#specialized tribunals | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

ciaonicole85 · 6 days

Text

Part 1: What then?

Some seemingly innocent, but truly mind-altering information is shared in a staff meeting.

Short fan fic. Low-key Sydcarmy/The Bear fluff. Post-season 2. Canon-compliant.

Location: The Bear

Time: 10:05 a.m.

The restaurant had closed lunch service on a Tuesday for a "Development Day". The Bear had been open for 5 months and had a 2 month wait list! After Family and Friends when they had all banded together the Bear crew had gotten tighter than ever. Carmen had been a outsider in his own restaurant for a couple weeks, but soon the dust settled. Even Sydney came around after 3 weeks of his patient groveling. The duo was good and soon The Bear had become one of Chicago Tribune's "Best New Restaurants." However, with success The Bear was changing fast. They had hired more full-time front and kitchen staff, which was great. The downside was that "respectful communication" and "customer complaint management" was waning a little. Things were not terrible, but Richie for whom Ever set the bar in hospitality, The Bear should always be improving, not sliding backwards. Natalie, Carmen and Sydney agreed. They also wanted to discuss new menu changes and a to-go system they would be testing soon.

"Okay, people! Let's get started" Natalie said beckoning everyone to take a seat at the front of house.

Richie stood next her "casually dressed" in a button down blue dress shirt and dark grey slacks.

He began, "As you know The Bear is on track to paying off the loan and we're the freakin' toast of the town right now, but this is not the time to take a nap. We gotta keep our eyes on the prize. So first, up facial regulation as known as RBF awareness."

Natalie tapped his shoulder and whispered, "Richie, I love your enthusiasm, but I thought we might start with an ice breaker?"

He shrugged and continued, "But Nat, has a ice breaker. Take it away".

Natalie resumed.

"So, first we want to thank each of you for being part of this dream and making it fun, rewarding, and successful. As you know The Bear is a family business and since there's new faces here we'd like to get to know you better and vice versa. We'll start with a quick round of "Best and Worst". Just pick a question out of the cup and answer it. Please keep your answers to 2 minutes."

The first question went to Randall, a young man in his early 20's with dark curly hair and thick glasses that frequently fogged in the humid kitchen. He was the new assistant pastry chef.

"What was the best place I ever lived? Hm…Guam. My dad, Army, was stationed on the base and I lived there from age 9-11. I had like 12 friends just on my block and we were always playing soccer, swimming, or riding our bikes. It was awesome."

"Thanks Randall!" Natalie chirped.

The next went to Tina.

"Ok…what is worst advice I've ever been given? Keep your head down and do what you know. That's the advice I used to give myself. Thankfully I didn't listen because now I'm a sous chef!"

Sydney who was sitting near the front between Gary and Carmy, beamed at Tina who returned the smile with a little moisture in her eyes.

The next question went to Marcus.

"Best moment in the last year? It was training at Noma, in Copenhagen. It was my first international trip. I got to stay in a houseboat, explore the city, meet cool people, and figure out that I wanted to do this maybe forever."

The last several months had been really hard due to Marcus's mom's passing. He had returned to work after a week of mourning citing that he knew she wouldn't want him to sit at home now that she was no longer sick. Despite that he was getting better every day and had come up with several new popular dessert specials. Tina was seated next to him and patted his arm.

The next few questions went to new dishwasher, Chris, Fak, and then Gary.

Sydney drew the next question and winced upon reading it. It wouldn't be possible to lie because Marcus already knew the truth.

"What was my best meal ever? Well…it was this pork confit with onions and rhubarb. Then after I had this dish called Milk and Honey."

She kept her eyes plastered on the tiny strip of paper while she spoke. In her peripheral field she could see Carm turning slightly towards her, his cornflower blue eyes boring two holes into the side of her head.

"Sounds grand. Ok, Carmy pick a question" Richie ordered wanting to get down to business by 10:30am.

Carmy didn't seem to hear him. He was on another planet.

"Yo cuz, pick a question!"

He startled and drew a question.

"Uh ok. Best part of my day? Hmmm. Closing up."

It was now Sydney's soul's turn to exit her body. Every night, with few exceptions, she and Carmy ended the night in his office to debrief on the day, perform last checks, and close together.

After a moment she felt his eyes still glancing at her. Without turning she whispered, "Later." The last thing she needed was to look at him, and forget how much time was passing, giving Richie yet another reason to tease them. Not long ago he gave them matching copies of a workplace relationship etiquette tip sheet stapled to an OSHA industrial hygiene handout before leaving them to close.

She sighed, trying to compose herself. It was no big deal. So what that Carm knew he was responsible for the best thing she ever ate? Also, they're partner-friends so it's totally normal that his favorite time of day when is they are together…alone. Right?

UH OH.

#the bear #sydcarmy #sydney x carmy #carmy the bear #sydney adamu #carmen berzatto #carmy x sydney #carmy berzatto #syd adamu #fan fiction #it's a love story #brain rot #they are so cute #if they can just stare some more in season 3

81 notes · View notes

hero-israel · 5 months

Text

During Nuremberg Trial testimony, the prosecutor pressed Einsatzgruppen commander Otto Ohlendorf: “You were going out to shoot down defenseless people. Now, didn’t the question of the morality of that enter your mind?” Ohlendorf referred to the Allied bombings of Germany as a context:

I am not in a position to isolate this occurrence from the occurrences of 1943, 1944, and 1945 where with my own hands I took children and women out of the burning asphalt myself, and with my own hands I took big blocks of stone from the stomachs of pregnant women; and with my own eyes I saw 60,000 people die within 24 hours.

