After 146 days, the Writer's Strike has ended with a resounding success. Throughout constant attempts by the studios to threaten, gaslight, and otherwise divide the WGA, union members stood strong and kept fast in their demands. The result is a historic win guaranteeing not only pay increases and residual guarantees, but some of the first serious restrictions on the use of AI in a major industry.

This win is going to have a ripple effect not only throughout Hollywood but in all industries threatened by AI and wage reduction. Studio executives tried to insist that job replacement through AI is inevitable and wage increases for staff members is not financially viable. By refusing to give in for almost five long months, the writer's showed all of the US and frankly the world that that isn't true.

Organizing works. Unions work. Collective bargaining how we bring about a better future for ourselves and the next generation, and the WGA proved that today. Congratulations, Writer's Guild of America. #WGAstrong!!!

breaking news 🗞️

After 146 days, the Writer's Strike has ended with a resounding success. Throughout constant attempts by the studios to threaten, gaslight, and otherwise divide the WGA, union members stood strong and kept fast in their demands. The result is a historic win guaranteeing not only pay increases and residual guarantees, but some of the first serious restrictions on the use of AI in a major industry.

This win is going to have a ripple effect not only throughout Hollywood but in all industries threatened by AI and wage reduction. Studio executives tried to insist that job replacement through AI is inevitable and wage increases for staff members is not financially viable. By refusing to give in for almost five long months, the writer's showed all of the US and frankly the world that that isn't true.

Organizing works. Unions work. Collective bargaining how we bring about a better future for ourselves and the next generation, and the WGA proved that today. Congratulations, Writer's Guild of America. #WGAstrong!!!

One of the most popular misconceptions about black history is that over time, America has gradually become less racist and more tolerant. That is not true. Since y'all want a BHM thread, here's a thread about the evolution of racism in America. First, let's dispel a few wrong beliefs. The first enslaved Africans did not arrive in 1619. They were just the first to arrive in the English colonies. Nearly a century earlier, in 1526, 600 Europeans founded the colony of San Miguel de Gualdape in what's now Georgetown, SC.

They brought enslaved Africans along with them too. But those slaves revolted damn near as soon as they arrived. That's right the first slave rebellion predates the Mayflower. Still, we must dispel another notion that American slavery was like British Slavery. Not quite. America's race-based slavery was different.

First of all, Great Britain never codified slavery into its laws. While it was never illegal, it was never illegal, it was never ensconced onto the Constitution like the "land of the free and the home of the brave." Secondly, the British slave trade wasn't exclusively race-based like America's. The British had enslaved people of every color, including buying slaves from the Barbary pirates, who enslaved people from Europe, the Middle East, Northern Africa and even Asia. When the 20 & Odd Negroes arrived in America, there WERE some indentured servants already here.

But the TWICE-stolen Africans, who came here couldn't read, write or speak the language. So, instead of treating them like indentured servants who were providing free labor, these white Virginians changed the game. The African's didn't get contractual periods of servitude. This new brand of white people were like: "Freedom? Oh, we don't do that over here." Then in 1640, an enslaved African ran away, along with 2 European indentured servants. A Virginia court sentenced them to 30 lashes and extended the white dudes' period of servitude by 1 year.

But the black guy got a different sentence: "...and that the third being a negro named John Punch shall serve his said master or his assigns for the time of his natural Life here or elsewhere." Remember, there were STILL more indentured white servants than enslaved blacks. In 1642 it got WORSE, not better, when the Virginia legislature declared that the children of enslaved black women would ALSO be enslaved. Then, those SC negroes made it even worse. In 1739, a group of enslaved Kongol soldiers formed their own army and started marching.One of the most popular misconceptions about black history is that over time, America has gradually become less racist and more tolerant. That is not true. Since y'all want a BHM thread, here's a thread about the evolution of racism in America. First, let's dispel a few wrong beliefs. The first enslaved Africans did not arrive in 1619. They were just the first to arrive in the English colonies. Nearly a century earlier, in 1526, 600 Europeans founded the colony of San Miguel de Gualdape in what's now Georgetown, SC.

They brought enslaved Africans along with them too. But those slaves revolted damn near as soon as they arrived. That's right the first slave rebellion predates the Mayflower. Still, we must dispel another notion that American slavery was like British Slavery. Not quite. America's race-based slavery was different.

First of all, Great Britain never codified slavery into its laws. While it was never illegal, it was never illegal, it was never ensconced onto the Constitution like the "land of the free and the home of the brave." Secondly, the British slave trade wasn't exclusively race-based like America's. The British had enslaved people of every color, including buying slaves from the Barbary pirates, who enslaved people from Europe, the Middle East, Northern Africa and even Asia. When the 20 & Odd Negroes arrived in America, there WERE some indentured servants already here.

But the TWICE-stolen Africans, who came here couldn't read, write or speak the language. So, instead of treating them like indentured servants who were providing free labor, these white Virginians changed the game. The African's didn't get contractual periods of servitude. This new brand of white people were like: "Freedom? Oh, we don't do that over here." Then in 1640, an enslaved African ran away, along with 2 European indentured servants. A Virginia court sentenced them to 30 lashes and extended the white dudes' period of servitude by 1 year.

But the black guy got a different sentence: "...and that the third being a negro named John Punch shall serve his said master or his assigns for the time of his natural Life here or elsewhere." Remember, there were STILL more indentured white servants than enslaved blacks. In 1642 it got WORSE, not better, when the Virginia legislature declared that the children of enslaved black women would ALSO be enslaved. Then, those SC negroes made it even worse. In 1739, a group of enslaved Kongol soldiers formed their own army and started marching.

As they marched, other enslaved Africans joined in. Led by a literate black man named Jemmy, they burned six plantations and killed two dozen white people. The Stono Rebellion scared so many white South Carolinians, they passed the Negro Act of 1740. It forbade slaves from gethering in one place, growing food and learning how to read. States across the South began passing similar laws. While outlawing reading and writing was significant, these laws had another provision.

They required communities to patrol for runaway slaves. SC had already created one of the nation's first slave patrols in 1704. But this time, they made it mandatory. In 1757, Georgia followed suit. In 1792, Ga even prohibited slaves from worshiping GOD. These slave patrol rolls were the bases of the state militias that fought in the Revolution. After America won the Revolutionary war, I'm sure slavery got better, right? As one well-known state senator from the great state of Maryland once said: "Sheeeeeit."

First, the states enshrined slavery into the Constitution. Many people point to the 3/5ths clause and forget about the FIRST restriction that the constitution placed on Congress in Article 1 Section 9: "We're gonna keep this slave trade thing going for at least 20 more years." This might not seem like a long time to you. But when the Constitution was ratified, the average life expectancy in the US was 38 years old. And, if you notice, the Constitution doesn't specifically mention the words "slavery" or "slave."

That's because the founders KNEW it was an evil institution. They KNEW it would eventually end. They just wanted to preserve it FOR THEM. Let's pause for a minute. Whenever we talk about black history and early America, we mention slavery. Some people will argue that America wasn't a white supremacist country. They'll even argue that slavery was a necessary evil. That should mean free black citizens had all the same rights as regular citizens, right? Hold up. Let me stop laughing.

This is the EXACT history that I'm talking about. The first free black people in the US had all the rights and privileges that were afforded everywhere else. There were places allowed black landowners to vote. By the Declaration of Independence, only white landowners could vote. Then the Constitution allowed states to choose, and most states allowed white landowners who owned a certain amount of property, but some, including NY, Penn and NJ, allowed free black property owners to vote. Then those states took THAT RIGHT away!

The 1790 Naturalization Act limited citizenship to any "free white person...of good character." By the time the Civil War rolled around, any white man could vote. SHOW ME WHERE WHITE SUPREMACY EVER DECREASED! At the end of the Civil War, the 13th Amendment Abolished slavery, the 14th granted black people citizenship and the 15th guaranteed them the right to vote. A LOT of people believe this is when Jim Crow began. Those people are wrong. ~ @michaelharriot

LUVD

Summary: Adora can read the First Ones’ language. Hordak cannot. (Entrapta has some explaining to do.)

CW: This is fluff with hurt/comfort elements, featuring Hordak’s self-esteem issues, panic attacks, and rage.

A/N: Probably the last drabble I can manage before the final season drops. See you guys on the other side. (Again, I’m sorry for the readmore. I tried. The mobile app is garbage, but I wrote the drabble on my phone, so what are you gonna do?)

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[[MORE]]

The alliance had, reluctantly, asked Hordak to come to Bright Moon. An issue had arisen amongst the clones that had decided to settle there—and wasn’t that a wonder? they had decided—and apparently, neither the Queen nor her princesses were able to resolve it, and Swift Wind had, somehow, made the matter worse. Hordak had been somewhat reluctant, as he and Entrapta were in the middle of a time-sensitive experiment, but he had an obligation to go. He was the clones’ ‘cultural ambassador’—or some such nonsense; he hadn’t paid much attention to the title itself—and fulfilling that role was part of his reparations to Etheria. It was hard to go alone, but Entrapta didn’t really need him for the experiment, and she promised to record the whole thing for him to review when he returned.

So he went. While he worked with the clones—who had begun to collectively call themselves ‘Kin’ rather than ‘Horde’—he stayed in Bright Moon’s castle. The Queen insisted it was to honor his status. Hordak was fairly sure it was so they could keep a close eye on him. He was also fairly sure that’s why they had invited the She-Ra—or, rather, her avatar—as well.

He didn’t mind working with Adora. She was intelligent and efficient—and if a small part of him was proud of her conditioning, he certainly wasn’t going to mention that to anyone—but he really didn’t enjoy the way she looked at him at times. Or, rather, the way she looked at the crystal that powered his armor. He often caught her staring at it, and his hand frequently lifted to cover it on its own, before he was conscious of the action. He then felt obliged to clear his throat and do something else with his hand because this was ridiculous and he was making it worse.

He didn’t even know why she was staring, until he was nearly done with his work with the Kin. She was pretending to be busy, while in reality, she was minding him, and Hordak was actually busy, looking over the contested village plans. He sighed, crossing something out and re-writing it elsewhere. “So, how’s it going?” she asked.

He snorted in disgust. “While I am glad that my kindred are starting to form their own personalities and are becoming comfortable seeking out the things they want for themselves, I am afraid they are also going to have to come to understand that the nature of compromise means that they can’t all get what they want all the time. This should not have been as complicated as they made it out to be.”

She laughed a little, the sound shy and unsure. He ignored it; he hadn’t been joking, and he didn’t understand why she thought that was funny. “Yeah. I guess so.” She rocked on her toes a little, and suddenly, she was sidling over, invading his space. He straightened, perturbed by her proximity. She was looking at his crystal again. He clenched his hand to keep from covering it protectively. “How about you? You and Entrapta are...getting pretty close? Right?”

He narrowed his eyes. “I fail to see why that is any of your business. Move—you’re in my light.”

“Oh, sorry.” She stepped aside, though not very far. He gave her another suspicious glare before returning to the plans. “Uh, did Entrapta tell you I could read the First Ones’ language?”

He sighed. He did not engage in ‘small talk’. He didn’t see the point of it, but Entrapta had asked him to be nice, so he would answer the avatar’s vapid questions. “No, she did not. I do not believe she thought it would be relevant.” He said the last word very pointedly, hoping she might take the hint.

She did not. “Oh. Well. I can.” She looked at him very deliberately as she said it. His ears twitched before he returned his attention to the plans.

“How nice for you,” he said, taking care to keep his tone neutral and polite.

“Ugh! Hordak, I can read what your crystal says, okay?!”

Unable to stop himself, he cupped his hand over it. “I have no idea what you mean—it doesn’t say anything.”

Her eyes went wide and her cheeks flushed a deep scarlet. “Oh. She didn’t...tell you...?” She swallowed. “Never mind! My mistake—you’re right, it doesn’t say anything!”

He caught her arm as she tried to leave. “What does it say?” he demanded, looming over her.

“Well. Um. It’s not really a word? It’s letters that sound like a word.” His ears flattened.

“What. Does. It. Say?”

She swallowed. “L-U-V-D.” He narrowed his eyes. “Loved—it says ‘loved’. She really never told you?”

It felt like he couldn’t breathe.

“Hordak?”

He pushed her away, hearing the pounding of his hearts echo in his ears. “You’re mistaken.”

“Uh? No? I’m really not. Look, it’s a She-Ra thing; I can—“

“I don’t care!” he snarled, the writing stylus snapping between his fingers. “You are mistaken! It is either an unfortunate acronym or merely a coincidence. Regardless, it doesn’t mean ‘loved’—it doesn’t mean anything!” He straightened, trying to steady his breathing. “And I expect you to keep your ridiculous suspicions to yourself. Do you realize how badly you could damage Entrapta’s reputation by implying—?” He exhaled hard and leveled a hard look at her. “She does not need you wrecking everything she has built.”

The avatar stared back at him with wide eyes. “Have you talked to Entrapta about this?” she asked after a moment.

“There is nothing to talk about.”

“Hordak—“

With a snarl, he dodged her outstretched hand and stormed off. “We’re done.”

“Hordak, wait! Can we just—“

“I said we’re done!”

He returned to the castle, too frazzled to continue his work. He paced in his assigned room, hissing at Imp when he gave a curious chirp. Imp left with an abundance of angry chattering as he sought out more pleasant company. Hordak couldn’t blame him—he knew he wasn’t at his best when he was like this. He’d been working on controlling his temper, but the urge to start breaking things was strong.

He shut his eyes, trying to breathe through the rage. How dare she? How dare she?! Did she realize what such rumors would do to Entrapta? To Dryl? They weren’t some isolated nation—they were at best a city-state and heavily reliant on their trade agreements with their neighbors. Neighbors he had attacked and conquered!

Was this their revenge, then? To use Hordak to ruin Entrapta’s reputation, to destroy her small country’s economy? To play with his emotions, taunting him with—?

One of his vambraces started to spark, shocking him. He ripped it off with a roar and tossed it across the room, his breathing rapid and ragged.

Just then, his communicator started beeping. Entrapta. Something like relief wrapped him. Of course! He should have contacted her immediately! He turned on the monitor, barely waiting for her features to resolve when he said, “Good; we have something to discuss.”

“Oh. Yeah. Adora called me and—“

“I think we can get ahead of the rumors if we—“

“—said she told you about—“

“—form a plan. We’ll need to re-affirm your trade agreements—“

“Wait. Trade agreements?”

He nodded, glad she was listening. He started to pace as he laid out his plan. “Yes! You need to ratify your agreements, strengthen the bonds with your closest allies.” He beat one fist against his unarmored palm. “We have some inventions that might be useful to the others as well, things that other kingdoms can use. If we produce blueprints, show them how to—“

“Hordak.”

“—make them, we can endear ourselves to some of the kingdoms that—“

“Hordak.”

“—would be particularly upset by these rumors.” He hesitated. “You ought to...start seeing suitors.” It felt like his chest was being compressed. “That would certainly quell any rumors of—“

“Hordak.”

“—of impropriety.”

“Hordak!”

He looked at the monitor. “What?”

“Will you take a breath?” He blinked. “Just. A deep breath. Like this—“ She inhaled. Through pursed lips, as if trying to keep the air in, she said, “And hold it.”

Not sure why she’d ask this of him but trusting her nonetheless, he filled his lungs and held his breath. Entrapta nodded. “Good. That’s good. Now exhale real slow—like this.” She demonstrated, and he mimicked her.

“What was the purpose of that?”

“To calm you down. You were panicking.”

“I do not panic!”

“Why don’t you take another deeeep breath?”

“I DO NOT NEED TO BREATHE!” She raised a brow, and his words caught up to him. “Perhaps, you aren’t...incorrect.”

“You think?” He shot her a look, but let her walk him through some more breathing exercises. Finally, it felt like the band of steel wrapping his chest had loosened. Smiling fondly, Entrapta said, “Okay. Why don’t we try this again? Adora called me. She said she told you what the crystal says.”

“Yes. I’m concerned. Our...working relationship is bound to spark rumors, regardless of whether or not the She-Ra’s keeps her suspicions to herself. It’s something we should have considered before, as it will likely have broader effects on your kingdom.”

She started to play with her hair. “O-oh. So. You...don’t...? You don’t mind that it says ‘LUVD’? You aren’t...? Confused? Or...?”

He waved that off. “Entrapta, I know it doesn’t mean anything. It’s not as if you wrote it—“

“I did.”

“You?”

“Wrote it.”

“Oh. Well. I’m sure you didn’t mean—“

“I did.”

He blinked. It felt like he was drifting. Like his body was no longer tethered by gravity. “‘Loved’? You meant? That?”

She nodded, then smiled weakly. “Um. Yeah.”

“Oh.” He sat heavily on the bed. “I.” He touched the crystal.

“I didn’t really mean for you to find out. Definitely not like this. I figured that maybe if....” She lowered her welding mask.

