hello, this is my first story, I intend to make this a prologue, so that an idea of the future will be paved in a certain way. Please keep in mind that in the main story it will at first follow the near exact path that the main series that the world's best redditor (in my personal opinion) has created, but once I have set the foundation for the story, it will go on as its own divergence. Once again, when the main parts of the story begin, it will almost be the same, but begin to become its own story. I'm open to suggestions and will greatly appreciate feedback. Thank you, and now onto the prologue.
edit: I forgot to add prologue on the title, and now I can't change it... sorry...
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Memory transcription subject: REDACTED Date: [Standardized human time] July 11, 2136
Once again, I have been called to... investigate a child who may possess the gift... Of course, the will of the forsaken protector has sent me to the cradle... home of the gojids...
Normally when I arrive to the forsaken worlds it usually takes [weeks] to get results, and they are almost always a lie... It's as if the goddess herself likes to take joy in my aggravation when I journey to these planets.
However, it seems that she has decided to be more lenient with me this time... this child does possess the gift... excellent...
"This is what I feared... your child does possess an abnormal variant of predator disease..." my apprentice said. She always knew what to say when it came to situations like these. And it appears to have worked once again, the gojid mother is distraught at this "revelation."
tears flowing from her, like a fountain, she is mourning the condition of her son... how amusing...
"no.... no.... no no no, please! Please tell me your wrong, I will have nothing if I lose him... He's all I have left..." the mother pleaded.
"I don't want this... protector please show that they're wrong with the results!"
I had to intervene; I don't want another... incident to occur. "I am sorry miss, but with the test kits we possess, it's impossible for a false positive..."
The mother looked even more sorrowful than before. "How long will the treatment be? Please tell me that I will see my son again..." she looked at us, concerned for the "condition" of her son.
"It will likely be uncurable" my apprentice spoke. "With the levels that our testing kit has given us, you he may remain in treatment for a long while, if not forever."
At last, the mother looked defeated. she held onto her son one last time, it would've been depressing, if my intention were as truthful as we had made it out. "my Sovil..." She whispered to her son. "I'm sorry..." And with that she gave us the child, and we left to our ship, traversing the endless space back to the academy to give the child a new purpose.
After a period of time, I contacted my master to inform him of our success. activating the hyper-com, I knelt and kneeled before my master. "My lord..." I began. "The journey was a success, we now travel from the cradle to the academy as we speak..."
My master, imposing as ever, merely stood. The coldness embracing me as the dark powers aminated from him.
"Excellent... You have done well my apprentice... But never mind the child for now, there is a much more concerning situation we must speak about..." My master spoke.
I froze. What could be more concerning than trying to keep the gift hidden from the population of the federation? What is there to fear so much, that it's must be prioritized more than growing our power?
"What is the concern, my master?" I began. "Has our order been discovered?"
My master merely adjusted himself. "No, it is a concern that was thought removed, and has now grown into a grievous tumor... the humans..."
The humans? They destroyed themselves so long ago... How have they returned? If this information is true- No, it is true. When it comes to information like this and will investigate it himself to acquire confirmation.
I just knelt there... "what should be done, my lord?" I inquired. "What shall we do to them if they possess the gift-?" "They do." He spoke, with so much coldness within his voice, that weaker species would've began an Immedient stampede.
"They have created an order for those who possess a corrupted version of the gift. Claiming that hey use 'the light' side of 'the Force,' and if they even discover our growing power, they will destroy it."
I was frozen... If they destroy us... No. I will not allow them to destroy everything we have built, everything we have struggled to claim for so long. I will not allow this. They will either join us, or they will die.
"What shall we do, my master? Surely, we can coax the Federation into eradicate them, as they have planned so long ago...?" It would be easy, after all our grasps on the powers of the Federation is deep... with just the word from my master, they will-
"No."
I stared blankly. No? It would be easy, especially with their primitive state.
"C-could you please clarify, my lord?" I asked. Surely, there has to be a proper reasoning behind it.
Once again, he readjusts himself, and begins. "The Federation has yet to discover their survival. If we act now and have a fleet go to exterminated them, questions will be raised. Those questions will continue, until the Federation discovers us, and our ultimate plans. We cannot act now... We will, I assure you my dark apprentice, but not right now. For now, we shall watch, and see what these Jedican do."
that was an understandable reason. This just proves my master's superiority over me. I we act now, we will become exposed. "So... what shall we do while we watch?" I asked, though I already knew the awnser.
"We shall continue to grow our numbers, compared to the humans, we are only at half strength. They have a ship traversing to Venil Prime as we speak, and I estimate they will arrive by [Tomorrow.] We must act fast, time is not on our side, bring the child here and will plan further with the dark council."
and with that he cut communication. He was right though, time wasn't on our side. I just hope the weak venlil will distract them long enough to plan our next move... who knows, maybe they will gorge themselves on the venlil long enough for the federation to discover them... the foreseeable future will be extremely tedious...

Like, one of the appeals about Star Wars, outside of just its existence as a space opera war series that cribbed elements from Joseph Campbell's Hero With a Thousand Faces, was its frequent juxtaposition between its science-fiction and fantasy elements. You know? Like if Buck Rogers or Flash Gordon married The Lord of the Rings trilogy or Chronicles of Narnia series, and Star Wars was their resulting baby.
Like, you have an entire space opera universe full of so much advanced technology, from ships like the Millennium Falcon and Star Destroyer, to medical and engineering equipment, to droids like C3-PO and R2-D2, all the way up to blasters like pistols and rifles. But then comes the midi-chlorians force, combined with a melee weapon like a lightsaber. And you'd think that with blasters and technology, they both would have rendered lightsabers and the force obsolete, respectively. Until you see Darth Vader force choke one of his own officers for doubting the force and unfairly comparing it side-by-side with the Death Star, a piece of hardware that, to Darth Vader, was never going to replace the force. As well as watch Luke Skywalker take up Obi-Wan Kenobi's posthumous advice, and shut off his targeting computer just to use his force powers to drop proton torpedoes into the Death Star's air duct, blowing the thing sky high in order to save Dantooine from it.
And now, you can see the perfect juxtaposition between the Jedi and Sith and their frequent uses of lightsabers and the force, and nearly the rest of Star Wars' universe whenever it uses guns and technology as an alternative to lightsabers and the force, respectively. And that's among the numerous reasons why I enjoy science-fiction and fantasy, and comparing fantasy's frequent use of swords and magic with sci-fi's frequent use of guns and technology, like with Star Wars, as one example.
Thoughts?

Ecclesiastes 10:10~"If the iron be blunt, and he do not whet the edge, then must he put to more strength: but wisdom is profitable to direct. "
You can use less strength for best results! A lesson all young studs should learn. I well remember years ago, an older wise man teaching me how to use a hand saw. I would take a hand saw and wide open try to muscle my way through what I was attempting to cut~and the wise man said, you would get better results with a slow, long motion action then the way you're doing it...and man, was he so correct! Never have forgotten that little lesson on cutting things with a hand saw which is not used that much anymore since Mr. "skilled saw" Dewalt showed up.
"If the iron be blunt, and he do not whet the edge, then must he put to more strength" Two ways to cut a tree down, by brute force,, or by the use of a sharp edge.

1. Lesson: some men never get ahead, because they never use wisdom to direct them~they try more force, speed.
2. Hard work without applying wisdom makes work much more difficult, much like the meathead in this test, one that does not stop and try to use wisdom to make his work/life easier. Wisdom trumps hard effort every time, why not seek wisdom in everything we do.
3. Some meatheads think sharpening the axe is a waste of time, so off they go and waste much more time, and effort.
4. There are no cut cuts to success, and being productive with every second of our time, and a wise man would make the best of of his work, to accomplish the most and use whatever means available to him to be PRODUCTIVE IN LIFE.

But wisdom IS PROFITABLE TO DIRECT, and will be EVERY SINGLE TIME! God is please with hard work, but he desires for us to be profitable in our hard work.
PROFIT is the goal...MAXIMIZING return on our investment (whatever that may be) labor, etc.
More effort may be required, but most of the time less effort can be leveraged by wisdom. By using our wisdom one can better leverage their strength to accomplish more, which is what we should desire to do.
The lesson of exalting wisdom over brute strength applies to all parts of life~you name it...... it applies.
A man void of wisdom thinks he can force his wife to submit, but he is so wrong! Loving her goes so much farther in helping her to fulfill her role of a godly wife.
Father's think they can use brute force to make their children submit, they are so wrong, it only drives them to be discourage, and into hating you~wisdom will win them everytime!
Facing a recession~a wise man will adjust his spending, not work harder to stay ahead. On and on we could go.

either way the comments here will come back to bite me buhhahaha because I am an idiot. They'll limit the age bracket of who I fuck and when I do it will be men disguised as females and/or vice versa or gays that...
Freedom died a long time ago. BUHAHAHAHAHAHAHA A slave to corruption BUHAHAHAHAHAHA they'll laugh at my suffering
they will destroy my face otherwise eat me for dinner or kill my parents or I lose body parts either through science and/or religion...buhahaha
The goal was absolute control of my sex drive buhahahahaha hahahahahahaha hahahhaa
whether I feel unworthy or not the game is rigged and no it's not in my favour the minute you think it is the value changes otherwise they'll shove reality in my face...and/or torture me from behind because they can see what i see from behind.
The goal of this experiment was that i was seen as a genetic defect so that the real owners can be reborn under my alias and when I wake up they'll disconnect me buhahaha
i am a dumbass that created a trap for me
I'll be forced to take drugs or I'll go hungry or someone close to me will...and when they go hungry they'll have real freedom...
buhahaha thanks mom and dad for bringing me here buhahahahaha
hahahahaha hahahahahahahaa and as soon as I go there I'll be forced to clean up the mess they left behind and rebuild.
They are spying on me now.. Forever slaves to science and religion and they needed me part of their sick experiment to see how i react so that they can collect results and when i go too far they can give it the judges and then run a story on me on how deeply flawed i am...
and this matrix will show the darkside of women who are crazy and destructive and that's the goal of this matrix is to hide the truth and the goal is to kill me off slowly and that only the few would ever be really be free...either way I am screwed anyway no matter where I turn to...I have already been destroyed and leeched from to prove a point that we will fuck with you and that I am not very smart and I am using all of my available leverage i have and they will dump me and torture me but in a nice way and do it in such a way that it will be very difficult for me to prove which is why they enslaved my mind.
I mean why would they want you to be free buhahahaha...bhuhahaha they use fear and other tactice to win over and they have already made my jaw weak and they won which means i am their pet and their pet dog and they will feed me shit at one point in time - i won't have a choice otherwise have my head chopped off because corruption - it's everywhere...
buhahahhaa we live in a very negative world because life is hard...
If there is a god the goal is to torture us so that they are forced to pull the plug or torture us or program others to kill me or torture me..
Instead of jail it's here and when they do shove me jail they'll want me to eat shit - the goal is to hide the truth...
Only religion and ai will ever get to be really free because of other men.

“Hundreds of patriotic young people are subjected to cruel torture in Aliyev‘s prisons on false charges.”
(Lack of) Human Rights and Liberties
A group of writers and poets appealed to President Ilham Aliyev regarding Alizamin Salayev, a member of the opposition party who has been on a hunger strike for more than 114 days protesting against his illegal arrest. Azadlig newspaper shared the letter: “As a result of the hunger strike, he fell into a coma several times. Yesterday, doctors warned him that he would die if he did not stop his hunger. Salayev was arrested on charges of hooliganism, and the Garadagh court sentenced him to four years in prison. He considers his arrest and the decision unfair, saying that all the evidence proves his innocence. Therefore, he declares that he will not stop his hunger, even if it may end his life. We believe that you would not give consent to the death of an activist of the opposition party of the country as a result of a hunger strike. We, the undersigned writers, ask that you order his house arrest and reconsideration of his case.”
Alzamin Salayev stopped his hunger on the 115th day. Salayev was promised that his case would be considered objectively in the Court of Appeal. Salayev told his lawyer that if justice was not served this time, then he would choose death by dry hunger.
Chairperson of the National Council of Democratic Forces (NCDF) Jamil Hasanli said that he had attended the trial of political prisoner Abbas Huseyn, one of the leaders of the Muslim Union Movement. Hasanli: Judge Ilgar Murguzov did not conduct such an investigation when he said there was a judicial investigation. He simply upheld the unlawful verdict of the district court. Abbas was chained to an iron pole in the courtyard of the penitentiary institution when the degree was above 42 Celcius. In January 2023, the European Court of Human Rights confirmed that Abbas Huseyn was tortured in prison and ordered the government to pay compensation. However, the government has not paid anything yet. Abbas is a very honest, patriotic, and faithful young man. His main “sin” is protesting against injustice. Hundreds of patriotic young people like him are subjected to cruel torture in Aliyev‘s prisons on false charges.”
Governance and Corruption
Azadlig newspaper reports that US President Biden sent a letter to president Ilham Aliyev on the occasion of the International Caspian Oil and Gas Exhibition in Baku. According to the letter, The United States will stand with Azerbaijan as it undertakes reforms that will promote the rule of law and advance opportunities for the Azerbaijani people. In addition, Biden also mentions that his administration will continue to support a sustainable and just peace in the region –which will help promote security and prosperity across the South Caucasus for generations to come.
Radio Liberty reports that there are concerns and dissatisfaction among the leaders of the non-governmental organizations (NGOs) called “Lachin Yolu Eco Activists.” Tahira Mammadova, one of the activists, expressed disappointment that a promised 15,000 manats were not allocated for her project. Instead, only 6,000 manats were given for a documentary film about the Shusha martyr, which Mammadova considered to be an insult. Rade Abbas, the head of the “Social Assistance to Women Veterans” organization, also shared her dissatisfaction. She mentioned that her organization had meticulously calculated and proposed a project worth 15,000 manats. However, they were only provided with 7,000 manats for their annual activities, along with demanding a high level of work. Rade Abbas believes that this amount is inadequate and insufficient, as it wouldn’t even cover her taxi expenses.
The Lachin Corridor, which is an important land route connecting the Nagorno-Karabakh region to Armenia, has been inaccessible to civilian and commercial traffic for over four months as reportedly Azerbaijani protesters, purportedly supported by the government, have blockaded the corridor. According to the local Armenians, the blockading of the Lachin Corridor had severe consequences for the people living in the Nagorno-Karabakh region, as it cut off their connection to Armenia and the outside world and it disrupted the flow of essential goods, humanitarian aid, and other supplies. The alleged involvement of Azerbaijani protesters, who were the NGO representatives claiming that the Armenian side damaged the environment, suggested that it was a deliberate action to exert pressure on the region.
The visit of the President of Israel, who visited Azerbaijan for the first time, “is of great importance in terms of the development of relations between the two countries,” said the member of the opposition Azerbaijan Popular Front Part (APFP) Fuad Gahramanli. “Because today, the relations between the two countries have reached such a level that Israel is considered not only an ally for Azerbaijan but also an important partner and security guarantee against the threat posed by Iran. Azerbaijan accounts for 17% of Israel’s arms exports, underscoring the depth of their military cooperation. In return, Azerbaijan satisfies 69% of its weapon requirements through Israeli sources, demonstrating the mutual dependency between the two countries. Furthermore, Israel actively contributes to the development of Azerbaijan’s military industry, and their intelligence agencies maintain close collaboration. Cybersecurity has emerged as another important area of cooperation between the two nations. Notably, the President of Israel, in a strong statement, depicted Iran as a common threat to Azerbaijan and accused it of engaging in acts of terrorism. This portrayal highlights the shared perspective and concerns of both countries towards Iran, solidifying the notion that Iran poses a collective threat to their interests.”
The Minister of Digital Development and Transport delivered an interview addressing the challenges within the taxi service industry. The interview focused on the concerns about the financial well-being of taxi drivers and gave signals of future reform. However, the minister’s interview brings forth concerns regarding possible increases in the prices of taxi services. Experts believe that given past experiences of consolidating sectors of the economy under the ruling family’s monopoly in the guise of reforms, the cost of taxi services will be increased.
On June 1st, Azerbaijan commemorated International Children’s Day. Despite having ratified several international conventions to safeguard children’s rights, approximately 2.5 million Azerbaijani infants are denied child benefits. Chairperson of the National Council of Democratic Forces (NCDF) Jamil Hasanli commented on the occasion, saying that, unlike neighboring countries like Russia, Georgia, Armenia, Iran, and other Central Asian republics Azerbaijani government refuse to pay child benefit. Hasanli: In 2006, Ilham Aliyev decided to cut off the social benefits for children who received child support even during the country’s most challenging times. They cited a decline in poverty levels to 5 percent as a justification for the cancellation of child benefits. Child benefit is provided in Russia, Georgia, Armenia, Iran, and other Central Asian republics bordering Azerbaijan. In this region, Azerbaijan is like an island that does not pay child benefits. Tragically, the consequences of this decision manifest in approximately 100,000 children missing out on education due to inadequate nutrition and the inability to afford proper clothing. Moreover, in numerous regions of the country, girls are being excluded from schools. Ironically, while the government neglects the needs of Azerbaijani children, Ilham Aliyev and his government members amass wealth for their own children, investing in properties worth millions of dollars across European capitals and Dubai.”
The Ministry of Finance made a statement regarding the changes to the 2023 state budget. According to the statement, the revenues of the 2023 state budget will be increased by 3 billion 5 million manats to 33 billion 779 million manats. Budget expenses are predicted to be 36 billion 568 million manats, which is 3 billion 215 million manats more than the approved indicator. A large part of the increase of 3 billion 215 million manats, namely 2 billion 260 million manats or more than 70 percent, will be directed to the construction, restoration, and reconstruction works carried out opaquely in the liberated territories. The rest of the increase will be divided between the costs of strengthening the country’s defense and economy.
Chairperson of the Azerbaijan Democracy and Welfare Party (ADWP) Gubad Ibadoghlu said that the new amendments to the state budget once again prove that the government has no intention to increase wages. Ibadoghlu: The wages, pensions, social benefits, and support for war veterans and martyr families have yet to see an allocation increase. Unfortunately, this lack of attention to vital areas coincides with rising prices, burdening the population, particularly those in the low-income bracket, with the costs of inflation. The recent proposal sent to parliament by the government regarding changes to the 2023 state budget further reaffirms that enhancing the people’s welfare is not the primary focus of the Aliyev regime. Instead, it highlights a concerning priority: the appropriation of budget funds through corruption.”

