school shootings were always my biggest fear as a student and now I still fear them as a teacher

NON-HUMAN SPECIES IN THE WORLD OF CITY OF LIFE (Adeayar)

Most information specifically relates to the eastern continent of Ehela

General: 

Whilst humans are, by far, the most populous species in Adeayar they are not the sole wanderers of the world. Many millennia ago these other species - known as the Kallavasa - were far more common, equally or even passing human numbers, however due to a disease/magical phenomena known only as the Withering they have been dying out. Their civilisations can prosper for a short while, but are always doomed to fall, each fall more devastating than the last. Children die in their infancy for no known reason, the magical power in each species dwindles with each generation, in recent centuries madness has become a common ailment. It is currently estimated that there are less that 5000 of each non-human species in the world (as of the beginning of City of Life).

The Withering is not understood. Humans tend not to care, many living their entire lives without ever having met a Kallavasi, and the Kallavasa themselves have no power or means of studying it. Each culture has incredibly different beliefs of what the Withering is, why it occurred, and how to stop it. However, one common thread that runs through all these stories is a young woman shrouded in shadow, crying for help. 

Elves:

Once, the elves of Adeayar had many beautiful cultures that spanned the entire world. However, with the fall of their last city - Lohsä - 300 years ago they retreated entirely from civilisation and became nomadic wanders, attempting to outrun the Withering by never settling anywhere long enough for it to fall. The elves of Ehela are split into two separate and distinct cultures:

The Vandralkir- nomadic tribes who wander the entire continent, always on the move and trying to avoid going to the same place once. These are the most common types of elves that human will see, frequently venturing into cities and towns for trade and healing.

The Skoroskir - tribes who settled in the northern Kaluusa forest that separates the mainland from the ice plains of northern Osvingar. These tribes often have 3 or 4 camps that they travel between throughout the year. It is very rare for humans to come into contact with these elves as they never leave their forest, going so far as to kill humans who venture too deep, believing that it was human interfering and mingling that angered the world and brought on the Withering. 

Elves tend to be the same height as humans, but with longer and more graceful limbs, wider eyes that reflect the light, long pointed ears, and rows of sharp needlelike teeth. They are not immortal, though it’s common for elves to believe their ancestors were before the Withering, but they are long lived. Common lifespan for an elf is 300 years. 

Giants

A hospitable people who value hard work and honesty, the giants of Ehela live in small communities in the central steppes and the northern ice-planes. Giant society was one of the first to fall, and due to this next to nothing is known of what their cultures were like. But ruins of great stone buildings can be found throughout the world. Due to this lack of connection with a history or culture, giants love stories and believe their storytellers to be a sacred part of their society. 

Giant communities keep in touch via travelling story tellers who act as the knowledge keepers of their people, travelling from community to community, keeping track of news, births, marriages, deaths, and telling their kin of tales from other communities. Every giant storyteller is required to learn the full oral history of their people, and to add to that oral history themselves as they know full well the dangers of only having a written history. These story tellers wander Adeayar their entire lives in the hopes that should the fall affect their people again, they shall survive and keep the giants memories alive. 

Giants tower above the other races, the shortest of them being 10ft, the tallest often reaching 13ft. Many giants possess a set of large, curling horns. The giants lifespan is the same as that of the humans. 

Dwarves:

Whilst other Kallavasa may have renounced their cultures either as an attempt to outrun the Withering or because their cultures have already been lost, the hardship has only made the dwarves cling to their traditions more stubbornly. Great dwarven halls still reside under the earth, many of the great forges still burn. Every time one dwarven culture falls, the remainder of its people bury their dead, tend to their wounded, and then pick themselves up from the ground and start rebuilding. 

There are three dwarven halls in Ehela:

The Halls of Sonila - Located in southern Baraja, the great Hall of Sonila are few but proud. Led by a democratically elected Hall Master/Mistress, the Sonila prize knowledge above all else. Before their falls, the Halls of Sonila were in possession of the greatest library in all Adeayar, said to house at least 1 copy of every book in existence. It has since been destroyed, all that knowledge lost, but the Sonila seek to restore it.

Due to their search for knowledge, outsiders are always welcome in their Halls, the price of an outsiders stay is one piece of knowledge per night stayed. 

The Halls of Heeral - Located on the island of Lis Sunmar, the Halls of Heeral are a secretive lot, having cut of ties with not only the humans, but other dwarves and Kallavasa. Before the Withering they were known for their complicated politics and interest in foreign affairs. 

The Halls Jeden - Located in Ixwera, the Halls of Jeden are known for its art and music, and has bee ruled by an unbroken line of Queens for 900 years. 

