Trump removed his tweets supporting the loser in the Alabama primary because he hates losing and wanted the record erased. He hates losing.
He tweets for many reasons. To vent. To undermine reporting that is critical of him by calling it fake news. To gloat. To burnish his ego. To leapfrog over legitimate media outlets and communicate directly with his supporters (often with information that is a blatant lie). To distract from issues and stories that he doesn't like and replace them with other stories. He uses the tweets to insult and demean, to belittle anyone who opposes him or his action.
Trump thrives on chaos and deception. He is an ultimate con man and knows how to manipulate his followers to believe him implicitly despite evidence to the contrary that they can read and see for themselves. This is like two children's stories: "The Emperor's New Clothes" and "Alice Through the Looking Glass". It is like the former in that a segment of the population will not accept what is in front of their eyes and ears and accepts what he tells them with no cognitive dissonance. One day they will see he is naked. It is like the latter in that down is up and up is down. Truth is fake news and lies are alternate facts (Kellyanne Conway).
Trump's tweets will be part of the historical record of his presidency and there is nothing he can do to stop that. With hindsight I have no doubt that they will see him as an entitled, petulant ignoramus.
We are now at less than 300 views for the Famous Story badge. I know it would please both Milik and me if we reach that level. You may like the story well enough to read the subsequent chapters. I know that sometimes it is difficult to keep interested in multi-part stories, but I promise that this one will keep you coming back for more and interested to see what happens next.
I have posted the links above. I would be grateful if you help push us over the top.
I was at work and was told what happened by my assistant. I didn't believe him at first and insisted that he show me the site that was the source of this information. I thought at first it was some kind of internet hoax.
I remember that I tried unsuccessfully to contact a classmate who works for Goldman Sachs which is in that area and could not get him until many hours later.
It was a glorious day - blue sky, warm weather - and hard to process what had happened. Everyone was so upset and worried about something happening in our financial district that we cleared the office and sent everyone home. Of course I spent the rest of the day and night glued to the television, thinking about the last time I had been in New York and in that neighbourhood. I remember crying for all who had been lost and also thinking about a time that I had been to Windows on the World, the restaurant atop the WTC for dinner.
The whole political spectrum in Canada is to the left of that in the US, so it is easy to classify myself as a moderate Democrat were I an American. I do not believe in the GOP's tax cuts for the rich and trickle down economics. I am for gender equality including equal pay for equal work and all that is outlined in most human rights legislation. I do not believe that religion should be mixed into politics and that the values of one group should be forced on all. There should be a strict separation of church and state. I am for freedom of choice regarding abortions. I am against capital punishment. I think that health care should not be a for profit industry and there should be a single payer system that covers everyone as in Canada. If you want more than that coverage, you should be able to buy insurance that covers that. I think that no one should be bankrupted by a catastrophic illness in their family and that seniors' drugs should be covered by a government program. I believe in much more stringent gun control than is the norm in the US. No one needs an AK47 to go hunting. I believe that there should be more control of political contributions in elections.
So, I am a moderate Democrat Canadian.
Kanye and Kim in the White House would be the ultimate expression of celebrity driven culture. That said, it is a very bad idea. Assuming the US and the world survives Trump, I hope that nothing like this happens again, whatever the party affiliation of the celebrity.
@WMM Arnold couldn't run even if he wanted to because he was born in Austria.
George Clooney and Alec Baldwin for the Dems
I think that our values and world view are reflected in our politics. I think that for the most part you write from what you think and what you know as well as from fantasy. My female characters are always strong, self-possessed women and so (I hope) related to me. The male characters see women as equals, again related to my politics.
I don't think we necessarily write with politics in mind, unless you do that deliberately, but I do think there is a subtext to our stories that is political.
Never mind spelling or grammar. Just write your story as you would a text message or tweet. After all, this is your version of artistic expression. Be sure to tell that to the story moderator who returns your story suggesting corrections.
