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mango-forest · 5 years

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more than survive (part 3)

part 1, part 2, part 4

Marinette finds that recently the problem isn’t so much as akuma battles or staying up (though they do contribute). But now she’s realizing that she just. . . doesn’t have the energy or motivation to get out of bed. Especially when it’s just to go to school. Tikki pulls at her hair and Marinette tiredly asks, “Do we have to get up?”

“Marinette,” Tikki counters. The noirnette groans and rolls of her bed. After struggling with her hair for a solid minute, Marinette puts up her hair in a messy bun. She puts the bare minimum in her outfit, just shrugging a sweatshirt hoodie over her bra and thick, soft leggings tucked into combat boots. Before she leaves the room, Marinette grabs a pair of pink fuzzy earmuffs from her desk.

It isn’t long before Marinette is arriving at her classroom, bursting into the room just as the bell rings. Ms. Bustier gives her a disappointed look. “Technically, I’m not late,” Marinette points out with an out-of-breathe smile on her face.

Ms. Bustier sighs. “Just take your seat, Marinette.”

The teenager walks to the back with a sheepish smile, sliding into her seat while the class snickers. She catches Adrien giving her a disappointed gaze before Lila tightens her grip, and he turns his head back to the front. Marinette tried to fight back a sigh. In hindsight, she dodged a bullet with her old crush. Good thing she tested down all his pictures years ago.

“Alright class,” Ms. Bustier announces, “I am happy to announce that we are taking a trip to Gotham!”

The class erupts in whispers.

Ms. Bustier laughs. “Alright, that’s enough, everyone. We are leaving soon, the exact date is in the packets Alix is going to be handing out.” Said girl obediently grabs the packets and starts passing them out. Marinette exchanges a nod and smile with her when she got her packet. “Please get your guardian to sign them and turn them in before the due date.”

Ms. Bustier sits behind her desk when she’s finished speaking, likely going on to her computer and finishing some work. As the class gets up and starts talking, Marinette sits with a small smile on her face. She’s going to Gotham! Maybe she can meet up with Damian. Against her will, Marinette hears Lila talk. “Oh I’m so happy to go back to Gotham,” the Italian girl says loudly.

“Oh yeah.” Alya snaps her fingers. “Didn’t you talk about your boyfriend, Damian Wayne?”

“Uh-huh,” Lila smiles. “I can’t believe you remembered that, Als!”

Marinette scoffs inside her head. Als.

“Unfortunately,” Lila continues, “He’s probably gonna pretend not to know me. You know, the Waynes don’t like a media scandal! Oh, I can’t wait to see Dami-boo again! It’s a shame he’s not gonna want to see you all.”

Marinette honestly feels a bit bad for whoever this Damian Wayne is. Even if Damian—her Damian—says he isn’t important, no one deserves Lila to be lying about them. She leans on her fist as she thinks about the Gothamite. Last call she had, Marinette forgot to ask him about the one before. To be fair, she was a bit distracted with working not the project, so when he called it caught her off guard.

Without thinking, she grabs her phone and texts, something big happened.

After her finger hits send, she’s struck by the realization that it would be very, very early in the morning for Damian. To her surprise (and slight worry) a text immediately pings back.

Are you okay?

What?

Oh yeah, I’m fine. I’m talking about something else

Okay?

Second thought go to sleep

What did you want to tell me?

Tell you later. Sleep.

Fine.

Marinette stares at her phone with pursed lips. She doesn’t like how late Damian is staying up. Well, Marinette thinks, she’s certainly got no room to criticise. Although she does have a better excuse, being a superhero and fighting akumas. That will have to be paused during the trip though. Marinette fiddles with the front page of the packet.

The alarm blares and she suppresses a groan. The last year or so lots of public buildings have gotten an “akuma alarm.” Which is basically a fire drill, but sounds different and instead of going back inside, school is cancelled for the day. Marinette shoves her stuff into her backpack (a new one she got last year, pink with large black spots) and walks out of the classroom with her fellow classmates, breaking out into a jog when she gets to the bottom of the front stairs.

It's a second nature by now for her to slip into an alley and let Tikki zoom out of her purse. “You know the drill,” Marinette tiredly says. “Tikki, spots on!”