I have been to many doctors and several visits to the er and all them of them have practically brushed me off. Especially the doctors at the er. One night I decided to masturbate, just a normal day. After I was done, I hopped in the shower and cleaned my penis area. I remember I cleaned my urethra area with bar soap. Later that night my penis was in serious pain and my urethra was in a burning sensation. It was so painful. I decided to go the er to get everything checked. The doctors basically did nothing. They just gave me a urine sample and basically said it's probably irritation from the soap. I would later do a urine sample and it came out negative. Fast forward, a few days later. The burning sensation was fading away and I thought I was okay. So I decided to masturbate and the very next day, I developed uti symptoms like frequent urination, dribbling at end of peeing. I told my doctor my symptoms and he asked me to get tested. I got tested again, this time in a lab. Got back the results nothing. No bacteria nothing. I went back to the er and the doctors did nothing. Had the audacity to say it was bladder irritation. I now have developed a weak urine stream, thin urine stream, frequent urination and now hesitancy. Sometimes when I pee, my urine streams can go slightly to the right or left 10 degrees. I also sometimes strain just to get a a better flow. I notice when drink a lot of water my urine streams are a lot stronger but they get weaker and thinner the more trips 1 go and empty my bladder. I feel a warm sensation in my penile area. Sometimes if I laugh or cough I am feel a sharp pain in my penile urethra. I also am a virgin so there is no way it could be stds. I currently do have a cold sore and wonder if that could the case. It does not hurt when I urinate. What's going on? This all happened within a span of a month. Help. Update: My penis is now feeling very hot and inflamed. After jerking off I-night, it feels so hot now. PS: I don't know if this adds to anything but I do remember having my left testicle becoming more big and inflamed. But that went away with time.

have been to many doctors and several visits to the er and all them of them have practically brushed me off. Especially the doctors at the er. One night I decided to masturbate, just a normal day. After I was done, I hopped in the shower and cleaned my penis area. I remember I cleaned my urethra area with bar soap. Later that night my penis was in serious pain and my urethra was in a burning sensation. It was so painful. I decided to go the er to get everything checked. The doctors basically did nothing. They just gave me a urine sample and basically said it's probably irritation from the soap. I would later do a urine sample and it came out negative. Fast forward, a few days later. The burning sensation was fading away and I thought I was okay. So I decided to masturbate and the very next day, I developed uti symptoms like frequent urination, dribbling at end of peeing. I told my doctor my symptoms and he asked me to get tested. I got tested again, this time in a lab. Got back the results nothing. No bacteria nothing. I went back to the er and the doctors did nothing. Had the audacity to say it was bladder irritation. I now have developed a weak urine stream, thin urine stream, frequent urination and now hesitancy. Sometimes when I pee, my urine streams can go slightly to the right or left 10 degrees. I also sometimes strain just to get a a better flow. I notice when drink a lot of water my urine streams are a lot stronger but they get weaker and thinner the more trips 1 go and empty my bladder. I feel a warm sensation in my penile area. Sometimes if I laugh or cough I am feel a sharp pain in my penile urethra. I also am a virgin so there is no way it could be stds. I currently do have a cold sore and wonder if that could the case. It does not hurt when I urinate. What's going on? This all happened within a span of a month. Help. Update: My penis is now feeling very hot and inflamed. After jerking off I-night, it feels so hot now. PS: I don't know if this adds to anything but I do remember having my left testicle becoming more biggeinflamed. But that went away with time.

Off Payroll Working (Anti-Avoidance) Bill

An Act to make provision for further anti-avoidance measures in relation to Off Payroll Working and the establishment of employee rights where income is deemed employment income.
BE IT ENACTED by the King’s most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:—
Section 1: Definitions
(1) “Off Payroll Working legislation” refers to successive previous laws and regulations related to the determination on whether a worker should be treated as an employee or self-employed for tax purposes when paid through an intermediary.
(2) “IR35 legislation” refers to the successive previous laws and regulations on off payroll working above, directed at small privately owned businesses.
(3) “Client” refers to any corporate entity which pays for services provided by an intermediary.
(4) “Intermediary” refers to any corporate entity established to provide the services of individuals to a client.
(5) “Individual” refers to the person providing services to a client while remunerated through an intermediary
(6) “Deemed employment income” is any income liable for income tax and national insurance under the terms set out in Section 5.
Section 2: Combination of Off Payroll Working and IR35 rules
(1) From the enactment of this Bill, interpretation of all IR35 legislation will be considered the same as Off Payroll Working legislation, and the treatment between small private businesses and other businesses will be the same.
(2) In all cases, the client will now be responsible for determining the employment status of the worker.
Section 3: Application of Off Payroll Working Rules
(1) Off Payroll Working Rules will be considered when:

a. An individual has more than 5% ownership of an intermediary entity, and/or;
b. Services given to a client by an intermediary equate to more than 5% of the individual’s total taxable earnings.

Section 4: Assessment of Employee or Self-employed for tax purposes
(1) In each financial year, the client must make an assessment on whether an individual should be taxed as an employee or self-employed.
(2) If at least 5 of the following conditions apply, the individual shall be classified as an employee for tax purposes and “deemed employment income” should be calculated and taxed for Income Tax and National Insurance by both the client (in the first instance) and by the individual (true up/down in their annual self assessment):

a. Degree of control - in the course of the services, is the client mostly responsible for establishing the hours of the service or the time of day or date that the work should be delivered?
b. Mutuality of obligations - is the client obliged under the terms of the contract to give regular work and pay for it, and is the individual responsible for delivering that work?
c. Correction of work - is the client responsible, ahead of the intermediary or individual, either contractually or implicitly, for the quality of the services delivered by the individual?
d. Financial risk - are the financial risks related to the contract primarily with the client instead of the intermediary/individual?
e. Provision of own equipment - is the majority of the equipment used (buildings, plant and machinery, technology, sundries etc.) in the service provided by the client?
f. Disciplinary - is the individual contractually obliged to the same or greater behaviour and disciplinary terms as an employee of the client, or where not applicable, an employee of an equivalent business?
g. Exclusivity - does the contract result in substantial terms of exclusivity for a period greater than 3 months?
h. Inclusion in business - is the individual practically included in the client business in the context of internal meetings and communications?
i. Alternative worker - can an alternative individual replace the individual without substantial disruption or public statement?
j. Public opinion test - would a reasonable member of the public expect that the individual is an employee of the client?

(3) HMRC will challenge the judgements made for each consideration above if they appear to be unreasonable in a tax tribunal.
Section 5: Provision of employment benefits for deemed employment income earners
(1) Where an assessment is made that an individuals’ earnings are deemed employment income, the individual retains the right to statutory employment benefits and statutory pension terms as other employees.
Section 6: Repeals
(1) The Off Payroll Working (IR35 clarification) Act 2018 is hereby repealed.
Section 7: Commencement, Short Title and Extent
(1) This Act will come into force on the 6 April 2024
(2) This Act will extend to the entirety of the United Kingdom.
(3) This Act shall be cited as the Off Payroll Working (Anti-avoidance) Act 2023
This Bill was submitted by His Grace Sir Rea-wakey KCT KT KD KCMG KBE MVO FRS, Duke of Dorset, Secretary of State for the Home Department, on behalf of His Majesty’s 33rd Government.
Opening Speech:
Deputy Speaker,
I now present the final piece of anti-avoidance legislation to the House. Many years ago, alongside my good friend bnzss, I co-wrote a piece of legislation designed to tackle the known tax avoidance loophole through off-payroll working. While the legislation has been somewhat useful at tackling the loophole, recent cases such as those of Gary Lineker and Lorraine Kelly have proven that the legislation simply does not go far enough. Therefore I decided to rip it up and start again.
This legislation goes much further than the previous Bill - firstly combining both the IR35 rules for small businesses and the off-payroll working rules that currently apply to larger businesses, ensuring consistency between both sets of rules. Secondly, the Bill establishes a clearer set of criteria and a passable threshold in which earnings made through a company registered under the Companies Act 2006 or it’s predecessor or successor acts or a limited partnership should be recognised as employment income, thereby incurring income tax and National Insurance. Finally, this Bill provides further clarity as to the status of an individual when their income is deemed to be employment income, and extends the rights of employees to these workers including but not limited to the provision of statutory employment benefits and rights under the Employment Rights Act 1996 and statutory pension regulations.
The Government will relentlessly pursue those who wish to use technicalities in our regulations to avoid paying higher rates of tax and companies that wish to avoid conferring statutory benefits to those who are, for all intents and purposes, employees.
In combination with the other two pieces of anti-avoidance legislation I will be/have submitted to the House, these measures are collectively expected to raise £3.4 billion. This proposed revenue generation and these Bills were raised at Her Majesty’s Budget Committee and unopposed. My thanks go to my friend the Right Honourable Phonexia2 for their assistance in costing.
I urge the House to rally behind this Bill.
(M: These costings are calculated as 40% of the tax gap
for “Evasion” and “Non-payment”, given the difficulty of calculating the actual revenue generated from these measures).
This division will end at 10pm on Wednesday 7th June 2023.

