#book by kenneth waltz

[iamadarshbadri]

Juxtaposing Social Theory by Alexander Wendt with Theory by Kenneth Waltz in IR

Theory of International Politics. By Kenneth N. Waltz. Reading, Mass.: Addison-Wesley Publishing Co., 1979. 251pp. $7.95. Social Theory of International Politics. By Alexander Wendt. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press., 1999. 429pp. £14.95. Two books published within a 20-year gap helped shape and reshape the world politics we understand today. In his pathbreaking 1979 book Theory of…

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[gracefreemangrad703]

Doing a Literature Review

Has two main elements; it shouldsummarise the findings/claims that have been made after the research, and should reach a conclusion on whether or not the claims are accurate, why or why not.

Through the review,  you will start  to notice what has already been done in the field, both good and bad, whats missing, and  why it’s important, as well as allow you to place your work in a larger context, to  understand why its important or worthwhile.

Will be  important for other people who view your work, to have a better understanding of the project at hand, and the reasoning behind it, allowing for some research and  context behind the work.  It will also show some of your thinking process, particularly regarding what sources you chose to unlcude and review, and how this collectively with your existing perspective has lead to a final outcome.

Contribution to knowledge is essentially reviewing existing knowledge. Beliefs and and how we have come to make these claims, through the research we may discover new ways of thinking or approaching a issue/topic than previously would have, and want to share this, to open new perspectives for ourselves and others.

Important to include other reports other than traditional academic book/articles, while these are important to include, they can often miss out  perspectives of people not in these organisations, and typically are a lot less diverse.  When finding other sources on the internet it cruical to make sure that they are reliable and have other sources, because unlike academic reviews they havent been peer reviewed or  examined, therefore may not be truthful.

Make sure to read other exegesis, to understand the scope of work needed, and how others have approached the task, to help invision how yours may be layed out and what you may include.

Try to impose intellectual order, by appointing studies adn authors into groups, that you can easily refer to, to help keep your work cohesive and clear.  This can include finding a important influence in a specific group such as “ Kenneth Waltz creating Neo Realism.”

Study reviews/articles/sources and understand what they are trying to answer and what have they concluded, then summarise them collectively. In the summary discuss what similarities they have, what they disagree about, and what hey overlook or ignore. Then finally reach a judgement about the quality of the literature, and is there a need for more research.

When you understand whats existing in the field, and find where the gaps are, you can better understand where your work fits in, and what it needs to include to fill the gaps and improve the overall arguements or concepts.

Dont have too many or too few sources, focus on relevant studies, leading authorities, recent studies from high prestige or high visibility.

[room-without-end]

Plan for Summer Booklist

I am really ignorant when it comes to anything social-science related, so I broke down the specific things I want to learn into three categories:

US Government / US Politics

Economics

Global Politics / International Relations

I plan on reading introductory texts related to the topics above.

The first 6 books I will be reading will be:

Man, the State, and War by Kenneth Waltz

Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond

A People's History of the United States by Howard Zinn

Freakonomics by Steven Levitt, Stephen Dubner

Why Nations Fail by Daron Acemoglu, James Robinson

Thinking Strategically by Avinash Dixit, Barry Nalebuff

This is it for now. I will start going through the list soon. I will be making notes on the books as I go.

[vintagedolan]

mixtape | track eight

| masterlist | faceclaims | playlist |

“Left or right?”

“Don’t look at me, I never fucking graduated.”

“Right, then you move it to the left,” Lisa offered, attempting to get past Grayson. He was having none of it, sticking out his tongue a bit while he focused on getting Indy’s cap arranged correctly, making sure her tassel was in the right spot. 

Indy had passed her finals with flying colors, which came as no surprise to anyone who knew her. Top of the class, which was enough for her to feel a tiny bit proud of herself. The Dolan’s on the other hand, we’re over the moon, ready to celebrate her as if it was the greatest achievement anyone could accomplish. Grayson had picked her up from her last final, coaxing her to take a nap in the truck while he drove them out to Jersey, her head in his lap as she was finally able to relax after so many days of stress. He was glad - he wanted her energy to be high when she got to the house, considering he’d planned out a big family dinner as a surprise. He’d even caved and bought her her favorite non-vegan ice cream. She was so surprised that she cried as soon as she went in and saw Ethan and Lisa in the kitchen with little fake graduation cap headbands on.

Even though surprises weren’t her favorite, he hoped he could sneak in another, considering the real one wasn’t until the next day, and it’s arrival came as a text that buzzed in Grayson’s pocket.

Here!

He cleared his throat quickly, trying to hide his excitement as he stepped back from his girlfriend.

“Hey Indiana, I think there’s something at the door for you,” he said.

She squinted at him in accusation.

“You just called me Indiana.”

“Indeed I did.”

“That’s sus.”

“Just go to the door Dee.”

“Sus.”

“Dee.”

“G.”

“Indiana Jamie Cross, will you please open your door,” he said as formally as he could, knowing it would make her laugh enough to give in.

“If something jumps out and scares me, I’ll kick your ass.”

“Holy shit just go open the door before I do it for you.” 

She walked slowly but she listened to him, pulling the door open cautiously.

“I was wondering if you were gonna let me in.” 

Indiana’s mouth fell open.

“Charlie?!”

Grayson Dolan had learned in the last week that the Cross women were stubborn beings, especially when it came to money. Which was why it took so long for him to convince the older Cross sister to let him buy her and Devin a plane ticket at Thanksgiving.

“We would love to be there, but I just bought the ticket to get out here, and money is kinda tight for us right now. I don’t know if we can swing it so soon again.” Charlie kept her voice down, pretending to look at some of the picture frames on the bookshelf while Grayson talked to her.

“I’ll buy your tickets, both of you, first class.”

“Grayson, no, I can’t ask you to do that,” she shook her head.

“But you didn’t ask. I offered, there’s a difference. C’mon, you know that she’d love to have you there.”

Charlie hesitated, bit her lip the way Indy always did. The back door opened, signaling that everyone was coming back inside and that their conversation needed to end. She looked up at him quickly, eyes darting across the room.

“I’ll think about it.”

It had taken her four days to finally agree and let Grayson send her the money for the tickets, though she insisted on flying coach, sending him back the rest of what he’d given her to cover first class, down to the cent. 

Which was how she ended up getting tackled by a very excited Indiana outside her apartment door, so hard that they almost knocked Devin over in a whirl of blonde hair. Grayson caught her cap as it flew off.

“What?! What are you doing here?! How did you get here! I thought you couldn’t come, what the fuck!”

“Ask him,” Charlie laughed, lifting her chin towards Grayson. 

She spun, eyes wide and shocked. 

“You did this?”

He couldn’t help but laugh. “You look exactly like the soft eyes emoji right now, you know that?”

“Shut up,” she smacked his chest before she buried her face in it, sniffling. 

“Hey, you don’t have to cry, you’ll mess up your mascara,” he said, pressing a kiss to her hair before she stood up straight again, letting him swipe his thumbs under her eyes. 

Ethan was watching the interaction from the couch with a bit of a frown. He pulled his eyes away and picked at some lint on his henley, but he kept his ears towards the kitchen. There was a tenderness, a careful nature in the way he spoke around Indy. It reminded him of the first time that Grayson had gotten a girlfriend. Peyton. They’d met on the first day of 7th grade, in science class, where Grayson didn’t care to pay attention, especially not with Ethan and the prettiest girl in the grade at his table. Ethan had teased his brother relentlessly until he finally got his words handed back to him when she actually agreed to a date - which involved him picking flowers out of his mom’s window box garden (he got in trouble for it later) and hiding them under his jacket when Sean dropped him off at the movie theatre. They’d kissed each other during the end credits, with tongue according to a very excited Grayson who came home and plopped himself on his brother’s bed and spilled every little detail. Ethan was single at the time, so he could only listen, and watch. Watch the way he carried her books for her to class and then sprinted to his own with only a few seconds to spare before the bell. Watched him beg his mom to dye his hair blonde when Peyton said she thought it would look cool. Watched him pass her notes all of class, not caring when Mrs. Patterson took one and read “I love you so much, you’re the prettiest girl I’ve ever seen” in front of the whole class that included the majority of his wrestling team. And, he watched the pain on his face when they stumbled across Peyton kissing Jacob Bates behind the bus when she thought Grayson was at wrestling practice. He tried to keep it together, but he sniffled his way through Lisa dying his hair brown that night. Ethan had tried to cheer him up with his usual tactics - stupid inside jokes, making fun of Cameron, even making fun of himself. But Grayson didn’t laugh.

That was when he knew his brother loved hard. He was halfway convinced the reason that Grayson was the bigger twin in the womb was because of the size of his heart. That being said, it wasn’t unusual for Ethan to watch his brother be kind, and sweet, and loving to his girlfriend.

But there was something different with Indy. It was the first time that he could look at Grayson with a girl and see Grayson - unfiltered, unaltered. His twin brother, in his full form, not having changed a single aspect of himself to fit another person. And it made him happy. So happy that for a moment he was able to ignore the guilt that started to rush over him as he remembered all the things he’d said, about how their relationship wouldn’t work, and how Grayson needed to address it. It made him feel worse that he knew he was still right, no matter how in love his brother was. 

In the kitchen, Charlie was flicking through settings on her camera.

“I know we have to leave soon, but we have to get at least a few pictures before you get all sweaty cause you get sweaty when you’re nervous,” she said, grabbing her sister’s arm and leading her over to the windows, positioning her with the right lighting. 

They took a few normal portraits, some with her cap and some without, a few candids where Charlie did her best to make her laugh as Grayson watched on, the proudest smile on his face.

“Alright, I want one, I want one!” Devin chimed in, surprising both the Cross sisters. They turned to him with the same expression that had him laughing so hard he held his chest. It was the loudest sound that any of the Dolan’s had ever heard come out of him, but it was contagious enough to have them all smiling.

“What?! It’s not every day my little sis graduates college!” He teased, going to ruffle her hair but thinking better of it at the last minute, instead choosing to wrap her up in the biggest hug, her face adorably squished in the picture that Charlie captured.

After that, it was a revolving door of poses with everyone. Lisa fixed Indy’s hair for her before their picture, and Ethan stole her cap and wore it himself. He offered to take the camera, thankful for Charlie’s settings that seemed to work magic as he took a few cute one of the duo, even a few with Indy on Charlie’s back. Devin joined in and they recreated the shoot from their engagement party that Indy still had on the top shelf. 

By the time it was Grayson’s turn, Indy’s cheeks were sore from smiling. But she couldn’t help but beam at him as he waltzed over to her in his dress pants and button down, all dressed up for her big day. She did her best to ignore the click of the camera as Grayson fixed her cap, moved her honors cords so they were even where they hung. They took the normal formal poses, and Grayson stole Ethan’s idea of borrowing the cap. But Indy gasped when he tossed it to the side and scooped her up bridal style, laughing as he held her tight and kissed her cheek, even dipped her a bit and looked up at Charlie for the photo op. Indy put it on her mental to-do list to get them printed as soon as she could, beyond excited to see them once Charlie sent them over. 

“Okay, we gotta go or we’re gonna be late,” Lisa said, making sure everyone had what they needed for the short walk to the university. Everyone layered up, but while Grayson disappeared in search of his dress coat, Indy pulled her sister aside.

“Hey um. Did… did Dad talk to you at all this week?”

Charlie’s face melted into pity. “I’m sorry bubs.”

“No it’s fine, it’s no big deal. Didn’t expect him to, I just wanted to check so I didn’t get blindsided or anything if he showed up.” 

Charlie just nodded and gave her a small smile. She didn’t tell her little sister that she’d told Kenneth about her graduation - four times, actually. He’d never responded, though she could see that he’d read them. Charlie was so used to making excuses for him that she had a whole list of them backed up. He had to work. Traffic. He wanted to come, but something came up. But when she looked at Indy, who wasn’t so much her little sister anymore, she bit her tongue, put her arm around her and headed out the door.

The ceremony was in the science building. John Clark University didn’t have anywhere big enough to house the entire graduating class, so they opted to split it up into smaller ceremonies by discipline instead.

“It should be pretty quick actually, there’s not a ton of us,” Indy said when they arrived, looking over her shoulder at all the graduates moving to get checked in and lined up.

“We’ll wave when you come out so you can find us!” To Indy’s surprise, Lisa’s eyes were teary. “I’m so proud of you.”

“Li,” Indy smiled, pulling her in for a last minute hug, trying not to get emotional herself at the fact that a woman who had no obligation to love her cared so much.

“Don’t trip,” Ethan grinned, nudging her shoulder to lighten the mood.

She turned to Grayson, kissing him quickly before she finally headed off, looking back a few times before she disappeared around the corner. 

“Okay seats, seats, we gotta get good ones!” Charlie exclaimed, immediately leading the group through the rows - it was a massive lecture hall with the flip down chairs Grayson had only seen in movie theatres and movies. When they finally found five seats together, he found himself wandering what it was like to be in class somewhere so big, with so many other people learning the same thing. 

Despite feeling like they were running late, there were plenty more graduates and families that filed into the building, taking their seats and patiently awaiting the procession. 

Thirty minutes later they finally began to file through, a straight line of black robes and red and white tassels. Charlie spotted Indiana first, with Grayson a millisecond behind her, both of them standing up to wave until she saw them and waved back. He kept track of her as she went to sit down in her row, kept his eyes on her as best he could while the main speaker began his speech. He didn’t care what he had to say - he only had eyes for his girl, who looked back every so often and offered him a little wave that still had his heart fluttering like they were hiding in the curtains of Emma’s room all over again. 

