Im once again here to ask aussie hbh fans questions about aussie things that the internet didn’t manage to answer to. The question is: in which year would have the characters of hbh been born in? Assuming s2 is set in… 2022? 2023?

I haven’t fully talked about my system headcanons but I wanted to hop on the trend so here’s how I see them

Mike Chiarelli: Host & Core, ~17, Bi & ace masc non-binary (he/they), Italian/Peruvian, holds some trauma from his younger years but not much from between like 6-13 (their trauma was reoccurring/prolonged due to their living situation)

Mal Grimoire: Protector but was a persecutor for a while (13-17), became their gatekeeper in juvie but Manitoba took over while he was dormant (later regained some control to keep the others from fronting in all stars; wasn’t always successful), ~18, Aroace gay non-binary (he/they/xe/grim), Ambiguous, the primary trauma holder

Vito Valentino: Sexual alter and somewhat protector, ~19, Bi cis guy (he/him), Italian (also he’s Jewish, bingo bongo), holds most of their sexual trauma and manages most of their physical relationships but knows how to protect them if things go downhill (usually only engages if Mike or one of the others is approached first)

Svetlana Berezovsky: Caretaker, age slides from about 16-25, Ace trans lesbian (she/her), Russian, holds little to no trauma, mostly cares for their littles and fragments (who rarely if everyone front) but can help the other main alters deal with their emotions and trauma

Chester Young: Internal self helper, ~70, Aroace non-binary (he/they), Ambiguously Eastern European (doesn’t remember exactly where) and Mexican, holds little to no trauma as well but is aware of the others’, an introject of Mike’s paternal grandfather, somewhat functions as a protector but his main purpose is helping everyone understand what’s going on

Manitoba Smith: Current main gatekeeper, age slides from 20-35, Also aroace non-binary/trans (was AFAB, IDs as more masculine, he/they/it), Aboriginal Australian, not a trauma holder, somewhat an introject of Indiana Jones

There are some other alters but these are the main six who show up the most and have the most responsibility in the system. Most of the others are littles or fragments who they rarely if ever interact with (most of them aren’t really aware of them besides Svetlana and Chester)

General Headcanons:

•The body is about AMAB, 6’8” and pretty strong/flexible even if they’re skinny. They have naturally curly hair but most of them straighten it. They have ADHD but I’ve been thinking about them possibly having autism and tourettes. They have a lot of scars from Juvie and their home life, once again something they mostly like to cover up. Mal and Mike identify with the body the most while Manitoba does the least.

•Their trauma was caused by their parents’ neglect and abuse which they endured until about 13 when Mal was sent to juvie and an investigation was opened on their home life. After being freed around 14 and a half they moved in with their uncle vinnie and aunt carla. Their grandfather lived with them until seven, then passed away, and seeing as he was one of their only supportive family members and the only competent adult in their household, that’s how Chester came to be

•They all have very different senses of style. Mike is very casual and usually wears T-shirts and jeans, Mal likes dark and non-revealing clothes like turtlenecks and sweats, Vito on the contrary likes more revealing clothes and specifically anything resembling Italian American fashion from the 50s (think leather jackets and belts), Chester likes anything old school (mostly button-ups and khaki shorts or long skirts, also wears glasses and jewelry), Svetlana likes athletic clothes as well as anything soft in color, and Manitoba of course leans more towards explorer clothes similar to Indiana Jones’.

•Mal and Vito can speak Italian but it’s unclear if for Mal it’s because he’s part Italian or if it was a sort of survival skill he picked up from speaking with their parents

•Chester was a punk ass bitch during his college days and probably threw bricks at rich people’s houses I will die on my riot grrrl Chester headcanon he’s not a Tory he’s swag as fuck and a historian

•Mal is pretty much always on survival mode so he has some issues with eating and showering (will often go a long time without doing either and/or refuse to waste anything when he has the chance). Zoey and Cameron have helped him with this significantly

•Mal adopted a stray cat i will die on this hill he just took it home one day and scared the shit out of everyone with it but it’s baby so he got to keep it and it’s the only animal he loves. Its name is Chips

•On the whole they’re relatively nice to each other at this point and like each other but they’ve definitely had gripes (Mike and Mal are often concerned by Vito and Manitoba putting the body in danger, Mal doesn’t like them forming new relationships, Svetlana and Chester don’t like when they try to hide their disorder, exc.).

•They leave each other post it notes a lot and sometimes it’s sweet but most of the time it’s “If you don’t take out the trash today I’m deleting your Spotify playlist”

•Theyre all very protective of Cameron and Zoey (and also Chips the cat)

if anyone in this time of deep concern of his health is interested about what a worthless piece of shit Prince Philip is, here is a very brief list of 90 racist, sexist, and incredibly ignorant things the man has said in the last century:

1. "Ghastly." Prince Philip's opinion of Beijing, during a 1986 tour of China.

2. "Ghastly." Prince Philip's opinion of Stoke-on-Trent, as offered to the city's Labour MP Joan Walley at Buckingham Palace in 1997.

3. "Deaf? If you're near there, no wonder you are deaf." Said to a group of deaf children standing near a Caribbean steel drum band in 2000.

4. "If you stay here much longer, you will go home with slitty eyes." To 21-year-old British student Simon Kerby during a visit to China in 1986.

5. "You managed not to get eaten then?" To a British student who had trekked in Papua New Guinea, during an official visit in 1998.

6. "You can't have been here that long – you haven't got a pot belly." To a British tourist during a tour of Budapest in Hungary. 1993.

7. "How do you keep the natives off the booze long enough to pass the test?" Asked of a Scottish driving instructor in 1995.

8. "Damn fool question!" To BBC journalist Caroline Wyatt at a banquet at the Elysée Palace after she asked Queen Elizabeth if she was enjoying her stay in Paris in 2006.

9. "It looks as though it was put in by an Indian." The Prince's verdict of a fuse box during a tour of a Scottish factory in August 1999. He later clarified his comment: "I meant to say cowboys. "I just got my cowboys and Indians mixed up."

10. "People usually say that after a fire it is water damage that is the worst. We are still drying out Windsor Castle." To survivors of the Lockerbie bombings in 1993.

11. "We don't come here for our health. We can think of other ways of enjoying ourselves." During a trip to Canada in 1976.

12. "A few years ago, everybody was saying we must have more leisure, everyone's working too much. Now that everybody's got more leisure time they are complaining they are unemployed. People don't seem to make up their minds what they want." A man of the people shares insight into the recession that gripped Britain in 1981.

13. "British women can't cook." Winning the hearts of the Scottish Women's Institute in 1961.

14. "It was part of the fortunes of war. We didn't have counsellors rushing around every time somebody let off a gun, asking 'Are you all right - are you sure you don't have a ghastly problem?' You just got on with it!" On the issue of stress counselling for servicemen in a TV documentary marking the 50th Anniversary of V-J Day in 1995.

15. "What do you gargle with – pebbles?" To Tom Jones, after the Royal Variety Performance, 1969. He added the following day: "It is very difficult at all to see how it is possible to become immensely valuable by singing what I think are the most hideous songs."

16. "It's a vast waste of space." Philip entertained guests in 2000 at the reception of a new £18m British Embassy in Berlin, which the Queen had just opened.

17. "There's a lot of your family in tonight." After glancing at business chief Atul Patel's name badge during a 2009 Buckingham Palace reception for 400 influential British Indians to meet the Royal couple.

18. "If it has four legs and it is not a chair, if it has got two wings and it flies but is not an aeroplane and if it swims and it is not a submarine, the Cantonese will eat it." Said to a World Wildlife Fund meeting in 1986.

19. "You ARE a woman, aren't you?" To a woman in Kenya in 1984, after accepting a gift.

20. "Do you know they have eating dogs for the anorexic now?" To a wheelchair-bound Susan Edwards, and her guide dog Natalie in 2002.

21. "Get me a beer. I don't care what kind it is, just get me a beer!" On being offered the finest Italian wines by PM Giuliano Amato at a dinner in Rome in 2000.

22. "I would like to go to Russia very much – although the bastards murdered half my family." In 1967, asked if he would like to visit the Soviet Union.

23. "If a cricketer, for instance, suddenly decided to go into a school and batter a lot of people to death with a cricket bat, which he could do very easily, I mean, are you going to ban cricket bats?" In a Radio 4 interview shortly after the Dunblane shootings in 1996. He said to the interviewer off-air afterwards: "That will really set the cat among the pigeons, won't it?"