The Airbus A300 is a wide-body airliner developed and manufactured by Airbus. In September 1967, aircraft manufacturers in the United Kingdom, France, and West Germany signed a memorandum of understanding to develop a large airliner. West Germany and France reached an agreement on 29 May 1969 after the British withdrew from the project on 10 April 1969. European collaborative aerospace manufacturer Airbus Industrie was formally created on 18 December 1970 to develop and produce it. The prototype first flew on 28 October 1972.
The first twin-engine widebody airliner, the A300 typically seats 247 passengers in two classes over a range of 5,375 to 7,500 km (2,900 to 4,050 nmi). Initial variants are powered by General Electric CF6-50 or Pratt & Whitney JT9D turbofans and have a three-crew flight deck. The improved A300-600 has a two-crew cockpit and updated CF6-80C2 or PW4000 engines; it made its first flight on 8 July 1983 and entered service later that year. The A300 is the basis of the smaller A310 (first flown in 1982) and was adapted in a freighter version. Its cross section was retained for the larger four-engined A340 (1991) and the larger twin-engined A330 (1992). It is also the basis for the oversize Beluga transport (1994).
Launch customer Air France introduced the type on 23 May 1974. After limited demand initially, sales took off as the type was proven in early service, beginning three decades of steady orders. It has a similar capacity to the Boeing 767-300, introduced in 1986, but lacked the 767-300ER range. During the 1990s, the A300 became popular with cargo aircraft operators, as both passenger airliner conversions and as original builds. Production ceased in July 2007 after 561 deliveries. As of March 2023, there were 228 A300 family aircraft in commercial service.
Origins:
During the 1960s, European aircraft manufacturers such as Hawker Siddeley and the British Aircraft Corporation, based in the UK, and Sud Aviation of France, had ambitions to build a new 200-seat airliner for the growing civil aviation market. While studies were performed and considered, such as a stretched twin-engine variant of the Hawker Siddeley Trident and an expanded development of the British Aircraft Corporation (BAC) One-Eleven, designated the BAC Two-Eleven, it was recognized that if each of the European manufacturers were to launch similar aircraft into the market at the same time, neither would achieve sales volume needed to make them viable.[2] In 1965, a British government study, known as the Plowden Report, had found British aircraft production costs to be between 10% and 20% higher than American counterparts due to shorter production runs, which was in part due to the fractured European market. To overcome this factor, the report recommended the pursuit of multinational collaborative projects between the region's leading aircraft manufacturers.[3]: 49 [4][5]: 2–13
European manufacturers were keen to explore prospective programs; the proposed 260-seat wide-body HBN 100 between Hawker Siddeley, Nord Aviation, and Breguet Aviation being one such example.[2][6]: 37–38 National governments were also keen to support such efforts amid a belief that American manufacturers could dominate the European Economic Community;[7] in particular, Germany had ambitions for a multinational airliner project to invigorate its aircraft industry, which had declined considerably following the Second World War.[3]: 49–50 During the mid-1960s, both Air France and American Airlines had expressed interest in a short-haul twin-engine wide-body aircraft, indicating a market demand for such an aircraft to be produced.[3][8] In July 1967, during a high-profile meeting between French, German, and British ministers, an agreement was made for greater cooperation between European nations in the field of aviation technology, and "for the joint development and production of an airbus".[2][9]: 34 The word airbus at this point was a generic aviation term for a larger commercial aircraft, and was considered acceptable in multiple languages, including French.[9]: 34
Shortly after the July 1967 meeting, French engineer Roger Béteille was appointed as the technical director of what would become the A300 program, while Henri Ziegler, chief operating office of Sud Aviation, was appointed as the general manager of the organization and German politician Franz Josef Strauss became the chairman of the supervisory board.[2] Béteille drew up an initial work share plan for the project, under which French firms would produce the aircraft's cockpit, the control systems, and lower-center portion of the fuselage, Hawker Siddeley would manufacture the wings, while German companies would produce the forward, rear and upper part of the center fuselage sections. Addition work included moving elements of the wings being produced in the Netherlands, and Spain producing the horizontal tail plane.[2][6]: 38
An early design goal for the A300 that Béteille had stressed the importance of was the incorporation of a high level of technology, which would serve as a decisive advantage over prospective competitors. As such, the A300 would feature the first use of composite materials of any passenger aircraft, the leading and trailing edges of the tail fin being composed of glass fibre reinforced plastic.[5]: 2–16 [10] Béteille opted for English as the working language for the developing aircraft, as well against using Metric instrumentation and measurements, as most airlines already had US-built aircraft.[10] These decisions were partially influenced by feedback from various airlines, such as Air France and Lufthansa, as an emphasis had been placed on determining the specifics of what kind of aircraft that potential operators were seeking. According to Airbus, this cultural approach to market research had been crucial to the company's long-term success.[10]
Workshare and redefinition:
On 26 September 1967, the British, French, and West German governments signed a Memorandum of Understanding to start development of the 300-seat Airbus A300.[6]: 38 [11]: 43 [12]: 57 At this point, the A300 was only the second major joint aircraft programme in Europe, the first being the Anglo-French Concorde.[9] Under the terms of the memorandum, Britain and France were each to receive a 37.5 per cent work share on the project, while Germany received a 25 per cent share. Sud Aviation was recognized as the lead company for A300, with Hawker Siddeley being selected as the British partner company.[2] At the time, the news of the announcement had been clouded by the British Government's support for the Airbus, which coincided with its refusal to back BAC's proposed competitor, the BAC 2–11, despite a preference for the latter expressed by British European Airways (BEA).[9]: 34 Another parameter was the requirement for a new engine to be developed by Rolls-Royce to power the proposed airliner; a derivative of the in-development Rolls-Royce RB211, the triple-spool RB207, capable of producing of 47,500 lbf (211 kN).[13] The program cost was US$4.6 billion (in 1993 Dollars).[14]
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In December 1968, the French and British partner companies (Sud Aviation and Hawker Siddeley) proposed a revised configuration, the 250-seat Airbus A250. It had been feared that the original 300-seat proposal was too large for the market, thus it had been scaled down to produce the A250.[5]: 2–14 [8][15] The dimensional changes involved in the shrink reduced the length of the fuselage by 5.62 metres (18.4 ft) and the diameter by 0.8 metres (31 in), reducing the overall weight by 25 tonnes (55,000 lb).[10][16]: 16 For increased flexibility, the cabin floor was raised so that standard LD3 freight containers could be accommodated side-by-side, allowing more cargo to be carried. Refinements made by Hawker Siddeley to the wing's design provided for greater lift and overall performance; this gave the aircraft the ability to climb faster and attain a level cruising altitude sooner than any other passenger aircraft.[10] It was later renamed the A300B.[9]: 34 [15]
Perhaps the most significant change of the A300B was that it would not require new engines to be developed, being of a suitable size to be powered by Rolls-Royce's RB211, or alternatively the American Pratt & Whitney JT9D and General Electric CF6 powerplants; this switch was recognized as considerably reducing the project's development costs.[11]: 45 [15][16]: 16–17 To attract potential customers in the US market, it was decided that General Electric CF6-50 engines would power the A300 in place of the British RB207; these engines would be produced in co-operation with French firm Snecma.[8][10] By this time, Rolls-Royce had been concentrating their efforts upon developing their RB211 turbofan engine instead and progress on the RB207's development had been slow for some time, the firm having suffered due to funding limitations, both of which had been factors in the engine switch decision.[5]: 2–13 [15][16]: 17–18
On 10 April 1969, a few months after the decision to drop the RB207 had been announced, the British government announced that they would withdraw from the Airbus venture.[6]: 38–39 [15] In response, West Germany proposed to France that they would be willing to contribute up to 50% of the project's costs if France was prepared to do the same.[15] Additionally, the managing director of Hawker Siddeley, Sir Arnold Alexander Hall, decided that his company would remain in the project as a favoured sub-contractor, developing and manufacturing the wings for the A300, which would later become pivotal in later versions' impressive performance from short domestic to long intercontinental flights.[5]: 2–13 [9]: 34 [16]: 18 Hawker Siddeley spent £35 million of its own funds, along with a further £35 million loan from the West German government, on the machine tooling to design and produce the wings.[6]: 39 [15]
Programme launch:
On 29 May 1969, during the Paris Air Show, French transport minister Jean Chamant and German economics minister Karl Schiller signed an agreement officially launching the Airbus A300, the world's first twin-engine widebody airliner.[2] The intention of the project was to produce an aircraft that was smaller, lighter, and more economical than its three-engine American rivals, the McDonnell Douglas DC-10 and the Lockheed L-1011 TriStar.[10] In order to meet Air France's demands for an aircraft larger than 250-seat A300B, it was decided to stretch the fuselage to create a new variant, designated as the A300B2, which would be offered alongside the original 250-seat A300B, henceforth referred to as the A300B1. On 3 September 1970, Air France signed a letter of intent for six A300s, marking the first order to be won for the new airliner.[6]: 39 [10][16]: 21
In the aftermath of the Paris Air Show agreement, it was decided that, in order to provide effective management of responsibilities, a Groupement d'intérêt économique would be established, allowing the various partners to work together on the project while remaining separate business entities.[2] On 18 December 1970, Airbus Industrie was formally established following an agreement between Aérospatiale (the newly merged Sud Aviation and Nord Aviation) of France and the antecedents to Deutsche Aerospace of Germany, each receiving a 50 per cent stake in the newly formed company.[3]: 50 [6]: 39 [10] In 1971, the consortium was joined by a third full partner, the Spanish firm CASA, who received a 4.2 per cent stake, the other two members reducing their stakes to 47.9 per cent each.[10][16]: 20 In 1979, Britain joined the Airbus consortium via British Aerospace, which Hawker Siddeley had merged into, which acquired a 20 per cent stake in Airbus Industrie with France and Germany each reducing their stakes to 37.9 per cent.[3]: 53 [5]: 2–14 [6]: 39
Prototype and flight testing:
Airbus Industrie was initially headquartered in Paris, which is where design, development, flight testing, sales, marketing, and customer support activities were centered; the headquarters was relocated to Toulouse in January 1974.[8][10] The final assembly line for the A300 was located adjacent to Toulouse Blagnac International Airport. The manufacturing process necessitated transporting each aircraft section being produced by the partner companies scattered across Europe to this one location. The combined use of ferries and roads were used for the assembly of the first A300, however this was time-consuming and not viewed as ideal by Felix Kracht, Airbus Industrie's production director.[10] Kracht's solution was to have the various A300 sections brought to Toulouse by a fleet of Boeing 377-derived Aero Spacelines Super Guppy aircraft, by which means none of the manufacturing sites were more than two hours away. Having the sections airlifted in this manner made the A300 the first airliner to use just-in-time manufacturing techniques, and allowed each company to manufacture its sections as fully equipped, ready-to-fly assemblies.[3]: 53 [10]
In September 1969, construction of the first prototype A300 began.[16]: 20 On 28 September 1972, this first prototype was unveiled to the public, it conducted its maiden flight from Toulouse–Blagnac International Airport on 28 October that year.[6]: 39 [9]: 34 [11]: 51–52 This maiden flight, which was performed a month ahead of schedule, lasted for one hour and 25 minutes; the captain was Max Fischl and the first officer was Bernard Ziegler, son of Henri Ziegler.[10] In 1972, unit cost was US$17.5M.[17] On 5 February 1973, the second prototype performed its maiden flight.[6]: 39 The flight test program, which involved a total of four aircraft, was relatively problem-free, accumulating 1,580 flight hours throughout.[16]: 22 In September 1973, as part of promotional efforts for the A300, the new aircraft was taken on a six-week tour around North America and South America, to demonstrate it to airline executives, pilots, and would-be customers.[10] Amongst the consequences of this expedition, it had allegedly brought the A300 to the attention of Frank Borman of Eastern Airlines, one of the "big four" U.S. airlines.[18]
Entry into service:
On 15 March 1974, type certificates were granted for the A300 from both German and French authorities, clearing the way for its entry into revenue service.[18] On 23 May 1974, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) certification was received.[16]: 22 The first production model, the A300B2, entered service in 1974, followed by the A300B4 one year later.[8] Initially, the success of the consortium was poor, in part due to the economic consequences of the 1973 oil crisis,[6]: 40 [8][9]: 34 but by 1979 there were 81 A300 passenger liners in service with 14 airlines, alongside 133 firm orders and 88 options.[18] Ten years after the official launch of the A300, the company had achieved a 26 per cent market share in terms of dollar value, enabling Airbus Industries to proceed with the development of its second aircraft, the Airbus A310.[18]
Design:
The Airbus A300 is a wide-body medium-to-long range airliner; it has the distinction of being the first twin-engine wide-body aircraft in the world.[8][9]: 34 [12]: 57, 60 [19] In 1977, the A300 became the first Extended Range Twin Operations (ETOPS)-compliant aircraft, due to its high performance and safety standards.[6]: 40 Another world-first of the A300 is the use of composite materials on a commercial aircraft, which were used on both secondary and later primary airframe structures, decreasing overall weight and improving cost-effectiveness.[19] Other firsts included the pioneering use of center-of-gravity control, achieved by transferring fuel between various locations across the aircraft, and electrically signaled secondary flight controls.[20]
The A300 is powered by a pair of underwing turbofan engines, either General Electric CF6 or Pratt & Whitney JT9D engines; the sole use of underwing engine pods allowed for any suitable turbofan engine to be more readily used.[12]: 57 The lack of a third tail-mounted engine, as per the trijet configuration used by some competing airliners, allowed for the wings to be located further forwards and to reduce the size of the vertical stabilizer and elevator, which had the effect of increasing the aircraft's flight performance and fuel efficiency.[3]: 50 [16]: 21
Airbus partners had employed the latest technology, some of which having been derived from Concorde, on the A300. According to Airbus, new technologies adopted for the airliner were selected principally for increased safety, operational capability, and profitability.[19] Upon entry into service in 1974, the A300 was a very advanced plane, which went on to influence later airliner designs. The technological highlights include advanced wings by de Havilland (later BAE Systems) with supercritical airfoil sections for economical performance and advanced aerodynamically efficient flight control surfaces. The 5.64 m (222 in) diameter circular fuselage section allows an eight-abreast passenger seating and is wide enough for 2 LD3 cargo containers side by side. Structures are made from metal billets, reducing weight. It is the first airliner to be fitted with wind shear protection. Its advanced autopilots are capable of flying the aircraft from climb-out to landing, and it has an electrically controlled braking system.
Later A300s incorporated other advanced features such as the Forward-Facing Crew Cockpit (FFCC), which enabled a two-pilot flight crew to fly the aircraft alone without the need for a flight engineer, the functions of which were automated; this two-man cockpit concept was a world-first for a wide-body aircraft.[8][16]: 23–24 [20] Glass cockpit flight instrumentation, which used cathode ray tube (CRT) monitors to display flight, navigation, and warning information, along with fully digital dual autopilots and digital flight control computers for controlling the spoilers, flaps, and leading-edge slats, were also adopted upon later-built models.[19][21] Additional composites were also made use of, such as carbon-fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP), as well as their presence in an increasing proportion of the aircraft's components, including the spoilers, rudder, air brakes, and landing gear doors.[22] Another feature of later aircraft was the addition of wingtip fences, which improved aerodynamic performance and thus reduced cruise fuel consumption by about 1.5% for the A300-600.[23]
In addition to passenger duties, the A300 became widely used by air freight operators; according to Airbus, it is the best selling freight aircraft of all time.[20] Various variants of the A300 were built to meet customer demands, often for diverse roles such as aerial refueling tankers, freighter models (new-build and conversions), combi aircraft, military airlifter, and VIP transport. Perhaps the most visually unique of the variants is the A300-600ST Beluga, an oversize cargo-carrying model operated by Airbus to carry aircraft sections between their manufacturing facilities.[20] The A300 was the basis for, and retained a high level of commonality with, the second airliner produced by Airbus, the smaller Airbus A310.[19]
Operational history:
On 23 May 1974, the first A300 to enter service performed the first commercial flight of the type, flying from Paris to London, for Air France.[6]: 39 [18]
Immediately after the launch, sales of the A300 were weak for some years, with most orders going to airlines that had an obligation to favor the domestically made product – notably Air France and Lufthansa, the first two airlines to place orders for the type.[3]: 50–52 [18] Following the appointment of Bernard Lathière as Henri Ziegler's replacement, an aggressive sales approach was adopted. Indian Airlines was the world's first domestic airline to purchase the A300, ordering three aircraft with three options. However, between December 1975 and May 1977, there were no sales for the type. During this period a number of "whitetail" A300s – completed but unsold aircraft – were completed and stored at Toulouse, and production fell to half an aircraft per month amid calls to pause production completely.[18]
During the flight testing of the A300B2, Airbus held a series of talks with Korean Air on the topic of developing a longer-range version of the A300, which would become the A300B4. In September 1974, Korean Air placed an order for four A300B4s with options for two further aircraft; this sale was viewed as significant as it was the first non-European international airline to order Airbus aircraft. Airbus had viewed South-East Asia as a vital market that was ready to be opened up and believed Korean Air to be the 'key'.[8][16]: 23 [18]
Airlines operating the A300 on short haul routes were forced to reduce frequencies to try and fill the aircraft. As a result, they lost passengers to airlines operating more frequent narrow body flights. Eventually, Airbus had to build its own narrowbody aircraft (the A320) to compete with the Boeing 737 and McDonnell Douglas DC-9/MD-80. The savior of the A300 was the advent of ETOPS, a revised FAA rule which allows twin-engine jets to fly long-distance routes that were previously off-limits to them. This enabled Airbus to develop the aircraft as a medium/long range airliner.
In 1977, US carrier Eastern Air Lines leased four A300s as an in-service trial.[18] CEO Frank Borman was impressed that the A300 consumed 30% less fuel, even less than expected, than his fleet of L-1011s. Borman proceeded to order 23 A300s, becoming the first U.S. customer for the type. This order is often cited as the point at which Airbus came to be seen as a serious competitor to the large American aircraft-manufacturers Boeing and McDonnell Douglas.[6]: 40 [8][18] Aviation author John Bowen alleged that various concessions, such as loan guarantees from European governments and compensation payments, were a factor in the decision as well.[3]: 52 The Eastern Air Lines breakthrough was shortly followed by an order from Pan Am. From then on, the A300 family sold well, eventually reaching a total of 561 delivered aircraft.[1]
In December 1977, Aerocondor Colombia became the first Airbus operator in Latin America, leasing one Airbus A300B4-2C, named Ciudad de Barranquilla.
During the late 1970s, Airbus adopted a so-called 'Silk Road' strategy, targeting airlines in the Far East.[3]: 52 [18] As a result, The aircraft found particular favor with Asian airlines, being bought by Japan Air System, Korean Air, China Eastern Airlines, Thai Airways International, Singapore Airlines, Malaysia Airlines, Philippine Airlines, Garuda Indonesia, China Airlines, Pakistan International Airlines, Indian Airlines, Trans Australia Airlines and many others. As Asia did not have restrictions similar to the FAA 60-minutes rule for twin-engine airliners which existed at the time, Asian airlines used A300s for routes across the Bay of Bengal and South China Sea.
In 1977, the A300B4 became the first ETOPS compliant aircraft,[24] qualifying for Extended Twin Engine Operations over water, providing operators with more versatility in routing. In 1982 Garuda Indonesia became the first airline to fly the A300B4-200FFCC.[25] By 1981, Airbus was growing rapidly, with over 400 aircraft sold to over forty airlines.[26]
In 1989, Chinese operator China Eastern Airlines received its first A300; by 2006, the airline operated around 18 A300s, making it the largest operator of both the A300 and the A310 at that time. On 31 May 2014, China Eastern officially retired the last A300-600 in its fleet, having begun drawing down the type in 2010.[27]
From 1997 to 2014, a single A300, designated A300 Zero-G, was operated by the European Space Agency (ESA), centre national d'études spatiales (CNES) and the German Aerospace Center (DLR) as a reduced-gravity aircraft for conducting research into microgravity; the A300 is the largest aircraft to ever have been used in this capacity. A typical flight would last for two and a half hours, enabling up to 30 parabolas to be performed per flight.[28][29]
By the 1990s, the A300 was being heavily promoted as a cargo freighter.[16]: 24 The largest freight operator of the A300 is FedEx Express, which has 65 A300 aircraft in service as of May 2022.[30] UPS Airlines also operates 52 freighter versions of the A300.[31]
The final version was the A300-600R and is rated for 180-minute ETOPS. The A300 has enjoyed renewed interest in the secondhand market for conversion to freighters; large numbers were being converted during the late 1990s.[16]: 24–25 The freighter versions – either new-build A300-600s or converted ex-passenger A300-600s, A300B2s and B4s – account for most of the world's freighter fleet after the Boeing 747 freighter.[32]
The A300 provided Airbus the experience of manufacturing and selling airliners competitively. The basic fuselage of the A300 was later stretched (A330 and A340), shortened (A310), or modified into derivatives (A300-600ST Beluga Super Transporter). In 2006, unit cost of an −600F was $105 million.[14] In March 2006, Airbus announced the impending closure of the A300/A310 final assembly line,[33] making them the first Airbus aircraft to be discontinued. The final production A300, an A300F freighter, performed its initial flight on 18 April 2007,[34] and was delivered to FedEx Express on 12 July 2007.[35] Airbus has announced a support package to keep A300s flying commercially. Airbus offers the A330-200F freighter as a replacement for the A300 cargo variants.[36]
The life of UPS's fleet of 52 A300s, delivered from 2000 to 2006, will be extended to 2035 by a flight deck upgrade based around Honeywell Primus Epic avionics; new displays and flight management system (FMS), improved weather radar, a central maintenance system, and a new version of the current enhanced ground proximity warning system. With a light usage of only two to three cycles per day, it will not reach the maximum number of cycles by then. The first modification will be made at Airbus Toulouse in 2019 and certified in 2020.[37] As of July 2017, there are 211 A300s in service with 22 operators, with the largest operator being FedEx Express with 68 A300-600F aircraft.[38]
Variants:
A300B1 - The A300B1 was the first variant to take flight. It had a maximum takeoff weight (MTOW) of 132 t (291,000 lb), was 51 m (167 ft) long and was powered by two General Electric CF6-50A engines.[16]: 21 [39]: 41 Only two prototypes of the variant were built before it was adapted into the A300B2, the first production variant of the airliner.[6]: 39 The second prototype was leased to Trans European Airways in 1974.[39]: 54
A300B2 -
A300B2-100:
Responding to a need for more seats from Air France, Airbus decided that the first production variant should be larger than the original prototype A300B1. The CF6-50A powered A300B2-100 was 2.6 m (8.5 ft) longer than the A300B1 and had an increased MTOW of 137 t (302,000 lb), allowing for 30 additional seats and bringing the typical passenger count up to 281, with capacity for 20 LD3 containers.[40]: 10 [41][39]: 17 Two prototypes were built and the variant made its maiden flight on 28 June 1973, became certified on 15 March 1974 and entered service with Air France on 23 May 1974.[39]: 27, 53 [40]: 10
A300B2-200:
For the A300B2-200, originally designated as the A300B2K, Krueger flaps were introduced at the leading-edge root, the slat angles were reduced from 20 degrees to 16 degrees, and other lift related changes were made in order to introduce a high-lift system. This was done to improve performance when operating at high-altitude airports, where the air is less dense and lift generation is reduced.[42]: 52, 53 [43] The variant had an increased MTOW of 142 t (313,000 lb) and was powered by CF6-50C engines, was certified on 23 June 1976, and entered service with South African Airways in November 1976.[39]: 40 [40]: 12 CF6-50C1 and CF6-50C2 models were also later fitted depending on customer requirements, these became certified on 22 February 1978 and 21 February 1980 respectively.[39]: 41 [40]: 12
A300B2-320:
The A300B2-320 introduced the Pratt & Whitney JT9D powerplant and was powered by JT9D-59A engines. It retained the 142 t (313,000 lb) MTOW of the B2-200, was certified on 4 January 1980, and entered service with Scandinavian Airlines on 18 February 1980, with only four being produced.[39]: 99, 112 [40]: 14
A300B4 -
A300B4-100:
The initial A300B4 variant, later named the A300B4-100, included a centre fuel tank for an increased fuel capacity of 47.5 tonnes (105,000 lb), and had an increased MTOW of 157.5 tonnes (347,000 lb).[44][42]: 38 It also featured Krueger flaps and had a similar high-lift system to what was later fitted to the A300B2-200.[42]: 74 The variant made its maiden flight on 26 December 1974, was certified on 26 March 1975, and entered service with Germanair in May 1975.[39]: 32, 54 [40]: 16
A300B4-200:
The A300B4-200 had an increased MTOW of 165 tonnes (364,000 lb) and featured an additional optional fuel tank in the rear cargo hold, which would reduce the cargo capacity by two LD3 containers.[40]: 19 [42]: 69 The variant was certified on 26 April 1979.[40]: 19
A300-600 - The A300-600, officially designated as the A300B4-600, was slightly longer than the A300B2 and A300B4 variants and had an increased interior space from using a similar rear fuselage to the Airbus A310, this allowed it to have two additional rows of seats.[42]: 79 It was initially powered by Pratt & Whitney JT9D-7R4H1 engines, but was later fitted with General Electric CF6-80C2 engines, with Pratt & Whitney PW4156 or PW4158 engines being introduced in 1986.[42]: 82 Other changes include an improved wing featuring a recambered trailing edge, the incorporation of simpler single-slotted Fowler flaps, the deletion of slat fences, and the removal of the outboard ailerons after they were deemed unnecessary on the A310.[45] The variant made its first flight on 8 July 1983, was certified on 9 March 1984, and entered service in June 1984 with Saudi Arabian Airlines.[40]: 42 [39]: 58 A total of 313 A300-600s (all versions) have been sold. The A300-600 uses the A310 cockpits, featuring digital technology and electronic displays, eliminating the need for a flight engineer. The FAA issues a single type rating which allows operation of both the A310 and A300-600. A300-600: (Official designation: A300B4-600) The baseline model of the −600 series. A300-620C: (Official designation: A300C4-620) A convertible-freighter version. Four delivered between 1984 and 1985. A300-600F: (Official designation: A300F4-600) The freighter version of the baseline −600. A300-600R: (Official designation: A300B4-600R) The increased-range −600, achieved by an additional trim fuel tank in the tail. First delivery in 1988 to American Airlines; all A300s built since 1989 (freighters included) are −600Rs. Japan Air System (later merged into Japan Airlines) took delivery of the last new-built passenger A300, an A300-622R, in November 2002. A300-600RC: (Official designation: A300C4-600R) The convertible-freighter version of the −600R. Two were delivered in 1999. A300-600RF: (Official designation: A300F4-600R) The freighter version of the −600R. All A300s delivered between November 2002 and 12 July 2007 (last ever A300 delivery) were A300-600RFs.
A310 (A300B10)-
Airbus had demand for an aircraft smaller than the A300. On 7 July 1978, the A310 (initially the A300B10) was launched with orders from Swissair and Lufthansa. On 3 April 1982, the first prototype conducted its maiden flight and it received its type certification on 11 March 1983.
Keeping the same eight-abreast cross-section, the A310 is 6.95 m (22.8 ft) shorter than the initial A300 variants, and has a smaller 219 m2 (2,360 sq ft) wing, down from 260 m2 (2,800 sq ft). The A310 introduced a two-crew glass cockpit, later adopted for the A300-600 with a common type rating. It was powered by the same GE CF6-80 or Pratt & Whitney JT9D then PW4000 turbofans. It can seat 220 passengers in two classes, or 240 in all-economy, and can fly up to 5,150 nmi (9,540 km). It has overwing exits between the two main front and rear door pairs.
In April 1983, the aircraft entered revenue service with Swissair and competed with the Boeing 767–200, introduced six months before. Its longer range and ETOPS regulations allowed it to be operated on transatlantic flights. Until the last delivery in June 1998, 255 aircraft were produced, as it was succeeded by the larger Airbus A330-200. It has cargo aircraft versions, and was derived into the Airbus A310 MRTT military tanketransport.
Airbus A300-ST (Beluga)
Commonly referred to as the Airbus Beluga or "Airbus Super Transporter," these five airframes are used by Airbus to ferry parts between the company's disparate manufacturing facilities, thus enabling workshare distribution. They replaced the four Aero Spacelines Super Guppys previously used by Airbus.
ICAO code: A3ST
Operators:
As of March 2023, there were 228 A300 family aircraft in commercial service. The five largest operators were FedEx Express (70), UPS Airlines (52), European Air Transport Leipzig (23), Iran Air (11), and Mahan Air (11).[46]

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The most important reason behind decarbing is the activation of the acid groups of compounds into their psychotropic active forms. While there are medicinal and therapeutic benefits to THCa and other Acid forms of cannabinoids, they are not therapeutic via combustion and can only be used to induce immediate medicinal therpaeutic effect in transdermal absorption, edibles, rso, tinctures etc. Though extended lomg term benefits of THCa have been suggested by studies. THCa is not psychotropic however. Very few psychoactive psychotropic benefits can be experienced from raw cannabis flower prior to decarboxylation.
Decaroxylation is one of the most important steps in cannabis concentrate processing, but is a part of cannabis use regarldess of How it is used. Decarboxylation is the addition of heat to raw cannabis or cannabis flower that has been curred. This torches the cannabis flower and upon reaching its flash point around 315° F approximately, the THCa loose a single carbon atom Carboxyl group 👉 (-COOH) while holding onto a hydrogen atom.
The atomic make up of THCa is 4 Oxygen, 30 Hydrodgen, and 22 Carbon atoms. We can see that decarbing causes the loss of 2 Oxygen atoms, 1 hydrogen, and 1 carbon atom. This is known as carbon dioxide, 1 carbon, di-2 oxide 1 hydrogen atom. Removal of said carboxyl group causes an approximately 12% reduction in THCa and converts to active THC.
This process can happen as I mentioned from combustion of plant material reaching the flash point of THC at approximately 320°F. It can also take place in a much more delicate manner whereby the THCa is converted to THC for use in products which will not undergo combustion. These are your edibles, tinctures, Rick Simpson Oil, topicals etc. These require that the THCa be ran through a decarboxylation process via lab techniques. However, the consumed compound in edibles and RSO is THC.
THCa does not bind to the receptors which are the main parts activating the endocannabinoid system, aka ECS. The ECS is a largely not understood homeostatic process involving the peropheral and nervous systems. THCa has a shape and size that prevents it from binding to CB1 or CB2 receptors. THC however has the key to both receptors.

