved out of Florida.

(Good fucking riddance.)

So know that I am speaking from experience when I say I have never, without exception, been to a single place half as accessible as Walt Disney World. It is literally the reason my family would go there; it was one of the only places we could all safely go together. One of the only places I've been on earth that even approached their level of thoughtful accommodations is Barcelona, which apparently did significant renovations throughout the city in order to prepare for the 1992 Paralympics.

(Hey, if anyone is reading this from Barcelona: I teared up the first time I used one of your curb cuts in my wheelchair, just so you know.)

Going through those parks in a wheelchair is a breeze, though you will probably have to fight a lot of clueless parents with strollers who are hellbent on using resources intended for wheelchair-users and then glaring at you when you try to use them yourself. Level ground, spacious sidewalks, accessible transportation, well-kept gradual ramps, roomy buildings, lots of accessible restrooms, alternate entrances at many rides for wheelchair users, special wheelchair rows in movie theaters that we're loaded into first, accessible queues in most rides designed or renovated in the last fifteen years, special viewing areas for shows/parades/fireworks so you don't end up staring at able-bodied butts for a half hour...

Like, structurally-speaking, the parks are very easy to get around in if you're a wheelchair user. That was built in and you can see a lot of very mindful design choices. As far as the rides go, most of their rides actually have special cars that you can load into while still in a wheelchair. They're pretty neat. I can transfer, but that means often leaving my wheelchair and/or cane with a cast member during the ride. They are always, without fail, waiting for me on the other side of the ride, no matter how far the exit is from the entrance. I have never once had a problem with this. A cast member will be there to put my assistive devices in my hand before I even have to think about getting up. Guaranteed.

Wheelchair users always used to be able to skip the line, but there was unfortunately a problem with able-bodied people pretending to be disabled to skip lines (because god forbid they not have access to a single thing we have to make our lives livable) so now there's a system where if you cannot wait in a line, they'll basically give you a special time to come back that's equivalent to the length of the line. Which feels fair to me as someone who often cannot be in even an accessible line for extended periods. (I have problems with sunlight, heat, and often need emergency food or restroom.)

More important than all this, though, is the fact that cast members are impeccably well-trained in all of this. Any disabled person can tell you that the most accessible design on earth isn't worth shit if the people working there aren't well-trained. (More on this later, when I take a giant shit on Universal Studios.) But Disney trains their employees, many of whom are disabled themselves, incredibly well.

Every employee will know where the accessible entrances are. Every employee will know the procedure for getting a return time. Every employee will know about first-aid centers, and every employee will know where the quiet areas are for people with sensory issues. Every time you make a reservation for a meal, hotel room, transportation, etc. they will ask for all accessibility needs and they'll be ready for you.

Every waiter you have will be incredibly careful and knowledgeable when it comes to special dietary needs, and chefs will often come out to discuss them with you. They often have specific menus for different dietary needs, and they are scrupulous when it comes to allergens. I have a few intolerances that suck and allergies that could kill me and I have always felt very safe in their hands. This ranges from fancy sit-down restaurants to quick service burger places.

And -- honestly, I have just always been treated with respect. I know that sounds like a low bar, but most people do fail to clear it. Disney has their employees very well-trained on how to interact with disabled guests. People speak directly to me, never to the able-bodied people over my head. They never treat me like I'm a child. They never ask invasive questions or make uncomfortable jokes. They never, ever get impatient with my accessibility needs.

The few times I have misjudged things and have injured myself or gotten extremely ill, they were professional and caring as they provided much-needed first-aid. It's kind of embarrassing to be doted on by a costumed character while you wait for a doctor to come help you sit up again, but also kind of endearing, I'll admit.

They also, in addition to captioning all videos in the park, have some of the best sign language interpreters in the world, bar none. They're very personal and professional, they're easy to reserve, they will always be in a visible place during shows, and they're incredible performers as well as being very technically proficient. In addition to the professional interpreters, many cast members, performers, and characters can sign as well.

In addition to that, and this brings me to my next point, you'll meet a lot of disabled employees throughout the park. In front-facing positions. Deaf employees, employees using mobility aids, etc. They're well-known to hire disabled people and treat them well. This is. Fuck, this is incredibly rare, I say as someone who was never able to find a job in Florida with my health conditions. It's the moral thing to do to hire disabled people, but also -- selfishly, there's something so heartening and normalizing about seeing people who look like you working at the park. I'm happy every single time.

I have a little less personal experience when it comes to accessibility for neurodivergence, despite being neurodivergent myself, but I've been told that Disney is very, very accommodating for people on the spectrum. A lot is done to lessen crowding, waiting, sensory overload, etc. for autistic guests. Cast members are usually super good at this; finding designated quiet areas, helping autistic guests avoid more crowded areas, keeping them out of long lines, making sure they have access to any particular experiences that are special to them, etc.

For folks who need help from their group, whether that's an autistic child who needs to be with a parent or a disabled adult who needs someone to push their wheelchair or anything else, Disney has a rider switch-off model. In other words, if you're there with both of your able-bodied parents, for example, and you need one of them to be with you at all times and you don't want to be on the ride yourself, Disney will allow one person to go on the ride while the other waits for them to finish, then will allow the second person to go on without any additional wait. This makes sure that everyone in the family gets equal access without leaving disabled people alone. (Which... can be a very shitty feeling, I assure you.)

I know that Disney has also pioneered a lot of assistive technology. The accessible rides, obviously, which can be ridiculously cool (like Toy Story Midway Mania has an accessible car with alternative "guns" for people with dexterity limitations so they can play the carnival games as well) but also handheld assistive devices for visually impaired guests, etc. Like they are literally inventing new forms of accessibility technology, which is so cool.

And honestly, I'm always learning about new ways they assist disabled guests. I've stayed in Disney's accessible hotel rooms before (they're very nice!) but I don't like to swim so I've never been in the pools. But even just this week, someone told me that Disney has pool lifts for disabled guests, which I had never even considered. That's so cool.

The best part about accessibility at Disney is that in some ways it's very casual. A lot of their design decisions are so intuitive that you never even notice how accessible the parks are until you go somewhere where that's... not the case.

Like -- just so you don't assume that any of these things are industry standard, let me tell you about the two times I went to Universal, a park very close to Disney. I went there once for an event and once with my family.

The first time I went was for an event at the opening of the Harry Potter park. (This was before JKR made her most appalling views public, to be clear.) It... was frustrating. Guests asked if there would be food and drink available for people with special dietary restrictions (such as sugar-free butterbeer) and were pretty much told that no, that was not something they were interested in pursuing. It became very obvious very quickly that the park itself was so narrow that it only barely fulfilled ADA standards -- when empty. We were told that JKR had actually specifically insisted that it feel "cramped". Which is a nice way to say that I couldn't actually get around in any of the stores while people were in them.

It was overall a frustrating experience, but it was like. One night. I figured it was probably a fluke and they were still ironing out all the details. So I ended up going back with my parents later.

Y'all, it was a shit show.

Broken elevators that prevented disabled guests from accessing rides. Performers being up on raised platforms/sidewalks so disabled guests couldn't get to them. Sidewalks being made inaccessible by putting movable signs directly in the middle of them. Stores (even outside of the HP part) that were so damn narrow that I actually ended up getting hurt trying to navigate one of them. And no -- it was not easy to get first aid.

