Just a little complaint about "rescoring" and "rejudging"

Feel free to disagree...

Everytime I stumble upon new "rescoring" or new "analysis" from a certain department of fans of the Beijing scores...I am at a loss...because I think rescoring or analysis barring any major bias is impossible at this stage. The competitions happened - months ago even - the circumstances of the judging (namely a program just happens before your eyes, you saw everyone not only the couple chosen ones to rescore and not knowing what placement would happen is simply never to be undone) and there are always multiple judges on each panel, so one person doing a rescore is just making no sense as not one person only decides the places in the end. Also at this point there have been so many different opinions and rescores of the matter that you cannot be not influenced by it at all depending on whose fan analysis or rescores you read.

All those "results" that appear just now are just from fans and even if you are a trained judge the things listed above still play a part.

This is not to say that looking at the scoring and possible changes in placements makes no sense or shouldn't be done, because sure it should be done because you can learn and reevaluate the things that happened (btw I am the first to say scores should be open to be revalued at the competition directly (like in artistic/rhythmic gymnastics where inquiries can be done about scores)), but my feeling is that "rescoring" is only then at play when ppl assume the "wrong" skater gets the medals. It's not free of bias, it's not free of favoritism and in the end it doesn't change anything at all.

I am not saying at all judges are always right - there happen lot of questionable things - BUT in the end the situation of the competition cannot be returned. And thus I think analyzing is fine if it's done for the WHOLE competition, but rescoring is so dependent on personal bias of the person "rescoring ", it just cannot be seen as "proof" for different results. So pls take any "rescoring" you see with a big chunk of salt (remember this supposedly certified ISU judge on Twt which tweet got a lot of attention? It turned out to be just a big Yuzu fan account known for hating on other skaters who lied about being a judge)

And lastly everyone is free to be displeased at results or see things differently, we can always discuss about it, but don't disrespect the skaters who earned the medals, because your opinion isn't the only valid one and in skating I have yet to see a day where everyone judges and all viewers, fans etc. have the exact same result for any competition. I also share my opinion on scoring but I don't think that my opinion is of more value than those of others.

....

Why am I writing this? Well...after months and months after Beijing I am tired of the ppl nullifying the results as some unfair scandal as like in 2002 Salt Lake City, because it's not scandalous. Are there different opinions on the results, yes totally, but a big fat scandal? No.

Look I love Yuzu with all my heart, but even as his fan you have to admit that Nathan had the better competition and fairly won the Gold.

Btw same goes for the stupid discussion that somehow started about Sochi 2014 and Yuzu's Gold medal. Same goes there. Devaluing Yuzu's Gold medal in Sochi is the same bs as devaluing Nathan's in Beijing.

___

Btw I am not in for restarting a discussion about it here on Tumblr I just needed my thoughts to be shared somewhere

And I have already posted a lengthy analysis myself about the men competition at Beijing 2022 BUT without rescoring.

___

This was in my drafts for a while but well I just post it now...don't expect me to answer any questions about it I am seldomly checking my blog atm

Supernacularnovel Trial Marriage Husband: Need to Work Hardblog - Chapter 958 rifle root recommendation-p2

V.Gfiction Trial Marriage Husband: Need to Work Hard txt - Chapter 958 slimy mindless recommendation-p2 A Veldt Vendetta

Novel-Trial Marriage Husband: Need to Work Hard-Trial Marriage Husband: Need to Work Hard Chapter 958 flowery sponge Tangning acquired the doc.you.ments, but failed to immediately share her view, "I'll see household . " the turnstile store As reported by the method that Xia Hanmo experienced picked up famous as a result of her bad popularity, wasn't Zhou Qing concerned in any way? "Not bad . Factors manage to progressing perfectly . I really hope this movie will be prepared for relieve by two many years time . " "That's fine," Qiao Sen nodded . "Should I was provided another opportunity, I might take action better still," Tangning replied . Xia Hanmo smiled . The whole meeting was relatively typical for the reason that Zhou Qing believed ways to head the chats and liven within the natural environment . Xia Hanmo was very privileged . "I actually have my issues against an actor that unfairly banks on the effectiveness of Weibo to acquire his way . " "This youngster is a great article author and it has impressive ability . She was simply put in an inappropriate location right before . " Lin Qian looked at the person mentioned by Xia Hanmo, Zhou Qing, and found he was indeed the best run within the travel world . So, Xia Hanmo really appreciated the chance provided to her and moved with Lin Qian to meet up with him . Souvenir of the George Borrow Celebration This offered Xia Hanmo a whole new lease on daily life . In the end, she still necessary to fund her siblings excessively high medical fees . "So, right before I keep, I would like to support Xia Hanmo a bit . " Xia Hanmo smiled . Your entire achieving was relatively laid-back mainly because Zhou Qing recognized ways to steer the dialogues and liven up the environment . When the assortment planet was obviously a new site for Xia Hanmo, it was actually very important to her to be led from a accomplished number . Headlines that Tangning came out for the store shopping shopping mall quickly spread all through Beijing . From the vision on the public, people were sincerely attempting to hold back an celebrity, however in the the eyes of everybody else in the industry, they experienced like Tangning was being ungrateful . Everybody in the business was aware that admirers were definitely fickle this is an item that people on the market often claimed . So, for folks inside the sector, Tangning seemed to be putting on an act . But, right after generating a an individual-time visual appeal on the movie theater, Tangning did not seem ahead of the general population yet again she definitely wasnt trying to catch the attention of consideration like some individuals thinking . How do you actually feel just after observing your own video? Qiao Sen requested . He desired to know if Tangning thinking she was invincible like other actors often did . Should I was offered another likelihood, I would personally get it done much better, Tangning responded . Soon after listening to her response, Qiao Sen laughed, We are indeed a similar sort of individuals . People were both perfectionists . Ive picked the female direct . Because you are not fated to adopt this position, Ive decided to decide on an celebrity from in another country, Qiao Sen explained as he given Tangning some good information . Shes a French actress with excellent accreditation . Tangning gained the doc.you.ments, but failed to immediately share her viewpoint, Sickly look into property . That is okay, Qiao Sen nodded . Theres one more thing i would like to get your viewpoint about, Tangning hesitated for a couple of a few moments as she viewed the 3D type on the effects web developers personal computer . I would choose to modify the brand in the video . Purgatory is simply too abstract and isnt engaging plenty of . OK, what would you like to modify it to? Qiao Sen questioned . The Ant Princess Following ability to hear this name, Qiao Sen immediately dreamed of an ant that has been the size of the buildings close to it . It absolutely was an exciting graphic that immediately built him nod his mind, Sure, The Ant Queen noises similar to a sci-fi motion picture . Enables select that then . Pretty good . Factors often proceeding effectively . I am hoping this video will be ready for free up in just two yrs time . Two years Of all the painters simply being controlled by Tangning, Xia Hanmos route to recovery was one of the most hard simply because she no more entertained a space during the main sectors . Just after coming back from overseas, Xia Hanmo sprang out on various periodicals as well as publics appraisal of her begun to transform . This offered Xia Hanmo a whole new lease contract on living . Of course, she still essential to buy her brothers exorbitant professional medical expenditures . Lin Qian looked into the man stated by Xia Hanmo, Zhou Qing, and discovered that he was indeed the top host within the journey planet . So, Xia Hanmo really appreciated the means offered to her and moved with Lin Qian to fulfill him . Zhou Qing is in his mid thirties and had a cla.s.sy look . As a result of his easygoing and comical character, he possessed a good reputation in the business . And that time, he astonished every person with all the reports of making use of Xia Hanmo! As reported by the way that Xia Hanmo possessed received popular because of her undesirable status, wasnt Zhou Qing nervous by any means? But, as a result of Tangning, when people outlined Xia Hanmo, they naturally required good care of her . Hanmo, with me around, you dont need to worry about anything at all . Employees will take care of you, Zhou Qing comforted during their conference, a.s.suring her to never sense troubled . After having Zhou Qings words of comfort, Xia Hanmo nodded her mind, Do not fear, I am going to invest my greatest endeavours . Using your years of experience, Internet marketing positive you can actually handle it . Primarily because you are very well traveled . Xia Hanmo smiled . The complete reaching was relatively typical for the reason that Zhou Qing believed the way to guide the dialogues and liven inside the natural environment . After, Lin Qian eventually left with Xia Hanmo while director remained at the rear of to talk to Zhou Qing . Zhou Qing, The Top Adventure is going to modify hosts and you also are on the verge of make this channel . Why do you provide Xia Hanmo into this when its already the very last time of year? Zhou Qing organised back a smile since he tapped his hands about the family table facing him, Either you and also I do know whos gonna swap me . The Television station may wish to take out me immediately after Ive carried out my career, but I still wish to give Xia Hanmo a fretting hand . Serving Xia Hanmo is a sign of admiration for Tangning . We have my doubts against an actor that unfairly depends on the power of Weibo to acquire his way . So, just before I leave behind, I would like to aid Xia Hanmo a little . This little one is an effective article author and also has spectacular natural talent . She was simply put into a bad place well before . The director sighed just after hearing this, The head of the Television set station is silly . The Big Venture moved from as a little program for the popularly observed process it happens to be these days thanks to you . Simply because his youthful sibling is now rear, he dismissed your time and energy and reaped your advantages . Thats very much too shameless . Zhou Qing smiled as usual without expressing anything . Needless to say, with the status, Internet marketing sure you will see a good spot for a go . Since youve outlined to manage Xia Hanmo, I will definitely do as youve asked . Thank you so much, Director . There are still a good amount of excellent people today nowadays, the director patted Zhou Qing in the shoulder joint having a sigh since he remaining . At the same time, Zhou Qing stared at the location where Xia Hanmo was status basically a instant ago without a word Tangning discovered Xia Hanmos very good news and was content on her behalf . Of course, as her manager, other than congratulating her, Tangning also offered her some words of advice . As being the selection entire world became a new domain name for Xia Hanmo, it had been very important to her to generally be driven by way of a skilled sponsor . Xia Hanmo was very fortunate enough . I gotten this chance after meeting you, Xia Hanmo cheered . Im glad I got seeking Superstar Multimedia . Thanks, Tangning . Dont be too fast in thanking me . Gradually learn from Zhou Qing . They have a good reputation in the business, Tangning instructed . Hanmo, it is advisable to keep in mind that you are a part of Superstar Media . We write about our glory and our problems . I still need jobs of my personal, so i could help reduce a handful of your pressure . But, over the following 2 yrs, I might not make an look in front of the community again . So, you must utilize this timing . Do not be concerned, if I still cant are living my well being effectively even though getting providing the second opportunity, then Im an extensive waste materials of s.p.a.ce, Xia Hanmo responded . Therefore, Xia Hanmos long term prospects searched as promising as Xing Lan and Luo Shengs . Mo Ting listened to Tangning conversing on the telephone and approached to hug her from right behind . Then he claimed beside her ear canal, Nowadays at Hai Rui, the larger ups were definitely questioning the reasons you only experienced three performers . Ive made my three performers into the best of the top . Its sufficient to produce those who rely upon backdrop sense humiliation . Just like everyone mentioned, the industry is very large and my abilities are limited . But, at least I could give belief to people that will be simply being suppressed . Exactly like Luo Sheng and the others: the first is in range, the first is an actor and also the other is usually a artist . Ive already included another person from all of the three major classifications . So, whether or not I warning on another artist is determined by fate . Incidentally, your girl steer continues to be made the decision . We have picked out a s.e.xy dream celebrity . Tangning said jealously . Oh? Mo Ting elevated an eyebrow . "Oh?" Mo Ting elevated an eyebrow . Zhou Qing was in his middle of the thirties along with a cla.s.sy look . Because of his easygoing and humorous character, he obtained a good reputation in the marketplace . After, Lin Qian kept with Xia Hanmo although the director continued to be regarding to talk with Zhou Qing . Everyone in the field recognized that admirers ended up fickle it was an issue that people today in the business often mentioned . So, for the people within the industry, Tangning seemed to be wearing an act . Everybody in the marketplace realized that lovers have been fickle it was a thing that persons in the profession often mentioned . So, for folks inside the sector, Tangning seemed to be putting on an act . Since the selection entire world became a new area for Xia Hanmo, it was subsequently essential for her to always be brought using a accomplished hold . Tangning gained the doc.you.ments, but did not immediately talk about her point of view, "I'll look into home . " "I had my uncertainties against an actor that unfairly banks on the strength of Weibo to receive his way . " "Thank you, Director . " John LeCarre - A New Collection of Three Novels Just after seeing and hearing this label, Qiao Sen immediately thought an ant that has been the magnitude of the architectural structures around it . It turned out an interesting image that immediately manufactured him nod his head, "Certainly, 'The Ant Queen' looks much more like a sci-fi video . Let's choose that then . " "Not bad . Issues appear to growing properly . I am hoping this video will be ready for free up in just two a long time time . " "Don't worry, if I still can't reside my life well even though getting delivering a 2nd opportunity, then I'm a whole misuse of s.p.a.ce," Xia Hanmo responded . "Don't be too quick in thanking me . Slowly and gradually learn from Zhou Qing . He has a strong reputation in the marketplace," Tangning directed . "Hanmo, you have to remember that you will be a part of Superstar Marketing . We promote our glory along with our downfalls . I have undertakings of my, in order to help reduce a number of your tension . But, in the next two years, I might not make an visual appearance before the open public yet again . So, you will need to take advantage of this timing . " After ability to hear this title, Qiao Sen immediately dreamed of an ant which has been the magnitude of the complexes close to it . It absolutely was a great graphic that immediately manufactured him nod his mind, "Without a doubt, 'The Ant Queen' appears to be more like a sci-fi film . Let's decide on that then . "