A judge immediately pointed out that his own killing spree preceded those bombings. But this would become known as the “Dresden defense,” to which Ohlendorf resorted still another time, in this exchange:

Ohlendorf: I have seen very many children killed in this war through air attacks, for the security of other nations, and orders were carried out to bomb, no matter whether many children were killed or not. Q: Now, I think we are getting somewhere, Mr. Ohlendorf. You saw German children killed by Allied bombers and that is what you are referring to? Ohlendorf: Yes, I have seen it. Q: Do you attempt to draw a moral comparison between the bomber who drops bombs hoping that it will not kill children and yourself who shot children deliberately? Is that a fair moral comparison ? Ohlendorf: I cannot imagine that those planes which systematically covered a city that was a fortified city, square meter for square meter, with incendiaries and explosive bombs and again with phosphorus bombs, and this done from block to block, and then as I have seen it in Dresden likewise the squares where the civilian population had fled to—that these men could possibly hope not to kill any civilian population, and no children.

Ohlendorf thought this defense so powerful that he invoked it yet another time:

The fact that individual men killed civilians face to face is looked upon as terrible and is pictured as specially gruesome because the order was clearly given to kill these people; but I cannot morally evaluate a deed any better, a deed which makes it possible, by pushing a button, to kill a much larger number of civilians, men, women, and children.

(The chief prosecutor, an American, called this particular iteration “exactly what a fanatical pseudo-intellectual SS-man might well believe.”)

At Nuremberg, this sort of tu quoque defense (“I shouldn’t be punished because they did it too”) wasn’t admissible. Still, in the verdict of the Einsatzgruppen Trial, the judges chose to refute it. “It was submitted,” the judges wrote, “that the defendants must be exonerated from the charge of killing civilian populations since every Allied nation brought about the death of noncombatants through the instrumentality of bombing.” The judges would have none of it:

A city is bombed for tactical purposes… it inevitably happens that nonmilitary persons are killed. This is an incident, a grave incident to be sure, but an unavoidable corollary of battle action. The civilians are not individualized. The bomb falls, it is aimed at the railroad yards, houses along the tracks are hit and many of their occupants killed. But that is entirely different, both in fact and in law, from an armed force marching up to these same railroad tracks, entering those houses abutting thereon, dragging out the men, women and children and shooting them.

The tribunal sentenced Ohlendorf to death. He was hanged in June 1951.

“In the last analysis”

Nuremberg enforced a fundamental distinction. All civilian lives are equal, but not so all ways of taking them. The deliberate and purposeful killing of civilians is a crime; not so the taking of civilian lives that is undesired, unintended, but unavoidable. The errors made by a bomber squadron cannot be deducted from the murders committed by a death squad. It’s a difference compounded many times over when those civilian men, women, and children are subjected to torture, rape, and mutilation before their murder. To borrow Khalidi’s phrase, “in the last analysis,” this distinction is what separates modern civilization from its predecessors.

More disturbing is the thought that it separates the contemporary West from its peers. Otto Ohlendorf and the regime he served did all they could to conceal their deeds from Western eyes. Nazi Germany still operated in a West founded on Enlightenment values. So massive a violation of a shared patrimony needed to be hidden from view.

In contrast, Hamas initially sought to publicize its deeds, assuming they would win applause, admiration, or at least tacit acceptance in the Arab and Muslim worlds. Here they succeeded beyond their expectations. The many millions who don’t share the West’s patrimony, and who know next to nothing about the Holocaust or Nuremberg, do see things as Khalidi says they see them. (So, too, does a sliver of alienated opinion in the West, where such views are cultivated and celebrated.)

Finally, and still more disturbing, is the fact that Ohlendorf’s defense has been revived to frame the massacre of Jews.

#Hamas #Palestine #Nuremberg trials #Dresden defense #Israel #leftist antisemitism #jumblr #war crimes #genocide #crimes against humanity

155 notes · View notes

badperson-8 · 2 months

Text

Butting In (Part 3) Beel and Belphie

Male/AMAB MC finds an intriguing sex toy – a magical fleshlight, which is automatically connected to the body of whoever haunts their sexual fantasies. How will each brother react if MC succumbs to the temptation and uses the device?

amabMC x Beel | amabMC x Belphie

2.3k words | NSFW | Porn without plot | gn!pronouns MC | AO3 link

Content Warnings: Dub-con | Anal Sex | Cock Warming

Part 1 (Lucifer, Mammon, Levi) Part 2 (Satan, Asmo) Part 4 (Diavolo)

Beel

It’s an important day for Beel. The Fangol match, the most important game of the season, starts within minutes. The rival team is very challenging; it consists of the most ruthless and fearless demons. Beel’s team is not as daring, but this doesn’t matter; they’ve always succeeded thanks to their skills. So, no matter how cocky their opponents are, Beel’s team will be victorious.

The only thing that upsets Beel is the fact that MC didn’t make it to the game. The match is taking place in another city, far away from home. Far away from Lord Diavolo’s watchful eye. The further it is from the capital, the more hostile the locals are towards humans. Lucifer decided that it would be best to avoid any confrontations, so MC was left at home. While Beel understands his brother’s concerns, he wishes MC was here. He even tried to secretly carry them in a giant suitcase (MC was overjoyed by this plan), but Lucifer detected them instantly.

But even though MC was left at home, they will still be watching the game on TV. And that means that Beel has to do his best. He always does, but this time is… special.