The bright light hurts her eyes and the cold seeps into her body. Ladybug struggles not to swear as she heads to Master Fu’s. Her warm clothing has disappeared along with her earmuffs. The superheroine pauses at a rooftop. Then, with a wince, Ladybug changes direction to head for the bakery. Her limbs feel heavier and she just knows that her reaction time is becoming more delayed.

She doesn’t linger, only opening the skylight and swiping the jacket she tossed on her bed that morning. The jacket helps keep her blood pumping as she tries to race to Master Fu’s. Ladybug knows she just wasted some time. The akuma is out there and no other miraculi are with their owners. Chat Noir might, but it is highly unlikely he’ll break his streak of arriving after the battle.

When Master Fu shows the miraculi, she pauses. “I am going to a trip soon,” she says. She tries not to think about how many are suffering from the akuma by now. “Ladybug will not be able to protect Paris.”

Master Fu stares at her and Wayzz hovers over his shoulder. Carapace and Rena Rouge have not seen the field in a long, long time. After a few moments the kwami and guardian share a look. “We trust your judgment, Marinette,” Master Fu says, smiling at her.

Ladybug nods determinedly and reaches out. The snake and dragon are easy to choose. Her hand hovers over the bee miraculous. After a tense second, she moves her hand away. Even if she did want to make Chloe a permanent protector, that can wait until after the trip.With a nod to Master Fu, she took off.

When the Miraculous Cure is sent out, she stops Viperion and Ryuko from leaving. Ladybug knows she’d usually visit them both separately to collect their miraculi but today is different. “I will not be in Paris soon,” she starts. At their alarmed looks, she continues hurriedly, “I am coming back, but for now I think you both are ready. If you choose to keep your miraculi you accept to become a permanent protector of Paris and defend it from Hawkmoth. Turn them in and it’ll stay just as it is now. The choice is yours.”

Viperion grins. “Of course!”

Ryuko’s more quiet with her happiness. “I will not fail you Ladybug.”

Ladybug grins at both of them. “Well this is great! Now we shall probably leave before Chat Noir comes or we detransform, huh?”

When she gets back she sends out a request to Damian and heads downstairs to the kitchen with her backpack slung across her arm.. She grins as she sees her mom get cookies out of the oven. “Oh Mama,” she sings. “Can you please sign this?”

As Marinette’s fishing for the paper in her backpack, Sabine sets the tray down and dusts off her hands. “Depends on what it is,” she teases as she takes the offered paper. She trails off as she reads. “Oh, Marinette. . .”

Marinette scrunches her face. “What?”

“I don't know, honey. This much time in a foriegn city with your classmates? You said you weren't doing well in school with them, and I know they don't come around nearly as much, are you sure you want to go on the trip?”

Marinette smiles at her. “It’s okay, Mama. Honestly, what’s the worst they can do; it’s not like we’re gonna be glued by our hips!”

Sabine sighs. “Alright, Marinette. I’ll sign it. But Gotham has a high crime rate, so make sure to check in every day or so! You miss one check in and we’re flying you back.”

Marinette quietly cheers. “Thanks Mama!”

Sabine signs the paper and hands it back to her daughter, smiling as the teen bounces back up the stairs.

“Oh can you believe it, Tikki?” Marinette says as she sits down on her spinney chair. “Maybe I’ll even see Damian!”

“Gotham isn’t that small,” Tikki gently reminds her.

Marinette sighs and nods. “Yeah, it's nice to imagine though.”

“Maybe you can bring your project along! The packet did say there’s a formal event!” Tikki suggests.

“Oh my god, I can!” she exclaims. After a pause, she adds, “I’ll have to finish it first.”

So Marinette gets out the notes and the fabrics and the thread and the needles. She works while pricking her fingers, she works while eating the cookies, she works while Tikki plays games on her phone. She works as Tikki discusses Chat Noir with her. She works until she hears Damian’s voice coming from her laptop. It's faced towards her, so she doesn't really need to move but she still gets up to lay closer, on her stomach. “Hey, Angel,” he greets. “What are you working on?”

Marinette sucks in a breath and quickly turns the laptop around. “Nothing,” she says, getting up to lie down again in front of the screen. “Just an outfit for myself.”

“Oh and I can’t see it?” he teases.

“Nope,” she responds.