Third Wheel

Pairing: kaider and I guess some kiko

Fandom: The Lunar Chronicles

Words: 1.3k

Fluff/ Angst

Summary: There’s a new shopping center in New Beijing and Iko is dying to go, so she hauls our favorite couple to with her. And, unfortunately, Kinney. Cinder and Kai do not want to go, but they have no choice and they end up having a good time, but Kinney feels a bit out of place.

(Not revised*)

Cinder stared out the window into the city of New Beijing. She's been here for less than a week and already she felt like she could relax. Sort of. The press was breathing on her and Kai's neck about why the Lunar Ambassador is staying at New Beijing Palace and want an answer. But they wouldn't get one yet.

She fiddled with the red engagement ring that only her friends knew about. It was nice to have some people know about the engagement so she wasn't all alone. Especially Iko, she's the best at covering the engagement when it comes to slip-ups in the public, even though she is the one who most wants to announce it.

Speaking of which, the same girl came bursting through the door, dragging in Kai, "GUYS!" she exclaimed.

"What," Cinder said, eyeing Kai. He shrugged.

"THERE'S A NEW SHOPPING CENTER!" she was practically jumping up and down, "WE HAVE TO GO!"

"Can't you just go alone? We have stuff to do-"

"It's no fun to go alone. I know what you're going to say 'ask Tress', well guess what? She's visiting her mother on Luna, so she can't come. So you guys are going to go in their place."

"I thought Kinney was visiting us for a week?"

"Yeah, but he's terrible when it comes to shopping."

"He's going to come anyway because Kai and I are."

Iko paused, "Spades, you're right. Dangit. Well, we're going anyways. You need the experience and I'm sure Kai hasn't shopped before."

"Is that an insult?" asked Kai.

"To me it is. And we're going to fix that."

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The four of them stepped out of the hover one by one. Iko first, Kinney last. Iko gave Kai and Cinder black hoodies to blend in. Kai and Cinder had to walk in the scorching sun from where the hover dropped them off to the shopping center. Iko was delighted and left Kinney, Kai, and Cinder in the dust.

"So what do we do?" Kai asked before entering the building. Cinder leaned on him and intertwined their hands.

"I have no idea," she rested her head on his shoulder. He placed his head on hers.

"Maybe we should follow her?" Kinney suggested.

"But where'd she go?" said she.

"Probably the shoe department," he looked uncomfortable for some reason. Maybe because she and Kai were all coupled up and he was just standing there awkwardly.... oh. But she didn't want to let go of Kai yet.

"Let's try the shoe department," Cinder began to lead Kai into the building, Kinney behind them. She didn't try to talk because that would make the situation more awkward. Kai began to hum a soft tune. She recognized it and began to hum with him. He squeezed her hand when he noticed her singing, putting a flutter in her heart.

They did not find her in the foot department, unfortunately, so they went into the next store. Cinder made small talk with Kai which resulted in a kiss from each other on the cheek. Then she would feel bad about Kinney and try to act normal, but she couldn't be parted with Kai. Poor Kinney.

They found Iko drooling at a dress in the window display. Iko spotted them and waved for them to come.

"Look at what I found!" Iko said as soon as they arrived.

"A dress, nothing special," Kinney said.

"Shut up, you."

"Make me."

"I will- whatever. I'ma go buy this dress. Wait here, especially you, impatient heathen," she pointed at Kinney, then left. Kinney snorted while shifting his feet.

Out of nowhere, Cinder's stomach growled.

"Woah, are you hungry?" Kai teased. She playfully hit him and nodded, "Then we should get something to eat. Would you like to come Kinney?"

"No, I'm good."

"Ok."

"He probably wants a fruit cup, according to Iko," Cinder implied as they were walking away. She explained Iko once mentioning that Kinney loves fruit cups.

"Fruit cups?" he asked.

"I don't know why either."

"I mean they're healthy?"

"But there are so many other things that Earth has to offer, like pretzels."

"Do you want pretzels? Because I want pretzels."

"I want pretzels."

"Let's get pretzels," as they made their way to the pretzel stand, hand in hand, she suddenly felt like she was forgetting something.

"Wait. We can't be seen," Cinder blurted.

"Shit," they turned quickly and headed back to the dress store, where Iko still hasn't come out yet.

"Kinney," Cinder asked, "Can you buy some pretzels for us, please. We can't be spotted by the public because they would probably wring our throats for ignoring them."

"Of course, Your Ma-, Selene."

"Cinder," she corrected.

"Selene," Kinney smirked and walked away.

"AT first he would say it on accident and now he's saying it on purpose, like Thorne! I knew letting them hang out was a bad idea," ranted Cinder to Kai. He chuckled. Realizing they were still holding hands, she squeezed, "you know Kinney has been so uncomfortable with us. I feel so bad."

"It's not our fault if Kinney and Iko would rather banter than date."

She giggled, "good point."

The guard came back holding their pretzels (and a fruit cup) at the same time Iko finally exited the store. Iko eyed Kinney suspiciously as he handed the food to Cinder and Kai. He then started to eat the fruit cup.

"Nothing for me? So inconsiderate," she huffed.

"You can't even eat!" shot Kinney.

"That was the joke, Liam,"  he crossed his arms.

"Okay, maybe we should go now," Kai butted in, "It's getting late."

"It's 17:46 Kai, not that late."

"Well, maybe we should go before you two kill each other in front of everyone. We wouldn't want to cause a scene, right?"

"I agree with the Emperor. Plus, I'm bored," said Kinney, picking at his fruit cup again.

"What- not yet!" Iko sputtered, "We barely did anything! Cinder needs a pair of new shoes too."

"Oh, no, I'm good with the shoes. Don't worry about me."

"Fine! Let's go home! You're all party-killers," the android muttered the last part as she frustratingly made her way out of the building.

"Now I feel bad," said Kai.

"I don't. Let's go," Kinney replied. Cinder grabbed Kai's hand and headed down to the exit. Once they were outside, they found Iko standing by a hover glaring at them.

"Hey Kai, do you prefer blue or yellow?" the android asked.

"Blue?"

"Tie or bowtie?"

"Depends on what event is happening."

"Fancy event?"

"Tie."

"Okay, " Cinder realized what she was doing; she was online shopping. Cinder promptly began to laugh.

"What?" Kai asked, confused.

"She's shopping."

"Oh, " he began to laugh along with Cinder. He opened the hover door for her and she stepped in gradually. Kinney and Iko followed.

The ride back to New Beijing palace consisted of the two bickering like the lovers they were and Kai giving Cinder little kisses any chance he got, which Cinder appreciated.

"I SWEAR IF YOU EAT ONE MORE THING IN FRONT OF ME-"

"IT'S NOT THAT BIG OF A DEAL!"

"I WILL SHOOT YOUR ASS OFF!"

"You smell good," Cinder whispered. She was heavily leaning on him, mostly to get away from the fighting ragers.

"Iko gave me some new cologne," Kai admitted.

"IT IS TO ME!"

"Oh. Remind me to thank her."

"OH, WHO CARES!"

"Why?"

"Because no one wants a smelly fiancee."

"True."

"UGH, WHY ARE YOU SO DIFFICULT!"

"I'M THE ONE WHO'S BEING DIFFICULT?! REALLY?!"

"They're annoying," said Kai, not so secretly.

"Imagine living with them for two years."

"IMBECILE!"

"LOOK WHO'S TALKING!"

"I'm sorry," Kai began to snicker, making her join along. The screeching pair turned their volume down as they neared the palace. Cinder and Kai hid their laughter as they glared each other down.

"We're here guys," pointed out Kai.

"Yeah, you go ahead. Kinney and I are going to have a word," Cinder and Kai left the hover and on their way back to the palace, she began to rethink the decision to leave the hover.

"You think leaving them alone is a good idea?" she asked.

"Nope. But they will work it out," he paused, "hopefully."

"Hopefully."

They walked through the grand palace doors, hand in hand, ignoring the possibility that all hell would break loose after leaving those two alone.

