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How do we leave the EU in the ‘right’ way?

Matt Healing
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How do we leave the EU in the ‘right’ way?

As each day drags on, it feels as if a consensus surrounding Britain’s exit from the European Union will never be reached, and that the deadline for our stay will recede endlessly into the distance. For nearly four years, the narrative has been pressed that a resounding breakthrough is days away.

But with genuine interest running dry, we ask the question: How do we put this behind us in the right way?

Those who are fed up with talks of elections, redo referendums, and no-deal blowouts, seem to be towing the Tory party line. “Surrender” is a term Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been using regularly to describe anything but his version of a Brexit deal, and maintains that securing a deal on his terms would allow for the country to refocus itself on more pressing issues, such as the barren state of the NHS.

This has caused friction in the house, with Johnson’s deal failing to be agreed upon by a majority. There have been suggestions for Johnson to hold a general election, which could potentially see the Conservatives regain a strong majority through voters who are keen to see Brexit done with and put in the past. The time also seems favourable for Johnson, as Labour struggle to find consensus on Brexit. The longer Johnson persists with trying to get his deal through, belief could slip from some voters, as the strong visage of “do or die” fades away, and voters are left with the PM who failed multiple times to secure them a favourable deal.

The Other Side

Throughout the whole process Labour MP’s have found themselves wholly divided regarding Brexit. The main discrepancy, amongst the public as well, has been whether it is wise to simply accept Brexit as a reality by finding the best solution possible in the form of a good deal, or if there is still enough impetus amongst voters to demand a new vote to be put to the public. 

The main line from hard Remainers has continued to be that there is a substantial sect of the public who initially voted leave, who now see the merits of remaining in the European Union. This change of heart may have come about due to seeing the response from MP’s since the initial vote, which has degenerated into party-fed talking points and inciting anger from the public. This is no better emphasised by Johnson’s recent rhetoric surrounding Brexit, phrases like “surrendered” and “do or die” conjure images of a war-general barking orders on the front line. This level of hyperbole is seen by some as a dangerous incitement of anger from a hard-line sect of Brexiteers.

In some stroke of luck, though it’s unclear exactly who for at this point, the proposed general election to gain a majority has been accepted. Despite their differences, and Boris Johnson entrusting that Conservative votes carry through his plans, Jeremy Corbyn and the Labour party have lifted their opposition in a decision to back an election. Labour were firmly rooted in their ideals of not backing an election until a no-deal Brexit had been taken firmly off the table. With the EU validating an extension for Brexit until January, the party finally felt ready to back one. Corbyn stated the party is “totally, united, totally determined”, “it’s time”. 

In reality, it is impossible to truly know what the general populous thinks. Those claiming support for Brexit has only grown out of impatience, and the opposing line that there has been a mass conversion, are both impossible to quantify. It seems, just from general discourse, talking to friends and family members, the occasional office quip, that people are tired.

There needs to be a refocus, centred on driving friendly discourse, and reengaging an apathetic nation. A second referendum may do more harm than good, but so would a bad deal. Maybe there is an argument to be made for revaluating the public opinion after such a long time, casting aside any notions of an en masse change of heart, and ensuring that whatever the result be, that Brexit is finally laid to rest. 

Family-owned florist business looks to bloom in Chestertown

admin
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Family-owned florist business looks to bloom in Chestertown

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[blockquote footer=”Abraham Lincoln”]If friendship is your weakest point, then you are the strongest person in the world[/blockquote]

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Understanding your dog for dummies cheatsheet

admin
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Understanding your dog for dummies cheatsheet

Headings

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Blockquotes

Single line blockquote:

Stay hungry. Stay foolish.

Multi line blockquote with a cite reference:

People think focus means saying yes to the thing you’ve got to focus on. But that’s not what it means at all. It means saying no to the hundred other good ideas that there are. You have to pick carefully. I’m actually as proud of the things we haven’t done as the things I have done. Innovation is saying no to 1,000 things.

Steve Jobs – Apple Worldwide Developers’ Conference, 1997

Tables

Employee Salary
John Saddington $1 Because that’s all Steve Job’ needed for a salary.
Tom McFarlin $100K For all the blogging he does.
Jared Erickson $100M Pictures are worth a thousand words, right? So Tom x 1,000.
Chris Ames $100B With hair like that?! Enough said…

Definition Lists

Definition List Title
Definition list division.
Startup
A startup company or startup is a company or temporary organization designed to search for a repeatable and scalable business model.
#dowork
Coined by Rob Dyrdek and his personal body guard Christopher “Big Black” Boykins, “Do Work” works as a self motivator, to motivating your friends.
Do It Live
I’ll let Bill O’Reilly will explain this one.

Unordered Lists (Nested)

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HTML Tags

These supported tags come from the WordPress.com code FAQ.

Address Tag

1 Infinite Loop
Cupertino, CA 95014
United States

Anchor Tag (aka. Link)

This is an example of a link.

Abbreviation Tag

The abbreviation srsly stands for “seriously”.

Acronym Tag

The acronym ftw stands for “for the win”.

Big Tag

These tests are a big deal, but this tag is no longer supported in HTML5.