“If?”

“I would have told you. If I thought you returned my feelings.” Her hair rubbed at her upper arm.

“I—“ His tongue felt thick. Cumbersome. His breathing was shallow and too fast. “What if. I did?”

She lifted her mask, eyeing him. “Is this just a thought experiment? Or...?”

He swallowed. “I have. Reason to be invested in your answer. What if I returned your feelings?” He couldn’t believe what he was saying, couldn’t believe he was allowing himself to entertain the idea that Entrapta.

Loved.

Him.

“Well.” She rolled the word around, tasting it. Her mouth quirked in a small smile. “We’d probably need to implement some of your ideas to keep our trade agreements in place. And.” She held onto her hair, combing one lock with her fingers. “Maybe go on a date?”

He just stared at the screen. Stunned. He swallowed, ears lowered. “I think I will ask if they can manage the rest without me. I would like to return home and continue this conversation in person.” He looked down. “I believe I will also offer an apology to the She-Ra.”

“Yeah. I think I might owe her a thank you.”

Entrapta smiled at him, and he nodded his agreement, rendered mute by the weight of his feelings.

His fingers traced over the crystal af his throat.

LUVD.

He was.

Loved.

(And he loved in return.)

Public domain and fair use

I just corrected a post saying that characters cannot be copyrighted. This may be correct for the country that one writeblr is in, but it’s not a universal truth. For my country for example, characters are definitely copyrighted, and they may be in yours as well.

For fanfiction and stuff, most authors don’t seem to mind fanfiction (or don’t know of it), but especially if you’re gonna make money from your creative work, make sure to do it legally.

Since I took copyright law as a course in university during my editing degree, I thought I would like to clear things up.

First of all: what is this “public domain”?

Public domain are all the creative works on which there are no (more) copyrights. These works are free to use, without paying, without needing permission from the author/creator and without being sued.

What works does the public domain contain?

There are three ways a creative work (text, painting, song, dress, installation, video...) can be entered into the public domain.

The biggest group: after some time, copyright expires. Most countries adhere to the Berne Convention, which state that a work is copyrighted until 50 to 70 years after the death of the creator. Be careful, because there are exceptions. In America, descendants of creators have successfully extended the copyright period.

Some authors waiver their copyrights: they explicitly say this work does not have any copyrights and it immediately enters public domain. (The equivalent of making your book open source.)

The works have never been copyrighted. In almost all the countries of the Berne convention, an author automaticly owns the copyright from the moment they create the work. But in the USA, an author only has copyright if they register it. Also in this group: some types of work can never be copyrighted: recipes, facts, ideas, some government texts etc. The idea is that they are not creative works. Note on the “facts and ideas”: these are things like a trope or a historical event, not sources on the event or books in which the trops is used.

Some warnings

Be careful that you covered all the bases. For example, suppose you want to use a specific song in your YouTube clip. You make sure you pick an old song, but is that enough? The lyrics of a song may be old enough to be in public domain, but the music has a separate copyright on it (when did the composer die?), and if you use a specific version (e.g. a recent cover), the executor of the song also has copyrights on that version. But if you want to use that same song in your book, you only need to check if the lyrics are in the public domain, because you’re not using the melody.

Second warning: Disney is know to be really greedy in its copyrights. Please, do not meddle with Disney copyrights for commercial use. I heard they are eager to sue over copyrights, and every time I professionally worked for Disney, they scrutinized everything a hundredfold.

Third warning, to completely cover your bases: you have to adhere to the copyright law of the country you write/publish in, not the country the author is from.

Even in your country?

Disclaimer: I did some research before writing this post, and I hope I wrote something that is true over the whole world, but please, do your own research for your specific country if you want to be 100% sure.

Also, the Berne Convention is ratified by 177 countries at the moment of writing. Maybe you live in one of the 18 countries who haven’t.

What if you want to use a creative work that is not in the public domain?

Well, then you’re gonna have to ask permission from all the people who own the copyright. And yes, it’s your legal duty to contact them, not the other way around. You contact them, describe what you want to use their work for and ask for permission.

If you’re lucky, they say you can use it for free. That happens more often than you think, especially if your work has no commercial use. But please, get this in writing so you have proof in case they change their mind. An e-mail counts as proof in most countries.

Sometimes the creator(s) agree(s), but they want you to pay. If you still want to go through with it, that’s up to you. Make sure you have this agreement in writing, and keep a copy of payment proof.

Sometimes they flat-out refuse, and there’s nothing legal you can do about it, except for wait for them to die, and then wait another 70 years.

So, which characters can you use NOW?

“Now” being 2019. You can safely use characters from:

Greek and Roman mythology

1001 nights

Robin Hood

Fairy tales by the Brothers Grimm

Fairy tales by Andersen

Dracula by Bram Stoker

Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Connan Doyle

Junglebook by Kipling

Most wild west characters

Most local myths like King Arthur in the UK, or Don Quichot in Spain

Most religious texts older than 70 years (This post doesn’t say anything about offending people!)

Most characters from books by authors who died before 1949. In 2020, this will be “before 1950″, etc, obviously.

Let me remind you: Hercules the Greek character is in the public domain, Hercules the character from the Disney movie is most definitely not.

It is also not permitted to use a copyrighted character and just change its name. “Character” applies to the whole of the character, not just its name.

I hope this was useful for you. Happy writing!

Don’t hesitate to ask me for more writing advice, but keep in mind I’m not a lawyer, I’m an editor.

The completely unnecessary news analysis

by Christopher Smart

February 18, 2020

BERNIE BROS BE PISSED & WHAT’S WRONG WITH THE ERA

Supporters of Bernie Sanders are more than a little chafed at other Democrats who are taking an “anyone-but-Bernie” stance and they're letting folks know in no uncertain terms: “you A-holes.” Supporters of Bloomberg, Buttigieg, Klobachar, Warren and Biden say Bernie can't beat Trump because the Name-Caller-In-Chief will label him as a Marxist dog and scare the bejesus out of voters. Many also say Mayor Pete can't beat Trump because he's gay. Rush Limbaugh already has started in on Buttigieg for kissing his husband in public. Oh, Lordy. Evangelicals are hugging their Bibles. Elizabeth Warren has dropped in the polls, largely because she has a plan for just about everything and that's confusing to American voters who hate details. They're more into stuff like, “Make America Great Again.” Poor Joe Biden has hit the skids, too. Old Joe's jokes have gotten stale and aviator sunglasses have gone out of style. Amy Klobuchar is a good, Midwestern woman with a nice smile who knows how to milk a cow. But she's a little too nice and doesn't have the money that Michael Bloomberg has. And now we find out that the New York billionaire had the horribly racist “Stop-N-Frisk” policing policy when he was mayor of the Big Apple, so he can't get the African-American vote. And it's just been revealed that Bloomberg hates babies and puppies. But hey, don't lose hope: The staff here at Smart Bomb has come up with a bumpersticker for Dems: “Miracles Do Happen.”

WHAT'S WRONG WITH THE ERA

It's been 48 years since the Equal Rights Amendment was submitted to Congress in October 1971. It passed both houses and was ratified by 35 of the necessary 38 states. But it died after a decade of fierce debate. The arguments in the Beehive State were as contentious as anywhere. In the end, Utah did not ratify. Why not? What's wrong with an amendment that seeks equal rights for women and men? Our crack research team here at Smart Bomb dove into the archives to find the answers then and now:

1 – If the ERA becomes law, women will have to use urinals.

2 – If the ERA becomes law, men will have to wear bras and lipstick and fix dinner.

3 – God created special roles for men and women: men wear pants and drink beer; women wear skirts and drink tea (and don't belch).

4 – If the ERA passes, women will have to go into combat and share foxholes with horny men without condoms who are trained to kill.

5 – If the ERA is ratified, women can become president. Yikes!

6 – If the ERA becomes law, workplace sex could cease to exist.

7 – Or, it could mean that workplace sex would get out of control with women jumping men in the utility closet. OMG.

8 – If the ERA becomes a reality, young Mormon women will go on religious missions.

9 – If the ERA is ratified, women will become astronauts and orbit the Earth and feel superior to men.

10 – And the very worst part of the ERA, according to Utah Sen. Mike Lee, is that it is part of a “radical pro-abortion agenda.” Yeah, damnit, it's “an Orwellian mischaracterization of what it would do,” Lee said, because it will allow women to have abortions but not men.

HEY, ALEXA, GET OUT OF MY FACE

Your friend Alexa, who helps you play music, turn off the TV and put on the bedroom lights, may not be as warm-hearted you think. Amazon has big plans for its virtual assistant. Sooner than you think, Alexa — or one of her siblings — will be directing our lives — it’ll interpret our data and make decisions for us, according to Rohit Prasad, the scientist in charge of Alexa‘s development. George Orwell was distressed about Big Brother, but he couldn't imagine we would willingly invite him or Big Sister into our lives with such giddy anticipation. The aim is to turn Alexa into an omnipresent companion that shapes our lives. You might find yourself in an argument with Alexa on what music to play or what to watch on TV or which car to buy. Yep, it's “2001: A Space Odyssey” all over again. HAL has collected all your data and now, there is no real reason for you to exist — well wait, Alexa does want your money, but you don't have to worry your lil’ head about that, she'll tell you how to spend it.

BILL BARR: I WON'T BE BULLIED

He's a strong, independent attorney general. President Donald Trump doesn't tell him what to do (except sometimes). Sure, there was that little thing with the Mueller Report that looked to nonpartisan legal beagles like a roadmap to impeachment that Barr announced was vindication. And there is that little matter of reviewing Michael Flynn's case, where he pleaded guilty to the FBI about his contacts with Russians. And just because the attorney general determined that Roger Stone's recommended sentence was far too harsh, doesn't mean he isn't independent.  The fact that Trump tweeted the same thing 12 hours earlier was just a coincidence. Bill Barr is a man of great integrity, depending, of course, on how you define it. OK, maybe critics, who say the Department of Justice is being politicized, have a point. But as President Trump insisted, he can do whatever he wants, including interceding in criminal trials, so it isn't corruption. Whether Bill Barr is an independent attorney general or not, really doesn't matter. (Well, actually it does matter but WTF.) And the president wants to know why that slut Andrew McCabe is off the hook. And why aren't James Comey, Peter Strzok and Lisa Page in jail along with Nancy Pelosi and Adam Schiff? Where is the justice?

Post Script — That was the week that was. And man, was it strange — that is to say, about normal for the age of Trump. Still, there is no better time to be a “Hooker For Jesus.” (We are not making this up.) DOJ officials rejected grant applications from Catholic Charities and Chicanos Por La Causa. Instead, according to Reuters, it gave more than $1 million to the Lincoln Tubman Foundation and Hookers for Jesus. Don't tell the Evangelicals, they'll freak. Speaking of sinners, Jim Jordan, the rabid congressman from Ohio, is about to be caught up in a sex scandal involving his old wrestling team at Ohio State. Bummer (no pun intended). And the hits just keep coming: Michael Avenatti, who gained fame representing Stormy Daniels, was found guilty of trying to extort $25 million from Nike. But unlike Roger Stone and Michael Flynn, he can't expect a pardon from Donald Trump. Down on the southern border, those darn coyotes already have come up with a new “camouflage ladder” to smuggle people and drugs over Trump's new border wall. The contraptions, made of old, rusted construction rebar, make the climb easy and can't be detected by cameras. Meanwhile, Trump has diverted another $3.8 billion in military funds for his signature achievement. (Mexico won't pay. Duh.) There's more — Trump is dispatching border patrol agents to Sanctuary Cities to root out them horrible immigrants who are doing all our scut work. Adn last but far from least, here in Utah, state legislators are feeling oh so generous after increasing from 0 to 25 percent Salt Lake City's share of property taxes from the Inland Port. That's better than a jab with a sharp stick, but not so charitable when you consider the city should get 100 percent of taxes from its own, damn land. And so it goes.

OK, Wilson, maybe you and the band can take us out with a little something hopeful for our immigrant friends and all the Democrats and everyone else who is on the verge of a nervous breakdown in the age of Trump:

Well, the oppressors are trying to keep me down / Trying to drive me underground / And they think that they have got the battle won / I say forgive them Lord, they know not what they've done / 'Cause, as sure as the sun will shine / I'm gonna get my share now, what's mine / And then the harder they come / The harder they fall, one and all / Ooh, the harder they come / Harder they fall, one and all...

division

Summary: “I would like to request a Captain America CW imagine where Y/n is Tony Stark’s daughter and she is best friends with Steve and she has to choose to sign or not sign the accords and she signs the accords because it’s what Tony wants so she fights alongside him and instead of Rhodes getting shot of the sky by the Falcon it’s Y/n and Tony is hurt because his daughter is paralyzed from the waist down and Steve feels guilty. Just a lot of fluff and angst.” (REQUESTED)

Warnings: Maybe spoilers for Captain America: Civil War, but it came out in 2016 so if you haven’t seen it by now…. what are you doing with yourself? Also, mild swearing

Pairing: Steve Rogers x Stark!Reader

Word count: 13,423

A/N: I really hope that whoever requested this enjoys it because holy shit it took forever 😂 Also just as a precaution, I did not proofread this because its almost 4 a.m. here and I’ve been working on this since 9 p.m. so yeah I’m really not having it. Anyway, hope you all enjoy!

     (Y/N) was sitting on the couch binge-watching Brooklyn 99 on Hulu when the team came home. She was always excited to hear what they had done when they returned. You see, she was Tony Stark’s daughter and while she was just a talented as he was, if not a little more, he wouldn’t allow her anywhere near any of their superhero business. That is the action part of it. She was actually behind the design of most of the equipment the team used today, but that still wasn’t enough for her. She wanted a piece of the action, so bad that she even created many prototypes of a suit for herself but every time it was brought up to her dad, he refused to allow her to further work on the project. That’s why she loved when the team came home from a mission, it gave her the chance to feel like she was apart of the action. Usually, when they came home they would be excited due to another mission’s success, but this time was not the same. They all came in, looking worn down and depressed. (Y/N) thought about going up to them and asking what happened, but she thought it best to let them settle in first. 

     After about an hour or so, (Y/N) couldn’t take it anymore and went to talk to someone about the mission. She approached his door and slowly knocked on it, but she was met with silence. She cracked the door open, just wide enough to poke her head through and she was met with Steve laying on his bed just staring at the ceiling, still in his uniform. She let herself in, shut the door behind her, walked over to his bed and sat down. “Hey” (Y/N) said softly pushing some of his hair out of his face, he didn’t say anything or look at her, he just remained silent. “I take it the mission didn’t go as planned.” (Y/N) said, trying to get some sort of reaction from him, but was met with nothing. “Alright, come here.” (Y/N) said getting up, walking in front of him and pulling his arms, forcing him to sit up. She pulled his head into her chest and wrapped her arms around him. He just leaned into her, completely limp, not wanting to put in the effort to hug her back. She played with his hair and whispered “You know, whatever happened out there, probably wasn’t your fault. You’re most likely beating yourself up for nothing.” “But it was my fault, I got distracted. A lot of people got hurt today because I couldn’t keep my focus.” Steve mumbled. (Y/N) pulled away from their embrace and put a hand under his chin to make him look up at her, “What distracted you?” she asked him. “Bucky,” Steve said, almost ashamed that that’s what distracted him. “He was there?” She asked, confused. “No, the guy we were fighting mentioned him, and I just lost my focus after that,” Steve admitted, feeling like shit. 

     (Y/N) knew how much Bucky had meant to Steve, she was Steve’s best friend after all. She knew all of Steve’s past, whether she found out through stories or nightmares he had and confided in her with. She understood why he got distracted and she knew just how much he was going to hate himself for it. “Well, no matter what happened out there, it’s in the past, and we can’t change what’s in the past. We can only hope to grow and learn from our mistakes so that we can do better in the future.” (Y/N) said “Now, let's get you cleaned up, because you reek.” she laughed, making him laugh. She went into his bathroom and ran him a bath, filling it with bubbles, and surrounding it with candles that she had stored under his sink, for such an occasion. She then went back into his room and said, “Now you’re gonna get in that bath, clean up, and relax. Don’t worry about all the bullshit that just happened, it’s no longer your concern. Your only concern is taking care of yourself.” and with that, she left him alone. When she left his room she ran into her father in the hallway. “Hey sweetie,” Tony said, pulling her into a hug. “Hey, dad, what’s up.” “Actually I’m trying to round everyone up because Secretary Ross is here and he has something very important to tell us. Is Steve in there?” Tony said pointing to Steve’s bedroom door. “Yeah, but I told him to get cleaned up and relax a little, he’s very upset right now.” Tony just nodded his head, understanding. “Well, when he’s done, let him know to join us in the conference room,” Tony said, leaving to go find the others. ‘I wonder what it could be about.’ (Y/N) thought to herself. 