“Mmm.” He smiles at her.

“Oh!” Marinette exclaims, snapping her fingers. “Uh, you remember the video call before last? Like, the one where I was half asleep? Did-Did your brother come in. . . ?”

“Yes, he did,” Damian answers honestly. “Why?”

Marinette groans and buries her face in her arms. “Nothing, I just didn’t have the best memory since I was sleepy.” Not like she could forget anything before the last video call. Chat Noir, his talk, knocking on her skylight, everything before that. That’s still burned in her mind. “So you live in Gotham, right?”

“Yes,” Damian says, arching an eyebrow. “Why do you ask, Angel?”

“Well my class is taking a trip there soon!” Marinette does awkward jazz hands.

Damian perks up. “Really? Angel, that’s amazing. What hotel are you staying at?”

She shrugs. “I don’t know. We’re supposed to be touring a place called Wayne Enterprises, so probably close to there.”

“That’s close to where I live!” Damian says. “Maybe we’ll see each other!”

“That’d be amazing.” Marinette grins.

Damian smiles too. Marinette wonders if she can die from anticipation.

@god-is-dead-and-so-am-i @birb-didnt-survive-the-snap @iggy-of-fans @never-neverland @urbanpineapplefarmer

#marinette #damian wayne #daminette #maridami #more than survive #maribat au #i feel like these are getting shorter

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foodcourtuniversitypress · 6 years

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Funny Phoebe, Funny Joey by Pip Adam

“The One With The Black-Out” During a power outage, Rachel falls for the owner of a lost kitten, a dark, attractive Italian guy. Meanwhile, Chandler is trapper in an automated-teller vestibule with a gorgeous model. It is late and we are tired. The Italian guy is creepy. At this stage we root for Ross. Ross has just found out his estranged lesbian wife and her girlfriend are going to have his baby. Ross has a monkey. It’s a bit up in the air how big a part Ross will get to play in his child’s life. So, yeah, we are slightly, ‘Go Ross!’ and hoping Paolo won’t stay round too long. Rachel doesn’t speak Italian. The woman in the vestibule is a Victoria Secret model but Chandler won’t talk to her. Chandler’s head is talking and talking and talking. Chandler’s head gives bad advice concerning the Victoria Secret model. Poor Chandler. Poor Ross. Also, ‘vestibule’?

“The One With All The Jam” Monica becomes obsessed with making jam as a means of getting over Richard. Still feeling unfulfilled, she decides she wants to have a baby and visits a sperm bank. The sperm bank is not Joey. Ba dum cha. Our daughter starts watching a programme with what she calls ‘laughing in the background’. Monica is a chef but at the moment is unemployed. Monica lost her job after accepting "gifts" from her restaurant's meat supplier. Richard is Tom Selleck – he wears his trousers high and his shirts tucked in but, you can see the appeal. ‘Ooo,’ goes the live studio audience. ‘Aaaaahh.’ Chandler makes a joke. ‘Hahaha,’ goes the live studio audience, laughing in the background. Chandler makes jokes to hold back the sadness of his parent’s divorce. Chandler’s father rejects the gender binary and works in Las Vegas. Chandler makes a joke about this.

“The One With All The Jealousy” Ross becomes obsessively jealous of Rachel’s sexy new co-worker Mark and is convinced he is flirting with Rachel. Monica is smitten with a sexy busboy. Rachel and Ross got together. Ross was angry at Rachel. Rachel was angry at Ross. Ross and Rachel kissed in the rain. Ross and Rachel are going out together. Ross is a controlling bully. Ross goes to Rachel’s work and makes a fool of her. Ross is a creep. Ross is angry at Rachel. The busboy is a player and a liar. Monica wears big fake boobs for her waitressing job. A lot of fun is made of Monica’s big fake boobs and the fact that Monica used to be fat. Monica is always around food. Monica’s big fake boobs catch on fire. Waitressing is hard work.