Cite Tag

“Code is poetry.” —Automattic

Code Tag

You will learn later on in these tests that word-wrap: break-word; will be your best friend.

Delete Tag

This tag will let you strikeout text, but this tag is no longer supported in HTML5 (use the <strike> instead).

Emphasize Tag

The emphasize tag should italicize text.

Insert Tag

This tag should denote inserted text.

Keyboard Tag

This scarsly known tag emulates keyboard text, which is usually styled like the <code> tag.

Preformatted Tag

This tag styles large blocks of code.

.post-title {
	margin: 0 0 5px;
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}

Quote Tag

Developers, developers, developers… –Steve Ballmer

Strong Tag

This tag shows bold text.

Subscript Tag

Getting our science styling on with H2O, which should push the “2” down.

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Still sticking with science and Albert Einstein’s E = MC2, which should lift the “2” up.

Teletype Tag

This rarely used tag emulates teletype text, which is usually styled like the <code> tag.

Variable Tag

This allows you to denote variables.

Exploitation Stole Childhoods, Not Climate Change

Richard Bolton
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Exploitation Stole Childhoods, Not Climate Change

Greta Thunberg’s damning words echoed through the halls of the UN and the online soundbite. But is there a bigger picture that we’re missing?

Most people are rather naïve and embarrassing in their teens, they may not realise it then, but one only need cast a reflection back over their own formative years to make them flinch.

The pre-mobile camera phone generation can leave those awkward MSN usernames, MySpace chatroom diva moments and overly revealing Facebook selfies hidden in the past where they belong, never to see the light of day.

Taylor Swift’s MySpace endless diva moments she’d probably rather remained in the past // MySpace

Miss Greta Thunberg won’t have this luxury. Her developmental years are now plastered all over the media, immortalized forever. She may come to see through the façade of her being manipulated to further green initiatives that had less than noble intentions.

“You have stolen my dreams and my childhood with your empty words.”

Greta Thunberg, addressing the UN delegation, New York, 2019

Western media has been rolled up in the cotton wool that is political correctness. Take Russian media for one such alternative take. They see her as a privileged, forceful young lady. She may well believe strongly in environmental issues but remains largely oblivious to the world around her. Vladimir Putin himself praised her intention, yet criticized those handlers manipulating her in the background. He called on environmentalists like Greta to tell the poor of the world they cannot enjoy the standard of living the west has enjoyed for decades because of their zero-emissions plans. And, considering the millions of child labour slaves worldwide, he may have a point…

You know whose childhood has been stolen?

This boy preparing the cocoa used in her evening chocolate drink and KitKat. “Fairtrade” means the farmers get a good deal. It does not mean it was not grown, harvested and packed by a child.

Chocolate’s Secret Ingredient our candy bar was made by child slaves // grain.org

This child who makes charcoal all day polluting his lungs and the environment to feed his family. Manila, Philippines to Jaipur, India, children as young as three spend their days sitting in soot and breathing in coal dust and toxic smoke as they help their families eke out a living making charcoal out of wood scavenged from rubbish dumps and construction sites.

A Fate Worse Than Hell / Ashley Crowther // Visura

Surface and underground mining cause black lung disease from inhaling coal mine dust and silicosis by inhaling silica dust from crushed rocks. Children who survive till their teens have major health problems.

Young lungs are particularly susceptible, with progressive massive fibrosis within 5 years instead of the 20 years traditionally for coal miners.

The children rolling tobacco leaves on plantations have had their dreams crushed and their future stolen. An opaque supply chain means weak regulatory scrutiny and enforcement on child labour in countries like Indonesia.

A childhood stolen by consumer demand and poor regulatory oversight, not climate change // hrw.org

In Ghana, children risk death as they climb deep into unstable pits to mine gold, while teenagers in Bangladesh risk poisoning and horrific industrial accidents in the country’s lucrative tannery industry.

These children who mine coltan used to make her mobile phone. Ruining the environment in the process. The cobalt extracted is found in lithium-ion rechargeable batteries, from smartphones to electric vehicles. An entire day of mining in cramped tunnels will earn 50 pence as these children’s only means of survival. 60% of the world cobalt supply is mined in this “copper belt” in the south-east Democratic Republic of Congo.

Backbreaking work, with cave ins and fatigue the primary causes of death / Democratic Republic of Congo // Alliance DPA

It is their childhood that was stolen, not hers.

Shallow-mindedness and blinkered vision will mean many readers passionate about the environment will be incapable of seeing the bigger picture. Most won’t even know anything about these children around the world dying in their millions from malnutrition, slaving away in cocoa farms, breaking up charcoal or climbing inside precarious, often collapsing tunnels to extract coltan so they can power their ridiculously prosperous future.

So what has Greta got to do with the suffering children?

Notice the children having to deforest acres of rainforests and mining coltan, perishing from the dust, cave-ins, fatigue and overwork…all so we can enjoy the latest, cool, shiny new phone each year. Juxtapose this with the photo of Greta with her megaphone awash in a sea of mobile phones. Simply those in the picture cost acres of rainforest alone. Yet, there they are, shouting adults have stolen their childhoods, enjoying the fruits of stolen childhoods of others and deforestation. This is just mobile phones. Try the hot cup of cocoa in a warm, cosy sitting room watching Netflix on a device powered by suffering.