There is not much study that has been conducted on THCa, largely thanks to the little amount of study done on cannabis. Meaning that which has been done has been on the seemingly most pertinent parts of the plant to understand given its possible recreational and inherent medicnal stance in the western World. 

THCa is quite interesting in that studies have shown it to be directly beneficial to the reduction of pain by causing inhibition of COX-1 and Cox-2 enzymes. Both of said enzymes have potential to increase inflimation, pain, & fever. The interesting thing is the usefulness I have heard family and friends speak to, that being the application of topicals. I always wondered how in the world a topical would be beneficial for someone like my aunt, who smoke upwards of an ounce a week and uses pens and dabs. She finds the anti inflammirory and pain relieving properties of topical absorption of THCa extremely beneficial. She suffers a multitude of issues traditionally thought of to be treated by cannabis like gastroporesis, fibromyalgia, and inflimation associated pain.
The medicinal and recreational benefits of THC vs THCa differ darastically. THCa is not psychotropic, or as I often refer to it as psychoactively psychedelic. But has a multitude of medicnal applications through topical transdermal absorption, juicing of cannabis leaves, plant, and flower, rso, and other edibles.
THCa treats neurodegenrative diseases such as alzheimers disease, interesting given that CBD quells seizure activity in certain nerodivergent disorders. THCa is also anit spasmodic, meaning it stops muscele shaking in diseases like Parkinson disease. It also somewhat counterintuitive as an anti proliferative, considering the proliferative nature of sesquiterpenes. Said Anit proliferative attributes making it beneficial in prevention of prostate cancers.
THCa is also anti emetic to treat nausea vomiting etc and induce apetite & aid reduction in nausea. It is also analgesic in nature which means it is a pain killer. Finally like most compounds in cannabis THCa is an antioxidant that protects one from and reverses the damage caused by free radicals.
THC in addition to the plethora of medicinal applications of THCa, we have the medicinal viability of THC. Again none of this is accepted by the FDA and much comes from studies of cannabis from around the world as US peer reviewed research wasn't allowed in the US untill 2022. Atleast NOT RESEARCH without FDA manipulation forcing researchers to use cannabis from the University of Mississippi grown by government contractors to ensure low quality cannabis and sub par quality. This was the product available for study by peer reviewed researchers, ensuring FDAs plausible deniablilty while simultaneously actively controlling ability to produce results other than null. This backing down by the FDA is why we see so many synthetic cannabinoids hitting the market now. We're actually able to study the cannabis actually being used, though the restrictions are still a bit uncalled for.
The benefits of THC actually do differ from THCa. I didn't know this for the longest time. I always thought that THC was simply decarboxylIzed THCa. THC can assist with the treatment of opioid addiction, ya know, the way addicts who've suffered from the disease for years have suggested that the plant helps. For decades individuals on methadone maintainence treatment or another form of medicated assisted Treatment, aka MAT like suboxone, subtuex, or sublicaid which are all partial opioid agonists, save methadone as it is a full agonist. The Marijuana is said to dissuade the desire for reward seeking by allowing a less intense non addictive reward to Be given to the brain via THC.
Studies have actually shown a statistically significant difference in completion of opioid maintainence programs and relapse therein or total relapse correlated to THC use. This use is said to be decreasing desire to activate that 'burnt-in' reward system pathway. Essentially yes it let's the patient get high without axtivating those addictive pathways. This is supported by studies like the one I often discuss regarding injection of Beta Myrcene in Mice. Interestingly a study performed on Beta myrcene outside of cannabis, subcutaneous and intra peritoneal injection of cannabis derived beta myrcene led to analgesia comparable to prescription opiates.
The amazing find imo is that while it produced similar analgesic effects, it took an unknown pathway which caused analgesia but didn't exhibit the addictive properties of opioid Mu receptor activation. The studies insinuate both the application and medicinal viability of myrcene outside and likely within the whole of cannabis. Remember the whole is more than sum of its parts. AS well as the fact that THERE maybe isn't much receptor activation leadiNg to addictive properties, but RATHER, the pathway to the mu receptor causes the addictive properties.
THC has also been shown to have a strong Correlation to increased Metabolic output, which has a multitude of health benefits that most certainly don't abIDE by THE social niceties of todayS society. Cannabis use can produce THC benefit can lessen possibility of diet related obesity. The THC has actually been shown to be correlated with decrease in Body Mass Index as outdated as the BMI is said to be in modern culture. In addition THC has been correlated to A decrease in likliehood of diet associated diabetes.
THC also exhibits the characteristic of encouraging Vasodialation which is how the pressure in the eyes is releived for Glaucoma patients. Vasodiallation is the diallation of blood vessels, aka opening them up. This causes a decrease in blood pressure. However, strains with potent beta myrcene levels can effect the way in which the THC works. When THC is used with Beta caryophyllene in that form, not trans caryophyllene which is the most common form of beta caryophyllene and myrcene together, the THC enhances sedative effects in the potency of the onset brought on by beta caryophyllene sedation enhanced via myrcene.
Myrcene alone causes proliferation of THC across the blood brain n barrier leading to imcreased absorption of THC and increased activation of the CB1 receptors. This increases the psychotropic ability of the cannabis. THC potency can also be controlled with the application of various combinations of terpenes, namely related to beta caryophyllene and beta myrcene.

For example, that intensification of cb1 receptor activity can be quelled using the dietary nature of the dietary cannabinoid Beta Caryophyllene, by ingesting small amounts of black pepper cernals. These are high in Beta caryophyllene and as it is also a dietary cannabinoid meaning it can enter the endocsnnabnoid system througj the stomach and interacts with cannabis compounds active in the ECS. This calms the psychotropic Intensity calming paranoia & anxiety. 

What is interesting and leads to deep sometimes heated discussion is that THC is also anxiolytic. Obviously heated given the intensification of THC via myrcene in a sativa lacking beta or trans caryophyllene. THCa is shown in studies in 2017 to be a more effective anti inflammitory than CBD when treating certain gastrointestinal disorders, specifically Irritable bowel syndrome, chrons disease, and ulcerative colitis.
So what does it mean when you see a small amount of THC in the product but higher levels of THCa? That ofcourse is a traditional confirmation of analysis.

First, it is very possible that the confirmation of analysis testing if using gas Chrometography that the THC may be underestimated, making for a more potent product than labeled....though these differences would be so Minute they likely wouldn't be noted by a person using the product. Maybe someone sensitive to THC. 

Ever notice how there is typically some level of THC usually below 1% while your THCa tests around 79% or 78%. When testing cannabis products, when using Gas Chrometography the amount of THCa that converts to THC is 70%, but the THCa is not measurable using this method due to the temperature decearboxylizing the THCa to its psychotropic form.
Gas Chrometography combusts the material into a gassesous form and runs this gas through filtration which is able to measure the compound levels. I Showed below a picture diagram showing these systems. Because this is the "decarbed" product meaning heat was applied to convert the tetrahydracannabinolic acid. The THC is all that can be measured using this approach, not the THCa and only 70% of THCa is converted in this process. However knowing that 70% of THCa converts to THC we can sus out the levels of both using this approach.
It is impossible to know what that initial amount of THCa was of which 70% gets converted. Cannabis confirmation of analysis testing is very complex and has many seeming double negatives and odd measuremnet standards. One of these as a good example is less than the limit of quantitation. This means that the compound is present but can't be measured in accurate levels.
Liquid chrometography is a secondary method used to produce the confirmation of analysis you find on most states cannabis Product, atleast for the medicinal cannabis products in my state. Liquid chrometography takes advantage of a universal formula used to determine the amount of THCa that gets converted to THC.
The Universal Mathematical formula is as follows.
THC TOTAL= (%THCa) X 0.877 + (%THC)
If we remember looking back, approximately 12% of THCa is lost in the extraction process, during decarboxylation. That approximates at 0.877 which is equivalent to 87.7%. 87.8 + 12 leaves 99.8%. I am not exactly certain about the .2% leftover. I will update when i do learn ablut this fact. When the carboxyl group is removed and hydrogen atom preserved a 12% reduction occurs in THCa and other active cannabinoids, those exsisiting as an acid naturally like CBGa are converted as well.
This is how the ACTUAL levels are measured in order to understand the real potnecy of the product your using. THCa for example require a temperature exposure of 220° F for 30-45 mins before decarbing begins. The key for some decarbing processes is to manipulate atmospheric pressures to lower the boiling points and flash points of cannabinoid temperatures in order to ensure the partial flashing over (that is decarbing) takes place but doesn't degrade the product. Control of atmospheric pressure is necessary so that terpenes are not evaporated as some terpnenes begin to flash over at right around 100°F. A rotovap is one way this is done for which there is a diagram below as well, showing the liquid bath and erlyn myer flask (flask with bulbous bottom). Or in a VTA wipe decarboxylationprocess. .
THCa decarbs at approximately 220° F and CBDa decarbs at approximately 245°F, exposure time being approximately 90 minutes. To keep terpenes from evaporating it is necessary to extend the length of time one runs decarbozylation process in order to lower the temperature. A chart exsists to show heat vs time and the relative output thereof i included below. According to my research the optimal temperature for THCa decarboxylation is between 252° & 293°F.
If you plan to exsist on the Recreational market as a processor of cannabis or as an individual processing your own cannabis, decarboxylation is absolutely necessary to compete with big indisytry and make cannabis product containing desired terpenes.

 While decarbing can be done ignoring the evaporation of terpenes, which is why there is the issue of adding terpenes in some processing it is best to try to keep these terps especially if competing In a state where medicinal multi million dollar industry is operating. 

Advoc8 always
Meduc8 daily
FOLLOW UR NOSE 👃 WHERE THE TERPENES GOES.

Okay, so... a few days ago I posted about a rewrite of all Elite seasons, dividing it into two parts (part 1: S1, S2 & S3, and part 2: S4, S5 & S6). It was a rewrite that I did about a year ago, and only a few days ago it occurred to me to upload it here without further ado, but several comments on the post from the last three seasons told me that they felt a little disconnected from the rest, that last seasons didn't had a general harmony between the characters and the story itself, and the truth is, you were right.
So, since I had nothing better to do at home, I began to think of some way to accommodate that, and well, this is what I came to ^-^
This is only the S4 rewrite, and I want to clarify this retains most of the things I mentioned in my original post, but in a better order, and with several additions I took from the comments on that post, which really made this version a 100/10.
I leave you the link of the original post, where you can read the first complete idea:
https://www.reddit.com/EliteNetflix/comments/13yr1r6/fixing_netflix_elite_season_46_english/
I'll be making the new parts 5 and 6 in a few of these days, and uploading them to my profile as well. When I have them, I will leave those links in the comments of this post.
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S4: the main focus of this season would be on excesses, specifically, on the consequences of drug abuse.

• The story of this season should have followed the consequences of Polo's death for our characters, the weight of the pact of silence regarding Lu, and the non-hypersexualized harmony that the first three seasons had between the characters.
• In addition, from this season several things about the school itself raised in previous seasons seem to have been forgotten just like that:

1. Las Encinas is a bilingual school, but we never see another teacher speaking English (French in the English dubbing) again.
2. The school competition with the Ivy League prize that Nadia and Lu compete for during the first three seasons is not mentioned again, when it is supposed to be something that is done every single year.
3. In addition, from this season almost all the scenes are located almost exclusively inside the school, and we see very little about outdoor scenes, or the private lives of the characters. This is also a serious mistake, since that was what best allowed us to know each other's backgrounds, and create empathy with them.

Initial setting for this season:
(in my post about the first three seasons) I made clear my idea for Christian's character at the end of season 3 (I decided to keep the character in the show, for plot reasons of season 2):

• Christian has pleaded guilty to the crime against Polo, partly to protect Lu (with whom in this version he would have had a romantic backstory) but also because he knew he would not bear to have another murder charge on his conscience (in this case, Polo's) after everything that happened with Marina. It was like his way of making himself pay for keeping silent, and at the same time understanding the reasons that Carla had had to protect Polo all that time: for the people you loved, you are willing to do anything; Carla had done that for Polo, and now he was doing it for Lu.
• At the end of the previous season, at graduation, we would very briefly met a new character who happened to be Carla's younger brother. That character (Felipe) will be one of the new main ones of this season and will be a completely modified version of Phillipe's character (who as such does not appear in this version).
• Nadia, Carla, Lucrecia, Cayetana, Ander, and Malick would have successfully graduated the previous season, and would no longer appear in this one. In this version, Omar would not appear anymore either, since he would have gone to the US with Malick, accompanying Nadia and Lucrecia.
• Samuel, Guzmán, Rebeka and Valerio would be the characters repeating the course and staying for one more season. Cayetana would also stay, but as in the original version, she would do so as the new school janitor.
• Guzmán and Mencía become close friends this season, based on how much Guzmán would see Marina in Mencía [For those who didn't know, Mencía was written as a reformulation of Marina's character, adapted to the needs of the new environment with this "new gen"].

Ari, Patrick and Mencía:

• We would find out that they are adopted children of Benjamin.
• The three of them + Felipe would enter the third year of school, that is, a course below the one that Samuel & company are repeating (making Felipe, Patrick and Ari two years younger than them, and Mencía three, since they originally tell us that she is one year ahead).

Benjamín Blanco: The father of the new trio, and the new principal in Las Encinas, after Azucena's dismissal. He is actually Polo's uncle (his late wife was Begoña Benavent's sister).

• Benjamín would have come to Madrid to help his sister-in-law regarding her son's trial, and to try to obtain information about this, by infiltrating the school, since apparently, despite Christian's guilty plea, there does not seem to have been direct evidence implicating him as the killer, beyond the romantic bond he shared with Polo, so police say it's quite possible he'll be released for lack of evidence.
• They tell us that Benjamin asked his three children for "help" to try to find out what really happened with Polo. However, Ari is the only one who accepted his request for help. Patrick and Mencía try to act as if that doesn't happen. Neither of the three mentions that Polo was their cousin.

Felipe Rosón Caleruega.

• Apparently, he had spent all those years attending a sister private school of Las Encinas located in Argentina, called Los Olmos, and when we got to know him properly this season we would discover that it was not his idea to return to live in Madrid, but rather a decision made by his parents. We would later learn that he had actually been expelled from his last school, and that there is something about his past in Argentina that he is trying to keep secret [Remember that he is a new version of what Phillipe was, so he must have something shady behind him].
• Felipe's "dark past" is based on having anger management problems: a video is revealed in which he is seen together with a group of students attacking another boy. There is a heavy complaint against him, and the case is still on trial, and only thanks to the influence of his parents was he able to avoid being arrested.
• Related to the second main plot of this season, which in the future would become the main plot for later seasons:

⠀⠀⠀ → His father, Theodoro Rosón plans to rebuild a public school again on top of the ruins of San Esteban's (Samu, Nadia & Christian's old school), this time by "legal means" to avoid the same fate as Ventura (Guzmán's father, who was arrested in S1), but still solely for the economic purposes that would result from such construction, and a new scholarship program that this new school would have with Las Encinas.*
⠀⠀⠀ → During the next season, the construction of this new institution would have finished, and we would have new scholarship recipients in Las Encinas, coming from this new school. This would be part of the "reboot" that the next generation would mean for Elite.
They make us believe that Rebeka (not Ari) is the main victim of this season... but she is not.

• From the first episode, we begin to have flashforwards at the beginning and at the end of each episode, where we see, to begin with Rebe in a coma in the hospital, intubated, letting us know that apparently and for some reason (which we still don't know at that moment, but you know, we here are from the future so we can already say that this reason was Armando) his life hangs by a thread. One of the flashforewards of the following episodes before the end shows us a scene of the police closing the closure of a funeral bag with a corpse inside, followed by another scene of Cayetana crying, hugging Felipe... apparently, Rebeka is dead...
• In the end, we find out that Rebeka would end up in the hospital because of Armando, after finding out what Mencía was going through all season, and having confronted him to defend her, but ending up severely beaten in the process.
• For the final episode, we finished understanding that the one in a funeral bag was actually Valerio...
• Valerio dies of an overdose, "completing circle" in his drug addiction plot, but not forcing murder into the season.

Armando's fate:

• HE IS NOT KILLED BY GUZMÁN. Seriously, how did the writers come up with the idea that the character we met SEEKING JUSTICE FOR THE CRIME AGAINST HIS SISTER would become the new criminal face, not facing the consequences and ending his story with him running away to avoid charges?
• Armando is imprisoned: During the last episode we see Mencía crying in the hospital, blaming herself for the possibility of losing Rebe because of her. She finally comes clean; Not with her father, not with Ari, not with Patrick... but with Guzmán. Guzmán is the only person she trusts enough to admit the truth about Armando. Just at that moment, Rebeka wakes up. The rest is simply a competent action on the part of justice.
• So that the public is left with a pleasant taste in the mouth... Armando is murdered in prison? Maybe.