Tagging: @just2bubbly @ladyvesuvia @rue-velleia @strawberry-seraph @cindersassasin @salt-warrior @not-the-founder-of-rome @jacihayle @winterrhayle (please ask if you want to be removed or added <3)

fics across fandoms that i have reread >2 times that are >40k words:

(as you can maybe tell i am currently drowning in nostalgia) ((ok this is long as shit and no one’s gonna read it but does anyone remember the destiel fic a room of one’s own???))

merthur: lost count, would still reread: the student prince, the wasting game lost count but would probably not reread to the end now: pianos are made for falling, we are all diamonds lost count how many times i attempted to finish this series but always stalled before the end because it’s 1.3 million words and i always had to read it from the start each time: loaded march. i think i made it to like.. 700k the last and final time.

hp: here’s the pencil, make it work (drarry, ~4x), if them’s the rules (lost count. harry & tom riddle (platonic). the only wip here & the only one without a main romantic pairing. i’ve kept up with this for 6 years now. 200k words, stalled at 41/83 chapters that started in 2011, updated a little over a year ago. if it an update comes out ill cry)

johnlock: saving sherlock holmes (lost count), nature and nurture (~3x)

mdzs (exception: these are all n=2 and 20-40k mainly bc newer fandom + active author community on twitter resulting in it being easy to find many excellent fics, so im more inclined to cut down my tbr than reread): the montreal trip (sxx), attempting the impossible (wwx&jc), hunters seeking solid ground (wangxian)

honorary ments for extremely memorable fics: - a room of one’s own (destiel... the last time i read this would be nearly 6 years ago jesus. why do i remember so much of it. the wings. the car. the frolicking bunnies. cas lowering his blood pressure too much and nearly passing out. weapons grade denial and miscommunication. it really had it all.) - stop my heart by wowoashley (taek00k) (don’t ask. though if anyone knows/remembers the drama im all ears bc i remember one time i got super obsessed with trying to figure out what happened w/this author but now ive forgotten again) - fucking beijing (i cant remember the actual title) (merthur. i am still in love with this. all-time favourite under 20k.) - alone in the water (johnlock. was this the first time i ever cried reading fic???) - that one sterek fic where stiles is a broke college student and he makes meals in tupperwares for derek for $$. (i actually read quite a few sterek fics in like 2014 but none of them made that much of an impression on me) - codename MONSTER (chanba3k (EXO). eternal wip i believe. this was in 2017? i was so enamoured with this universe that i offered to beta (another fic) for the author so theyd write faster. that’s when i found out that perfectionism combined with a lack of imagination does not mix very well with beta-ing.

(censored the kpop ones bc i dont want to draw the attention of rabid fourteen year olds)

The Freedom of Expression Radio version - Ep 10, Dec 2015.

Kaoru introduces the show's concept and says that as this is the tenth episode of the show, he will try DJ-ing alone for the first time! He's not sure how its going to go, but he's going to give it a try. He also refers back to the end of the previous show, when he said there would be a special announcment to look forward to this time.

After reading out the show's contact info, he picks up on one email the show has recieved. The question in the email asks, 'Have you ever thought about inviting guests onto the show? The other members, for example?' He says he is not currently thinking of inviting guests, because the topics they talk about on the show might be a bit tough for the guest to be faced with. For example, the story about the murder victim who had their face peeled off - its not very nice to make a guest talk about this. However, he's not totally opposed to the idea if the timing was right etc. He's not entirely sure about inviting the other members, but thinks it could be interesting to interact with them in a totally different way than usual. Maybe if the chance arises.

Next Kaoru moves onto the Arche cover  surroundings design campaign that has been on the go for a few weeks, and chooses one submitted design to showcase. The design depicts the miniaturised Arche cover inside the eye of a cat. Kaoru likes this idea, but he cannot imagine what meaning there might be behind it. He say's he is impressed with the level of the designs that have been sent in, and would like to showcase many more, but will leave it at this one for now. He has been quite busy, so hasn't had time to make his own design yet, but he definitely wants to. He will showcase his own design on air when he manages it.

Kaoru then moves onto his first topic of interest to talk about. This is about the British artistic duo Tim Noble and Sue Webster, who make shadow art by using animal carcasses and garbage. They use the bodies of birds, as well as garbage to create shadows which resemble humans. Kaoru thinks its pretty interesting. He feels he's the type of person who would end up doing something like this too. He even feels like asking listeners to try it, but realises thats impossible. He thinks it would be pretty interesting for a record cover, for example, the garbage could show the damage to the world, or that type of thing. He then fittingly plays his first song, Dir en grey - Garbage.

Next he moves to the Tokyo Sports corner, and is joined by Hiranabe. Hiranabe brings up the story of a 29 year old, very tall, beautiful woman (in Hiranabe's words), Kikuchi Aza, who, in February, had murdered her partner with a metal bat and a knife. She is currently (Dec 2015) on trail for the incident, but as it happens Hiranabe actually knows her. He says she was originally a man, who suffered from gender disphoria, and who underwent a sex change operation to become a woman. Hiranabe says he was introduced to her by his boss during a production he was working on, about a year before the murder took place. The conversation he had with her at that time was about how she had been attacked by a man, and wanted to take the matter to court. Could Hiranabe recommend a good lawyer? etc. At that time, Hiranabe had wondered what exactly had happened to her, why had she been attacked? Who was this guy? Would an arrest actually be possible? etc. When he asked her this, she replied agressively, 'Oh, forget everything I said!'. Hiranaba was like, 'What?!' So he left it at that and went back and told his boss. He couldn't believe such an incident could occur a year later. Kaoru says Hiranabe is lucky he handled it as well as he did, otherwise he might have been in danger. Hiranabe then says that Kikuchi had been working in a club in Ginza, and her partner had been an employee of the same club. He had been dating her without realising she was transgender, and after he realised, it seems as if he wanted to split up with her. As a result he was murdered. Kaoru says we don't know if she really was trying to hide anything, but what is clear is that she is still the same person inside. i.e. agressive. Hiranabe says Kikuchi also starred in DVDs as a leg model, as she has very beautiful legs. Hiranabe's boss that time, also didn't realise she was transgender as she looked like the perfect woman. She was apparently a very popular hostess in the club she worked. Kaoru says that all the people who spent lot of money on her may be feeling quite surprised after they found out. He then mentions that the stories Hiranaba brings to the show are always pretty terrible.

The next topic they discuss is about the drama between the celebrities Kitajima Mai, and her ex-husband Osawa Mikio. Osawa had denied that he was the biological father of Kitajima's child. He appeared on tv in tears to make the announcment, and some opinions were raised that this is quite unkind to the child in question, why does he have to go on tv about it now? Kaoru isn't sure. Hiranabe asks whether Kitajima might have lied to Osawa, knowing the child wasn't his. Kaoru thinks he read somewhere that Kitajima told Osawa the child wasn't his when they were drunk, and Osawa thought she was joking at first, but eventually started to question the situation. At least Kaoru thinks there must be something strange going on behind the scenes for it to suddenly come out like this now. Hiranabe suggests it must be a shock to Osawa to realise that the child he has raised as his own, is actually not his. Kaoru comments that Kitajima herself hasn't come out publicly with anything. He doesn't mean to be sexist, but he thinks women are scary. They then throw in a few ideas about what they think about Kitajima's silence, or about what kind of scandals might have occured between the two. After playing a song, Kaoru picks up this topic again to say that after a dna test was done, 30% of the results suggested that the child is that of another person. (*Not sure how that works*) He can sympathise with a man in such a position.

Finally, Kaoru says he's not sure how he's handled solo Dj-ing on this tenth episode, but he thinks it was probably ok. He then reminds listeners of Dir en grey's Budokan shows in early 2016, and says that he will be in Beijing from tomorrow on the Chinese tour. He then announces that he has done an interview for Rolling Stone magazing and that he will be on the cover. He says it will be on sale that month,  and asks listeners to check it out. His final announcment is that there will be two Freedom of Expression 2 hour live broadcasts coming up, on the 21st and 22nd of Dec, 2015.

Songs - Dir en grey/Garbage, Jane's Addiction/Stop.

Beijing is literally locked down.

Beijing is literally locked down. People are not allowed to leave Beijing unless they have negative-result tests of COVID-19 in 7 consecutive days. Flights are canceled. Schools are closed again. Movie theaters are closed again. Delivery workers have to be tested... because of the new surge of new cases-dozens of new cases. In addition, people have been wearing the masks since the end of January. We've been wearing the mask for 5 months in Guangzhou, too. So, don't worry.

On Wednesday, an Italian came to our office for a meeting. Before everything else, she said, "I'm Italian. But I have been in China for a long time." She's being considerate. We believed her. And I said, "Sure. No worries. There are many foreigners walking in the street of Guangzhou. I don't worry at all. Even you came into China recently. But since you are here, it means you are OK. I trust the Chinese quarantine staff at the customs." So, I really don't worry at all. However, we still wear a mask.

Wearing a mask can effectively stop the transmission of the virus. There's plenty of information about this if you would like to Google it. THIS IS SCIENCE. That's why we sent some masks to our international partners earlier this year. I wear the mask simply because I don't want to get infected, because I fear death, because I'm not sure if I have the virus but no symptoms and spread it to others, because I don't know the people around me are carrying the virus or not. 

So, earlier this year I saw from the news videos that in the U.S. and some other western countries that people who wore a mask got scolded by others. Maybe it's a culture issue. But I think it's the lost of logic thinking.

And today I read the news that the White House news secretary is not going to wear a mask at Trump's rally. What? How many new cases are happening in the U.S. everyday? What is the logic to put health on politics instead of science? Since when, have people lost their common sense? 

BTW, just don't read BBC or CNN to learn information about China. There are plenty of other ways. The best way to do fact-check (if you want to argue) is of course take a field trip. Go visit some cities in China. Live there like a normal citizen, make some local friends. You of course will see a lot of problems. But either good or bad, it is totally different from what you see from the media.

Ok, I'll do my best to try, because reading some of the galaxy brained takes about China and the Chinese government have cemented in my head the agonizing fact that most people prefer simple narratives and have little understanding of history, let alone an understanding of how history affects the present.

This will be long and requires some groundwork on explaining the modern Chinese mindset as a whole. Disclaimer: I am currently in Hong Kong, I hold British citizenship by birth and frequently do business with Chinese companies.

1) Big China and Collective Society.

This is something most people really don't grasp the scale of. To assign shared characteristics to fully one quarter of the human race would be broad enough to make those descriptors basically meaningless. Dividing sections of China along any non-geographical lines, economic lines, socio-political lines, this is all incredibly difficult. Despite a massively homogenous Han Chinese population, just looking at Chinese food culture would tell you just how freakishly diverse and different each section is. There are different dialects, accents, lifestyles all across China. When people say "China" it is often completely unhelpful when it comes to pinning down what they mean. For the sake of this discussion, we're assuming that we're talking about the type of Chinese person that the central government has taken pains to portray to the world. Which is, the middle class, consumerist, worldly and tech-savvy Han Chinese. Native of a Tier 1 city (e.g. Shanghai or Beijing).