100 years ago the Halls of Jeden were betrayed by humans they had sought to help. After the Ixweran capital was destroyed in a coup, the Halls of Jeden took in many refugees from the city. They were repaid by an Ixweran military force killing the Queen (leaving her 9 year old daughter to take her place) and forcing the Jeden dwarves into exile. The Ixweran’s renamed the Halls ‘Zhanmora’ and currently still reside there after having made it their new capital. This is considered an official Fall.

The Jeden dwarves currently walk the world, living apart but keeping in touch, waiting for the day they can return home. Their Queen, Irissi, wanders with them. 

Dwarves are a short people, the tallest of them reaching 4′5. All genders grow substantial amount of facial hair. They have large, reflective eyes. Their average lifespan is 350 years. 

Dragons:

Dragons do not originate from Ehela, instead their home is in the southern continent of Jivria, but they came over centuries ago with their riders when they moved to the floating city of Shainen. 

Dragons are often bred in Jivria for the purpose of bonding with a rider. An egg or a hatchling is given to a young Jivrian to bond with and to train with and it is considered a great honour. These dragons who are bonded young adhere to a strict contract that was made with the Jivrian humans, they renounced their wild nature and culture for human protection from the Withering. Bonded dragons love their riders very much and it is a very deep, very special, very sacred relationship. When a bonded dragons rider dies the dragon gives their services over to the human community they belonged to for the rest of their lives, vowing to serve and protect.

However, there are still some wild dragons in Jivria who refuse to adhere to the contract and give up their ways. These wild dragons often live in small family units in the deep wilds of the continent and any humans who come into contact with them are often killed for fear of being forced into a contract. 

Bonded dragons often live for upwards of 200 years. Wild dragons are often lucky to reach 30 due to the Withering making them ill.

Bonded or wild, dragons value bravery and loyalty, believing those to be the best qualities a person can have.

It is very rare, but it is possible for a wild dragon to choose to bond with a human they deem worthy. Most humans who try to bond with a wild dragon end up dead.

Khinin:

The rarest species to walk the earth, the Khinin are an amphibious race of people who make their home along the coasts. All the Kallavasa feel deep in their bones that the world used to be more, but none so much as the Khirin who often feel a deep call for adventure and exploration. They are born with the feeling of something tugging at their blood and bones, something pulling them. Many Khirin go searching for this pull and are never seen again. 

The Khirin often live solitary lives, not through choice but because each Khirin is only capable of siring/bearing one child, they are so rare that once a Khirin’s parents have passed or gone in search of the pull, they can live their entire lives without ever seeing another of their kind. 

It is believed that the Khirin once belonged to a sprawling underwater empire, with beautiful coral and stone cities. But either these cities have been so thoroughly destroyed or their locations lost to time.

The Khirin are a tall people, between 6ft and 8 ft, with rubbery skin that comes in human shades, large round entirely black eyes, gills, and webbed hands/feet. 

Naluviin:

The group term for the winged people of Adeayar, but Naluviin describes these people as much as the term ‘bird’ describes both robins and eagles. There are several sub-species of Naluviin that call Ehela their home.

The Ivala - The Ivala are a sub-species of people in possession of large feathered wings that come in shades of white, cream, and unusually light brown. They are a proud and regal people who refuse to acknowledge the Withering or any of their falls. 

The Kornil - The Kornil are the smallest sub-species of Naluviin, with dark feathered wings with shocks of either bright red or electric blue. The Kornil make their home in the Kalish canyons. They are a lively people whose philosophy is to smile and celebrate all life has to offer in the face of the Withering. A rebellion, a middle finger in the face of fear and loss.

The Shiik - The Shiik are a sub-species of Naluviin whose ancestral home was in the island of Hossar, they are currently under a self-imposed exile from their homeland. They believe that the Withering occurred due to spiritual perversion. They have not followed the religious doctrine closely enough and have angered the gods, once all Kallavasa have repented and dedicated themselves to the religious doctrine then the Withering will end, and their exile will end. The Shiik have large wings the colour of midnight. 

The Valatur - The Valatur are a sub-species of Naluviin with unfeathered wings, instead their wings are membranous like those of a bat. They make their home in the Eastern Freeholdings. Valatur choose not to lament that which they lost, they believe the only way to surpass the Withering is to let go of their ties to the past, to only every look towards the future. 

Aside from their wings, Nulaviin look human. They have hollow bones to allow for their flight, and they have a second pair of eyelids to protect their eyes during flight. Their lifepans are the same as humans. 

Veshrih:

The Veshrih are a semi-aquatic people with a reptilian background. Whilst not completely cold blooded, they do not fare well in colder climates. They live in tight family units in the south of the continent, most prominently in the marshes of Shanmarsh.

They cannot breathe underwater, but they are excellent swimmers, choosing to forgo the river boats that local humans use to navigate the country.