The match begins and the rival team starts playing brutishly from the get-go. Their energy is almost admirable, but it’s nothing that can’t be countered by Beel’s skills. He notices that the cameramen constantly follow him since he is the main star of the game. Beel usually doesn’t care much, he’s used to constant attention. But MC is somewhere on the other side of these cameras, so he unconsciously attempts to look good. Luckily, Asmo gave him a couple of pieces of advice about the best angles and such, but it’s the first time Beel has managed to practice this knowledge. And judging by the impressed sighs of the fans on the tribunes, Beel is doing a great job.

Perhaps he’s doing a little too well.

A strange feeling within his body appears suddenly, almost making him miss the ball. Something penetrates him, slowly sliding inside. The sensation is incredibly strange, but Beel has no time to think about it too much: two giant demons are running right at him, with a clear goal to take away the ball. Beel frowns and concentrates on the game, ignoring strangely pleasant movements inside his ass. As long as they don’t bother him too much, it will be fine. Beel will deal with them later.

But as much as he wants to disregard this strange feeling, it gets more bothersome by the minute. First, it’s just light, almost careful touches. They are slightly annoying and ticklish, but nothing too maddening. Beel’s dick is reacting too eagerly, though, but at least the protection on his equipment, which is covering his groin, masks his boner from the other players and audience.

It’s hard to think when all the blood runs from the head all the way to the cock, but luckily, Beel is not the type of player who needs much thinking. His one and only strategy is his instincts and constant improvisation. So the demon continues playing as he always has, despite temporary distractions. Though, he does notice that his throws are a bit stronger than usual; that he pushes the member of the other team a bit too harshly. Beel’s body is getting agitated, and it impacts his style of playing.

The appearance of the sticky liquid inside his butt almost goes unnoticed. Beel’s body casually absorbs it, as it does with everything that gets inside. The problems start only when something bigger starts pushing inside, messing up an easy pass of the ball to the other player. Beel misses as his legs start shaking. His insides enjoy being massaged by this unknown object too much, and this frustrates the demon. He’s not going to lose because of this minor annoyance.

Beel focuses on his lower body, still carefully watching the ball. Just several more seconds, and he’ll be able to join the game properly. He just needs to get rid of the distraction. Beel’s muscles clench around the object, swallowing it deeper in one motion. His walls envelop it, preventing it from moving. Beel can’t hold back a satisfied smile. The intruder is stopped and trapped. And the surprising feeling of being full boosts Beel’s mood. He was always craving the sensation of fullness, but he didn’t expect to get it from his ass instead of his stomach. But Beel definitely won’t complain. So, with a mysterious object pleasantly filling his body, a huge boner that can be disregarded for now, and a new wave of energy, Beel returns to the game.

***

Meanwhile, in the House of Lamentation, MC panics. The damn artifact is completely stuck, and they can’t remove it from their dick. The toy pulsates and squeezes the hardened flesh, just enough to keep the dick inside but not enough to hurt it. MC lets out a heavy breath and looks at the screen of the TV. It seems that whoever is recording the game thinks that all the audience wants to see is Beel. Well, they are not completely wrong, especially when it comes to MC, but still. Beel looks too good in all this gear, and that’s what made MC try out this artifact in the first place. Now they regret it.

One more attempt to take this thing off ends in failure. MC tries to get rid of the boner, thinking about something completely unsexual, but alas. The artifact’s warmth and constant twitches around the cock drive MC crazy. It’s impossible to trick the brain into thinking about anything else besides these mind-blowing sensations. MC clenches their teeth and fists and continues watching the game. How long does it even last? MC looks at the timer in the corner of the screen. Damn, three hours. Well, perhaps they’ll manage to get so invested in the game, that the boner will go away by itself.

…But it never happens. By the end of these excruciating hours, MC is ready to bang their head against the wall. This sweet torture didn’t stop for the whole duration of the game. Their balls are ready to burst; the slightest physical contact, even from the surface of the damn couch, sends shivers along their whole body. The only thing they crave is a long-awaited release, but the artifact doesn’t let go, even for a moment.

MC hears an announcement that Beel’s team has finally won, so they open their eyes and turn in the direction of the TV. Blood pumping in their head doesn’t let them hear almost anything, but they find solace in the bright Beel’s smile.

As Beel takes the trophy into his hands, the artifact suddenly relaxes, stopping clenching around MC’s dick so harshly. MC feels tears of relief running down their face as they thrust inside the toy one last time, finally coming inside. As they lose consciousness from such an intense climax, all they can see is the satisfied grin of the demon on the screen.

Belphegor

Belphie smiles happily as he sleeps, hugging his favorite pillow and diving deeper into the dream. One of the perks of being the Avatar of Sloth is the ability to control his own dreams. Most of the time he just lets them roam freely, but lately he finds himself wanting to control them to recreate different scenarios. They are always different. Sometimes it’s a field under the night sky. Sometimes the House of Lamentation, or RAD, or one of the shops or restaurants. Places change, but one detail is constant.

MC. They are the star of every dream. Their presence feels natural, even necessary; without them, neither the field nor stupid RAD wouldn’t feel so magical. Most of the time Belphie just wants them nearby. They both don’t talk and don’t do much, just enjoying each other’s company in silence. Belphie doesn’t want to create artificial dialogs. How miserable would it be? The recreation of MC in his dreams is already embarrassing.

But lately, the demon has become more and more greedy with each dream. It never goes beyond handholding or comfy snuggles in each other’s embrace, but Belphie still feels uneasy. Who would’ve thought that he, the demon, would feel bad for using MC in his fantasies? But he made a great excuse for his conscience. It’s just training. Yeah, training to gain more confidence and then do the same thing with MC once again, just in real life. Belphie just doesn’t feel like he has enough practice. Just one more dream or two…

This time, the place is special. It’s a night express, a magical train that traverses the skies of the Devildom. To get the tickets on this train is incredibly difficult, but nothing is impossible within a dream.