Grayson hadn’t experienced a lot of moments of pride in his lifetime. There were a few he could pinpoint - when Ethan won one of their wrestling tournaments in middle school, when their team won their lacrosse championship. When his mom’s salon won best in the city a few years back, when his sister graduated college. But what he felt in that next moment topped every single one. 

The dean of the college of sciences asked everyone to hold their applause, and without any prior consulting, Indy’s entire squad ignored the rule.

“Indiana Jamie Cross. Bachelor’s of Biological Sciences. Summa Cum Laude.”

“WOOOOOO, YEAH DEE!” Grayson yelled it at the top of his lungs, not even noticing the way everyone turned to look at him. He could see Indy’s blush all the way from the stage as they all continued clapping until the next person was called. 

For a moment he was afraid she was embarrassed, but when she took her seat again he saw her turn around and blow him a quick kiss. He caught it in the air and threw her a wink, excited to get to her to give her a real one, which was exactly what he did when she finally made it out of the stream of people at the end of the ceremony. Everyone’s hearts melted when he spun her around and planted one on her.

Charlie took a few more pictures of her with her diploma before Grayson spoke back up.

“Alright, coffee’s on me!” 

It seemed to have gotten somewhat colder outside as the wind whipped around the buildings, and Indy curled into a much warmer Grayson as the group headed down the sidewalk. He moved his finger to her palm.

P-R-O-U-D-O-F-U

She leaned her cheek against his shoulder, her blush almost warm enough to soak through his coat. 

But it was nothing compared to the redness that spread over her cheeks when she walked into Jets.

“HAPPY GRADUATION INDIANA!” 

The cry was championed by Patrick, who stood in the lobby absolutely beaming at her, below a banner that they’d hung above the espresso bars that read the same. Indy didn’t have to ask - the grin on Grayson’s face gave it away. She wanted to ask him how long he’d planned that surprise, how many more he had in store. She felt woefully undeserving, especially when she realized that Patrick had shut down the store for an hour just for her. 

“And I thought you giving me free coffee was bad for business,” she said in his ear when she hugged him. 

“I don’t know what lover boy over there does but he covered normal sales for the hour and then some,” he mumbled.

One of the baristas handed Ethan a sign that read “closed for private celebration” to hang on the door, and then it was truly time to celebrate. Indy walked behind the bar like she had a million times before, happy to see that everything was still in the same place. Patrick threw her an apron that she jokingly tied on over her robe before she clapped her hands together. 

“Alright, who wants what?” 

She made some of her best latte art that day - leaves, a flower for Lisa, a slightly lopsided swan for Devin per his request. It felt nice to be in a familiar place doing something she was good at - it blanketed over the uncertainty that had begun to settle in when she realized that everything was on a trajectory of change. She would never sit in another undergraduate course, never have some of her favorite professors again. And there was always the factor of possibly looking at other schools - they all started their programs in the fall, which meant she had time to truly look, if she really wanted to. From her first tour of campus she’d always thought she would be at JCU for her whole academic career, but her mind began to wander when she heard the buzzing of all the other top schools that her cohort were applying to - Baylor, Harvard, and the one that had piqued her interest the most, UCLA.

She’d googled their admission rates one night when Grayson had fallen asleep during a back scratch, and her chances looked good. Really good. But she’d closed the tab quickly - LA was too far away from New York, from home.

“Hey. Where’d you go?” Grayson’s voice was soft as he clinked his mug against hers to get her attention. 

“Just thinking,” she smiled, turning her head and tilting up until he kissed her quickly. “I’ll be right back.”

Indiana hopped off her barstool and headed back behind the bar, following Patrick who had disappeared to the back storage room. It was like walking into a friend’s house you hadn’t been to in a while when she passed through the swinging door. The freezers on the left and the syrups in organized rows on her right, just like before. 

“Don’t even think about trying to do any dishes while you’re here,” Patrick said, his back still to her as she moved to the sink. She’d had too much time to think while she sat and waited for her name to be called during the ceremony - too much empty mental space that could be allotted to all the things she should be doing. Which meant she’d managed to hatch up a whole plan to better herself in more ways than one in a mere 20 minutes. 

“Do you guys still have the same insurance policy for employees? Like the new health benefits, the mental health ones that you all put in like two months before I left?”

Patrick turned the water off.

“Yeah, insurance is the same, it covers four therapy sessions a month for anyone who qualifies. But that’s just for full time employees. But I could probably pull a few strings and get you some benefits with part time hours… is everything okay?”

“Yeah, yeah everything is fine! I was just curious. Thanks.” 

Indy turned to leave, jumping a bit when she realized that Charlie was behind her. 

“What’re you doing back here?”

“I was looking for Patrick, there’s a delivery guy here with milk,” Charlie explained, but there was a seriousness in her brows that let Indy know that she had not only heard enough of the conversation, but that she was definitely going to have to talk about it later.

Damn.

She pushed the thought aside and put on another smile before they all exited the backroom, laughing at the sight of one of Ethan trying to steam milk. He turned at her entrance and lost his focus, moving the pitcher down too far and spraying almond milk everywhere before the barista who was helping him flipped the wand back up.

“Eden’s on facetime for you over there!” He pointed towards the counter and his phone, which Indy happily picked up to find a beaming Eden, who informed her that she’d sent a card that would probably be there a few days late, but she’d tried. She stayed on FaceTime while they all thanked Patrick again and headed back to the apartment, Lisa unveiling the gift pile and vegan cookie cake she’d managed to sneak in while Grayson had distracted Indiana with questions about his outfit choices. Almost every gift made Indiana cry - just the idea that they’d spent any time thinking about her was enough to have her emotional anyways. But between the blanket that Lisa had embroidered with JCU 20’, Ethan’s gift of a JCU Alumni sweatshirt and Indy’s dream record player that Charlie and Devin had got her, she was teary-eyed. Her mouth fell open when Grayson came out with a giant box from the spare room - she couldn’t for the life of her figure out how he’d managed to sneak it in past her - but she didn’t care when she unwrapped it and realized it was a Mastrena.

“You bought me an espresso machine? Grayson! These things cost a fortune!”

“Yeah, but you graduated college! And now you can make lattes all the time.”

“Gray-”

“And you can make me lattes,” he teased, knowing it would take her a while to fully accept it. She just shook her head when he kissed her cheek, overwhelmed.

By the time the night was coming to a close, everyone was piled onto the couch, with Charlie and Indy on their boyfriend’s laps to make room for everyone as they watched Collateral Beauty at Indy’s request. Grayson frowned when she sniffled and held her when she cried, eyes more focused on her than the screen. And he couldn’t say he was too sad to see Lisa and Ethan say goodbye, or for Devin and Charlie to say their goodnights before they disappeared into the spare room. 

The duo brushed their teeth in the sink side by side, and Grayson snapped a picture of them in the mirror with a foamy smile before they stripped down to underwear and scurried under the covers. 

Indy was just as glad to have him to herself for the first time all day, and she soaked in his warmth, sighing when he pulled her closer. 

“I love you. Thank you for today.”

Y-O-U-R-E-W-E-L-C-O-M-E he traced on her shoulder blade, lips on her forehead. 

T-I-R-E-D?

“Why?” Grayson smirked, laughing quietly when she smacked his chest.

“It’s been a long day, that’s why.”

“For you,” he corrected.

“You had to sit around and watch me all day though.”

“You say that as if it’s something I wouldn’t enjoy. I could celebrate you everyday baby.” 

She blushed at his words, burying her face in his neck. 

“For someone as accomplished as you, you really suck at letting people acknowledge your accomplishments,” he teased, running his fingertips over her skin lightly. She did the same over his chest, tracing a hexagon. 

“I’m… I’m not used to people being proud of me I guess.”

Grayson frowned and pulled back and looked at her, really looked in her eyes. They were still the color of the jellyfish, just a bit duller in the low light of her bedroom. 

“I’m proud of you Indiana.” He paused, offering her a small smile. “But you know what? I’m not the most proud.”

Indy waited.

“Your mom. She’s gotta be the most proud of you. She’s seen every single minute you put in to get where you are right now.”

She crumpled into his chest, and the tears that had threatened her all day finally fell, hot and salty as they traveled onto his skin. It was quiet in the room for a while, and Grayson waited patiently - quietly, until she spoke again.

“I felt her today. She was there.”

“Yeah?”

“I didn’t see her or anything. But I had a dream about her the other night though, and it felt like she was really there with me. And it felt like that today too. Does that ever happen to you? With your dad?”

“Oh all the time. He’s always with me. Sometimes it’s stronger than other times - like when I’m about to do stupid shit, or make a mistake, I can hear him clear as day in my head. But it’s comforting, you know? Knowing they’re there, watching over us.”

“Yeah.” Indy’s throat was tight all over again. She wished she could have met Sean for a moment, and then she realized that in some ways, in knowing Grayson, she had.

“You know, one of the things that really stuck with me, towards the end, was something his nurse said. Her name was Charlotte, and she must have been working fucking overtime because she was always there. But one day I was in the hallway, cause I just needed a break, and she came and sat down next to me on the floor. And at that point, I mean we knew. We didn’t know when, but we knew. And she looked at me and she said ‘sweetheart, this is a gift for him. He gets so much more time with you, because he can always be with you instead of only sometimes.’ And I remember, I was so fucking mad at her, because who the fuck says that shit to someone whose about to lose their parent? But she was right. She was so fucking right.

“And while the doctors were in and out, giving us all these numbers and all these timelines and all that, Charlotte was the only one who really told me anything that mattered. I don’t know if I ever told you this, but my dad didn’t want to know anything about his… his cancer. He didn’t want to know his counts, or how much time he had left. He never asked, and she was the only one who stood by him in that, made sure that he didn’t know anything he didn’t want to. And it meant so much to him, in the end, that he had that choice. That was one of the only things he asked us to do, before he went. He told us not to cry, and he told us to take care of Ma, and Cam, but he told us to look out for Charlotte too. When we could think, we went back to the unit, asked the other nurses if there was anything she needed, and it turns out she’d been driving a 1995 Honda for a decade, and she didn’t think it would make it through the rest of the winter. We bought her an SUV, and I still don’t think she knows it was us, but I swear my dad told me which one to get for her. And he was so fucking proud.”

Indiana hung on his every word, watching him as he watched the ceiling, like he always did when he talked about his father. 

“He has so much to be proud of Grayson. He helped raise a wonderful, wonderful man. The best, actually.” 

Her voice snapped him out of his own head, and he turned to her quickly, worried.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to do that.”

“Hey, don’t ever apologize for that. I like hearing about your dad, and it’s good to get it out sometimes. You can tell me anything that’s on your mind, you know that.” 

He looked at her, there in his arms, eyes a bit puffy from tears passed, that soft smile on her lips that was somehow more endearing than her full one, and he felt tears of his own start to prickle. He knew she meant it, knew she would be understanding, and that somehow made it worse.

What was he supposed to say? I love you so much, and I think you’re the love of my life, but our lives are completely different, and I promised I wouldn’t ask you to go to LA, and I’m terrified of losing you and I don’t want to hurt you.

His lips parted, and then he closed them again. She yawned so hard that her nose scrunched, and when she was done she curled back up against his chest, wrapping her arms around him. 

“M’tired,” she mumbled, which meant she was already half asleep.

He pulled the covers over her shoulders and kissed her hair.

“I love you,” she whispered, tracing the same letters she spoke.

“I love you more.” His voice was tight as his finger moved against the back of her arm, and he turned the lamp off before any of his tears fell. 

-----------------------------------------------------------------

When Indiana woke up, Grayson’s arms were like a cage around her. Usually, they were still somewhat intertwined when they woke, but she’d never had to maneuver her way out of his arms with so much force before.

She finally managed it, and replaced herself with a pillow that he gladly pulled to his chest. Indy couldn’t help but to lean over and brush some of his floppy hair out of his eyes, staring for a moment before she pulled herself away and headed into the kitchen. 

The reason for her early wake up was standing in front of the fridge, with a head of blonde hair that resembled a birds nest. 

When she turned around, she looked guilty as ever.

“Shit, did I wake you up?”

“Nah,” Indy reassured her sister with a smile, moving over to the coffee machine. “It’s 10 anyways, I’m surprised I slept that long.”

Grayson had gotten her a newer version that was actually fairly quiet, but she made sure both the bedroom doors were shut before she ground the espresso for her latte, and Charlie’s flat white. 

Charlie was nice enough to wait until she had her mug to bring it up.

“So.”

Indy sighed. “So.”

“You asked Patrick about insurance stuff.”

“Yes.”

“So you’re going to work there again?”

“I have to pay rent somehow, don’t I?”

“Dad pays your rent.”

“I don’t want dad to pay my rent, that’s the whole issue.”

“Okay, but you didn’t ask Patrick about salary, you asked him about insurance. For mental health specifically.”

“You know, it’s not polite to eavesdrop.”

“Are you okay? Because you know that you can always talk to me about stuff, whatever it is. And I know I’m not the best about talking about mom, but I can try, I’ve been doing better with it and-”

“Char. Stop. It’s not about mom.”

“Oh.” It was obvious by her long pause that she hadn’t considered an alternative, but Indy waited anyways.

“Then… what’s going on?”

Indy toyed with the foam on her latte with her finger, ignoring how hot it was.

“I was thinking about trying to get a handle on the plane thing.”

“Oh.”

“I don’t want it to be such a big deal for me to just, fucking fly somewhere. I gotta get over that shit.”

Charlie pondered it for a minute, and she chose her next words carefully.

“Just to fly? Or to fly to a specific place.”

Indy laughed.