“The One With The Cuffs” Monica “pulls a Monica” when she caters her mother’s party. Chandler gets himself locked into a compromising position with Rachel’s boss. Monica’s parents are horrible to her, we start to see where Ross gets it from. Monica’s parents think the sun shines out of Ross’ arse. Rachel’s boss is played by Alison La Placa who received extensive training in classical piano and voice. She’s been in Greys Anatomy, The OC, Boston Legal and ER but only once or twice. The joke is Rachel’s Boss is tall and sturdy and good at her job and ambitious – she makes Chandler her bitch. The joke is woman who are a bit like men do that. If Chandler had done it to her he would have found a way to make it funny. It’s not a woman man thing. Chandler’s can make anything funny but Rachel and Monica are the best at prat falls.

“The One With The Girl From Poughkeepsie” Ross debates whether to date a faraway beauty or a less desirable woman who lives nearby. Chandler tries to set up a date for Rachel with some co-workers. Ross cheated on Rachel. Or did he? Then they broke up. Ross is not a nice person. Monica gets smaller and smaller. We play fuck, marry, kill with the cast of Friends. I go Joey, Chandler, Ross – in a heartbeat, fastest reply I’ve made in days. I go Phoebe, Phoebe – but can’t bring myself to kill any of the women. Monica gets smaller and smaller and keeps making food. Rachel is doing fine, you hardly notice how much weight she’s lost.

“The One With Joey’s Dirty Day” On Joey's first day on a major movie, one of Hollywood's legendary stars finds him in a compromising position in his trailer. Rachel regrets asking Ross for a favor when it sparks a new romance. We shout at the TV screen, ‘Don’t Rachel! Don’t! Don’t ask Ross!’ Ross is a creep. Joey has a shower in Charlton Heston’s dressing room because he forgets to shower after a fishing trip. Joey played Al Pacino’s arse in a shower in an earlier episode. Joey is getting older. ‘How you doin’?’ gets old. Joey wears more polar-necked jumpers. His ‘getting older face’ doesn’t match his ‘not getting smarter mind’. The joke is Joey is beautiful and dumb but it can’t last forever and we can’t work out how he’s paying his rent. Phoebe lived on the streets and her mother committed suicide and Joey falls in love with her twin sister. Phoebe has a twin and gave birth to her brother and his wife’s triplets. But all this happened in other episodes. In this episode Joey has a shower and Ross falls in love with Rachel’s boss’ niece. He’ll marry her, Emily not Rachel, but not yet. He’ll marry her, Rachel not Emily, but we can’t think about that because every time we do we feel sorry for Rachel.

“The One With The Girl Who Hits Joey” When Joey starts dating Katie, he finds she packs a painful punch. Ross has trouble making friends with his new neighbours. It’s funny when a woman hits a man. It’s sexy when a woman hits a woman. Katie makes Joey her bitch – she could take him. Monica gets smaller. Then Rachel gets smaller. Chandler gets bigger. His face puffs up. Phoebe stays about the same. Ross’ hair cut changes from one episode to the next. Joey is Joey. Phoebe never gets to see her babies. Ross never sees Ben any more. We don’t get to see Carol and Susan much, which we’re disappointed about because Carol and Susan seem like decent people. Like maybe they are from a different TV show. Like the time Robin Williams was on. Oh, and Jean-Claude Van Damme. Jean-Claude Van Damme was on Friends. Everyone in Ross’ new apartment block hate him and we cheer and cheer.

“The One With Unagi” Ross tries to teach martial arts to Rachel and Phoebe. Joey hires a look-alike to pose as his twin brother for a medical experiment. Ross creeps up on Rachel and Phoebe and tries to terrify them. When this doesn’t work he creeps up on some other women and is chased but not arrested. We hate Ross. Joey hiring a look-alike for the twin experiment is one of the funniest things that has ever happened in the lives of these six 20-something friends living in Manhattan.

“The One With Monica’s Thunder” Minutes after Chandler proposes to Monica, she plans to celebrate on the town with her pals - until she catches Ross and Rachel kissing. Chandler walks through a door and loses 20 pounds because Matthew Perry gets pancreatitis during the hiatus. The orange shirt he finished last season in hangs on him like a tent. Monica is still tiny in his arms. Rachel’s hair is long but not as long as it was. With Ross and Rachel the writing seems kind of on the wall. Jennifer Anniston is about to meet Brad Pitt. Rachel’s arms are tiny. Poor Rachel. Poor Monica. Poor Chandler. Funny Joey. Funny Phoebe. Creepy Ross. The white dog is on the veranda.