Belphie sighs contently as the scene develops around him. The night sky and the land below seem unmovable behind the widows, but Belphie can feel the motion of the train. A round table, full of delicious-looking dishes, appears right in front of him. He can’t taste any of these meals, but it doesn’t matter. Because MC walks in the room, smiling at him. They sit at the table, and Belphie immediately joins. He settles right next to them, gawking at the familiar features of their face. It’s a good thing that Belphie has a good memory. MC smiles once again and takes him by the hand. The demon feels a blush on his face as he squeezes their hand tighter…

And then MC tears their hand from his grasp and instantly shoves two fingers right into Belphie’s ass. Through the pants and everything.

The demon squeaks and almost wakes up from shock, but he manages to stay within a dream. Belphie stares at a gentle smile on MC’s lips as he feels the movement of their fingers in his butt. The whole situation is so crazy that his brain refuses to analyze what is happening. Did he lose control over his dream, and now it has turned on him? But it never happened before. Besides, the feeling of the fingers is too real, like if MC was somewhere near his sleeping body and decided to… ‘play’ with him, impacting his dream and making his own imagination rebel. But it’s impossible, right?

The fingers continue to slide inside him, making the demon blush under MC’s attentive stare. Now their smile seems more mocking than gentle. Belphie shakes his head, trying to regain control over his emotions, but getting suddenly fingered by MC in the middle of the legendary train impacts his feelings more than he expected.

His embarrassment goes through the roof as he feels something wet on his hole. His entrance gets swiftly lubricated by skilled fingers, and all he can do is tremble and hide his red face from the imaginary MC.

MC slowly stands up, Belphie doesn’t feel their touch anymore. But he knows that it’s temporary. There is a sense of anticipation in the air, the demon knows that it’s not the end. He’s fully aware that as soon as whatever impacts his body proceeds with its plan, his dream will adapt. He can’t prevent the events from developing, they will take over his mind and body. The only thing Belphie can do is wake up. If he wakes up, chances are that the sensations won’t be gone, but at least he won’t deal with this imaginary MC.

But the demon hesitates. Maybe he… wants to see what happens next. Even if it’s not real, still. It’s almost like it’s real, MC is no longer under his control and does whatever they want. It’s the most authentic experience he’ll ever have. Well, unless he’ll gather enough courage to ask them on a date…

No matter how much Belphie was preparing himself for it, he wasn’t ready to lose all his clothes and get tossed right on the table in a blink of an eye. Here he was sitting, thinking the whole situation through… And the next second, he finds himself naked, laying on his back with his legs spread. The feeling of something big pushing inside his ass provoked the dream to change immediately. So now Belphie watches in shock as MC, still with their gentle-mocking smile, thrusts their dick inside. It feels and looks too real, Belphie is not used to having such consuming sensations in his dream. The poor demon is overwhelmed, but the mysterious entity has no mercy. It pumps inside his body, almost literally fucking his brains out. Belphie whines, sobs, and moans, both in reality and in his dream, as he gets rammed by MC’s dick at full force.

His body shakes from vigorous movements, each push sets his mind ablaze. Belphie feels through his dream how his fingers tear the pillow in his arms apart, and how the tears run down his cheeks. The demon is not sure whether he would be able to wake up even if he wanted to. His brain is in shambles and all he can see is MC’s face as they thrust inside him again and again.

When Belphie feels MC’s dick filling him with cum, he comes with a loud scream, completely unable to hold back. His own voice wakes him up, tearing him from the clutches of his fantasy. The demon opens his eyes, his body can’t stop shivering. The pillow is all torn-up and his clothes are wet from sweat and cum. Belphie’s head pulsates with his own heartbeat, and all he can think is: “I need to ask MC for a date.”

Part 1 (Lucifer, Mammon, Levi) Part 2 (Satan, Asmo) Part 4 (Diavolo)

P.S. The art doesn't belong to me, it's an official art from Shall We Date: Obey Me! (Night of the Ghost Bros card)

#obey me #obey me smut #obey me fanfic #omswd fanfic #male mc #amab mc #obey me gn!mc #obey me gender neutral mc #obey me ao3 #obey me beelzebub #obey me beel #mc x beel #mlm #bottom beel #obey me belphie #obey me belphegor #bottom belphie #mc x belphie

111 notes · View notes

michaeljoncarter · 7 months

Text

justice league rules from the JLA Sourcebook! a lot going on here, but my personal favorite detail is that founding members apparently do not have to do monitor duty. so every time a comic has batman lurking around in the monitor room, he's there by choice. monitor duty is just his idea of fun, i guess

((LONG) transcription under cut)

Bylaws Governing the Justice League of America

Statement of Purpose

The purpose of the Justice League of America (hereafter referred to as the JLA) is to handle threats to Earth's security--both terrestrial and extraterrestrial--beyond the power of conventional enforcement groups. If requested to do so by concerned parties, the JLA will undertake certain mission that aid those of other planets. However, the JLA's major responsibility is the peace and welfare of Earth. The JLA will also participate in public service and charity function when not involved in higher priority duties.

Funding

The JLA is a nonprofit organization incorporated in the United States of America, and hence shall have the word "America" in its title. The money for the operations and maintenance of the JLA is funded by an annual grant from a blind trust established in its name.¹ Additional funding is also provided by donations from the United Nations and the Wayne Foundation,² who shall have no say over the use of the money within the JLA organizational structure, but shall retain the right to limit or suspend their funding for any reason. The JLA shall use its funds for the maintenance of its headquarters and equipment, and certain special benefits for members (which specifically exclude compensation for services rendered).