Awash in a sea of mobile phones // The National AE

There will come a time when she realizes what has happened. With exposure to more evidence, Miss Thunberg will come to appreciate the pragmatically restrictive realities of the world we inhabit.

Until that time, children still suffer in poverty that is not rooted in environmental degradation, nor systemic oppression.

That is the true failing of the adult world, and our most pressing reality. When we tap into that talent and realize the potential of billions of voices so far unheard, then we can conquer the existential crisis that won’t end the world within 7 years.

Alternative Perspective

The problems of climate change are greater than Greta and her activism may raise the voices of those that cannot advocate for themselves. Including those suffering throughout the world under the auspices of consumerism demanding such cheap and plentiful resources to meet their needs.

If her activism functions as a call to action for greater conscientiousness toward consumer demand, then that would be a great achievement alone. If people can take responsibility to not be mindless, individualistic automatons driven by advertising campaigns and blind materialism and connected to the impact of their choices. Voting with your money as a consumer may force the hands of governments and big business to accommodate changing consumer tastes, and Thunberg’s rhetoric may be that key call to action.

How Does Amazon Survive Black Friday Sales?

Common Sense Contributors
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How Does Amazon Survive Black Friday Sales?

by Matthew Goldsmith

Should A Company You’ve Probably Never Heard Of, Be Allowed To Carry Amazon Through Black Friday

Black Friday (Friday 29th November) which is proceeded by Cyber Monday (2nd December) is the informal name given to the first Friday after Thanksgiving in the US. The day has become a marker for the beginning of the Christmas season, when stores may open earlier and offer huge discounts. Since 2005, Black Friday has been the busiest day of sales in the US. Retailers such as Amazon and ASDA (through its parent company, Walmart) have encouraged the coopting of the Black Friday marketing sales.

Year upon year Amazon seems to offer bigger and bigger discounts. Amazon’s famously thin profit margins are stretched to their limits on big sale days like Black Friday and Cyber Monday. 

So, how can Amazon afford to lose billions?

Team Umbrella explores how a lesser-known subsidiary called Amazon Web Services (AWS) is picking up the tab of Amazon’s extravagant spending.

Cloud computing is costly, highly technical and increasingly essential. But how do you acquire a cloud computing system that would cost more than your annual budget to build? That’s where AWS comes in. AWS, an Amazon subsidiary, offers world-class cloud computation to smaller companies that can’t afford their own cloud server farms. As of 2018, AWS accounted for 58% of Amazon’s total operating income.

With Amazon often attributed as the driving force behind the death of the high street and with Black Friday just around the corner, the debate surrounding Amazon is more urgent than ever.

Is Amazon a benevolent driving force of the global economy or is it a sinister disruptive corporation with its crosshairs aimed at small businesses?

Amazon continues to expand in multiple directions, including new physical stores in some of its most profitable regions

University supercomputers, once revered, now pale in comparison to what Amazon Web Services can offer in terms of raw computational power. Without the hassle of having to build your own supercomputer.  

But what has truly made AWS indispensable is its ability to help companies scale. With AWS and a budget to pay rising fees, your company could, in theory, scale infinitely. Nowhere is the necessity and utility of AWS felt more keenly than in the new home of the American Dream, Silicon Valley. Having a product that offers limitless scaling potential could not have more appeal in California, a region defined by stories of small companies with big ideas, changing the world.

Amazon Web Service and the Scaleable Model

At its inception in July 2002, AWS was little more than a hodgepodge of web development tools. But as tech grew, so too did AWS. With its broad mandateand eye to the future, AWS has successfully integrated every big tech breakthrough, from cloud computing to machine learning into its platform.

This affects companies both big and small with Apple reportedly spending 30 million dollars a month on AWS services.  The genius of AWS is that it meets needs that every company has, the ability to scale, secure file storage, and much more are all facilitated by AWS.  This model means that AWS is able to commoditise and profit from growth; if you’re growing, they’re getting their share. 

AWS’s dominance over data-hungry start-ups has earned them a shout-out from the satirical TV show Silicon Valley

With shipping costs predicted to rise 7% annually, Amazon has solid reasoning for diversifying its revenue sources.  How most consumers who use Amazon are in actual fact, an increasingly small part of their profit-generating business. The e-commerce giant is able to offer such low prices by running at incredibly narrow profit margins on most products. In 2018 Amazon made 7.2 billion dollars on domestic sales and actually lost 2.1 billion in international sales. AWS, on the other hand, made 7.3 billion globally, over 56% of Amazon’s operating income for 2018.

The Figures

A breakdown of Amazon’s revenue, showing just how fine they are losing in international E-commerce

This means that Amazon can afford to lose money in developing regions, leave itself vulnerable to economic downturns and still have some of the highest valued stock in the world. Should it be cause for concern that Amazon can afford to lose billions and still make record profits because of the success of its subsidiary?  

Many will be quick to point out that Amazon is not doing anything illegal by dominating the cloud computing space and should not be victimised for its success. After all, the advancements in AI, machine learning and cybernetics that have occurred rapidly in the past decade are in large part due to AWS. What kind of example would it set to the world if we punish the business sector for pushing the world forward?