And my god, was the training bad. We went to one of the new HP rides, asked if there was a specific entrance for disabled guests. We were told no. We waited for a very long time in a line that honestly I shouldn't have been waiting in, but I wanted to be a good sport. I was pretty sick by the time we got through it, and the line itself had some very dangerous inclines/turns for wheelchair users. We get to the front of the line -- and the employee asks why we didn't just use the accessible entrance. 🙃

(Side note: several of their rides are also just unrideable if you don't fit within a pretty narrow body type of thin and able-bodied, so... there's that.)

We'd asked repeatedly and gotten incorrect answers, and I'd been put in physical danger as a result. Wild. I started to notice that if you asked different employees, you'd get different answers about almost anything, really. Just exceptionally poor training. Even stuff that should've been a no-brainer, like loading wheelchair users into a stationary movie theater, ended up creating chaos when they did it incorrectly and we had a giant wheelchair pileup.

Like -- let me stress to you that many of the things that happened could have caused actual injury to people. Some of these situations were dangerous. And some of them were just alienating, like when I'd have to wait outside a store while my family could go in.

I never went back after that. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ We just kept going to Disney.

One thing that'll probably show how good Disney is at accessibility is the whole Make-A-Wish thing. A lot of people know that it's a popular Make-A-Wish request, and you're likely to see at least a couple kids with Make-A-Wish buttons during your visit if you keep an eye out. One reason for this, is that, y'know, Disney World is fun. Kids want to go there. But more important, I think, is that Disney can accommodate people with at-times severe medical needs. Those kids can safely go anywhere and do anything in those parks that able-bodied kids can, and that's important.

All in all, the parks are just so accessible and you will never, ever be made to feel like you're lesser for needing those accommodations. You will be treated so well and you will not have to worry about accessibility because the cast members are always doing it for you. They'll usher you into the correct entrance as soon as they see a mobility device, and they'll do it with a very warm welcome. It's one of the very few places on earth where I have never felt like a burden.

Again, y'know, I know that Disney does not have a perfect track record on a lot of issues. I would never defend them from rightfully earned criticism. I strongly support labor action against them, and I do think they should be criticized whenever they fuck up. I have been uncomfortable with the sheer amount of power they have both in Florida and in the entertainment world just because no one should have that much power. But I am far more uncomfortable with that power being stripped away for blatantly discriminatory political reasons.

I do have some loyalty to Disney just because there is no other place on earth where I've been able to safely have fun with my friends with so little agony. That's... I mean, it's important, really. To be able to just exist in public without getting grief for it. And I have some loyalty to them because they were a safe space for me as a young, queer kid who was not safe being out in other areas of my life.

(Like, I am talking about actual literal safety. I kept seeing notes on my post saying that Disney didn't care about creating a "safe space for queer people" but as someone who lived in Florida for the entirety of my teenage years? It was the safest goddamn place there.)

I do not have enough loyalty to defend them when they do immoral bullshit, but I do have enough to make sure that people know the good that they do as well.

I want other businesses to follow Disney's model for disability. I will praise them forever for what they've done in that regard because if I don't, there's no reason for other companies to follow suit. I want to praise them for the good things they've done so they have incentive to keep doing it, and other companies have an incentive to do it as well.

Like bro, I just wanna be able to move around and be treated with some dignity, y'know? My bar is so low. lmao

But yeah. That's why you always see so many disabled guests at Disney. It's literally the only place some of us can go to have fun.

#disney #disability #ableism #replies #honestly I used to go to the parks a lot but I wouldn't presently consider myself a superfan of disney or anything #but goddamn it sometimes you just wanna be able to go out and do the same things as everybody else #and disney always let me do that

[drdemonprince]

watching a 1992 Donna Tartt interview where she describes writing her first draft of The Secret History as setting out on a cross-country trip with only a map, not knowing what kind of unexpected detours she might run into along the way and then figuring out her way through them. She also likens getting to know her characters over the course of the writing to getting to know a good friend -- at first you think you've got them figured out, but with more time and in new situations, you learn all kinds of new shades to them.

and it strikes me. that neither cross country trips nor getting to know friends quite works out that way anymore. Today we have Google directions that can update relatively in real time to reflect not only changes in the roads and byways, but short-term construction and traffic jams as well. and while there's certainly an element of surprise to befriending somebody still, things aren't quite so much of a mystery anymore as they were before social media. today it's quite easy to make an informed guess based on a person's posting habits which movies theyd want to see with you, whether they'd like to visit an art gallery or a park or a club. and you know what's going on in their life so much of the time, or at least what they broadcast about it, so you get to develop a sense of their patter and their insecurities and what makes them spiral.

and i wonder if human beings on the whole are less comfortable with uncertainty now, and see themselves as less capable of weathering unexpected challenges -- be that a pothole or a conversation with no script -- because we haven't gotten to exercise that self-trust of embarking on the road with only a map that Donna describes.

i know that when i encounter an unexpected problem and i can solve it, it helps me feel powerful. it helps me feel that my world has expanded in some triumphant little way. now i know how to install a curtain rod. i will never not know how to do it again. now i know how to fix a biplane closet track thats bent. now i know how to donate blood and what to do before. i know how to tell a boorish dude at a bar to leave my friend and i alone because now i've done it. and the more things that i become able to do, the greater faith i have in my own ability to do things generally -- to learn, to fix, to adapt. im no luddite but i am someone who always wants to google unknowable information, such as whether a bartender will yell at me for ordering the wrong kind of drink at the wrong sort of bar. but i have that all backwards now dont i. the only way i get over that anxiety is not by getting all the information, but by getting experience moving into places where i dont have the information. driving on the roads when the maps are out of date.

#i havent read any donna tartt but her eyebrows are so good i might have to

[theuncoupleddiningcar]

Sometimes I think about my Starlight Express song opinions so here they are:

(PLEASE NOTE THAT I AM AMERICAN SO I CAN ONLY WORK WITH SO MUCH)

Rolling Stock makes me feel manly- something about it makes me wanna pump some fucking iron

Call Me Rusty is adorable and is a better introduction to Rusty than Crazy. Call Me Rusty points out his stubbornness and willpower to win, while also showing that the coaches show genuine concern to his condition and don't just go "man this kid is fuckin insane"

If you think I Got Me is "too empowering," You're weird. I understand thinking it's a little odd for setting up Dinah's character, but there's a difference between that and "oh the women are too independent." I think my biggest problem with I Got Me is that there are not coach intros.

I like Lotta Locomotion for what its worth. It's just a cute lil intro song

Whole Lotta Locomotion- wheeeew- it's certainly... a song! It tries so hard to be girlboss-y but fails lyricwise and makes them even more dependent on men- but Im not gonna lie and say I hate it because Jesus it's catchy-

FREIGHT IS GOOD, YALL ARE JUST MEAN- I specifically like the one version from London 1992 where the coaches ARE BRUTAL FOR NO REASON- Also, versions without CB suck ass

AC/DC is at its best when Electra is an over-the-top diva and the components MUST eat it up.

Pumping Iron makes me feel so ungodly feminine (I wonder which part I sing) AND I LOVE IT. I LOVE FEELING FEMININE. I especially love when Greaseball is super snarky and flirtatious.

He'll Whistle At Me puts me to sleep. Make Up My Heart is beautiful. He Whistled At Me is terrible narrative-wise but MAN OH MAN DOES IT MAKE ME FEEL GIRLY

Coda of Freight is REALLY REALLY GOOD????