“You know, you’ve never been good at subtle. You got that from mom. But no, I’m not just doing it because of Grayson.”

“Did he ask you to?”

“Of course not, he wouldn’t do that.” Charlie’s shoulders relaxed. “But he does live in LA, which means I’ve gotta be able to fly out there.”

“How often?”

“I don’t know, we haven’t really talked about it.” 

“Oh. Doesn’t he leave soon though?”

“January.” She said it casually.

“Inds that’s next month.”

“We’ll figure it out.” 

Charlie had a million more questions, but she held her tongue and sipped her coffee. 

“I’ve gotta pack, our flight leaves in a few hours. I’m assuming you don’t have any breakfast food.”

“Actually, I do, but I’m not the breakfast chef around here.”

She sat her mug down on the counter and threw Charlie a wink before she headed back into her room as quietly as she could, sneaking up to the edge of the bed. Grayson had rolled to his stomach, something in his unconscious realizing that the pillow that he’d tossed away was in fact not his girlfriend. He almost looked too adorable to disturb.

Almost.

She went the gentle route, changing her mind on the pounce plan that she’d originally made. Instead, she crawled up the mattress and over his back, laying down on top of him with her cheek pressed to his warm shoulder.

He grunted a bit, but it turned into a sigh when she started peppering kisses along his skin.

“Mornin gorgeous,” he grumbled, eyes still closed. “What’re you doin’ back there?”

“Just hanging out.”

“Well- “ he rolled slightly, just enough to pull her over his side and onto the mattress so he could move right back with her underneath him -” maybe you should hang out down here instead.”

She relaxed into him like she always did, peppering kisses against his chest. Her hands ran over the ripples of muscles in his arms before she stopped and traced.

B-R-E-A-K-F-A

“Ahhh, so you didn’t just come in here for cuddles huh,” Grayson cut her off with a smile, quirking an eyebrow when she looked up at him. 

“If you make us all avocado toast I’ll pay you in cuddles,” she offered. It puffed up Grayson’s chef alter ego just enough to convince him to get out of bed and throw some pants on. Indy stayed closed to him, soaking up the last bits of warmth from the morning as she helped him prep everything for breakfast. She could have done it, but Grayson’s pride at a very nicely laid out plate of avo toast, strawberries and honeydew was the best addition she could make. So she stuck to the coffees instead, passing over mugs as Devin appeared and Charlie followed, though she was still working on her cup from earlier. 

“Well, now I see how he turned you into a breakfast person,” she said, graciously accepting a plate. They ate over quiet conversation, enjoying the last little bit of time they had before the airport and the inevitable goodbye. Grayson had bonded with the duo even more during their visit, and he was sad to see them having to leave again so soon. When Indy went to change, Grayson followed her, frowning when she didn’t pick her warmest jacket. 

“It’s supposed to get really cold out, you’ll probably want your big one,” he said as subtly as he could, popping his knuckles as he spoke. 

“I thought it was supposed to be a little warmer today,” she pouted. “We’re only gonna be outside to walk to the car.”

“Right, but you’re always cold. Just wear that one.” He gave her his most dazzling smile and she gave in, sliding in on before she left. Grayson was grateful that she listened - it meant he didn’t have to reveal his final graduation surprise too soon. He bit his tongue on the drive to the airport, gave out his hugs to Charlie and Devin, squeezing Indy into his side when she sniffled at the sight of her sister disappearing into the terminal.

Indy didn’t have a single suspicion until Grayson took a different turn into the city, much earlier than usual - 50th, instead of 26th.

“Bub? This is the wrong way.”

“No it isn’t.”

“We get off on 26th for the garage.”

“We aren’t going to the garage.” He couldn’t keep the smile off his face - the sheepish one that always made Indy’s heart flutter. She’d seen it so many times, but it still had the same effect on her every single time.

“Well then where are we going?” There was a childlike excitement in her voice that made Grayson laugh. He pulled her hand up to his face, kissed her skin softly. 

“You’ll see.”

The first stop it seemed, was a jewelry store.

“This is not the surprise by the way, just an errand. Gotta pick up a christmas gift for mom.” 

“I was gonna get her a sweater for christmas, do you think she’ll like that?” 

“Li does love a good sweater. She’ll love anything you get her though, you’re the favorite.”

Indy rolled her eyes but didn’t respond as one of the workers came up and asked what they were there for. When Grayson gave his name she headed to the back and came back out with a small box.

“May I?” She asked.

Grayson nodded, waiting for her to open it. Inside was a beautiful ring, silver and delicate, with a large light blue stone in a princess cut.

“It’s beautiful,” Indy mused.

“Blue topaz. My dad’s birthstone. Mine and E’s too. You think she’ll like it?”

“Gray she’ll love it, of course she’ll love it.”

“I hope so.” His nerves were evident - he was always on a mission to make sure that his mom still had a good Christmas, although she always said all she needed was to have her kids back under her roof for the day. He paid the final portion of the ring payment and slipped the box into his pocket, waiting until they were back outside to turn to Indy with a wide smile.

“Now, we really celebrate.”

They walked hand in hand down the street. Indy kept her protests to herself - she wasn’t used to being spoiled in any way. In fact, it still made her uncomfortable when anyone spent money on her in any form, but she tried to remind herself that money didn’t mean the same thing to him as it did to her. So when they strolled up to one of the nicer restaurants in the city for a late lunch, she bit her tongue and tried not to think about the prices, following him inside to the warmth. It was dimly lit, the type of place where the host would take your coat off and pull your chair out for you.

Grayson beat him to it, fingers brushing over her shoulders while he pulled her coat off. She felt underdressed in just jeans and a sweater, but he looked at her like she hung the moon for him and him alone, and she wondered for a moment if there would ever be a day in their lives together that he couldn’t make her blush just by looking at her. 

The menu didn’t even have prices next to the items, and it made Indy’s mouth dry enough for her to finish her water before the waiter even came back for their order. 

Grayson noticed. He always noticed. He reached a hand across the small table for her hand, thumb running over her smooth acrylics that she’d gotten pre-graduation.

“Why are you nervous bub?”

“This place is expensive,” she explained after a moment’s hesitation.

“And graduating college a year early is a feat worth celebrating,” he reminded her, raising up his wine glass filled with water. “Despite the fact that you seem to hate being celebrated.”

“I don’t hate being celebrated. I’m just… not used to it I guess. Wasn’t a big Cross family thing, even before.”

“Well, it’s a big Dolan family thing.”

“I guess I better get used to it then.” 

She clinked her glass against his as he swallowed hard, the movement of his throat hidden by the lighting. He pushed the thoughts from his head, the constant nagging he seemed to never be able to escape from, the better part of his conscience begging him to do the right thing, to tell her what he was thinking. She didn’t deserve for him to drag it out if he really was going to end things - she deserved so much more, more than he could give her with the life that he led. But every time he thought he had the courage to say something she’d reel him back in with a smile, or a witty comment, or just a look, entirely unaware of what she was doing. And he couldn’t imagine her anywhere else but the spot that she’d managed to carve out in his soul in just a few short months. He knew deep down he’d never find anyone else to fill it, but he also knew that she deserved to live the life she wanted to. A life without a boyfriend whose life interfered with hers. He just didn’t know how to reconcile with the fact that he would break her heart, and his own in the process.

So, he ignored his conscience and gave in to the selfish side of himself. 

When she asked where he’d gone, he said he was planning, and it wasn’t a lie. If he was only going to have so many days with her, he wasn’t willing to sacrifice a single moment.

So he held her hand on top of the table while they waited for their food, striking up a conversation about college memories and her classmates that she would miss the most. The food was as incredible as he expected, and he made a mental note to thank Ethan for the recommendation. Grayson made sure that Indy didn’t see the inside of the bill when the waiter brought it, even being careful to slip the $200 in cash in the billfold practically under the table. 

He led her back out into the cold, for once thankful for the early sunset of NYC that already had the city lights glowing against the fading sky. There was something magical about it, about existing on the streets with so many other people, knowing each one of them had their own story and life that they led. Indy people watched as Grayson led her safely down the streets, letting her cling onto his arm for comfort and warmth. It was only a few blocks until they saw the metallic flags and turned the corner to find the Rockefeller Center tree, massive and glorious in its height. It was speckled with what seemed like millions of lights, all twinkling in bright colors amongst the branches. 

“Wow.”

Grayson watched the wonder on her face with a chuckle. “You’re a New Yorker, aren’t you supposed to be used to this shit?”

She smacked his arm, but kept her eyes forward. “I haven’t been to see it in years. It’s beautiful.”

He looked at her. “Yeah. Beautiful.” 

He let her admire it as long as she wanted, resting his cheek against the top of her head when she leaned over on him. 

“You wanna get closer?”

She frowned at him. “How?”

Grayson started walking with her in tow, down the stairs and around the plaza until he got to the ground level, fishing two tickets out of his jacket pocket for the attendant at the front of the ice rink. Indiana squeezed his arm. 

“Gray. Baby, this is so sweet, but I can’t skate for shit.” 

“Why am I not surprised,” he laughed, shaking his head before he kissed her forehead. “I won’t let you fall. Promise.” 

They checked out their skates quickly, lacing up on one of the benches before Indy rose on wobbly feet, immediately letting out a squeal and reaching for her boyfriend. He caught her with a laugh, adjusting his own balance before they started walking to the edge of the ice. That familiar Grayson confidence was evident as he stepped on, getting his bearings before he reached out a hand for her.

“C’mon, I’ve got you. You got this, just one foot at a time.”

She grabbed both his hands and let him counteract her weight as she tried to get her footing, finally finding her balance after a moment of wobbling.

“Okay, now push off with one foot and glide with the other. Like this.”

He went to let go to demonstrate, and she clung to his hands with a squeak. “Don’t let go!”

Grayson’s cackle bounced off the ice. “Okay, okay! I’m right here, you’re good. Just try.”

Indy didn’t like not being good at things. But god was she terrible at ice skating. It didn’t matter how much instruction Grayson tried to give her, it was like it refused to translate into the movement of her legs. She was adorable when she was frustrated, but Grayson wanted it to be enjoyable for her too, so after a few laps around of watching her struggle he slid behind her, hands solid on her hips.

“Just keep your legs and feet straight, and I’ll do the rest.”

She held onto his hands as he started to push her along - she’d forgotten that he was annoyingly athletic but the feeling of actually gliding across the ice kept her from teasing him about it. It was peaceful, and despite the crowd both on the ice and above them by the tree, she felt like they were the only two in the city. 

Grayson took them through the middle after they’d gone around a few times, towards the center for one pass and she squeezed his hand when they got there.

“Wait, stop!”

He turned his skates, throwing a bit of ice onto her ankles on accident, peaking over her shoulder.

“What’s up?”

“Turn me around. Please.”

He did as she asked, faster than he meant to, and it had her nails digging into his shoulders as he tried to hold her up without them both going down. She was breathing fast when he got them steady, quirking an eyebrow.

“We gotta take a picture in front of the tree!” 

He obliged, pulling his phone out of his pocket and turning them slowly until the tree was behind them, snapping a few of the two of them smiling before he kissed her cheek, and then her lips, randomly pressing the button and hoping they were still in frame. 

Her lips were cold against his, and tasted like the vanilla chapstick she’d put on before they’d left the restaurant. It sent tingles down the back of his neck that made him put his phone back in his pocket and pull her closer to him. 

Wrong move. He’d never met someone so uncoordinated in his life, and it was the closest call of them all when her legs started to flail. His only hope of saving her from hitting the ice was to pick her up fully and hope that he could keep his balance with the sudden weight shift. 

“Sorry,” she said sheepishly, clinging to his neck while he laughed.

“What am I gonna do with you,” he teased, and in a moment of confidence he dipped her down like they were dancing and kissed her again. The same tingle went down his neck, the hair there standing up, still there even when he sat her on her skates again, keeping an arm wrapped around her waist. 

Above them, as if someone had turned on a machine, it began to snow. Big fluffy flakes fell around them, disappearing into Indy’s light hair and speckling the top of Grayson’s. It was magic in its simplest form, and Indy couldn’t help but beam at him. 

“I love you. So much.”

“I love you more,” he said, and he meant it. 

They headed off the ice a few minutes before their session expired, unlacing their boots with numb fingers that they shoved in their pockets for the walk back to the truck. As soon as they climbed in the cab Grayson blasted the heat and opened an arm for Indy to cuddle up next to him. Once they were thawed enough, Grayson proposed the idea of hot chocolate, specifically to help the fact that Indy’s teeth were still chattering. Which was how they ended up at Jet’s 40 minutes later, squished together in the blue chair by the window, watching the snow fall as they sipped peppermint hot chocolates that Patrick had given them on the house. Grayson dropped a 20 in the tip jar anyways. 

The lobby was busy, with people in and out constantly, wiping the snow off their shoes as best they could on the small doormat. They shuffled through the line, a few of them sitting down for a moment to wait for their names to be called. Indy was used to the bustle, though she felt a bit guilty that she wasn’t behind the bar helping out when she had the skills to. Instead, she just smiled any time a barista looked her way, and spent the rest of her time watching the snow outside.

Grayson’s eyes were on a girl. A few girls, actually, who looked oddly familiar though he couldn’t place where he’d seen them before. They’d sat at a table towards the back of the store, having come in right behind him and Indy. But since then they’d moved forward one table, and then another, and the not so subtle way that two of them had angled their phone had that familiar prickle at the back of his neck rising again. He shifted in his chair quickly, turning his head away and attempting to do his best to block the view of Indiana.

“Hey, you ready to get outta here?”

“Did you finish already?” She asked, surprised considering her cup was still half full. 