Amazon Web Service’s role in Amazon’s profit generation is coming under increasing scrutiny

What makes Amazon distinct from businesses that have dominated markets before, is their ability and propensity to dominate several markets simultaneously. Then use the profit from one venture to support their loss creating margins of another.  This type of practice is fine on a small scale but when you are one of the largest companies in the world, it’s a different story. 

On big sale days like Black Friday, it becomes more apparent that wealth inequality does not just affect individuals, it affects businesses too. When the only option remaining to an independent business is to build a global network of cloud computing facilities in order to compete with Amazon’s prices, the problem should be obvious. 

Matthew Goldsmith is a writer working on behalf of Team Umbrella and specialises in political economics and history.

A Nobel Peace Prize Won By Ethiopian PM

Shaun Flores
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A Nobel Peace Prize Won By Ethiopian PM

On the 11th October, The 100th Nobel Peace Prize 2019 was awarded to Abiy Ahmed Ali, Prime Minister of Ethiopia, “for his efforts to achieve peace and international cooperation, and in particular for his decisive initiative to resolve the border conflict with neighbouring Eritrea.”

Image result for abiy ahmed
Nobel Peace Prize Winner 2019 President of Ethiopia Abiy Ahmed Ali

Mr Abiy’s peace deal with Eritrea ended a tumultuous 20-year military stalemate following their 1998-2000 border war.

He has also freed thousands of opposition activists from jail and allowed exiled dissidents to return to their respective homes. Abiy freed the media, which was one of the most censored media in the world.

Under his leadership, several women have been appointed to prominent positions, making up 50% of his cabinet. He is heralded as a hero to many of those in Ethiopia and all across the world, becoming a role model for what a progressive, stable and morally correct prime minister should be.

The Nobel Peace Prize For A Genocidal leader

Abiy’s critics have spoken publicly against him, accusing him of leading a genocide against ethnic Somali Muslims in North-Eastern Ethiopia.

The North-Eastern area of Ethiopia, Ogaden is a 327,000 square kilometre territory located in eastern Ethiopia and on the border with Somalia. The region was once part of the Somali Ifat Sultanate. It was handed back and forth from European colonial rulers, as Italy and Britain laid claim over the land during the previous century.

Image result for ogaden ethiopia war
The North-Eastern area of Ethiopia, Ogaden is a 327,000 square kilometre territory located in eastern Ethiopia and on the border with Somalia.

“However, a blind eye is turned to the crimes against Somalis because the government in Addis Ababa is a key US ally in the ‘War on Terror’,” according to Mohamed Abdulkaadir, in 2018, a Somali journalist with the independent Somali news agency Halgan News, speaking to CJ Werleman.

The United States is cognizant of Ethiopia’s repressive violence in the region of Ogaden. The US-backed Ethiopia’s 2006 invasion of Somalia resulted in a three-year conflict killing more than 16,000 Somalis and displacing 1.9 million.

Nobel Peace Prize or A Nobel War Prize?

The Nobel Peace Prize being awarded to Abiy Ahmed recognises a move that will forever cement peace in the history books between Ethiopia and Eritrea. Another step closer to African unity, and the removal of wars that divide Africa.

The set of prizes, established by Swede Alfred Nobel and first awarded in 1901. Nobel made a huge fortune throughout his life, as one of the most prominent industrialists of his day. His father Immanuel had helped develop the first naval landmines used successfully in warfare. Similarly, Alfred himself amassed his fortune from armaments and invention of dynamite. At it’s core, the prizes could be seen as an apology for investing in destructive technologies.

This is certainly not the first time the awarding of the prize has caused controversy. One stand out example was Henry Kissinger US Secretary of State being named Nobel Laureate in 1973, alongside Le Duc Tho, North Vietnam’s chief negotiator for arranging the armistice in the Vietnam War. Critics alleged his involvement in extending bombing campaigns to Cambodia and lying to the American people about the extent of the war, made a mockery of the prize. Tho became the only person to refuse the award on grounds that ‘peace had not been reached’ in his country.

Ethiopia's Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed (left) and Eritrea's President Isaias Afwerki seen here at the re-opening of the Eritrean Embassy in Addis Ababa last year. Mr Abiy had been bookmakers' second favourite to win, behind Swedish teen climate change
Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed (left) and Eritrea’s President Isaias Afwerki seen here at the re-opening of the Eritrean Embassy in Addis Ababa last year.

President Abiy Ahmed shows us that Africa can come together and put its history behind it in a way to recognise and be progressive in its future. He joins a long list of fellow African peacemakers such as Nelson Mandela (1993), and Denis Mukwege (2018) who have also won the Nobel peace prize. Peace in the modern world is by no means an easy feat. It is a constantly swinging pendulum. Certainly leaders winning internationally recognizable prizes and awards does good work to rehabilitate the status of Africa as a monolithic backwards continent, existing only to be saved by the West.