There's Me is adorbs and I. MISS. IT.

Poppa's Blues is a banger, yall are just haters. Also, hot take, but Poppa should NEVER be white.

Belle may not have much of a purpose in terms of the story, but jeez, her voice is beautiful. I love Belle so much.

I am a Rap enthusiast, so I have to give you my opinions on all of them. Hey You is a classic and it was my first Rap. It sounds so silly and Electra makes me giggle every time. Check It Out is so stupid but WOW IS ELECTRA GAY- I love the beat too. What Time Is It is so extremely CAMPY but I have a soft spot for it- The only version of Own It, Nail it that I have is the 2017 London workshop, and that one was almost a carbon copy of Check It Out. BORING.

UNCOUPLED is always such a sweet song. I HAVE A GRIPE WITH PEOPLE WHO MAKE DINAH SO MF SOUTHERN. Like, I get it, but don't give her a HUGE accent. See Jane Krakowski.

Girls Rolling Stock makes me feel so girlboss.

CB (or Wide Smile) is a mf bop and a masterpiece

Right Place, Right Time makes me jam out hard

The beginning of He Whistled At Me Reprise makes me so sad- DUSTIN QUIT CRYIN BOY!

Dinahs Disco is so slay and Electra is such a prissy princess-

"CB! CB! YOU GOTTA HELP ME IN THE FINAL SEEECTIOOOON"

One Rock N Roll Too Many makes me lowkey sad- but my god is it funny-

Only He is a masterpiece. BUT... NEXT TIME YOU FALL IN LOOOOOOOVE IT BETTER BE WITH ME THE WAY IT USED TO BE BACK THEN WAS WHEN WE TOUCHED THE STARLIIIIGHT-

Next Time You Fall In Love makes no sense to me lyric-wise but the song slaps

"I love it when romance occurs on the railroad"

The Megamix my beloved

So, tell me what you think! Do you agree? Disagree?

#ilovetazstarship #starlight express

[jeannereames]

Out of curiosity, were there any facts (inasmuch as we can have in history) about atg/h that you were surprised to learn? Ones that are now in your view of them but when you learned them you thought them ooc or unrealistic

Sorry if this question doesn't make much sense, it's very late at night haha!

After studying them so long (over 30 years now), it can be hard for me to remember reactions, but two things do stick out:

When I realized Hephaistion wasn’t ethnically Macedonian.

While this is now pretty well-accepted, when I first stumbled over the name issue, back around 1995/96, working on my dissertation, nobody had assumed him anything other than a Macedonian. My discovery to the contrary was pure chance. The only place his origin town was given in our sources (Arrian) also happened to list Leonnatos as from Pella, but we know he was from Lynkestis. So I thought, “Oh, hey, I’ll go check and see if the names Hephaistion or Amyntor pop up on tombstones anywhere else in Macedonia.”

That was one BIG rabbit hole, let me tell you!

At the time, as a young scholar—even with oversight from two excellent senior ancient historians—I didn’t (in retrospect) do as thorough a job with the name search as I should have. I’ve remedied that since. My definitive work on Hephaistion’s ethnicity is now, “Becoming Macedonian: Name-mapping and Ethnic Identity. The case of Hephaistion,” with accompanying digital history mapping. But even back in the late ‘90s, my rudimentary onomastic (name) search was good enough to make my point so that it now appears in many/most entries on him. But it certainly wasn’t anything I expected to discover. An off-the-cuff question for my dissertation turned into a major rethinking about Hephaistion’s origins and helps us to better understand Macedonian naturalization.

The second surprise also concerns Hephaistion: that his military assignments were largely logistical and/or diplomatic.

When I set out to write my dissertation, my goal was to show that Hephaistion was more important than typically recognized in modern scholarship, so I collected every ancient reference to him, in all ancient sources. At the time, I did it on 3x5 cards. This research started in 1992, right after I got to Penn State. (Yes, I already knew what my dissertation would be on; I just had to convince Gene Borza that it was doable.)

Anyway, as I was playing with my cards, trying to sort them into broad types, I noticed some odd discrepancies. Now, first, be aware that statistics are a problem in ancient history because we have such SMALL samples. But looking at differences of 3-to-1, that got my attention.

That’s when I realized most of Hephaistion’s assignments were of a specific TYPE: logistical and/or diplomatic. Again, that’s now a generally accepted detail, but it wasn’t until I started making piles out of my 3x5 cards. Some of these conclusions were later published as “The Cult of Hephaistion,” with, yes, tables of these assignments.

This is a good place to make an important point for young scholars. Get in there and do the counting. Be comprehensive. Keep lists. Make 3x5 cards or sticky-notes. Record citations physically on large sheets of paper so you can visualize how it stacks up. In the day of digital, we lose track of just how much we can learn from SEEING in physical space.

Below are a couple pictures I took recently (2022), while recording Every. Single. Religious. Reference, in our 5 original sources. LOOK at it. Note the differences in patterns on the pages. That yielded a really interesting (to me) book chapter on how our sources talk about Philip and Alexander’s use of religion on campaign. This will come out in 2024 as part of a Companion book edited by Ed Anson. (Yes, there are tables!) I took the pictures to show Ed I was hard at work on it, as I was running a little late. But I’m glad I did take it, as it really illustrates how much one can deduce just from seeing.

I’ll be taking the same tactic as I move forward on my study of Hephaistion and Krateros’s careers. I’ll do for Krateros the same thing I did for Hephaistion (I still have those cards!). But I’ll also sort references by ancient author, to see patterns in how each represents the two men. I think it’s important to look at both, a horizontal examination of the type of reference, and a vertical look at trends within authors.

Yeah, I like my lists/tables. But I believe in being thorough. Impressions are suspect. Show me the numbers. (Even if I went into history to avoid math!)

#asks #Hephaistion #Hephaestion #Alexander the Great #surprises in research #Classics #Tagamemnon #be comprehensive in research #ancient Macedonia #ancient Greece #Macedonian military #ancient Macedonian ethnicity

[themeganator5000]

May... May I see why you agree with Scooter being gay

Oh god. Yeah, I suppose so. I literally just typed up what would basically be my script if I ever did a youtube video essay rant about this topic (i will never do this, but someone definitely should).

Bear in mind, I literally wrote this like an hour ago in a hyperfixation-induced daze so my friend @hails-the-geek would have something silly to wake up to 😘 So, not exactly written for public consumption, but since you asked so nicely:

SO HERES HOW WE CAN FIX SCOOTER. Scooter the Muppet started out as a nepotistic lil whippersnapper who had little to no morals and only cared about meeting famous people and having a high-paying, low-effort job. Now that's all well and good and a Scooter we have all grown to love BUT ever since Disney has obtained ownership of the Muppets, they have become less of the struggling underdogs and more of a lesser-known classic. This already raises some problems with the overall tone of the characters, especially Scooter, because the only way he was able to get Kermit and the gang to bend to his every whim was to remind them that his very wealthy uncle owned the theatre and the ground it stood on. The fun of his character was that he was a gofer (essentially an intern) whose job it was to take orders from anyone for anything, but with his familial connection to a person in high power he could inversely force any one of the Muppets to take orders from HIM to get just about anything. Now, since the Muppets HAVE no theatre and are usually performing on a soundstage likely owned by the Disney company, Scooter has lost his influence and no longer has the ability to be the narcissist, sassy, two-timing brat he once was. He has been boiled down to his face value as an over-enthusiastic, dorky, wide-eyed fanboy who eagerly goes along with whatever he is told to do. This, of course, was present in the original iteration, but it was always known that if Scooter ever DISAGREED with what he was told to do, he could always find a way around it. Helpful until inconvenient. It is also worth noting that in the original Muppet Show, Scooter was intended to be a young boy around 14 years old, but in more recent adaptations he seems to have aged, being given adult love interests and being shown cage dancing in a nightclub. This brings me to my conclusion; how we can fix Scooter in this modern age and bring back some of that charm that made us adore him all those years ago. The answer is quite simple, really:

MAKE

SCOOTER

🏳️‍🌈 𝗚 𝗔 𝗬 🏳️‍🌈

Richard Hunt, the Muppeteer who portrayed Scooter and many other characters until his untimely death in 1992, was openly gay and a well-loved part of the original Muppet cast. So much so, that Jim Henson personally requested that he be the one to host the memorial service at his funeral, which he did. Richard Hunt said that he based Scooter's personality on his own when he first started working with the Muppets, enthusiastic, eager to please, and definitely trying too hard. While all those personality traits are decidedly still present in today's Scooter, the absence of one crucial piece is blatantly apparent.

𝘏𝘰𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘦𝘹𝘶𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺.

While never explicitly stated, Scooter's character can easily be interpreted as gay, exhibiting flamboyant characteristics, having a borderline obsession with Elton John, just kinda being twinkish and boy-toy-like in nature. Whatever the reasoning, there is no better candidate for Disney's First Gay Muppet than the trademark character of the original gay Muppeteer, Scooter. BUT! It is EXTREMELY important to note that there are two ways this could be played: either there are little to no changes in Scooter's personality and he just gets an off-screen boyfriend or something (lame) OR Scooter's personality shifts into a more goofy-sassy gay best friend type of deal where he hangs out with Miss Piggy a bit more and references more modern queer icons (like Beyoncé or something?? idk ask a gay man) and comments on the attractiveness of male guest stars whenever the opportunity arises. This was hinted to in the 2015 series ABC's "The Muppets", but they never fully committed to the bit. Calling Scooter a boy toy is one thing, but having him get caught making out with Walter in the storage closet is another. COMMIT TO THE FUCKING BIT, DISNEY. Let Scooter say "yasss, qween" and "slayyy" and lust over men's bodies I'm not asking for much. You have already denied me Bert & Ernie and Statler & Waldorf, but let me have Scooter. Let me have the one Muppet my ADHD-riddled lesbian ass choice to have a crush on at 14 years old. Let me live out my fantasy of seeing Scooter on a Muppet-themed float at a pride parade. Please Disney, think of the fucked-up adults. We deserve this, we've EARNED this. You've ruined every other part of my childhood with your dirty capitalism, you OWE me this ������𝘌 𝘛𝘏𝘐𝘕𝘎. You will make Scooter gay. Scooter 𝗜𝗦 gay. Scooter has always 𝘉𝘌𝘌𝘕 gay. And there is absolutely 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 you can do about it.

Thank you for your time.

#i didn’t proofread this i didn’t fact-check anything this is just a direct stream of consciousness from my brain to my thumbs #you notice any mistakes you keep it to yourself hon #also sorry if it’s a little explain-y hailey isn’t as much of a muppet aficionado as yours truly #and uuuuhhhhhhh yeah it’s just a big block of text i’m not cutting it up #listen sweetie you asked for it #ur lucky i like u all so much <3 #muppets #scooter #muppets scooter #scooter muppets #scoowalt #wooter #i don’t fucking know it’s 3am ladies #lookit. lookit what you made me do! i should be sleepin peacefully dog!! #this is. this is what i stayed up to write so i guess it is my fault i’m still awake #but STILL #hailey u better fucin reply to that text #ok. i sleep 😴😴😴 #my posts

[aslightlydifferentchristmascarol]

Amelie & Other Marleys

Inspired by the wonderful @rom-e-o's post about how their OC would get along with the various versions of Scrooge- go check it out, it's wonderfully written!

Obviously, in my own AU/retelling of A Christmas Carol, Amelie Wilson is Jacob Marley's soulmate and greatest friend (besides Scrooge, of course). But would she be this way with any of the other Marleys from across the different Christmas Carol adaptations I've seen?

Also, just a quick heads-up- she's meeting all of them pre-death.

Mr. Magoo's Christmas Carol (1962) version, played by Royal Dano: Well, he seems chill, but judging by that portrait of him we see in Scrooge's office at the beginning of the cartoon, he'd probably scare her away just by looking at her. No thank you. 0/10.

The Stingiest Man in Town (1978) version, played by Theodore Bikel: He isn't really the most attractive man, but at least he's not as scary as the Magoo version. He also has a good singing voice, and judging by his tone during the song, Amelie would probably offer a shoulder for him to cry on frequently. 7/10.

Mickey's Christmas Carol (1983) version, played by Goofy: He does constantly speak of "robbing widows and swindling the poor", but aside from that, Goofy's Marley seems to have had a soft side he'd reveal to only one person, and Amelie (who would also be an anthropomorphic dog- specifically a longhaired dachshund- in this version's universe) would certainly be the one for him to reveal it to. 9/10.

A Christmas Carol (1984) version, played by Frank Finlay: This version seems a little stuck-up, but not so much stuck-up as the 2022 version (more on him later). While Amelie wouldn't want to DATE him, she would probably enjoy sharing tidbits of advice with him. 4/10.

The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992) versions, played by Statler and Waldorf: Believe it or not, I actually think they'd be pretty high on the list for her. In the Present scene of my version, the Ghost actually does show Scrooge a vision where Marley and Amelie are cracking jokes about Scrooge just the way that Statler and Waldorf themselves would normally do, so I think Amelie's humor would click perfectly with them (again, she'd also be a Muppet herself in this version's universe). The only problem with them is: Which brother would she date, Jacob or Robert? Maybe both of them at once? 8/10.

A Christmas Carol: The Musical (2004) version, played by Jason Alexander: He's actually the one I got most of the inspiration for my own Marley from, from the talent for singing to the tendency to give massive hugs to those he loves/trusts the most. So of course she'd take to him right away! 10/10.

A Christmas Carol (2009) version, played by Gary Oldman: Hmm, we don't know a lot about what he was like before he died. He doesn't seem to be the guy who would have much of a soft side like Goofy's or Jason Alexander's version, though. She most likely would probably just want to be his friend, if anything. 4/10.

Scrooge: A Christmas Carol (2022) version, played by Jonathan Pryce: Unfortunately, he seems far too snobbish and sassy to want to even interact with a cheery, affectionate girl like her, and I think that feeling of not wanting to interact with each other would be mutual between him and Amelie. Literally the only thing that might even attract her to him is the fact that he's always got Boris, the handsome bulldog, at his side. (Because yes, Amelie loves animals.) 1/10.

So, here's the final ranking:

2004

Mickey's Christmas Carol

The Muppet Christmas Carol

#a christmas carol #oc lore #amelie wilson #marley x amelie #oc x canon

[melancholia-of-departure]

Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty (video game, 2023) and Nemesis, 1992 (Dir. Albert Pyun)--Spoilers

Nemesis, 1992 "See, Alex? You're not human. You're one of us." "Fuck you!" -Characters in the movie behaving in a thematically appropriate way

If you want to watch a movie that addresses the themes of cyberpsychosis much more effectively than this expansion pack, check out Albert Pyun's 1992 classic Nemesis. It's honestly everything anyone could want from Cyberpunk. Above is the best action scene of all time. Below is a supercut of some of the other best action scenes of all time, with one of the best jokes of all time thrown in for good measure, all from this one wonderful movie.