     (Y/N) waited on Steve’s bed for him to come out of the bathroom. After about 30 minutes, Steve came out, a towel wrapped around his waist. He spotted (Y/N) and immediately froze, blushing when he remembered he was only in a towel. “(Y/N),” Steve cleared his throat, making her smirk. “Don’t worry Steve, I’m not looking at anything other than your eyes, like a true lady.” She winked playfully at him. “Secretary Ross is here and he wants to speak to everyone, so when you’re dressed, head to the conference room,” (Y/N) got up and patted him on the shoulder “Alright big guy?” Steve just nodded his head, and (Y/N) left, so that he could get ready and join them at the meeting. 

     Steve walked in to see (Y/N), Wanda, Vision, Rhodey, Tony, and Nat already sitting down and Ross standing at the head of the table. When he sat down, Ross began speaking “5 years ago, I had a heart attack, dropped, right in the middle of my ninth swing. Turns out it was the best round of my life because, after 13 hours of surgery and a triple bypass, I found something, 40 years in the army never taught me, perspective. The world owes the Avengers an un-payable debt. You have fought for us, protected us, risked your lives, but while a great many people see you as heroes, there are some, who would prefer the word, vigilantes.” (Y/N) turned to look at Steve’s reaction, he appeared calm, but (Y/N) could see the worry in his eyes. She then reached under the table and grabbed one of his hands, letting him play with her fingers. This was something that he would do now out of habit when he was anxious, and (Y/N)  loved to help him out with this simple gesture. Steve sent (Y/N) a kind and thankful smile. “What word would you use, Mr. Secretary?” Nat asked. “How about dangerous? What would you call a group of U.S. based, enhanced individuals, who routinely ignore sovereign borders, and inflict their will wherever they choose, and whom frankly don’t seem concerned by what they leave behind.” He then stepped to the side so everyone could see the screen behind him. A map then popped up showing New York, a video then played of the Battle of New York. (Y/N)’s breath hitched a little, thinking back to that awful day, knowing how much damage it caused to her dad made her heartache. The screen then switched to show Washington D.C., then Sakovia, and then the most recent, Lagos. (Y/N) gasped a little at the sight, not knowing that this is what made Steve so distraught. (Y/N) squeezed his hand a little, making sure he knew that she was there for him, no matter what that video showed. “The past 4 years, you’ve operated with unlimited power and no supervision. That’s something the governments of the world can no longer tolerate, but I think we have a solution.” Ross then turned to the man standing next to him and grabbed a book from him. Ross then set it down on the table in front of Wanda and said “The Sakovia Accords. Approved by 117 countries. It states the Avengers shall no longer be a private organization. Instead, they will operate under the supervision of the United Nations panel, only when and if that panel deems it necessary.” “The Avengers were formed to make the world a safer place, I feel we’ve done that,” Steve says. “Tell me, Captain, do you know where Thor and Banner are right now?” Ross said asking Steve, “If I miss-placed a couple 30 ton-mega nukes you can bet there’d be consequences. Compromise, reassurance, that’s how the world works. Believe me, this is the middle ground.” “So there are contingencies,” Rhodey asked “3 days from now the UN meets in Vienna to ratify the Accords. Talk it over.” “And if we come to a decision you don’t like?” Nat asked before Ross left the room. “Then you retire,” He said as he walked out. 

     They all eventually made their way to the living room, where Rhodey and Sam began having a debate about whether or not the accords were a good idea. Steve sat, reading the accords, with (Y/N) standing over his shoulder, reading with him. Tony sat on the other couch, looking like he would easily kill everyone in this room without a second thought, simply because of how annoyed he was. Nat, Wanda, and Vision sat elsewhere and simply listened to Rhodey and Sam’s argument. Suddenly, Vision blurts “I have an equation”, making everyone stop what they were doing, so they could look at him. “Oh, this will clear it up.” Sam says sarcastically, making (Y/N) turn around and playfully smack his arm. “In the 8 years since Mr. Stark has announced himself as Iron Man, a number of known enhanced persons has grown exponentially. During the same period, the number of world-ending events has risen at a commensurate rate.” “Are you saying it’s our fault?” Steve interrupted him. “I’m saying there may be a causality. Our very strength invites challenge. Challenge incites conflict. And Conflict… breeds catastrophe. Oversight… Oversight is not an idea that can be dismissed out of hand.” Vision ended “Boom” Rhodey said, smirking at Sam. “Tony…” Nat said “You’re being uncharacteristically non-hyperverbal” (Y/N) smirked at Nat “You’re right, usually we can’t get him to shut up.” “It’s cause he’s already made up his mind.” Steve said, looking up at (Y/N). “Boy, you guys know me so well,” Tony said, rolling his eyes as he got up. “Actually, I’m nursing an electromagnetic headache.” Tony corrected them. “Are you alright dad?” (Y/N) said, concerned and walking over to him. “Yeah, but that’s what going on. Just pain. It’s discomfort.” Tony leaned over the sink a little “Who’s putting coffee grounds in the disposal? Am I running a bed and breakfast for a biker gang?” He then casually pulled up an image of a kid. “Dad, who’s that?” (Y/N) asked, not quite sure what he was trying to do. “Oh, that’s Charles Spencer. He’s a great kid. Computer engineering degree, 3.6 GPA… had a floor-level gig at Intel planned for the fall. But first, he wanted to put a few miles on his soul… before he parked it behind a desk. See the world. Maybe be of service. Charlie didn’t want to go to Vegas or Fort Lauderdale, which is what I would do. He didn’t go to Paris or Amsterdam, which sounds fun. He decided to spend his summer building sustainable housing for the poor. Guess where. Sokovia.” The room filled with a heavy tension, the silence wasn’t awkward, but numbing. “He wanted to make a difference, I suppose. We won’t know because we dropped a building on him while we were kicking ass.” Tony took a drink of his coffee before he continued “There’s no decision-making process here. We need to be put in check! Whatever form that takes, I’m game. If we can’t accept limitations if we’re boundary-less… we’re no better than the bad guys. Tony, someone dies on your watch, you don’t give up.” Steve pointed out. “Steve, no one said anything about giving up” (Y/N) interjected. “We are if we’re not taking responsibility for our actions.” Steve shot back. This document just shifts the blame.” “Who does it shift the blame to Steve? The United Nations? No matter where they send us, no matter what fight we fight after we sign this, the blood will still be on OUR hands, no one will be to blame but us.” (Y/N) said, she understood where he was coming from, but he needed to realize that the blame was still on them, they were still the ones fighting the battle, no one else. “I’m sorry, Steve, (Y/N)’s right. That mindset is dangerously arrogant. This is the United Nations we’re talking about. It’s not the World Security Council, it’s not S.H.I.E.L.D., it’s not HYDRA.” “No, but it’s run by people with agendas, and agendas change.” “That’s good. That’s why I’m here. When I realized what my weapons were capable of in the wrong hands… I shut it down and stopped manufacturing.” Tony said “Tony, you chose to do that. If we sign this, we surrender our right to choose. What if this panel sends us somewhere we don’t think we should go? What if there is somewhere we need to go and they don’t let us? We may not be perfect, but the safest hands are still our own.” Steve said “What if our own hands can’t be trusted, Steve? We are also people, people with agendas and like you said, agendas change.” (Y/N) said, not wanting to argue with him, but she simply didn’t understand what was so hard for him to see about this being the right thing to do. “If we don’t do this now, it’s gonna be done to us later. That’s the fact. That won’t be pretty.” Tony said. “You’re saying they’ll come for me.” Wanda said, worry in her voice. “We would protect you.” Vision said, making sure to let Wanda know, that no matter what the outcome of this, we would still be a team, a family. At least that’s what (Y/N) hoped of the outcome. “Maybe Tony’s right. If we have one hand on the wheel we can still steer. If we take it off…” Nat began saying before she was interrupted by Sam “Aren’t you the same woman who told the government to kiss her ass a few years ago?” “I’m just reading the terrain.” Nat defended, “We have made some very public mistakes. We need to win their trust back.” “Focus up. I’m sorry. Did I just mishear you… or did you agree with me?” Tony said “Oh, I wanna take it back now” Nat laughed a little. “No, you can’t retract it.” Tony wagged his finger, “Okay, case closed. I win.” (Y/N) looked over at Steve when he didn’t make a snarky comment on Tony saying he won, but his attention was elsewhere now. He was looking down at his phone with a deep frown. He suddenly got up, mumbling an “I’ve gotta go”, as he rushed out of the room. Everyone shared a confused look, but brushed it off, except for (Y/N) and Sam. (Y/N) got up and walked over to Sam “What was that about?” she asked, but he just shrugged his shoulders “I’m gonna go check on him” (Y/N) said as she began towards where Steve left.

     She found him out in the stairwell, silently staring at his phone. “Steve?” (Y/N)  gently said, placing a hand on his shoulder. He looked up at her with tear-filled eyes. “Oh, honey.” (Y/N) said, coming down the rest of the stairs to meet him and pulling him in for a hug. “What’s the matter?” (Y/N) asked, rubbing his back. Steve pulled his head out of the crook of her neck so he could talk, “Peggy’s…gone” he let out in between sniffles. “Oh my god, I’m so sorry” (Y/N) said, knowing just how much Peggy meant to him. After holding Steve for a few more minutes, (Y/N) pulled away and looked at him. “Listen, sweetie, if you want me or even need me to go to the funeral with you, I will. If you need anything at all, I’m here for you, I promise,” she said, wiping the last tear from his cheek. She then stood on her toes so she could press a kiss on his cheek. “Do you understand?” (Y/N) asked, knowing that he might not be fully comprehending what she’s saying, but he nodded his head in response, showing that he did. 

     A couple of days had gone by when Steve, Sam, and (Y/N) made their way to London to attend Peggy’s funeral. Steve was in the actual funeral, carrying the casket, but (Y/N) and Sam were just there for emotional support. (Y/N) hated funerals, they reminded her that her time here was limited. She hated thinking about her time crunch.  She had so much that she wanted to do in life, but she knew she only had so much time. (Y/N) hated that this was her biggest fear, is not getting to live a fulfilling life, but it was. Every time (Y/N) attends a funeral she thinks about this fear of hers, it then turns into her picking one thing, from quite a large list, of things that she has always wanted to do, but either doesn’t have the time or always chickens out in the end. This time she picked her number one on her list, and oh boy did she regret it as soon as she did. Her number one on this list was finally getting around to admitting her true feelings towards Steve. She realized that it was probably ill-advised to do so now, due to him mourning a woman he loved. That’s why she regretted picking it, but she knew it had to be done. She didn’t want something to happen one day, especially with the line of work Steve was in, and have their relationship end similar to Peggy and Steve’s back in the 20’s, where they were so close, but never got to the next step. She had her mindset, looking over at her best friend sitting next to her with red eyes and tear-stained cheeks, she wanted nothing more than to kiss him, and hold him tight until every sad thought escaped his mind, but she settled for reaching over and grabbing his hand, squeezing it for good measure. Steve looked down at their hands, then up at (Y/N) with a grateful smile. 

     After the service was over, Steve and (Y/N) hung around in the church, Sam insisting on going back to the room to set up some room service comfort food, in an attempt to make Steve feel better. They sat side by side in the pews, looking up at the detailed stain glass windows. “What do you think happens after we die?” Steve asks, but quiet enough that (Y/N) almost didn’t hear him. “Well, I think that we have three options. Go to Hell, for those who have committed unforgivable sins. Go to Heaven, for those who have lived a peaceful life, filled with forgivable sins. Or, stay on Earth, but reincarnated, for those who have not fulfilled their purpose in life.” (Y/N) said, looking over at Steve, knowing what he needed to hear “I definitely believe that Peggy went to Heaven, while she did sin throughout her life, as we all do, she did it for the greater good of humanity, and not in the ‘greater good of humanity’ that psychopaths think we will get to through genocide. She also lived a pretty full life, but maybe she’ll be reincarnated because she never got to have that dance with you.” This last part made Steve smile, “You always know what to say (Y/N).” Steve said, squeezing her hand “Thank you” he then leaned over and kissed the top of her head, making the both of them close their eyes and sigh at the feeling of peace it brought them. But this peaceful moment was broken, when Nat came up to them, in order to give her condolences to Steve. (Y/N) remained sitting in the pews, thinking about when the right time would be to talk to Steve about how she felt. However, she was ripped out of these thoughts when Nat said: “(Y/N), your father wants you to attend the signing of the accords tomorrow.” (Y/N) looked up at the two of them, not knowing what to say. She hadn’t really given the accords enough thought to know if she really approved of them or not, but she didn’t want to fight her dad, especially since she’s all that he has right now, with her mom and him not seeing eye to eye at the moment. Instead of arguing with Nat, knowing that she was just the messenger, she just nodded her head, stood up, hugged Steve goodbye and left with Nat. 

     Nat and (Y/N) arrived at the accord signing and were asked to sign a couple of things before the meeting began. Shortly after they signed some paperwork, a man came up to them and said “I suppose neither of us are used to the spotlight.”, (Y/N) knew he wasn’t speaking to her, she grew up with Tony freaking Stark as her father, of course, she was used to the spotlight, no matter how much she hated it. Nat let out a small laugh and replied: “Well, it’s not always so flattering”. “You seem to be doing alright so far” he reassured her “Considering your last trip to Capitol Hill… I wouldn’t think you’d be particularly comfortable in this company.” “Well, I’m not.” Nat admitted, “And that alone makes me glad you are here, Ms. Romanoff.” “Why? You don’t approve of all this?” “The Accords, yes. The politics, not really. Two people in a room can get more done than a hundred.”, just then another man, resembling the first walked up and joined them saying, “Unless you need to move a piano.”. Once he was in front of her, (Y/N) recognized him as the king of Wakanda, and she bowed her head a little as a sign of respect for him. He greeted (Y/N) back as well, “Ms. Stark, what a pleasure.” he holds out his hand to shake hers, and she gladly takes it “I’m so looking forward to the speech you’re making today.” he smiles at her. “What speech?” (Y/N) asks, looking at Nat in confusion. “Oh, shit.” Nat mumbles “I completely forgot to tell you that Tony sent you here to speak on his behalf.” “Wait, what?” (Y/N) said, but before anyone could say anything back, a voice came over a speaker and said: “If everyone could please be seated, this assembly is now in session.” “That is the future calling,” The prince said, sending (Y/N) into a panic. 

     The session began slowly, with an introduction of the accords, and then a speech from the King of Wakanda, telling his point of view of the accords, and why it was so important, especially after what happened when the Avengers where in the area. After his speech ended, he stepped to the side and remained there. Then, the same person who introduced the session then got up to the podium and said: “We will now hear a few words from Ms. (Y/N) Stark, who is not only speaking on behalf of Mr. Anthony Stark himself but the Avengers.” (Y/N) slowly got up, hands shaking, not really sure what she was going to pull out of her ass. “Hello, I’d like to thank you all in advance for hearing me, here today.” She took in a deep breath, trying to calm her nerves, and find the words to say, without making a fool of herself. “Let me start out by saying, as my introducer said: on behalf of my father, Mr. Stark, and the Avengers, how deeply sorry we are for all the damage and loss we have ever caused, it was not by any means intentional, and it did not go over our heads. The Avengers are a group of remarkable people, with remarkable powers, and they were gathered together for a reason. They were gathered to help save the world, and protect the innocent. However, it has come to the attention of the United Nations, that sometimes, if not every time, our actions have greater consequences than we realize, and that is why I am here speaking to you all today. It is possible for the Avengers to continue Avenging this Earth while being in check. It is possible to make sure that the innocent we fight to protect, are actually protected. It is all possible, and we are going to make it possible, today.” (Y/N) took a pause, thinking about whether or not she should go on, but before she did, she heard something outside. She heard a yelling, making her turn around, only to see cops yelling “Get down!”, (Y/N) quickly hit the side button on her watch and yelled: “GET DOWN!”. Everything after that was slow motion. The button she pressed summoned an iron man suit that she had designed to fit her, to come to her. It slowly covered her, similar to how her dads did. Everyone ducked under the tables and not even a minute later, a large explosion occurred. (Y/N) attempted to jump in front of the King of Wakanda who was still standing beside the podium, but the explosion blew her back, and it was too late. 