Sadly, it seems that Abiy has become a freedom fighter at one end, helping Ethiopia and Eritrea settle their long-held differences, and at the other his crimes against Somalians remain largely hidden. Winning a Nobel Peace Prize infers ‘peace’ as a core tenant of the award, yet how can he win a prize when the Somalians are not at peace? Perhaps when peace does have to be fought for, and fitted into a Western nation state democratic lens, a prize for peace is not so fitting a title when ‘peace’ is characterised as the photo opportunity of two leaders shaking hands. Arguably, this does not translate to peace for the average Ethiopian or Somalian.

Does peace, for example, mean a mere absence of violence or a positive state of justice and good will? Either way, generating a lively discussion about what peace means in our changing world is definitely of great benefit.

Black Woman: A New Tourist Attraction?

Benedicta Denteh
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Black Woman: A New Tourist Attraction?

It has always been a desire within me to travel the world. I’m not sure whether that is something that originates from my love of languages or the fact that I grew up in a multicultural society – London – literally the melting pot of cultures and races from every corner of the world. Despite this ambition for exploration, there has always been two intangible obstacles in the way of this pursuit – being black and being a young woman.

It should come as no surprise that being black comes with many issues in terms of the way people treat and categorise you. In England at least I have to been able to evade any large incidences concerning my race. Maybe that’s to do with some progress in terms of race relations, living in such a racially mixed community or possibly I have just been extremely lucky with my timing and place. That’s not to say I’ve never come across many instances of ignorance, but perhaps I can blame that on the young age of the people it concerns.

Be that as it may, I cannot deny the fact that while residing in England, I have been living in a bubble where being black isn’t particularly special.  

Hesitant to Travel

I, as of 2019 study Arabic and French with a mandatory year abroad that had been looming over me for two years before the departure date. You can imagine the stress and anxiety I felt leading up to the weeks before I was set to leave everything behind me for a full year to a new and unknown culture. But low and behold here I lay two months later in my one-bedroom apartment slap bang in the middle of Jordan, Amman. In many ways it hasn’t been easy, but I can definitely say that being black has definitely made it a unique experience.

Me, walking through the sand dunes

The Children

Now when it comes to children I never know whether to associate racial remarks on what they’ve just heard from elsewhere or what just naturally comes to them. In foreign countries they tend to, with me, just be quite inquisitive. I’ve never really taken offence and instead have found it quite intriguing that young souls take so much interest in me, filling conversations with questions about where I’m originally from, my culture and my hair. I find that this is the best way to decimate stereotypical and racist ideologies. With them being so young, I seize the opportunity to ideally stop some new discriminationn being brought into the world.

The Men

Naturally, I get stared at, a lot. Especially of course in countries that do not have a large black community. I don’t take offence to this too much unless the staring doesn’t cease. Having being called “hot chocolate” on a number of occasions is something I have never experienced except as a light joke among friends.

The fetishisation of women in general of course is not unknown, however being specifically objectified as a black woman is rooted in both racism and sexism as unconsciously I am considered as an object twice over for the pleasures of man. It is a very insidious form of racism as from the outside it could seem like a complement to be compared to a sweet drink but on the other side it creates me into this exotic other which lacks the same value as people of the opposite gender and colour.

You can imagine the shock and slight uncomfortableness one can feel, especially when alone on the streets. And the combination of being both female and black can make for quite an awkward and distressing situation.

I’m the tourist attraction?

I can definitely say that an experience with the biggest number of racial comments was during my trip to Petra (البتراء) a famous archeological site in the the southern Jordaninan desert. What a beauty it was to see narrow canyons, ancient ruins as well as the tombs and temples carved into pink and brown sandstone cliffs. However soon after I entered the beautiful landscape I realised that the tourists and locals weren’t only looking at the remains, they were also looking at me.

After having been called a “Rasta” on three occasions, asked to be photographed twice and having received the statement “and next stop Africa” I realised that perhaps I had become the main attraction. I seldom let statements like this, especially from the ignorant ruin my experiences in new lands. However, what I do question is when the day will come that people will pass me in any country and not take notice of my dark skin and my thick and curly locks and braids. Is there not enough positive exposure of people who look like me that I can go somewhere without people looking at me like they’ve seen something or someone from their wildest imagination.

Me sitting on the edge of a cliff in Wadi Rum, desert in the south of Jordan

Inquisitions and interest in me is all fun and games until my day is filled with a ridiculous amount of comments and staring which can make me feel more like a walking spectacle than a person. As of yet I would say that I have not experienced anything so detrimental to my enjoying my placement abroad.

And I would hope that anyone who was black and female would still continue to follow their dreams, if it is within them, to explore and discover the world. Despite some questionable comments and looks I have enjoyed every adventure abroad that I have set out on, met amazing people who were as interested in me as I was them, and experienced some of the richest cultures ever.

I have been lucky to not experience the types of things my comrades have such as racist remarks or being chased down the street. Thus a possible future where that happens scares me. Moreover, I am ready to take on the challenge and put down or educate anyone who dares to come for me, my sex or the colour of my skin, for the love of travelling.

Because if I don’t do it, and you don’t either, who will?

Donald Trump Is Not Leaving Anytime Soon

CheVaughn Starling
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Donald Trump Is Not Leaving Anytime Soon

Donald Trump may be many things, but he is far from a quitter. The impeachment talks are getting heavier and heavier as weeks go on.