“Yeah,” he lied. “Just figured we could get home and change into some cozy pjs is all.”

“That sounds nice.” Indy moved in to kiss his cheek, and though he tried to pull away, he didn’t do it fast enough. 

“You alright?”

“Yeah, I’m good.” Two for two. “Let’s just get home.” 

The walk was as short as ever, but it was enough time for Indy’s mind to race. Had he been annoyed that she said something about the restaurant being expensive? Maybe he hadn’t wanted to help her ice skate - most people could at least hold themselves up on the rails at least. But he’d seemed so happy, which somehow made her feel worse, that she’d missed it somehow.

By the time they made it to the elevator, she was borderline panicking.

“Are you sure you’re okay? Did I do something?”

Her words broke Grayson out of his own thoughts, and he rushed into reassurances.

“No, it’s not you baby. It’s not, I promise.”

“Then what is it? And don’t say it’s nothing.” 

“I’m good, really. Just wanted to get home.”

For the first time in her almost three months of knowing Grayson, she didn’t believe him. But she knew when to drop a subject, so she just nodded and followed him out of the elevator. 

Half of Grayson’s wardrobe seemed to have migrated into Indy’s apartment, so it wasn’t hard to find cozy clothes that had them curled up together on the couch in no time. Grayson felt guilty, and tried to distract himself by running his fingers through her soft hair, tried to focus on the weight of her leaned against him. She was quiet as she scrolled through show after show, not really looking. She picked a random cooking show eventually just to fill the silence in the room, moving to lay across Graysons lap. His hand moved under her shirt, fingers still a bit cold as he ran them lightly over her skin. 

She didn’t say anything, just glad to have him there with her. She traced on top of his sweatpants, shapes and words, L-O-V-E-Y-O-U and T-H-A-N-K-Y-O-U. The fabric was so thick that he could barely make out what she was writing.

“Thank you? For what?” 

She rolled over so she was looking up at him. “For today. For celebrating me.” 

He traced a thumb over her cheek. “You’re welcome. I love you. So much.”

“C’mere,” Indy said, reaching up for him. It took some shifting, but eventually they got settled where they were laying together on the couch, with her pressed between the cushions and his chest. She was warm as she kissed him, slow and calculated, trying to get across to him that she was there for whatever he was going through without the words. He reciprocated, but his mind was still spinning, images of the girls and their phones behind his eyelids. 

The kiss faded out into cuddles which faded into an uncomfortable silence that Indy was desperate to resolve.

“What’s the update on the tiny homes? Weren’t the floor guys supposed to come in yesterday?”

“Yeah, Ethan went out there and said they were almost done. We’ve got some interior designers coming out tomorrow and then they’ll be done-done,” Grayson explained, heart rate rising as yet another opportunity to tell her came up. 

“They really got those done so fast. I guess that’s a perk of a tiny home though, not much floor space to floor. How often do you guys think you’re gonna come out and stay in them?”

He licked his lips, trying to find the right words to tell her. 

“Well, actually-”

His phone buzzed in his pocket - a call from Ethan. 

He didn’t know whether to feel grateful or annoyed, but he fished his phone out of his pocket anyways, sliding over to answer. 

“Yo.”

“Hey, mom wants to put up the christmas decs tomorrow cause she still doesn’t have them up. You remember where we put the lights?”

“Yeah, they’re in the attic I think, with the tree.”

“Well, you’re the family santa, so get your ass out here early tomorrow to hang some lights. And bring Indy too, I’ll make breakfast.”

“Don’t make breakfast, we’ll bring donuts or something.”

“Fuck you, be here at 10.”

He hung up, making Grayson roll his eyes and look down at Indy.

“You up for Christmas decorating tomorrow at home tomorrow?”

“Yeah, that sounds like fun! But I’m sure as fuck not getting on the roof.”

He kissed her forehead. “I’ll do the roof, you can do the stuff inside with Ma. Deal?”

“Deal,” she smiled, wiggling up to kiss him again, trying to chase out the rest of her worries before she curled up into his chest. 

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

The snow had piled onto the sides of the highway in ugly mounds stained with dirt and asphalt drudged up by the plows. So Indy kept her eyes on the trees as they flew by, specifically the evergreens she saw, with their green bristles weighted down with white, heavy and thick. 

“Are you sure you guys wanna get on the roof with all this? Won’t it be slick?”

“Nah, Dad used to do it all the time. I’ll just make E shovel while I try to find the clips we put up there last year. Besides, if I fall off I’ve got a doctor to mend me up,” he teased, squeezing her leg. 

“I’m not a doctor yet.”

“Okay, well an almost doctor then. How many years until you’re actually one again?”

“11 years minimum. Well, 10 for me cause I skipped a year in undergrad. But it could be up to 16, depending on how long my residency would go.”

“And you’re gonna do it all through JCU?”

“Yeah, that’s the plan right now,” she mumbled, eyes still focused out the window. 

“Hey,” he got her attention, waiting for her to turn to him. “You’re gonna be an amazing doctor someday. You’re gonna help so many people. Just having you in the room, doing the little things for people, that’s gonna mean more to those people than you even realize. They’re gonna be really lucky to have you.”

The sentiment seemed to arise out of nowhere, but she still blushed at his kind words. “The little things are actually more the nurses, but thank you.” 

He let her watch the trees for the rest of the drive, and she was so focused on them that she barely noticed Ethan already on the roof when they pulled in. 

He had a bright orange shovel in his hands, the scoop full of snow that he began to swing back and forth once they stepped out of the car, shoes crunching the snow below them.

“Don’t you dare!” Indy called, but it was too late. The snow was already flying and she squealed, grabbing Grayson and pulling him out of the way while it rained down right where they had been standing.

A moment later and Lisa was outside, hands on her hip with the menacing energy only a mom could produce.

“Ethan Grant! That’s how you fall and bust your fucking head open! Knock it off!”

Grayson bit back a laugh when Ethan kicked a tiny bit more snow off the edge so it sprinkled down by Lisa.

“Will you get up there before he falls off please?” She turned to Grayson, exasperated. “Indy, come in, it’s cold.”

It was Indiana’s turn to laugh when Lisa hooked their arms together and led her into the house, leaving Grayson out in the snow. He grabbed the lights that Ethan had already gotten out, looping his arm through before he headed up the ladder at the lowest point of the roof. 

“I’ve already done the other side of the house, so I’m just here for moral support and to save your ass if I need to, my job is done,” Ethan explained, moving over to a spot by the chimney to sit down. 

“Oh yeah, you shoveled on a downhill slope, the horror,” Grayson muttered, but in all honesty he would rather do the lights himself anyways. 

They talked about the tiny homes and the final touches they needed while Grayson moved around the roof carefully, trying to counteract his balance when he got closer to the edge, cursing his mom silently for having roofs so high that they couldn’t do it from the top of a ladder. 

The front of the house went without incident, and Ethan begrudgingly helped by holding the extra lights while Gray strung them. But when Ethan went down the ladder to get the next strand to connect, he took a minute too long to come back up. Grayson tried to use what little patience he was born with, but it fizzled out quickly, making him stomp across the roof to the edge.

“Yo, what the fucks taking so long?”

“Gray.”

“Can you not find them or what?”

“Grayson.”

He didn’t like the tone of his brother’s voice.

“What? What happened?”

“Come down here.”

Grayson took the ladder so quickly that his feet almost slipped, but he was at his brother’s side in a moment, taking his phone that he had outstretched.

His stomach dropped into the snow under his feet as he began to scroll with a numb thumb. There were pictures. So many pictures, and Indy was in every single one of them. Tweet after tweet with different screenshots of the two of them - looking at the tree, ice skating, sitting in Jets, even walking down the street. He pieced it together, realized that the reason the girls had looked familiar was because they’d followed them. 

“Fuck. Fuck.”

Bile rose in his throat when he found a video, zoomed in as far as it would go with surprising quality as he pushed Indy along on the ice, towards the middle of the rink. He watched her squeeze his hands and laugh, watched himself turn her around so they could get their picture, watched himself kiss her cheek and her lips. 

He didn’t want to read, but he couldn’t help himself. There were a few familiar handles that talked about how happy they were for him, but the majority of it was exactly what he expected. 

So much for ‘working on himself’ he’s back on the constant girlfriend trend

Didn’t think she was his type but okayyyyy I guess 🥴

When we said we didn’t want Grayson to end up with an LA girl, we didn’t mean ~that~

Her insta is indiana.jamie, i’ve never even heard of her

The worst was a two set of images from Jet’s, where her face was in plain view. The second one had edited lighting, and was zoomed in on his pocket, with the text above it.

Look I know I sound crazy but WTF IS IN HIS POCKET? IS THAT A RING BOX? GRAY BABY NOOOOOOO

“Fuck.” He couldn’t find another word, and Ethan was no help. A call from Adele came in on his phone, and E looked at him for approval. He just nodded and let him answer, turning away and heading into the house, not even bothering to clean his boots.

“Dee! Indiana!”

“In here!” She called back and he jogged into the living room, not realizing he was breathless until he got there and saw that the tree had been assembled. She had an ornament in her hand when he ran in and she put it on the tree quickly, her stomach tightening at the look on his face.

“What happened? Are you okay?”

“Where’s your phone, have you looked at your phone?”

“It’s over there, it’s just been playing music. Baby what’s wrong?”

He ran over to it, muttering out a ‘shit’ when the screen lit up, both at the flood of notifications and the fact that her lockscreen had changed to their picture from the ice. 

“Woah.” She took her phone from him, unlocking it and heading after all the notifications on instagram. “Holy shit. I got 3,500 new followers, what the fuck?” 

“Indy, I’m so fucking sorry. I’m so sorry.”

She closed her phone and looked at him, putting a hand on his shoulder. “For what?”

“I should have thought about it, there’s not usually paps in New York, I didn’t even think about fans, and now everyone’s tweeting a bunch of bullshit about you, I’m just, fuck, I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.”

“Slow down,” she murmured, hand moving to his face. She saw Lisa leave the room out of the corner of her eye, but she kept looking at Grayson. “It’s okay. We knew this was going to happen.”

“They saw the ring box in my pocket in some of the pictures, they probably think we’re fucking engaged, and they’re gonna be relentless. Every time you get online you’re gonna see some bullshit about you because of me.”

“Gray, it’s alright. It’s okay, I can handle it.”

“No, you can’t, nobody can, it’s gonna get to you. If you say it doesn’t effect you, you’re fucking lying.” He ran his hands through his hair and then down over his face, sucking in a breath that Indiana recognized. 

“Gray, don’t cry. Look, look.” She unlocked her phone again, exited instagram and held down until it shook, deleting it quickly from her phone. “I don’t even post much anyways. And I don’t have a twitter, I’m not gonna see what they say about me. I don’t care, I promise you I don’t.” 

Her gut told her a different story. Though it wasn’t her favorite quality of herself, Indy liked to be liked. It was natural, but she sought validation from other people more than she wanted to, and it made her dangerously curious to see what had caused such a visceral reaction in her boyfriend.

“I’m sorry,” he said again, dropping his head. She got up on her tiptoes and pressed a kiss to his forehead.

“It’s okay. We’re okay. It’s not your fault.”

And for the first time in his almost three months of knowing Indiana, he didn’t believe her.

#WOOOOOO #I hope you guys like it! #let me know what you think pls :') #mixtape #grayson dolan #grayson dolan fanfiction #grayson dolan fanfic

[nickandros]

hi! sorry to bother, but do you have any recs for getting into IR/IR theory? (sorry if uve already made a post like this i couldn't find one!!)

turns out i still have the slides saved from my first IR class in 2017 deep in my google drive so! let’s go.

in order to understand IR theory you’re gonna need to become familiar with the main schools of thought/theory so that you understand what assumptions more specific theories are making abt the international system. for example, if you’re reading realist arguments on nuclear proliferation, then you need to be reading them with acceptance of the assumption that states are the most important actors (a realist assumption). and with that:

realism

the prince - machiavelli: you don’t have to actually read this to understand realism, but it’s important to know the foundations of realism in history, and machiavelli is IT.

leviathan - thomas hobbs: literally do not read this, but read a summary of it somewhere. hobbs did a lot of the groundwork for realist theory on statehood and anarchy but this guy sucks and also a video game released in 2010 proved him wrong entirely.

the twenty years’ crisis - e. h. carr: dude was very important to the formation of classical realism, and was also one of the few realists to approach marxism with a somewhat positive opinion. he also wrote a history of the soviet union which is. one of the most interesting western perspectives on the subject.

man, the state, and war and theory of international politics - kenneth waltz: mr king shit himself. waltz is the father of neo-realism and for good reason. bitch had a lot to say. security scholars are obsessed with him. anyway that first book is really important because it establishes the ‘levels of analysis’ which is a very important concept to understand for when you get into things later like game theory.

the tragedy of great power politics - john mearsheimer: what a freak. this guy is responsible for the concept of offensive realism, which is different from waltz’s defensive realism. i still don’t entirely get it, and definitely don’t fuck with it.

liberalism

god i hate liberalism so fucking much. this is going to be so biased i’m sorry.

to perpetual peace - immanuel kant: don’t read this. just understand that kant ruined international relations for everyone. he put forward some ideas about the inherent peacefulness of democracies here and kickstarted a whole lot of imperialist dumbasses to form the democratic peace theory.

john locke: i can’t even recommend a specific book by this fuck because i literally do not care at all about him but like. he’s called the father of liberalism. he’s probably important for anarcho-capitalists and ayn rand but i could not give two shits.

robert keohane - after hegemony: neo-liberalism! slightly more tolerable than classical liberalism, because it focuses mostly on state cooperation and is less depressing about human nature than realism. less concerned with economic liberalism, more concerned with ......