Active Membership Ceiling

The JLA shall have no more than twelve (12) members on active status at once, unless an individual is granted special temporary status.³ This membership ceiling is in accordance with a standing agreement with the United Nations.

Active Membership

Any applicant for membership in the JLA must be an adult of legal age, distinguished by at least one year of active public service, be willing to participate in all JLA missions, and be able to be on call 24 hours per day. Membership in the JLA is awarded regardless of race, color, creed, sex, or citizenship.

Membership Candidacy and Elections

A candidate for membership must be nominated by an active member in good standing at a regular or emergency meeting. Reserve members may petition for nomination. A candidate shall be elected by a two-thirds majority vote of the total active membership.

Founding Membership

Founding membership is a special status given to the five (5) most senior members of the JLA. The founding membership roster shall never exceed five (5) members. Founding members serve as the final authority on all matters of policy, can cast an additional vote as a group in the event of a tie, serve as the tribunal for all disciplinary matters, and have the sole authority to disband the JLA. Founding members also act as the direct liaisons between the JLA and the United Nations. Beyond these responsibilities founding members do not have any further authority or privileges over and above any other active member. Founding members must remain part of the active membership to retain their founding member status.

Only a current founding member can nominate a candidate for founding member status. A candidate is then elected into founding member status by a simple majority vote of the entire JLA roster (active, reserve, and honorary members), past and present. Founding membership is awarded for life, or until the member chooses to relinquish the responsibility and nominate a successor. Should a founding member ever be suspended or expelled, a replacement shall be chosen from the active membership at the next regular business meeting.

The founding membership roster is currently defined as Aquaman, the Batman, the Martian Manhunter, Superman, and Wonder Woman.⁴

Reserve Membership

Reservists are members who are eligible for active membership but can or will not make the commitment of being on call 24 hours a day or being present for JLA meetings.

Reservists may be summoned in the event the chairperson deems the JLA is not operating at an optimum strength to accomplish the current mission. The requirements for official reserve status are: must have assisted the JLA in at least one mission, be an adult of legal age, be distinguished by at least one year of active public service, and be willing to be on call for emergency duty. Reservists have no regular duties or number of missions they must perform. Reservists shall be awarded signal devices and can call emergency meetings. They have limited access to the JLA headquarters. They require the chairperson's permission to use JLA equipment. Reservists may participate in social functions, and they have the option of not attending regular business meetings. Like active members, they are not required to reveal their civilian identities to the JLA.

A reserve member who meets the requirements of active membership may petition for active membership. A reservist's petition shall be given priority when a vacancy occurs in the active membership. A reservist may ask to be taken off reserve status at any time. A reservist is automatically taken off reserve status if unavailable for three consecutive summons to duty.

Honorary Membership

Honorary members are those individuals who assist in a JLA missions but decline or are ineligible for reserve or active status. Honorary members may not enter JLA headquarters without being accompanied by an active member. They may not call emergency meetings but may contact an active member, who determines whether the matter requires the attention of the entire JLA. Honorary members have no regular duties. They are entitles to attend social functions, and may attend business meetings if they choose. A two-thirds vote by the total active membership is necessary to revoke honorary status.

Chairpersonship

The Duty of the chairperson is to coordinate all JLA activities. Any active member may be nominated for the position of chairperson, and who is elected by a two-thirds majority vote. The term of the chairperson shall be no less than one year. A chairperson may be elected to an unlimited number of consecutive terms.⁵ In the event that the chairperson is absent of unable to perform his or her duties, leadership will be assumed by the most senior active member until such time as a new chairperson can be elected.

Privileges of Members

Any duly elected member shall have membership in the JLA for live with according honors. He or she shall have free access to the JLA headquarters and all its facilities. Any current active member shall have his or her own private quarters and office in the JLA headquarters. Each JLA member shall have an equal vote and equal privileges. By agreement with the United Nations, each JLA member has permission to travel across international boundaries without a passport. No member is required to swear an oath of allegiance to any outside organization or body.

Requirements of Active Members

No JLA members my accept fees for services rendered while in their costumed identity. Each JLA membership shall keep a log of all missions as individuals or groups for the JLA archives. Each JLA member must provide a recorded excuse for every absence from JLA missions or meetings. Whenever possible, a JLA member shall notify the organization in advance of an absence, so the chairperson can determine the operational strength and contact alternates if need be. All JLA members shall carry their signal devices at all times and be ready for duty 24 hours a day. No JLA member is required to reveal his or her civilian identity to the membership. However, any member may do so at his or her discretion, with the implicit understanding that it will be held in the strictest confidence. JLA members are forbidden to reveal any classified JLA secrets to any nonmember, including spouses. Each active, nonfounding member shall serve his or her shift on monitor duty.

As a group or as individuals, any member, past or present, of the JLA is prohibited from using his or her talents, powers, and/or professional tools to acquire political power, abridge the civil rights of any individual, interfere with the internal affairs of nations, or take side in international conflicts under review by the United Nations. The JLA may not interfere with routine police actions or any matter under federal or local jurisprudence, unless their assistance is specifically requested. The JLA may not interfere in interplanetary matters that have no bearing on Earth security without proper authorization from the concerned parties or a recognized interstellar police organization.

Meetings

Regular business meetings shall be held at JLA Headquarters⁶ twelve (12) times per year on the last Saturday of each month for handling organizational business. All active members are expected to be in attendance. Emergency meetings may be called at any time by any active member or reservist. All available members shall attend emergency meetings. All meetings will be digitally recorded for the JLA archives.