In a Fox News poll, it stated that more Americans are favorable towards President Trump’s impeachment. 51 % may not seem like a lot, but considering the number increased 9% from July, it is something worth noting; especially, since the poll was conducted by Fox News which heavily leans more conservative and has proven to side with Trump in the past. Although this whole impeachment ordeal in the States is not looking too pretty, it still is going to take more than a few million Americans to make this President step down from office. A Sun news article went into detail about a former Trump organisation executive believing he will quit before he is officially impeached, and this may not be entirely believable

How Did We Get Here? 

It already has been established that impeachment proceedings in the US isn’t necessarily easy. For a recap please see this article:

What You Need to Know About Impeachment In the U.S.

Impeachment may not be a new word for the Trump Administration, but this is the first time the impeachment talk has gotten this far. During the Mueller Report, the Democrats did not have a strong claim to actually proceed with an impeachment inquiry, which can be seen by how long it took Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi to follow through with an impeachment inquiry.

The fallout from the call with Ukraine’s president and the dealings with the Whistleblower resurfaced the impeachment talk and gave the Democrats the ammo they needed for Nancy Pelosi to proceed with an impeachment inquiry.  Nancy Pelosi knows better than anybody in American politics that you don’t just jump into an impeachment proceeding. Impeachment of an American President is pretty serious, and how it is conducted can be a great determining factor for the direction of the country. With the impeachment inquiry, the House is hoping to charge Trump with ‘Obstruction of Justice’. 

Obstruction of Justice

Simply put Obstruction of Justice is when a person has a direct motive to interfere with a judicial proceeding, this can be done by threats, use of force, threatening use of communication, etc. To a third person looking into the President’s list of possible Obstruction of Justice actions, it should be easy to pinpoint. For example, in the Mueller probe, he removed James Comey (the FBI director), tweeted various times to end the investigation, and refused to disclose evidence to the Special Counsel.

Beyond the Mueller Investigation and a suspicious call with a foreign leader, many people feel Trump displayed a betrayal of the Oval Office by lying to the American people and not protecting their best interests at heart, but more so by only protecting his own personal interest.  

Why He Won’t Quit Right Away

It might seem the Democrats have enough evidence and votes to follow through impeaching Trump, but those are not the only factors coming into play.  Remember, impeachment is only half the battle in a true impeachment proceeding. The House of Representatives can impeach the president, but it is only the Senate that can remove said president from office.  In order for the Senate to remotely consider impeachment, the House has to produce some graving charges against the President. Currently, the Republican majority Senate still heavily support Trump. Senators such as Lyndsey Graham, Mitch McConnell, Chuck Grassley, and several others still believe this impeachment inquiry is just another ploy by the Democrats because they do not like the President.

In the Sun article, it explains how President Trump wants to save face, and does not want the word impeached attached to his legacy as President. As a business man, one saw how he would run his projects into the ground before he abandoned ship. To think he wouldn’t do the same as Presidency of the United States, would be a bit naïve. He practically ran for President because many people took him as a joke. He wanted to prove people wrong. It is plausible to think Trump may want to abandoned ship before he is officially impeached. Being added to the small list of past Presidents who was officially impeached doesn’t make for a fantastic presidency, especially so close to another election. 

No one dreams of being impeached from the highest political office one can achieve to get; however, if the Senate and Americans support continues to back him, do not get your hopes up for a resignation.

Before people get too wrapped up in this impeachment saga, 20 out of 58 Republican Senators have to vote to remove him from office. Since it seems only a small percentage of Republican Senators speak out against Trump’s actions, the likelihood of achieving those 20 Republican votes are pretty slim.

The only possible way for Trump to resign before being impeached is if there was concrete evidence that proved Obstruction, or more of his supporters want to see him out. If one of those two things does not happen, then he is not leaving and could be reelected to a second term.

Could This Be The End Of The Road For Solskjaer At United?

Thomas Kingsley
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Could This Be The End Of The Road For Solskjaer At United?

Man United face bitter rivals Liverpool at Old Trafford on Sunday in what could shape up to be a make or break game for not only Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men but also his time at the helm for the Red Devils. United are off to their worst start in 30 years, while Liverpool, have won all their games. Could this turn out to be a thrashing that costs Solskjaer’s his job?

The end is nigh

When Solskjaer was appointed earlier this year, fans were in dreamland over their legendary super sub-striker and impressive caretaker-manager being at the wheel for the foreseeable future. However, none could have predicted that come the start of the season, United would be carrying losses from West Ham and Newcastle and sitting only two points off the relegation zone with eight games played.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has seen a struggled start to the season. Source: FourFourTwo

Many would argue that to give Solskjaer more time would be to allow more of the same results to continue.

Solskjaer striker woes

The decision to sell Lukaku in the summer, ergo placing full talisman responsibility on Marcus Rashford may be proving costly for Solskjaer. The 21 year old only had 10 goals last season compared to Lukaku’s 12, and currently only has three goals in eight premier league appearances this season.  

Rashford has been struggling to find his form this season. Source: VBet News

United are clearly in a goal drought. They’ve only scored nine goals this season and with Martial injured, would it been better for Solskajaer to have held onto Lukaku? He fell out of favour with Solskjaer last season for one reason or another but is off to a decent start at Inter Milan scoring three goals in six games.