Characters' subplots this season:

• The fact that Mencía is one year ahead of her siblings tells us that she has a fairly high intellectual level, which apparently at first would mark her as the new best in her class, and they tell us that if so, she could be the new candidate to win the prize for which we saw Nadia and Lu competing in the first season. However, as her plot with Armando develops, her grades begin to drop, which creates some concern in her teachers, but leaves Felipe as the second candidate for the award, being the second highest grade in the class. This does not create a rivalry between them two: Mencía is affected enough by her own problems to care, and also, we don't want to textually rewrite Nadia and Lu's plot with other characters, but to maintain the coherence of the traditions that we were previously told that the school had.
• Being that Carla and Marina had been best friends as girls, we discovered that Felipe actually knew Marina, although he doesn't remember her very well. He did not know Guzmán at all, however we see him approaching him anyway to offer his belated condolences on his sister's death. Perhaps in this same scene we discover that Felipe also knew Polo, and in fact had once been "close" to him: he was his sister's first boyfriend (with whom, in the first season, we were told that she had dating since age twelve). This means that Felipe was less than ten years old when he met Polo. Talking to Guzmán, Feli remembers how he used to enter the living room where Polo and Carla were, making her angry, although Polo always defended him and offered to play video games with him at the end of the afternoon. Felipe looks grieved over his death, even though he clearly doesn't know anything about what really happened to him.
• After everything that happened with Polo the previous season, Cayetana is at a point in her life where she is not capable of being in another relationship. Her plot remains only in the way that she wants to change her future and focus on her design career, perhaps having aftermath of everything that happened with Polo, making her start having anxiety attacks (but treating the subject delicately, with her beginning to see a specialist by Rebe's obligation). We would see how Caye tries to seek support from Valerio, because of "Polo's issue" and the connection that Valerio also had with him, but she is frustrated when she realizes that Valerio seems to have coped with all this issue through the use of drugs. Another possible plot for her would be her attempt to help him (parallels to her original attempt to help Philippe). Cayetana would be an easy second target for Ari, in her attempt to find information about Polo for her father. However, she would not achieve much due to the gap between them throughout the season.
• Felipe begins to become friends with Valerio (note: in my rewrite of season 3, I mention that Yeray and Carla's drug plot I gave up to Valerio, causing him and Carla to start having some kind of sex-romantic tension plot as client/dealer, before Carla decided to end that relationship in good health). Feli doesn't know about his sister's past with Valerio, nor does he care much either. He, however, although occasionally accepts to get high with Valerio, doesn't fall in the same game as Carla and is one of the people, along with Caye, who try to get Valerio out of his addiction.
• As for the Blanco siblings, Mencía's plot would continue as is, without too many changes (ie: Armando). We would see Ari mostly as her father's informant, initially her going through Samuel's cell phone as she started hanging out with him, seeing if she could find any information related to Polo's death. As for Patrick, his plot this season would be basically the opposite of Ari's: the pressure he has on him due to his father, and the guilt Benjamín blames him for not taking care of Mencía the night of his mother's accident. Throughout the season we would see him begin to despair more and more because of this, these being the bases of the approach that he would have with Valerio (where he would begin to try to get away from his problems through drugs), which would end in their future relationship [see below].
• Christian would appear as a recurring character. His scenes are based on visits given to him by Samuel, or even perhaps Guzmán, in prison. His permanence this season would be used to generate tension for the public, especially since (as mentioned at the beginning), the police would end up releasing him, due to lack of evidence against him. Let's say they take his statement as a result of the alcohol he drank at the party. It is his potential (and definitive) release from prison, which causes the arrival of the Benjamins in Madrid, with Benjamin trying to seek justice for the family of his dead wife.

Characters relationships this season:
Samuel + Ari + Guzmán.

• The love triangle was a pretty dire plot that only increased the public's hatred towards Ari for having separated Nadia and Guzmán, and for being the reason for the loss of all the development that Guzmán and Samu's relationship had had for three seasons.
• Only Samuel remains her love interest, setting up that possible future "fatheson" connection between him and Benjamin.
• Guzmán, for his side, would continue to have a long-distance love relationship with Nadia through video calls, and towards the end of the season, she surprises him with a visit to Madrid.

Samuel and Ari's relationship would not be there just as one more of the season, but would serve as an element for the plot: Ari would have approached Samuel after learning that he was Christian's close friend (the accused in Polo's murder) to try to obtain information. However, her feelings towards him would become true over the course of the season, thus seeing a kind of development in her character, which would allow the public to empathize with her.

• At some point near the season finale, Samuel would learn of Ari's and her family's connection to Polo's family, and the real reasons she had reached out to him. He would break up with her right then.
• Ari finally confesses the rest of the story, filling in the puzzle pieces that Samuel was missing. He claims that it hadn't all been fake, not for her: she had really fallen for him.
• As a possible redemption ending for the character, Ari vows not to tell her father about the truth after Polo's death, guided by the love she had come to feel for Samuel.

Rebeka + Mencía:

• I don't want to make changes to their relationship, because what they showed us about them this season was very beautiful and well developed. As a general rule of the season, they would also fall into the category of "no unnecessary sexualization of characters", which would mean getting rid of scenes like the one with the melted chocolate...
• We know that, aside to Rebeka, Mencía has her own plot with Armando, which is what triggers Rebeka's attack that leaves her in the hospital.

Patrick + Valerio:

• "Replacement" for Ander-Patrick-Omar's love triangle idea, without the drama and toxicity that this trio represented. Ander and Omar are gone. Valerio and Patrick? Both are wild partiers with drug-abusing tendencies. Let's match them up and watch them explode and burn, because that would be very funny.
• Later it could be revealed (or not) that Patrick would have approached Valerio at Ari's request, to try to obtain some information regarding Polo's case, at the insistence of their father.

Felipe ... + Cayetana?

• Since Felipe is a modified version of Phillipe, it would make sense for Caye to take the same position on wanting to help him despite his past, just as she did with Phillipe. Although this season I have said that I want to focus more on Caye's psyche after Polo's death, and that I don't know if she would be in the best place to want to be in a romantic relationship... In this case, maybe in this version we could reverse the roles of this couple...
• The rapprochement between them would (probably) take place thanks to the fact that they would now both have Valerio as a person in common: they both know each other thanks to him, and apparently they feel sympathy for each other when they meet. This could give us shared scenes of them at school, with Felipe defending Caye from Ari's teasing for her being a janitor (as an example).
• The real rapprochement between the two would occur at the moment when Felipe realizes that Cayetana doesn't seem to be in her best moment. He tries to get closer to her, to help her. We see him also trying to talk to Rebeka, to see if she knows what is happening to Caye, and it is Rebeka who, after several attempts, ends up revealing to him that Cayetana used to be Polo's girlfriend, along with Valerio. This was the explanation that Feli needed.
• That night, Felipe would go to Cayetana's house to try to talk to her, to comfort her. We would see a scene of a brief kiss between them before Cayetana separated from him, crying. Finally Caye had snapped. She would be the person who would finally break the pact of silence: she would reveal to Felipe that she knew who had killed Polo, and that it had not been Christian. The scene would end at that moment, tacitly implying that she would have revealed the whole truth to Felipe, although making him swear that he must not tell anyone.
• This confession would be what Cayetana needed to do so as not to fall into madness, so as not to continue feeling guilty. After that, her anxiety attacks would apparently start to subside, little by little. We would see her less nervous, although several times she would go to Felipe repeating that he must not tell anyone the truth, fearing what others could do if they found out that she had broken the silent pact.
• By the season finale, she would finally face Felipe, and the question of "What is this we have?". She apologizes to him, but tells him that it wouldn't be fair to let whatever they had go any further if she wouldn't end up being fully there for him. She was in no condition to have another relationship. Not after Polo... (and for the final ending of the last episode... not after Valerio). He gets it. They both end up on good terms, hugging each other. They are both crying over Valerio's death (this would be the flashforeward scene we would have seen in the first episodes).

By season finale, Guzmán drops out of school: he decides to join Nadia in the US.

• It's reveal that he feels guilty for getting away from everyone, especially because of what he has just discovered about Mencía. Her “brotherly instinct” tells him that he must stay to protect her, but in the end they show us a scene of both saying goodbye to each other in peace, and Mencía crying, thanking him for having put Armando in jail.
• There would be a farewell scene between him and Samuel, closing their plot as "brothers".

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So, that's it! My second take on a season 4 rewrite. Those who read my original post will have noticed that several things were literally a copy and paste of the original post. But I feel that it is the additions that I made thanks to the comments on that post that really end up giving the seasoning to this version ^-^

I was addicted to smoking tobacco and weed, and at one point I was hooked to coke, I never reached such a state of devastation, but from experience I can sort of understand what this people are feeling, to a certain extent. This is basically Hell. These people are in a mental turmoil and chaos, emotional, physical and mental torture. Slaves of the drugs. They spend all their days probably stealing and finding ways to make money, out of recycling junk etc, just to buy drugs from a dealer, that is part of a hierarchy of narcos. They're the resource of the drug lords, they steal, recycle trash and all of that to make them rich. The world moves in really weird ways. You see them destroyed, skinny, homeless, but they make the druglords rich, its really ironical, the source of their brief happiness are the drugs. It's so absurd how this arises in the universe, this movement of particles/energy/matter, giving rise to this which we call "homeless drugaddict humans". This is 100% result of capitalistic culture, I am not against or in favor of capitalism, idc really, Im not a socialist nor capitalist, I like science, I like physics, chemistry, etc, and to analyze life from that perspective, im not into ideologies, but that which people refer to as capitalism makes of everything a commodity, nature is a commodity, you look at an amazing landscape and if you look at it from the modern capitalistic perspective you just see resources, wood, stone, water to sell bottled, gold, granite for kitchen counters, etc. We're disconnected from something deeper, something that is more meaningful. This is why I like certain ancient philosophies, like Taoism, that teach to be empty of desire, because the more you use external things for pleasure, the more dependent on them you become, the more "needy" and "poor", if you need drugs, alcohol etc, you're a slave, but if your satisfied with nothing, just breathing air, and, closing your eyes, and relaxing, meditating, being comfortable in your own skin, snug, feeling warm and compelte, looking at the skies, drinking fresh water, going for a nice walk in nature, and then returning home, and just moving your body, I do Qi Gong for example, it is meditation in movement, you make repetitive movemnts and imagine that you are moving your energy, and connecting and exchanging energy with the cosmos, letting the old stagnant used energy go to the ground htrough your feet, and the ground recycles this energy, and pure clean energy descends from the sky into the top of your head, and you move this energy, etc, look up "Qi Gong" in youtube, you'll find a wealth of info, its really pleasant.
The idea is letting go of things, in the Tao Te Ching it says "In the persuit of learning everyday something is acquired, in the persuit of Tao everyday something is dropped, less and less is done until you reach non action", Non action is pure flow, you flow in whatever you do, like writing this text for example, just letting the words come out of the top of my mind and into the keyboard. I hope people can start to change, and take the easy path, the effortless path of life, of not needing anything, obviously its better to teach it to kids and make them understand drugaddiction through other means, like depriving them from food, say, when they're like 15, that they can fast for like 2 days without any threat to health, if they fast for 2 days they will feel a similar pain to drug withdrawal but with food, also can be done with water, and then they take the wter and the food and quench their thirst. THen you tell them that that pain they felt, is experienced by drug users but 1000x more, and the worse part is that when you finally eat food or drink water, its good for you, your body receives it and it is good for your body, and you are satisfied and then you can go many hours without food again and water, and the food and water did good on your body, left oyu feeling better, nourished and hydrated. The difference of drugs is that when you do it, it destroys you, and eventually wht happens is that, after the high is gone, you feel a hell, you feel the discomfort you felt when hungry, but 1000x worse, its worse than the pain of burning sensation, when your hand is burnt with fire, or a red hot stove, and then they need the drug just to feel normal, and when it wears out they are in that hell again, and its a vicious circle, without escape, or seemingly without escape. It destroys you so much that you dont have power of will anymore, so its harder and harder to quit. Some drugaddicts voluntarily get locked up, so that they dont take drugs anymore, and when they are locked they go through a WORSE HELL, they want to get out and do drugs at all costs, they regret locking themselves up, they feel physical agony and sensations that are beyond gruelling, they feel sensations that make them want to kill themselves, some do kill themselves, its so horrible they want to stop living, they dont enjoy life like people who dont consume, a person who doesnt do drugs can enjoy life, be tranquil, go his days without caring much, they go to the gym, feel great afterwards, take a shower get on some dry clean clothes, and feel very snug in their own skin, very comfortable/refreshed and like a million bucks, but the drugaddict is in hell constantly, cant enjoy the simple things of life, they need the drug. Hell indeed.
Now go and enjoy the simple things in life, and if you consume a drug, tobacco or whatever, know that I have quit, know that many people quit, know that you can go back to normal, know that you can find happiness and be content with the simple things again, free at last, take a deep breath of air, purify yourself, let your body heal over time, be in contact with nature, do exercise, sweat, drink good water, eat veggeis, fruits, etc, HEAL!

I was addicted to smoking tobacco and weed, and at one point I was hooked to coke, I never reached such a state of devastation, but from experience I can sort of understand what this people are feeling, to a certain extent. This is basically Hell. These people are in a mental turmoil and chaos, emotional, physical and mental torture. Slaves of the drugs. They spend all their days probably stealing and finding ways to make money, out of recycling junk etc, just to buy drugs from a dealer, that is part of a hierarchy of narcos. They're the resource of the drug lords, they steal, recycle trash and all of that to make them rich. The world moves in really weird ways. You see them destroyed, skinny, homeless, but they make the druglords rich, its really ironical, the source of their brief happiness are the drugs.
It's so absurd how this arises in the universe, this movement of particles/energy/matter, giving rise to this which we call "homeless drugaddict humans". This is 100% result of capitalistic culture, I am not against or in favor of capitalism, idc really, Im not a socialist nor capitalist, I like science, I like physics, chemistry, etc, and to analyze life from that perspective, im not into ideologies, but that which people refer to as capitalism makes of everything a commodity, nature is a commodity, you look at an amazing landscape and if you look at it from the modern capitalistic perspective you just see resources, wood, stone, water to sell bottled, gold, granite for kitchen counters, etc. We're disconnected from something deeper, something that is more meaningful. This is why I like certain ancient philosophies, like Taoism, that teach to be empty of desire, because the more you use external things for pleasure, the more dependent on them you become, the more "needy" and "poor", if you need drugs, alcohol etc, you're a slave, but if your satisfied with nothing, just breathing air, and, closing your eyes, and relaxing, meditating, being comfortable in your own skin, snug, feeling warm and compelte, looking at the skies, drinking fresh water, going for a nice walk in nature, and then returning home, and just moving your body, I do Qi Gong for example, it is meditation in movement, you make repetitive movemnts and imagine that you are moving your energy, and connecting and exchanging energy with the cosmos, letting the old stagnant used energy go to the ground htrough your feet, and the ground recycles this energy, and pure clean energy descends from the sky into the top of your head, and you move this energy, etc, look up "Qi Gong" in youtube, you'll find a wealth of info, its really pleasant.
The idea is letting go of things, in the Tao Te Ching it says "In the persuit of learning everyday something is acquired, in the persuit of Tao everyday something is dropped, less and less is done until you reach non action", Non action is pure flow, you flow in whatever you do, like writing this text for example, just letting the words come out of the top of my mind and into the keyboard. I hope people can start to change, and take the easy path, the effortless path of life, of not needing anything, obviously its better to teach it to kids and make them understand drugaddiction through other means, like depriving them from food, say, when they're like 15, that they can fast for like 2 days without any threat to health, if they fast for 2 days they will feel a similar pain to drug withdrawal but with food, also can be done with water, and then they take the wter and the food and quench their thirst. THen you tell them that that pain they felt, is experienced by drug users but 1000x more, and the worse part is that when you finally eat food or drink water, its good for you, your body receives it and it is good for your body, and you are satisfied and then you can go many hours without food again and water, and the food and water did good on your body, left oyu feeling better, nourished and hydrated. The difference of drugs is that when you do it, it destroys you, and eventually wht happens is that, after the high is gone, you feel a hell, you feel the discomfort you felt when hungry, but 1000x worse, its worse than the pain of burning sensation, when your hand is burnt with fire, or a red hot stove, and then they need the drug just to feel normal, and when it wears out they are in that hell again, and its a vicious circle, without escape, or seemingly without escape. It destroys you so much that you dont have power of will anymore, so its harder and harder to quit. Some drugaddicts voluntarily get locked up, so that they dont take drugs anymore, and when they are locked they go through a WORSE HELL, they want to get out and do drugs at all costs, they regret locking themselves up, they feel physical agony and sensations that are beyond gruelling, they feel sensations that make them want to kill themselves, some do kill themselves, its so horrible they want to stop living, they dont enjoy life like people who dont consume, a person who doesnt do drugs can enjoy life, be tranquil, go his days without caring much, they go to the gym, feel great afterwards, take a shower get on some dry clean clothes, and feel very snug in their own skin, very comfortable/refreshed and like a million bucks, but the drugaddict is in hell constantly, cant enjoy the simple things of life, they need the drug. Hell indeed.
Now go and enjoy the simple things in life, and if you consume a drug, tobacco or whatever, know that I have quit, know that many people quit, know that you can go back to normal, know that you can find happiness and be content with the simple things again, free at last, take a deep breath of air, purify yourself, let your body heal over time, be in contact with nature, do exercise, sweat, drink good water, eat veggeis, fruits, etc, HEAL!