24. "Oh, it's you that owns that ghastly car is it? We often see it when driving to Windsor Castle." To neighbour Elton John after hearing he had sold his Watford FC-themed Aston Martin in 2001.

25. "The problem with London is the tourists. They cause the congestion. If we could just stop the tourism, we could stop the congestion." At the opening of City Hall in 2002.

26. "A pissometer?" The Prince sees the renames the piezometer water gauge demonstrated by Australian farmer Steve Filelti in 2000.

27. "Don't feed your rabbits pawpaw fruit – it acts as a contraceptive. Then again, it might not work on rabbits." Giving advice to a Caribbean rabbit breeder in Anguilla in 1994.

28. "You must be out of your minds." To Solomon Islanders, on being told that their population growth was 5 per cent a year, in 1982.

29. "Young people are the same as they always were. They are just as ignorant." At the 50th anniversary of the Duke of Edinburgh Awards scheme.

30. "Your country is one of the most notorious centres of trading in endangered species." Accepting a conservation award in Thailand in 1991.

31. "Aren't most of you descended from pirates?" In the Cayman Islands, 1994.

32. "You bloody silly fool!" To an elderly car park attendant who made the mistake of not recognising him at Cambridge University in 1997.

33. "Oh! You are the people ruining the rivers and the environment." To three young employees of a Scottish fish farm at Holyrood Palace in 1999.

34. "If you travel as much as we do you appreciate the improvements in aircraft design of less noise and more comfort – provided you don't travel in something called economy class, which sounds ghastly." To the Aircraft Research Association in 2002.

35. "The French don't know how to cook breakfast." After a breakfast of bacon, eggs, smoked salmon, kedgeree, croissants and pain au chocolat – from Gallic chef Regis Crépy – in 2002.

36. "And what exotic part of the world do you come from?" Asked in 1999 of Tory politician Lord Taylor of Warwick, whose parents are Jamaican. He replied: "Birmingham."

37. "Oh no, I might catch some ghastly disease." On a visit to Australia in 1992, when asked if he wanted to stroke a koala bear.

38. "It doesn't look like much work goes on at this University." Overheard at Bristol University's engineering facility. It had been closed so that he and the Queen could officially open it in 2005.

39. "I wish he'd turn the microphone off!" The Prince expresses his opinion of Elton John's performance at the 73rd Royal Variety Show, 2001.

40. "Do you still throw spears at each other?" Prince Philip shocks Aboriginal leader William Brin at the Aboriginal Cultural Park in Queensland, 2002.

41. "Where's the Southern Comfort?" On being presented with a hamper of southern goods by the American ambassador in London in 1999.

42. "Were you here in the bad old days? ... That's why you can't read and write then!" To parents during a visit to Fir Vale Comprehensive School in Sheffield, which had suffered poor academic reputation.

43. "Ah you're the one who wrote the letter. So you can write then? Ha, ha! Well done." Meeting 14-year old George Barlow, whose invited to the Queen to visit Romford, Essex, in 2003.

44. "So who's on drugs here?... HE looks as if he's on drugs." To a 14-year-old member of a Bangladeshi youth club in 2002.

45. "You could do with losing a little bit of weight." To hopeful astronaut, 13-year-old Andrew Adams.

46. "You have mosquitoes. I have the Press." To the matron of a hospital in the Caribbean in 1966.

47. "The man who invented the red carpet needed his head examined." While hosts made effort to greet a state visit to Brazil, 1968.

48. "During the Blitz a lot of shops had their windows blown in and sometimes they put up notices saying, 'More open than usual.' I now declare this place more open than usual." Unveiling a plaque at the University of Hertfordshire's new Hatfield campus in November 2003.

49 . Philip: "Who are you?"

Simon Kelner: "I'm the editor-in-chief of The Independent, Sir."

Philip: "What are you doing here?"

Kelner: "You invited me."

Philip: "Well, you didn't have to come!"

An exchange at a press reception to mark the Golden Jubilee in 2002.

50. "No, I would probably end up spitting it out over everybody." Prince Philip declines the offer of some fish from Rick Stein's seafood deli in 2000.

51. "Any bloody fool can lay a wreath at the thingamy." Discussing his role in an interview with Jeremy Paxman.

52. "Holidays are curious things, aren't they? You send children to school to get them out of your hair. Then they come back and make life difficult for parents. That is why holidays are set so they are just about the limit of your endurance." At the opening of a school in 2000.

53. "People think there's a rigid class system here, but dukes have even been known to marry chorus girls. Some have even married Americans." In 2000.

54. "Can you tell the difference between them?" On being told by President Obama that he'd had breakfast with the leaders of the UK, China and Russia.

55. "I don't know how they are going to integrate in places like Glasgow and Sheffield." After meeting students from Brunei coming to Britain to study in 1998.

56. "Do people trip over you?" Meeting a wheelchair-bound nursing-home resident in 2002.

57. "That's a nice tie... Do you have any knickers in that material?" Discussing the tartan designed for the Papal visit with then-Scottish Tory leader Annabel Goldie last year.

58. "I have never been noticeably reticent about talking on subjects about which I know nothing." Addressing a group of industrialists in 1961.

59. "It's not a very big one, but at least it's dead and it took an awful lot of killing!" Speaking about a crocodile he shot in Gambia in 1957.

60. "Well, you didn't design your beard too well, did you? You really must try better with your beard." To a young fashion designer at a Buckingham Palace in 2009.

61. "So you're responsible for the kind of crap Channel Four produces!" Speaking to then chairman of the channel, Michael Bishop, in 1962.

62. "Dontopedalogy is the science of opening your mouth and putting your foot in it, a science which I have practiced for a good many years." Address to the General Dental Council, quoted in Time in 1960.

63. "Tolerance is the one essential ingredient ... You can take it from me that the Queen has the quality of tolerance in abundance." Advice for a successful marriage in 1997.

64. "I never see any home cooking – all I get is fancy stuff." Commiserating about the standard of Buckingham Palace cuisine in 1962.

65. "I suppose I would get in a lot of trouble if I were to melt them down." On being shown Nottingham Forest FC's trophy collection in 1999.

66. "It makes you all look like Dracula's daughters!" To pupils at Queen Anne's School in Reading, who wear blood-red uniforms, in 1998.

67. "I don't think a prostitute is more moral than a wife, but they are doing the same thing." Dismissing claims that those who sell slaughtered meat have greater moral authority than those who participate in blood sports, in 1988.

68. "Ah, so this is feminist corner then." Joining a group of female Labour MPs, who were wearing name badges reading "Ms", at a Buckingham Palace drinks party in 2000.

69. "Cats kill far more birds than men. Why don't you have a slogan: 'Kill a cat and save a bird?'" On being told of a project to protect turtle doves in Anguilla in 1965.

70. "All money nowadays seems to be produced with a natural homing instinct for the Treasury." Bemoaning the rate of British tax in 1963.

71. "It is my invariable custom to say something flattering to begin with so that I shall be excused if by any chance I put my foot in it later on." Full marks for honesty, from a speech in 1956.

72. "Why don't you go and live in a hostel to save cash?" Asked of a penniless student.

73. "In education, if in nothing else, the Scotsman knows what is best for him. Indeed, only a Scotsman can really survive a Scottish education." Said when he was made Chancellor of Edinburgh University in November 1953.

74. "If it doesn't fart or eat hay, she isn't interested." Of his daughter, Princess Anne.

75. "They're not mating are they?" Spotting two robots bumping in to one another at the Science Museum in 2000.

76. "I must be in the only person in Britain glad to see the back of that plane." Philip did not approve of the noise Concorde made while flying over the Buckingham Palace.

77. "The only active sport, which I follow, is polo – and most of the work's done by the pony!" 1965

78. "It looks like a tart's bedroom." On seeing plans for the Duke and then Duchess of York's house at Sunninghill Park.

79. "Reichskanzler." Prince Philip used Hitler's title to address German chancellor Helmut Kohl during a speech in Hanover in 1997.

80. "We go into the red next year... I shall probably have to give up polo." Comment on US television in 1969 about the Royal Family's finances.

81. "Bugger the table plan, give me my dinner!" Showing his impatience to be fed at a dinner party in 2004.