     (Y/N) flew out to where the explosion had occurred and searched the area, through the smoke, for any survivors she could pull. She was able to pull two people out of the smoke and fly them a good distance away, at a time. Flying back and forth, trying to get as many as she could, in case the building collapsed, hurting anyone near it. The smoke finally cleared, after what felt like an eternity, and a bunch of ambulances and police cars pulled up, able to finally see where they were driving in the area. (Y/N) tried getting out of the suit, not wanting anyone to see her, but it was too late. A bunch of television vans pulled up and quickly captured pictures and videos of her running around trying to remove people from the scene. After the police arrived and took over, the press began shouting “Mr. Stark!” thinking that she was her father, wanting her to come and speak with them about what happened. She didn’t want anyone to see her, because her father had no idea she had gone through with actually building one of the prototypes she made for herself, but it was too late. She still didn’t want to make the situation worse by talking to the press, so she chose to ignore their calls, and flew up to where the Accords were being signed to help people out of the building. She rushed to Nat, seeing her still laying on the ground, unmoving. She put her hand up to her neck and told the AI in her suit to read the vitals, “She’s still breathing, and at a steady rate, she’s just unconscious” the AI reported back. (Y/N) sighed in relief, but moved on to try and find anyone who looked on the brink of death, but was still holding on and needed medical help ASAP. She ended up rushing 20 people down to the ambulances, who needed immediate medical attention, everyone else was either alright, or already dead. 

     Eventually, everything calmed down and all that was left was the FBI, investigating the scene. (Y/N) remained in her suit, walking around the conference room, lifting up desks and chairs, trying to find any last stragglers. Suddenly the AI in her suit said: “Ms. Stark, you’re receiving a call from Steve Rogers.” “Put him through” (Y/N) said, not sure if he had seen the news yet. “Where are you?” He immediately asked. “Well hello to you too.” (Y/N) laughed a little at his rushed tone. “This isn’t funny (Y/N), I need to know where you are and if you’re okay.” (Y/N)’s heart raced a little, knowing he was worried about her specifically “Don’t worry, I’m fine. I’m still in the building, but I’m fine.” “Are you hurt? Why are you still in the building? What if it collapses?” “I’m not hurt, I’m looking for people, and I’ll be fine, don’t worry.” “(Y/N), they’re saying it was Bucky who did it.” “What? No, that’s not possible.” “That’s what I think, I’m going to go after him, before they find him and wrongfully harm him, do you wanna come and help me?” “I won’t be of much help, it’s not like I’m a superhero or anything.” (Y/N) laughed a little, remembering she was in an Iron Man suit. “No, but you are really good at talking to people, maybe you’ll be able to convince Bucky to come with us, you know if he doesn’t remember me…”  “I think you just wanna make sure I don’t get hurt. You can’t see me right now, but I’m winking at you.” This made Steve laugh “Shut up and come find me already.” “Ugh, fine, you’re so needy.” (Y/N) said, hanging up. 

     (Y/N), Steve and Sam arrived at the apartment that Steve’s FBI friend told him Bucky was supposedly living at, and they came up with a plan. (Y/N) would go in first, with Steve shortly behind her, and Sam staying outside, letting them know if any cops arrived. (Y/N) walked up to Bucky’s door and knocked, only to get no answer, so she let herself in. “Bucky?” (Y/N) gently called out. “Heads up guys, German Special Forces is arriving right now,” Sam said. “Understood” Steve whispered. (Y/N) never got a response, but when her and Steve got distracted looking at a journal of Bucky’s, Bucky snuck up behind them. (Y/N) felt someone looking at her and she turned around, “Bucky…It’s okay, we’re not here to hurt you.” (Y/N) said, not really sure if Bucky even knew who they were. “Do you know me?” Steve asked him. “You’re Steve.” Bucky said, “I read about you in a museum.” (Y/N) knew that comment probably broke Steve’s heart, it broke her’s and she doesn’t even know Bucky. “They’ve set the perimeter,” Sam said. “I know that you’re nervous, we understand, but you don’t have to lie to us.” (Y/N) said, trying to make sure that Bucky knew they meant him no harm. “I wasn’t in Vienna. I don’t do that anymore.” Bucky said. “We know you weren’t.” (Y/N) said, “I know you weren’t. I watched the explosion happen, I know it wasn’t you. So you need to trust us when we say, you need to come with us.” “They’re entering the building” Sam warned. “The people who think you were are coming here now, and they’re not planning on taking you alive,” Steve said. “That’s smart. Good strategy.” Bucky said. “But it doesn’t have to be that way Bucky if you just come with us.” (Y/N) offered. “They’re on the roof, I’m compromised,” Sam said. “It always ends in a fight anyway, so what’s it matter.” Bucky said “Five seconds” Sam warns. “You pulled me from the river,” Steve said, trying to hurry the situation, “Why?” “I don’t know,” Bucky says. “Three seconds” Sam warns again. “Yes, you do.” Steve insists. “Breach! Breach! Breach!” Sam begins to yell. 

     Two things get thrown in through the window, one just to break the window, Steve deflected it with his shield, the other a bomb. It landed in front of Bucky, making him kick it towards Steve so he could cover it with his shield. They then began beating down the front door, as another bomb was thrown in. Bucky lifted up his mattress to block it. He then dropped the mattress and flipped the table next to him into the doorway so it would be harder to get in. Just then, a soldier busts through the window and begin fighting Steve and Bucky. (Y/N) wasn’t really sure what to do, not knowing if she should suit up and fight with them, or run and find Sam. “Buck, stop.” Steve yells and grabs him when he attacks one of the soldiers “You’re gonna kill someone.” but Bucky just grabs Steve’s hand and flips him onto the ground. He then punches a hole in the ground next to Steve’s head, “I’m not going to kill anyone” he says. He grabs a backpack out of the floor, throws it out the door onto the building next to his and is ready to run after it, but another soldier busts in and begins shooting. Bucky blocks himself with his metal arm, and Steve pulls (Y/N) to the ground so he could protect her, but Bucky picked him up and threw him at one of the soldiers, then ran at the other one. Steve fought the soldier he was thrown at, but when he was done, he realized that Bucky had left the room and was now out in the hallway fighting everyone. “Go” (Y/N) motioned with her head, Steve did as she said and chased after Bucky. (Y/N) decided it was probably in her best interest to suit up, so she pushed the button on her watch, summoning her iron suit to her. She then walked out in the hallway herself and blasted anyone who came at her. Steve and Bucky eventually made their way down far enough where they could jump out the window, onto the next building. (Y/N) saw them jump and laughed a little to herself “Idiots”, she shook her head as she ran to the same ledge they jumped from and she flew over to where they were fighting with someone dressed in an all black suit. She stayed in the air, knowing they probably weren’t going to stay on the roof for very long, and she was right, they soon jumped off and began running through the streets. (Y/N) decided to fly ahead of all of them, knowing that she would be able to stop Bucky. She watched from above, making sure she went to the right spot. She then landed right at the end of the tunnel, and right in front of Bucky’s path. He tried to drive around her but she grabbed his handlebars and it flung him off the bike and onto the road ahead. But (Y/N) didn’t realize that Bucky had thrown a bomb at the roof of the tunnel, seems as her main goal was to grab his bike. It blew up and was about to land on her, but Steve stopped his car just in time to jump out and push her out of the way. When (Y/N) and Steve got up, they went running at Bucky and the guy in the black suit, but they had stopped fighting, seeing that they were now completely surrounded by cop cars. 

     They all had to take off their suits, this was the cops way of making sure it was harder for them to fight back. They also had to hand them over to the police, once they were off. None of them had realized that it was (Y/N) in the Iron suit, they thought Tony had shown up and was trying to help the police. (Y/N) didn’t want to take off her suit, knowing that as soon as she handed it over, she would never see it again. She knew she had to do it though, no matter how much she didn’t want to, so she took her mask off, handing it over to the office. “(Y/N)?” Steve asked confused “Surprise….” (Y/N) said in a sing-song voice. “Since when do you have a suit?” Sam asked “Um since like… 5 years ago when I made one without dad knowing…” (Y/N) admitted as she took off her armor section by section. “So that isn’t Tony’s?” Sam asked, and (Y/N) shook her head “No, I made this myself, just like I make a lot of things for you guys.” “Well shit,” Sam said, laughing a little, impressed by everything you were telling him. 

     They were eventually handcuffed and put into trucks, on their way to a highly secure Berlin prison. T’Challa sat in the seat closest to the front, Steve and (Y/N) sat in the middle and Sam sat in the back. It was a silent ride, up to the point where Sam asked: “So, you like cats?” “Sam,” Steve said, in a scolding tone. “What? Dude shows up dressed like a cat, you don’t wanna know more?” Sam asked, making (Y/N) laugh a little. “You’re suit…it’s vibranium?” Steve asked. “The Black Panther has been the protector of Wakanda for generations. A mantle passed from warrior to warrior. And now, because your friend murdered my father… I also wear the mantle of King. So, I ask you… as both warrior and king… how long do you think you can keep your friend safe from me?” “T’Challa, I know you’re hurting right now, I understand, but Bucky didn’t do it.” (Y/N) tried reasoning with him. “And you…” T’Challa said, turning to the best of his ability to face (Y/N), “You were right next to him, why did you not save my father?” “I…tried, I really did, I-I just wasn’t quick enough. He was too close to the explosion. I’m sorry.” This made (Y/N) stop talking, all together. 

     When they arrived at the prison they were being brought to, they were allowed out of the van that was transporting them and as soon as they get out, they’re unhandcuffed and they see Bucky locked up in a big glass containment unit. “What are you going to do to him?” Steve asked the group of people waiting for them. “Same thing that ought to happen to you.” The agent replied, “Psychological evaluation and extradition”. The woman next to him introduced him “this is Everett Ross, Deputy Task Force Commander.” “What about a lawyer?” Steve asked. “Lawyer. That’s funny.” Ross laughed a little, “See their weapons are placed in lockup. We’ll write you a receipt.” “A receipt?!” (Y/N) said, frustrated “I made that suit myself!” “Well now it’s government property,” Ross said, shrugging. (Y/N) almost ran at the man, but Steve was wise enough to place an arm in front of her, blocking her. “I better not look out the window and see anybody flying around in that,” Sam said as they passed them with their uniforms. Ross began walking away, making them follow him. “You’ll be provided with an office instead of a cell. Do me a favor, stay in it.” “I don’t intend on going anywhere,” T’Challa said. 

     Up ahead they heard an oh-so-familiar voice saying “No. Romania was not Accords-sanctioned. Colonel Rhodes is supervising cleanup. Consequences? You bet there’ll be consequences.” Tony said, looking directly at (Y/N) when he said the last part.  He continued his phone conversation as everyone joined him in the room “Obviously you can quote me on that, because I just said it, Anything else? Thank you, sir.”, he then hung up. “Consequences?” Steve asked. “Secretary Ross wants all of you prosecuted. Had to give him something. As for you young lady.” Tony said pointing at (Y/N), “What the HELL were you thinking? You could’ve gotten killed!” “Dad, I knew what I was doing. I kept a safe distance, only got involved when necessary, and when I did, I had a suit on.” “Oh yeah! Speaking of the suit. WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU DOING WITH A SUIT? I specifically told you NOT to make yourself one, and what do you do? Go behind my back and make one.” “Dad, listen to me… Both times I used it, it saved my life.” “Is that supposed to make me feel better that you went behind my back?” “I mean kind of” (Y/N) shrugged, making Tony roll his eyes, and walked away to go deal with some other business. 

     One by one, they got called out of the cell to be questioned. The only ones left were (Y/N) and Steve. “How did we get in this mess” (Y/N) said sighing, leaning her head on Steve’s shoulder. He put his arm around her and rubbed her arm “I’m just glad he’s alive.” Steve said “I know sweetie, but was it worth all of this.” she motioned around. Steve looked down at her, “(Y/N), you know the answer to that… I would’ve done the same if it was you.” “Why?” (Y/N) asked, probably knowing the answer, but wanting to hear it anyway. Steve scoffed “Because (Y/N), you’re my best friend and I would do anything for you.” “No one goes through all of this, for a best friend.” (Y/N) said, hoping he would admit that she was more to him, so she wouldn’t have to. “I did it for Bucky…” “Bucky isn’t your best friend, he’s your family.” (Y/N) corrected him, “Blood or not, he’s your family and you can’t say otherwise.” Steve nodded his head, agreeing with her. “You’re my best friend, and I would go through all this for you.” (Y/N)’s heart began to beat a little faster, as she thought about how she wanted to be more. “How can you go through all this for someone who you just love as a friend?” “Would you not go through all this for me?” Steve asked, “I would, and that’s my point.” (Y/N) said, making Steve look at her confused, but before he could ask her what she meant, she was called out of the room. 

     “Hey (Y/N),” Ross said, entering the questioning room. “Hello.” (Y/N) said shortly. “Now, just as a precaution, we need to hook you up to a lie detector, is that okay?” Ross asked. “Yeah, it’s not like I have much of a choice.” (Y/N) rolled her eyes. Ross came over and hooked her up to the machine, then he sat in front of her with a notebook and pen, ready to ask away. “To make sure it’s working, I’m going to ask you some pretty obvious questions. What color are your eyes?” “(Y/E/C)” “What is your father’s name?” “Anthony Stark.” “What is your mother’s name?” “Pepper Potts” “Are your mom and dad married?” “No.” “Alright, now I’m going to ask you the real questions.” (Y/N)  just nodded. “Why were you in Bucky Barnes’ apartment?” “Who the hell is Bucky?” (Y/N) asked, laughing. “What do you mean?” “It’s what Bucky said to Steve when… you know what… never mind. I was in the apartment because Steve wanted me to help him.” “Help him what?” “Find Bucky” “Why did you need to find Bucky?” “Because you guys were planning on killing him.” “Don’t you think he deserves it, after all he is an assassin.” “No, he didn’t know what he was doing.” “Why did you help Steve, knowing that it would lead to your arrest.” “I didn’t know it would lead to my arrest.” (Y/N) said, making the machine speak against her “Stop lying, Why did you willingly go with Steve?” Ross pressed on “Because he’s my friend.” her heart rate was increasing, as it did every time she thought about how she felt about Steve, but the detector took it as she was lying. “Stop lying, did he bribe you?” “No.” “Then why did you go with him?” “Because he’s my friend and he asked me to help him.” “I know you’re not lying, but I also know you’re keeping something from me because your heart rate is still increasing, what aren’t you telling me.” Ross pressed on. “I… went with him because… I love him and I wanted to make sure he didn’t do anything stupid like getting himself killed.” (Y/N)’s heart felt like it was going to pound right through her chest, and it was making the machine go crazy. Ross just nodded his head, knowing why the machine was going haywire now. Before Ross could continue on, sirens began going off, throughout the entire building. Both Ross and (Y/N) shot up and ran out of the room to see what was going on. 

     They ran out to where everyone was watching the security cameras, they showed Bucky had gotten loose. He was currently running through the building, trying to escape. “Evacuate all civilians. Get me a perimeter around the building, and gunships in the air.” Ross said over a loudspeaker. “No! Don’t shoot at him!” (Y/N) said, “We might have no choice,” Ross said. Just then Tony and Nat walk past them and (Y/N) ran up to join them. “Please tell me you brought a suit.” Nat said to Tony. “Sure did. It’s a lovely Tom Ford, three-piece, two-button. I’m an active-duty non-combatant.” “I have a suit, but someone took it away.” (Y/N) said, looking at Tony, making him roll his eyes. Just then Sharron Carter ran past them and said “Follow me!” and she leads them right to the room where Bucky was currently fighting off security. Tony and Nat got into their attack positions. “Stay here.” Tony said to (Y/N), making her roll her eyes this time.  After Tony moved onto the next spot that he was hiding from Bucky in, (Y/N) pressed the button on her watch, hoping that wherever they had put her suit, it was somewhere where it would be able to reach her. Tony soon got out of hiding, pulled out an Iron Man hand and blasted Bucky with sound waves, making him stop in his tracks. He then blinded him with a bright flash and began running at him. “Come-on, come-on” (Y/N) said, hoping her suit would come soon so that she could help her dad. Bucky began fighting Tony, and Tony was doing pretty okay at defending himself, but (Y/N) saw Bucky reach for the gun on the floor and (Y/N) ran out in front of Tony “Look out!” she yelled as she ran out, and at the same time the suit began arriving on her body. By the time it all had gotten to her, she was in front of her dad, blocking Bucky’s shot at him. It all had happened so quickly, Bucky looked momentarily confused, (Y/N) took this opportunity to blast him backward and away from Tony. After she had done this, both Nat and Sharron came out and began fighting him together. Bucky quickly got the upper hand on Nat and pinned her down, choking her. He was quickly stopped when T’Challa came in and pushed him away from Nat. They continued fighting, while (Y/N) rushed to the nearest exit to try and make sure he didn’t escape. Unfortunately, Bucky found another door that leads up to the roof instead of outside. (Y/N) rushed out the doors she was standing guard at and flew up to the roof. She got up there just in time to see Steve running at the helicopter Bucky was taking off in. Steve jumped up on one of the landing bars and tried pulling it down, but Bucky kept dragging Steve to the edge of the building. Steve then grabbed onto the side of the landing pad with his other hand, pulling the helicopter back towards the roof. “Steve! Stop you’re going to get hurt!” (Y/N) yelled, landing next to him. Then, almost as if on cue, Bucky turned the helicopter making it crash into where Steve was. (Y/N) reached down and yanked Steve up, getting him out of the way. “Are you okay?” (Y/N) asked Steve, but before he could answer her, Bucky bust through the glass and grabbed Steve’s neck. “Bucky stop!” (Y/N) yelled trying to pry his metal arm off of Steve’s throat, but he wouldn’t budge. Steve began pushing on the helicopter, trying to get Bucky off of him as well, but instead, the helicopter itself began falling off of the roof, taking Steve with it. “STEVE!” (Y/N) yelled, quickly jumping after him. Thankfully they were right above a huge fountain, making a safe landing for all of them. (Y/N) dived in and quickly grabbed Steve, but he tried pushing her off, motioning to Bucky who was still in the helicopter, buckled in and unconscious. (Y/N) pointed at Steve then held up her finger, telling him you first, Steve nodded, grabbing onto (Y/N) so she could blast them out of the water. (Y/N) set Steve down on the ground right next to the pool of water, “I’m going to go get Bucky. Catch your breath, but as soon as I bring him up, be ready to take him and run.” Steve nodded as he tried to catch his breath. (Y/N) dived back in and swam right to the helicopter. Thankfully this water was not too deep, so Bucky hit the bottom pretty quickly with the weight of the helicopter, this made it easier for (Y/N) to get to him. She got to the front window that Bucky had broken not too long ago, and reached in trying to unbuckle him, but not having any luck. She knew Bucky was probably out of air at this point so she took a deep gasp of air and removed her helmet, putting it on Bucky. The AI quickly noticed the water seeping in, so it closed off the area around Bucky’s neck, making it so no more water could get in, and it drained what was in it. (Y/N) quickly went back to work on the seat belt, eventually able to rip it off. She, herself, slowly running out of air and tried to hurry it up. She yanked Bucky out of the helicopter and began swimming up, but before she could get too far, she began feeling light-headed. She was too weak to continue holding Bucky so she let go of him and let him float to the top. All she felt was numbness as she slowly went unconscious. The last thing (Y/N) saw before she passed out from lack of air was someone jumping in the water and them swimming towards her. 