Most Chinese people are aware of just how big the country is and how difficult a task it is keeping it all together, on a scale I've seen very few people outside of China appreciate. There is a real ethos of "tianxia", or the concept depicted in the Jet Li movie Hero (criticized for being state propaganda at the time, it was largely missed that most Chinese understand, if not support, this thesis). Chinese see themselves as sharing in a common destiny and collective group ethos. This can be traced back to Confucianism - a young person can have said to have "come of age" when they have fully adapted to and understood their role within a harmonious society. This both gives the common Chinese a shared purpose and skin in the game. They literally feel a stake in the collective power and status of their own country. This is not the flag-waving nationalism that the western nations consider passe, but a belief that China must hold together as a shared country and people.

…

Chinese pride is young, and very damaged. There is a sense of grievance and hurt pride that has never been resolved, and this is occasionally glimpsed in everything from their foreign policy to their mass market serialized literature. The reasons behind this can be traced back to a century of colonialism and rampant opportunism by the world powers during the 19th and 20th centuries. Chinese histories and memories are very long, and despite happening a few centuries ago this is very fresh in people's minds. An old joke about China's view of history has the Chinese waiting to see if the French Revolution is still a good idea. China has never forgotten that despite a massive population and huge amounts of territory it fell from being one of the world's oldest civilizations to becoming the "weak man of Asia", and their modern politics has mostly been about resolving this pride. There is a shared belief, or a hidden form of mass psychosis, that China has been denied its destiny as the foremost world power, either through treachery, the work of foreign powers, or other means. Even worse is the proof that the old rival Japan, a similarly impoverished nation, had managed to drag itself onto the stage of the world powers in the late 19th/early 20th century. This has caused some real complexes in the Chinese psyche.

Adding to this is the understanding of recent history. Coupled with historical understanding that ruling China is an incredibly difficult job and only people like the legendary Emperor Qin were able to unify the country in the first place, China collectively remembers the much more recent history of the Communist revolution, the Great Famine, the Cultural Revolution, and more. The fact that China's current financial power and global status is largely a result of Deng Xiaoping's market reforms and liberalism is besides the point - the defining thing that most Chinese in the older generation take away is that revolution led to some truly fucking heinous shit and a death toll enacted on its population greater than any ever seen in the history of mankind, and as a result they have no taste for another revolution. The government stays in power largely because the older generation are aware of just how much death is involved with a changing of the guard. There is also no promise that whatever comes to replace the government will be in any way better than what came before it. Sure, the kuomintang government were corrupt as sin, but was that really preferable to having everyone starve because nobody knew how to farm land for years?

…

It is no surprise that the most radical nationalist pro-Chinese are the young students sent overseas to study in western universities. The Chinese attitude towards these western academies is not great; they attend for credentials and status, but these places of study have become cultural battlegrounds and ground zero for showing Chinese students that the Western societies and arguments are fractured and impotent. Students are given courses and humanities curriculum that demonize western civilization and its achievements, and emphasize the breaking down of existing power structures. Of course this would lead to nationalist students violently attacking pro-Hong Kong protesters and demonstrations, as both sides consider each other indoctrinated suckers (and one sees the other as trying to destroy the power structure of the country). An attack on China and Chinese identity is both a dangerous attack on national and societal cohesion and stinging Chinese pride. They have been handed something that can be easily interpreted as an attempt by foreign powers to fracture the unity of Chinese society, cause chaos in their country, and stop China from achieving its destiny of world #1 power and subjugator of other nations.

…

Many people have asked me why Chinese people put up with their government being totalitarian, so many human rights abuses, this and that. Social credit system, organ harvesting. No end of horrible things we hear about Chinese government. The corruption. The dark things the CCP has done to consolidate its power. Tiananmen.

Well, the unfortunate answer is that China, as a collectivized group, wants to fuck over people who looked down on them, even if it means causing itself grievous injuries in the process. It's painful to admit, but the regular Chinese is perfectly okay with the Uighur death camps, even if the government goes to some length to pretend they don't exist. After all, surely they must be doing something to destabilize and weaken Chinese society if the government is putting them in death camps. Don't you know Uighurs can be unpredictable, barbaric, and violent? And if Chinese society is destabilized and weak, the Chinese people won't achieve our common destiny of being the #1 world power.

Chinese people don't care that there is anti-Chinese sentiment internationally. In fact, it even helps. It plays into the narrative that people hate China now because China is strong.

Privately, Chinese people will celebrate the NBA and Blizzard backing down in fear, because they equate this with power and respect. It is perfectly natural for the NBA to apologize for offending the Chinese government, because this is a display of strength. How will you be able to tell that you are stronger than someone, if they are not underneath your boot heel?

…

China has gone from largely a nation of rice farmers to modern state with terrifying speed. They are now the world leader in 5G communications technology, technological integration into daily life, the world's biggest consumer market. By every single metric, logistics, travel, entertainment, living standards, Chinese life has gotten better. And they are completely aware of this. Twenty years. Thirty years?

…

So there is an unspoken pact between the government and the people. In exchange for getting rich, the people have willingly given up their freedoms. Because you can't eat freedom. Many of the social problems in China are rooted in this short-term manner of business thinking; tomorrow, there may be trouble. Maybe the country would be in trouble. I'll never see this customer or client again. Why bother maintaining anything? If I can get a benefit out of cheating, why wouldn't I do it?

Chinese, especially the older generation, understand existential failure on a level the western nations don't. They don't take anything for granted, including the attitude of the government (and this has in fact driven a lot of asset flow out of China into other nations). They remember the Cultural Revolution, the societal madness that took hold when roving gangs of diehard Communists went around lynching people who wore glasses or owned books. They understand that the possibility of that shit happening again, or coming for them, is non-zero. So the attitude is to use every trick in the book to make sure that they come out on top.

…

There is a recurring belief from Americans that most Chinese are brainwashed by their authoritarian government, and if they only understood democracy, knew about the atrocities of the CCP, or were exposed to the taste of an All-American cheeseburger, there would be a great awakening and China would truly "become free". While certain elements of brainwashing and information control are most certainly true, there is a certain level of arrogance in this method of thinking.

For one, this viewpoint has completely ignored the possibility that China already knows exactly how cheeseburgers taste, all about the atrocities of its own government, and about democracy.

…

China's political and social state project has openly stated its intent to utilize and take advantage of what worked before, while adapting it to fit their own situation. Throwing away what doesn't work, surgically excising elements they consider dangerous or don't like. 'Socialism with Chinese characteristics'. 'China Dream'. These are adapted policies, methods, and ideals, refocused through the lens of the Party. Yes, they are stealing. They are also adapting.

Any good propagandist will tell you that the ideological battle is the first battle that must be won, and on this note America has failed utterly at defending democracy and personal freedom. This is not by Chinese design; rather, a combination of factors including financial inequality, changing demographics, chaotic governance, political point-scoring and media clickbait have done their best to demonstrate that American government is both unstable and spectacularly inept, and no longer believes in the values set down in the Declaration of Independence. America has considered the argument for democracy so thoroughly won that it has forgotten to defend it, or even the value of it. Into this void steps the Chinese government.

…

It is impossible not to watch. The US is the world's only really global power, and the current measuring stick by which all global powers are compared against. China wants what the US has, but is going to attempt to do so without the mistakes the Americans have made. After all, American empire is ending, or so everyone says. The bars are equalizing. America was a leader in space travel, so China will become a leader in space travel. America was a leader in world culture and entertainment, so China will become a leader in world culture and entertainment. America has a strong military, so China will have a strong military.

…

To leave with one last note, in the online kerfluffle surrounding Hong Kong's current situation, Chinese netizens think it's fair play to "support 9-11" and advocate for California seceding from the United States, as payback for a mistaken belief that the fight in Hong Kong is over independence. When confronted with the fact that edgy teenagers in America have been making 9-11 jokes barely a week after the tragedy and a non-zero amount of non-Californians in the US would also prefer it if California sunk into the ocean, they are legitimately surprised. The idea that this kind of independence would be preferred by both parties is almost completely alien to the Chinese, who wonder and are surprised at the fact that Americans apparently wish their country to be weaker.

[RUMOUR] YuZhou being together

Some rumours and gossips were spread long time ago. At that time, there was no real evidence so I couldn't post them, but now I think it's ok to publish ^^ If I can remember any others, I will post part 2 lol

You may choose to believe them or not, it depends on you. And please take out with full credit.

1) Trans :"On 161217, both YuZhou came to Beijing. When coming, Jingyu brought 5 suitcases, but when going back, he only had 1 suitcase. Meanwhile, ZZ only brought 1 suitcase when coming, but when he left, he had 5."

☆ [161217] JY: Chengdu --> Beijing

ZZ: Shanghai --> Beijing

2) Trans :"Since the 1st time coming across Xu Weizhou at the elevator and catching him help Huang Jingyu with the congratulatory gift, I really look forward to coming across Huang Jingyu downstairs ~ The holiday is over, (ORS was released during the Lunar New Year holiday) hurry to go see Operation Red Sea. If you wanna see XWZ HJY by chance, you can come to my house."

3) Trans :"Peng Peng was in Beijing, he made a call to ZZ but ZZ didn't answer. Then PP opened WeChat to ask where ZZ was then and he wanna meet ZZ. Next, ZZ answered that he was outside at that time, ZZ told PP no need to come to see him, just directly come to his house, Huang Jingyu was at home. As a result, the assistant/staff heard that and spread the story out."

This was during an interview (or livestream I don't remember exactly) of PengPeng in 2016 and I did see the video on a YZ fanpage on Facebook. Jingyu's named was 'beep' in the video, but PP's facial expressions were really shocked and confused. Unfortunately, I didn't save it (arrghhh im regretting it millions of times. At that time, I hadn't created this tumblr blog yet haizz) so now I couldn't find the video anymore. I also asked Chinese cpfs and many others but they said the video was deleted for the sake of our boys, so no one could share it.

HAPPY LUNAR NEW YEARRRRRR ♡.♡ Have some sugar on the first day of new year and let's head to a 2019 full of sweetness and honey kekeke

01 Falun Gong

Hey everyone, welcome to the show Dogma: A Podcast About Cults, I’m your host Denis Ricardo.

This show is about cults. The origins, practices and abuses of cults. So, if you are uncomfortable with descriptions of sexual, physical and mental violence and abuse, this is not the show for you.

I’m gonna try to keep it light and fun, but this stuff can get kind of dark… so you’ve been warned.

Today we’re gonna look into a cult by the name of Falun Gong. It’s one that not a lot of people have heard of, but are surprisingly very familiar with.

It’s a fairly young cult, not more than 27 years old. It began in 1992 in the northeast of China and was founded by a guy by the name of Li Hongzhi. I’m going to apologize on the pronunciation of some of these proper nouns, I am really bad at pronouncing the tones in Chinese languages.

The cult all began with Li Hongzhi running a public qigong seminar in the city of Changchun.

Qigong is an ancient Chinese practice of meditation and slow movement for the purpose of self-healing. It was and is still used in many Chinese communities as a form of alternative medicine.