82. "I thought it was against the law these days for a woman to solicit." Said to a woman solicitor.

83. "You're just a silly little Whitehall twit: you don't trust me and I don't trust you." Said to Sir Rennie Maudslay, Keeper of the Privy Purse, in the 1970s.

84. "What about Tom Jones? He's made a million and he's a bloody awful singer." Response to a comment at a small-business lunch about how difficult it is in Britain to get rich.

85. "This could only happen in a technical college." On getting stuck in a lift between two floors at the Heriot Watt University, 1958.

86. "I'd much rather have stayed in the Navy, frankly." When asked what he felt about his life in 1992.

87. "It looks like the kind of thing my daughter would bring back from her school art lessons" On being shown "primitive" Ethiopian art in 1965.

88. "You're not wearing mink knickers, are you?" Philip charms fashion writer Serena French at a World Wildlife Fund gathering in 1993.

89. "My son...er...owns them." On being asked on a Canadian tour whether he knew the Scilly Isles.

90. "Well, that's more than you know about anything else then." Speaking, a touch condescendingly, to Michael Buerk, after being told by the BBC newsreader that he did know about the Duke of Edinburgh's Gold Awards in 2004.

For people that hate stereotypes: If you think people should just shut up and stop, put this on your profile. I'm SKINNY, so I MUST be anorexic. I'm EMO, so I MUST cut my wrists. I'm a NEGRO so I MUST carry a gun. I'm BLONDE, so I MUST be a ditz I'm JAMAICAN so I MUST smoke weed. I'm HAITIAN so I MUST eat cat. I'm ASIAN, so I MUST be sexy. I'm JEWISH, so I MUST be greedy. I'm GAY, so I MUST have AIDS. I'm a LESBIAN, so I MUST have a sex-tape. I'm ARAB, so I MUST be a terrorist. I SPEAK MY MIND, so I MUST be a bitch. I'm a GAY RIGHTS SUPPORTER, so I WILL go to hell. I'm a CHRISTAN, so I MUST think gay people should go to hell. I'm RELIGIOUS, so I MUST shove my beliefs down your throat. I'm ATHEIST so I MUST hate the world. I don't have a RELIGION, so I MUST be evil and have no morals I'm REPUBLICAN, so I MUST not care about poor people. I'm DEMOCRAT, so I MUST not believe in being responsible. I am LIBERAL, so I MUST be gay. I'm SOUTHERN, so I MUST be white trash. I TAKE ANTI-DEPRESSANTS, so I MUST be crazy I'm a GUY, so I MUST only want to get into your pants. I'm IRISH, so I MUST have a bad drinking problem. I'm INDIAN, so I MUST own a convenient store. I'm NATIVE AMERICAN, so I MUST dance around a fire screaming like a savage. I'm a CHEERLEADER, so I MUST be a whore... I have Big BOOBS, so I MUST be a hoe. I'm a DANCER, So I must be stupid, stuck up, and a whore I wear SKIRTS a lot, so I MUST be a slut. I'm a PUNK, so I MUST do drugs. I'm RICH, so I MUST be a conceited snob. I WEAR BLACK, so I MUST be a goth or emo. I'm a WHITE GIRL, so I MUST be a nagging, steal-your-money kind of girlfriend. I'm CUBAN, so I MUST spend my spare time rolling cigars. I'm NOT A VIRGIN, so I MUST be easy. I FELL IN LOVE WITH A MARRIED MAN, so I MUST be a home-wrecking whore. I'm a TEENAGE MOM, so I MUST be an irresponsible slut. I'm POLISH, so I MUST wear my socks with my sandals I'm ITALIAN, so I must have a "big one". I'm EGYPTIAN, so I must be a TERRORIST! I'm PRETTY, so I MUST not be a virgin. I HAVE STRAIGHT A'S, so I MUST have no social life. I DYE MY HAIR CRAZY COLORS, so I MUST be looking for attention. I DRESS IN UNUSUAL WAYS so I MUST be looking for attention. I'm INTO THEATER & ART, so I MUST be a homosexual. I'm a VEGETARIAN, so I MUST be a crazy political activist. I HAVE A BUNCH OF GUY FRIENDS, so I MUST be fucking them all. I HAVE A BUNCH OF GIRLS WHO ARE FRIENDS, so I MUST be a player. I'm COLOMBIAN, so I MUST be a drug dealer. I WEAR WHAT I WANT, so I MUST be a poser. I'm RUSSIAN, so I MUST be cool and that’s how Russians roll. I'm GERMAN, so I must be a Nazi. I hang out with GAYS, so I must be GAY TOO I'm BRAZILIAN, so I MUST have a BIG BUTT. I'm PUERTO RICAN, so I MUST look good and be conceited I'm SALVADORIAN, so I MUST be in MS 13 I'm POLISH, so I MUST be greedy I'm HAWAIIAN so I MUST be lazy I'm PERUVIAN, so I MUST like llamas I'm a STONER so I MUST be going in the wrong direction I'm a VIRGIN so I MUST be prude I'm STRAIGHT EDGE so I must be violent. I'm a FEMALE GAMER, so I MUST be ugly.. or crazy. I'm BLACK so I MUST love fried chicken and kool-aid. I'm a GIRL who actually EATS LUNCH, so I MUST be fat. I'm SINGLE so I MUST be ugly. I'm a SKATER so I must do weed and steal stuff I'm a PUNK so I must only wear black and date only other punks I'm ASIAN so I must be a NERD that does HOMEWORK 24/7 I'm CHRISTIAN so I MUST hate homosexuals. I'm MIXED so I must be screwed up. I'm MUSLIM so I MUST be a terrorist. I'm in BAND, so I MUST be a dork. I'm BLACK so I MUST believe JESUS WUZ A BROTHA I'm MORMON so I MUST be perfect I'm WHITE and have black friends so I MUST think I'm black I'm GOTH so I MUST worship the devil I'm HISPANIC, so I MUST be dirty. I'm NOT LIKE EVERYONE ELSE, so I MUST be a loser. I'm OVERWEIGHT, so I MUST have a problem with self-control. I'm PREPPY, so I MUST shun those who don't wear Abercrombie & Hollister. I'm on a DANCE team, so I must be stupid, stuck up, and a whore. I'm YOUNG, so I MUST be naive. I'm RICH, so I MUST be a conceited snob I'm MEXICAN, so I MUST have hopped the border. I GOT A CAR FOR MY BIRTHDAY, so I MUST be a spoiled brat. I'm BLACK, so I MUST love watermelon I'm BI, so I MUST think every person I see is hot. I'm an ASIAN GUY, so I MUST have a small penis. I'm a GUY CHEERLEADER, so I MUST be gay. I'm a PREP, so I MUST be rich. I don't like the SUN so I MUST be an albino. I have a lot of FRIENDS, so I MUST love to drink and party. I wear tight PANTS and I'm a guy, so I MUST be emo. I couldn't hurt a FLY, So I MUST be a pussy. I support GAY RIGHTS, so I MUST fit in with everyone. I hang out with teenage drinkers and smokers, so I MUST smoke and drink too. I have ARTISTIC TALENT, so I MUST think little of those who don't. I don't like to be in a BIG GROUP, so I MUST be anti-social. I have a DIFFERENT sense of HUMOR, so I MUST be crazy. I tell people OFF, so I MUST be an over controlling bitch. My hair gets GREASY a lot, so I MUST have no hygiene skills. I'm DEFENSIVE, so I MUST be over controlling and a bitch. I'm a NUDIST, so I MUST want everyone to see my boobs. I read Comics, so I MUST be a loser. I hang out with a FORMER PROSTITUTE… So I MUST be a whore myself. I'm TEXAN so I MUST ride a horse I’m a GOTH, so I MUST be a Satanist I’m a CROSSDRESSER, so I must be homosexual. I draw ANIME so I MUST be a freak. I am a FANGIRL so I MUST be a crazy, obsessed stalker. I WATCH PORN so I MUST be perverted. I'm an ONLY CHILD so I MUST be spoiled. I'm INTELLIGENT so I MUST be weak. I am AMERICAN so I MUST be obese, loud-mouthed and arrogant. I'm WELSH so I MUST love sheep I’m a YOUNG WRITER, so I MUST be emo. I’m CANADIAN, so I MUST talk with a funny accent. I’m QUIET if I don’t know you so I MUST be emo or anti-social. I'm a GUY, so I MUST ditch my pregnant girlfriend. I'm CANADIAN, so I MUST love hockey and beavers. I'm DISABLED, so I MUST be on Welfare. I'm a FEMINIST, so I MUST have a problem with sexuality and I want to castrate every man on the earth. I'm a TEENAGER, so I MUST have a STEREOTYPE. I WEAR A BIG SUNHAT when I go outside, so I MUST be stupid. I like BLOOD, so I must be a VAMPIRE. I'm an ALBINO, so I MUST be an evil person with mental abilities and is A MURDERER! I'm ENGLISH, so I MUST speak with either a cockney or a posh accent, love tea and cricket, and have bad teeth. I’m WHITE, so I MUST be responsible for everything going wrong on the planet: past, present, and future. I don't like YAOI or YURI, so I must be a HOMOPHOBE I’m not the most POPULAR person in school, so I MUST be a loser I care about the ENVIRONMENT...I MUST be a tree hugging hippy I have a FAN CHARACTER, so I MUST be an annoying Mary-sue. I CHAT, I MUST be having cyber sex. I'm PAGAN so I MUST sacrifice babies and drink the blood of virgins I'm PAGAN so I MUST worship Satan I'm CONSERVATIVE, so I MUST be against Abortion I'm SWEDISH so I MUST be a tall blond blue-eyed lesbian. I'm a LESBIAN so I MUST want to get with every single girl that I see. I like CARTOONS, so I MUST be IRRESPONSIBLE. I like READING, so I MUST be a LONER. I have my OWN spiritual ideology; therefore I MUST be WRONG or MISGUIDED. I am WICCAN, so I MUST be a SATANIST. I DISAGREE with my government, so I MUST be a TERRORIST. I am a WITCH, so I MUST be and OLD HAG and fly on a broomstick. I love YAOI, so I MUST be GAY. I'm a PERSON, so I MUST be LABELED I DON'T CURSE, so I MUST be an outcast I like GAMES, ANIME and COMICS, so I MUST be childish I'm SWEDISH, therefore I MUST be WHITE. I SPOT GRAMMATICAL ERRORS, so I MUST be a pedantic bastard. I'm GOTHIC, so I MUST be mean. I’m STRONG so I MUST be stupid. I'm Australian so I MUST hunt crocodiles and talk to kangaroo’s I go to RENFAIRES, so I MUST talk weird, be a loser, and not be up with the time I don’t want a BOYFRIEND so I MUST be Lesbian. I'm NOT CHRISTIAN so I MUST just need converting. I love marching band, so I MUST be a friendless freak. I DRINK and SMOKE, so I MUST have no life. I am friends with a CUTTER, so I MUST be a CUTTER too. I cry easily, so I MUST be a wimp. I can't help pointing out mistakes so I MUST be an over-controlling perfectionist I'm a PERFECTIONIST so I MUST check everything ten times, them burst into tears at one mistake I’m GAY so I’m after EVERY straight guy around. I CURSE A LOT so I MUST be a bad kid and have problems I DON'T LIKE to talk about my personal life so I MUST be having problems PLEASE READ WHAT'S UNDER THIS!! I am the girl kicked out of her home because I confided in my mother that I am a lesbian. I am the prostitute working the streets because nobody will hire a transsexual woman. I am the sister who holds her gay brother tight through the painful, tear-filled nights. We are the parents who buried our daughter long before her time. I am the man who died alone in the hospital because they would not let my partner of twenty-seven years into the room. I am the foster child who wakes up with nightmares of being taken away from the two fathers who are the only loving family I have ever had. I wish they could adopt me. I am one of the lucky ones, I guess. I survived the attack that left me in a coma for three weeks, and in another year I will probably be able to walk again. I am not one of the lucky ones. I killed myself just weeks before graduating high school. It was simply too much to bear. We are the couple who had the realtor hang up on us when she found out we wanted to rent a one-bedroom for two men. I am the person who never knows which bathroom I should use if I want to avoid getting the management called on me. I am the mother who is not allowed to even visit the children I bore, nursed, and raised. The court says I am an unfit mother because I now live with another woman. I am the domestic-violence survivor who found the support system grow suddenly cold and distant when they found out my abusive partner is also a woman. I am the domestic-violence survivor who has no support system to turn to because I am male. I am the father who has never hugged his son because I grew up afraid to show affection to other men. I am the home-economics teacher who always wanted to teach gym until someone told me that only lesbians do that. I am the man who died when the paramedics stopped treating me as soon as they realized I was transsexual. I am the person who feels guilty because I think I could be a much better person if I did not have to always deal with society hating me. I am the man who stopped attending church, not because I don't believe, but because they closed their doors to my kind. I am the person who has to hide what this world needs most, love. I am the person who is afraid of telling his loving Christian parentshe loves another male. Re-post this if you believe homophobia is wrong. Please do your part to end it Sorry for the long post. I just think this is important. I got this from Ivory’Lee Lambskank on m.fanfiction.net