And here's a behind-the-scenes documentary, also fantastic. It's great when people involved in a production take sci-fi themes seriously and don't resent the audience and writers for having an interest in them.

Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty

Where to even begin with this weirdness? Cyberpunk had a notoriously messy release. I've spent a good amount of time sticking up for the reworked version of the game that I spent my first 400 hours playing. I can no longer justify that. Phantom Liberty is a hot pile of crap.

Spoilers for Cyberpunk 2077 and Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty follow

We start off strong with an homage to Escape from New York and a President who actually seems like an interesting character. Then we meet Idris Elba and everything starts going to shit. I went for what seemed like a reasonable playthrough given what I knew about V from the many time I've beaten the game and seen him throw a tantrum if Johnny tries to keep control--it would, based on actions we see V take from the third person, seem like wanting Johnny out of his head is in character. It's part and parcel of getting the Relic removed. Like it or not, Johnny is a hallucinatory symptom of cyberpsychosis and not an unambiguously good guy.

So why did I feel, at the end of the game, like I was being punished for having this hallucination, this literal symptom of cyberpsychosis that has been killing me for the whole plot of the game, surgically removed?

Maybe I was being punished for betraying Songbird--but she didn't end up dead, and she did promise V a solution to the Relic problem. Alex's death in my playthrough could in some way be attributed to V, but it's honestly a stretch. In purely utilitarian terms, compatible with Johnny's and the President's and Reed's and Alex's own set of ideals--the ideology into which I chose to get interpolated as a spy--this is an acceptable loss. All other objectives were achieved, since the President was safe while Reed and So Mi survived.

Yeah, So Mi's life sucks. But V is a violent thug and one more wasted life rotting away in a cell somewhere honestly doesn't seem like something that would weigh too heavily on his/her conscience--without reinforcement in the form of ridiculous punishment that comes out of left field thematically.

At the end of what seemed to me like a "good" playthrough I found out that there was no New Game + mode, no reward for finishing the game, just a lame cutscene where I get pushed down the stairs by some 'borged-up nobodies after finding out that everyone I loved has decided I'm not important enough to include in their lives, despite numerous attempts to reach me while I was in a coma for 2 years. Every love interest has better things to do than catch up with you. It's shameful that there isn't Panam in this. Come to think of it, not sure if there's any Takemura, either, but I may just not have done his core storyline yet on my first playthrough.

Compelling characters and strong cast utterly wasted by an ending that says none of them care about you because you're not a 95% cyborg. If only someone had decided that this conflict between man and machine were worthy of being emphasized thematically in the expansion. I guess attacking MaxTac counts.

Just a lot of underbaked story ideas here. If you don't already love Cyberpunk 2077 then don't bother with it, probably. If you do love it, maybe don't buy it. The gameplay is wonky, too, with a lot of the rebalancing for 2.0 feeling like they just nerfed a bunch of skills and made a few systems more confusing.

Watch Nemesis instead.

#cyberpunk #nemesis 1992 #albert pyun #phantom liberty #spoilers #90s #2077 #cyborg #movies #video games #video game review #film review #practical effects #Youtube

[musiconanironingboard]

19 February 2023: Lunapark, Luna. (2023 Run Out Groove/Elektra expanded reissue of 1992 Elektra release)

After Dean Wareham disbanded his group Galaxie 500, in 1991 he formed Luna, a minor supergroup of sorts that also included Stanley Demeski of The Feelies and Justin Harwood of The Chills. Their debut Lunapark absolutely dazzled me in the autumn of 1991, and while I don’t return to it frequently I hold it in high esteem. Luna didn’t get U.S. vinyl pressings in those days; about 15 years ago there was a Kickstarter via which someone was trying to press vinyl copies of the first two or three Luna albums. I contributed, but it didn’t meet its goal and the records didn’t get made. That’s almost hard to believe, sitting here in 2023 where vinyl rules the roost in many people’s minds. Fortunately, another company took the baton and we now have not only a new vinyl pressing of Lunapark, but an expanded one with an entire second LP of bonus tracks.

Run Out Groove (a Warner company that pretends they’re not Warner) makes good archival releases like this, but my opinion of them has soured because I got something like three consecutive orders from them that were damaged. I decided I would not patronize them directly any longer, and would gamble on trying to get copies elsewhere. This can be problematic, because all Run Out Groove pressings are very limited; they can and do sell out before everyone who wants a copy can get them. Fortunately, Lunapark was easy to obtain elsewhere. It also seems that Run Out Groove has finally learned a lesson, because the two LPs weren’t in the jacket pockets but instead delivered on the inside of the gatefold cover where the chance of them busting through and causing seam splits was lessened. My brother confirmed that his copy also arrived like this. Giant seam splits aren’t the only Run Out Groove problem I’ve encountered; I had one album arrive from them with a ten-inch box-cutter gouge across the back cover.

Above are the front cover, sticker showing this to be a limited edition, and back cover. My copy is #2801; I forgot to take a close-up of that, but you can see it on the back cover just above the song titles.

Below is the opened gatefold.

Below are the front and back of the insert.

The insert unfolds to show a picture of Wareham and the album’s lyrics.

Below are the four labels.

I think I may store the LPs in the gatefold full-time. The jacket pockets are so tight and small that I ripped one of the inner sleeves trying to insert them (they’re plain white inners) and I had to struggle to get them all the way in. This obsession with stiff, heavy-duty jackets that so many companies insist on using are sometimes more trouble than they’re worth.

[dueruiz84]

adobe media encoder unable to produce frame

I'm a relatively techie specific. I'm on the computer so much, sometimes I think it would are more practical routinely microprocessor implanted directly into my brain so I wouldn't always be sit inside my desk consistently. But although I'm pretty expert with the Internet, social media, WordPress, web pages, etc., there are two areas in which I'm a little bit of a late bloomer. The actual first is mobile technology (I'll be talking read more about that within a later article). I hardly got very first "smart" phone (a Blackberry) less than 6 months ago. Although I use authors All the time, the second area to which I am admittedly a late bloomer is the joy of digital format books -- eBooks. You are being provided with seven hours of power when fully charged. However, the battery lifespan depends upon the proven fact how make use of the tablet computer. If you browse for 65 percent of time, watch video for 25 percent of period and 25 percent stand-by. AVI means Audio Video Interleave, could be basically for Windows. This container format was created in 1992 for Windows 3.1, but newer container formats tend to be developed, similar to the MPEG and MP4. However, the AVI format for being widely used today. With AVI, video and audio are fused into just one file, clients the sound is synchronized with the picture. The simple format allows AVI videos for played on other operating systems, like Mac and Linux. You tend to be provided along with seven hours of electric batteries when fully charged. However, the life cycle of battery depends upon the undeniable fact that how you use the tablet. Anyone browse for 65 percent of time, watch video for 25 percent of time and 25 percent stand-by. You are going to able request questions and clarify certain points inside program that will seem unclear. The best much of this is how the person who gives the adobe media encoder Photoshop 7.0 tutorial will often be able present the problems that he or she tells. You will potential to see and appreciate the lessons quicker. You in addition be jump to more advanced lessons by asking person about specific things that you want you can do with shed weight. In extremely best left Media box, when they have already be on the Get Media tab. If not, select the Camera icon to open the Get Media hook. If your video is already on my computer in a folder, select Files and Folders. Navigate to while video is, then simply it and select Open or OK. adobe media encoder Activation Key Free should now be in the Media box topside left of one's work portion. If adobe media encoder Crack Free Download need to get more video files, select modifications are available icon again and do this again until all files are usually in Premiere. Awesome games . see your files, find Film Reel icon on the media box, this opens the list for anybody. Now we want to begin search phrases. You may also integrate your iPod within your car stereo and its sound system so you enjoy music while venturing. There are built in car stereos that support iPod integration. You could control your music along with the steering-wheel controls or through help unit.