Violence continues in Sudan, the cryosphere breaks down, recessions, harvest failures, heat waves, droughts, and floods. Mother Earth has got a terminal case of humans.
Last Week in Collapse: May 28-June 3, 2023
This is Last Week in Collapse, a weekly newsletter bringing together some of the most important, timely, useful, sad, ironic, amazing, or otherwise must-see moments in Collapse. Try not to overdose on this week’s Doom dose.
This is the 75th newsletter. You can find the May 21-27 edition (which I accidentally labeled the 73rd edition) here if you missed it last week. These newsletters are also on Substack if you want them sent to your email inbox every Sunday.
——————————
The World Meteorological Congress concluded on Friday, and it released a bunch of reports. The focus this year was on developing early warning systems for wateclimate/weather disasters. Most countries report declining ability to monitor hydrological developments, and almost half of the world’s people lack reliable access to water for at least one month per year, a figure that is expected to grow considerably by 2050.
The WMO also reported on the state of emergency for the cryosphere, those places where ice is formed (and melts). Greenland’s ice has shrunk for 26 consecutive years. Permafrost threatens to release huge quantities of greenhouse gasses over the coming years. Sea levels continue to rise…but you know this already.
Montevideo, Uruguay’s capital, has come up with a plan to extend their almost-exhausted water supply: they’re adding salt to the tap water, against WHO recommendations. This causes people to drink less water—but what are the implications for health, and for small-scale agriculture?
Over 20 million tonnes of what was damaged in China by recent rain, not long before it was scheduled to be harvested. Analysts say this will raise grain prices worldwide. The scale of this blight is larger than recent blights. In the U.S. state of Georgia, 90% of the peach harvest was destroyed by abnormally warm weather; in Vermont, a freak cold snap damaged crops, potentially 30% of apples.
6 years. 800 million trees felled in the Amazon rainforest, all to create space for cattle farms. The loss of rainforest is equivalent roughly to two Corsica islands.
Environmental scientists have discovered a hopeful tool to lower CO2: Greenland’s “rock flour,” which is basically rock dust. A recent study claims that it can be scattered on fields to absorb CO2—and also boost wheat and potato yields. International lawyers are also working on the first global plastics pollution treaty that could be passed later next year.
Yet another study claims that Mother Earth is sick, and that most of our safety thresholds have been crossed. The feedback loops have been activated, the diagnosis is terminal. The Nature study lists the 8 Earth System Boundaries: 1) Climate, 2) Functional Integrity, 3) Natural Ecosystem Area, 4) Surface Water, 5) Groundwater, 6) Nitrogen, 7) Phosphorus, and 8) Subglobal Aerosols. (Not to be confused with the 9 Planetary Boundaries.)
Some insurers in California are cutting homeowner insurance because they can’t make a buck betting against wildfires and desertification. Similar risk is expanding in Texas. Summer is coming. A mysterious wildfire in Scotland is growing out of control, and threatens to become the UK’s largest ever.
Record May rainfall in Bermuda. Part of South Africa also saw record rains in May. Strong rains in southern Spain—but the parched soil can’t absorb much of it. Meanwhile, the Philadelphia area had its driest May in recorded history.
Vicious drought and Afghan dams have raised tensions between iran and Afghanistan, where fighting killed a handful of people two weeks ago. In times of scarcity, no group can have enough water; even less if they’re forced to share. Most of the world’s lakes are drying up.
An official in India ordered the draining of two million liters of water from a reservoir……so he could retrieve his phone, which he dropped in the water while taking a selfie. He was suspended. The phone was recovered—but too damaged to function. The water could have irrigated 6 km² of land.
Wildfires grow in Nova Scotia. Millions going hungry in Madagascar. Record temperatures in Japan. Normalized heat waves across Asia with new records in Central Asia & the Caucasus.
Scientists warn of potential tsunamis caused by underwater landslides in Antarctica. New cold records in Australia. Heat waves in North Africa. Increasing reliance on expensive desalination plants in Barcelona as drought and water supplies worsen.
——————————
Türkiye’s President, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, won reelection, and economists believe it portends the further Collapse of the economy. Investment is pulling out, and the lira is expected to continue sinking. “We will be together until the grave,” said Erdoğan at his victory speech.
The UN operation to drain the *FSO Safer* has begun now that technicians have boarded the vessel. 1.1 million barrels of oil aboard the derelict tanker, stranded off the coast of Yemen, will begin being drained next month.
Petrol prices rise in Benin as Nigeria cuts its fuel subsidies; Iran is limiting fuel purchases too. China’s declining birth rate, growing debt, and ongoing international decoupling is threatening its economy. Eurozone inflation continues. Trade-GDP ratios approaching 2008 levels worryingly.
Budapest is facing bankruptcy. Refugees in Tanzania are seeing their rations cut in half as financing falls off. Vicious conditions inside refugee camps in Chad take advantage of Sudanese refugees. Debts grow in Brazil. Complicated problems continue destabilizing the world’s economic equilibrium.
Another Russian missile attack struck Kyiv last week, after allegedly pro-Ukraine Russian volunteer soldiers made an incursion into Russian territory. Wagner Group’s chief continues provoking Russian leadership as infighting appears to grow, following a Ukrainian drone attack on Moscow. Zelensky says Ukraine’s counteroffensive is now ready.
Myanmar’s Civil War has entered its third year, depending on when you claim it began. In the desperation and chaos of prolonged warfare, it is the environment that pays the price. Wood, gold, jade, and other resources are being exploited by government and private actors after the old economic system broke apart.
——————————
62% of Americans agree that the COVID pandemic is over (it’s not), an increase of 14% since February 2023. 56% of Americans admit that they never mask up in public anymore. An updated booster is coming in September to address the XBB.1.16 variant. Masks may go away, but (Long) COVID will stay with us.
The WHO’s treaty to manage future pandemics is being watered down, leaving humanity less prepared for the next pandemic. Although China denies the lab leak origin story, a prominent Chinese scientist claims it is possible. COVID is never going away, and neither is Long COVID.
Cholera is spreading in several refugee camps in Kenya; medical attention comes too small and too late to prevent the spread. In Sudan, where over a million people have been displaced by recent violence, old inequities linger. Over 13M children are in desperate need of humanitarian aid (about half of Sudan’s 46M population are below 18). Their situation has never been more critical.
Experts continue warning about the dangers of AI, and push for regulation, while other actors push to use AI for economic benefits. I am uncertain which field AI will disrupt the most: military, low-skill workers, societal psyche, institutional integrity, creative jobs, politics, financial markets…? What will be the second-order effects, tertiary, etc.?
Tanzania has called an end to its Marburg virus outbreak, about 10 weeks after it declared an emergency. The UK is advising at-risk people to get vaccinated for mpox/monkeypox before their vaccine program ends in August; 10 new cases in the UK were recently reported.
PFAS, the so-called “forever chemicals” used across many household objects, are dangerous to your health. You also probably could have guessed that manufacturers knew—and lied about—their safety for decades. A study tracked the use of PFAS (since 1940’s) and the knowledge that they were harmful (since 1990’s). Companies including DuPont settled a case for a little over $1 billion USD for their role in the scheme. The billionaire Sackler family also settled a gigantic case regarding opioids, in which they must pay about $6 billion USD, and forfeit control of the pharmaceutical company they’ve held since 1952. The company (formerly Purdue Pharma) is rebranding (as Knoa). Nobody is going to jail.
——————————
A catastrophic train crash in India killed 280+ people. The crash involved 3 trains, and is India’s deadliest in this century.
Riots in Kosovo. Torture in suspected gangster prisons in El Salvador, with 153 prisoners killed since March. Ongoing protests in Israel over the proposed judicial reform.
Lebanon has been without a President for more than 7 months now—and now target dats have been missed to hold important municipal council elections. Town budgets are falling further into chaos, police are going unpaid, garbage is piling up, and would-be foreign investors and money-lenders are losing the scraps of hope they had for Lebanon’s crippled economy. No one is coming to save them.
Cartel violence is rising on the border of Mexico-Guatemala. Organized non-state armed groups conscript local guys, intimidate people into leaving, blockade towns, and shoot each other in the streets. Several thousand people have been displaced—and others disappeared. Far away, Syria is being welcomed back into the Arab fold—on the condition that it cracks down on the intractable drug epidemic of captagon.
One of Libya’s rival PMs was ousted a couple weeks ago, and now the other PM in the east is striking towns in western Libya with drones, allegedly targeting fuel/human smugglers.
Boko Haram jihadists are infighting in northern Nigeria, but the civilians are paying the price. Guerrilla territorial competition may also bring in more people into regional hostilities. In eastern DRC, violence has displaced over 80,000 people so far this year, and their regional hospitals are overcrowded.
Rumors are emerging that M23 will attack Goma, the sprawling epicenter of East Africa’s refugee situation, where human rights abuses are increasingly common and the local ceasefire is breaking down. Islamic radicals also operate in the region, targeting civilians. About 6 million people across the DRC are believed to be internally displaced, and about half a million around Goma (population: unknown, perhaps 750,000 or twice that). There are also reports of planes sighted which belong to the European mercenary company Agemira.
The Sudanese Civil War is spiraling out of control again, as skirmishes broke the incomplete ceasefire. The Central Statistics Bureau was attacked, hampering official data for various purposes. Over 1,000 people have died so far, crossing an unofficial threshold for an armed conflict to officially become a War. About 2M have fled the fighting. Rockets killed 18 and injured many more at a market in Khartoum, sanctions are being imposed by a few nations, and other countries are wading deeper into the War, complicating the situation and preventing clean avenues to another ceasefire.
——————————
Select comments/threads from the subreddit last week suggest:
-There is rain in Romania, based on this observation. But there’s also corruption, growing labor strikes, inflation, and political difficulties.
-Greenland’s climate is out of whack—and apparently the people don’t seem to care that much, judging from this rare observation from West Greenland.
-Portland, Oregon is still a cross-section of modern America’s Collapse, if this observation can be trusted. Heat, insecurity, overcrowding, loneliness, and crows… Reddit has also been affected by psychological decay, according to the poster.
-People are abandoning climate hope, if you believe this gilded thread and its many gilded comments. Smoke ‘em if you got ‘em.
Have any feedback, questions, comments, resources, recommendations, free PDFs, manifestos, etc.? Consider joining the Last Week in Collapse SubStack if you don’t want to check collapse every Sunday, you can get this newsletter sent to your email inbox every weekend. I always forget something... What did I miss this week?

(((flagged for deletion)))
tldr: to manage a 'manic head' well, I don't know of any method better than practice.
whatever...I'm drunk. 'my pot use' is something I've been struggling with posting about for a while now. ...I want to portray myself as a "role model" or something for those who struggle with mania and wanna find a successful path with little-to-no psych drugs. ...fuckin, pot is likely NOT a good idea for those with a 'propensity for mania' that wanna stay stable.
That said, I credit my success largely to pot abuse. Pot induces a "salience network disconnect". Mania induces a "salience network disconnect". Managing the "salience network disconnect" is one of the most difficult parts of managing a manic head.
It's easy to reduce episode frequency & severity through 'behavior based neurotransmitter adjustment'. Even with the best management practices though, mania will still happen. When mania strikes, it's a fuckin bitch to manage if you don't bone tf up on some cognitive engineering techniques to manage a "salience network disconnect".

read: I trained myself to operate a manic head by abusing tf outta pot and forcing my thought patterns & behaviors to be aligned with 'how I WANT to think' and 'doing what I WANT to do' while I'm high.
quick example: I trained myself to be productive while high. If I'm high, I can't have fun (play games, watch a movie, whatever) till everything is clean and organized and I've exercised and stretched. Side note: cardio while high is fucking amazing for thought processing.
quick example 2: I trained myself to be "appropriate" while high. ...mostly amounts to STFU while high. I'm "inappropriate" by nature and 'the things I think are funny and worthy of comment' do not align with what others think. Training myself to 'keep my words to myself' was quite helpful.

The SN disconnect you get with pot is def not a 1:1 correlation with the SN disconnect you get with mania. err...maybe it is? IDK. but mania def comes with tons of other baggage, in addition to the SN disconnect. read: mania messes with thought patterns in unique ways...though I'd wager that the way mania messes with YOUR thought patterns is uniquely consistent. read: mania is a simple beast bruh...it's gonna push your thoughts/behaviors in a consistent manner. Figure out how it's pushing you and devise counters. If you can make mania your bitch, it will forever be your bitch...it is not capable of adapting.
So, not a 1:1 coloration. but...inducing bruh. Pot helps to induce mania, hypo/mania, and/or pseudo-hypo/mania...depending on the catalysts you're using and how you dose them.
INDUCING!!!
Practice makes perfect bruh. Or rather 'perfect practice makes perfect'. That's my "secret" or whatever. [hubris/brag] I have induced tf outta mania, hypo/mania, and pseudo-hypo/mania, to the extent that I can dose some catalysts and know 'to a high degree of certainty' if I'm gonna get mania, hypo/mania, or pseudo-hypo/mania. 'Stress' and 'excitement' are the hardest catalysts to control, but easy enough to factor into the equation if I'm aware of em. Also, 'time since last real episode' plays a big role (refractory period).
The key to my success is the fact that I've practiced tf outta operating on a manic head. It's to the point that I can present myself as euthymic while I'm in 'MANIA with psychosis'. #pimp shit.Ask my wife and mom. [/hubris/brag]
Important note: I do not recommend inducing. I recommend that those with a 'propensity for mania' avoid pot. 'Inducing' and 'regularly experiencing the SN disconnect' are important for FIGURING OUT how to operate a manic head. I've figured it out bruh. Take my advice and avoid the dangerous bullshit. #someJesusshitbout sacrificing myself or whatever so you don't have to [/hubris]
fr tho...perfect practice makes perfect. Expect mania. Go into mania aware that you are going into mania. Make it a point to "do better" each episode. Do better. Win.
Starting points:

• Understand that you are in control while manic. You're you, just with a different operating system.
• STFU is a great way to start. Learning that you can just keep your mouth shut while in the throes of MANIA is powerful af. Mania does not control you, it's just a different operating system. You are still in control, you're just piloting a different machine. Understand this on an intrinsic level and you will make progress.
• A 'structure within the chaos' you can lay your foundation on is SAFETY. Mania strips you down to base instinct + 'shit you have consciously & willfully conditioned into your Self' (read: mania strips away societal conditioning). SAFETY is a base instinct. Define "SAFETY" consciously & willfully. Mania will fall into line.
  • protip: set a SAFETY point for ingesting a course of antipsychotics and fuckin consume them when you cross that point.

​
-----------------

Psuedo-hypo/mania. How I define it and how I induce it.

Let's break it down.

hypo/mania = the hypo/manic engine is running.
Mania is subjective af. hypomania is subjective af. They operate under the same engine, but mania is subjectively more intense than hypomania, subjectively. Duh.
"Manic" and "hypomanic" states of mind are largely classified based on "OBSERVED BEHAVIOR". ...if you're "manic" and just STFUing and sitting in a corner or whatever, are you really "manic"?
It is possible to present yourself as "hypomanic" while "manic". It is possible to present yourself as "manic" while "hypomanic". It is possible to fluxuate between "mania" and "hypomania" multiple times within the same day, or even within an hour. It is possible to present yourself as "euthymic" while "manic" and vice versa (if you don't believe me, go slam 10 shots of espresso and take 2-6 hits of pot on a "euthymic" head...see if folks don't think you're "manic").
"hypo/mania" is the term I use to remove some subjectivity. Maybe I'm "manic". Maybe I'm "hypomanic". All I know is that the "hypo/mania engine" is running. (reference: https://www.reddit.com/MinMed/comments/u955jv/episode_breakdown_the_hypomania_engine/)
Pseudo = fake. Not genuine.
Pseudo-hypo/mania = the hypo/mania engine is running, but it's not really an episode. The positive feedback loop has not taken hold and the "episode" can be terminated quickly if fuel is not injected into the engine.
Pseudo-hypo/mania = one (1) to three (3) days of low-grade "hypomania", with little-to-no risk of the "episode" devolving into something more serious.

to achieve pseudo, I gotta dose catalysts to 'blast tf off' in the span of 1 day then slam the breaks hard for the next 1-3 days.
How do I induce pseudo/blast tf off? I jump-start the 'hypo/manic engine' by injecting the proper brain chemicals (catalysts).
The catalysts I typically dose are as follows:

• caffeine
• calorie deprivation
• sugar
• pot
• sleep deprivation
• stress
• excitement
• love (giving, not receiving...receiving love is an inhibitor)

​
The ritual to induce pseudo takes me one (1) single day. At the end of the day, I am fucked up. I am not in pseudo-hypo/mania at the end of the day, I'm just "high" or "drugged" or whatever. Pseudo-hypo/mania is what happens on the following couple days.
I rarely dose all the catalysts in a single day. That would be overkill and possibly induce real-hypo/mania. I dose myself accordingly. Took a ton of trial and error to figure out what "accordingly" meant.
The first step of my 'pseudo induction ritual' is to assess the abstract catalysts. Stress & excitement. Those are not something I can 'dose at will'. Those are catalysts I need to be aware of, so I can adjust the doses of the rest of my catalysts "accordingly".

note: I was once hit with a 'huge fuckin spike of excitement' after dosing all my other catalysts for the day. The result was MANIA. An episode that lasted about a month.
This shit is dangerous bruh. Playing with your head like I do is not advisable [/hubris]

​
Caffine
Four (4) to eight (8) cups of coffee (or shots of espresso) throughout the day. Starting at like 10am and ending at like 7pm. Ten (10) cups/shots is def too much and will result in a panic attack.
Do not drink caffeine ever, unless I'm trying to induce. Reduce tolerance to a minimum.
​
Calorie deprivation
Eat 'just enough to not be uncomfortable' from when I wake until midnight. Like 1000 calories max. The caffeine helps to curb appetite. Not advisable to consume caffeine on an empty stomach (cuz ulcers).
Avoid fatty protein when inducing.
​
Sugar
When midnight hits, slam sugar into my face. Sour patch kids ftw.
​
Pot
Starting at about 10pm, smoke 3-5 hits at a time spaced out by 2-3 hours or so per session. Continue smoking till like 4 or 6 or 8am.
Do not smoke ever, unless trying to induce. Tolerance...
​
Sleep deprivation
Def less than 4 hours of sleep. Often 0 hours of sleep. Get at least 2 hours of "meditation" in if getting 0 hours of sleep.
​
Stress & excitement
Be aware. It's possible to dose these to an extent
​
Love
IDK bro. My methodology for when I was figuring out how to induce was 'do what I do while manic' even though I was "euthymic". I give tons of love while manic. Seems like showering my wife/son with love helps me to induce. Maybe not.
Getting love def has a relaxing vibe to it. Getting love will usually be counterproductive when I'm trying to induce.
Give love with time & effort. Lay it on thick.
​
THE DAYS FOLLOWING THE INDUCTION RITUAL
If all goes according to plan, I wake up from my "sleep" or "meditation" or whatever slightly high and slightly wired. The "high"/"wired" shit or whatever will wear off by like 10am and after that I'm in pseudo.
The key to managing pseudo is to understand that if I push it I will likely enter a real episode. Pump the breaks bro. Take a nap the day after if I can. Avoid caffeine and other catalysts that aid with inducing. Eat as much as I can, especially fatty protein. Go to sleep on time and get at least 8 hours. Stretch. Exercise. etc etc. Do the 'inhibit the hypo/mania engine' thing, ya know?
I ensure there are checks on my behavior...my wife knows me & my head well and she knows to speak up if she sees something that could possibly be worrisome.
I've found that the biggest factor determining how long pseudo lasts is 'where I am in my refractory period'. If I've been in a real episode recently, pseudo will usually not last as long. If it's been a year or two since my last real episode, pseudo will last 2 or 3 days. ...if it's been a year or two since my last real episode, the danger of devolving into a real episode is greater.
[/hubris]
-------------------
dooood. I've written out & rewritten a form of this post like 30+ times. It typically devolves into disclaimers and clarifications. #thanksalcohol.
Fuckin, I do not wanna be responsible for someone with 'a propensity for mania' doin some stupid shit.

disclaimer: if you try to do the shit I did, you're gonna fuck some shit up. Expect it. I've fucked up a ton. I have an expansive safety net. I am #privilaged. Don't do what I did unless you are well prepared to fuck some shit up, like your life.