How technology can limit the spread of COVID-19

As the world is struggling to cope with COVID -19, governments worldwide are working on lockdowns to reduce and eventually eliminate the virus naturally. Interestingly, governments are now turning to technology more than ever, to find plausible solutions that can help limit the spread of COVID-19. The results, moreover, have been favoring, to say the very least. Several available and emerging technologies have made it possible to innovate and limit the spread of COVID-19.

We looked at various technology solutions from all over the world that are being used to control the outbreak – from deliveries to tracking, to remote working, to education, etc. According to WEF, 191 countries announced or implemented school or university closures as of mid-April, thereby impacting 1.57 billion students leading to universities and schools moving their courses and classes online with the use of technology. Technological solutions are proving to be critical in the way governments are handling the pandemic and thus it is important to understand the various solutions that are being implemented, and how.

Contact Tracing: Part of the multi-pronged approach to fight the COVID-19

Countries around the world are working on and rolling out contact tracing apps and techniques to limit the spread of the Coronavirus. The idea is to digitally identify people who potentially may be exposed to Coronavirus and thereby need to self-isolate. The Australian government was one of the first to launch such an app, named COVIDsafe. Similarly, The Singapore government launched the TraceTogether app in march, 2020. The app uses Bluetooth to trace interactions between users of the app. The data is stored on the individual’s phone, and in case of a positive corona patient, the respective authorities allow the data to alert all those who possibly have been exposed to the positive patient.

Contact tracing and/or location tracking has in particular been essential since it allows the authorities to know the whereabouts of a positive case and how many people have been close to that person.

Robots: Helping Medical staff stay safe

Since the breakout of the pandemic, a lot of companies are focusing on contact-less solutions, thereby bringing robots into the picture. The usage of these robots ranges from deliveries to interaction via screens. Doctors in USA are using a device called Vici, that is a telehealth device. The device allows the doctors to interact with the patients, via a screen. The screen is a tablet-sized and is fixed on wheels and can be used by doctors to speak to patients and perform basic diagnostic functions.

In Singapore, robots are delivering meals and medications. One of the isolation wards in China’s Wuhan was entirely manned by robots. Robots were responsible for taking temperatures, delivering food and medications. According to Reuters, a small robot called Little Peanut was delivering food to passengers on a flight from Singapore to Hangzhou, China who were being held under quarantine in a hotel.

Self-driven cars for deliveries and data collection

American self-driving car companies are taking their cars to the street to collect data and assist with contact-free grocery and medication deliveries without any human contact. They are also being used to clean and disinfect roads. It is also helping self-driving car companies to test actual performance and gather relevant data.

Blockchain: Coming to the rescue of banks

Blockchain in banking has been talked about for a while now; however, it is now being used more to avoid the risk of infection spread. Italy’s 32 banks had a full production of the largest deployments of blockchain. The application was built by Associazione Bancaria Italiana (ABI), the Italian Banking Association with an aim to promptly and proficiently reconcile differences in the separate ledgers for so-called Nostro and Vostro accounts that Italian banks hold for each other. Blockchain is providing simple solutions to digitize banking, thereby reducing contact.

Smart Imaging

Many countries have installed AI-powered thermal cameras, that have the ability to identify people’s temperatures in a crowd for a fever. This temperature detection enables a contactless yet rapid solution. We can also use facial-recognition technology to be able to identify all those without a mask.