Before the Withering, the Veshrih of Shanmarsh lived in a single stone compound ruled by a religious conclave. The ruins of the compound can still be found underneath the waters. 

The Veshih of Shanmarsh are a friendly but wary people, having been treated badly by humans in the distant past. They have long memories. They will not hurt humans, they will instead hide and run away as they tend to be very skittish and fearful. 

Religious leaders are of the utmost importance in Veshih society being a priest is a path decided from birth, it is a belief that their god puts a piece of themself in every priest, allowing them to communicate with those on Adeayar and express their will on the people. The god of the Veshih is a compassionate and loving one, more a parental figure than an indifferent creator. The Veshih god is very much considered to be the god of the Veshih, not the god of the world.

The Veshih are humanoid, but prominent parts of their skin is scaled, their eyes are reptilian and slitted, and their tongues are forked. 

Bulaisa:

Not so much a sentient race of people, nor a culture, Bulaisa is a term used to refer to magical animals. Large intelligent wolves of the north, mystical deer of Tehsan, gorillas of Jivria. The Bulaisa are not humanoids, but they are not entirely animal. It is not really understood what they are. Some cultures teach that they are descendants of shapeshifters stuck in their animal forms, some cultures believe they’re manifestations of human spirits come to guide the living. 

The Bulaisa are neither benevolent nor evil. They are just as likely to help those in need as they are to strike them down. 

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5 September 2017, The Rise of Totalitarianism

I was going to put this in chronological order, but decided to put my response to it all up front.  The readers, if there are any, can decide for themselves to read what prompted my response on The Rise of Totalitarianism.

“Dear [name deleted],

“We share your love of the environment and in our own way we do our part.  However, we see an even greater near term threat, and that is the rise of totalitarianism from the left.  Absolute insanity is gaining traction; for example, some California legislators want to make it a criminal offense, with jail time, for using the “wrong" gender pronoun.  The violence and hatred coming from the left, the “mainstream” left, is, in our opinion an immediate threat — much more immediate than the environment.

“Not to mention that apologist, spineless Obama who did all he could to encourage rogue nations like Iran and North Korea, the latter of which now has a hydrogen bomb and has no reservations about selling nukes to the highest bidder.  The threat of an EMP device launched from North Korea and detonated over the USA is something Obama should have “fixed” during his 8 years of playing golf.  There are very few options left; diplomacy has proven not to work with N Korea and a military option may be all that is left.  An EMP device that succeeds in taking out the electronics in everything from the electrical grid to your cell phone will result in about 90% of the population of this country dying, and probably billions globally after the USA becomes a 4th world country.

“Even without the threat of 300 million deaths in the USA alone, the totalitarianism that is inherent in the attitudes and actions of the progressives, liberals, or whatever you want to call them, is an absolute evil, just as bad in its own way as Hitler was. 

“When freedom and democracy are once again secure in this country, which today they are not, then we will have time to do more for the environment.  In the meantime, we are ready to defend freedom, democracy and the Constitution against the totalitarianism of the left.

. . .

“I must say that I cannot understand your passion or your single minded focus when the 'father' of 'climate change' (Al Gore) is demonstrably one of the biggest hypocrites alive today, with an electric consumption perhaps a hundred times greater than the average American family.  What an absolute jerk he is.  Maybe 10% of your time should be spent exposing him, and only devote 90% to exposing Exxon.

“Frankly, we think the country may be irreparably damaged (reached its political tipping point) and its survival as a nation is in question.  It is even possible there will be civil war, and if that happens it will be a much worse blood bath than the first civil war.  So you can go “nail” Exxon if that’s the most productive way you can think of to spend your time.  We plan to do what we can, while battling my cancer and my wife’s depression, to preserve freedom and democracy so that when you’ve solved the climate problem this will be a free country where people can live in relative peace and harmony, and Christian bakers won’t be driven out of business by the totalitarian left.

“When you have personal news you want to share, please write, email, or phone.  When you have anything else to share, please share with someone else.

Still a friend”.

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This is what led up to my essay.

My wife forwarded this to a friend who is particularly concerned about climate change, or global warming if you prefer.  He reacted from his single issue perspective which colors everything he does.  But first the item my wife forwarded.  I wish I knew the author, as I’d like to shake his or her hand.  It was written in response to events of the recent horrific flooding in Houston.