robert keohane & joseph nye - interdependence in world politics: puts forward the idea that trade interdependence between states has become more important than military might due to coercive power.

constructivism

in comparison to realism and liberalism, constructivism is a BABY in the theory world of international relations, but it is so sexy.

world of our making - nicholas onuf: god i can not stress how much of a big deal it was for someone to come forward and be like “i actually don’t think the absence of a world government means we have an anarchic world system”. system level anarchy was just a given in IR at this stage, and other people had challenged it by talking about different kinds of anarchy but onuf was really like hmm. i wouldn’t call western dominance ‘anarchy’ but go off queens. 

social theory of international politics - alexander wendt: king. shit. YES the title is a direct reference to kenneth waltz’s book. i made a joke in an earlier post about how constructivism as a theory absolutely floored the international community and that was a joke but also 100% true. read this one!! read his article anarchy is what states make of it, read this interview with him!!

marxism

>:)

capital - karl marx: presented without commentary.

what is to be done and the state and revolution - lenin: >>>:)))))))

prison notebooks - gramsci: in all seriousness, gramsci is very important to critical theory and cultural hegemony which is important to constructivim. 

the modern world system - immanuel wallerstein: dude got torn to SHREADS for saying that the united states was a hegemon in decline in the 80s and now everyone is sitting there like lisa-simpson-:O.jpeg. king shit.

anyway marxism is a very important and valuable school of thought for international relations but it wasn’t taken seriously or even allowed for analysis until recently thanks to that ugly bitch mccarthy and general red scare propaganda but i strong recommend delving into critical theory and also reading the works of major communist leaders/thinkers and making your own judgements.

and this is a good start!! i can vouch for this youtube channel, i’ve used it before when studying or if i’m confused about something. VERY theory (specifically game theory) heavy. you’ll most likely find an area of IR that interests you when looking deeper at specific ideas or theories. as i’ve said before, i got really interested in security studies (particularly nuclear security) and MARXISM but that’s separate from my actual studies and more personal ideological preference. hope this helps!!

#IR tag #answered #Anonymous

[jeremys-blogs]

Men Like You: One Marvellous Scene

Well, I said I was going to do this at some point, and I think it's high time I made good on that promise. For those who don't know, last year there was a collaboration between a number of Youtubers to discuss their various favourite scenes from the Marvel Cinematic Universe and why they felt they should be held as the best scenes in the franchise. It was really great and you should totally check the videos out. But, this did leave me with a bit of a pickle when it came to doing my own thoughts on the matter. You see, I wanted to talk about a scene I loved, but I also didn't want it to be a scene that had already been covered by the others. This was tricky since they'd already talked about most of my personal choices. After a while though, I found it. One moment I utterly adored in the MCU that, to my knowledge, hasn't been mentioned by anyone else. And that's what we're going to talk about here. A moment brought to us courtesy of the original 2012 Avengers movie, my personal favourite of the big crossover films, that shows what is, quite possibly, the most under-appreciated moment of heroism in a franchise built on acts of heroism.

So, our scene takes place just prior to all our heroes meeting up for the first time. Loki, Thor's brother and the big bad of the movie, has just made a big show of himself in an art museum in Germany. And when his business there is finished, he waltzes out onto the street, causing havoc and terrifying all of the ordinary citizens around him. With his illusions he herds a whole crowd of them together and demand that they kneel, which they soon do out of fear. Loki, going full dictator mode, lords over them with this big speech about how he's above them and that they're all just natural servants to him, "meant to be ruled". Confidently, he declares how ordinary people will always kneel. In response, one old man among the crowd slowly gets up, looks Loki in the eye and states firmly that they will not kneel to men like him. When Loki counters by saying there aren't any men like him, the old man rebuffs him, "there are ALWAYS men like you", before Loki readies his scepter to kill the defiant human. And just when it looks like the old man is about to die at the hands of the film's villain, Steve Rogers, Captain America, jumps in to save him, ready to bring Loki down a peg.

Now, there's a lot going on here in this scene that I want to talk about, but to start off let's cover the basic surface-level stuff. Because this moment, which is only about a minute long, is pretty much a microcosm of the entirety of the superhero genre, and not just those of Marvel. We have a hammy villain coming along and declaring himself the best thing ever, towering over frightened people and threatening them, ready to even kill one who steps out of line. And then, at the last moment, a superhero comes in from out of nowhere to take the hit and save the day, bringing hope to a hopeless situation. This right here is superhero stories in a nutshell, so on that basic level, it works really well, even if Marvel does eventually develop a reputation for undermining or subverting a lot of classic superhero tropes further down the line. And of course, there's the acting needed to pull off a moment like this, Tom Hiddleston is clearly having a blast as this wonderfully evil baddie, Chris Evans fits the role of a classic hero like he just stepped out of the pages of a comic book, and as for the unnamed old man, for that we give thanks to veteran actor Kenneth Tigar.

And it's really the old man here that I wanted to talk about. What he did in this scene is very possibly the bravest and most noble act I've seen among any of the regular people in this franchise. Oh sure, we've got heroes aplenty putting their lives on the line to fight the good fight, but this guy isn't those guys. He hasn't got a fancy suit of armour, or an indestructible shield or the power of the gods on his side. He's just a man, and an elderly one at that. He knows full well that Loki could end his life in a heartbeat if he wanted, yet here he is, standing up among the crowd, staring down this invader, and telling him that he's not going to submit. Standing up to someone more powerful than you is an incredibly courageous thing to do, especially when it's someone you know has malicious intent. But that doesn't stop him. He still there, still standing, refusing to kneel to this self-styled king of the world. He's an ordinary person, but he nevertheless a hero in this scenario. A hero whose name we don't even know. We only ever see him this one time, and no other film even mentions him, yet what he does here has remained in my mind ever since I first saw this movie back in 2012.

Special mention also has to go to just how important a moment like this is in a superhero movie, as it helps to remind the audience of exactly what, or specifically for who, the superheroes in question are supposed to be doing, protecting ordinary people. It can be hard sometimes in films and comics and what have you, when heroes and villains are duking it out over the fate of the world, to remember that, at the end of the day, it's the everyday people in the street that are in danger and need help. When you have big and apocalyptic events, the average Jane and Joe can get lost in the mix, made to feel like they aren't as important in the grand scheme of things. So a scene like this is vital for keeping the audience rooted in what truly matters. The often-nameless (literally in this case) men and women who get caught in the big fights. They're the ones the heroes are supposedly there to champion, so a character like this old man is really needed to put a face to that overall concept. Right now, this man represents all those that Loki would seek to dominate, hurt and kill. The people that Steve and the other Avengers need to fight for.

But as much as I wish I could have nothing but praise for this scene, there is one sticking point that needs to be addressed, and that's the reasons for its inclusion in the film. You see, Joss Whedon, the director, added this scene apparently because there were fears and worries about how it might come across if they simply had a scene of German civilians kneeling down to a dictator without question. Now, on the one hand, I sort of agree with where they're coming from, since that would likely send the wrong message, even if it was unintentional. But on the other, it's not as if they're going along with Loki by choice here. He's shown his violent tendencies and has already killed a man in full view of everyone. This isn't people bowing down to him because of force of personality, it's a hostage situation. They kneel because their lives are in danger, not because they actually want to follow Loki's lead. So while I give a lot of credit to this scene, I'm afraid I'm going to have to respectfully disagree with the idea that not having it in would put the citizens in it in a bad light. Though it does at least make the nameless old man all the more courageous as a result.

Despite that small bump in the road, this scene still has a lot going for it. In a franchise where it's easy to think you need to go bigger, more epic, more extravagant, you can forget that it's sometimes the smaller moments that truly stick with you. This scene, with two characters whom everyone in the audience will know and remember, shines all the brighter because of the inclusion of the one character whom they wouldn't. A single act of bravery in the face of certain death that makes this tired-looking old man look like a giant, even among the other heroes. Ordinary people standing up for what's right is always a powerful symbol, no matter what context it's happening in, and while shots like Steve marching to his doom against the full might of Thanos' army will always be heroic and epic, there's something to be said for bringing the scale down a bit. To show that heroes can emerge when you least expect it, among those not typically thought of as heroes in a genre like this. This is a scene that's likely to get lost among all those other moments that have been discussed by the aforementioned Youtubers, but for me, this will well and truly be the true Marvelous Scene in this astonishing franchise

#essay #writing #my stuff #marvel #marvel cinematic universe #mcu #avengers #loki

[whenyouarenothing]

QUARANTINE TIME IS READING TIME. EMERGE less ignorant.

Books/Essays, Theory:

Karl Marx- Friedrich EngelsCommunist Manifesto(Fundamental piece for the social sciences, social movements of the 19/20/21 centuries

Karl Marx-The british rule in Indiahttps://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1853/06/25.htm

Sohrab Sepehri - The oasis of now.

Peter Sloterdijk - After God

Antonio Gramsci-gramsci-prison-notebooks-vol1

Secondary literature on Gramsci'sConception of Hegemony Gramsci

Hegel, Nietzsche, Freud-Hegel, Nietzsche and Freud on Madness and the Unconscious

Foucault-The Essential Works of Foucault, 1954-1984, Vol. 3) Michel Foucault, James D. Faubion, Robert Hurley, Colin Gordon, Paul Rabinow-Essential Works of Foucault 1954-1984 Volume 3_ Power-The New Press (2

Zygmunt Bauman-(Themes for the 21st Century Series) Zygmunt Bauman-Globalization_ The Human Consequences-Polity Press (1998)

Hannah Arendt-Arendt-Eichmann-in-Jerusalem

Giorgia Agamben and Walter Benjamin-Bare-Life-and-Historical-Materialism-in-Agamben-and-Benjamin

Rainer Maria Rilke - Letters to a young poet

Rainer Maria Rilke - Stundenglas

Walter Benjamin-The reproduction of the artwork in the 21. century

Guy Debord-Society of the spectacle

Carl Schmitt- Carl Schmitt-The Nomos of the Earth -Telos Press Publishing (2006)

Carl_Schmitt_The_Concept_of_the_Political_Expanded_Edition____2007

Heinrich von Kleist - Penthesilea

Stefan Zweig - Magellan

Luis Borges - the Library of Babel

Renzo Novatore - Towards the Creative Nothing

Renzo Novatore - in the circle of life.

Friedrich Nietzsche-Genealogy of morals

Friedrich Nietzsche-Friedrich_Nietzsche - Human_All_Too_Human_A_Book_for_Free_Spirits_(1996)

Friedrich Nietzsche - Nietzsches critique on religion

Kenneth Waltz-Kenneth N. Waltz-Man, the State and War-Columbia University Press (2001)

Lucien van der WaalLucien Van Der Walt and Michael Schmidt Black Flame vol 1

Eduardo Galeano - Open_Veins_of_Latin_America

Wolfi Landstreicher-wolfi-landstreicher-critical-thinking-as-an-anarchist-weapon

Wolfi Landstreicher- wolfi-landstreicher-the-network-of-domination

Ludwig Feuerbach-Ludwig Feuerbach's conception of the religious alienation of man and Mikhail Bakunin'sphilosophy of negation

Emma Goldman - philosophy of atheism

Voegelin - on modern gnosticism

#nietzsche #corona #quarantine #reading #reading list #Foucault #Emma Goldman #Rainer Maria Rilke #agamben #Carl Schmitt #Walter Benjamin #Hannah Arendt

[clarislam]

Reading List As Of June 23rd, 2020:

Book Reviews to be posted:

“Girls With Sharp Sticks” by Suzanne Young (posted today - click here!)

“Let’s Dance A Waltz, Vol. 2″ by Natsumi Ando

“Let’s Dance A Waltz, Vol. 3″ by Natsumi Ando

“Ender’s Game” by Orson Scott Card

“In Real Life” by Cory Doctorow & Jen Wang

“Sweet” by Emily Laybourne

“My Room Is A Dungeon Rest Stop, Vol. 1″ by Tougoku Hudou

“The Queen Of Swords” by R.S. Belcher

“You Are Alice In Wonderland’s Mum!” by Sherwin Tjia

“The Devil Is A Part-Timer! Vol. 15″ by Satoshi Wagahara

Books I’m currently reading:

“The Devil Is A Part-Timer! Vol. 16″ by Satoshi Wagahara

“Spymaster” by Margaret Weis and Robert Krammes

“The Clockwrok Scarab” by Colleen Gleason

Books I will read eventually:

“Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid: Vol. 1″ by Coolkyoushinja

“I Married My Best Friend to Shut My Parents Up” by Kodama Naoko

“The Case Of The Love Spell: A Hillcrest Witch Mystery” by Amorette Anderson

“The Traveler” by Lovelyn Bettison

“Grimm Tidings” by J.C. Gilbert

“The Journey of Inspiration” by My Cosmic Backyard

“Black” from “The Circle” series by Ted Dekker

“Intangible” by C.A. Gray

“The Crimson Inkwell” by Kenneth A. Baldwin

“The Zombie Apocalypse Convenience Store” by Taylor A. Ellwood.

Books I’ve dropped (a.k.a did not finish (DNF) and will not be reviewing):

“Running Haunted” by Effrosyni Moschoudi  (DNF at 21%)

Books I hope to get my hands on soon so I can read them eventually:

“Out of the Shadows” by Ashlee Nicole Bye

“Queens of Geek” by Jen Wilde

“Dead Air: A Glenn Beckert Mystery” by Cliff Protzman

“Pulse Point” by Colleen Nelson and Nancy Chappell-Pollack

“A Totally Awkward Love Story” by Tom Ellen and Lucy Ivison

#readblr #bookblr #am reading #reading list #june 23rd 2020 #mystical reads #amreading #books #upcoming book reviews

[logicalbibliophile]

Books I own part 1

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Adams, Douglas

Samantha Learns a Lesson Adler, Susan S.