Health apps/Tracking via QR codes

Governments around the world have developed a health rating system based on color-coding to be able to track everyone daily. The app assigns the following colors- green, red, or yellow and these are assigned basis travel and medical history of a person.

These color codes are accessible via an app and help in deciding whether a person should be quarantined or if he/she is allowed to be out in public spaces. To make this more effective, the authorities have installed various checkpoints at almost all public spaces, to be able to verify the color.

Chatbots

Health Companies and hospitals are providing chatbots that interact with the patients inside the hospital. The chatbots are rolled out particularly for emergency rooms, that enable patients to enroll in ER and thereby have constant updates about their care via the chatbot. The chatbot sends all kinds of updates, such as arrival time of doctor, test, or a lab result, etc. This provides an ease to both the hospital staff and the patients, as it ensures timely updates.

Drones

Another very interesting technology that has come into the public eye is drones. While drones have been gaining popularity for quite some time now, their usage has increased during the pandemic, especially in severely affected areas. Drones have been used around the world, in multiple countries to enable deliveries of medical equipment, drugs, food, etc. This eliminates any human contact, thereby containing the infection in that limited area and not spreading it. Drones have also been used in agriculture, to be spray disinfectants, etc on crops.

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Posted June 16, 2018 05:00:42

Photo: Tom Rogic in his Socceroos uniform. (FFA)

Socceroo Tom Rogic is something of a footballing relic.

All at once gangly and elegant, he is a fluid playmaker of the old school. Twenty years ago, or 30, it was much more common to see players like Rogic — gliding across the pitches of South America and southern Europe especially.

They usually wore the number 10 on their backs, and their job was to be the linkman between midfield and attack.

His game might be something from another era, but as Australia prepares to kick off its World Cup dream against France on Saturday night, Socceroos greats say Rogic is the man to watch.

Tom Rogic has an array of arrows in his quiver. Most spectacular and obvious is his powerful and accurate shot on goal, which he can unleash with either foot, from distance or in a crowded box.

His loping runs with the ball at his feet are all the more impressive due to his height — most of the great dribblers of the football have been lower to the ground.

But the 25-year-old’s particular style of play represents both an opportunity and a risk for Socceroos coach Bert van Marwijk as the Dutchman attempts to guide heavy underdogs Australia through to the World Cup knock-out stages.

In Group C, the Socceroos face France, one of the World Cup favourites, then the highly ranked Denmark and Peru, so there is the potential for things to go wrong. Very wrong.

The temptation will be strong for the coach to play it safe and stack his side with solid, defensively astute players.

But that raises the question: is Australia in Russia to compete for a spot in the knock-out rounds (a win and a draw from the three group games would be the minimum requirement), or simply survive without being too humiliated?

If Bert bets big on Rogic by making him the focal point of the side, the Socceroos stand a chance — even if it’s a slim one — of giving the World Cup a proper shake.

If he grew up playing in Italy, Rogic would be called a “trequartista”, or three-quarter man — not a forward, not a midfielder, but something in-between. In Argentina he would be known as the “enganche”, the link.

No matter the language, football people everywhere understand this role as the “10”, even if that doesn’t happen to match the number on the shirt — Rogic himself wears 23.

A number 10 operates in the gap behind the forwards, using vision and skill to create a spark that can, hopefully, result in a goal.

That spark could be a clever turn, a dribble to escape a marker or a killer pass or shot.

Just like that, a gifted enganche can turn a game on its head.

One of the Socceroos’ most talented and cerebral footballers of recent times, Ned Zelic, says true 10s are a dying breed.

“It’s interesting that [Rogic] has been able to fill that role as a number 10 for Australia,” Zelic says.

“In the past we’ve had guys who were similar to a 10, but never that Italian or South American-style playmaker.

“I can’t think of many current players in world football who perform that role in the same way. You have to go back to someone like [Juan Roman] Riquelme for Argentina. These guys seem to have more time than anyone else.”

A different football journey, a different set of skills

Rogic grew up playing futsal — five-a-side football on smaller pitches — before switching to 11-a-side on full-sized pitches. He represented Australia with the Futsalaroos in 2010 just two years before his debut with the Socceroos.

Futsal encourages close ball control, exceptional dribbling skills and the ability to work in a small amount of space. The majority of Brazil’s hyper-skilful footballers famously serve their apprenticeships in the smaller version of the game, as do many in Spain, Germany and football’s other world powers.

When receiving the ball with his back to goal, Rogic’s trademark move is to drop his shoulder and swivel, sometimes with a touch, sometimes with a feint.

It catches the closest defenders off guard, and immediately changes the setting of the pieces on the gameboard in front of him.

In an instant he can be up to a gallop, with opponents forced to decide whether to backtrack frantically or try to lunge in with a tackle — a risky move when Rogic has the exquisite footwork to dance past in a moment.

While his footwork is what bamboozles opponents, Zelic says Rogic’s understanding of pockets of space on the field, even without the ball, is what makes him really special.

“He clearly has the ability to find the space to receive the ball, which is a tremendous skill to have. You watch his movements off the ball, and that’s the really impressive thing about him, giving his teammates an outlet.

“I’ve been watching and analysing football a long time and I think that is something special that not many players can do.

“And then once he gets the ball, Tom has that rare skill in that he can turn in a small amount of space and take on defenders or find that through pass.”

Rogic was able to forge a path in the A-League, where delicate footwork isn’t always the first thing managers look for, and, after some years of doing it tough, has now established himself as a genuine star in the rough and tumble of Scottish football. It’s a tough league, where the Glasgow derby between Celtic and Old Firm rivals Rangers can sometimes resemble the scene in Trainspotting after Begbie throws his pint glass over the balcony.

In fact, he has just extended his contract with Celtic, the country’s biggest club, for five more years, to the delight of fans.

Paul Okon, one of Australia’s most gifted footballers who found himself right at home in the Belgian and Italian leagues in the ’90s, also sees Rogic as a man who can tilt the balance in attacking areas.

“He’s a very good dribbler. He takes up very good positions, facing forward, which is important. He scores goals and gets assists, which are the big weapons you need in that position.

“He’s a big guy who is deceptively quick, it’s important when you’re in that central position that you can glide past one or more opponents, as that suddenly gives your side an overload of numbers in that attacking area.”

Will Van Marwijk opt for moments of mastery over sweat and toil?

Photo: Socceroos coach Bert Van Marwijk’s decision-making will be critical to Rogic’s role in Russia. (ABC News: Lincoln Rothall)

Rogic could have a better understanding of space than Neil deGrasse-Tyson, but it doesn’t necessarily mean he’ll be in the starting XI for the Socceroos throughout the tournament.

The safe option, against France especially, will be to fill the midfield with disruptors (Mark Milligan, Mile Jedinak) and skilled but versatile box-to-box players (Aaron Mooy, Massimo Luongo), thus lessening the risk of being completely overrun by French flair.

“Much will depend on the playing style of the man in charge,” says Okon of Bert Van Marwijk, the ‘FIFO’ coach who has been brought in for a few months to guide the Australian side in this one tournament before leaving the job.

“The more attacking the team is the more it will allow Tommy to show his best attributes. But the team has to be playing well in the end, if the side is struggling it will be hard for him.”

The man who will take over from Van Marwijk after the World Cup, Graham Arnold, handed Rogic his A-League debut in 2012, when he was coach of the Central Coast Mariners.

“He came up from Canberra to train with us for a couple of weeks,” says Arnold. “I thought, ‘wow, what a player’,” Arnold says.

“When he’s at 100 per cent his technique is frightening. He’s a big boy, 6 foot 3, but very light on his feet.

“Though he’s a different type of player, a 10 rather than a nine [striker], he reminds me quite a bit of [Mark] Viduka for that reason. The size and fast feet.”

Nowadays the true number 10 position is often considered a luxury, and players with talent are required to produce more than just the odd flourish of creativity. They are expected to press, track back, defend, help out.

Arnold says Rogic’s early struggles at Celtic, where he was used as a wide player and expected to patrol back and forth, are an example of how he can be misused by a coach. Rogic only reached his potential at the Glasgow club under the stewardship of the attack-minded Brendan Rodgers, who took over from Neil Lennon in 2016.