     (Y/N) woke up coughing, reaching up to her neck, trying to get as much air as she could. She sat up, confused as to where she was, but Tony quickly put a hand on her shoulder and made her lay back down “It’s okay sweetie, lay back down.” “What happened.” (Y/N) asked, still gasping a little. “We’re not sure, all that we know is you were laying on the side of the fountain, unconscious.” “Where’s Steve?” (Y/N) asked, remembering why she was in the fountain “We don’t know, him, Bucky, and Sam are all missing.” Tony said, not looking too thrilled about it, “(Y/N), listen to me, please. I know that Steve is your best friend, but I need you. I’m asking you as your father to help me out, I need to find Steve, Sam, and Bucky within the next 36 hours, or the government will and they will kill them.” “And if we find them and bring them in, what makes you think they still won’t kill them?” “We agreed that if I bring them in, they will just go to prison, if they bring them in, they cannot guarantee they will make it to the prison.” (Y/N) nodded, understanding. “I’ll help you bring them in, I’m not sure where they’re going to be, but I can help you once you find them.” (Y/N) said. “Thank you, sweetie.” Tony said leaning down and kissing her forehead. “Before we get started, I need you to get someone for me.” Tony said. “Who?” (Y/N) asked, expecting it to be Rhodey or some other Avenger. “His name is Peter, he lives in Queens.” 

     (Y/N) went to Queens as soon as the medic cleared her, saying she was okay and luckily didn’t have any more water in her lungs. Tony went back to the Avengers tower to gather who he could, while (Y/N) went to try and convince this new kid to come with them. (Y/N) knew nothing about him, other than 1. his name was Peter 2. he lived in Queens 3. he was supposedly Spider-Man (whoever that was). (Y/N) had her AI search for videos of the Spider-Man and play them for her while she flew over to Queens. When she arrived at the apartment complex that Tony sent her to, she sent her suit away and walked up to Peter’s apartment. She knocked on the door, expecting a guy to come and answer, but she was instead greeted with a young female. “Hello.” (Y/N) said sticking out her hand to introduce herself. “My name is (Y/N) Stark and I was wondering if Peter was home.” “No, he’s not at the moment, is there some way I could help you?” She asked, not yet taking her hand, but quickly realizing (Y/N) still had it stuck out for her to shake. She grabbed (Y/N)’s hand, shaking it and saying “Sorry, my name is May, I’m Peter’s aunt.” “Nice to meet you May.” (Y/N) smiled, “And no, there’s not really much you can do for me, I just need to speak with Peter. Would I possibly be able to come in and wait for him?” Aunt May reluctantly moved out of the doorway and motioned for her to come in. “Can I ask why you need to speak with Peter? Has he done something wrong?” “No, not at all, he actually um…” (Y/N)’s mind raced to try to think of a reason to be there. “May I sit?” (Y/N) broke her sentence and pointed at the couch, Aunt May nodded, still waiting for her answer “He applied for an internship at Stark Industries, and I’ve come here to congratulate him because he got accepted!” (Y/N) said, trying to act really excited. “Oh my gosh! That’s fantastic! Here I was thinking that you were going to tell me he was caught vandalizing your property or something like that.” she said with a laugh. Just then the oven dinged and she ran over to it, “Oh, my cookies are done!”. She took them out and let them cool as they made small talk. Once they were cool enough, May brought them over to (Y/N), offering her some. (Y/N) gladly took one as May sat down next to her. “So, what does this internship entail?” she said with a big grin, very proud of Peter. “Well, I work in Stark Industries myself as a mechanic slash scientist, so Peter would be following me around every time he’s there. Helping me with whatever project I was working on that day.” (Y/N) said, even convincing herself with this lie. 

     Before Aunt May could ask any more questions, Peter came in but didn’t really notice (Y/N) at first because of the headphones he had on. “Hey May” Peter greeted “Hey!” she said back, “How was school today?” she asked as he set down his stuff and began walking over to her. “It was okay. Took a math test…today…” Peter began but became distracted by the guest, who he didn’t really recognize. “Who’s this?” Peter asked May as he stood in his place, a little confused. (Y/N) smiled at him and said, “I’m (Y/N) Stark, from Stark Industries.” “Oh…H-h-hey, I’m Pe-Peter” Peter stuttered as he walked over to shake her hand. “Wh-Wha-What’re you doing here?” Peter asked, still confused as to why the Tony Stark’s daughter would be sitting in her living room, eating cookies and casually talking to his aunt. “It’s about time we met, you’ve been getting my emails right?” (Y/N) said, winking at him. “Yeah,” Peter said, not sounding too sure of himself. “Oh, shoot, did I not sign them from me? You probably weren’t expecting me, but someone else.” “Yeah, that’s why…they were regarding the…” “You didn’t tell me about the internship” Aunt May interjected, too excited to keep quiet anymore. “About the internship, right.” Peter agreed. “Remember when you applied?” (Y/N) encouraged. “Yeah,” Peter said, “Well Tony, my father, and I approved, so now we’re in business.” (Y/N) smiled, giving him a small look, trying to get him to play along. “But you didn’t tell me anything. What’s up with that? You keep secrets from me know?” Aunt May said. “Well… I just know how much you love surprises so I thought I would let you know…” Peter tried saving his ass. “Anyway, what did I apply for exactly?” Peter asked (Y/N). “That’s what I’m here to hash out!” (Y/N) said smiling at both Peter and Aunt May. “Okay. Hash it out, okay.” Peter said. “By the way, these cookies are phenomenal.” (Y/N) said, turning to May. “Thank you!” “Let me just stop you there.” Peter interrupted. “Is this internship like paid or whatever? No?” “Yeah, it’s pretty well funded.” Peter’s face lit up a little “I mean, look who you’re talking to kid.” “Wow,” Peter said, “Can I have 5 minutes with him?” (Y/N) asked May. “Sure!” she agreed. (Y/N) got up and Peter led (Y/N) to his room. 

     (Y/N) followed Peter’s lead and once they were in the room, she locked the door behind them. “Alright Peter, you and I both know, you never applied for an internship, because there is no internship.” (Y/N) said, cutting to the chase. Before she continued she walked over to his desk and said, “This is some awesome retro-tech you’ve got here. Where’d you get it from?” (Y/N) said leaning over and looking closer at it. “Th-the garbage” (Y/N) stood up straight, giving him an impressed nod. “Too bad you aren’t actually interning with us, by the looks of it, these are all restored, by you I’m assuming.” Peter nodded, confirming her assumption. “So um… why are you here then?” Peter asked. “My dad seems to believe that you are this hero called “Spider-Man”, ever heard of him?” (Y/N) asked, pulling out her phone to show him a video. “Um… no… never heard of him.” “Yeah, I think you have. Look at you go.” (Y/N) said, watching the video with him. “That’s all on Youtube, clearly edited.” Peter said, getting a little flustered. “It’s like that video…” “Yeah, yeah, yeah, oh you mean like those UFO’s over Phoenix?” (Y/N) said as she grabbed the broom leaning up against the wall, taking it to poke the little door in the ceiling, opening it up. Out came a red and blue costume, “What have we here?” (Y/N) asked as it fell. “Nope.” Peter said as he ran to snatch it. “So, are you going to tell me the truth?” (Y/N) asked, looking at Peter, she took his silence as a yes, “You’re the Spider-Man that my father believes you are, are you not?” “Yeah…” Peter said a little ashamed. “Don’t be upset that I found out.” (Y/N) said, trying to make him feel better. “I can’t believe this, I was actually having a really good day today. Didn’t miss my train. This perfectly good DVD player was just sitting there. Algebra test nailed it.” “Who else knows? Anybody?” “Nobody” Peter shook his head. “Not even your aunt?” (Y/N) asked “No, no, no. If she knew, she would freak out. When she freaks out, I freak out.” (Y/N) nodded her head. “I understand,” “How could you?” Peter said, “Your dad is freaking Iron Man, how could you understand.” “Because, while my dad is Iron Man, he’s still my dad. He worries too much about me. Up until yesterday he never would’ve even considered letting me anywhere near anything superhero related, unless it was behind the scenes.” Peter stayed quiet, thinking about what (Y/N) was saying. “You know what I think is cool, this webbing.” (Y/N) said, changing the subject and tossing it at Peter. He caught it, without even looking. “The strength is off charts. Who manufactured it?” “I did.” Peter said, throwing it into his hamper. (Y/N) nodded, impressed yet again “It really is a shame that I’m not actually here for an internship.” “Then why are you here?” Peter asked, sitting on his bed. “Why are you doing this?” (Y/N) asked, before she answered his question. Peter looked a little confused, “What’s your M.O.? What gets you out of that bed in the morning?” (Y/N) asked. “Because I’ve been me my whole life and I’ve had these powers for 6 months, I read books, I build computers and yeah I would love to play football, but I couldn’t then, so I shouldn’t now.” “Because you’re different” “Exactly, but I can’t tell anybody that, so I’m not. When you can do the things that I can but you don’t, and then the bad things happen. They happen because of you.” Peter admitted. (Y/N) nodded her head, understanding. That’s why she went with Steve. If something bad were to have happened to him, and there was something she could’ve done, she would’ve blamed herself. “So you wanna look out for the little guy, do your part to make the world a better place…” (Y/N) said “Yeah, yeah, just looking out for the little guy. That’s what it is.” Peter agreed. (Y/N) thought for a moment, “Got a passport?” Peter just laughed a little “No, I don’t even have a drivers license.” “Ever been to Germany?” (Y/N) asked. “Oh, you’ll love it. Great food, great people…” “I can’t go to Germany.” Peter said. “Why?” (Y/N) asked. “I got…homework.” “I’m gonna pretend you didn’t say that.” (Y/N) said, rolling her eyes. “I’m being serious, I can’t drop out of school.” “I realize that Peter, it’s just for the next 36 hours, then I’ll bring you right back home, safe and sound.” (Y/N) said, “Sound like a plan?” Peter thought about it for a moment and nodded his head. “Beautiful, now let's go tell Aunt May that I’m taking you for the next day to tour the tower.” (Y/N) smiled as she unlocked the door and went out to speak to May while Peter packed a couple things.

     “Bye May, love you,” Peter said as he hugged her, shutting the door behind him. “Alright so why are we going to Germany exactly?” “Give me a second.” (Y/N) lifted her watch to her mouth and spoke “Hey, Jess, send car 231 my way, will you?” she asked of her AI. “Will do, Ms. Stark.”. They exited the building and waited outside for the car to arrive. “Listen, kid, a lot of stuff with the Avengers has gone down lately. Currently, Captain America, The Falcon, and the Winter Soldier are on the run, and we need to bring them in before someone else does.” “Why do we need to before someone else?” Peter asked. “Because, if we bring them in, they have the chance of survival. If we don’t bring them in, whoever does will be allowed to kill them if they put up a fight.” Just then the car rolled up to them. “Woah, how’d it get here so fast? Isn’t Stark Tower in New York?” “Yeah, let’s just say it knows it’s way around traffic.” (Y/N) winked at him. “Get in.” (Y/N) hoped in the driver's seat and Peter the front. “Now, since you’ve got zero experience with these people, let me tell you…” “I’m sure I can take them,” Peter said, a little cocky. (Y/N) rolled her eyes “Kid, if I wanted to I could lay you out right here, right now, and I’m not even trained in combat.” Peter began saying “What makes you think…” in a defensive tone, but (Y/N) cut him off. “Just listen to me, okay? I’m going to tell you about some of their weaknesses. If you come into contact with Bucky, watch out for his metal arm, it’s his main line of defense. He’s also a trained assassin so it won’t be easy to sneak up on him. Your best move would be to attack from where he can’t reach you.” Peter nodded his head. “Sam, he has a wing pack, if you can, web it up, clogging it, making it impossible for him to fly. He also has a watch that controls little bots that he has, if at all possible, web that up to so he can’t use it.” “What about Cap?” Peter asked. “I’m going to try and deal with him as much as possible, so don’t worry too much about him. But if it comes down to it, go for his legs.” 

     Once everyone was in Germany, and Tony figured out the location of Steve, they headed to the airport where he was. Tony, Rhodey, and (Y/N) flew in just as Steve was running up to a helicopter. Tony sent a little gadget to the wings of it and sent an electric shock through it, making it impossible to use. Then landed, cutting off Steve’s path. “Wow, it’s so weird how you run into people at the airport, don’t you think it’s weird?” Tony asked Rhodey. “Defiantly weird.” Rhodey agreed. “Hear me out guys, that doctor, the psychiatrist, is behind all of this.” Just then, the Black Panther came out, joining the party “Captain” he said. “Your Highness” Steve said, bowing his head just a little. “Anyway, Ross gave me 36 hours to bring you in. That was 24 hours ago. Can you help a brother out?” Tony asked. “You have the wrong guy,” Steve said. “Your judgment is askew” Tony retorted, “Your old war buddy killed innocent people yesterday.” “And there are 5 more super soldiers just like him. I can’t let the doctor find them first Tony. I can’t.” “Steve, you know what’s about to happen… do you really wanna punch your way out of this one?” (Y/N) asked. “(Y/N), I thought you…” “I do, but it’s either we bring you in and you safely are brought to prison or Ross brings you in and cannot guarantee that he brings you in alive. I’d rather take my chances with the first option.” Steve nodded, understanding. “Alright, I’ve run out of patience.” Tony said “Under-Roos!”. Spider-Man came swinging in, snatching Cap’s shield, and webbing up his hands. “Nice job kid!” (Y/N) said “Thanks, well I could’ve stuck the landing a bit better, but you know new suit and all… wait, it’s nothing, Mr. Stark, it’s perfect. Thank you.” “Yeah, we really don’t need to start a conversation.” Tony cut him off. “Okay. Captain.” Peter saluted, “Big fan, Spider-Man.” “Yeah, we’ll talk about this later,” Tony said. “Hey everyone” Peter waved. “Good job,” Tony said. “You’ve been busy,” Steve said. “And you’ve been a complete idiot.” Tony replied, “Dragging in Clint, rescuing Wanda from a place she doesn’t even wanna leave, a SAFE place. I’M TRYNNA KEEP… I’m trying to keep you from tearing the Avengers apart.” Tony said, sighing. “You did that when you signed,” Steve said. “Alright, you’re gonna turn Barnes over, and you’re gonna come with us NOW! BECAUSE IT’S US. A squad of JSOC guys with no compunction about being impolite. Come on.” Tony said, whispering the last part. But instead of responding, Steve raised his hands, and an arrow shot through them, breaking the webbing. “Alright Lang,” Steve said. Just then a man appeared next to Spider-Man, kicking him and taking Cap’s shield. 