#pip adam #friends #food court

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moayoub1 · 4 years

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What's it Like to Travel in Oman?

I wanted Oman to be exotic. To not desire anywhere else we’d been before (a challenge after eight years on the road). Maybe almost slap-you-in-the-face India different, but pleasantly bewildering Japan different.

When we received Muscat airport it did feel unfamiliar initially. The locals wear ankle-length gowns—white dishdasha with turbans for men and black abaya for ladies. the toilet featured squat toilets and was a busy mess of girls chattering in Arabic.

Then we walked into the arrival hall and were greeted with a Costa coffee and WH Smiths, two British chains that we rarely see outside the united kingdom.

Oman may be a modern, wealthy country. it's going to have only gained its wealth with oil money within the 1970s and been closed to tourists until the 1980s, but in Muscat, you'll now find Pizza Hut and Starbucks and supermarkets stocked all our favorite British chocolates, alongside the shiny mosques, bustling souqs, and straightforward Indian cafes.

I was a touch disappointed by this initially. Muscat felt very easy and not the exotic destination I’d hoped for. Simon, on the opposite hand, took comfort within the familiar and happily gorged on bags of Minstrels and Toffee Crisp Bites, treats we hadn’t had for a year.

Despite its modernization, Oman isn’t all chain restaurants and shopping malls, and that we found that the further faraway from the towns we traveled, when Starbucks was replaced by basic coffee shops and goats grazed by the side of the road, the more we enjoyed it.

I find Oman harder to explain than other places we’ve visited, perhaps because we struggled to urge under its skin on a brief trip, perhaps because it's fewer obvious attractions than more popular destinations. I even have no snappy answer to the question of what Oman was like, but here are our impressions after a 10-day road trip around the north of the country.

Where is Oman? The Sultanate of Oman isn’t a well-known tourist destination so you would possibly be wondering where exactly it's. Oman is found on the Arabian Peninsula and shares borders with the United Arab Emirates to the northwest, Saudi Arabia to the west, and Yemen to the southwest.

It’s Easy and Safe We found Oman a simple country to travel in, but you are doing need a car as conveyance is restricted. many of us speak English; the roads are generally quiet, tarmacked, and in good condition; and crime rates are very low. We felt safe and never worried about theft or scams or experienced any hassle. Oman is one of the foremost stable countries to travel within the Middle East.

Muscat isn't Dubai

Despite the large highways and shopping malls, Muscat may be a low key capital with none of the glitz or skyscrapers of neighboring Dubai. the town is extremely opened up between the jagged mountains and therefore the sea. the flamboyant houses, upmarket restaurants, and long stretch of beach of the diplomatic area Qurum feel very different from a budget Indian restaurants, busy shopping streets, and medieval forts along the corniche of Mutrah. There aren’t many major attractions but the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque does live up to its name and is one among the simplest places to go to in Oman.

People Oman may be a Muslim country so you’ll see many mosques hear the decision to prayer five times each day (expect to be woken at dawn), and won’t find alcohol in most restaurants and shops. 46% of the 4.5 million population are expatriates, primarily from the Indian Subcontinent.

We found the people friendly but fairly reserved, especially the ladies who didn’t usually acknowledge us, while men in villages and on hikes would say hello. I'm wondering if this can are different if I were traveling alone.

Oman is an absolute monarchy. Sultan Qaboos bin Said al Said has been ruling the country since 1970—the third-longest current reigning monarch within the world. He rose to power after overthrowing his father and proceeded to finish Oman’s isolation and make huge changes to modernize and develop the country by building schools, hospitals, ports, and a road and telecommunications network.

Landscape and Towns Oman is 82% desert and that we experienced it in many forms from the rolling dunes of Wahiba Sands to the rocky barren mountains around Nizwa and therefore the sandy beaches of Sur. Goats, camels, and donkeys are often seen wandering by the side of the road in additional rural areas.

Most of the towns are fairly modern and not particularly attractive. There are many aged mud hut villages you'll visit, but most are abandoned and are in ruins. Misfat Al Abriyeen is one of the few that are still inhabited.

I loved the matter-of-fact shop signs in Oman proclaiming their purpose like “sell foodstuffs”.

If you're a lover of forts, you’ll love Oman as every town has one among these sandcastle-like buildings, many many years old.