Monitor Duty

Each active member is required to serve a 24-hour shift of monitor surveillance in JLA headquarters. Founding members are exempt from monitor duty but may volunteer to be entered into the rotation. In the event that a member cannot serve his or her shift, it is the member's responsibility to contact a replacement among the active membership. Each member must make up missed shifts. The member must remain awake for two-thirds of his or her shift. The member on monitor duty may have one guest during the shift as long as the guest does not interfere with the member's duties.

Punishment of Criminals

All alleged criminals dealt with by the JLA shall be brought to trial under whichever judicial body they are subject to, be it terrestrial, extraterrestrial, or extradimensional. Acts of interstellar aggression and misconduct shall be punished in accordance with the mandates of the appropriate recognized interstellar law enforcement agency. The governing tribunal, not the JLA itself, shall decide the severity of a criminal's punishment. Imprisonment shall be handled by conventional institutions, except in cases where the criminal cannot be detained by existing facilities. In this case, the JLA is at liberty to devise their own form of detainment under the review of the United Nations or a recognized interstellar law enforcement agency.

Leaves of Absence

Leaves of absence shall be granted to any active member or reservist who requests one for personal reasons. To remain in good standing, the member on leave must make regular summaries of activities (the number and submission period dependent on the length of absence). Leaves of absence shall be honored for as long as the member requests it. A mandatory leave shall be given to any member missing three consecutive missions with a valid excuse. To be reinstated after a leave, the member must file a notification of return to former status at a business meeting. With no valid excuse, the member will be suspended from active duty (see "Suspension").

Resignations and Discharges

Any member may resign if he or she wants to sever all connections with the JLA. A former member must submit to debriefing of JLA information. Any member who resign in sound mind with free will can only be reinstated by again undergoing the standard active or reserve membership selection process. Discharges are given to members who, for any reason, can no longer perform their duties. Discharged members are awarded honorary status and, unless deemed a security risk, are allowed to retain JLA secrets.

Suspension

Active members may be suspended from active duty for on-year periods on the following grounds: deliberate dereliction of duty, conduct unbecoming a Justice Leaguer, or willfully disobeying the chairperson. To be suspended, the accused must be indicted by at least one active member and brought before a tribunal of the founding members for a hearing, with the chairperson officiating. A simple majority of the tribunal shall determine suspension. Suspended members are prohibited from entering the JLA headquarters, attending meetings, and being summoned for any form of duty. Suspended members may be granted an early reprieve for meritorious action and granted their former status by a two-thirds vote of the active membership.

Expulsion

Active, reserve, and honorary members may be expelled from the JLA with no possibility of reinstatement on the following grounds: conviction for any crime, deliberate betrayal of classified JLA secrets, criminal acts not convicted but witness by at least one member, taking money for services rendered, or the accumulation of three suspensions. The hearings or expulsions are identical to the proceedings for suspensions, save that an active member can only be expelled by a unanimous vote of the tribunal. Expelled members must submit to debriefing of JLA information.

Disbanding and Restraints

The JLA organization may only be disbanded by either a unanimous vote of the founding members⁷ or a unanimous vote of the United National Security Council. The United Nations also has the power to put restraining orders on the JLA's various members or activities, to the extent of curtailing the JLA's operations completely. Failure to comply with the United Nation's edicts shall be interpreted as a breach of faith between the JLA and the countries that the United Nations protects. The JLA has the right to contest restraints placed on them in a special World Court. In the event that the JLA is disbanded by mutual consent or external edict, the JLA headquarters and all other facilities revert to the United Nations for dispersal.

Policy

All amendments to the charter and bylaws shall be put into effect by a two-thirds vote of the total active membership. Bylaws governing membership may be waived by a unanimous vote. All active members shall have an equal vote in JLA policymaking. A two-third vote of the active membership shall determine what missions shall be undertaken in the even that the JLA is overextended coping with the situation at hand, or in the event that a situation is of borderline concern to the JLA.

FOOTNOTES

¹ Established when the JLA was first founded, the donor who created this blind trust remains completely anonymous. The JLA continues to respect his, her, or their privacy to this day

² Due to its relief efforts for Gotham City during the "No Man's Land" catastrophe, the Wayne Foundation temporarily suspended its funding to the JLA. When or if its funding will resume remains to be seen.

³ While they are allowed up to 12 active members by their agreement with the United Nations, the JLA has opted to limit their current membership to eight active members.

⁴ In the original JLA charter, the founding membership was defined as Aquaman, Black Canary, the Flash (Barry Allen), Green Lantern (Hal Jordan), and the Martian Manhunter. Also, the founding membership had no specific responsibilities or privileges, save for the authority to disband the JLA. This state of affairs remained in place until the Martian Manhunter disbanded the JLA and the group became Justice League International. It was with this version of the bylaws that the duties and responsibilities of the founding membership were formally defined, and Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman were elected to founding member status--replacing the Flash, Green Lantern, and Black Canary (the latter of whom voluntarily chose to relinquish her status as a founding member).

⁵ Superman is currently serving as the chairperson of the JLA. By unanimous vote of the membership, he will continue to serve as chairperson until eh chooses to step down or leaves the active membership.

⁶ The current JLA headquarters is the JLA Watchtower on the moon.

⁷ In previous drafts of the bylaws, the JLA could be disbanded in one of two ways: (1) by a unanimous vote of the active membership or (2) on the sole authority of one of the founding members, (Aquaman, Black Canary, the Flash [Barry Allen], Green Lantern [Hal Jordan], and the Martian Manhunter). When the current JLA revised the bylaws, the group chose to place this power in the hands of the founding members as a group.