I agree with the others in saying that you should relax and let the characters take over. Having a sense memory of various sexual activity will help you describe what they are doing and feeling. Let the scene build as arousal would build and intensify and then climax (pun intended).
One thing that is an immediate turn off is what we call the laundry list to physically describe your characters, especially if it is very unrealistic. For example: She was a slim 5'6" blue-eyed blonde with long hair, 38DD boobs and shaved pubes. He was tall, dark and muscular, and his penis was at least 8 inches before arousal.
I would let the details of the characters' appearance come out slowly in the story or as they are having sex. Avoiding impossible bodies, like a facsimile of a Barbie doll for a female character is also wise. You want to write about people who are believable, not cartoon characters.
As we are tinkering with badges, I would like to suggest that those ranked 1, 2 or 3 in a story competition get a badge indicating that in gold, silver or bronze and that those who were the remaining in the top ten get a finalist competitor badge. It would be good if these could be awarded retrospectively just as the number indicators on other badges are being done.
The competitions here are fierce and those in the top ten in each contest deserve some kind of recognition as well as the winners and seconds and thirds. This information also could be listed with the competition information after it closes for readers looking for something interesting to read.
"Out of Africa" from the memoirs of Isak Dinesen, the pseudonym of Karen Blixen. She also wrote "Babette's Feast" which is also a great movie.
Donald Trump is the reason for the marches worldwide. People, not just women, are not willing to have the clock turned back to the '50s and lose the progress they have made.
Trump is a narcissistic liar surrounded by enablers and charlatans. Steve Bannon is a racist, anti-Semite with a dystopian vision for America. Kellyanne Conway seems to need some Haldol for her delusional pronouncments: alternative facts indeed. Priebus and Spicer are GOP hacks. And then there are his Cabinet picks almost all of whom hold views antithetical to the briefs of their departments. This is "Alice in Wonderland". Up is down and down is up. Trump is the capricious and angry Queen of Hearts more concerned with his crowd numbers than paying homage to those who died in the service of their country at the CIA.
The marches on Saturday were wonderful, an expression of resistance and disgust with the new president. However, this is not enough. This energy has to be translated into action and organization in rebuilding the Democratic Party from the ground up, precinct by precinct, state by state to retake state legislatures and governorships and then the federal government. This resistance has to be as determined and loud as the Tea Party. The Democrats have to regain the trust of working class and middle class voters and motivate young people. So all you marchers and those who could not march, join the Dems, support the ACLU and Southern Poverty Law Center in fighting any erosion in civil and voting rights. Start right now to impact the 2018 election. Marching is not enough.
Here is the bridge. Choice and the liberty to make it. Just as women choose freely to bear children for reasons that are their own, other women choose freely not to have a child for many reasons that are their own business and perhaps that of their physician. You have very right to choose as you wish, but not the right to impose your values and views on others. That is the crux of the issue. I would never presume to tell another woman what she should or should not do as I do not walk in her shoes.
I would like to see the energy that the pro-life groups expend be refocused on fostering and adopting children in the child protection system. These children are either unwanted or have parents incapable of taking care of them for whatever reason. If the lives of children are so important, take care of those who are here and parentless, many from broken and dysfunctional homes, victims of abuse and more. If you care about children's lives that is a good place to start.
To add to Sprite's list about Pence, he has tried to make it impossible for women to get an abortion in Indiana. He is a religious zealot despite that mild manner and seeks to impose his views on everyone. He is not just anti LGBTQ, he is anti-woman.
My prediction is that Trump will have a hard time adjusting to the hard work and constraints of the presidency. He is already in ethical trouble with his sons supposedly taking over his businesses. There will be ethics and constitutional problems, possibly criminal transgressions. He will make Nixon look like a boy scout. Braggadocio does not make policy or make it happen. He will disappoint his voters and American allies. He will lie and obfuscate. He will be bored stiff. I think he will not last the four years. He will either be forced to resign for scandal and ethical issues, perhaps even criminal behaviour, or be impeached for the same.