Aesops Fables Aesop

Flame in the Mist Ahdieh, Renée

Honey Hunt 6 Aihara, Miki

negima! 26 Akamatsu, Ken

Little Women Alcott, Louisa May

The Last Grand Duchess Anastasia

Fairy Tales Anderson, Hans Christian

Let's Dance a Waltz 1 Andõ, Natsumi

Let's Dance a Waltz 2 Andõ, Natsumi

Kitchen Princess 10 Andõ, Natsumi

mär 1 Anzai, Nobuyuki

Beauty Pop 1 Arai, Kiyoko

Beauty Pop 9 Arai, Kiyoko

Beauty Pop 10 Arai, Kiyoko

Pride and Prejudice Austen, Jane

yotsuba&! 1 Azuma, Kiyohiko

Of Enemies and Endings 4 Bach, Shelby

Of Giants and Ice 1 Bach, Shelby

Of Sorcery and Snow 3 Bach, Shelby

Of Witches and Wind 2 Bach, Shelby

A Question of Magic Baker, E.D.

Dragon Kiss 7 Baker, E.D.

Dragon's Breath 2 Baker, E.D.

Once Upon a Curse 3 Baker, E.D.

The Dragon Princess 6 Baker, E.D.

The Frog Princess 1 Baker, E.D.

Of Neptune 3 Banks, Anna

Of Poseidon 1 Banks, Anna

Of Triton 2 Banks, Anna

Peter Pan Barrie, J.M.

Peter and the Secret of Rundoon 3 Barry, Dave and Ridley Pearson

Peter and the Shadow Thieves 2 Barry, Dave and Ridley Pearson

Peter and the Starcatchers 1 Barry, Dave and Ridley Pearson

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz Baum, L. Frank

The Unicorn Quest Benko, Kamilla

The Brimstone Key Benz, Derek

The Year of the Hangman Blackwood, Gary L.

Antigoddess Blake, Kendare

William Blake Blake, William

The Atlas of Classic Tales Bordin, Claudia

The Name of this Book is Secret Bosch, Pseudonymous

Witch Born Bowling, Nicholas

Caddie Woodlawn Brink, Carol Ryrie

The Time Travelers Buckley-Archer, Linda

Magic and Other Misdemeanors 5 Buckley, Michael

Once Upon a Crime 4 Buckley, Michael

Tales from the Hood 6 Buckley, Michael

The Council of Mirrors 9 Buckley, Michael

The Ever After War 7 Buckley, Michael

The Fairytale Detectives 1 Buckley, Michael

The Inside Story 8 Buckley, Michael

The Problem Child 3 Buckley, Michael

The Unusual Suspects 2 Buckley, Michael

A Little Princess Burnett, Frances Hodgson

The Secret Garden Burnett, Frances Hodgson

Arabian nights Burton, Sir Richard Francis

Molly Moon's Incredible Book of Hypnotism 1 Byng, Georgia

Molly Moon and the Morphing Mystery 5 Byng, Georgia

Ash and Quill Caine, Rachel

Flunked 1 Calonita, Jen

Charmed 2 Calonita, Jen

Rook Cameron, Sharon

The Forgetting Cameron, Sharon

Ender's Game Card, Orson Scott

All Fall Down Carter, Ally

Heist Society 1 Carter, Ally

I'd Tell You I Love You but Then I'd Have to Kill You 1 Carter, Ally

Only the Good Spy Young 4 Carter, Ally

Cross My Heart and Hope to Spy 2 Carter, Ally

Don't Judge a Girl by Her Cover 3 Carter, Ally

Uncommon Criminals 2 Carter, Ally

The One 2 Cass, Kiera

The Selection 1 Cass, Kiera

Rebel Girls Lead Cavallo, Francesca and Elena Favilli

Rebel Girls Explore Cavallo, Francesca and Elena Favilli

The School of Good and Evil 1 Chainani, Soman

A World Without Princes 2 Chainani, Soman

Be a Genie in Six Easy Steps Chapman, Linda and Steve Cole

The Testing Charbonneau, Joelle

Powerless Childs, Tera Lynn and Tracy Dee's

Drama Con 2 Chmakova, Svetlana

Drama Con 3 Chmakova, Svetlana

Drama Con 1 Chmakova, Svetlana

Aru Shah and the End of Time Chokshi, Roshani

The Star Touched Queen Chokshi, Roshani

Cinderella Cinderella

Magic Knight Rayearth CLAMP

City of Bones Clare, Cassandra

Ready Player One Cline, Ernest

Catching Fire 2 Collins, Suzanne

Mockingjay 3 Collins, Suzanne

The Hunger Games 1 Collins, Suzanne

Matched Condie, Ally

The Waterless Sea Constable, Kate

Seaward Cooper, Susan

Mechanica Cornwell, Betsy

Venturess Cornwell, Betsy

Don't push the button! Cotter, Bill

Chasing Redbird Creech, Sharon

Ruby Holler Creech, Sharon

Love that Dog Creech, Sharon

Chasing Redbird Creech, Sharon

The Death Cure 3 Dashner, James

The Scorch Trials 2 Dashner, James

The Kill Order .5 Dashner, James

The Twelve Dancing Princesses David, Alfred and Mary Elizabeth Meek

The Fandom Day, Anna

Frozen De la Cruz, Melissa

26 Fairmont Avenue DePaola, Tomie

Blind Dewoskin, Rachel

The Tale of Despereaux DiCamillo, Kate

Hard Times Dickens, Charles

A Christmas Carol Dickons, Charles

Stepsister Donnelly, Jennifer

The Boy With the Hidden Name 2 Dorset, Skylar

The Girl Who Never Was 1 Dorset, Skylar

The Magickers Vol. 1 Drake, Emily

The Magickers Vol. 2 Drake, Emily

Dragonsdale Drake, Salamanda

Half Magic Eager, Edward

The Last of the Really Great Wangdoodles Edwards, Julie Andrews

Happy Marriage 2 Enjoji, Maki

Harry Potter Fact Book Farrington, Karen and Lewis Constable

Rocket science for babies Ferrie, Chris

Once Upon a Marigold Ferris, Jean

Bridget Jones's Diary Fielding, Helen

Wellspring of Magic Fields, Jan

Erak's Ransom 7 Flanagan, John

The Battle for Skandia 4 Flanagan, John

The Burning Bridge 2 Flanagan, John

The Icebound Land 3 Flanagan, John

The Rangers Apprentice 1 Flanagan, John

The Outcasts Flanagan, John

The Diary of a Young Girl Frank, Anne

Sphinx's Princess Friesner, Esther M.

Igraine the Brave Funke, Cornelia

Inkdeath 3 Funke, Cornelia

Inkheart 1 Funke, Cornelia

Inkspell 2 Funke, Cornelia

Bloody Kiss 2 Furumiya, Kazuko

Stardust Gaimen, Neil

Scarlet Gaughen, A.C.

Dragon Flight 2 George, Jessica Day

Dragon Slippers 1 George, Jessica Day

Dragon Spear 3 George, Jessica Day

Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow George, Jessica Day

Princess of the Midnight Ball 1 George, Jessica Day

Princess of Glass 2 George, Jessica Day

Princess of the Silver Woods 3 George, Jessica Day

Ruby Red 1 Gier, Kerstin

Sapphire Blue 2 Gier, Kerstin

Emerald Green 3 Gier, Kerstin

The Book Jumper Gläser, Mechthild

Mines of the Minotaur 3 Golding, Julia

Secret of the Sirens 1 Golding, Julia

The Chimera Curse 4 Golding, Julia

The Diamond of Drury Lane 1 Golding, Julia

The Gorgon's Gaze 2 Golding, Julia

The Princess Bride Goldman, William

Escape from Mr Lemoncello's Library Grabstein, Chris

The Wind in the Willows Grahame, Kenneth

A Thousand Pieces of You Gray, Claudia

Tales of the Greek Heroes Green, Roger Lancelyn

Tales of Ancient Egypt Green, Roger Lancelyn

Rated Grey, Melissa

Grimm's Fairy Tales Grimm, Jakob & Wilhelm

Water for Elephants Gruen, Sara

The Princess Academy Hale, Shannon

The Princess Academy Hale, Shannon

The Fairie Ring Hamilton, Kiki

Violet Wings 1 Hanley, Victoria

Indigo Magic 2 Hanley, Victoria

The Fourth Ruby 2 Hannibal, James R.

The Lost Property Office 1 Hannibal, James R.

Seraphina Hartman, Rachel

Ouran high school host club 10 Hatori, Bisco

Ouran high school host club 14 Hatori, Bisco

Ouran high school host club 15 Hatori, Bisco

Pandora Gets Frightened 6 Hennesy, Carolyn

Pandora Gets Vain 2 Hennesy, Carolyn

Hoot Hiaasen, Carl

vb rose 1 Hidaka, Banri

vb rose 2 Hidaka, Banri

vb rose 3 Hidaka, Banri

Portrait of m&n 1 Higuchi, Tachibana

Portrait of m&n 2 Higuchi, Tachibana

City of Masks Hoffman, Mary

The Iliad Homer

The Odyssey Homer

Reawakened Houck, Colleen

Invitation to the Game Hughes, Monica

Pay it Forward Hyde, Catherine Ryan

Dial-a-Ghost Ibbotson, Eva

Which Witch? Ibbotson, Eva

Magic Flutes Ibbotson, Eva

The Secret of Platform 13 Ibbotson, Eva

Demon Sacred 2 Itsuki, Natsumi

Demon Sacred 3 Itsuki, Natsumi

Demon Sacred 1 Itsuki, Natsumi

Princess of Thorns Jay, Stacey

A Thousand Nights Johnston, E.K.

The Enchanted Quest 5 Jones, Allan Frewin

The Fairie Path 1 Jones, Allan Frewin

The Immortal Realm 4 Jones, Allan Frewin

The Lost Queen 2 Jones, Allan Frewin

The Sorcerer King 3 Jones, Allan Frewin

Howl's Moving Castle Jones, Diana Wynne

A Tale of Time City Jones, Diana Wynne

The Phantom Tollbooth Juster, Norton

The Midnight Dance Katz, Nikki

The Day of the Djinn Warriors Kerr, P.B.

The Stonekeeper Kibuishi, Kazu

Mamotte lollipop 1 Kikuta, Michiyo

mamotte lollipop 2 Kikuta, Michiyo

mamotte lollipop 3 Kikuta, Michiyo

mamotte lollipop 4 Kikuta, Michiyo

mamotte lollipop 5 Kikuta, Michiyo

mamotte lollipop 6 Kikuta, Michiyo

The Diabolic Kincaid, S.J.

The Jungle Books Kipling, Rudyard

From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler Konigsburg, E.L.

Enchanted 1 Kontis, Alethea

Hero 2 Kontis, Alethea

Swindle Korman, Gordon

Chasing the Falconers 1 Korman, Gordon

Hunting the Hunter 6 Korman, Gordon

The Friday Society Kress, Adrienne

Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos LaFevers, R.L.

The Coming of Dragons Lake, A.J.

Defy Larson, Sara B.

The Very Short, Entirely True History of Unicorns Laskow, Sarah

The Portal Lasky, Kathryn

25 Women Who Dared to Go Lassieur, Allison

To Kill a Mocking Bird Lee, Harper

Wings Lethcoe, Jason

Ella Enchanted Levine, Gail Carson

The Princess Tales Levine, Gail Carson

The Two Princesses of Bamarre Levine, Gail Carson

Prince Caspian 4 Lewis, C.S.

The Horse and His Boy 3 Lewis, C.S.

The Last Battle 7 Lewis, C.S.

The Magicians Nephew 1 Lewis, C.S.

The Silver Chair 6 Lewis, C.S.

The Voyage of the Dawn Treader 5 Lewis, C.S.

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe 2 Lewis, C.S.

Spinning Starlight Lewis, R.C.

Pippi Longstocking Lindgren, Astrid

#books #my books #i own all of these #part 1

[iamadarshbadri]

Review: Pashakhanlou's Realism and Fear in International Relations

Review: Pashakhanlou’s Realism and Fear in International Relations

Realism and fear in international relations: Morgenthau, Waltz and Mearsheimer reconsidered. By Arash Heydarian Pashakhanlou. Palgrave Macmillan. 2017. 177 pp. eBook How has fear influenced the realist theory of international relations? Several intellectual traditions have employed the apparatus of fear to explain international politics. However, emotion has become synonymous with the realist…

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#Arash Pashakhanlou #Book Review #emotional theory of internaitonalrelations #emotions #fear #fear and realism #Fear and Realism in International Relations #fear and theory building #Hans Morgenthau #International Politics #international relations #Kenneth Waltz #Mearsheimer #politics of emotions #rationalist school #realism #realist school #United States

[betterself]

Could you please write tips on studying IR? Also can you recommend books which are essential for this field? If you could write me a list I would be very happy. Thank you!!

Of course! Here you go, some tips that I hope can be useful:

Read the news every single day. So basic, but so so important. You have to know about, at least, the main events that are going on in the international arena, and even worst: have an educated opinion on most of them.

The Very Short Introduction series is every student's friend when learning about conceptual and theoretical topics, plus most of university libraries have some titles.

IR are multidisciplinar, learn about everything that interests you because you are likely to find a way to link it with your studies. From the history of rural Japan to bioengineering, everything fits here. Most of your job as a student will be to read a lot and go to every conference ever hold.