#dork !#(i know this isnt necessarily the rules writers were adhering to but shh)#also that monitor duty lasts for 24 hours. but the person on duty only has to be awake for two-thirds of their shift (??)#how does that work..... explain.....#i need a tag for these kinds of posts #refs #sry if there are typos in the transcript ! i copy & pasted from the pdf and it was wonk in places lol

123 notes · View notes

skaald-of-the-hearth-fires · 2 months

Text

Y'all I've always thought it was hilarious what Anet did to warbands.

So. you have Rytlock, who in Edge of Destiny said he had "about a dozen" brothers and sisters each. so including himself, that's 25 in a warband. The wiki says a warband is 6-25 members, so Rytlock was on the high end, and average would probably be 12-18 members.

and then every warband in the game proceeds to have BARELY 6.

you have 5 options to choose from for a sparring partner. Rox's old warband had 6 members (or maybe 7). We've still never met more than one of Rytlock's 'bandmates. Almorra gets one 'bandmate mentioned by name.

most charr in the entire game, including top-ranking tribunes and imperators, are not with their warbands, do not talk about their warbands, do not go places with their warbands. Tribune Bhuer Goreblade shows up with a small handful of 'bandmates in the charr level 10 story.

You do not see groups of 12-18 charr warbands roaming around Ascalon with fascinating life stories and 'bandmate dynamics and mourning the latest one(s) who died, with mementos, with stories about how 'my sparring partner saved my life' and 'this member of the warband whom I know least of all my bandmates would die for me and they proved it last week' and 'Im unhappy with bandmate X but I would kill for them' or 'bandmates Y and Z obviously love each other. wanna join the betting pool?' and the legionnaire who confides in you about their tough decisions of who they're picking to be their second/replacement. All within the same warband.

Not even one warband like this. Much less the multiple that charr culture deserves.

Even in IBS, the, at least half-way, charr-centric story, our main focus warband is Ryland's Steel warband. Who has, predictably, 6 members. And like 10 fresh-faced, unnamed recruits who have 0 history or dynamic with the Main Cast. even the 6 named members, who have vibes and character and a bit of a dynamic, are stupid shallow. (and tbf they didn't have time to explore it much, but really?)

We do not see Bangar's 'bandmates. We do not see Rytlock's 'bandmates. We do not hear anything about Almorra's old 'bandmates. We do not see Ember Doomforge's 'bandmates. We do not see Smodur's 'bandmates. We do not see Malice's 'bandmates. We do not see Efram's 'bandmates.

We see a lot of 'cubs this' (with Rytlock and with Efram), I heard a lot of speculation about 'cubs that' in fandom spaces, we see a lot of 'ohoho relationship/mating drama' (from Rytlock/Crecia and also Almorra/Bangar). We do NOT see ANYTHING about warbands, supposedly the building-blocks of charr society.

Even the charr player's old warband is mostly disbanded/defected to Dominion.

I have yet to see any real warband dynamics in canon.

Even in the books! Rytlock's 24 'bandmates are fair game because they're offscreen. And Anet has consistently refused to show any of them. Even Rytlock's dynamic with Crecia is pretty much just "we're old exes" and never "we grew up together. we fought together. our bonds are deeper than those of biology, than the fact we have a cub. I stabbed you once and you knew I didn't mean it because we are 'bandmates." Sure, Crecia mentions once "ohoho we used to see the ice elementals here as cubs."

But in the books! Sea of Sorrows for instance! iirc the majority of Sykax's warband is unnamed! Ember Doomforge, again, no mentions of warband! Rytlock nor Malice nor Almorra talk about inter-warband relations!

we never see any warbands larger than 6 members.

And this is all because, OBVIOUSLY, who wants to come up with 12-18 whole characters when it's just the one who's relevant to the story? Coming up with 6 is hard enough it only happens in special occasions. which doesn't include the legit actual player character.

(the player character, whose warband is decimated to TWO flaming members (including yourself!!) in the tutorial, and! yay! fun lorebuilding! you get to rebuild the warband. this adds a flaming total of TWO members. now you're at flaming four. FLAMING FANTASTIC. the player-flaming-character gets FOUR 'bandmates. this is atrocious!! and tbf if you compile all the options across all the branches you might end up in the (low end, probably) of 12-18. which is fair!)

but like. I do sympathize. I really do. characters are hard. names especially! which would be the bare minimum yknow. have an 18-member warband with zero dialogue but! they do have names! that wander around Ascalon. not even an event chain just average-sized warband representation PLEASE.

like. I did it myself. I invented a warband and I BARELY got them to 6 members. I had name, gender, profession for each of them. they were minor characters so they didn't even get the development that Ryland's Steel got. names, professions and the vibes from that. I felt so bad for only giving them 6 bc I was reinforcing the stereotype!!

but, so, uhhhh

I have been handed an OC. from a friend. who has given me full creative license to write abt them in my story.

I gave him 23 'bandmates. They all have names and genders. They're split up into who is whose sparring partner and who bunks with whom. That is all.

I also get VibesTM from each member's name. I'm slowly building relationship maps. (mostly just. from character A's PoV, ranking who they are closest with. Then doing it from Character B's PoV. it's WILDLY fascinating.) I have three charr 'bandmates who have their own little niche, they three are besties, they're each other's sparring partners and bunkmates and everybody (main relevant characters at least) knows them as 'those three'. and I know their names. none of the characters I'm writing about know them very well (relative to the rest of the warband ofc. ofc each one would DIE for them and probably knows their struggles and combat strengths and weak points and so on. but I haven't invented any of those yet) and that's all. I don't have a single bit of info about them except that and the vibes of each name. but hey!!!! WARBAND DYNAMICS MY BELOVED!?!!