Rampant Liverpool not looking to slow down

Liverpool on the other hand, sit top of the league eight points clear of Man City and face the opposite of a goal drought having scored more than twice as many goals as United this season. After missing out being crowned league champions by only one point last campaign, Liverpool are on the warpath this season to ensure they lift their first Premier League trophy.

Liverpool’s front three have been firing well this season. Source: Sports Mole

Mane, Firminio and Salah have combined for 12 goals in their last 8 games this season and do not look to be making plans to slow down. A rampant Liverpool could produce a video game score line if United are not careful. With pace and quick movement upfront, Harry Maguire and Axel Tuanzebe will certainly have their hands full at the back, and with any score line above 2-0, they could well usher their manager onto the chopping block for a Monday morning execution.

Solskjaer needs more time

However, some would argue that Solskjaer simply needs more time. After losing 2-0 to West Ham in September, former United defender and TV pundit, Rio Ferdinand, clashed with fans who were calling for the Norwegian to be sacked.

Ferdinand stressed that “We can’t be changing managers every week. Two weeks ago I didn’t see people saying get Ole out. It’s too knee jerk.”

It is only eight games into the season and Ole’s men have been plagued with injury woes, most notably to Paul Pogba and Anthony Martial who are not yet confirmed for Sunday’s game. And with the immense investment Solskjaer has spent this summer – £146 million, not to mention making Harry Maguire the most expensive defender at £80 million – United’s directors will be keen to wait out for their return on investment.

Harry left Leicester City to sign for Manchester United this season. Source: Metro

Ferdinand makes a fair point that fans and boards alike are becoming too reactionary. Manchester United have spent close to £1billion since Sir Alex Ferguson left at the end of the 2012-13 season and have been through three managers in that time. If more money and getting rid of struggling managers doesn’t work, maybe United should try riding the wave of continuity with Solskjaer – at the very least until the season midpoint.

Manchester United kick off at Old Trafford at 16:30 (BST) on Sunday. Will we see the termination of the Solskjaer era early next week or will he hold on and restore United to glory?

Football and Asylum Seekers: Creating Community

Common Sense Contributors
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Football and Asylum Seekers: Creating Community

by Jack Yates

For asylum seekers, life is characterised by emptiness and struggle in equal measure. Harrowing pre-migration experiences must be psychologically dealt with; these include physical torture, the death of loved ones and the destruction of any semblance of normality. Living through such tragedy leaves members of this community traumatised- life inexorably changes due to the constant threat of persecution.

Lamentably, an additional array of difficulties is presented upon arrival in the host country. Separation from family, sub-standard accommodation and social isolation all result in a distressing and unfulfilling existence. Day-to-day life is desolate and insecure.

Asylum seekers are prevented from working, meaning that one’s time revolves around the stresses of the asylum process. Working provides an individual with routine, structure and a sense of wellbeing. For asylum seekers, the absence of such things is especially damaging- one’s sense of purpose and self-worth have already been shattered in the events experienced prior to migration. 

Not only this, but employment would provide members of this community with a much-needed source of income. The current level of financial support provided to asylum seekers is £37.75 per person per week- an amount that rises by a meagre £3 for pregnant mothers. It is a subsistence rate not fit for purpose, and one that leads to many experiencing severe destitution.

The charity Refugee Action spoke to twenty-five asylum seekers who were living on government support. The majority of respondents stated that they struggled to afford essentials such as clothing and medicine. To make matters worse, being prohibited from working means that recreational activities- an essential means of social integration- are often unaffordable. 

Football has the power to change asylum seekers’ lives for the better

It is a means of connection with both those in the same situation and the wider host society. It enables day-to-day struggles to be forgotten, even for just ninety minutes. Crucially, it helps to foster a much-needed sense of belonging, and can provide the building blocks for a more stable existence. Charitable, grassroots initiatives do immense work behind the scenes to facilitate participation in football, breaking down funding barriers and cultivating an inclusive and welcoming environment. 

Football Unites, Racism Divides (FURD) is a registered charity based in Sheffield that focuses on youth and social exclusion, and utilises football to fight racism and break down barriers. It was born in the winter of 1995, created by a number of Sheffield United fans who were seeking a way to combat a rise in racial abuse, both at football matches and in the local area. In recent years they have helped to create spaces for asylum seekers, both in local football teams as players and coaches, and in the wider footballing community.

As a result, they received funding from the Big Lottery Research Fund. This allowed FURD to investigate the role of football in refugees and asylum seekers’ lives, seeking to give a voice to a community that often feel as though they don’t belong. Belonging is, in itself, a difficult concept to pin down. As a feeling it cannot be empirically measured, but for some, citizenship is viewed as the peak of belonging. However, this project showed that this is not the case.

Those with British citizenship may not feel at home in Britain. Conversely, those without it can, providing the right community support is available.

Belonging is built on routines, socialising, and community

Football can provide a platform on which to build these things. FURD has provided football training sessions for young men and teenagers from a minority background for over 20 years, and have recently introduced drop in sessions for asylum seekers of any age. This provides an outlet to distract asylum seekers from what can be a stressful everyday life, and helps to foster a sense of community and belonging.