     (Y/N) flew at Cap, fighting him with T’Challa. “Steve, stop this, please. We don’t want to hurt you.” “Sure seems like it,” Steve said sarcastically as he blocked a punch from T’Challa. They continued fighting until the man who turned up out of nowhere came up and said “Cap, heads up.” handing him something, that (Y/N) couldn’t see. She went to go blast the guy, but he threw something at her, making her stop, Steve threw the thing he was giving and out popped a big truck and it was coming right for her “Oh come on!” (Y/N) said, trying to fly out of the way. It ended up knocking over Black Panther, Rhodey, Nat and (Y/N). (Y/N) picked herself up and went over to help Nat up. Nat looked over at Tony who had flown over to make sure everyone was good and said: “Is this part of the plan?” “Well my plan was to go easy on them, but you wanna switch it up?” 

     Everyone that was helping Steve out began running towards one of the planes, but before they could get there, Vision came in and beamed a laser down, breaking the cement in front of them. “Captain Rogers,” Vision began saying as everyone else began joining them. “I know that you believe what you’re doing is right. But for the collective good, you must stop.”. But instead of taking Vision’s advice, Steve began running at them, everyone following his lead. “This is gonna end well.” Nat said sarcastically. “They’re not stopping” Peter pointed out. “Neither are we.” Tony said. They also began running, meeting in the middle, they all broke out fighting. (Y/N) wanted to fight Steve, knowing that he wouldn’t hurt her, but she would still be able to hold him back. But her dad had beat her to it, so she decided to follow the kid around, making sure he wasn’t getting hurt. She did make a promise to return him safe and sound after all. She found him trying to deflect things Wanda was throwing at him, so (Y/N) ran over and blasted Wanda when she wasn’t looking, knocking her back. “Be more careful, will you?” (Y/N) asked Peter, but as he was swinging, his web was cut by Cap’s shield, making him fall. (Y/N) sighed, shaking her head, jogging over to where Peter landed. “That thing does not obey the laws of physics at all,” Peter said. (Y/N) decided to take this opportunity to sneak up on Steve. “Look, kid, there’s a lot going on here that you don’t understand.” “Mr. Stark said you’d say that.” “Did he tell you anything else?” “That you’re wrong, you think you’re right, and that makes you dangerous.” “I guess he’s got a point.” Steve was about to make a move. Peter saw you sneaking up behind Steve, and realized you needed help, so he continued talking, trying to get Steve to stop whatever he was about to do. “He didn’t tell me anything else, but Ms. Stark did.” This caught Steve’s attention. “Oh yeah, like what?” Steve asked. But instead of answering Peter shot a web at his face, he blocked it with his shield, leaving his legs wide open. Peter shot at his legs, pulled him forward and kicked him back, knocking his shield out of his hands. Peter landed next to (Y/N) and said “She told me to go for the legs” as he laughed a little. (Y/N) took Steve being on the ground as an opportunity and ran towards him. She grabbed his shield and threw it towards Peter. “Run!” (Y/N) yelled, and Peter did as he was told once he had the shield. Steve began to get up, but (Y/N) did a quick move to push him back down and she landed on top of him, straddling him, pinning his hands above his head. 

     (Y/N) pulled off her helmet, letting go of Steve briefly. “Listen, sweetie,” (Y/N) said, putting her hands back on his, leaning down to his ear. “I don’t wanna hurt you, none of us do, but in order to make sure that’s the case, you’ve gotta come with us.” “(Y/N), I’ve gotta do this. This is bigger than the Accords, it’s bigger than Bucky, it’s bigger than all of us. I need to go.” (Y/N) pulled away from him so she could look him in the eye. She was still so close to him that she could feel his heavy breathing fan across her face. She looked his face over for a second, then went back to his eyes. (Y/N) nodded, knowing that he wasn’t lying and that he really needed to do whatever it is they were trying to do. “I don’t know what it is you’re about to do, just don’t die doing okay?” (Y/N) asked of him. Steve smiled, “I won’t, and if I do… I promise my ghost will come and haunt you because you can’t get rid of me that easily.” “Are you saying you have unfinished business?” (Y/N) said, smirking at him. Steve then picked his head up a little bit, closing the distance between them, and connecting their lips. (Y/N)’s breath caught in her throat, but she quickly melted into him. She wanted to stay here for eternity but knew that couldn’t happen. When Steve pulled away, they both were grinning and he said: “Not anymore.”. (Y/N) then leaned down, pecking his lips and saying “Go get ‘em.”.

     (Y/N) continued fighting everyone else, pretending like she didn’t even notice Cap stealing his shield back from Peter and then him eventually finding Bucky and running past them. Instead, she focused on having to fight the guy who changed sizes, but this time as a huge, tall as a building, sized man. They were eventually able to knock him off of his balance, thanks to Peter making a movie reference to Empire Strikes Back. When he fell over he knocked Peter with his hand, sending him flying. (Y/N) chased after him, to make sure he was okay. “Are you good Peter?” (Y/N) asked, kneeling down to him. “Ye-yeah… I’m good.” Peter said while he held his side and groaned. “You did good, but I want you to stay down.” “What! No, I can…” “Stay down!” (Y/N) said getting up and flying away. “Alright, I’m done. I’m done.” Peter said, not arguing because he was in too much pain to get up. “(Y/N), come on!” Tony yelled. Tony, Rhodey, and (Y/N) began flying after the plane that Steve and Bucky were on. (Y/N) flew a little bit slower, really not wanting to stop them. Tony and Rhodey were hot on their tail, however. Falcon came up behind the three of them and flew past (Y/N) to get to Tony and Rhodey, knowing that (Y/N) wasn’t really trying. “Vision, I’ve got a bandit on my 6,” Rhodey said. Falcon then began shooting at Rhodey and Tony. “Vision, do you copy?” Rhodey said, “Hit his thruster, turn him into a glider.” (Y/N) wasn’t really paying attention to where she was flying, so she didn’t realize that she was right in Vision’s path to Falcon. Vision didn’t seem to notice, he just was looking at Falcon when he aimed, but the shot he took, ended up hitting (Y/N) before it even came close to Falcon. (Y/N) ended up losing control of her suit, and she began to fall. “Dad?” (Y/N) said, not really sure what was happening, but her connection with him had cut out when her suit got damaged. No one had realized that Vision had even shot yet, “Vision do you copy?” Rhodey said, looking back and seeing (Y/N) falling. “Oh shit, Tony!” Tony looked to where Rhodey had turned to fly to. “(Y/N)!” Tony yelled, but she wasn’t able to hear him. Tony and Rhodey began racing towards her, and as soon as Sam realized what was happening, he too chased her. But by the time they even came close to her, it was too late. She had hit the ground with a thud, creating a crater in the ground from the impact. They all landed and Tony ran up to her, ripping off her mask. She had passed out from the force and her nose was now bleeding. “Read vitals,” Tony asked Friday. “Heartbeat detected. Emergency medical is on its way.”. Rhodey slowly came up to her, “Is she okay?” he asked. All Tony could do is nod. Sam then came up so he could apologize, but before he could get out too much, Tony blasted him back not wanting to hear it right now. Vision then showed up, after he realized that he hit the wrong person. Tony didn’t say a word to any of them. He just sat there holding his baby girl, hoping that she would be okay. 

     A couple of weeks later, (Y/N) was able to leave the hospital. She was declared paralyzed from the waist down. Tony quickly built her a device to help steady her legs, making it possible for her to eventually build the strength to walk again. When they got back to the compound, Tony offered to help her start the rehab right away, but she wanted another day to rest, not feeling up to it mentally. He agreed and left her alone in her room. (Y/N) laid in bed, staring at the ceiling, wondering how this had happened. Before she could come up with an answer someone cleared their throat, making her jump a little. It was Steve. He slowly made his way over to her bed and sat beside her, moving a strand of hair off of her face, “Hey” he said. (Y/N) didn’t know what to say to him really, she wasn’t quite sure if she should blame him or not. “I take it the mission didn’t go as planned?” Steve said, making (Y/N) smile. Usually, it was (Y/N) who said that the Steve every time he was bummed out after he got home from a mission. “Not exactly” (Y/N) said, finally looking at him. “I heard what had happened from Sam. What did the doctors say?” Steve said, resting his hand on her cheek, rubbing his thumb over her skin. “I’m paralyzed from the waist down.” Steve winced, guilt washing over him “(Y/N), I’m so…” (Y/N) put a finger over his mouth to shut him up. “It’s not your fault, it’s technically Vision’s” she laughed a little. “Don’t worry too much about me, they said with psychical therapy, I should eventually be able to build my strength back up, and dad promised to work with me every day.” Steve nodded, a little relieved that she didn’t hate him completely. “Is there anything I can do for you?” Steve asked. “Stay,” (Y/N) pleaded. Steve frowned a little, “I can’t. I’m a wanted criminal now…” “You know… I’ve always sort of been into bad boys.” (Y/N) said winking at Steve. “Is that so?” Steve asked smirking, “I feel like we should test this theory out.”. Steve then leaned forward and planted a soft kiss on her lips. When he pulled away, just a little, they both we smiling “Yeah, no, I think the theory is now scientific fact. But you know, a good scientist never just does one test.” she then grabbed the back of Steve’s head and pulled him in for another kiss, this one lasting as long and (Y/N) wanted. 

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Gorsuch, speaking to students on Constitution Day, honors Ginsburg

Justice Neil Gorsuch praised Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s four decades of service as a judge, telling schoolchildren across America on Thursday to “think about the sacrifices she’s made on our behalf. We owe her a very great deal.”

Gorsuch’s comments came during a “Virtual Student Town Hall” hosted by the National Constitution Center. The event, streamed by classrooms in schools around the country, was part of a long line of festivities by the center to celebrate Constitution Day. The day’s events will conclude with a musical performance to commemorate Ginsburg’s receipt of the center’s 32nd annual Liberty Medal.

The town hall featured a conversation between Gorsuch and the center’s president, Jeffrey Rosen. They centered their discussion on the significance of the Constitution as a document, whose signing over 200 years ago we celebrate on the 17th of September. Gorsuch shared with students his belief that the Constitution is a “bulwark of human liberty like nothing else in human history.” Its utmost purpose to the Framers, he explained, was to enshrine the “primacy of the individual and our unalienable rights.” Asked whether government should prioritize liberty or order, Gorsuch expressed that a “baseline” of order is needed for rights to exist. “Your rights depend on your recognition of other peoples’ rights as well,” he said.

Honoring Ginsburg was a major theme of the discussion. Gorsuch and Rosen, who clerked together on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit while Ginsburg was a judge on that court, shared stories of their first interactions with her. As a clerk for Justice Byron White (the only other justice from Colorado and a “role model” to Gorsuch, as well as the justice whom Ginsburg replaced on the court in 1993), Gorsuch recalled being tasked with delivering White’s law clerk manual to Ginsburg when she took office – a manual she returned to him on his first day at the court some 25 years later. For his part, Rosen remembered meeting Ginsburg in an elevator, initially intimidated before he broke the silence by asking her about the opera. Thursday night’s performance, fittingly, will feature many favorite opera singers of Ginsburg, who is a well-known opera fan.

Rosen made sure to weave in plenty of questions from students in the audience.

One student asked what made Gorsuch want to become a judge. “I lived through 9/11 as a lawyer in private practice,” the justice answered. Although he felt he was too old to enlist in the military, Gorsuch still felt called to public service, and he happily accepted an offer to join the Department of Justice before his appointment to the bench, which he described as a happy “accident” and a chance to give back to a country that had been so good to him.

Others asked about the dynamic among the justices. Preferring the term “respectful disagreements”  – “and sometimes even fun” ones – to “arguments,” Gorsuch emphasized the camaraderie on the bench. He highlighted statistics showing that only a fourth to a third of all Supreme Court decisions come down 5-4, a proportion that has remained mostly steady since the 1940s, and he cautioned students not to “lose the forest for the trees” by viewing the court through a partisan lens. The justices’ weekly conference, he stressed, is known for “calm, reasoned discussion.” Gorsuch lamented that, like the conference, students’ experiences at school have largely gone virtual. It “breaks my heart,” he shared, that the learning environment has been so adversely affected for those whom he characterized as least threatened by the coronavirus.

Students asked lighthearted questions as well. Gorsuch shared that his current favorite piece of art or literature about the Constitution is the musical “Hamilton,” although his “only complaint is that James Madison doesn’t come across very well, and I’m a big James Madison fan.” Indeed, Constitution Day, Gorsuch noted, is in part a celebration of Madison, the primary author of the Constitution. Asked what students can do to preserve the document’s legacy, Gorsuch stressed reading the text of the Constitution itself and being unafraid to demand change.

The importance of education and activism for the youngest generation was a touchstone for Gorsuch. In closing, after thanking teachers for their service in the classroom, Gorsuch shared the story of one student, Gregory Watson, whose personal efforts were instrumental in ratifying the 27th Amendment (curbing Congress’ ability to raise its own pay) in the 1990s. Civic education should “empower the American youth to realize that this is their Constitution – it’s not mine,” Gorsuch said. “They’re gonna own it.”

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07/12/2019 DAB Transcript

1 Chronicles 12:19-14:17, Romans 1:1-17, Psalms 9:13-20, Proverbs 19:4-5

Today's the 12th day of July. Welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I am Brian. It is great to be here with you at the end of a workweek. And as I mentioned yesterday, we concluded the book of Acts yesterday, which means that we’re going to be moving into some new territory in the New Testament, but we’ll talk about that when we get there. First, we’re reading from the New International Version this week. First Chronicles chapter 12 verse 19 through 14 verse 17.

Introduction to the book of Romans:

Okay. So, yesterday we finished the book of Acts, and, as we will recall the first part of the book of Acts really helped us to get to know the apostle Peter and his immediate ministry after Jesus ascension, but then later, the second half of the book of Acts introduced us to Saul who became the apostle Paul and his missionary journeys. And, so, we've been all over the Roman Empire, practically with the apostle Paul. So, we had the opportunity to get acquainted. Today we’re moving into new territory into the book of Romans, which is a letter written by the apostle Paul and it's the first of a bunch of letters that we’re gonna encounter from the apostle Paul in the New Testament. Paul's not the only letter writer in the New Testament. There are other letters, but we’re gonna be spending our time for the next while now reading letters to people and to groups of people. But this one called Romans, most biblical scholars agree that Romans is by far Paul's most comprehensive work and so much of our theology around this faith, this Christian faith, so much of our understanding of the good news of Jesus it originates in the book of Romans. And it's likely that this letter was written from the city of Corinth we’re some of Paul's greatest missionary work had been accomplished and it was probably written somewhere in the mid 50s A.D. That might be just a date. You may just think, “that’s a date and it's a long time ago”, a couple thousand years ago, almost. Like if it were 2050 A.D. then we’re looking back to 50 A.D. And again, you could be just like, “well that’s cool, it’s cool to know when it was written, but what significance?” What's interesting is that Paul's letters…and one of the reasons why they're so revered and important is they are some of the earliest writings about Jesus. So, when we talk about the mid 50s A.D. for the letter to the Romans, we’re talking about a letter that was written before any of the Gospels were written. So, you won't hear Paul talking in kind of gospel narrative style where like he's telling the story of Jesus because Paul never met Jesus in the flesh while he was ministering on the earth. The Jesus that Paul met…and by the way I’m not trying to say there is a couple of different Jesus’s…but when Paul encountered Christ, he encountered Jesus after His resurrection after His ascension. So, the Jesus Paul knew was essentially the cosmic Christ, like the Eternal One. And again, I know that gets kind of convoluted. I'm not saying that Jesus in the flesh on earth was a different Jesus than the cosmic Christ. They’re the same person. I'm just saying Paul didn't know Jesus in life. Paul didn't know Jesus in His humanity on earth. And when Paul wrote Romans the narrative stories, at least in written form that we know as the Gospels, those had not been penned yet. Of course, this opens up a can of worms because just about everything in the Bible has been up for debate over the thousands of years that scholarly disciplines have been applied to it. So, there would certainly be scholars who would argue for earlier dates of certain Gospels, especially the gospel of Mark being more contemporary with Paul's writings and I’m not trying to get us in the weeds here. I’m just trying to say some of Paul's authority in his letters come because of their earliness. They were being passed around between churches and communities. They were being copied and kind of moving their way throughout the early church, especially in a lot of churches that Paul had a hand in and founding. So, we see that as they’re passed around, they begin to carry weight and authority that lasts all the way until councils ratify the New Testament. So, anyway, when Paul finished the book of Romans, he sent a Deaconess, Phoebe, from the church of Cenchreae, which was just outside of Corinth to hand-deliver this letter and make an introduction to the apostle Paul to the Romans. And we have followed Paul in the book of Acts throughout his missionary journeys and we know that Rome was a place that he wanted to go but it was not a place that he was able to go until he was under arrest. So, the church in Rome wasn’t planted by Paul and we don't know who brought the gospel of Jesus to Rome. The most likely scenario is that somebody or a group of somebody's who were influenced by the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost carried the gospel back to Rome and the church was established there. So, Paul was arrested in Jerusalem, right? And then he was held captive and under arrest in Caesarea Maritima before going to Rome and he was imprisoned mostly because he taught that the gospel, the message of Jesus, was open to Jews and Gentiles alike, that God was now welcoming all who believed in Jesus into his family, which was a massive reframing of the perceptions and traditions of devout Jews and was one of the reasons Paul constantly caused riots everywhere that he went. It’s the book of Romans that explains why Paul felt the way that he feels, that he felt, about all of these things, explains how he came to this truth. And he wrote in an educated way that devout Jews could understand, connecting beautifully Jesus to a story that had been taking place among the Jews since Abraham. Paul explained the law. We’ll hear a lot of talk about the law in Paul's writings, which is referring to the Mosaic law. And he just unpacked its purpose as a Pharisee who would been devout while revealing that nobody’d ever been able to obey the law perfectly and the idea was if you could obey the law perfectly you could be justified before God. And, so, Paul’s just realizing and reiterating and saying out loud, nobody's done that. No one be could become perfect before God on their own, through a law or through rules. But Jesus fulfilled the law and through Jesus we can all be made righteous before God. And, so, with all of that being said, we begin the letter to the Romans chapter 1 verses 1 through 17.