“It’s about managers and systems. Under Lennon it was 4-4-2 and didn’t work at all for Tommy. Rodgers’s style suits him a lot.

“You have different types of 10s. Like, Timmy Cahill is a running 10 but Rogic is the more European-style, working off the front line. He reminds me of a Denis Bergkamp in that sense.”

Since then he has become a star for Celtic.

Taking the gamble

Photo: For Rogic to fire in Russia, he’ll need the right set-up and structure around him. That might be a gamble for his coach. (Getty Images: Robert Cianflone)

If the pre-World Cup camp and the friendly match against the Czech Republic are indicators, then Bert is backing his number 23 in the number 10 role.

After the Czech Republic game, Van Marwijk called Rogic his “free man” — the unmarked guy who everyone else must get the ball to.

“In the first 20 minutes we couldn’t find our free man. Rogic was free all the time but we didn’t have the right solution,” Van Marwijk said.

The first time one of his teammates found him in the attacking zone, he instantly laid on a pass to spring the dogged Czech defence which resulted in the opening goal.

According to Zelic, when Rogic plays, the whole system will need to be geared towards getting the best out of him.

“Certainly he’s one of the key players for Australia, if not the key player,” he says.

“You need his teammates to be on the same page, though, to get him playing at his best.

“The smarter opponents will isolate him and cut off supply, so there’s no point having him there as this brilliant playmaker and nobody being able to get a pass to him. So it needs to be a team effort.”

Rogic is shy, media-wary since an early association with the Nike hype-machine — not at all the kind of character you would normally expect to be the fulcrum of a side. He doesn’t like to be the centre of attention, declining to speak to the ABC for this story, yet in Russia he will likely be at the centre of the Socceroos’ game plan, and pivotal to their chances of success.

The spotlight will well and truly be on him, whether he want to be centre stage or not. Australia’s future coach, thinks Rogic is ready.

“When he’s ready and he’s right he’s really something special,” Arnold says. He’ll be a big star for the Socceroos at the World Cup.”

Credits

Reporter: Dan Colasimone

Camera operator: Lincoln Rothall

Drone footage: Courtesy Football Federation Australia

Motion graphics: Tim Madden

Producer: Tim Leslie

Developers: Colin Gourlay, Nathan Hoad

Editor: Matt Liddy

Topics:

soccer-world-cup,

sport,

soccer,

australia

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The post World Cup 2018: Socceroos greats name Tom Rogic as our man to watch appeared first on HS NEWS.

Article from WSJ: How Morgan Stanley Got Its Mojo Back

CEO James Gorman wasn’t a star trader or a banker. He was a consultant, and well matched for Wall Street’s new mundane style of business

‘The path we were on was not sustainable,’ says Morgan Stanley CEO James Gorman. MICHAEL BUCHER/THE WALL STREET JOURNAL

By Liz Hoffman

Morgan Stanley had slashed bonuses after another bad year. Chief Executive James Gorman, at a Swiss Alps conference, defended the move in a television interview. “If you’re really unhappy,” he told employees, “just leave.”

The comment in 2012 rocketed around Morgan Stanley’s trading floor 4,000 miles away. In Switzerland, some of Mr. Gorman’s top deputies, including star merger banker Paul Taubman, grumbled about the public rebuke, say people familiar with the episode.

Six years later, Mr. Gorman’s take-it-or-leave-it discipline has transformed Wall Street’s problem child into one of its steadiest performers. Its 2017 profits were nearly triple those of 2014. Its market value, as low as $7 billion during the financial crisis, surpassed $100 billion earlier this year. Morgan Stanley is more valuable on paper than Goldman Sachs Group Inc., once Wall Street’s undisputed king.

Every big bank has changed since the financial crisis, but none as dramatically as Morgan Stanley under Mr. Gorman, who took the top job in 2010. His reboot offers a glimpse of Wall Street’s future: profitable enough, and with less of the outsize ambition and ego that drove firms toward the abyss a decade ago.

Mr. Gorman rose not as a trader or banker—a Wall Street CEO’s typical roots—but as a McKinsey & Co. consultant. He axed Morgan Stanley’s proprietary trading desks and shrank its bond-trading operations, the source of repeat blunders. He sold an oil-tanker fleet and a half-finished casino, remnants of the freewheeling culture that once ruled Wall Street.

He doubled down on wealth management, a steadier business. The purchase of Smith Barney, completed in his early CEO years, made Morgan Stanley the country’s largest retail brokerage. Its 16,000 brokers in 600 offices from Tuscaloosa, Ala., to Tacoma, Wash., now outnumber its bankers and traders and contribute more revenue than either group. They do so without taking the kinds of risks that worry regulators and investors.

“It was a high-wire act. I wasn’t naive,” says Mr. Gorman, 59. “But we didn’t have a choice. The path we were on was not sustainable.”

Postcrisis regulations and market calm have made finance a more mundane place, and some other Wall Street heavyweights, too, are tilting away from the precrisis years toward safer, even boring, business models. Goldman Sachs is pushing into consumer banking. Citigroup Inc. pared back its aim of being a global retail bank.

Mr. Gorman in his office, where every evening he tallies in longhand each division’s daily revenues. PHOTO: MICHAEL BUCHER/THE WALL STREET JOURNAL

Those caught on the wrong side of Mr. Gorman’s changes say his lower tolerance for risk has made it harder to trade. And his style—more aloof tactician than beloved leader—symbolizes to many what’s been lost on Wall Street.

Jack DiMaio, a senior trader and an old-school Wall Street star, sparred repeatedly with Mr. Gorman, warning that spartan bonus pools would cause top traders to quit, say current and former executives. Mr. DiMaio left in 2011 to start a hedge fund.

Mr. Taubman, the merger banker, left in 2012 after being passed over for a promotion and founded a boutique investment bank—one of the last provinces of Wall Street’s star model.

Questions linger over whether Morgan Stanley can sustain its rebound. The firm’s return on equity, a measure of how profitably it invests shareholders’ money, has struggled to crack the 10% level investors typically demand. Its wealth-management clients are aging. The long bull market that amplified fees has stalled.

Mr. Gorman has wrung the easy gains by cutting costs and cleaning up obvious problems, says Charles Peabody, an independent stock-research analyst. “The bar has been raised.”

Still, Mr. Gorman says the tenor has changed in meetings with investors and managers, in which “the conversation has gone from ‘can we fix this thing?’ to ‘what’s next?’ ” Mr. Gorman, who is likely to remain in the job another three to five years, says that “we are talking more about the future, not just atoning for the sins of the past.”

Early years

Mr. Gorman grew up in a Melbourne, Australia, suburb with nine siblings, the son of a nurse and engineer. He avoids the New York social scene—his weekend home is in upstate New York, not the Hamptons—and oozes little of the charisma of predecessor John Mack, a backslapping Southern bond trader.

Mr. Mack occasionally dined in the firm’s cafeteria, mingling with the troops, and was a fixture at San Pietro, an Italian restaurant frequented by financiers. Mr. Gorman prefers the quiet of his office, with its wood paneling and Aboriginal art, where every evening he tallies in longhand each division’s daily revenues. He keeps the loose-leaf sheets in a folder on his desk next to a list of New Year’s resolutions.

“James—and you’ll never hear him say ‘call me Jimmy’; it’s always ‘James’—does not aspire to be a master of the universe,” says David Rubenstein, founder of private-equity giant Carlyle Group LP.

To pay for law school, Mr. Gorman says, he cleaned dormitory bathrooms, tended bar and worked Saturdays at a brokerage firm matching trade tickets. He spent four years at an Australian law firm before enrolling in 1985 at Columbia Business School.

He got job offers from investment banks including Morgan Stanley but joined McKinsey, where he eventually landed in the financial-services group advising companies including Merrill Lynch and American Express Co.

In 1999, Merrill’s then-CEO, David Komanksy, recruited him as head of marketing. Within two years, he was running its retail arm. Mr. Gorman helped transform Merrill’s “thundering herd” of brokers, who earned commissions selling stocks to middle America, into a force focused on managing assets and providing advice to wealthier clients.

He joined Morgan Stanley in 2006 with the same task. A disastrous 1997 merger with retail-brokerage Dean Witter had sparked years of infighting and a 2005 coup that restored Mr. Mack to power. The two networks used separate trading systems. More than 90% of branches failed internal audits the year before Mr. Gorman arrived, according to Morgan Stanley executives.