One of our favorite things about Oman was the oases that hack the bleakness of the desert with patches of vibrant green date palms.

Some of the oases are found in wadis—dry ravines which sometimes contain glorious swimming holes of emerald water like at the stunning Wadi Bani Khalid.

Food Oman doesn’t have a robust food culture and traditional Omani food mostly consists of meat and rice. Despite this, it’s easy to be vegetarian as most restaurants serve either Indian food, where there's always dahl and vegetable curries or Arabic/Turkish food with hummus, salads, flatbread and other mezze on offer.

We were proud of the straightforward meals we ate, but it isn’t a foodie destination, and there aren’t many stand-out restaurants. the foremost commonplace to eat maybe a basic cafe serving fast-food dishes with aspirational menus—they usually didn’t have everything on the menu but we're happy to suggest vegetarian options for us.

Surprisingly Oman does have fantastic supermarkets. We loved Lulu Hypermarket and once we had an apartment in Nizwa we self-catered from the prepared food section with dahl, curries, salads, hummus, bread then far more. it had been better and cheaper than most restaurants.

One culinary enjoyment of Oman is dating, which is grown there. they're cheap and delicious and served with traditional Omani coffee in tiny cups.

It’s Quite Expensive Oman has made the conscious decision to focus on the upper-end travel market instead of backpackers. We found accommodation particularly expensive, especially considering everywhere we stayed in was functional instead of special. the foremost interesting place we stayed was the straightforward but atmospheric Desert Retreat Camp in the Wahiba Sands.

Some gorgeous new hotels are opening up as tourism increases, just like the Alila Jabal Akhdar, but you've got to pay many pounds an evening for any style.

We spent £134 ($173/€145) each day for 2 people with 51% of our budget on accommodation. We found food inexpensive outside hotels and it cost us but £14 each day (not including the meals that were included in two of our hotels), petrol is a smaller amount than 40p a liter, and our favorite activities—hikes and wadis—were free.

The cheapest thanks to traveling Oman would be to wild camp free of charge because it is legal in most of the country.

It’s Not Busy But Tourism is Growing It’s easy to urge off the beaten track in Oman. We visited in peak season and traveled the foremost common tourist route, but there have been still only a couple of foreign tourists at the main sights—usually, older Europeans (British, French, German, Italians) traveling as a few with a guide/driver or in small tour groups. There was just one other guest at our desert camp and that we had two of the foremost popular hikes within the country to ourselves by starting at 8 am. If you stray just a touch from the favored attractions you’ll be the sole foreigner around.

Tourism in Oman is growing, though, so now's the time to go to.

What to Wear in Oman Locals dress modestly and visitors must do too—there’s no got to cover your hair (except women when visiting mosques), but both men and ladies should cover their shoulders and knees, and in additional conservative areas I preferred to hide my arms and legs too. I usually wore linen trousers or jeans and a loose sleeve shirt.

The weather in Oman in December was perfect—about 25ºC and sunny during the day, with cooler nights. you're doing need warm clothes if you are rising the mountains—the nights on Jebel Shams were on the brink of freezing.

Do We Recommend Visiting Oman? Yes, we recommend visiting Oman. If it’s your first visit to the center East, I might probably recommend Jordan instead because it has more major sights and better food. But if you're looking to urge off the beaten track during a safe country Oman may be a great choice. If you're a lover of desert, forts, wild camping, and adventurous 4WD trails, Oman would be perfect.

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zcnadm · 7 years

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Trump’s America already looks like an African kleptocracy

Here’s a story that may sound familiar: A leader soars to power on a populist message; his party calls him the “people’s candidate.” He promises to bring prosperity to the poor, vilifying immigrants in the process. Yet once in power, he amasses extraordinary wealth for himself. He hands over the country’s largest state-owned oil company to his daughter, who becomes the richest woman in Africa as he gets challenged in court for nepotism.

I’m talking about José Eduardo dos Santos, who has ruled Angola for 37 years by silencing critics while racking up a fortune for himself and his family. But I could easily be describing any number of Africa’s corrupt leaders — Robert Mugabe in Zimbabwe, for instance, or Omar al-Bashir in Sudan — who rule on bribery, cronyism, nepotism and embezzlement.