The modern qigong movement started in the 1950s, shortly after the Cultural Revolution started by Mao Zedong.

Mao was a pretty hardline atheist, and believed that superstitious practices were not good for the advancement of China and communism. So, soldiers in Mao’s army adapted qigong to just be about meditation and focus, taking out all the of the spiritual elements of it. The practice was pretty popular and remains very common to this day.

Li felt a little differently about qigong, though. He feels as though the spiritual elements should be restored. So, he did just that.

Falun Gong was actually in the Chinese Communist Party’s favor, and initially saw it as a good movement. But they quickly changed their mind after they thought the movement was getting a little too independent. The Chinese government is notorious for monitoring the religious practices in China. So, in 1999 the Chinese Communist Party branded Falun Gong as heretical and began a massive propaganda campaign against the group. It mostly focused on negative articles in state-run press, which Falun Gong was quick to protest.

In April of 1999 10,000 Falun Gong protested outside a government compound in the capital Beijing demand that the government recognize them as a religious movement and stop persecuting them.

In China there are only 5 officially recognized religions because it is an atheist state. Those are Buddhism, Taoism, Catholicism, Protestantism and Islam.

Side note, just because I’m formerly Catholic,

China’s relationship with Catholicism kind of interesting, China does not recognize the power of the Holy See’s authority to appoint bishops. So Catholics in China aren’t “Roman” Catholic or “Orthodox” Catholics they’re “Chinese” Catholics. Their relationship is contentious, but China has granted the Pope the right to reject any of the Chinese appointed bishops.

But moving on… at this point, the leader of Falun Gong, Li, was already in New York at and he was getting the cult off the ground here in the US.

But things were pretty bad for Falun Gong practitioners in China.

Reports of forced re-education, extrajudicial executions, harvesting of organs and attacks by the Chinese police at the behest of the Communist Party against Falun Gong practitioners surfaced. But, it’s not the easiest to corroborate these claims, because neither Falun Gong or the CCP are necessarily the most upfront about their practices. The New York Times has said there has been at least 2000 deaths in 2009, though Falun Gong claims that number is nearly twice that. An independent investigator, Ethan Gutmann estimates there were at least 65,000 Falun Gong members killed for organs based off of interviews. Chinese authorities do not publish statistics of Falun Gong members killed or not killed.

OK, do some less depressing stuff, Falun Gong’s main practices.

Falun Gong is a blend of traditional Chinese beliefs, Taoism, Buddhism and Confucianism.

They have three central tenants of power Truthfulness (真, Zhēn)*, Compassion (善, Shàn)*, and Forbearance (忍, Rěn)*. Thank you, Google Translate. These are achieved through meditative exercise and performance.

*these words were reproduced with Google Translate pronouncing them

Falun Gong’s teachings say that everybody is innately good and divine, but that we have descended into darkness and accrued bad karma. Reincarnation is handled by different gods for different people and ultimately the goal is to be released from the cycle of samsara and to reach enlightenment.

This sounds pretty normal for an Asian religion like Buddhism. So far so good? [With hesitation in their voice] Yeah, it gets a little weirder.

Falun Gong emphasizes traditional Chinese teachings and disregards scientific claims like evolution. This also explains why they are vehemently against communism because it is not Chinese, it’s a European philosophy.

As I said before China is an atheist state, and typically Buddhists do not have an issue with evolution and Buddhism. I couldn’t find any numbers specifically citing the public acceptance of evolution in China, however. But I have found that it is taught in school like here in American coastal elite public schools without much of a hitch.

David Ownby, a professor at the Center of East Asian Studies at the University of Montreal interviewed the leader Li Hongzhi and said that Li claims there are 10,000 supernatural powers, such as clairvoyance, precognition, levitation and transmutation and these can be achieved by humans.

Li stated at a lecture in Australia that

“…homosexuality, organized crime and promiscuous sex are not the standards of being human.”

His stance on homosexuality lead to the rescinding of a Nobel Peace Prize nomination by San Franciscan legislators back in 2001.

Li and Falun Gong have also been criticized for their teaching of mixed-marriages. A New York Times article from 2001 states

“[Li] said interracial children are the spawn of the ‘Dharma Ending Period,' a Buddhist phrase that refers to an era of moral degeneration. […] he said each race has its own paradise, and he later told followers in Australia that, 'The yellow people, the white people, and the black people have corresponding races in heaven.’ As a result, he said, interracial children have no place in heaven without his intervention.”

Many practitioners of Falun Gong have denied this and have pointed out that many of its members are in mixed-race families.

But, let’s not forget the aliens.

So Li in general seems to be against most modern things. In a 1999 TIME Magazine interview in he said:

“The aliens have introduced modern machinery like computers and airplanes…everyone thinks that scientists invent on their own when in fact their inspiration is manipulated by the aliens. In terms of culture and spirit, they already control man…the ultimate purpose is to replace humans. If cloning human beings succeeds, the aliens can officially replace humans”

Li also thinks very highly of himself. The BBC, quote:

“…he is a being from a higher level who has come to help [mankind] from the destruction it could face as the result of rampant evil.”

Having a leader proclaim to know the way to save humanity is one of the signs that the leader’s group is a cult.

So, remember when I said that another one ways to get to their three central tenants was performance? Well, you know how they do it? By selling you $150 tickets to see the spectacle of 5000 years of traditional Chinese dance while listening to anti-atheist, anti-communist propaganda… it’s Shen Yun.

So apparently Shen Yun ads popping up everywhere is now a meme, but I’ve grown up in California all my life, and I swear I’ve been seeing these things since at least 2008. These things aren’t new to me. But I guess they’re finally getting to middle America, so people can joke about it.

I said before Falun Gong was anti-Communist and anti-evolution? Well, it shows up in the performance

Here’s a sample of lyrics from a song in the show called “Awaken”

"So long ago you came down to this world For millennia you have reincarnated here Fighting to get ahead, the true you has faded Self-interested actions have cost you your purity Atheism is a pack of lies The heresy of evolution now eclipses the Divine word Amidst disaster, people complain that the gods have forsaken us Do not use science to drive humanity toward danger You came to this world for salvation, your destiny To return to heaven is your soul's deepest wish You came to this world for salvation, your destiny To return to heaven is your destiny."

And, as I said before, the group is condemned by the Chinese government. The Chinese embassy made a post on their website, calling Falun Gong an anti-communist cult, that it undermines US-Chinese relations and that Shen Yun is a political tool for this cult and is anti-Chinese agitprop. This was all in English, and I find it a little weird they’d call it “agitprop” because that’s typically reserved for communist propaganda. So I found it a little strange.

But clearly this is also propaganda, it’s a statement by a government body, and all reports on its more outrageous beliefs are from western publications so there is a bias. But straight from the horse’s mouth is the anti-evolution message and we know that these performers don’t get paid.

In the end, it’s hard to classify this as a cult. It has cult-like elements, like surveillance by a government, a savior-leader. But it lacks a hierarchy and I could not find anyone who had left the movement and faced consequences for it, which are typically signs of a cult.

It’s got some very out-there, potentially dangerous beliefs, but is it a cult? [With hesitation in their voice) Personally, I’m gonna say yes, though I don’t think it necessarily ticks all those checkboxes, so maybe it can’t really be classified as a cult.

Now comes the fun part, where I get to beg you for money. I come to you hat in hand to maybe just consider throwing a dollar or two to my Patreon. I can’t offer much right now as far as donor rewards go, but I will try my best to give you access to episodes early and maybe some other fun side projects that I have available that are still loosely related to cults. That you so much if you decide to be ever so gracious.

Thanks so much for listening, that was the first episode. I will put all of my sources in the description. Most are from Wikipedia, but I checked to see if those sources were legit, so lay off me.

New time, we’re going to be focusing on a cult a little closer to home and maybe some of you remember this cult very vividly.

All right, take care and goodbye.

Citations:

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

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

http://www.atheistrepublic.com/forums/atheist-hub/shen-yun

https://culteducation.com/group/1254-falun-gong/6922-is-falun-gong-a-cult.html

https://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/2010/11/30/china-conundrum/

http://faluninfo.net/category/persecution/killings/individual-cases-of-falun-gong-deaths/

https://www.amnesty.org/en/countries/

https://books.google.com/books?id=Bwqkwx4SWS0C&printsec=frontcover&dq=ownby+falun&client=firefox-a&cd=1#v=onepage&q&f=false

Song Credits:

“Frozen Jungle” and “Dreaming of You” by Monplaisir under the name Komiku (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Komiku/)

“我��是毛主席的红卫兵 (We Are Chairman Mao’s Red Guard)” found at Songs of China’s Cultural Revolution (http://academics.wellesley.edu/Polisci/wj/China/CRSongs/crsongs.htm)

“Dies Irae” found on Archive.org (https://archive.org/details/GregorianChantMass

“Ride to the Party” by Monplaisir under the name Anonymous420 (https://chezmonplaisir.bandcamp.com/album/this-is-not-you)

Consider joining the Patreon!

Kazuki’s interview from the Team Japan Fanbook 2018. This took me a lot longer than I intended, but it’s finally done! (Adulting gets in the way of everything fun)

Usual Disclaimer: I’m not a professional translator, just a fan with basic Japanese language skills and a whole helluva lot of tenacity. Any mistakes are due to stupidity rather than malice

Warning: This is a long boy, like really really long. so so so so so long.

At last season’s World Championships, the name Kazuki Tomono appeared to the world when he had a lively 5th place finish at his Worlds debut. This season he’s taking on ambitious programs and aiming for the top of the senior stage. Stronger, and Higher. The skating world is gathering it’s expectations for one of Japan’s premiere entertainers.

That’s a Colantotte necklace sparkling on your chest today, isn’t it?

Kazuki: Yes (laugh). Shoma gave it to me at an ice show. He said “if it’s ok, have this”. It’s cool, and I really wanted one, so I’m happy.

Are you matching with Uno-senshu?

Kazuki: Maybe, I think Shoma is like a model. He’s stylish and always has his on.

This off season you’ve been busy with ice shows, haven’t you. Which performances have you participated in?

Kazuki: Prince Ice World, Heroes&Future in Nagano, Dreams on Ice, and THE Ice. My “Daft Punk” ex has been very popular. I really feel that it’s a good program.

How did you choose the song?

Kazuki: From the start I loved Pentatonix, but above all I love their “Daft Punk” cover. When I was searching for an exhibition number, I suddenly remembered this song, I thought “this has to be it!” and decided on it.

What is the reason that you added in the robot dance?

Kazuki: The promotional video has a near future feel, and Daft Punk itself is also a group with that sort of concept. I watched the robot dance of video sites, and studied it on my own. The way muscles are used is difficult and I had a hard time, but while watching videos aimed at beginners I desperately memorized it

You debuted it at Prince Ice World Yokohama, right? How was it when you watched the footage?

Kazuki: I was worried, but I danced better than I thought I would (laugh). The audience also received it well, and I was relieved that I was able to make it lively. Even though I’ve always had good exhibition numbers, this one has become a particular favorite.