#ADOBE MEDIA ENCODER

[photosbyamy]

Ethics in Photojournalism Task

Getty Images. Police mugshot of OJ Simpson (1994)

Context: was charged with double homicide of his wife and her friend. `he was then acquitted a year later. Found not guilty by the jury.

Ethical: was never fully convicted and found not guilty even though the majority of the public believed he is.

Mugshot doesn’t feel impacted since he got away with everything. A mugshot is public information, anyone can get access to it in a way.

Reactions: outraged from opposite ends of the spectrum.

Racial gap: lots of black people believed he was innocent while a lot of white people believe he isn’t. à could stem from a defense mechanism for black people as they felt represented by him as he is a big celebrity. Could also stem from racial bias.

A lot of the jury then felt regretful of their verdict after the fact.

Change: domestic violence is now treated as serious crime. More insight and sensitivity to racial issues/prejudice/ bias.

I do not believ this image would be as impactful in present day à the general public is more desensitised to news stories and trials like this one.

The context is more controversial than the image itself.

Alamy. Mark and Patricia McCloskey (2020)

They are standing in front of their house, that is a mansion in a gated community, with guns raised at peaceful protesters walking past.  The protest was about the Black Life Matter movement, gun rights in America as well as police brutality.  The protesters were in their neighbourhood but not on their property.  Mark and Patricia were shouting at the protesters and then Patricia decided to grab a gun and her husband soon followed.

On the left the McCloskey’s were seen as villains for standing against the peaceful protest using their statues to oppress racial minorities.  On the right, they were seen as heroes who are impowered by their second amendment rights stood against a dangerous movement.  They were charged with unlawful use of a gun – a low level felony.  Although they could’ve been sentenced to prison, they only had to do community service and coucilling.

Ironic – peaceful protest yet they have resorted to violence

Ethically Problems

Not showing the bigger picture – is it a peaceful protest or actually aggressive?

Nothing has changed as the photograph is from recent times – all of the issues represented in this photo are still there.

Reactions from other countries are different – guns are accessible in America.

We wouldn’t have taken the picture unless we had a really long lens to ensure safety.  If we really needed to take the picture we would’ve shown more context and surroundings with a wider shot.

James Nachtwey – Famine in Somalia (1992)

There was a really bad drought and civil war in Somalia in 1992 which cause he famine to happen.  It is said to be the worst drought in 40 years.  Estimated 220,000-300,000 people died during the famine.  This photo is part of a series of images that James Nachtwey took.  He couldn’t get an assignment to document the famine but the west took so much notice that he went off to do it by himself and was supported by the Red Cross.  Some of the series was published in The New York Times Magazine and readers said “Dare we say that it doesn’t get any worse than this?” “James’ pictures made a difference.” The Red Cross had public support which led to this being their biggest operation since WWII and 1.5 million people were saved.

Ethical Problems

It’s not the most ethical picture however if he didn’t take it, it may not have resulted in help coming their way.

Question of consent – did he ask the lady if he could photograph her?

Reactions from viewers – wouldn’t want to see it but is necessary as it shows the truth.

Could make viewers feel uncomfortable, shame and guilt – sense of thankfulness that its not them.

Part of a series –  to publish multiple pictures of the same subjects is quite sensitive and open to being perceived different from the truth or does this help show the scale of the problem.

If it was Britain and not Somalia the reaction would more than likely be different.

Not as impactful now as we see things like this on the news more frequently.  There’s so many issues happening now at the same time that it is difficult to give the same support, funds and attention – its just not possible to send help and save everyone.

Would take the picture but would be more considerate of who it is sent to and how it is used.

#contextual studies

[realhankmccoy]

I can see why spoiled rich kid gays who's parents love and support them and can take how easy THEIR life as a gay has always been for granted....

truly think LGBT activism is about hating gays in general and a laundry list of all the the things you can throw at these gays, from people of colour to mental illness and try to make them suddenly a worker bee who fixes it all for you while you play video games and enjoy your cushy position in society

but that's not how i roll

people don't exist to be lobbed up into other people's faces and thrown in a ball saying 'FIX THAT!' or 'DEAL WITH THAT!' That's like the sort of thing Republicans pulled on me in private equity. How about you fix it if you're the one who has a problem with it? You're the sort of person who is into how many waterfalls there are in Minnesota, so it's not like you're a serious person to me. It's clear where your heart is at just from your interests and the way you comport yourself as mister angry bossman in convo.

also, their 'knowledge' of gay people is something i knew in 1992 but they are trying to bureaucratise and weaponise it into something akin to a Wells Fargo handbook that no working class person would ever want to fully engage with -- because, in bourgeois mode, they consider themselves some sort of baby genius for having stepped into 1992 in 2022.

if you're gonna deaden and dull life into a grey banker's role -- one that expects its workers to grow 8 arms and become qualified to solve every detail of problem well above their pay grade -- to spin 4 plates simultaneously and it all comes out pristine -- you'd better believe nobody is gonna accomplish shit. most people just tune it out and shop for shoes because your tone is so alienating and because they know you're not gonna be the one doing the work. please, like some bourgeois is ever going to associate with the people at the bottom. they do boutique friends and boutique friends only. they're so inherently upwardly mobile that it would pain them to hang out with the salt of the earth. blue blood doesn't like salt.

that's how the upper middle class thinks tho. ASK THE WORKERS TO DO 5 TIMES MORE THAN THEY DO. THEY WILL GRIN AND BEAR IT. THEY DO NOTHING ALL DAY.

just... zero clue of what people with 9 to 5 jobs actually are doing all day and how uninterested the common man is in dusting your bourgeois face and listening to you spew 'AND HERE IS 5 MORE THINGS TO DO'

basically it's all about power to them, wanting it for themselves for the least amount of work -- which is why they get no results and nobody is interested in their cocky, mansplained bureaucracy

the truth of the matter is these are highly immature, video-game addled affluenza sufferers who are only comfortable in upper middle class roles of commanding, not doing -- and would rather check out into video games.

in my opinion, if we didn't need the upper middle class for medicine and dentistry and a number of other critical functions, we'd be better off without them, too. but i love dentistry, you see.

i guess the solution is just to pare down the upper middle -- cut out the fat, cut out the decay -- and keep the ones who we actually want to be around. the ones we could actually go to the park with without wanting to dump our soda all over them and walk away because spoiled brats from fancy class backgrounds really are sickening, however much they pretend to be akin to us... the truth shines through quite fast when they get to talking.

just listen for the mini-Trump or Elon inside them and if that's how these spoiled brats sound when barking orders, remember who the real destroyers of the working class are... guys like all these dumb male kiddults

[onealewyquinlan]

That Inspires You? Pay out it Forward

I has been asked a problem today, who creates you? There are usually many answers to this question, Lance Armstrong, Ronald Reagan and Martin Luther Ruler, Jr. but merely one name popped into my head quickly, Sharon Neukam. Throughout the world there are few people, hundreds, not millions, that have known Sharon Neukam. Everyone of them are living better, because they will were touched and even inspired by Sharon. "How could they possibly know this particular, " you may inquire. I know, mainly because Sharon passed away from recently, and My partner and i heard story right after story, of how this kind of little woman altered the world, a single person at a time.