Mr. Gorman, a management consultant by training, is a contrast to his predecessor John Mack, a back-slapping southern bond trader, here in 2010. PHOTO: STEPHEN YANG/BLOOMBERG NEWS

Mr. Mack asked Mr. Gorman whether the retail business was worth keeping. “He told me it could absolutely be fixed, that it would take two years,” Mr. Mack says, “and at that point we’d have to decide whether to sell it or double it.”

Mr. Gorman commuted daily from Manhattan to Morgan Stanley’s suburban Westchester County campus, where colleagues would catch him standing at the window with binoculars, watching the Australian shepherds kept there to chase away deer.

He fired the 2,000 lowest-performing advisers and combined trading systems. When he called branch managers to introduce himself, at least one hung up on him, he says. The brokerage’s profit margins climbed to 17% in 2007 from 8%.

After the crisis

Morgan Stanley had largely hung back as new types of exotic, risky trading swept Wall Street in the early 2000s. It was busy sorting through the Dean Witter merger and, executives agreed, had lost a step to rivals that were minting profits on mortgage bonds and complex derivatives.

At the worst possible moment, Morgan Stanley charged in, just as credit and real-estate prices were peaking. In 2007, it lost $9.4 billion on one mortgage trade, beginning a spiral that brought it to the brink of bankruptcy a year later. Had regulators not intervened, it would likely have followed Lehman Brothers onto the scrap heap.

The firm emerged with a 20% shareholder in Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc.and a mandate from regulators to clean itself up by raising capital, lowering leverage and reining in its problematic trading arm.

By early 2012, with concerns about Morgan Stanley’s exposure to troubled European debt, Moody’s Investors Service was threatening a steep ratings downgrade. Clients were leaving. Creditors were scrambling to insure Morgan Stanley’s debt against a default. Its shares touched $12, near their 2008 low.

In his Switzerland interview, Mr. Gorman told employees to “read the newspaper.” The firm’s precarious position required changes, including cuts to bonuses and new risk limits and if they didn’t like it, he said, they were free to leave.

“I might choose different words today,” he says. “But our job as management is to be honest and transparent about what we’re doing, and paint a picture where, if it works, it will lead to terrific outcomes for everybody.”

He slashed bonus pools, deferred more employee pay into future years and began personally reviewing the 2,000 highest-paid employees. He nixed a planned $50 million investment into a hedge fund former Morgan Stanley executive Zoe Cruz was launching—breaking with Wall Street tradition of funding star traders when they strike out on their own—according to people familiar with the episode. Ms. Cruz left the firm in the wake of the mortgage-trade debacle.

The downturn also presented an opportunity. Mr. Gorman had negotiated a handshake deal in 2008 to buy retail brokerage Paine Webber, a deal that would have greatly increased Morgan Stanley’s scale, but it fell apart as the crisis hit.

In 2009, Morgan Stanley struck a deal for control of Citigroup Inc.’s Smith Barney and its 11,000 advisers—Mr. Gorman’s wife, Penny, was once one—with the right to buy the rest eventually.

Mr. Gorman’s reboot of Morgan Stanley offers a glimpse of Wall Street’s future: profitable enough, and with less of the outsize ambition and ego. PHOTO: CHRISTOPHER LEE/BLOOMBERG NEWS

Dissent was swift, with investors concerned it would bungle the integration. Some Morgan Stanley bankers and traders, scarred from the Dean Witter merger, worried Mr. Gorman was watering down the firm’s Wall Street DNA, say current and former employees.

“I felt like the boy in ‘The Polar Express,’ wondering why nobody else could hear the bell,” says Mr. Gorman, who says he never doubted the move. Last Christmas, playing on the reference, Morgan Stanley’s head of investor relations gave him a silver sleigh bell he keeps on his desk.

“James made some tough calls,” says Ruth Porat, then Morgan Stanley’s chief financial officer, now CFO at Google parent Alphabet Inc., “even when they weren’t popular.”

Wealth management, thanks to Smith Barney, accounts for nearly half of Morgan Stanley’s revenue while using a quarter of its available capital. Client assets have increased to $2.4 trillion from $1.6 trillion in 2010. Profit margins in 2017 were 26%, up from 6% just after the deal.

In part, that owes to the soaring stock market, which has increased client-portfolio values and the fees Morgan Stanley collects to manage them.

On 99% of days last year, its wealth arm generated revenues of $50 million to $80 million, according to filings. Steven Chubak, a Nomura Holdings Inc. analyst, estimates the business, which contributes 44% of the firm’s revenue, accounts for 55% of its market value because investors put a premium on its reliability.

Morgan Stanley also axed some riskier businesses, cutting 25% of fixed-income traders in 2015 and reducing the capital and borrowed money available to the unit. The moves cast Morgan Stanley as more of a middleman for clients than a gambler—evening out revenues, with fewer big profits but fewer losses.

Mr. Gorman has been rewarded: His $27 million pay package in 2017 was second among Wall Street CEOs only to that of JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s James Dimon, who manages a bank three times Morgan Stanley’s size.

Mr. Gorman, who keeps a makeshift office putting green, has resumed golfing. He had stopped after the crisis, wary of being seen on the links while Morgan Stanley struggled.

Last year at a town-hall meeting, a banker asked what kept him up at night. “Nothing,” he replied. Mr. Gorman, who owns a Labrador and a Maltese, added: “Maybe the dogs, sometimes.”

Education style in Germany - 3.Private school ＆Foreign Language Education

This is the third article about education. This morning, I went to a private school for 5th grade to 12th. I observed a kind of extra class (?) related to language or social studies. The topic today’s class was “Comparing education system and family culture in different country” for 8th grade. Two international students from Colombia and the Czech Republic presented their own country at that class. Children asked them how was the relationships between teacher-student, parents-children, whether there were schools only for girls or for boys and so on. I spontaneously joined today’s visit, so I hadn’t prepared my presentation. However, I did that a little bit there because maybe comparing to Japan would also interesting for them. But I couldn’t because of the lack of time. Actually, I really would like to do that. I should appeal that “I can make a presentation about Japan and I would like to that!!!!”.  Anyway, although I just observed that class and I didn’t get new information about a private school in Germany, I spend a good time. Especially, I was shocked at language education. In Japan, when I was a student, I started to learn a second language (I can choose only English) from 13 years old (7th grade). But the teacher mostly taught me reading and writing for an entrance examination of a university. Because of that, when I took one of entrance examination, all Japanese student would take the test (it was like a National exam), my score was 198 out of 200. Now I have studied English for 11 years, but my speaking and listening skill are really bad, maybe I am the same level with the students I met today in the private school. They started to learn English 4 years ago. They could communicate in English. And University students I meet in Germany, they can speak fluently English like a native speaker!!! I really envy them. I think the language education is done efficiently in Germany. Not only in Germany but also maybe in most of Europe countries, language education is done successfully. One woman, I met today comes from the Czech Republic. She made the presentation in German. Of course, she can speak English fluently. I asked her when she started to learn German. She answered that she learned Germany from 8 years old and English from 13 years old. When she was a child, she had to learn German because in WWII her country was colonized by Germany and after WWII it strongly influenced by the Soviet Union, so learning English was not so important (Although maybe she is about 24 years old).  Now children in the Czech Republic have to study English from 8 years old, and another foreign language from 13 years old.