#charr #warband #ascalon #gw2 charr #gw2 #rytlock brimstone #bangar ruinbringer #almorra soulkeeper #malice swordshadow #bhuer goreblade #ryland steelcatcher #steel warband #rox #crecia stoneglow #efram #I don't remember that guy's last name and I'm about to head to bed sorry

63 notes · View notes

pazzesco · 7 months

Text

~ Helen Keller ~

Helen Keller (colorized)

Miss Helen Keller - Portrait US Library of Congress

Helen Keller was an author, lecturer, suffragists and crusader for the handicapped. Born in Tuscumbia, Alabama, She lost her sight and hearing at the age of nineteen months to an illness now believed to have been scarlet fever. Five years later, on the advice of Alexander Graham Bell, her parents applied to the Perkins Institute for the Blind in Boston for a teacher, and from that school hired Anne Mansfield Sullivan.

Keller (left) with Anne Sullivan vacationing on Cape Cod in July 1888

Through Sullivan’s extraordinary instruction, the little girl learned to understand and communicate with the world around her. She went on to acquire an excellent education and to become an important influence on the treatment of the blind and deaf.

Helen Keller in 1899 with lifelong companion and teacher Anne Sullivan. Photo taken by Alexander Graham Bell at his School of Vocal Physiology and Mechanics of Speech.

Her unprecedented accomplishments in overcoming her disabilities made her a celebrity at an early age; at twelve she published an autobiographical sketch in the Youth’s Companion, and during her junior year at Radcliffe, she produced her first book, The Story of My Life, still in print in over fifty languages.

Helen Keller — Groundbreaking Girls

Painting of Keller's colorized portrait by Wayne Pascall

Her friendship with Mark Twain

"Helen Keller, Miss Sullivan, Mark Twain and Laurence Hutton."

“From that day until his death we were friends,” Keller recalled later. She was already a fan of his work and thrilled to his deep voice and his many hand gestures, which she followed with her own fingertips. She wrote of him:

"He entered into my limited world with enthusiasm just as he might have explored Mars. Blindness was an adventure that kindled his curiosity. He treated me not as a freak, but as a handicapped woman seeking a way to circumvent extraordinary difficulties. There was something of divine apprehension in this rare naturalness towards those who differ from others in external circumstances."

Helen Keller with Mark Twain - Twain came to Keller’s defense, after reading in her book about a plagiarism scandal that occurred in 1892 when, at only twelve years old, she was accused of lifting her short story “The Frost King” from Margaret Canby’s “Frost Fairies.” Though a tribunal acquitted Keller of the charges, the incident still pissed off Twain. The letter is attached to the photo above

Letters between Mark Twain and Helen Keller.

Though Helen hailed from a respectable Southern family, 19th-century America was flummoxed by the prospect of teaching a deaf-blind girl to talk, read, and learn. Helen’s tutor and governess, Annie Sullivan, fought for her admission to various schools that offered special education. But the cost of educating someone like Helen was high. Clemens wrote to a rich friend on her behalf:

"It won’t do for America to allow this marvelous child to retire from her studies because of poverty. If she can go on with them she will make a fame that will endure in history for centuries. Along her special illness she is the most extraordinary product of all the ages…lay siege to your husband & get him to interest himself and Messrs. John D. & William Rockefeller & the other Standard Oil chiefs in Helen’s case; get them to subscribe an annual aggregate of six or seven hundred or a thousand dollars- & agree to continue this for three or four years, until she has completed her college course…."

Thanks to his intervention, the support of his friend Henry Rogers and Standard Oil, Helen was able to complete her education and graduate cum laude from Harvard’s Radcliffe College. Clemens and Keller remained friends for the rest of his life. They shared an interest in radical politics and a love for life despite their different temperaments. Helen, an avowed optimist, often made fun of Clemens for his avowed pessimism, telling him she didn’t believe a word of his sardonic jokes. As for Clemens, Chambliss writes that he felt she was one of the most important historical figures of all time, “the most wondrous person of her sex that has existed on this earth since Joan of Arc.”

Keller, Sullivan, Twain, & Sullivan’s husband John Macy above at Twain’s home

We also have Twain—not playwright William Gibson—to thank for the “miracle worker” title given to Keller’s teacher, Anne Sullivan. As a tribute to Sullivan for her tireless work with Keller, he presented her with a postcard that read, “To Mrs. John Sullivan Macy with warm regard & with limitless admiration of the wonders she has performed as a ‘miracle-worker.’” In his 1903 letter to Keller, he called Sullivan “your other half… for it took the pair of you to make complete and perfect whole.”

Twain was especially impressed by Keller’s autobiography, writing to her, “I am charmed with your book—enchanted.” (See his endorsement in a 1903 advertisement, above.)

Keller & Clemens also shared a love of dogs

Helen Keller with her dog Sir Thomas.

Helen Keller seated on a window bench with an arm around her dog Sieglinde.

Helen Keller seated on a bench indoors, possibly in the photographer's studio wth a dog seated on the ground beside her.

Helen Keller seated on a slatted bench in front of a Farm House in 1935 with her dogs Dileas, on her lap, Maida beside her & Golden.

Helen Keller teaching a girl sign language.

Widely honored throughout the world and invited to the White House by every U.S. president from Grover Cleveland to Lyndon B. Johnson, Keller altered the world’s perception of the capacities of the handicapped. More than any act in her long life, her courage, intelligence, and dedication combined to make her a symbol of the triumph of the human spirit over adversity.

Helen Keller - 1880-1968

Helen Keller Archive

108 notes · View notes