[/hubris]
​
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moods:
Abdominal/DJ Format - Behind The Scenes
Kyprios - The Only One
Eyedea - Step by Step
Scarub/Inspired Flight - It's The Chemicals
​
---------------
--------------
Aside
for anyone paying attention to my account: sorry bruh. I've been afk like a motherfucker this past year+. I'm focusing my attention on my family and my QoL has gone way up cuz of it. I've stopped inducing pseudo and fuckin with my head. I've stopped smoking pot. ...the lack of pot is likely a big driver with me writing less. This shit's less fun on a sober mind and feels more like work, ya know?
I will finish my guide eventually, but right now I got a toddler and raising him right ranks higher than anything else.
I expect I'll hit a real hypo/manic episode sometime in the next year or two...I'll likely be writing a bunch then, focused on my guide. Till then, I'm prolly gonna be mostly afk.

--
--
Marc gave it another go. He tipped his hand forward. The silver patty rolled off him, dropping toward the cave floor.
It stopped short of hitting the path. The shiny disc halted in the air, dangling at the end of a thin white line.
He watched the small wheel spin. It might have been the most fun he’d had all year. Even more fun than that mud puddle he’d found the other day.
How does it keep going? Marc thought to himself. And without any power??
Marc assumed the disc was some sort of technological marvel from the past. But the Archives had little information on it, only a name. It was called a “yo-yo.”
They all must have had one of these, he posited.
As Marc walked down the stone ramp, he cast the yo-yo again. The toy’s quiet spin was the only sound in the cavern. The soft hiss of string versus metal reverberated gently in the spacious cave.
Marc focused all his attention on the little gadget. He was determined to enjoy every last minute of the universe, no matter what. And that evening, the yo-yo more than accomplished that goal.
The shimmering yo-yo, however, couldn’t prevent the world around him from crumbling. The ground started to rumble. The rest of the cave shook with it. The underground city shook as the plasma storm above battered it—and the rest of the planet.
Marc’s home broke down. Cracks appeared in the ceiling. Waterfalls of dust poured out of them. It wouldn't be long before the whole thing collapsed. That is, if the plasma storm didn’t swallow it whole first.
Whatever.
A few clumps of dirt wouldn’t ruin Marc’s fun. He pulled the hood of his shawl over his head and extended his ragged sleeves toward each hand. His clothes shielded him from the falling dust; the gritty particles made themselves at home on his messy shawl. And Marc was free to perfect his newest trick.
The rumbling died down though as Marc descended the ramp. The yo-yo string didn’t wobble so much, and he didn't have to watch his steps as carefully. He just hoped the quaking wouldn’t come back to ruin his event.
Speaking of which, Marc glanced ahead toward his destination below. What he saw rocked him even harder than the earthquake had.
What in the sinkpits…?
Marc stopped in his tracks. He even started to reach for his knife. All because he’d detected a speck of something suspicious. Something he didn't see much of every day: color.
Showy landmarks weren’t something endemic to his home. The Outpost was more of a dusty gray-and-brown sort of place. The walls were sandstone. The floor was sandstone. And the ceiling? …Granite?
No, sandstone. All under the faint glow of a string of depressed lightbulbs.
The intriguing blip in the gray-and-tan collage was farther up the path. Ahead of the ramp, on Level 8, Marc saw the same three steel doors he was used to seeing. The front doors of underground homes, lined up in a row, each closed into the cave wall.
However, there was something different about the third door. It looked… alive. Like it didn’t belong in a dreary place like the Outpost. But it was too far away to tell what exactly had been done to it.
Marc squinted at it suspiciously. The third door happened to be his destination. And now it was weird.
He considered waiting and observing the mutated door. A child of the Outpost, Marc had developed a healthy fear of the unusual.
These habits, along with his instincts, kept him safe. They’d specifically preserved him while the rest of humanity perished.
But he shrugged off the instinct to wait. Something new and “different” was ahead, and he wanted to see it.
But just as a precaution, it was time for his yo-yo’s last trick. He got in one final throw then placed the toy into his satchel. He dropped it on top of his arsenal of cables, wrenches, and screwdrivers.
And by the time he’d snapped the satchel shut, the long ramp had bottomed out. He’d made it to the next level.
To his left, the wall had been spray-painted. Scrawled-out black letters stood against the sandy background. They stated, “Now Level 8.”
Marc followed the sign. He stayed close to the wall, crossing to the stone pedestrian path. He passed one untouched steel door with a dusted-over mail slot in the wall beside it. Then he passed a second home—abandoned like the first. And finally, he arrived at his friend’s place and the mysterious blip on Level 8.
To his surprise, the steel door elicited a flush of emotion. His heart floated upward. And the portrait before him drew his focus in like an otherworldly beacon.
How did it get so…?
Marc pulled back his hood. The ground popped with the sandy grains he released.
He could hardly believe the difference. The door used to blend in with the others: another ridged steel face that spent most of its time rusting or collecting dirt.
But it was no longer muffled by the dust and dirt that had built up over the years.
Today, it sung. Paint streaks flew across its visage. They swirled and spiraled, forming stars and other shapes. Where previously gray and rust dominated, colors sprang forth—colors that Marc didn't even have the names for. They were many, and they were warm, like the evening sky just after sunset. Marc could hardly wrap his head around the entire image.
He swelled with gratitude.
Only you could have pulled this off. He thought of his friend, the painter. The one person in the colony who’d ever been any fun. The one other person in the colony who was left…
The artist had done the unthinkable. Foraging the garden below for something other than food. Spending work time measuring and concocting the perfect blends of paint. And then slathering their fingers across the giant door, until its old face was but a memory. And all that effort for only a single other person to appreciate.
Newly inspired, Marc searched for an unpainted space on the metal canvas. He found one and knocked on the door.
He took a step back and waited. The outside of the Outpost was lively. Excited wind rushed through the canyon.
By contrast, the Outpost itself was silent. If there was anyone left to say anything, they may have even called it “dead.”
Or nearly dead, anyway. The last morsel of it came to life as the door in front of Marc groaned.
It floated off the ground, inching upward. On the other side, Marc could hear a hand crank clicking away.
Ktch… ktch… ktch… ktch…
The corrugated door lifted, and the door rolled up. The tip of the artist’s painting started to slip from view.
Ktch… ktch… ktch… ktch…
Behind the door, chains reeled at a slow clip. The heavy curtain was halfway up. Marc could now see his best friend's lower half. Buff Lenorkian legs pumped back and forth with each crank.
The door unveiled even more of the owner. A torso in a metal suit appeared. Four ripped arms stretched out of it. They rotated, moving to the clicking beats of the door.
Ktch… ktch… ktch… ktch…
The door raised a few inches further, uncovering the bottom half of a cobalt blue face. Two rows of razor-sharp teeth smiled from ear to ear. A few inches more, and Marc could see the whole of the Lenorkian’s face.
Sid greeted Marc as the last of the door raised.
“Finally!” he said.
Marc didn’t get a chance to respond. His body lurched forward involuntarily. He slammed into Sid’s metal suit.
Crrrrrick!
The armor squealed as Sid’s upper two arms squeezed him tighter. The lower set of arms had reeled Marc in.
Marc hated hugs. Stupid mushy emotional wraparounds. But just this one final time, Marc returned the gesture. He squeezed Sid back.
“Happy Worlds’ End!” Sid said from the other side of the embrace.
“Yeah,” Marc replied, “Happy Worlds’ End.”
The two separated.
“Cool painting, by the way,” Marc said. He pointed at the rolled-up door. “I didn’t think you’d top the one in the garden.”
“You think so?” Sid sheepishly smiled. “Well I’ve had more time to practice since… you know.”
“Yeah, I get it,” Marc said. “Me too. That’s how I actually got you something.”
Marc swung his heavy satchel around. He rifled through it, squeezing through cables, knocking handles and parts out of the way. And then—ah.
He fished out a crumpled rag. Holding it in one hand, he began to gently unfold it.
“I found this a few days ago in the garden,” he said. The edges of the cloth fell. They revealed a small, glass object. It sparkled.
Marc continued, “I think it fits your style—I mean, I know it’s a little smudged and chipped but...”
He swirled the crystal trinket around. The cavern’s incandescent light flittered across its clear edges.
He touched it too, tracing the slender portion of it with his thumb. It was the neck of the crystal swan.
“It’s yours,” Marc said, offering up the bird.
Sid cupped two shovel-sized hands and accepted the gift.
“It’s beautiful…” he said, examining it. “I can’t believe anything like this could have survived this long.” He looked up at Marc and smiled, “Thank you so much. I just wish I had a little longer to could enjoy it.”
They chuckled lightly about their impending obliteration.
“Well, come on in,” Sid said. He extended both of his left arms. They gestured toward the cave interior. “We’ll finish off this universe how it started,” he said. He mashed his upper two fists together. “With a bang!”
“I hear that!” Marc nodded. He crossed over into Sid’s house.
As Marc passed Sid, a wave of discomfort hit him. Sid had switched out his usual t-shirt and jeans. He wore old armor instead. And the metal plating taunted Marc.
Marc’s next question came out more accusatory than curious.
“So… a Lenorkian throwback, huh?” he asked Sid.
Sid had just finished finding the perfect home for his swan. He left it on a shelf next to the front door.
He turned to face Marc. He hid his embarrassment behind a jagged smile.
“Oh!” he said. “Uhhh…” Three of Sid’s arms disappeared behind his back. The cone-shaped cuffs at the end of each wrist clanked against the back of his chest armor. The fourth arm nervously scratched his blue head. “I don’t know,” he said. “It's stupid, I guess. I can take it off… if you want.”
Marc didn’t want to address the topic head-on. He stopped in the cave’s entry. He pretended to admire the walls—as if he’d never seen sandstone before.
“No, leave it on,” he said. “You look… like a true Lenorkian.” He turn around and forced a smile.
It wasn’t enough.
“Okay, let’s get this out of the way,” Sid said. He marched up to Marc.
Sid took a deep breath before he spoke.
“Tonight's really important to me,” he continued. “This is the last impression anyone’s going to make on the universe. So I need you on board.” He continued staring down at Marc. “Can you do that? For me?”
Marc didn’t see what the big deal was. It was just a couple of best friends hanging out.
“Yeah, why not?” he shrugged. “End it the way it started.”
The exchange turned into awkward silence. Neither knew what to do next. They had never been in a situation like this before—never attended such an event. What the Archives called: a par-ty.
Sid shook off the figurative mask he’d been wearing—one that was uncharacteristically dour. His eyes lightened, and he bobbed his head knowingly.
“I went through the Archives to see how this works,” he said. He walked toward the long horizontal counter against the wall—the kitchen.
On the counter, chaos ran wild. Bowls and kitchenware spread across the surface. And the insides of his pots and pans resembled the dirty mouth of a garbage chute.
Marc wasn’t sure what to think. Was cleaning the host’s kitchen a staple of ancient parties?
Sid too seemed a bit confused. His next words came out robotically, as if he was practicing a new word he’d learned.
“’Can-I-offer-you-a-drink?’” Sid asked. He stood nervously in front of the counter.
Looking closer at it, three unusual objects stood apart from the kitchenware mess. It took Marc a while to remember what their outdated, bendy material was called.
Plastic. Three pink and plastic cups sat equidistant from one another.
“I got these from here,” Sid reached under the counter and pulled up some sort of transparent bag. Pink cups just liked the others were stacked on top of each other inside.
Sid packed the bag back under the counter.
“So?” he asked after he finished. He held all four hands together in anticipation. His smile may have looked like an industrial-grade rock shredder, but it was hard to resist his innocent blue face and big wide eyes.
Marc eyed the pink cups one last time.
“This better not kill me,” he said.
Sid wasted no time. He excitedly grabbed a cup and walked over to a large pot sitting on the counter.
Using a nearby ladle, he plunged into the vat. An unappetizing sloshing sound resulted. And Sid, as strong as he was, seemed to struggle with scooping out some of the mystery liquid. But in the end, he pulled back the ladle and unloaded an opaque, muddy liquid into the cup.
“It's a homeworld classic called fludge,” Sid said as he finished pouring.
He treaded over to his reluctant friend and handed off the plastic cup.
“Did you say ‘fludge’?” Marc asked. He swished the cup around cautiously. The earthy liquid hardly budged.
“Yeah, fludge! Us Lenorkians invented it. It’s kind of the only tasty thing we ever bothered to make.”
Marc sniffed it. It smelled… burnt? Maybe a little dusty, too? But he could have just been smelling the cave.
Sid left Marc alone with Marc’s questionable new assignment. He returned to the pot to pour himself a drink.
“Just try it!” he said.
Marc looked down again at the dark soup. It could kill him. Or maybe it wouldn't.
Either way, it was his last drink.
He took a timid sip and waited to be repulsed. The fludge trickled to the back of his tongue. As it hit, Marc’s eyes widened. But not with regret.
He swallowed.
“Now wait a minute…” he said. He smacked his lips together. Then he took another, larger sip.
This curious dark liquid had a unique taste to it. The taste was earthen—but unoffending. It also had a subtle undercurrent of sweetness to it, combined with a spicy kick. It was delicious.
“This might be the best drink in the entire Outpost!” Marc exclaimed.
Pure joy bloomed on Sid’s face. “See! I told you: the greatest thing we ever made.”
He held his own cup above his open jaws. The falling fludge was no match for the alien. He guzzled it down, licked his lips, and then went back for more.
As Sid fashioned himself another drink, Marc noticed something a tad unsettling. A third pink cup stared back at him. It prompted an uncomfortable thought, but he shoved the thought back down.
The Lenorkian carried back his second drink. Though this time, he took it in small, human-sized sips.
But he quickly reanimated. In the middle of a sip, Sid got a wild look in his eyes. His irises turned from their natural violet to scarlet. He yanked the cup from his face and swallowed.
“Argh, how did I forget?” he said. “I got music!”
Marc cut his sip short too. “No way. You got music?”
“I think so!”
Sid did an about face. He slammed the half-empty cup on the counter. Then he shuffled toward a giant metal column protruding from the far wall. Four ink-blue hands wrapped around the cover of the vent. And he went for it.
Sid struggled to pull off the cover of the vent at first. His armor ballooned around his biceps as his muscles bulged outward. Yet the cover wouldn't budge.
But it seemed like an important part of his evening plans. He scolded the stubborn vent, banging on its top.
“Oh, you’re gonna get it now!” he said. He latched onto the vent again.
This time, he put even more effort in. To the point where Marc sensed that Sid was losing a grip on his own body. Out of his forehead, two thumb-sized cones began to rise. His breathing turned low and raspy. And his whole body seemed to expand as he repositioned himself for leverage. Then with one final pull, like a wild beast, he let out of a deep, guttural roar.
“HAWRRRRRRRRRRRGGH!” The roar echoed off the cave walls.
And with that, the stubborn vent cover finally popped off. A breath of wind pulsed through the room as the air pressure equalized itself.
But the wind wasn’t finished. After the initial pulse exited, a mighty gust picked up where the original pulse left off. The vent shot more wind into the room, but rapidly, like a storm. Tiny coarse particles rattled inside the duct. And in the room, a rush of wind whipped past Marc’s face. He felt little nips across his exposed skin as it passed him.
Both partiers shielded their faces from the most direct blasts of air. Sid smiled nervously as he looked to Marc. He raised his voice over the whining airstream.
“It’s from the sandplains above!” he said in an elevated voice. “I thought we’d use the sandstorm for music! Do you like it?”
Music… Marc wasn’t exactly an expert. Even though humans were said to be naturals at it, not much on the subject had made it into the Archives. The Outpost didn’t have much of it either. The closest he got was the occasional chant, stray birds twittering about, or maybe someone banging on rocks.
But Marc did know one thing on the subject. Where there was music, there was dancing.
That said, he had never danced before either. But a long time ago, his parents told him it was something all humans could do. It was something they carried in their blood. Once humans found a pattern in music, they could match it to their body language. And once they’d synced melody and movement, they could ride that wave to a whole new experience.
Might as well give it a shot, he thought. Marc too put his cup on the counter.
With his hands free, Marc backed up toward the middle of the room. He closed his eyes, felt the wind. It filled his ears with its gusty energy. It hit him in pumps as the storm raged above.
Though not totally predictable, the wind did hit him consistently. There was some sort of kinetic pattern to it.
Yes, a pattern.
Well actually, he’d heard it called by another name. What was that word his mother had used? He opened his eyes when he remembered: rhythm.
Marc stretched out his arms. He relaxed his hips. He felt the wind’s whips and waves across his arms. He let his arms follow them, swaying with the current. Not long after, his hips joined in. They too gyrated, trying to match the energetic gusts. He kept at it. And the first time Marc felt both himself and the wind moving together, he grinned.
“This is amazing!” he said. Around them, the wind crooned.
Sid was entranced. He nodded back while staring at Marc’s strange movements. He’d never really seen dancing either. But he figured he would give it a shot too. He loosened up his arms and walked onto the dance floor with Marc.
Before dancing himself, he studied Marc first. He watched how the scavenger moved his arms—and when the scavenger moved his arms.
Sid’s limbs followed. Four muscular arms rose in the air, like fighter jets on their way to a dogfight. And on a one or two second delay, they swayed after Marc’s.
For a while, they followed Marc completely. Then Sid went down his own path. The Lenorkian’s movements grew aggressive and battle-like. He punched at the wind swiping across him. He shuffled his feet as if swapping battle stances.
He caught Marc’s curiosity. Even as a novice, Marc could tell Sid’s movements weren’t traditional by any means. But to Marc, it was dancing all the same.
The two danced to the chorus of the air above. They laughed occasionally as changes in the rhythm of the wind tripped them up. In his head, Marc compared it to the painting on Sid’s door. The colony had never seen anything like this either.
Then something interrupted their dancing. The ground beneath them shook, throwing them off their feet. Heavy gray dirt trickled from the ceiling as the entire cave rumbled. And outside, the distant sky flashed and crackled. Its light illuminated the cave in violent spurts as the boys struggled to stand back up.
Eventually, the violent quaking and frightening flashes died down. The plasma storm held its breath once again.
The boys got back on their feet, but all the joy had seeped out of Sid’s face. He just stared at the floor in deep contemplation. Even as the windy music started back up.
Marc figured he would rescue his friend from whatever dark thoughts had turned up. Naturally, the end of the universe was a real bummer.
“End of the world got you down, huh?” He tried to laugh it off. The whole situation was pretty sad. Especially when they were having so much fun. But it was best to end the universe on a high note, right?
Nevertheless, Sid seemed dejected. He mumbled something inaudible.
“Dude, I can’t hear over the song!” Marc said in an elevated voice.
Sid spoke up over the wind. “That’s not what I’m upset about,” he said, his voice still fairly low.
“Then what are you upset about?”
Sid blurted out his response. “Because I invited Tōn-E, okay?”
He couldn’t bring himself to look Marc in the eye. Because he knew what was coming.
“YOU DID WHAT?!” Marc shouted over the music. Marc himself stomped over to the vent. He picked the cover off the floor—though he struggled quite a bit with it. It was heavier than Sid made it look. But he hoisted it back into the mouth of the vent. The music shut off. The steady drop of sand on the cave floor ceased.
“Say that again,” he leveled in Sid’s direction.
“What was I supposed to do?” Sid remade eye contact. “Not invite the only other intelligent being to the last party the universe will ever have?”
Marc needed no time to answer. He nodded insistently. “Yes. That was exactly what you were supposed to do. What the hell, Sid?” Marc would have continued, but there was another disturbance outside. He caught a glimpse of movement in the doorway.
--
Thanks for reading some of my words :) I’m trying stuff out, so let me know what you think.
The rest of the story is here
Based on this prompt

Today I was changing the termal paste of my cpu ryzen. I was having all the precoutions. I heat My cpu before pull out the cooler. But when i was unscrewing the cooler came out of one side brutally i don't know if whas that. The cpu stay in the socket. So i clean and change the thermal paste. When i was screwing the cooler back. I struggle a Lot to put back again. the cooler un one side was far away to screw it to the motherboard. some time after putting " a Lot " of force i watch a video that i need to put pressure on the Other side of the motherboard. When a i realised this i can screw correctly. When i was starting the PC, no vídeo. only the HDD drive and the periferals started. I change the HDMI of the gpu to the onboard and the same result. Back on the PC and pulled of the cooler and check the cpu pins and the pins are all right. Put it back and i realised that the lever is way too loose offering none resistence. Even i can take out the cpu with the lever down. Can some one tell me if this is normal? I can not remember if the lever offer some resistence. The last time i did this was in 2021 and was an assembly for myself.
PD this is a shitty system. In the past i have an i5 6400 and was to much safer. For My "mea culpa" i think My mistake was to not remove the motherboard from the case. Or when i was doing the first assemby i Made a mistake.
PD 2 If there gramatical error i'm not a native English. Excuse me.
I hope if it's just only the motherboard. Thanks for reading.