Now you state, "Lots of folks are kind and even do this every single day. " Do these cards do it while battling cancer, carrying out chemo every full week, for more as compared to thirteen years? Carry out they get it done right after being given their last rights, extra than once? Carry out they do it whenever they are sense so bad, that just about all of us probably would not even get away of bed? Sharon did.

Sharon may be the wife of one of my best friends, Frank. Frank and My partner and i went to school, played sports together and stayed buddies from that time. It had been natural, that will when Frank fulfilled and married Sharon, we became friends as well. You might have many friends over time, family commitments and busy schedules don't allow for much quality time. We had kids born within the couple months of each other, which usually allowed us to get more time than usual, but nevertheless not necessarily as much while we would including. The point is, we were good friends, but not talking on typically the phone everyday plus some years we might only see the other 3 or 4 times. That's ok, because a buddy will not need to be able to be there each day, a great friend is presently there when you need a buddy most.

Which usually brings me in order to the story associated with how Sharon influenced me in a new way that altered my life forever. In 2003 My partner and i was diagnosed with colon/rectal cancer, immediately acquired surgery and over the particular next 9 a few months, radiation and chemotherapy. This is wherever Sharon also comes in. We did not genuinely want to let her know and Frank, because you see, she got breast cancer considering that 1992, fighting and even undergoing treatments on a weekly basis, in addition to be able to being a wife and mother involving two sons. The particular dilemma was, I actually did not want them to hear it from another person. Why Small Businesses Fail broke down called and stopped by their home, wherever I proceeded to let them in on my secret.

It should are actually a disheartening time, but many of us spent the next four hours speaking, Sharon asking some sort of lot of concerns and giving suggestions and encouragement. The particular thing I remember most is, while i still left, my stomach really hurt, not through illness, but by all the fun. It was something I had developed not seasoned since being identified, but Sharon acquired a method of making any individual completely at easiness and forgetting your cares for the time she was throughout your presence.

This failed to end right now there; the inspiration the girl offered me in typically the following year changed my life and that of many folks that I have appear in contact along with since. When i state My partner and i did not discuss to my friends on a daily schedule, that does certainly not apply to Sharon in addition to the year I was going via Chemotherapy. Sharon would not call each day, but nearly, the amazing factor is, that about every call she had something for me, physical care plans, in the kind of herbal tea and muffins in order to fight nausea, although always sincere inquiries and cures intended for the answers presented. Each and each call made myself feel better. The lady never asked regarding or would have got considered taking something in return.

The issue with all regarding this is, the girl was sicker compared with how I was and even had been intended for a long moment. I should have been the one producing the calls in addition to asking what I could do on her. That will is when that hit me. I actually always considered personally a good guy, nice person, but the truth is, only if We did not have to go out of the way. She made me realize that becoming a good person, is much considerably more. It is something that we all need to do, not only today or down the road, but everyday we spend on this kind of earth. Sharon manufactured me see in addition to take action into it.

It does not necessarily take a lot of cash or even energy to do some thing nice or enhance someone's day. Before, I would enter into my office using blinders on, carry out my thing to go out, sometimes without uttering a word. My partner and i call that period, before Sharon. Following Sharon me, can make it a point to be aware of what is usually going on together with the people all-around me, who may be getting a bad day, not feeling nicely, had a latest loss or just needs a kind word. If website and i can put a smile over an encounter or come up with a poor thought disappear for a moment, I do it. The funny thing about it is, the rewards of giving are received in return, ten times over.

In no way can We compare, what I is performing, using what Sharon performed for me and thus many others. The thing is, one person could make a massive difference simply by doing a tiny kind thing for someone every day. In case two or 10 people take action, almost all the better. Sharon Neukam inspired us to be a new good man and to know that I will be not the best I will become. Thanks to the girl, I keep attempting to get better. This kind of article is committed to Sharon, those that will have been consumed from us by simply cancer and these still fighting typically the fight. In right now there honor, I inquire each person scanning this to take a great extra minute with someone who you realize, that can gain from a form word from you. A lot of to ask? Not necessarily really, the prize is more than a person could ever imagine.

It seemed as well good to be true, but We received it throughout the mail, established up as instructed and was earning money the first week. The device is a basic online business chance and easy to be able to use. There is certainly support and ongoing teaching by those users that are already earning five and six figure earnings per month.

All of which is great, but if you asked me what I like most concerning this top internet business opportunity, it presented new passion to my life and the particular freedom to delight in it.

#Why Small Businesses Fail #click here #more info #here #read more #website #get more info

[benalove]

Digital Compact Cassettes – Only Four Years of Life

Digtial compact cassettes were introduced in 1992 but didn’t catch on despite their high quality sound. They were competing with the new MiniDiscs as well as DATs and Compact Discs. Of the four, DCCs had the shortest life.

The 90's saw the development of a number of new audio formats. There were competing companies that wanted their new ways of listening to music to prevail. The early 90s saw the introduction of the MiniDisc and even the initial release of the .mp3 audio file. Phillips unveiled their version of digital audio in 1992 with the high quality Digital Compact Cassette.  Unfortunately however, the DCC was an expensive and short lived endeavor.

At the introduction of the DCC in 1992, Phillips had high hopes for a product they expected to take over the role of the standard cassette tape.  It was a lofty goal given that every year more than 2 billion cassette tapes were sold and 200 million players were being sold alongside them.  It wasn't necessarily a bad push, but there was stiff competition in the recordable digital market, especially from the MiniDisc.

Companies wanted the attention of consumers and digital music could be made much crisper and free of the quality issues from the wear and tear of analog formats.  The problem with the digital cassette tape compared to the analog cassette, however, was that digital audio requires a lot more tape. This meant that unlike the Compact Disc, the digital audio on the DCC had to be compressed.

The music at the time was recorded by sampling it as much as forty-eight thousands times per seconds.  Data is stored in binary and in this case, each of the samples is represented by a number written in a 16-digit string of binary (0's and 1's).  With a stereo, two channels means two signals so storing a single second of music requires 1.5 million 1's and 0's.

Put it all together with additional memory requires for control and error calculation and a single second of music requires 2.8 million 0's and 1's - or about 2.8 megabits.  At the time of the product launch, we were still sticking floppy discs in our computers and even the most powerful floppy discs used in personal computers at the time could only hold about 4 seconds worth of digital music.

In order to get all of that data packed into a digital cassette tape, developers realized that it would have to move extremely slowly.  If the digital cassette tape moved at a standard speed it would need to be extremely long.   Using technology from video cassette recorders, Phillips was able to create a DCC that would move tape slowly however read quickly while carrying a large amount of data.