Since you flourished last season, do you feel the audience’s reaction to you has changed?

Kazuki: I began to feel that was expected and I thought I should give a performance that was fitting of someone who was 5th place at Worlds.

Has your awareness changed in practice?

Kazuki: Yes. I want to become more of a skater who can compete at the world level, so my awareness has changed in practice, and my goals have become more defined.

During ice shows this summer, I think you were able to practice alongside Olympic medalists and legends in the skating world, did that have an effect on you?

Kazuki: The Nagano show was really like a dream. I admire Candeloro, and I was really happy to see his performance up close. Also, I was overwhelmed by Elvis Stojko’s technical prowess. Legendary skaters have a wealth of knowledge and experience, sort of an aura, I really couldn’t get out any words but “amazing”. I sometimes forgot I was in the show too (laugh). Plushenko was also amazing, I couldn’t take my eyes away for a second at this ice show. It was the most fun I’ve ever had.

Have you seen footage from Candeloro, Stojko, and Plushenko’s competitive days before?

Kazuki: Yes, I love skaters from around the time of the Nagano and Salt Lake City Olympics.They made history in the skating world, for me they’re the people of legends. I think that now there are many very skilled skaters, but I feel like the style and aura of skaters from that era is really amazing. Now, while I’m aiming for the top of the skating world, I’m thankful to see legends perform, and I want to make the best of this precious experience.

Looking back, what do you think was your turning point?

Kazuki: When I went to Junior Worlds as a substitute. That season I had my first Junior Grand Prix event, and that was very big, but I don’t think my awareness was enough yet. If I hadn’t had that experience at Junior Worlds, I definitely feel that I wouldn’t be the me I am now.That competition gave me the thought “I really want to take skating seriously”. After that, the final competition to select for the Pyeongchang Olympics, last year’s Japanese Nationals is a competition I won’t be able to forget. I still have that regret because of the fact that my abilities weren’t enough. Because accepted that situation, and started looking ahead 4 years to the Beijing Olympics with a feeling of “I have to work harder”, I think I was able to have a good placement at March’s World Championships.

In what areas did you think “My abilities aren’t enough”?

Kazuki: Everything, every little movement was rough, there were parts that were still unrefined, things that stood out.I think “senior-like” refined movements are necessary, and I feel like my basics weren’t enough.

This off season you started working on improving your skating very early on.Are you feeling the effects?

Kazuki: Honestly, no. I think I’ll become confident when I get results in a competition, the feeling hasn’t come yet. Now I’m just desperately trying to practice. I don’t want to waste even a little bit of time, so even if it’s just a short time I try to concentrate on practice.

What is the division of coaching between Taijin Hiraike and Akio Sasaki?

Kazuki: There’s no particular arrangement. Day to day they both see me, I have my time with Hiraike-sensei and my time with Akio-sensei. I practice jumps by sorting out what I’ve absorbed from what they’ve taught me.Even though my axis tends to be slightly off, I’m aware of it and aim for efficient jumps.

Based on your results at Worlds, what are your plans with Hiraike-sensei looking towards the future?

Kazuki: Hiraike-sensei was very pleased with Worlds, I think I worked hard to skate well and I feel I wa able to pay him back a little bit. But, he and I are aiming higher, though I feel like the result at Worlds changed our awareness.

Sasaki-sensei was a pioneer of skating to Misao Sato’s choreography, does that help polish your programs?

Kazuki: It’s very helpful. It's big to have a coach like Akio-sensei who understands Misao-sensei’s ideas watch me every day. He’s able to teach me many things.

Earlier, you said you want to aim for more efficient jumps, how is your new quad toe loop coming along?

Kazuki: I’ve recently been able to land it, but the probability isn’t there yet. At this stage I can’t really say if I’ve acquired it, but I’m thinking positively. I can say I’ve landed it, so I think I’ve made progress. To say I can jump two types of quads, the salchow and the toe loop definitely makes me happy.(laugh)

That’s good, isn’t it?

Kazuki: Well, yeah, practicing 2 types of quads is really difficult, but I think “Skaters who can jump many types of quads are really amazing” while I practice. My salchow is also kind of iffy, so I think I have to focus on both and practice.

Right now do you feel like the quad toe loop and the quad salchow are completely different? Or is one just an extension of the other?

Kazuki: The way I use my body is pretty much the same. Therefore I think I was able to pick it up fairly quickly.When I first jumped the salchow I thought “I can definitely do the quad toe” seeing other skaters around me jumping it was the main thing that gave me a strong feeling that “I absolutely have to jump it”

How do you plan to use it in competition?

Kazuki: Since I want to focus on expression in my performances and it can lower the quality, I just have one quad, the salchow in my short program.If I can I think I’d like to have 2 quad salchows and one quad toe loop in my free skate.Right now because the probability on my toe loop isn’t very good, that will depend on how my practice goes from here. I’d like to try it in a competition, and because I still don’t know what effect the new rules will have, while watching what’s going on around me, I think I can make a good strategy.

Under the new rules, your strongest element, the triple axel has had his base value lowered, how do you feel about that?

Kazuki: It has, hasn’t it. (laugh) But I don’t mind because it’s the same for everyone. If you think of position, you have to receive high GOE.Though there are difficult things, I think it will improve quality. I primarily seek out high quality in all aspects of figure skating, so I’d like to pursue that.

Please tell me about your programs for this season.

Kazuki: My short program is “Cinema Paradiso”, choreographed by Misha Ge.

You connected with Misha at Worlds, didn’t you.

Kazuki: Yes. When Worlds was over I thought “I want Misha to choreograph for me”, and I discussed it with people around me and made it happen. Misha didn’t just do choreography, he helped me with my basic skating skills and taught me many essential things.

How did you pick the music?

Kazuki: Misha brought two scores, and I chose “Cinema Paradiso”. Last season I saw Jun Suzuki’s free skate and thought the music was good, so it was a quick decision. Misha also told me “I wanted you to choose this one too!” (laugh)

You became friendly with Misha at Worlds, and talked with him, how was it having him choreograph for you?

Kazuki: It was more overwhelming than I could have imagined. I thought “He really is someone with amazing technique”. Both his basic skating skills and his expression are wonderful, him just standing on the ice changed its beauty.

Are those things what made you want choreography from him?

Kazuki: Yes. He has many intense exhibition programs that can entertain the audience and I thought they had a lot of the things I was lacking.I felt like he has knowledge of the expressive power needed to move people and have grown up performances, that’s what attracted me.

What sort of performance do you want to give with this short program?

Kazuki: I want to express “friendship” and “love”. It’s new territory for me, but I think it would be good to show a “senior” side in this new, grown up program.

What about your free skate?

Kazuki: It’s “Riverdance” choreographed by Misao Sato. The choreography is complete, but it still needs some fine tuning. This music is very regal, and many wonderful skaters have used it, but I think I want it to be a performance that can’t lose.

Who chose the music?

Kazuki: I decided on it while consulting with Misao sensei, the teacher who always arranges the music for my programs Hiraike-sensei and many others.

You do well with music that has a climax that says “This is the main event”

Kazuki: That’s true. Riverdance is a score that really builds up, so I think it suits me. But, it has the tap dancing element, which is very difficult to incorporate into figure skating. With the rule change bringing the performance time from four and a half minutes down to four, it’s troublesome because I can feel how difficult it is to put together the configuration, but talking with Misao-sensei, I think I can make it a good program.

The competitive season will be here in no time, how do you feel about it?

Kazuki:I definitely still have quite a few worries. Expectations are high, so I think my worries have also gotten very big. I think as the competitions pile up I’ll gain confidence.

For the Grand Prix series, you’ve been assigned to Skate Canada and then Rostelecom.

Kazuki: The me of a few years ago wouldn’t be able to believe that I have two Grand Prix assignments. If I can strengthen areas that are lacking with hard work, and make better better us of my strong points, I think that will lead to good results. Even now when I look at the entries, I’m still at a stage where I’m thinking “Wow, they’re amazing”,by the time of the competition I have to have the ability not to be worked up by seeing the skaters around me.

What is your goal for this season?

Kazuki: Because I want to have better results than last season, the big goal I have is to put all my strength into each and every competition with the feeling that I want to get a medal.

Your goals are always clear,and you expressed strong feelings to carry out this season.

Kazuki: After all, I learned how to discilple myself from watching Tatsuki Machida’s way of carrying out his promises during the Sochi Olympic season up close. It’s nothing to do with fancy speeches, but in a manner of speaking, as I try to encourage myself, I feel like I’m steadily getting closer to those words.

So you’re driving yourself with purposeful words.

Kazuki: Yes. But, because I’m thinking seriously, and speaking firmly, I’d like to practice with strong feelings of being able to realize those things.

You were with Machida at Prince Ice World’s Yokohama performance, right? Did he have any words for you?

Kazuki: He said “You really worked hard, didn’t you” (laugh) I was happy just to be participating in an ice show with him, but I was really happy to hear him say “You really worked hard at Worlds, didn’t you”.

This season, Daisuke Takahashi announced his comeback. There’s a high probability that you’ll compete together at Nationals, how do you feel about that?

Kazuki: I have half happy half complicated feelings (laugh). I know very well that he’s a living legend. I think after he took up dancing his range of expression has been ever expanding, and since he always puts together amazing programs, I’m both excited and scared. However, the privilege of competing with him is the strongest feeling. This will become a very special season for me.

Thank You very much. Finally, please give a message to your fans.

Kazuki: Thank you for always supporting me. I feel like last season I was able to get close to the image of the figure skater I’d imagined. This season I’m going to polish myself and become able to give the kind of performance that will surprise all my supporters.

Tessa Virtue, Scott Moir to return next season

TORONTO — In the hours after winning silver at the Sochi Olympics, Scott Moir snuck back out onto the ice, knelt down, and kissed the Olympic rings — a kiss goodbye, or so he thought.

Moir and partner Tessa Virtue, two-time world champions and Olympic gold medallists, are planning a comeback after a two-year break from competing.

"After Sochi, we took time to do everything, step outside the skating world, and have lives — and it was wonderful," Virtue said in a phone interview Saturday. "But there was a certain void that we tried to fill. And then over time, just realized we missed the structure of training and waking up with a purpose, and having goals in mind, daily goals, weekly goals, seasonal goals.

"We missed competing."

It was a decision they arrived at over a series of conversations, and finally made firm during a long car ride last summer in Beijing.

"We were driving to the Great Wall," Virtue said. "We were in the car for a couple of hours and we just talked about ‘OK, in a dream world, if we came back, what would our team look like? What would we skate like? What music would we use.’ And we just kind of really started building a plan then.

"We didn’t waffle that much, and we didn’t make pros/cons lists or anything like that. It just felt right."

The 26-year-old Virtue, and Moir, 28, will return to competition for the 2016-’17 season, and rather than work with their old coach Marina Zoueva, they’ll move to Montreal to train with Marie-France Dubreuil and Patrice Lauzon.