Hello! Without any radioactive rocks, or even seen a radon detector or having held a dosimeter, I have a water problem.
Imagine a carpark, with increased water ingress due to rising seas. Would the wicking effect through slabs to moisten tiles or cement walls carry or concentrate any alpha or beta particle emitters, or create a gamma ray emission source?
It’s curious to me as I read about radon in basements occasionally. We don’t have them due to the high water table. Yet I wonder if I was to sleep at floor level on an poorly sealed cement slab, on earth at ground level, would there be a gradual increase in the radioactivity of the slab as moisture evaporates and water passes up though it over time?
It’s perhaps only an issue if the ground has any radioactive rocks, and that is where I could lend your assistance.
Have any of you collected mildly radioactive soils or sands or rocks or ore, that can be used under a typical house slab, to see if there is any water such as salty or mineralised or otherwise of a particular pH, that can result in movement and accumulation of the more active isotopes to human contact places such as floors or walls?
Would there be any collections of core samples that may be able to be homogenised and compressed to make suitable for capillary tests under conditions of a rising water table? And lastly, could radon accumulate in a closed up space that has a badly sealed evaporation layer
This is the AI explanation of the effect I am curious about, given I have no radioactivity detection equipment. Specifically relating to water migration over time.
My human Q: “What is it called when water migrates up through dirt and through a cement slab or through grout around tiles?”
AIGPT3.5 A: “The process you're describing is called capillary action or wicking. This is the movement of water through porous materials, such as dirt, cement, or grout, due to the forces of cohesion, adhesion, and surface tension. Capillary action can cause water to move upwards against gravity, leading to undesired moisture in structures and surfaces like cement slabs or tile grout.”
Here’s another related question:
“Thank you, tell me about cement slab capillaries barriers. The seal that prevents water migration through a slab into a house. What’s it called? What type of materials is it commonly made of in Australia? What is it made of in America? Is it typical two put blocks and bricks on the slab, and if they are showing moisture, would it be easy to avoid that if they were placed on a moisture barrier? “
And the Ai answer.
“A capillary barrier, or capillary break, is used to prevent water migration through a slab into a house. In both Australia and the United States, this barrier layer is commonly called a vapor barrier or moisture barrier. This barrier is crucial in reducing the risk of moisture-related issues such as mold, mildew, and damage to the structure or its contents.
In Australia, vapor barriers are often made from plastic materials like polyethylene, which is a flexible, durable, water-resistant film. Similarly, in the United States, polyethylene sheeting or other vapor retarder materials are used for this purpose. The barriers can vary in thickness (typically between 4-10 mils) based on local building codes, climate, and moisture conditions.
It is typical to place blocks and bricks on concrete slabs in construction, providing a solid foundation for the structure. If there is moisture on these blocks or bricks, it could indicate a failure of the vapor barrier or issues with the site drainage. To avoid such problems, it's crucial to ensure that the vapor barrier is correctly installed beneath the slab during construction. This typically includes properly sealing the barrier, overlapping the edges, and ensuring that the barrier extends to the foundation walls or perimeter of the slab.
Furthermore, it is crucial to provide adequate site drainage and slope away from the building to reduce the risk of water accumulating beneath or around the foundation. By properly installing a moisture barrier and ensuring appropriate site conditions, it is possible to reduce the risk of moisture damage in the building's blocks and bricks.”

As table setting, I haven’t listened to MBMBaM in three years, give-or-take, so I have no clue what the modren era (😎) of the show is like. However, I have been hate-listening to a movie podcast enough that I’ve actually turned a corner into liking it, so I feel spiritually ready for this. Plus I’m a little drunk, which has never been a bad decision for anybody ever.
0:00 - I’ve always kind of disliked the intro, especially the “cool baby” part, and sadly that has not changed with time.
0:20 - First time hearing the new theme song, which is fine if a little twee for my taste. I weirdly hate how they deliver the “1, 2, 3, 4” up top, but that’s just nitpicky. We can’t all be DeeDee Ramone, you know?
1:10 - Introductions. Travis introduces himself as “noted intellectual and middlest brother”, and Griffin just says “…And I’m Griffin… McElroy”. I didn’t laugh, but I did actually find that slightly funny, so I’m optimistic for how this goes.
1:35 - Justin has invented a new game that he wants to play called “Simply the Guests” where he tells them who guested on a celebrity’s podcast and they have to guess the celebrity. Travis points out that the title is a touching tribute (to Tina Turner, he clarifies a few seconds later) and there’s a bit where Justin and Griffin pretend not to know she died that Justin interrupts with a parody song. Is this too soon? I can’t tell, but I also only get my celebrity death news from Simpsons memes.
2:31 - I’ve had to pause and restart enough times that I’ve realized how shitty the web player is, since I have to click like three times before it registers as being on the page and actually trying to play instead of just highlighting the button, and if I try to click the 15 second rewind button it usually skips to the ~11 minute mark right above the button. However, I refuse to actually download the episode because if I do that, Jesse Thorne wins.
2:58 - Justin only has one round prepared, but expects it will take longer than they expect. Griffin rightly questions if it’s actually possible to play this game based on the information that will be provided. Travis says that sometimes when he comes up with a game, it’s like when you start off at level 1 fighting Sephiroth and die, but it just takes you to a cutscene and is all part of the game. I’m struggling to think of games he’s come up, which is maybe a metaphor for how I never finished FFVII. Justin says it should be easy if their heads are on a swivel, and 50-50 if they’re half paying attention.
4:30 - Justin is giving the guests in order as they’ve appeared: Billy Ray Cryrus, John Carter Cash, Billy Bush, Albert Pujols. Griffin laughs and makes a joke about how his head is on a swivel but it hurts, and I’m shocked and a little disappointed that it wasn’t a joke about how one of the greatest Cardinals of all time has a name that’s pronounced “Poo Holes”.
5:00 - The next guests listed Adam Carrolla, Clint Black, and Gary Busey. Travis incorrectly guesses Blake Shelton. Justin says Katie Couric was the next guess, and Griffin’s postulation of Kevin Sorbo is apparently pretty close.
6:10 - Dr. Drew is the next guest. Travis asks if they would be willing to guest, and Justin says he likes to think they’d have a nice long talk about it. Griffin guesses Randy Quaid. Justin neither confirms nor denies, but instead finishes listing the guests - Sharon Stone, Martin Short, Mike Lindell (the MyPillow CEO), Jim Brown, and Anthony Fauci. I actually kind of like this game, because what the fuck?
8:40 - Justin says he’ll give them an episode title for any celeb mentioned. Travis picks Sharon Stone, who covered “Pandemics, Social Justice Movements, and Animal Actors”. Griffin picks Pujols, who covers “Baseball, Downs Syndrome, and Living the American Dream”, and asked if there were other baseball players on the list.
10:05 - Justin admits he skipped Jimmy Morris because he didn’t know who that is. I didn’t either, but I have the power of Google and in the time it took him to explain why he was skipped, learned that he starting playing for Tampa Bay Devil Rays when he was 35 and The Rookie was based on him.
10:30 - Travis and Griffin discuss “Sorbo adjacent” celebrities and Justin scolds them for not talking to each other, saying that’s what a podcast is and that he’s trying to do a podcast. To paraphrase a joke from Jon Gabrus, it’s three straight white men talking, we already know it’s a podcast.
11:30 - Travis suggests Dennis Quaid, since he has a strong connection to baseball and Christ. Griffin agrees and Travis is in fact correct. Ironically, that means that Jimmy Morris was probably the most helpful clue, since Dennis Quaid starred in The Rookie. Justin offers a bonus for naming the show, and says it’s something with “Dennis”. Griffin accurately guesses “The Dennissance”.
13:45 - Justin mentions Morris was the titular rookie, and claims that people forget Dennis Quaid. They discuss the Quaid siblings a bit and advise Dennis to get back in the podcasting game.
15:15 - First question of the episode: “My boyfriend and I were looking for a bar before your Columbus TAZ show and walked by one that looked empty and not our vibe, but it had tinted windows so it was hard to tell. We walked to another bar and inside the door person flagged us down and said someone was looking for us. We were already inside this other bar when the woman who was working at the first bar said she saw us looking in and said “Please come into my bar - we have cheaper drinks. We were confused and startled and decided to stay at the bar we were already at, but we weren’t sure if we regretted it because this person went to the effort to chase us down half a block, cross a busy street, went through a revolving door to get to us. Also, the drinks at the bar were expensive. Should we have gone back to the other bar instead?” - Confused in Columbus. Not to brag, but I’ve been to a lot of bars in my lifetime and can say with some confidence this didn’t happen.
16:05 - They immediately answer that, no, they should not have gone back to the other bar. Travis accurately points out that weird pursuit aside, if they have that little business then 100% of the focus would be on them. Griffin thinks they would have had a tremendous amount of power and would get their drinks immediately, and the bartender might have cool stories. They discuss how bad the design of this bar is that it’s impossible to see inside, both because they crave attention and so that someone will notice in case they go missing.
18:45 - Travis says if he ran a restaurant across from another restaurant, he would go up to patrons at the competitor and try to lure them away. Apparently Tom Green did this with pizza delivery as a TV show, and Justin thinks he would have Shark Tank’d it if it was a viable option.
19:36 - Travis says Tom Green would’ve probably called it “Shart Tank”. I laughed out loud.
20:00 - Griffin says in Austin they basically have to have barkers for the various bars given the amount of competition for foot traffic and Justin thinks they should just go for hyper-local advertising.
21:00 - Travis offers Griffin an investment opportunity, claiming he needs angel investors. Justin is incensed that he isn’t offered the chance, and Griffin says it’s because he has no money but maybe his “crypto shit’s gonna pay off some day”. Justin says he doesn’t have “crypto shits unless I’ve been eating cryp-tacos” (Griffin pitches crypto-salsa) and that Superman hates cleaning up Krypto shits.
21:44 - Travis points out that Superman named his dog after a thing he hates. I swear this had to be a Seinfeld joke at some point, since the two things I know about Jerry Seinfeld are (a) he loves Superman and (b) he’s not funny. Actually, I know a third thing, which is that he dated a 17-year-old when he was 38. Anyway, fuck that guy.
21:50 - Travis pitches having a long stretch of connected bars by buying all the existing bars and knocking down the connecting walls. Griffin and Justin point out that’s essentially the Disneyland model, and Justin mentions the Goofy sour balls.
21:51 - I Googled “Goofy sour balls” and thankfully it was a real candy. Griffin indignantly says that they stopped making them and that “Goofy took his sour balls away”. Travis says “He washed them” and they ignore him. I laughed out loud again, man’s really winning me back. They continue on this riff, making more and worse versions of the same joke.
24:07 - Question 2: “I’m enrolled in summer college courses. In one of my classes, a guy in front of me likes to stretch backwards over his chair with his eyes closed. His head basically ends up right on my desk and he will breathe in my face. I’ve had to move my laptop to stop him from laying on it. Am I the weird one for staring at the guy as he disrupts all my belongings and my personal space? He does it more than five times a class. It’s very awkward and makes it hard to focus on the lecture. Should I say something? Help me brothers, how do I stop this stretching bandit from stealing my peace of mind?” - Cramped College Co-Ed in Canada.
24:57 - Justin has an immediate suggestion. I assume it’s the actual solution, which is to say something like an adult or just switch seats, but nope, it’s the old chestnut of put some jelly on it. Griffin suggests surprise massage. Travis clarifies that they’re definitely ignoring the “excuse me, could you not do that” option, which Griffin confirms because it’s not very funny. This takes me back to when I used to regularly listen, since part of the driving force for me stopping was the sheer number of questions that could be solved by two seconds of slightly awkward conversation. I totally get it, social anxiety is a bitch and I’ve absolutely been there, but the lack of funny kinda stems from the question. They all agree, and Travis suggests adding broken glass to the jelly.
26:57 - Griffins goes back to the massage suggestion, with “dual percussive massagers”. Justin suggests hovering over them and saying “There’s my sweet boy” and Travis suggests a “little kiss on the forehead” which, thankfully, they immediately shoot down. Still, I’m uncomfortable.
28:00 - Justin points out that, if someone actually followed the advice they give, the problem would be solved, it’s just a question of consequences. There’s some more discussion of the Quaids but my spirit is a little broken and I can’t bring myself to rewind to accurately transcribe any of it.
29:43 - Money Zone: Travis says, “Well Justin,” and Justin misidentifies him as Griffin. So far, hardest laugh of the episode. The ad is for Zocdoc, which Justin mispronounces a lot. I assume any service that advertises on a podcast is actually just a money laundering scheme, medical stuff doubly so, but it does remind me that MaxFun podcasts are the only ones where I can tell the ad copy was done in a single take with no edits. I admire it, in a way.
32:45 - A MaxFun ad for “Just the Zoo of Us”, which is apparently a podcast where they rate animals on their “effectiveness, ingenuity, and aesthetics”. It kind of worked on me, which is to say I’m debating the merits of getting a Zoobooks subscription as a childless woman approaching her thirties.
33:30 - A MaxFun ad for “Feeling Seen”, where the editor likes to play the game of taking a sip of coffee anytime the guest says how good a question is, how smart the host is, or cries unexpectedly. I cannot stress enough how much this makes me not want to listen. I don’t even have anything snide to say, I’m just genuinely put off by it.
34:19 - Griffin introduces the Wizard of the Cloud: How to “Talk Nerdy” to someone, which is meant to help you talk to the “cute nerd in your science class” by becoming more adorkable to them. Justin and Travis are disgusted by the word “adorkable”, which feels like a real split with their brand of appealing to mid-2010s Tumblr users.
36:00 - Travis points out that this article presupposes that nerdy people only want to be seduced with nerdy things, and will shun all other romance. The original pickup line is “Are you a carbon sample? Because I definitely want to date you. If you’ve seen The Big Bang Theory, you already know science and physics nerds are the best” Travis punches it up with “I’ve got a theory that we should Big Bang.” Currently he’s batting a thousand for me.
36:55 - Wikihow asks “Can math be sexy?” They talk about how sexy 8 is and Travis makes a 69 joke, so I retract my previous statement. There’s a gross astronomy-based pickup line saying “Do you mind if my comet enters your solar system” and “Hey, nice asteroids”. Mercifully, no “Can I touch Uranus?”
38:30 - More bad pickup lines, now about computers. Apparently “You’re hotter than the bottom of my laptop” is a good come-on. The video game lines are equally impressive, and Wikihow recommends that distracting gamers away from their games is easier said than done. These are more sexually charged than before, but no more clever.
43:30 - We’ve arrived at Star Wars. Wikihow says “Jedis are tough nuts to crack, so you may need to use the Force to woo them effectively.” It’s been a while, but I’m fairly certain Jedis aren’t allowed to fall in love and that’s kind of a whole thing with the prequel trilogy. Also, are we not doing phrasing anymore? Cuz Jesus, they should take a second pass at that.
43:46 - Wikihow suggests several “Yoda-approved pickup lines”, and they do some bad Yoda impressions like “pull down some trim, you will” and “wet, you will get”. This is apparently a thing they’ve done before called “Clipping Yoda”. Justin makes a “something something something, I thought they smelled bad on the outside” joke.]
46:08 - They discuss the very limited situations when the suggested “I find your lack of nudity disturbing” is acceptable, then move on to the Lord of the Rings lines which are equally questionable. Travis brings up the theory that Frodo doesn’t know Legolas’ name, and now I wanna rewatch LotR.
50:09 - Justin suggests coming up with their own lines, which results in “You make me feel like John Rhys-Davies in Sliders, cuz I wanna climb in those holes” and Griffin looking up “nerd movies”.
51:40 - Question 3: “My bank has been advertising a home ownership service to help folks buy and sell homes. I usually ignore them, but this time they’ve been offering a chance to win a flattop grill package with a $100 gift card to a very expensive butcher. I’ve been really wanting to get my dad a new grill. Brothers, I have no way of buying a house, let alone sell one. They’re contacting me, trying to help me buy a house. How do I explain to them I’m only entered to maybe win the grill and have no interest in the service?” From the Poor Hopeful in B (?).
53:00 - First of all. Second, they suggest the asker (a) admits they were only in it for the grill or (b) saying they have a budget of $750 for a furnished home. It devolves into a riff about Bobby Flay and pitches for “Flay Bobby Flay” and “Bob Bobby Flay” to see if he floats.
56:15 - Plugs for stuff and the end of the episode.
Closing Thoughts: I actually enjoyed that, although with a lot of stopping and starting to write this. Also anyone who likes Clipping Yoda may also like Action Boyz, because pedophile Yoda is a surprisingly rich vein to mine. I don’t think I’ll ever actually pick up listening again, since I have about 280 episodes of Off Book to get to first and this whole recap has made me really contemplate my mortality, but I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it