Prayer:

Father, we thank You for Your word and we thank You that as we continue the journey day by day, step-by-step we get to turn the page and encounter new aspects and new stories and new insights. And so, as You have brought us safely here to the book of Romans, we invite Your Holy Spirit. So much of what we believe is contained in this letter. And, so, now we have a front row seat to hearing the argument, to hearing what it was that Paul was trying to say as he was unpacking the gospel. So, come Holy Spirit into our time as we navigate the letter to the Romans we pray. And of course, Your guidance, Your insight, Your love and compassion for us throughout every verse, every word that we read, we invite You. Plant Your word in our lives in our spirit and transform us we ask in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Announcements:

dailyaudiobible.com is the website, it’s home base, of course, it’s where you find out what is going on around here. So, be sure to stay tuned and stay connected.

The Daily Audio Bible Family Reunion, right, where the global campfire comes together here in the rolling hills of Tennessee will be taking place August 31st. So, we’re just about six weeks out and we’re looking forward to that. There a few spots left. So, get ‘em while you can. We’re gonna have a blast. It's gonna be a fantastic Family Reunion by the looks of it and we can't wait to see you here in the rolling hills of Tennessee. I mentioned yesterday, there are few cabins left. Got about a week on those and then we have to release them back to the camp. And as I mentioned yesterday, this is an important family reunion for us because several of the things that we do as the rhythm of each year we’re not going to be doing next year. The Lord's invited us into a time of dreaming and and rest. So, we won’t be doing More Gathering in 2020 and we won't be doing Family Reunion in 2020. And, so, very, very much looking forward to seeing your faces at this family reunion. So, you can get all the details at dailyaudiobible.com in the Initiatives section. Of course, you see the Initiatives section on the Daily Audio Bible app as well. All the details are there and we’re hoping and praying that you can be there as well.

If you want to partner with the Daily Audio Bible, if what we do around the global campfire every day brings by light and good news and life to you then thank you for your partnership. We would not be here if we were not in this together. That is a fact. So, thank you for your partnership in the summertime. There's a link on the homepage at dailyaudiobible.com. If you’re using the Daily Audio Bible app, you can press the Give button in the upper right-hand corner or if you prefer the mailing address is PO Box 1996 Spring Hill Tennessee 37174.

And, as always, if you have a prayer request or comment, 877-942-4253, is the number to dial.

And that is it for today. I'm Brian I love you and I'll be waiting for you here tomorrow.

Community Prayer and Praise:

Hello, this is Zach from North Carolina. I was calling in again about my son Orson. He’s…he was born on June 10th and I was calling for prayers for his…my wife and his mother Kelly and his two sisters Azlan and Danielle. I was calling for prayers for them for peace and understanding for them. My son passed away today around 6 PM Eastern time today at Duke University Hospital in Dermark North Carolina. He was 28 days old. He was born on June 10th. He died today on July 7th. Please pray for his sister’s Azlan and Daniela pray for his wife…I mean my wife…his mother Kelly as we grieve his loss. And pray for Orson as he joins God in heaven as one of his angels. Thank you so much.

Good morning DABbers, this is Bruce first time caller from California. I’m leaving a prayer request from bio wife Donnie. She’s about to have shoulder replacement surgery on the 15th of this month and I’m just reaching out to you to make sure that we get as much prayer for her as possible. And while I am on the subject of Donnie I just want to let you know, wives out there, that she has listened to the Daily Audio Bible for years now and it’s because of her commitment to listening to the Daily Audio Bible and hearing her lay in her bed and every morning pray for those people that call in with prayer requests that I went from not only just listening to the Daily Audio Bible but actually listening to the prayers that come on after Brian delivers the message. And wives just…I want to let you know that your commitment to leave an example for your husbands doesn’t go unnoticed. It is because of her actions that I am at where I’m at with my walk with God. So, just keep up the good work and please pray for Donnie. Thank you very much have a great day.

Hello DAB this is Terry the trucker. I’m just calling to give an update. I’m probably about 2 ½ weeks left of therapy. Ask for continued prayers that my body will be ready to go back to work and I’m able to by the end of the month. Also want to give a shout out to all the people that’ve called in about…about being discouraged and losing hope and not knowing their purpose. You know, we all go through seasons. Some of them last just a few days, few weeks, months. Some years, sometimes a lifetime. But, you know, we never really know why. Sometimes, you know, God will reveal or it to us and sometimes He don’t, you know. And it may last you…if it lasts you your lifetime then it might just be that it encourages somebody that hears your story and knows what you went through and can say, “man that person went through a lot, but they stayed faithful. They fought the fight, they ran the race and that we’re a good and faithful servant.” That’s what our Lord wants of us. So, I just ask you to stay strong, keep your eyes on Jesus. That’s what we’re here for. And that’s what He’s for. I want to give a shout out to Cherry and Greg. You’re in my prayers. Blessings from California. Blind Tony. All you guys. And everybody that calls in, I want you to know that you’re in my prayers daily. It’s been a long year. It’s been almost a year. August 15th’s comin’ up fast. To be honest, I’m scared. I’m scared to get back in the truck, but I’ve got faith. So, I ask for prayers for my mind to be strong and not scared. I know God’s got me, but I’m still human. You all have a blessed day. Thank you.

Hey there, I just want to pray and speak to my brothers and sisters. There was a lady, you called in, I didn’t catch your name. You were played on the first of July and I’m just praying for reconciliation with your son and for you to get to meet your grandbabies. I pray that in Jesus’ name and I thank God that you’re not letting the world make you believe you’re broken. Joyful Noise, thank you for your generous heart to encourage donating to the DAB. For your son, I just pray that God will work in his life to encourage him to seek God to overcome his difficulties in Jesus’ name. Jay from Nashville, I thank God for your recent promotion. A year ago, I was a custodian and now I’m in a better…in a much better position…just through prayer and working __ for the Lord. So, congrats brother. Kristi from Kentucky thank you for putting up prayers for others. You have an extremely sweet soul. I’m praying for you and your family losing your dog. That’s never easy. I just recently lost our dog Buddy and he wasn’t just a pet I was like his littermate. And it’s never easy but now know that I’m praying for you and yours in Jesus’ name. Jesse from Washington, bless you and your restored marriage and business. I will be checking out the Daily Prayer. I’m just so excited for you brother. That is just so amazing. Scott from Tennessee. Brother, I know how rough depression and anxiety can be, especially when Scripture says not to be anxious, which is easier said than done sometimes. I also pray that God will rid you of your eating issues and that He’ll help you with your financial troubles. Just keep trusting in Him. In Jesus’ name I pray. And Drew from Minnesota, I thank God in Jesus’ name for your heart to give and trust that God will provide. That is just…

HINTERLANDS

“You love living in the past,” you say, giving me a small push. “The past is your kink."

“Don’t touch me without your gloves all the way on.” I push back harder. “And don’t fucking touch me while I’m driving unless you wanna wait another five years to get out there.”

“Sorry, sorry.” 

You put your hands up in mock fear before you settle back into yourself and the passenger seat. You put your feet up on the dashboard even though you know it’s against regulation. You catch my disapproval and draw them back, but not before you add: “they’re just gonna decimate the thing when we’re done with it anyway.” You roll your eyes. “They’re saying we don’t even technically have to wear the gear anymore, you know.”

We’ve been waiting for this for ages. But to be fair, everything’s felt like it’s been ages for… well… ages. Viruses slow bodies down. What could feel more like a pandemic than to slow the whole world down when it was running at its fastest? 

It’s been years since the first virus. It’s been years since the most recent one, too. The most anticipated federal measure has finally been passed, constructed, and ratified. We’re making our way to the Nostalgia Landfills in a car that’s never been driven - and will never be driven again - by anyone but me.

It’s funny to think that our version of the world is such a piss-poor facsimile of the terrible romance of post-apocalyptic lore we loved so much in our youth. Blade Runner and its feral glamour: “like Hong Kong on a very bad day.” The dystopian Antipodes and hot metal of Mad Max. Even the whip-cracking cannibalism and pressed white suits of The Bad Batch. What did we get? The SANITARY HINTERLANDS. Children born with bare shadows of immune systems. The obsolescence of kissing.

“The past was better.”

I wish I could roll down the “windows” in this car. I wish I could be smoking a real cigarette while waiting to pick you up at what used to be LAX, sneaking tastes of crémant direct from the bottle. I wish I could see the glittering water at the base of the San Andreas fault whipping by in a bygone August. I remember being able to differentiate seasons by months. I remember what it was like to jokingly wash your hands in a public bar sink with my own hands, to share your beer. 

It starts hailing. 

“What are you looking for again?” 

“A letter.”

“From?”

“It’s not who it’s from that matters, it’s what’s in it.”

“Jesus… are you gonna tell me?”

“It’s a key.”

“Like, a real key? An actual key?”

“Of course not. But it functions like one… takes you somewhere else.”

We drive in silence for a while. The biggest design flaw of the car is that its sanitation system renders it anechoic. No music, no noise pollution from the outside world. Just the sound of your nervous system and mine humming away together. I can hear your spit move as you swallow and it makes me want to pull over and fuck, but we only have so much time. I smile at the irony.

“You’re looking for… clothes?”

“Kind of.” I sigh. “It’s complicated. Yes, they’re clothes—they’re inside suitcases. In a larger sense I’m looking for something I’m not even sure exists out there.” 

“But you’re willing to look?”

“Forever, if I have to.”

A pause. Then you double over laughing so hard that you start to fog up.

“You romantic fucker!”

I put the pedal down fast to shut you up, but your laughter is the only thing I can hear.

I Like to Watch | The Perfection

By Don Hall

I’m old enough to remember the rash of films that took on the coming nuclear holocaust in the 1980s. WarGames. Special Bulletin. One Night Stand. The Fourth Protocol. The most on point was the 1983 television event The Day After. It seemed you couldn’t escape the non-stop agitprop of movies decrying the insanity of the Cold War and the rank stupidity of two countries hellbent on the destruction of humanity via nuclear armageddon.

The Day After was something of its time. A television ‘event’ that aired in two parts: first an introduction of characters on the brink in Kansas, second the most realistic portrait (at the time) of the aftermath of nuclear war. I recall the borderline hysteria surrounding those two nights. Looking at it now, the thing was just a bit preachy, a tad too smug in its scolding of ideology to be a work of art to last much past the hype. I mean, it had Steve Guttenberg as a main character so how good is it really gonna be?

I believe that, when creating fiction-based mass entertainment that also addresses major sociopolitical issues, filmmakers need to pull back a step and tell a great story first with the over-the-top social commentary present but in the background. Romero’s Night of the Living Dead, for example. Yes, it’s a critique of Vietnam, of international Cold War politics, of domestic racism, but it is first and foremost about a zombie apocalypse. The best recent example I can think of is Jordon Peele’s Get Out — absolutely a commentary on black/white racism but a great horror film first. I’ll admit to avoiding it because of all of the social justice types heralding it as a castigation of white supremacy (which I already know is a bad thing and am not looking for more avenues to tell me how bad it is). When I finally got around to it, I loved it because it was a fantastic horror film.

At this time in history, much like in 1979 when women came out in force, marching in the streets, to get the Equal Rights Amendment ratified as a part of the Constitution, feminism has become genuinely angry. It’s kind of a bummer to see women today pretend that their rage is the first rage to ever come to fruition but I’m not twenty-five anymore. With the #MeToo movement, there is an electricity in the air with a demand for change and filmmakers are responding to it with equal measures of brilliance and ham-fisted polemic.

Contrary to the declaration that Captain Marvel is the first solo female superhero film, I find that Wonder Woman (2017) is a better example of the How to Advocate for Change While Still Telling a Great Story type of movie. Gal Gadot is charming and funny and still badass. Her Diana Prince and Paradise Island is still exciting and fun while demonstrating a message of empowerment for women. Brie Larsen is joyless and pissy and her Carol Danvers is just a bit of an asshole in pursuit of a feminist message. It feels like Wonder Woman was created to tell a story and Captain Marvel was created to capitalize on a movement.

Richard Shepherd’s The Perfection (Netflix) is in the great tradition of making a political point without sacrificing a great moment of cinematic storytelling. Sure, it has all the hallmarks of a #MeToo movie: Lesbian Sex! The Treatment of Misogynistic Trauma as Insanity! Violent Justice for Rape! It also tells a tale of the focus on perfection in the classical music world, the horrors of sending children off to boarding schools, the violence sometimes required to snap someone out of being brainwashed through systematic torture, and revenge. The heroines are a white woman/black woman combination of racial solidarity. It aces the Bechdel Test. It’s cringeworthy and no holds are barred in graphic depiction of amputation, hallucinations, being stranded in a foreign country while suddenly, violently ill, and the absolute terror of being forced to play the cello.

Certainly, it’s a #MeToo movie but unlike, say, Ocean’s 8, A Handmaid’s Tale, or The Miseducation of Cameron Post, the political message is stronger because the story isn’t about vengeance on all men or the horrors of being a woman amidst a patriarchy or even a fake Women Are Just as Good As Men screed. It’s about two young women, subject to the same torture, tearing at each other and finding common ground in a shared enemy (who just happens to be a fucking monster rapist dude).

Also, if you’ve ever been a part of a classical music program (as I have) you’ll understand the world these characters inhabit in the same way that you understood 2014’s Whiplash.

Oh hey I never actually posted my first essay outline from this term. Emily says she likes them but heaven forbid I just like, send them to Emily. Plus this one has the best jokes and is entitled “who would win in a fight between head of state immunity and jus cogens norms?” because that is a burning question we all have.

So the question we’ve got going today is “who would win in a fight between head of state immunity and jus cogens norms?” and folks I am here today to defend the status fucking quo. Hold on, you say, I thought you were supposed to argue something contentious? Look, number one, the status quo is five minutes old, do you know how hard it was to find sources that were written after all the case law I’m relying on was established? Number two, everyone is leaving the goddamn ICC because they’re morons who think there’s a conflict between customary international law being like “hey don’t arrest presidents of other countries when they visit you” and the ICC being like “please arrest war criminals we don’t care if they’re presidents” which there ISN’T, did you even READ the Rome Statute before you signed up for this, because HEY YOU SIGNED UP FOR THIS yes I will fight you even on Bashir JUST TRY ME (fun fact like a month after writing this outline I was reading the Rome Statute for fun and discovered an article that totally proved me wrong on this so my now official position is ‘The ICC was 100% within its rights to indict Bashir but its member states have zero legal obligation to arrest him. Which. WHY IS THAT A SITUATION THAT IS ALLOWED BY THE ROME STATUTE. WHO WROTE THIS.) And three, it seems like all of academia has its panties in a knot about the Arrest Warrant Case and I have had a deep abiding love for the Arrest Warrant Case ever since I first learned about it and yes maybe it contradicts basically all the other jurisprudence about this and yes maybe the ICJ somehow got confused and mixed up head of state immunity and minister of foreign affairs immunity? But I spent all goddamn day trying to come up with a good legal reason why it’s a good decision despite all that because I will not ever give Belgium the satisfaction of saying it was justified in getting mixed up in the Congo again and honestly I’m pretty fucking pleased with the logic I came up with. So yeah. Status quo, which is neatly summarized in a flow chart I made at 6am on no sleep, is actually great, and it’s actually contentious to say that. LET’S GET STARTED.

What the fuck are you talking about?

Imagine you’re the president of a country, and you go on a trip to improve relations with your neighbour or negotiate a trade deal or represent your country at some international forum or just, you know, do presidenty things. But you get off the plane and you are arrested and thrown in jail. So now you have two problems: one, you can’t do presidenty things if you’re in jail, and like even if you’re about to go to a country and they call you up and are like “hey we’re for sure gonna throw you in jail if you turn up here” that still means you can’t do presidenty things there which sucks, and two, all the folks back home are like hey, didn’t we have a president? Wasn’t that president the one we picked ourselves which we have the right to do? So like, they’re getting pretty pissed.