At the time, Phillips was well respected for their ability to stay on top of advanced technology and create quality products.  With the benefit of their development teams, they were able to use data compression to reduce the binary needed to store the digital music.  This allowed them to use linear tracks and reduce the overall amount of tape

A Complicated Technology

Even with compression though, cramming all of that data into linear tracks is far from easy.  A standard analog tape has only four tracks - two stereo channels on each side of the cassette tape.  The Phillips DCC, using tape of the same width as standard analog cassettes, had 18 tracks with 9 going in one direction and 9 going in reverse.  Eight of those tracks would contain the music while the 9th track was all control information.

Because of this, a sophisticated recording head was developed in order to read all 9 tracks in parallel.  This sped up the flow of information onto and off of the digital compact cassette.  It's also why the machine was backwards compatible; the sophisticated head could easily play simple analog cassette tapes.  With the sophistication of the digital compact cassette however it's easy to see why a standard cassette player couldn't read the digital tape.

A Question of Quality

At the time, the biggest concern was whether or not the compression of the data on digital compact cassettes would damage the music.  During the launch of the product and the period leading up to, journalists spoke with various individuals in the music industry and many attested that the Philips system sounds as good as compact discs of the time, which used no compression at all.

#Compact Cassettes #electronics #lifestyle #worktime #work from home

[colgate-toothpaste]

Stanley J. Sutula III - Chief Financial Officer

The next leader that we want to talk about in the post is Stanley Sutula III. He is the current Chief Financial Officer in Colgate. He has been recently added to the company board of directors just a year and a half ago. 

Stanley is originally from New York and around 1988 he got his Bachelor’s Degree in Science in Finance & Management from Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts. This double degree clearly shows his motivation about business and the combination of leading and managing teams, with a strong background in finance. 

It was a few years later, when he decided to do a little step up in his professional career and apply to some business schools to improve even more in the world of business. He finally was admitted to pursue an MBA that would teach him useful skills for his future.

In 1992 he graduated from Fordham Gabelli School of Business with an MBA. These kinds of masters prepare you with knowledge, connections and experience to solve real problems and to manage large departments in a business environment. With it, he started his career in IBM where he worked for 28 years. According to Colgate-Palmolive, he is a skilled and experienced executive with an extensive background in corporate finance, financial planning and operations, tax, strategic planning and risk management. While at IBM, Mr. Sutula championed the use of technology and data analytics within the finance organization, which in turn, helped deliver three consecutive years of constant-currency revenue growth. His tenure at IBM included financial management roles of increasing responsibility, culminating in service as IBM’s Vice President and Controller. At IBM, he led large, global, corporate and business unit teams and honed his extensive background in finance, accounting, treasury, financial planning and analysis, audit, risk and compliance.

As we can see, he was a great executive in IBM bringing a lot of value to the company. The financial background and his analytical skills were important to the job, but the management and leadership required to be in charge of big departments with big responsibilities is also outstanding. One technique mentioned in Colgate-Palmolive is that he increased the responsibility of his employees. That technique of leadership gets the best from your team or department by making them feel that they are an important part of the organization. The responsibility is sometimes correlated with another kind of benefit such as a bigger salary, but the goal was that Sutula was looking for ways to make the employees more motivated and proud of their position, so they could perform at a higher rate. 

References

Colgate appoints Stanley J. Sutula as chief financial officer: Colgate-Palmolive Company. Colgate. (2020, October 30). Retrieved May 8, 2022, from https://investor.colgatepalmolive.com/news-releases/news-release-details/colgate-appoints-stanley-j-sutula-chief-financial-officer 

[theriverdalereviewer]

if cruel summer takes the anthology route (which I kind of do, kind of don’t hope they take) I think it should focus on kate and jeanette’s moms as teenagers

#hear me out okay #in 1976 we see cindy and joy in high school and chiara and olivia will play them #and jamie’s actor can play greg and vince can play rod and ben can play joy’s first husband that died #and we get to learn more about what they were like in high school cause if I remember correctly #joy said cindy was obsessed with her when she was in high school and wanted her husband #while cindy said the opposite and that she was the popular cheerleader #and idk something happened during that time some mystery or whatever #and then we also get to see 1992 and more about their problems while also seeing kate and jeanette in high school pre-kidnapping #and then idk what this third year would be or if they even need a third year but this is just an idea #cruel summer

[usafphantom2]

The U.S. Air Force has 1,650 fewer pilots

The shortage of fighter pilots led the service to equip operational units with field officers, said a service officer.

Fernando Valduga By Fernando Valduga 04/07/22 - 10:28 PM in Military

The U.S. Air Force (USAF) is in need of 1,650 pilots and has brought back retired pilots to help fill the personnel gaps created by the lack of officers.

"This is an improvement over last year, where just over 1,900 pilots were missing," Maj. Gen. Albert Miller, director of training and readiness for operations of the U.S. Air Force, recently told the Federal News Network. “We see this as positive for the USAF, but there is still a lot of work to be done to get us back to where we want to be.”

According to service data, the USAF reported that it employed 13,789 active officers with aeronautical pilot classification in 2021.

“The biggest gaps are found among officers who normally fly and among fighter pilots, where the service is currently facing a shortage of 1,100 aviators,” Miller said.

More experienced field-level officers are being summoned to fill the pilot positions.

The lack of enough officers available now means that there will be less to rise to higher positions later. It is a scenario that can take a decade or more to correct, Miller said.

"Today, field officers who would normally be doing teamwork, work policies and this kind of thing are on the air," Miller told the Federal News Network. “We prioritize line flight, so that the operational units are fully equipped with the pilots they need to carry out their operational missions. These experienced field-level officers are not occupying team positions."

The service is advancing, however, according to Miller. Last fiscal year, the U.S. Air Force trained 1,380 pilots, about 120 more than the previous year, according to the Federal News Network report.

It's not an emerging problem

The shortage of pilots faced by the U.S. Air Force and the U.S. military as a whole is far from new. Three years ago and before the pandemic, for example, the Department of Defense (DoD) told Congress that it faced a deficit of more than 3,000 pilots.

The U.S. Air Force is trying to fill the gaps by increasing strategies to accelerate training and improve retention.

The service has an approximate goal of producing about 1,500 new pilots every year throughout the service, including the National Guard and Reserve units. Of this amount, the service aims to obtain 1,100 pilots from active duty every year, said Colonel John O'Dell, deputy military director of Training and Readiness, Air Crew Task Force, of the U.S. Air Force. Doing so, he said, establishes a robust base of company-level officers in the ranks to fill the shortage.

One strategy to which the U.S. Air Force is turning is the acceleration of the training of new pilots, which traditionally extends over two to four years. The Undergraduate Pilot Training (UPT) 2.5 program streamlines the early stages of training, and the service is developing a "Civil Path to Wings" program, which accelerates USAF flight training for civilians, such as airplane pilots or enthusiasts who have flight experience.

He's also finding gains looking inside. The Evaluated Preparatory Program creates a path to flight training for active aviators with little exposure to flight to help them compete in Undergraduate Flight Training (UFT).

"I think we are making gains to attack the shortage of pilots," O'Dell said. "It will take a while to correct. It's not something that can be corrected in a single year or two."

Source: Flying Magazine

Tags: Military AviationUSAF - United States Air Force / U.S. Air Force

Fernando Valduga

Aviation photographer and pilot since 1992, he has participated in several events and air operations, such as Cruzex, AirVenture, Dayton Airshow and FIDAE. He has works published in a specialized aviation magazine in Brazil and abroad. He uses Canon equipment during his photographic work in the world of aviation

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