Start doing some sort of internship as soon as possible. It's such a competitive field, you will need a lot of experience even to apply for a post-grad internship. If you haven't started uni yet, do some voluntary work that has to do with the environment, refugees or something that you are passionate about.

Same with the languages, start asap. You will be expected to be fluent in at least 3 languages (including English) when you apply for most jobs.

Participate in Models of UN or other role-playing academic activities (like Models of Parliaments and stuff like that). They are so much fun and you will learn a lot.

Create relationships with everybody around you: teachers, other students, the guest speakers in a conference... IR is not the field to be a loner and you might need those contacts later.

And now, some books! Keep in mind that my list is pretty objective, I'm writing down some titles that scholars quote often or authors that are 'classics' of the field, even if I don't like some of them (cofcofKissingercofcof). All of them, however, are worth reading to understand what's going on in the academic world of international studies.

Diplomacy; Henry Kissinger.

Guns, Germs and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies; Jared Diamond.

Man, the State and War: A Theoretical Analysis; Kenneth N. Waltz.

Nations and Nationalism; Ernest Gellner.

The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order; Samuel P. Huntington.

The End of History and the Last Man; Francis Fukuyama.

World Order; Henry Kissinger.

And two bonuses, books that even if they are not IR classics, I hold close to my heart:

Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind; Yuval Noah Harari. Not a IR book, but I believe it's ideal for every social sciences' student. It will change your perspective on some topics and sharpen your critical spirit.

The Arabs: A History; Eugene Rogan. It is a very dense book on Arab history, but it inspired me immensely. It made me want to study Diplomacy.

I hope this is the answer you were looking for! Thank you so much for your ask! xxx.

#ask #clarasposts #international relations #studyspiration #studyblr #studyspo #study motivation

[shakyas-musical-voyage]

This song was played from The Complete Keyboard Player Book-1 by Kenneth Baker on Yamaha PSR E-463 with below mentioned settings.

Voice: Harmonica (039)

Style: Country Waltz (215)

Tempo: 100

#yamaha #e463 #keyboard #piano #pianolove #easy piano #piano music #6 year old #shakya keyboard cover #Shakya Gaigole #piano cover #kids #cover song #the complete keyboard player book #rio grande #folk song #traditional #sea shanties #sea song

[harryforvogue]

Movie Recs!

Some movie recommendations for you all. These are the best of the best movies. Click on title of each movie to watch its trailer! I watch a lot of movies so I will constantly be updating this! x 

Updated: 3/5/2018

Anthropoid (WW2) (Jamie Dornan, Cillian Murphy)

The Book Thief (WW2) (Sophie Nelisse, Ben Schnetzer)

Inglourious Basterds (WW2) (Brad Pitt, Christop Waltz)

Hamlet (Kenneth Branagh, Kate Winslet)

The Princess Diaries I (Anne Hathaway, Robert Schwartzman)

Dunkirk (WW2) (Fionn Whitehead, Cillian Murphy, Kenneth Branagh)

Suite Francaise (WW2) (Michelle Williams, Matthias Schoenaerts)

Titanic (Leo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet)

The Wolf of Wall Street (Leo DiCaprio, Margot Robbie)

Grease! (John Travolta, Olivia Newton-John)

Saving Private Ryan (WW2) (Tom Hanks, Matt Damon)

The Great Gatsby (2013) (Leo DiCaprio, Carey Mulligan)

Midnight in Paris (Owen Wilson, Rachel McAdams, Tom Hiddleston)

Forrest Gump (Tom Hanks, Robin Wright, Sally Field)

Animated Beauty and the Beast 

Love Actually (Hugh Grant, Kiera Knightly...)

Pretty Woman (Julie Roberts, Richard Gere)

To Kill a Mockingbird (Gregory Peck, Mary Badham)

Kill Your Darlings (Daniel Radcliffe, Dane DeHaan)

Castaway (Tom Hanks, Helen Hunt)

Revolutionary Road (Leo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet)

Dead Poets Society (Robin Williams, Ethan Hawke)

Fifty Shades of Grey. Darker. Freed. (Jamie Dornan, Dakota Johnson)

Harry Potter Series (Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint)

Pocahontas

Moana

#movies #movie recommendations #movie #hollywood #my favorite movies #history #historical fiction #romantica comedies #disney

[markwatkinsconsumerguide]

Consumer Guide / No.98 / American television, film and stage actress, Bernadette Quigley with Mark Watkins.

MW : What’s new?

BQ : Currently, work is sparse as most of my businesses have been shut down because of the COVID-19 pandemic. No films or television shows are being shot in NYC at this moment in time and most of my side businesses are on pause as well. This season’s gardening work didn’t happen at all (because NYC had not yet deemed gardening an essential service).

Thankfully, I have a few coaching (acting) clients I work with often and I had one job before this pandemic hit that I’m still working on - a press and radio campaign for Irish singer-songwriter Ultan Conlon’s beautiful new record, ‘There’s a Waltz’. It’s been gratifying to see reviewers agreeing with me that it’s Ultan’s finest record thus far!

MW : Tell me about your role in Law & Order...

BQ : Well, I had four Law & Order roles, actually. Two are on Law & Order: SVU and two are on the mothership Law & Order.

My first big role on SVU was of a victim, Jean Weston, on the season finale of their 2nd season, many moons ago. This character was a mother and wife from Oregon whose husband and son got stabbed to death by a serial killer – played by Richard Thompson.

I’ll never forget this role for many reasons but primarily it was a job where I discovered I could cry on cue. The director and producers decided they wanted to end the episode with a huge close up of my character, breaking down in the gallery in the courtroom. One of the producers shouted out, “Bernadette…can you cry on cue!?” I meekly replied, “Sure.” Next thing I hear was…”rolling….” and “ACTION”… I looked up, terrified I wouldn’t be able to summon up tears but imagined the hell my character went through and looked deeply into Chris Meloni’s eyes and …phew!...started to cry!

The Law & Order franchise has been a godsend for many actors. Not just financially, which it has and still is but for me, the experience I gained working on those shows led to a lot more television and film work over the years, so I’m forever grateful to creator/producer, Dick Wolf.

MW : What are your own views on law & order? Anything you’d like to see relaxed or tightened up on?

BQ : Feels very naïve and idealistic to say this, but I’d love to see major, police reform. Police brutality is despicable and out of control, especially in Black communities. 

I believe we’re beginning to see the power of the Black Lives Matter movement resulting in some of these police officers losing their jobs and sometimes being arrested themselves for their unspeakable acts of violence, but I imagine we, as a nation, need to keep the pressure on. The police brutality simply has to stop. There has to be more consequences for those senseless deaths. There has to be better training, etc...

I’d also love to see major gun control in this country. I would love to see guns banned. Period. But that’s highly unrealistic as this country tragically has a major addiction to their gun culture. Perhaps someday we’ll have some common-sense gun control again such as background checks, and high-capacity magazine and semi-automatic assault weapon bans.

MW : What was it like working with Kenneth Branagh?

BQ : I suggested Kenneth’s play “Public Enemy” to the Irish Arts Center’s Artistic Director at the time, Nye Heron, and was emailing and talking with Kenneth’s assistant quite a lot before setting up a meeting with Kenneth and Nye.

I was flying high that I helped to secure the rights to his play. Kenneth then came to our first read-through, and he came back to see a preview or two. He was an absolute prince, kind, intelligent, caring, witty.

However, this success was so bittersweet because my dad died right before we opened the play, a performance I had dedicated to him before he died (because my dad loved Jimmy Cagney, and the main character of the play was obsessed with Cagney). The play got great reviews and we ran for five months. It was so difficult for me to fully appreciate the success of this show as I was mourning the most devastating loss of my life.

MW : Which "shelved" film appearance of yours should have seen the light of day?

BQ : There’s a provocative film I am in about a racial experiment that is under the radar called, “The Suspect” (2014), which stars Mekhi Phifer, Sterling K. Brown and William Sadler.

By the way, I am currently in three indie films that I’m psyched for the world to see: I play a lead role in “Darcy” which is available (worldwide) to stream on Herflix.com; “The Garden Left Behind” has just landed international distribution, so stay tuned for the release date! And finally, I have an interesting supporting role in a film called “Tahara” which had its world premiere at Slamdance in January and is slated for more film festivals.

MW : What makes a good film/TV critic? Can you name any?

BQ : One that doesn’t give the plot, or too much dialogue away. I often don’t read reviews of films, or television shows, I want to watch because I love going in – not being influenced by another’s opinion. But sometimes, I’ll read reviews afterwards to learn more about the evolution of a film or TV show. I often find myself agreeing with A.O.Scott’s (NY Times) film reviews.

MW : How do you usually prepare for an acting role, and has a character ever taken you over?

BQ : The first thing I do is read the script several times and see what the words are telling me about the character, and how other characters view that person. If it’s a period piece, I research the era or history surrounding the event in the play, or screenplay. Eventually, I forget my research, learn my words and hopefully let the character inhabit me emotionally, physically and psychologically, spiritually etc…and try my best to be fully present with the other actors I’m working with moment-to-moment. Every project is different.

Yes, there were times, I found it difficult to shut off the pain of a character after some performances. Two that come to mind are two intensely emotional theatre roles I performed at the Repertory of St. Louis, Elizabeth Proctor in “The Crucible”, and Agnes in “Bug”.

MW : Is performing on film different to TV as an acting discipline?

BQ : I think it all depends on the style of the film, or television show. With a TV show like Law & Order, it’s formulaic and heightened realism (acting style) and so one makes sure one knows every single word, and hits one’s marks, and if it calls for emoting then one must emote! Some films I’ve done are grittier-kitchen-sink realism. A very minimalistic style of acting.

MW : Has your song-writer husband ever penned a song for you?

BQ : Yes, many….Don (Rosler) primarily writes for and with other artists – on the John Margolis: Christine’s Refrigerator CD, there’s many tunes that speak to many moments within the course of our lives: the title track (altho’ the name was changed), “Scrap of Hope” (a pep talk to me when I was stuck at a temp job I hated), “Here’s Something You Don’t See Every Day” (a wedding reverie that literally started in Don’s mind when I fell asleep on his shoulder), and he wrote an exquisite lyric for Bobby McFerrin’s Grammy-nominated record VOCAbuLarieS, a song called “Brief Eternity”… where his words infuse my love for gardening: “Working in the garden has you... ...Breathing in the bloom and then you View the sunset view to move you Close to truly understanding Life and death but nothing ending Voices living on”…..

MW : Tell me about some of your favourite music...

BQ : My music tastes are pretty eclectic – besides all the indie artists I’ve done publicity for, I love so many styles of music from classical to folk to country but here’s some of my fave artists: Tom Waits, Joni Mitchell, Bob Dylan, Stevie Wonder, Pink, Beyonce, Billie Holiday, Ani DiFranco, Ibeyi, Sinead O’Connor, Prince, Bjork, Leonard Cohen, Kacey Musgraves, K.D. Lang, Laura Mvula, Frank Sinatra, Ray Charles, Billy Bragg, and Randy Newman, among many others.

MW : ...and your favourite films....

BQ : Ohhhhh-so-many faves but a few, in no particular order :

Portrait Of A Lady On Fire (2019) 

Parasite (2019)

Secrets & Lies (1996) 

Vera Drake (2004)

Pain And Glory (2019)

Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind (2004)

BlacKkKlansman (2018) 

A Fantastic Woman (2017) 

Babette’s Feast (1987)

Coco (2017) 

To Kill A Mockingbird  (1962)

Nights of Cabiria (1957)

The 400 Blows (1959)

12 Years A Slave (2013) 

Jean de Florette (1986)

Trees Lounge (1996)

My Left Foot (1989)

In America (2002)  (I know I’m biased but still…such a beautiful film)! 

Annie Hall  (1977)

My Beautiful Laundrette (1985) 

My Brilliant Career (1979)

 And I also love documentaries and a ton of old movies from the 1930’s and 1940’s, such as The Lady Eve (1941).

MW : ...plus your favourite books....

BQ : I’m currently reading this years New York Times Bestseller American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins (it’s excellent!).

Some of my all-time faves are :

Of Human Bondage ~ W. Somerset Maugham (1915)

A Confederacy Of Dunces ~ John Kennedy Toole (1980)

Angela’s Ashes ~ Frank McCourt (1996)

The Grapes Of Wrath ~ John Steinbeck (1939) 

Lady Chatterley's Lover ~  D.H Lawrence (1960)

Olive Kitteridge ~ Elizabeth Strout (2008) 

Americanah ~ Chimanda Ngozi Adichie (2013) 

The Feast of Love ~ Charles Baxter (2000) 

Everything Here Is Beautiful ~ Mira T. Lee (2008)

An American Tragedy ~ Theodore Dreiser (1925)

Sister Carrie ~  Theodore Dreiser (1900)

Act One ~ Moss Hart (1959) 

Born A Crime ~ Trevor Noah (2016) 

Wild : From Lost To Found On The Pacific Crest Trail ~ Cheryl Strayed (2012)

MW : You enjoy gardening. How is yours designed and tended to?

BQ : I don’t have my very own garden. I live in NYC and dream of having a country house with a garden of my own one day!

This is the reason I started a side business of urban gardening. My dad was an extraordinary gardener and after he died, I started tending to my mother’s flower gardens. Then I found myself volunteering at a neighborhood garden and that led to me working in other people’s gardens. Primarily small back gardens and some rooftop or balcony gardens.

I specialize in flowers, shrubs and trees and love planting lots of perennials (flowers and plants) with annuals so there’s lots of varying blossoms of different heights and textures, throughout spring, summer and fall. 