According to international law this is the WORST THING THAT CAN HAPPEN TO A COUNTRY. Which, fair enough, that sounds pretty shitty. So the solution is that if you are president (or some other kind of head of state), NOBODY IS ALLOWED TO ARREST YOU NO MATTER WHAT (aka head of state immunity). And that’s been the case for forever and everybody agrees and you will get in SO MUCH TROUBLE if you arrest a president. You will get in slightly less trouble if you arrest diplomats or foreign ministers (lol or not wtf ICJ) but the LITERAL WORST is if a president is arrested. Oh right this is also because the head of state is the manifest legal existence of the state, which sounds like some made up bullshit but if you buy into it, arresting a president is basically the same as arresting a country, and you are super not allowed to arrest countries because that’s just nonsense.

But in the last like, 20ish? Years? There have been more and more people who are like you know what actually I CAN think of things that are worse for a country than having their president thrown in jail. Like, idk, genocide? Look it up man I hear it’s super bad for you.

But there are still lots of people who are like, nah bro you don’t understand, the entire world is built on this system with countries and each country gets to do its own thing and stay out of everyone else’s business and if we don’t stick to this system it’s going to collapse into a giant mess of everyone conquering everyone, we FOR REALS need to not fuck with sovereignty.

But then the first guys come back and they’re like nah bro YOU don’t understand, yes this whole immunity thing is important and has been around forever, but you know what else is important and has been around forever (by “important and has been around forever” I mean “customary international law”)? Rules like DON’T COMMIT GENOCIDE DON’T VIOLATE THE GENEVA CONVENTION DON’T TORTURE PEOPLE ETC. those are called jus cogens norms and following them trumps EVERYTHING.

So we’ve got these two groups of people staring each other down and it’s like, maybe we could find a way to throw people in jail for committing atrocities *without* having the entire global order collapse? Maybe under certain circumstances we COULD arrest presidents for violating jus cogens norms and if we’re reasonable about it nobody will freak out and we’ll all be okay. Just saying.

Let’s go see if we can find some rules about this.

HAVE YOU BEEN FIRED YET Y/N

Okay this time imagine that you’re not a president of a country, but you USED to be president of a country. And you show up in some other country and they’re like “dude, you did some fucked up shit when you were president, we are arresting your ass.” On one hand, you no longer do presidenty things, you no longer represent your populace, and you are no longer the state incarnate. In that sense you are now just regular joe war criminal.

But on the other hand, flashback to when you WERE president, and you’re trying to do your thing but you keep thinking like, “if I do this thing will people from another country arrest my ass the moment I’m done being president?” which is basically that other country getting all up in your business just by threatening to arrest your ass which isn’t cool (and is also incentive to become PRESIDENT FOR LIFE which we’ll talk about later). Also maybe you’re not the state incarnate now (the flashback has ended), but you were the state incarnate when you did that fucked up shit so it’s basically like the state did that and you can’t arrest the state!

Anyways this is what happened to Pinochet who used to be a dictator in Chile and did so much fucked up shit oh my god and so when he showed up in the UK the Brits arrested his ass. They actually did it on behalf of Spain? Which, what? Not important, the point is that a bunch of old dudes got together and were like “can we arrest his ass? Like if he were still president we wouldn’t go near him but the rule is ‘no arresting presidents’ and he is no longer president.” And then they arrested his ass.

This also happened to Yerodia who was minister of foreign affairs (yes I know that’s not a head of state but if it applies to a foreign minister it extra applies to a president) for the Congo and WHILE HE WAS STILL IN THAT JOB Belgium was like “dude stop telling everyone to commit genocide, now we’re gonna arrest your ass.” And the Congo was like “what the fuck” and went and told the ICJ and the ICJ went to Belgium and was like “PUT THAT THING BACK WHERE IT CAME FROM OR SO HELP ME” (to be clear they hadn’t actually arrested him yet, they’d just issued the warrant, so they didn’t have to put him back, they just had to cancel the warrant. Also probably it’s not nice to call him a thing, but one, that’s what the quote is, and two, I’m reasonably certain he called Tutsis cockroaches at some point so I don’t feel that bad). Basically the ICJ was like “dude you gotta wait until he’s done being in office” and Belgium was like “actually it’s been a while and he’s not in office anymore, can we arrest him now?” and the ICJ was like, “did you decide to arrest him while he was still in office?” and Belgium was like “maybe….” And the ICJ was like “goddamnit Belgium you signed the Vienna Convention on Foreign Relations you know better than this”

(Also side note from me because I cannot talk about this case without ranting a little bit: Dear Belgium, NOBODY EVER WANTS YOU ANYWHERE NEAR THE CONGO’S SOVEREIGNTY EVER AGAIN I KNOW YOU ARE TRYING TO HELP BUT YOU ARE ACTUALLY JUST BEING NEOCOLONIALIST AND GROSS YOU ALREADY FUCKED UP THIS COUNTRY ONCE PLEASE STOP TRYING TO HELP AND GO SIT IN A CORNER).

So to conclude, if you’ve been fired from being president, you are fair game.

DID YOU SIGN UP FOR THIS Y/N

Look I don’t get why this is so hard. Because head of state immunity is all about protecting the state, if the state is like “you know what we’re gonna take a pass on that immunity thing” then you DON’T HAVE IMMUNITY. (This is a lie, it’s so hard because it is frankly mind-boggling what counts as legal consent but something something Kirgis I don’t feel bad for you)

Level one (easy mode, aka stfu Kenyatta): the Rome Statute has a bit in it that’s like “we don’t give a fuck if you’re head of state” like it’s right in there. Which is not really surprising because the alternative would be “go ahead and be PRESIDENT FOR LIFE you can avoid jail and score! You get to keep being president in the meantime.” So if you ratified the Rome Statute, you ratified the bit that says that it’s cool for the ICC to prosecute heads of state, so WHY ARE YOU SURPRISED WHEN THE ICC ARRESTS YOUR ASS???

Level two (fine print mode, aka stfu Milosevic): Okay you didn’t sign up for the ICC. Fair enough. Quick question, though, did you sign up for the UN? Hells yes you did everyone signs up for the UN! Well friend, you may notice that the UN Security Council rules your ass now and can do whatever the fuck it wants in the name of peace and security using a nifty little thing called Chapter VII. So if they decide that your country needs to be subjected to a special international tribunal and they set it up through Chapter VII, you agreed to that because you ratified the UN Charter which says you agree to anything that happens through Chapter VII. Like I know it’s not super explicit but it *is* legitimate, that *is* what you signed, it’s nothing personal (probably). You signed away your sovereignty when you agreed that the UNSC could do whatever it wanted, and what they wanted was your immunity so hand it over.

Level three (spirit mode, aka stfu Taylor): So, say the UNSC set up a tribunal for your country but for reasons beyond comprehension they didn’t Chapter VII that shit. Is that your hail mary pass? NOPE nice try though. The court might not be a Chapter VII court but it was set up by the UN which means it was established in the SPIRIT of Article I, which is the most vague-ass fluff article ever and I find it HILARIOUS that this was a real argument used.  Also they were like “okay they didn’t say chapter VII but they said we could arrest your ass and they still have the powers of chapter VII” which is probably a better argument I guess? Why the fuck wasn’t the special tribunal for sierra leone established under Chapter VII

Level four (hard mode, aka stfu al-Bashir): So Sudan didn’t sign the Rome Statute. And there hasn’t been a special tribunal set up for it. Does that mean it hasn’t actually consented to having its immunity waived? HECK NO IT’S STILL A UN MEMBER. I read an article that was specifically dedicated to being like “waaaah the ICC doesn’t have jurisdictionnnnn” and it pissed me off so let’s deal with this shit. This dude was all “the ICC isn’t a UN body” like come the fuck on, the flag is blue and has olive branches for a reason. maybe it’s not directly part of it but it was still built out of the UN and still has direct links. And by direct links I mean THE SECURITY COUNCIL HAS THE AUTHORITY TO REFER CASES TO THE ICC. So that’s a pretty big link. Oh also THAT IS HOW AL-BASHIR GOT INDICTED. And when the security council does that, you know how they do it? CHAPTER FUCKING SEVEN. Like it is well established by this point that by signing the UN Charter, you are signing up to give up whatever sovereignty the security council sees fit, so take your pacta tertiis and shove it up your ass. Also just on a practical note this is the only mechanism we have to combat the PRESIDENT FOR LIFE phenomenon and personally I’m in favour of NOT letting genocidal maniacs run shit for the rest of forever so I’d really appreciate it if everyone could shut up about how awkward it is when al-Bashir comes to visit because he’s supposed to be under arrest, and instead maybe idk ARREST THE GENOCIDAL MANIAC WHO CAME TO VISIT.

You know when I see it all laid out like this I find it really amazing that the primary body of the United Nations, which is a statist organization if there ever was one, really has the power to shake down other member states for their sovereignty like a bully looking for lunch money. How is everyone okay with this? Oh wait they’re not that’s why this essay is contentious. Welp for once I’m on the side of the P5 screwing everyone over, because they have good reasons here.

So, to sum up: if you’re no longer in power, you’re fair game. If we can twist your membership to various things into something that looks like consent, you’re fair game.

JUS COGENS AKA DID YOU FUCK SHIT UP REALLY REALLY BAD Y/Y

Okay let’s just quick get through the first part of this analysis, which is just “nobody gives a fuck if you only did regular bad guy stuff.” This essay is about jus cogens, which isn’t like “don’t murder” levels of bad so much as it’s like “don’t wipe out and/or enslave an entire culture” levels of bad. So if this is obvious because nobody cares otherwise, why is there a special section about it?

Not only does nobody care if you only reached mediocrity in your path to supervillainy, also we can’t really do anything about it. Your head of state immunity has got you covered, hypothetical president who killed twelve people for reasons that had nothing to do with conflict or their ethnicity!

So why doesn’t it protect you if you committed jus cogens crimes? Are these like special magical crimes where we’re just like “man that is so much worse than losing head of state immunity, therefore you lose your head of state immunity?” Honestly kind of yes, but that’s such annoying analysis. Let’s go back to Pinochet for a second here.

So remember those old dudes who were like “should we throw this dude in jail now that he’s not president?” They weren’t just like “yeah it’s fine because he’s not president” because for a while they were like “he was president when he did those things so he should still have immunity for them.”  But finally they were like, “you know what? No. If you’re violating jus cogens, you’re not a president committing supercrimes, you’re a supercriminal who has been given WAY too much power.” Like it’s contrary to the nature of the state to violate jus cogens, so if you do it you are no longer the state incarnate. I know it’s still a little magical woo-woo these extra bad crimes are special because they’re extra bad, but I actually really like this framing.

It also goes really well with principles from the Nuremburg tribunal, which declared that international crimes are committed by people (I’m pretty sure it said men but you know it was the 40’s), not abstract entities (aka States) and we can only fight these crimes if we can punish individuals. Which. Yep.

So, idk, let’s try doing an application? To that theoretical case we’re talking about that doesn’t exist? Hmmmm.

THANK GOD I NEED FEWER SOURCES FOR THIS SECTION

Okay so here’s what bugs me about all of this. That framing that I just talked about that I really like? As a reminder (yes it was ten lines ago) it basically is like ‘you don’t get head of state immunity for jus cogens crimes because they’re default personal rather than state actions.” Which is great! But my question is this: that logic basically implies that there should NEVER be any immunity for jus cogens violations? Which is not the jurisprudence (I am still only 83% sure I’m using that word correctly I should check that) we’re dealing with today. Here is a chart that is less cool than my original chart but simpler and more likely to be included in my actual paper:

                      International Court          Universal Jurisdiciton

Current HoS  |     No Immunity         |           No Immunity

 Former HoS |     No Immunity         |          IMMUNITY

Which is weird, right? If Yerodia violated jus cogens norms, it shouldn’t matter that he had immunity, it shouldn’t matter that he was still in office, it shouldn’t matter that it was Belgium trying his ass instead of an international tribunal, because according to the logic of the Pinochet decision, he wasn’t acting in the capacity of his office when he said those godawful things. The logic they used wasn’t “it’s okay because he’s no longer a head of state,” it was “he NEVER WAS head of state in the context of the actions we’re talking about.” Which raises the question of “why you gotta be such a little bitch and still say you would never arrest him if he was still a head of state?” and like, I’m not sure if the ICJ took this into consideration (and if they did and came to different conclusions my whole essay is fucked LOL) but assuming we’re aiming for a unified worldview on when it is and isn’t okay to violate immunity (which I mean, *I* am, at least) then Yerodia similarly wasn’t acting as Minister of Foreign Affairs when he got all genocidal. So why couldn’t Belgium arrest his ass as ordinary joe war criminal? Er. Ordinary joe genocidaire. Joenocidaire? Stop.

So if you look at that “rules” stuff we went over in far too much detail earlier, you will note that “you weren’t really head of state” is only one justification used. The other one is “you waived your immunity even if you didn’t mean to.” And if you are like me, you might spend a whole afternoon being like “who gives a fuck whether or not you waived your immunity when we’ve decided in the Pinochet case that you never had it?” and in that case you, like me, would be WRONG. I mean one, from a practical standpoint, we don’t have to establish that what you did was violate jus cogens if you’ve waived immunity, which is nice. We just have to make a tenuous connection to ANY PART of the UN Charter and then presumably prove that prosecuting would be in the interests of peace and security. Which is not that hard. But the cooler thing, that I wish I had more buildup to because it’s really the point of everything, is that these two justifications actually serve different purposes. “what are you talking about, they are both justifications for ignore head of state immunity, that’s the same purpose” to which I say GOD LET ME FINISH MY THOUGHT.

If we’re going with the “you never had immunity” argument, that is, yes, a justification for you to be prosecuted, and it’s a good one. BUT I would say that it is NOT also a justification for depriving a country of its head of state. This is a reason for head of state immunity WAY back at the beginning of everything, and even if you decide that someone is too evil to get away with what they did, it doesn’t erase the practical harm of a bunch of people being like “hey so that guy is our president???? Can we please have him back?????”

And yes I can hear you screaming “But that’s true no matter what when you’re prosecuting a current head of state!!!!!!11!” which YES. I KNOW. CHILL. But if it’s an international court, you asked for it. I think it’s safe to assume that if you consent in whatever fucked up way we assume you’re consenting when you signed up for the UN, if we can read that as “sure you can arrest our current head of state in the name of peace and security” you recognize that doing so is going to deprive you of your head of state. Surely we don’t have to spell that out for you.

But there’s just no way to pull that shit under universal jurisdiction. Nobody anywhere even implicitly is like “we trust Belgium to decide unilaterally when we need to be deprived of our head of state for the sake of global peace and security.” Which legally means you can’t do it, and also the reason that nobody would ever do that is the practical reason why it makes sense to let international courts do this but not countries: Belgium may well have an ulterior motive (like, idk, they somehow magically forgot that decolonization happened?) whereas any international tribunal is (in theory! And that’s what we’re talking about here!) impartial and isn’t gonna deprive a country of its president for funsies.

So to sum that up, the nullification of immunity by virtue of jus cogens violations is a sufficient condition to prosecute *former* heads of state, which is why it was cool to arrest Pinochet. But it’s not sufficient to justify depriving a country of its current head of state without their (vaguely implied) consent, which is why it wasn’t cool to arrest Yerodia (okay fine it’s not sufficient to justify depriving a country of any major member of government GOD Belgium if you were going to fuck up this badly could you have at least issued an arrest warrant for the president of DRC instead?????))

This actually raises an interesting question about like, states that can’t be said to have consented to *anything* not even the UN. If the president of Kosovo goes on a wild rampage Pinochet style, we can’t actually be like “too bad, you secretly consented to an international court that didn’t even exist yet throwing you in jail!” because they could be like “we haven’t consented to shit just try us” so if that happens I guess we’d have to wait until they were out of power. Which is annoying but what can ya do. Probably argue that Kosovo isn’t a State, and then shit gets really messy because then it’s Serbia’s UN membership that would count? But wow that’s going to make a lot of people really angry to say that Kosovo *consented* to UN control by virtue of its separation from Serbia not being recognized. Like. Ouch. Also if you aren’t a State how can you have a head of state? Shit’s complicated, man.

So to conclude, if your question (my question) is “who would win in a fight between the jus cogens norms and the immunity norms” the answer is jus cogens norms. Immunity only takes it when the level of sovereignty violation we’re talking is literally one country trying to oust the leader of another country. And I think that’s the way it should be, because that’s about the point where I’m like “okay maybe if we do that the whole conception of sovereign states is circling the drain.” Anything less than that, though, and I am down with whatever moronic justifications we can try to use to throw bad guys in jail. Yay!