The moment they returned to the ice to train, Virtue said, was "just pure elation. Pure joy. And truly a renewed sense of passion for skating."

"It’s been really refreshing to be athletes again," Moir added. "It was such a neat feeling to be back in that athletic space."

The two-time world champions won silver behind American rivals Meryl Davis and Charlie White in Sochi, but they insist their return has nothing to do with results.

"We don’t really have anything to prove," said Virtue, a London, Ont., native. "We’re not coming back feeling bitter about Sochi or feeling like we’re trying to get revenge. It’s really just purely for the joy of skating. And that’s neat, because it’s just for us now."

And the alternative of what-ifs, Virtue and Moir said, was not appealing.

"That’s a powerful feeling, thinking ‘How would I feel if I’m sitting on my couch watching the competitions take place and feeling that pit in my stomach?"’ she said.

Virtue and Moir have long been known as pushing the envelope in ice dancing with their innovative moves. They said they’ll return as different skaters than they were two years ago, largely because of the experience they’ve gained performing night in and night out on show tours.

"You’ll see a different side of us than probably what you saw at the last Olympics for sure," said Moir, an Ilderton, Ont., native. "There will be some classic Virtue and Moir, but at the same time we want to skate some edgy stuff, and try and push ourselves."

Virtue and Moir have kept a close eye on Patrick Chan’s comeback. The 25-year-old from Toronto, who took a season off after his silver-medal skate in Sochi, has had a rocky return, and was fifth after Friday’s short program at the Four Continents championships.

"It’s taught us a lot," Virtue said. "We realize it’s not an easy position and we have to earn our spots and we have to qualify. The pressure he’s been under and feeling the need to come back and sort of prove something. He’s handled it extremely well.

"It’s a tough position to be in, and we’re aware of that. We’re not expecting to waltz back in and be welcomed with open arms."

Their return adds intrigue to what is already a strong group of Canadian ice dancers, including world bronze medallists Kaitlyn Weaver and Andrew Poje.

"Canadian skating fans will undoubtedly be excited to welcome back Tessa and Scott," Skate Canada CEO Dan Thompson said in a statement. "The ice dance landscape in Canada is powerful and the return of six-time Canadian champions Tessa and Scott will further invigorate this discipline.

"We wish them the best of luck in their return."

Sportsnet, 20th February 2016

/watch?v=Z0XEQqrYUpE -- this video includes a clip (around 6 min mark) from some press conference and in the clip it shows shoma uno's olympics fall and him looking sleepy and then they seem to be having yuzuru speak about it, do you happen to know what he said or what press conference this is? thank you!

Hello! This clip is from the Japan National Press Club. This was a press conference he attended on Feb. 27. Here is the link to the actual conference. I do not speak Japanese, therefore I don’t know why Shoma was mentioned or what Yuzu said in response, but the lovely @wherespacepooh has said in this post that they plan to sub this conference. I would check in on their blog every once in a while to see if the trans is up. Hope this helps!

Anonymous said: Do you think Yuzuru Hanyu wants to challenge the next Olympics in Beijing?

Anonymous said: Will Yuzuru be too old to be competitive in the next Olympics? I saw a comment on a video saying PyeongChang would probably be his last :c

Maybe. I think it would depend on his condition and health. He has said that IF he does compete at Beijing he’d like to win (classic Yuzu), but a lot can happen in four years. I don’t think he’d be too old, but it would most likely be his last chance to compete at the Olympics. At the time of the Beijing Olympics he’d be 27, and in reference, Javier Fernandez participated at Pyeongchang being 26 yrs. old (almost 27) and Patrick Chan participated in Pyeongchang as well at age 27. So I think it will come down to his health and condition, but Yuzu does have that competitive spirit which might draw him to Beijing, but he has also said that his goal has always been two OGM not three, so I guess we’ll have to wait and see what happens. 

Anonymous said: ok this is gonna sound dumb but shoma and yuzuru are their given names, why are they at the beginning? i’m chinese and the surname is always the first name, and i thought this was true for japanese names too? please help me solve this mystery i’m losing sleep lol

Yeah, so Yuzuru and Shoma are their first names, while Hanyu and Uno are their surnames. When we look at Yuzu’s name: 羽生結弦, “羽生” are the characters for Hanyu and “結弦” are the characters for Yuzuru. So his name is written as Hanyu Yuzuru. Also when he introduces himself in Japanese he says “Hanyu Yuzuru”. The reason why it is common to see Yuzuru Hanyu, is because this is the western way of pronouncing names. Which is used for competitions and journalism that’s done abroad. So to answer your question, it is true for Japanese names too. But due to translations, it is more common to see their names written as Shoma Uno/ Yuzuru Hanyu in English. I also found this video where Yuzu introduces himself as Hanyu Yuzuru in Japanese and then as Yuzuru Hanyu in English. Hope this clears it up and that you can sleep soundly at night now~

Anonymous said: are figure skaters not allowed to do backflips anymore? i was watching some performance of the 90s french skater Philippe Candeloro and he was doing full flips o__o’

Yeah, they’re not allowed to do them in competition anymore, but they can do them during gala’s and stuff. Trying to do one in competition would tank a skater’s score and maybe even disqualify them, this is what happened to Surya Bonaly when she performed one during the 1998 games (her score dropped and she ended up placing 10th). This is probably because the move is so dangerous, and if it were legal, attempts to execute it would probably result in career or life threatening injuries. Here is a compilation of Surya Bonaly landing her signature flips (it’s so cool!).

Nice Visual

I am old enough to remember how difficult it was to write term papers in the old days. Doing research, a term often misused then and now to mean someone is searching for relevant materials, was done the old fashioned way. With stone tools.

I mean card catalogs. Good Lord, it was like trying to find your way through a museum with the lights off, hoping you stumble into something interesting but without breaking it. While the Dewey Decimal System helped categorize books somewhat topically, it was still a crap shoot that you would find anything worth using to support your claims.

I don’t miss those days one iota.

Today, looking for anything--or, just go ahead and call it research-- is much simpler since the advent of search engines in the 1990s. We just type in what we think are relevant search terms, and hope for the best. You might get lucky.

The way that search works, though, has already evolved considerably in roughly 25 years. Whereas we once had to enter very precise words, and sometimes even phrases in quotes, and words separated by “+” signs to set up complex searches, now we can just ask Google a question and it already knows what we want. In fact, once we start typing, it is normal for predictive text to take over and complete the query for us

But now search is about to get even better, as Google unleashes more completely its ability to search visually.

The latest version of search tools will lean heavily on Google Lens, which allows mobile users to point their camera lens at an object or even words. The results will then provide results that even show where to buy an item. How we search is about to undergo a radical makeover.

But, this is not exactly new. It’s just a better rollout of technology that has been available in small amounts for a few years. For example, my daughters and I used our iPhones and Google to translate Chinese subway signs and menus to English in 2019. Thank God. We might still be there, starving and riding endless loops around Beijing.

Even our iPhones have visual search built in. Don’t believe me? Go to your Camera Roll and hit the little magnifying glass option. It not only allows you to do the obvious things, like searching locations and dates, but also objects. This morning I searched “dog,” “beer,” “wedding,” “dress,” and a variety of other terms. I instantly found, from among the 105,000 images on my phone, my daughter’s wedding, her gown, and every other wedding I have been to in the last 10 years.

Oh, and my dogs and a frothy glass of refreshment.

My next test was to see how well Google could help me find more non-dairy coffee creamer. It did a bang-up job.

I’m not sure why it also included the Hershey’s bar, but at least it did tell me what I already knew about where to replenish my supply. You know. In case I really didn’t have a clue.

There’s much more, though, coming in Google search, including the ability to photograph a fabric pattern and then get suggestions about how to pair it with complementary garments. While I am pretty sure that most women already come with that software pre-loaded, we men might find this very helpful. Because we no have way with clothes.

Finally, when visual search isn’t necessarily being used, textual search will provide more--um--contextual results, like how to do or use a particular item or activity.

Driving all of this is, of course, is AI. It’s the machine ability to know what the user is thinking, what they need, what they really want to know. It’s a huge improvement from the rudimentary search of the 90s, which was based primarily on deep links and serving websites that had many others linking to it. That was a self-repeating cycle. Have lots of links, get ranked higher, which then spawns more links, and then higher rankings.

That’s not how we think, though. I’m not usually looking for the highest-ranked and most-linked site. I am looking for very specific information, often very arcane.

There’s another side to this of course--and here’s a little clue for my MBA students doing their midterm this weekend--that being privacy. Since Google keeps track of every single search we do on our devices, imagine if that data were suddenly not just accessible for legal reasons, but also for marketing reasons. I’m thinking very, very rich data. Yup. Marketing for evil could happen quite easily.

But just like with pretty much every advance we have in the modern era, I’m OK with it. That’s the transactional cost of participating in this tech revolution. You give, you take. Just don’t be searching on things that might implicate you later.

And be glad we don’t have to use card catalogs to do any of this. I could have gotten through university a hell of a lot faster if I had Google to help me in the 70s and 80s.

I’m just glad I never accidentally pulled out an entire drawer, spilling the contents to the floor. I could have crashed the entire system. It would kind of be like Facebook and its other properties all going down at the same time. An entire corner of the internet was suddenly scattered across the floor of our lives.

Picture that.

Dr “Search Me“ Gerlich

Audio Blog

Ellie Black's powerful style stands out in women's gymnastics

Ellie Black was made for this era of women's gymnastics.

The sport rewards power, strength and audacity more now than it did a decade and a half ago, when judges scored with an eye more toward balletic grace than degree of difficulty.

Similar to American gymnastics star Simone Biles, Black's muscular routines are in vogue.

"It's aggressive. It's athletic," former Canadian gymnast Kyle Shewfelt said. "When she's on the beam, Ellie isn't the type of athlete who is trying to be light on the beam. She's trying to break the beam.

"Her style is so aggressive and it's so strong. That's the best way I can put it. She's a strong woman and that comes across in her gymnastics. She's going after it. She attacks."

The man who broke Canada's artistic gymnastics barrier at the Olympics Games with a floor routine gold in 2004 is bullish on Black's podium potential in Tokyo.

Shewfelt believes the 25-year-old Black from Halifax has the goods to be the first Canadian woman to win an artistic gymnastics medal in her third Olympic Games.

"Every conversation that's had in the gymnastics community, who is going to challenge for the podium? Ellie's in that conversation," Shewfelt said.

Black placed fifth in 2016 for the best Olympic all-around result by a Canadian. She was the country's first all-around world championship medallist a year later when she took silver in Montreal.

The women's all-around tests a gymnast's proficiency across all four apparatus: vault, uneven bars, balance beam and floor.

"You have to hit four routines on four different events cleanly, consistently, and mostly hit the best routines you've ever done, to be able to end up on that podium that day," Black explained.

She fell just short of the all-around podium at the 2019 world championship in Stuttgart, Germany, in fourth.