When possible, if space allows, I also love incorporating foot paths, rock walls, or other elements in gardens – art/birdbaths/benches/statues that might be a sweet focal point but primarily I love the combinations of plants, trees, shrubs and flowers to be the focal points.

MW : Recommend five flowers...that every good garden should have!

BQ : Daffodils - one of the first signs of spring! Muscari (aka grape hyacinths) – the color (blue) is gorgeous, as is the scent. Climbing roses – the beauty and romantic history of roses. Anemone Robustissima (late blooming perennial flower). Lady Ferns (okay not a flower, but I’m a fern freak and I love ferns of all kinds!, but Lady ferns in particular are stunning when they sit beside most flowers or surround trees).

MW : How opinionated are you on current events? Would you like to be more, or less opinionated?

BQ : I’m extremely opinionated on current events but find it difficult to find ways to communicate my thoughts without screaming angrily from the rooftops and then of course not being heard. There are those that say we have an obligation to try to talk sense into people whose viewpoints are much more extreme than one’s own (either extreme conservative or extreme liberal). 

I’m very liberal but am more pragmatic when it comes to progress, not perfection, so I’m very happy to enthusiastically vote for someone like Joe Biden or in 2016, Hillary Clinton, but I honestly don’t know how to reach people whose minds are already made up – people who either continue to justify their support for the current racist/narcissist/sexist/pathological liar-in-chief, or that justify their “protest” vote by falsely equivocating both candidates as “the same” or “the lesser of two evils”.

So yeah, I offend people at times because yes, I’m judgmental when it comes to politics and I most definitely believe in the power of protests, but believe just as strongly in the collective power of one’s vote and it drives me insane when others don’t show up and vote for local elections, and national ones.

I find I do hold back on Facebook, not because I’m afraid to voice my opinions but because it becomes too much of a time suck for me.

MW : What character traits frustrate you?

BQ : Impatience (in myself). Aggression (in myself and others).

MW : What’s the kindest thing another person has done for you?

BQ : I find this question so complex to answer. There are so many inexplicable moments in my life, where I’ve been blown away by many seemingly small gestures or kind words from strangers. And professionally, I’ve been truly blessed to work with some top-notch directors that gave me the gift of encouraging me to fully trust my artistic instincts.

When I was a child, my parents were not the type of people who conveyed their love in typically demonstrative ways, in ways that I honestly craved, so on the rare occasions when either one of them did utter something like “We’re proud of you”, or “I love you”, I was very moved by them going past their own comfort zones to express that kind of sentiment!

I’ve had many personal and professional challenges in my life and many of my siblings have been there for me over the years in ways I can’t really articulate without choking up. I also think having the courage to face one’s disagreements and past hurt, which comes with the territory of most friendships and relationships, is an act of kindness that I most value. Those I feel closest to have stuck it through with me by navigating through some painful, complex and messy misunderstandings. I’ll never forget those acts of kindness and generosity.

MW : What have you lost, growing older... and gained?

BQ : My mom died in January, and as I mentioned, my dad died many years ago. Sometimes I feel the depths of that loss – the fact that I don’t have my parents to share the ups and downs of the events of the rest of my life. Of course, I do have them close to my heart and their spirits live on….but damn I miss them! I’ve definitely gained a profound appreciation for them and their influence on me in countless ways.

On a professional level, as an older actress, unfortunately it’s easy to become invisible but I’m not ready to disappear and am joining the fight against ageism! I’m drawn to stories and filmmakers that include women and men of all ages, genders and ethnicities.

Perhaps if enough roles are not forthcoming in the next number of years, I’ll venture into writing and directing at some point.

MW : Where can we find out more / keep in touch?

BQ : Thanks so much, here’s a few links…!

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0703489/

https://twitter.com/quigdette

https://www.instagram.com/quigdette/

https://www.facebook.com/bernadette.quigley.3

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bernadette_Quigley

https://bernadettequigleymedia.wordpress.com/

https://bernadettetheconstantgardener.wordpress.com/bio/

© Mark Watkins / July 2020

[newyorkprelawland-blog]

Why Did The United States Choose To Engage In A Trade War With China To Begin With?

By Katarina Vattes, Binghamton University Class of 2022

June 15, 2020

Since the beginning of its creation, the United States has always been considered one of the major superpowers of the world, being that they have established political and economic dominance over a majority of the globe (Joseph). As a result of this, the United States has been very careful in their monitoring of other countries in order to be in the best position to defend themselves against competing global economies. ​Beginning in the year 2018, the United States started restricting China from becoming a more powerful economy, in order to defend their own position. The United States has the largest growing economy in the present world and China has been rising in power, growing to become the second largest economy in the world (Mirzayev). In doing this, the United States has been instituting many tariffs on Chinese goods in order to limit the overall growth of their economy. These tensions have persisted throughout recent years and created a damper on the relationship between the United States and China. As a result, citizens in both the United States and China have been suffering considerably, facing economic pressure and lowering income levels. These tensions have led the United States to engage in a trade deficit with China, putting the United States at a greater disadvantage for their further expansion. 

International trade allows for countries to expand their market by promoting trade and economic growth (Shan). In the presence of a trade war between two powerful nations, international trade can be hindered which actually impedes overall economic growth. ​Trade wars can be defined as the actions of Country A against Country B in retaliation of Country B’s raising tariffs on Country A’s imports (Chen). In recent years, the relationship between China and the United States has been significantly altered because of the rising economic tensions between these two resilient nations. Although the trade wars between the United States and China has allowed for greater competition and competitive markets, these tariffs have actually hurt citizens in the process. The development of trade between these two countries is very important and must be restored in order to end the suffering of citizens. 

From a general standpoint, the United States purchases significantly more consumer goods from China than China does from the United States. American consumers buy roughly $500 billion dollars worth of goods from China, whereas China only purchases approximately a fifth of that number (Shan). In response to the trade deficit, in September of 2019, the Trump Administration increased tariffs on another $125 billion worth of Chinese imports, causing China to increase tariffs on an additional $75 billion worth of United States goods (Shan). These tit-for-tat tariffs have been visible over the past two years. Because the United States has been engaging in a trade deficit since 1975, the Trump Administration points fingers at the United States and Chinese trade relationship as the primary cause of this. As a result of the Trump Administration’s neorealist viewpoints, President Donald Trump believes that the Chinese are purposefully engaging in this sort of relationship in order to hurt the United States in the long run. Actions similar to these have been persisting throughout this past year, leading tensions to skyrocket to an all-time high.

Neorealism theory is the best approach in explaining the overall cause for why the United States decided to engage in a trade war with China. Neorealism theory helps to discuss how individualistic state actions actually affect the overall growing structure of the economy when there is no central authority guiding each sovereign state (Waltz). Neorealism proposes that power is the most important factor in international relations and it can be acquired by gaining economic power and military power (Waltz). The main goal of these sovereign, autonomous states is to acquire security for their citizens in order to ensure the eternal survival of their country and economy (Waltz). These actors interact in zero-sum situations which say that there is an inverse relationship between gains and losses of Country A in comparison to Country B (Morgenstern & Neumann). These zero-sum situations are important to understand because they show how these sovereign states will do whatever they need to in order to get ahead of competing states and become more powerful than their opponents. Acquiring military or economic power is indicative of being considered the most powerful superpower of the world which is contingent with Donald Trump’s views of this situation. In this neorealist society, the stronger nations, such as the United States, are likely to dominate smaller, weaker countries due to the logic of self-help and egoism (Waltz). 

The United States feels the need to protect themselves because they feel that nobody else (other than they, themselves) can defend their position of being the most powerful economy in the world. Current President Donald Trump believes that since China has been exporting more and more to the United States, resulting in a trade deficit with China, that this is indicative of China becoming more powerful than the United States (Shan). Neorealism is helpful in discussing the structure of the economy in relation to state actions because it depicts the United States’ strategic actions as being the direct result of this mindset. The United States feels threatened by China’s rise and feels as though the only way to fight back is to restrict China’s exports to the United States. Because the United States has historically had the most powerful economy, they feel the need to defend themselves against China’s rising power and ensure their position as being the most powerful economy in the world. The United States is trying to be less dependent on China in terms of trade in order to ensure their pursued global power. 

Neorealism e​xplains why the United States has gravitated towards instituting tariffs as their mode of retaliation against China for becoming too powerful. In terms of the United States and China trade war, the United States feels as if they are the only ones that are capable of ensuring their own power remains legitimate. The United States decided to engage in a trade war with China because of their fears of China becoming too powerful and believe that the only way to stop their success is by eliminating trade with China completely. President Trump believes that a strong economy and military are indicated by the number of imports we receive from China, in comparison to the United States’ exports to China. This has led the tensions between the United States and China to skyrocket and cause tit-for-tat tariffs between these two powerful countries. Eliminating this trade war will help to ease tensions and cause free trade between these two nations to begin once again. 

________________________________________________________________

Katarina Vattes is a rising junior at Binghamton University, double majoring in Political Science and Psychology. She is very involved on campus with the Boys and Girls Club, Residential Life Hall Government Social Affairs Vice President, and is Vice President of her sorority, Sigma Delta Tau. Katarina is interested in pursuing a career in law and has an on-campus internship this upcoming fall as a Social Media Coordinator for Harpurs Edge, a resource center for students on campus.

________________________________________________________________

Appendix:

Figure 1: U.S. Trade with China - Leading Commodity Imports and Exports: 2010 to 2018

According to Figure 1: Table 1334: Trade with China-Leading Commodity Imports and Exports: 2010 to 2019, there was a significant decrease in the overall total number of exports that the United States has sent to China from the years 2017 to 2018, nearing the time that the trade war between these two nations has begun.

Chen, James. “What Is a Trade War?” Investopedia, Investopedia, 21 Aug. 2019, 

https://www.investopedia.com/terms/t/trade-war.asp.

Joseph, Johnathan. “Realism and Neorealism in International Relations Theory.” Wiley Online 

Library, American Cancer Society, 15 Sept. 2014, https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi

/abs/10.1002/97/.

Mirzayev, Elvin. “Impact of the Chinese Economy on the U.S. Economy in 2018.” Investopedia, 

Investopedia, 17 June 2019, https://www.investopedia.com/articles/investing/072915/

impact-chinese-economy-us-economy.asp.

Morgenstern, Oskar and John Von Neumann. “Sign Up for Newsletter Updates.” Princeton 

University, The Trustees of Princeton University, https://press.princeton.edu/books/

paperback/9780691130613/theory-of-games-and-economic-behavior.

Shan, Weijian. “The Unwinnable Trade War.” Foreign Affairs, Foreign Affairs Magazine, 8 Oct. 

2019, https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/asia/2019-10-08/unwinnable-trade-war.

U.S. International Trade Commission. "U.S. Trade With China-Leading Commodity Imports 

And Exports: 2010 To 2018 [Selected Years]." ProQuest Statistical Abstract of the U.S. 

2019 Online Edition. Ed. ProQuest, 2019. Web: ProQuest Statistical Abstract 11/19

https://statabs-proquest-com.proxy.binghamton.edu/sa/docview.html?table-no=1334&acc

-no=C7095-1.28&year=2019&z=B3C60CFB9211EF6E290BE7ECB71B51438C17D572

Waltz, Kenneth N. Theory of International Politics. Waveland Press, Inc.

[clarislam]

Reading List as of June 25th, 2020:

Book Reviews to be posted:

“Let’s Dance A Waltz, Vol. 2″ by Natsumi Ando (Coming up next Tuesday!)

“Let’s Dance A Waltz, Vol. 3″ by Natsumi Ando (Coming up next Wednesday since it’ll be the 1st of July!)

“Ender’s Game” by Orson Scott Card

“In Real Life” by Cory Doctorow & Jen Wang

“Sweet” by Emily Laybourne

“My Room Is A Dungeon Rest Stop, Vol. 1″ by Tougoku Hudou

“The Queen Of Swords” by R.S. Belcher

“You Are Alice In Wonderland’s Mum!” by Sherwin Tjia

“The Devil Is A Part-Timer! Vol. 15″ by Satoshi Wagahara

Books I’m currently reading:

“The Devil Is A Part-Timer! Vol. 16″ by Satoshi Wagahara

“Spymaster” by Margaret Weis and Robert Krammes

Books I will read eventually:

“Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid: Vol. 1″ by Coolkyoushinja

“I Married My Best Friend to Shut My Parents Up” by Kodama Naoko

“The Case Of The Love Spell: A Hillcrest Witch Mystery” by Amorette Anderson

“The Traveler” by Lovelyn Bettison

“Grimm Tidings” by J.C. Gilbert

“The Journey of Inspiration” by My Cosmic Backyard

“Black” from “The Circle” series by Ted Dekker

“Intangible” by C.A. Gray

“The Crimson Inkwell” by Kenneth A. Baldwin

“The Zombie Apocalypse Convenience Store” by Taylor A. Ellwood.

Books I’ve dropped (a.k.a did not finish (DNF) and will not be reviewing):

“The Clockwrok Scarab” by Colleen Gleason (DNF at 18%)

Books I hope to get my hands on soon so I can read them eventually:

“Out of the Shadows” by Ashlee Nicole Bye

“Queens of Geek” by Jen Wilde

“Dead Air: A Glenn Beckert Mystery” by Cliff Protzman

“Pulse Point” by Colleen Nelson and Nancy Chappell-Pollack

“A Totally Awkward Love Story” by Tom Ellen and Lucy Ivison

#reading list #books #am reading #amreading #reading #literature #upcoming book reviews #mystical reads #june 25th 2020