I told her I learned English from 13 years old as a first foreign language. She said it was little late...yes, it is true. Now children in Japan start to learn English from 11 years old, but one of teacher told me there was not enough time to teach English because of 15minutes×3times=45minutes per a week. She also pointed the lack of teacher’s skill is also problems. The contents of English foreign language classes are just singing some English songs or playing some games in English. If I compare me to other students in Japan, my English better than them. But!!! When I go out from Japan, my English is really poor. I really realize that Japanese people lose the chance to study, work in the world. One woman, I met today, from Colombia took a master degree in a program studying in Italy, Belgium and so on, and then she is trying to take Ph.D. in Germany. Another woman, I met today from Czech, took a bachelor in Germany. That case is really few for Japanese. How domestic educational environment in Japan is! Japanese people can live a happy life in Japan. It looks really good... but students have disadvantages to study and work in the world when they want to do that. At last, I would like to write down my first good experience related to today’s class. When I was a high school student, I met a young man from Turkey and talked him in a cool cafe in Kyoto. He is one of my friends’ friend. At then, I just sometimes went to a really cheap Italian restaurant in the countryside in Japan. In my hometown, there is few foreigner.  It was few times to meet foreigners (although they were only American or Australian), they came to my school one a month as a teaching assistant. I didn’t have any foreign friends. But when I met a Turk, I learned turkey history I heard in world history class, I knew Islam culture I read in books by him. I was really inspired that day.  I thought “Wow. He lives in a totally different culture from me. If I can communicate in other languages, I can know more different things and I can make friends with people in the world. It sounds fantastic!!!!!”. Because of this experience, now I am here, in Germany. By today’s visit,  I think I would like to provide Japanese student the experiences not only to read and write in English but also this kind of experiences to communicate in English and know new things in the world. 【P.S】 I just ate dinner at a cafeteria in university and I met Taiwan friends. We talked about language education in Taiwan. Now Taiwanese children start to learn English from 1st grade in elementary school. Many children go to a cram school to acquire English. In addition, learning a second foreign language are also popular now in Taiwan, for example, French and German and so on. There are so many language teachers. Thinking back to language education in Japanese, learning a second foreign language is common only for university student because learning that is mandatory. But maybe 1% students learning second foreign language acquire the skill. (By the way, I learned Chinese in my bachelor, I am learning German in my master. In fact, I would like to learn Romanian. But yeah, learning language is difficult.) Japan has the same geographical disadvantage to Taiwan, an island in east Asia. Comparing other countries in east Asia like China, Korea and so on, I think Japan is behind of those countries in education for foreign languages. さて，教育関連のお話第三弾． 今日は，私立の中学校に行ってきた． 8年生(日本の中学2年生)の，言語の授業や公民の授業の番外編？なのか， 「各国の教育システム・家族システムを比較してみよう！」という授業内容． コロンビア，チェコ共和国の留学生(大学院生)が学校に訪れて，自国のプレゼンテーションをするというもの． 私は急遽参加だったので，プレゼン時間がなかったけど，本当はむちゃむちゃプレゼンしたかったーーーーーー．その場でちょっと準備したんだけどなぁ．コロンビアの子や，チェコの子が自分の国の話をしてるのが，羨ましかった... もっと，積極的にガンガン， 「準備しています！！！！！！日本のプレゼンできます！！！！！」 ってアピールすればよかったなぁ，せっかくの機会が勿体なかった． 今回は，私立学校のシステムで詳しい話が聞けたわけではなく，もっぱらプレゼン聞くだけやった．けど，自分の中でショックというか同時にピピンとなったのが，言語教育について． 日本では中学生から英語の授業を勉強しはじめると言っても，そのほとんどが文法を中心とした読み書き．おかげさまで，私は大学センター試験の英語は198/200点だったし，英語を勉強しはじめて今は11年だけど，英語で話して聞くのはやっぱり「苦労」している．正直，今日，教室にいた生徒と自分の英語力ってほぼ一緒か大差ないんじゃないかって． ドイツは英語を10歳から習い始めるから，彼らは英語学習4年目ね．教室にいた子はまだ英語に自信がなくてたまにドイツ語で質問してたけど，それでも基本的に英語のコミュニケーションとれてた． ドイツで会う大学生は，当たり前のように，英語をまるで母国語かのようにぺらぺらぺらーと話す．それが羨ましすぎる． チェコの子はプレゼンをドイツ語でやってて，チェコ語の母国語に加えて，ドイツ語も，英語もなんなく操る．その子に「いつからドイツ語の勉強をし始めたの」と聞くと，８歳だという．彼女が子どもだった頃は，チェコでは8歳で第二言語，13歳で第三言語を習得する．もうすこし詳しく言うと，彼女は8歳でドイツ語を学ぶような教育カリキュラムだったらしい．他の言語の選択肢は8歳の時にはなかった．それは，WWII時にドイツに占領されて，その後も社会主義国のソ連側だったことに強く由来してるらしい． ソ連解体の現在では，チェコでは，8歳で英語を学び始めることが義務付けられてる．

日本は，「13歳から第二言語を本格的に学び始めるよ」ってチェコの子に言ったら，その子に，「え？それって遅くない？」と言われた．そう，本当に遅い．日本では近年，小学校でも英語が教科されたけど，小学校に勤務する友人情報によると，既存の教科を教えるだけで授業数が埋まってしまうから，朝の会のすぐ後とかに，15分×3回/週=45分/週の英語の時間を生み出してるらしい．それでも，その時間数の少なさと，内容のしょぼさ(英語の歌を歌うだけとか)嘆いてた． こっちにいると日本の英語力，特にコミュニケーション能力って本当に課題だなって思う．自分ごととしても． 自分で言うのもなんだけど，平均的な日本人と比べると私はまぁまぁ英語で話せるし，英語で話す気概があるけど，こっちくればそんなのは足元にも達してなくて，いかに日本の英語教育のレベルが低いか，自分の英語力が低いかを痛感させられる． そして，英語ができないというネックで，世界で勉強するチャンスを失ってることも同時に思った．一緒に学校訪問したコロンビアの女の子は，イタリア，ベルギー，どこかのヨーロッパを転々として修士号を獲得できるプログラムで勉強して，今はドイツで博士の勉強をしてる．チェコの女の子も，学士からドイツで勉強している． 日本がいかにドメスティックな教育環境にあるのか...就職してからも基本的に日本人はドメスティックな環境でも一生幸せに基本的に暮らせる．それはそれで，すごく幸せな国だと思うし，いいことだと思う． でも，やっぱり海外で学ぶ，仕事をする，そのネックは確実にあると思う． 最後に，今日の授業に関してこのことを書いておこうと思う． 私は，高校生のとき，はじめて「まともに」外国の人と話す機会があった．お姉ちゃんの友達の友達のトルコ人と京都のカフェで日本語で話した． 当時の私は，カフェなんておしゃれなものに出入りせず，滋賀の田舎のサイゼリアで300円以下のミラノ風ドリアをたまに食べるのがスタンダート．学校に3ヶ月に1回ぐらいの割合で来るALTは，学校に1人しかいないし，オーストラリア人やアメリカ人ばかり．もちろん個人的な話はしたことがない．というか，なにか話した記憶すらない笑 夏期講習中でたまたま京都まで足を伸ばしてて，お姉ちゃんの友達に誘われ，授業を1コマさぼってそのカフェへ．世界史で聞いたようなトルコ建国の話，ニュースで聞いたようなイスラム教の話をその人に直接教えてもらって... 私はあの時，むっちゃ衝撃を受けた． この人はこれまで，自分が想像したこともない文化圏で，自分が日本で生きてきたように，生きてきたのか！！！！って． そして，英語ができたら，今この瞬間に，違う国のことをもっと知って，違う国の人と友達になれるのか！！！！って． 単純だけど，これが私の今ドレスデンにいることになった，原体験の一つ．

もっとたくさんの日本の子どもに，ただ試験のために英語の読み書きを勉強するじゃなくて， 今日，訪問した学校の授業みたいな授業を， 英語でコミュニケーションできるっていう経験を， 英語で未知の世界の幅が広がるっていう経験を 提供したいなぁと改めて思った，本日の学校訪問でした． 【追記】 投稿してから，お腹が減ったので大学の食堂で晩御飯をぱくついてると，台湾の友達に会った．台湾での外国語教育の話をきくと，台湾では現在小学校1年生から英語を習うらしい．また第三言語の勉強も盛んだとか． その話をきいて，日本の第三言語学習って，大学入ってすずめの涙程度やるぐらいで，始めるには遅いし，あまりに適当．(ちなみに，私は20歳で中国語，24歳でドイツ語を勉強してる．ついでにルーマニア語もなんなら勉強したい...どれも習得したいけど，そう簡単な話じゃない) チェコの子は英語を8歳，第三言語を13歳で習うって言ってた． 確かにはまずは英語やけど，第三言語も余裕で使えるっていう水準が世界のスタンダードになりつつあるんじゃないかと思うと，危機感を感じる． 台湾は特に，極東に位置する島国で，日本と同じ地理的デメリットを抱えてるにも関わらず，外国語教育はけっこう進んでそう．韓国とか，中国とかに比べると，東アジアで一番外国語教育が遅れてる国なんじゃないか....