After helping Canada qualify a women's team for Tokyo, Black tore ligaments in her ankle landing a vault -- her last event of the all-around -- and subsequently needed surgery.

If the Tokyo Olympics, postponed to 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, had gone ahead in 2020, Black would have been able to compete, albeit on an accelerated rehabilitation schedule.

She placed fifth in her first post-injury competition, the American Cup in Milwaukee in March 2020, just as the coronavirus began shutting down sport globally.

Not only Black's ankle, but her body got a breather from the constant pounding of her sport when the pandemic put competition and training on hiatus.

"I think we're learning as athletes it's OK to have a bit of time off here and there to let your body recover and let your brain recover," Black said.

She was isolated, however. Black trained mostly by herself at Halifax Alta Gymnastics Club when she could get into the building as Nova Scotia moved in and out of lockdowns.

"There was a lot of training alone for her, almost alone, which was different for her," her coach David Kikuchi said.

International and domestic competition disappeared, as did travelling to training camps to join her Canadian teammates.

"I haven't spent that amount of time in Halifax since I was very little," Black said. "I'm usually away very, very often. I was home for about a year, which is pretty crazy, and a different thing to adapt to."

A 13-year-old Black watched Kikuchi compete in the 2008 Olympics in Beijing and thought "I want to do that."

"He trained at my club and was representing Canada," Black said. "That kind of sparked that Olympic dream that four years later I could reach the 2012 Olympics."

Black also idolized Crystal Gilmore, an Olympic gymnast in 2000 who eventually married Kikuchi.

"She was strong, powerful, with unique skills, funky," Black said. "Not always completely polished in a sense and I could relate to a lot of that.

"I was very strong and powerful and still am, but when I was younger, I was definitely less polished. The artistry side was a little more difficult for me."

Shewfelt describes Black as a gymnast in command of her career.

"She has longevity in the sport," he said. "I think that's because she's in a very positive environment and she's in charge.

"Ellie Black, she's showing up and she's driving the bus. She's got her hands firmly on that steering wheel."

Women's gymnastics kicks off with Sunday's qualification followed by Tuesday's team final.

Shallon Olsen of North Vancouver, B.C., Brooklyn Moors of Cambridge, Ont., Ava Stewart of Bowmanville, Ont., and alternate Rose Woo of Montreal round out the Canadian team.

"It's a strong team that we have," said Kikuchi, who is also the women's team coach in Tokyo. "Ellie, Brooklyn and Shallon are all very veteran members and have been to at least three world championships. Ellie and Shallon have been to the Olympics before.

"They're all very experienced, are great athletes and have been in world championship and Olympic finals in their careers. There's not many Canadians who have done that in their history."

Rene Cournoyer of Repentigny, Que., is Canada's lone athlete in men's gymnastics, which gets underway Saturday.

The women's all-around competition is July 29, followed by apparatus finals. Black used the extra training time the pandemic produced to beef up her beam routine.

"We really made a different choice around her beam routine and are going for something way more difficult than it would have been," Kikuchi said.

Bolstered by her experience, training and healthy body, Black feels ready to perform in Tokyo.

"I'm feeling confident in the sense of I've made the best of the situation we have," she said.

"I'm also confident in the fact that our team is looking really good and we're really excited to go to Tokyo and show what we can do, even though our preparation has looked different."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 14, 2021.

from CTV News - Atlantic https://ift.tt/3xGhjec

What Happened Today in the Coronavirus Pandemic

The scramble to meet vaccine demand

As Americans focus their attention on the fallout from the Capitol siege and the debate over another presidential impeachment, the pandemic is reaching what only a few months ago was considered a nightmare scenario.

Yesterday’s death count — at least 4,406 people — set another daily record, and represents at least 1,597 more people than those killed in the Sept. 11 attacks. The U.S. death toll, already the highest in the world by a wide margin, is soaring toward 400,000 — only one month after the country crossed the 300,000 threshold.

From the beginning, the country’s coronavirus strategy relied heavily on quickly making a vaccine. Multiple candidates were developed in record time, and if given out quickly, could rein in the pandemic and save thousands of lives. But so far the rollout has been slow, and riddled with challenges.

After the federal government yesterday abruptly reversed course and cleared vaccinations for people over 65 and adults with certain medical conditions, states have been scrambling to meet a surge in demand for doses.

Local officials have struggled to set up phone and online sign-up systems. Many of the oldest Americans, who are most vulnerable to the disease, are encountering byzantine online registration sites, error messages and crashing servers. Appointments are snatched up as soon as they become available, and some in the highest priority group have only managed to book their shots weeks from now.

As of this morning, the federal government has delivered almost 30 million doses, and more than 10 million have been administered. The Trump administration originally said that 20 million Americans would be vaccinated by Jan. 1.

In Georgia, a man spoke to Atlanta’s Channel 2 Action News about how he had repeatedly called his county’s hotline to try to make an appointment for his mother.

“No one’s ever picking up,” Eric Moore said. “I promise you, I called 134 times.”

China put 22 million people on lockdown

It apparently started with a small outbreak at a village wedding party.

After a handful of coronavirus cases emerged this month in a province surrounding Beijing, the Chinese authorities locked down more than 17 million people in two cities, Shijiazhuang and Xingtai.

The new rules froze transportation and canceled weddings, funerals and a Communist Party conference. The government also ordered the testing of every resident there, which was wrapped up in a few days.

This week the restrictions were expanded to Langfang, a city on the edge of Beijing, and to some districts inside Beijing, the Chinese capital. They now apply to 22 million people, more than twice as many as the lockdown in Wuhan last January.

The move comes at a time when the Chinese economy was surging back after last year’s slump and when residents, many who felt like the pandemic was a thing of the past, were getting used to something close to normal life. China, a country of 1.4 billion people, has reported an average of 109 new cases a day over the past week. (For some perspective, the U.S. is averaging a quarter-million a day.)

Since the outbreak in Wuhan, Chinese authorities have created a playbook for outbreaks that includes sealing off neighborhoods, conducting widespread testing and quarantining large groups — measures that were seen as extraordinary when they were applied in Wuhan last year.

Officials have appeared especially worried about Beijing, home of the Communist Party’s central leadership. After a taxi driver there tested positive over the weekend, the authorities tracked down 144 passengers for additional tests, according to The Global Times, a state tabloid. Now anyone getting in a taxi or car service in Beijing has to scan a QR code from their phone, allowing the government to quickly trace them.

Resurgences

Here’s a roundup of restrictions in all 50 states.

What else we’re following

What you’re doing

I have adopted what I call my Jane Austen hour. In the spirit of the Victorian-era tradition of “morning correspondence,” each day I spend an hour writing emails or texts to friends and family, many of whom I haven’t been in touch with for years. I have reconnected with old college roommates, high school friends, long-lost cousins, and all sorts of acquaintances I had lost touch with. I just send a short note saying that I was thinking about them and hoping they were managing OK in these crazy times, and then I share a treasured memory about them. The resulting reconnection and renewed correspondence has been a great antidote to pandemic isolation.

— Shelley Hammond Hoffmire, Oxford, U.K.

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from Multiple Service Listing https://ift.tt/3oHXsql

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-22278037

According to this BBC article, over the last several years, the Chinese government has detained up to a million Uighur muslims and placed them into “re-education” camps where women have also faced forced sterilizations. The majority of people identifying with the Uighur muslim group live in the region of Xinjiang China, Xinjiang is an extremely remote region located 3,000 miles west of Beijing. Despite its rural location, Xinjiang is home to over eleven million Uighur muslims in China. In the first section of this article, the BBC quotes UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, who accused China of “gross and egregious human rights abuses reminiscent of something not seen for a long time”. Even though I agree with what Raab said about China’s actions towards Uighur muslims being gross and egregious, the second part of his statement stood out to me. In the last let’s say, fifty years, there have been many events in which human rights violations happened on massive scales. Just in this class alone we have talked about several different events in which human rights were violated to an extreme degree. For example, in Iran and in Kenya. In both of these instances the world saw mass amounts of murder that were politically,  religiously, and gender charged. In as recently as the year 2002, Kenya saw its president Moi stay in power through rigged elections and make a number of constitutional law revisions that sought to exclude certain marginalized groups and violently oppress political opponents. I think that Rabb’s statement is inherently biased. His statement stood out to me as biased because I remembered what I had learned in history class about African colonization. Great Britain is largely responsible for colonization of Africa and thus is responsible for a lot of the clashes with artificial borders that have and continue to occur. Because nations like Great Britain created such stark artificial borders and thus forced many different different groups to be together, they created an environment that fueled political violence. Many people from different nations across Africa have seen massive numbers of murders and disappearances as a result of British rule within the continent even in more recent years. I think it is interesting that the Foreign Secretary of the UK calls out China for its human rights violations and considers them “gross and egregious” while also continuing to not take credit for or acknowledge and deal with the human rights violations they attributed to in Africa. It’s a very biased move on Britains part to only really care about certain human rights violations (seemingly not the ones they had a hand in). 

The BBC article also includes a section that states, “In the early part of the 20th Century, Uighurs briefly declared independence, but the region was brought under the complete control of communist China in 1949”. I thought the inclusion of this statement was very interesting. This section is included to show that the Uighur people living in Xinjiang China no longer want to be a part of China, and that China is refusing to let them leave. I think this section is supposed to paint China in a restrictive manner, which I can agree that that’s what China is. However, coming from a British Broadcasting Company, it sounds hypocritical. In this class, when we learned about colonial violence in Kenya, one event that was brought up on the timeline was Great Britain granting Kenya independence. Great Britain was entirely in control of what is now Kenya despite the fact Kenya had been seeking independence for sixteen years before Great Britain allowed it. It is very hypocritical of Great Britain to try and use the fact that China has denied the Uighur muslim’s independence against them in this article as it is something that they too have done to “their” colonies in the past, even though this is as recent as 1960). I think the UK’s hypocrisy emphasizes their biases. In this instance, the BBC includes this section to try and make people become angry with China for not letting the Uighur people be their own nation. In reality, Great Britain has played the same role as China in the past. 

Later in the article, the BBC mentions how China has denied operating internment camps and has stated that the outside world does not understand the situation in Xinjiang. China claims that Uighur militants are waging a violent campaign for independence. When reading this, I was reminded of what I stated earlier about Great Britain’s past relationship with Kenya. When the BBC writes this section about China stating that they are simply trying to combat the violence in Xinjiang over independence, they write it in a way that is trying to make China look like the bad ones. I think it is interesting how a British network is trying to make China look bad for this even though they have done the same things. Kenya first pushed for independence from Britain in 1944 however, instead of granting independence to the people of Kenya, Great Britain declared a state of emergency and said the uprising had to be “put down” and labeled it as a rebellion. It would appear as though to Britain, “putting down”/fighting off a rebellion is only ok when they do it. Even though I do not agree with China in the slightest for the violence against Uighur Muslim’s, I think it is biased for a British network to try and act they haven’t had a hand in situations similar to that of the situation in Xinjiang.