“It’s going to be hard to speak with moral authority on corruption and on nepotism because visually, it’s clear that there is nepotism and corruption in the Trump camp.”

For decades, America has pressured dictators in Africa to embrace democracy and the rule of law. Now, the joke’s on us. With a couple weeks until inauguration, Donald Trump is already drawing from a similar playbook.

Two aid workers and two U.S. diplomats working in Africa and the Middle East who spoke on condition of anonymity to protect their jobs said Trump’s behavior is making their jobs more difficult. At least two sources said their meetings have been more contentious since the election, with foreign counterparts asking why they should embrace democracy if Trump himself doesn’t play by the rules.

“It’s going to be hard to speak with moral authority on corruption and on nepotism because visually, it’s clear that there is nepotism and corruption in the Trump camp,” said Shadi Hamid, senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and author of Islamic Exceptionalism: How the Struggle Over Islam is Reshaping the World. “His children are very involved in business, but also are advising him on policy.”

One issue is Trump’s failure to disentangle himself from his unprecedented conflicts of interest. Initially, Trump tweeted that he would be “leaving [his] businesses before January 20” to “focus full time on the presidency.”

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Presidency. Two of my children, Don and Eric, plus executives, will manage them. No new deals will be done during my term(s) in office.

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It’s now clear he does not plan to divest from his businesses and put his stake in a blind trust, even though presidents from both parties have done so for four decades. Trump says his sons Donald Trump, Jr. and Eric Trump will take over the family business in his stead. Yet they, along with his daughter Ivanka Trump and her husband, Jared Kushner, have been intimately involved in transition meetings. In one case, the New York Times reported Ivanka Trump closed a business deal with a Japanese clothing company while she sat in on her father’s recent meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. The Japanese government is the largest investor in the company.

This kind of behavior has been the hallmark of African kleptocracies for decades. President Robert Mugabe in Zimbabwe, for example, appointed his son-in-law to run the country’s largest national airline.

Yet Trump has dismissed concerns about his personal conflicts of interest (or those of his proposed cabinet members like CEO of Exxon Rex Tillerson). “You people are making that a big deal — the business,” the president-elect recently told the press outside Mar-a-Lago. “It is a very routine thing. It is not a big deal.”

Then there’s the issue of pay-for-play — offering services in exchange for money — which is another favorite practice of African kleptocrats. The Emoluments Clause of the Constitution prohibits presidents from receiving gifts from foreign governments without approval from Congress.

But foreign officials are already trying to win over Trump by doing him favors. The embassy of Kuwait moved an expensive event to Trump’s D.C. hotel after pressure from his transition team. Trump’s decade-long trademark dispute with China got resolved in his favor just several days after he was elected president. Even before election night, Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte appointed a new trade envoy to the U.S. who happened to be Trump’s business partner in Manila.

“That hasn’t been possible in the U.S.,” said Ian Bremmer, a political scientist and president of the Eurasia Group, a political consulting firm. “But now, other governments and corporate leaders will think that the way they can work best with the U.S. government is by throwing something to the Trump organization.”

The irony, of course, is that this is exactly the kind of corruption that Trump attacked Hillary Clinton for over the course of the election, when he slammed her for engaging in pay-for-play with Clinton Foundation donors as Secretary of State.

The United States’ ability to project democracy across the world has been on the decline for decades. And yet, countries still look to America for leadership. What the U.S. says and how it acts on the global stage carries weight. As President Barack Obama recently cautioned in his final press conference of 2016, America is a much stronger country than Russia, but “they can impact us if we lose track of who we are, if we abandon our values.”

President Barack Obama conducts his final press conference of 2016. Source: Olivier Douliery/AP

This is almost certain to happen under President Donald Trump. “The U.S. is no longer going to be seen as the voice for liberal democracy,” Hamid said. “Now, the U.S. may be seen as promoting illiberal democracy abroad.”

Opposition to Trump’s conflicts will not come from this Republican-controlled Congress. On Tuesday, House Republicans secretly voted to weaken the Office of Congressional Ethics, which investigates corruption allegations against members of Congress. After a vociferous backlash, they reversed course.

Most members tell me blizzard of angry constituent calls were most impt factor in getting the House to sideline the amdt

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What’s clear from the episode is the only way to rein in Trump will be everyday citizens speaking up.

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