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AUTHOR UNKNOWN (to me):  

“We are still a great people. The rescuers remind us of that. But we lack the culture or the politics to reflect that greatness. The noble impulses that lead men to risk their lives in flooding are there. But our society no longer has the vessels to hold and sustain those impulses. The media doesn't quite know what to make of the rescuers. You can see the itching to return to the stories that it knows and likes. Russia. Trump hit pieces. People punching each other in the street over politics. It swerves at the first sight of a Confederate flag on a rescue boat or Ted Cruz's Sandy vote. It doesn't want to dwell on the best of us. Behavior like that doesn't make sense anymore. Generations have grown up with leftist protesters as their definition of heroes. Look in a history book and the last 70 years consisted of "heroes" who marched around waving signs until they got everything they wanted. And everyday in the news there are more "heroes" marching for illegal aliens, transgender bathrooms, the supremacy of black lives and any other identity politics cause. But waving a placard to the adulation of the media isn't heroism. Saving lives is. Our culture has quickly forgotten that less than two decades ago, men carrying half their weight climbed to the top of the World Trade Center to save lives. They died there. The America of a hundred or even fifty years ago, would have immortalized them. Ours drowned them out in tantrums, in whines, in anger and outrage, in malicious noise. They were a dangerous reminder that we were a great people. And our destroyers desperately wanted us to forget. They wanted us to sink to the bottom. Not to rise to the moment. The secret of so much of our greatness was simply that we tried. We took our best and we made it the cultural norm. Every people tell themselves that they are wonderful and destined to rule the world. The Germans and the Russians believed it and it led them to ruin. But we told each other that we were decent and we became decent. We told our children that the moon could be theirs. And it was. We told them that we could cure diseases. And we did. That we would prevail over the atom bomb. And we did. That we would change the world. And we did. But more importantly, we told them about sportsmanship. We told them to stand up for principles. To take pride in hard work. To believe in the future. To tell the truth. To help old ladies across the street. To tie knots well. To sacrifice for family. To see themselves as heroes, however unlikely. We made all of those things into a culture. That was the secret. Anyone could have done it. You just had to believe. And that culture has been slowly dying. Some days it looks almost dead. Our culture and politics exist to give us permission to lie in the mud. That has become their unhidden purpose. Decency is a dead language. Shock value is our entertainment. Contempt and outrage are our national discourse. The Chinese build cities and islands. We yell at each other over the Internet. It's hard to remember a time when writing the Great American Novel was an ambition. The American novel is dead. Literature, like art, has become segmented into high brow garbage and low brow garbage. The aspirational middle brow culture is dead. The movie theater is filled with billion dollar adaptations of comic books, Disney rides and cartoons. The handful of teens who can be pried away from their phones long enough to watch something they'll forget five minutes later aren't even the target audience. America is a stopover territory on the way to the real markets in the teeming cities of China. How does a culture like that deal with heroism? It can't. It doesn't have the vocabulary for it.”

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In response to this, our very liberal, single issue friend wrote back:

“Don’t know who wrote this.  Not smart. Here’s what I’m writing.  Researched climate science since I retired [in] 2009.   Its about the Earth math.  Like any system, Earth’s environment responds to a pulse of input like carbon.  How long does it take to respond to reach a steady but higher temp?  30 years.  Here’s the test.  If you apply a reverse pulse, how long does it take to get relief?  30 years, because the physical dynamics are the same. This happened in the 1970s when Exxon discovered they were already destroying the place.  Rather than man up, they voted to hire experts that knew how to confuse the public (mocking libtards) and discredit the same sciences that made them rich.  If  they decide to research how to apply a reverse pulse and then go do it (fat chance), to save their lifetime customers who were only ever given one kind of energy, your kids will see not climate relief in their lifetime (or yours). The Gulf of Mexico is a roulette wheel of grief and death.  Houston will cost $180B.  The bill should go to Exxon, but Sec State Exxon has a better idea:   you can pay it.  Exxon paid-Republicans:   “No problem, and climate is normal, its just nature, goes to the Dems deficit anyway.”   During the 30 year reverse response period, tipping points can be exceeded.  Run past a couple or three of those and climate is out of control, goodby humans. Bugs will be OK. Unfortunately for the planet, during the debate about atmospheric testing of nucs, nuclear winter was modeled and found to be a high risk threatening the common planetary good.  So, we are served by a treaty that everybody adheres to, even the N. Koreans.  Unfortunately, because Sec State Exxon is going to fix climate damage, which is "not happening," with nuclear winter, a sudden climate solution after crazy N. Korea (and hapless  S. Korea, Japan) get vaporized.   “Hey we didn’t know this would happen, but look, Exxon fixed 2 problems.”  End of democracy and life as we knew it.  They are going to dig up every last fossil molecule and meter out nuc bandaids for eons, because they can’t be stopped.  And they LOVE THEIR VOLUNTEER HEROES CLEANING UP AFTER THEIR GRIEF:  IRAQ, SYRIA, LIBIA, AFGHANISTAN, PAKISTAN, RITA, KATRINA, HARVEY, and this list will double and triple.