Football is able to provide a safe space that is accessible to asylum seekers in a way that much of Britain is not; “I come here to let off steam and enjoy it with people who understand me…” A Zimbabwean asylum seeker who spoke to FURD said, “everyone really understands the situation you’re in, which is a very difficult situation and people don’t constantly bombard you with the situation you’re in. You are free and you’ve got people who understand, people who are learning to understand, which means a lot to people like me.”

These sessions help asylum seekers, refugees, and migrants alike to bond and create social groupings in which they feel at home, particularly – but not solely – amongst people that understand their struggle. 

Football has the power to transform the lives of asylum seekers (Source: Kent Online)

Playing football may sound like a somewhat fanciful idea in the face of the profound difficulties that asylum seekers face, but it is just the beginning; it isn’t really about football, it’s about creating community, building confidence, and providing a platform on which to allow for further engagement.

The same Zimbabwean asylum seeker mentioned earlier spoke about how the FURD programme had saved him from his reclusive behaviour, giving him the confidence to now take part in further programmes and even do voluntary work to help others in the same situation he found himself in. A welcoming environment, group decision-making, and progress on the football pitch all help asylum seekers to build up their confidence, and a belief that they can take on the hostility that has made their lives so difficult.

Asylum seekers and refugees are uniquely vulnerable to mental health conditions as a result of their pre-migration lives and the conditions they live in following migration.

They are five times more prone to mental health struggles than the rest of the country, something exacerbated by the sad truth that they are distinctly under-supported and under-resourced to fight against this. Migrants, asylum seekers, and refugees are much maligned by the media, politicians, and members of the public alike for their supposed failure to integrate into British society.

Whilst this notion is much exaggerated, it is important to note the difficulty that must be faced by those who are attempting to integrate into a society that often is not open or welcoming to them. FURD have shown that this does not have to be the case, and that football can help to bridge the gap. However, we should not be relying on charities and community organisations to make asylum seekers feel at home; the government should work to provide, or at the very least support, grassroots initiatives that help in this way. 

Jack Yates is a content writer for the Immigration Advice Service, an organisation of immigration solicitors that help undocumented migrants to regulate their status. 

Joy is a Net of Love by Which You Can Catch Souls

admin
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Joy is a Net of Love by Which You Can Catch Souls

My first reaction is what beauty? I’ve definitely crossed over to the invisible side. I rather prefer it that way…

My whole life my weight has fluctuated quite a bit and my self-image with it. When I’ve been fat, I’ve been ugly — at least in my mind.

I noticed that the more weight I gained, the less teasing or ogling I’d get from boys and men. Being fat was safer, damn it. I liked being safe. I hid there.

But at different times I would go on diets and lose weight. That happened in my late twenties, when I went down to what I weighted in sixth grade after the summer diet my grandmother put me on.

Connecting the dots

I feel the connection between the colorful visuals and the magical vibrant world I’ve created in my writing. The pictures reflect who I am as a creative spirit.

This process has nudged me back from the ledge of self-loathing, especially where photos are concerned. Going forward in my life necessitates being seen in person, on paper, and perhaps even in some forms of media.

Yes, my beauty is about a lot more than gorgeous photos. But if it took seeing myself through Barbara’s eyes to get on board with my full, vibrant, impish, playful, radiant self, so be it.

Now that I am “out” so to speak, it’s up to me to feed myself with beautiful images and stories of women close to me in age who are enjoying their fine physical selves and letting others see them through their eyes, not vice versa.

Let’s unsubscribe from magazine culture and sign up for honoring ourselves in the full glory of just how good it feels to be alive in our skins, with our eyes, our hair, our unique ways of moving and being and shining.

Every Next Level of Your Life Will Demand a Different You

admin
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Every Next Level of Your Life Will Demand a Different You

We bumped along a rutted dirt road in a rented SUV, parking a quarter mile from the trailhead leading to the summit of Mount Democrat. The four of us hoisted backpacks stuffed with water, food, dry socks, and extra clothes onto our backs. The thin, 38-degree air nipped at exposed hands and faces. Winded by the walk from the car to the trailhead, even my more experienced friends worried that our less than 24 hours at altitude had not been enough time for our sea-level dwelling bodies to adjust. I bean to sweat, and not just from the exertion.

The way home

“That was so fun! I’ve got a new addiction!” my athlete friend exclaimed, tired but happy in the car on the way home. “Let’s do it again tomorrow.”

Fun, as you might imagine, was not how I would describe this adventure. Awesome? Yes. Fun? No. N.O. No way

But would I do it again? If I could rewind to that moment when the alarm went off at 4:30 a.m. to throw on clothes, grab our packs and trek up that mountain, would I? You bet your buttons I would. Here’s why: awesome lives at the intersection of fun and scary. One of my companions summed the whole experience up perfectly. He leaned back in his chair at dinner that night, shrimp taco in hand, “These are the kinds of experiences that give something back to you. They show you who you are in a whole new way.”

Humbled but not broken, I experienced both a new awareness of the strength of my will and the vulnerability of my body. My ego lost a bit of ground that day, but my essence — that part of me that connects to something greater — found wordless expression.

At the bottom of the mountain, my legs shaky, my face gritty with dust, I could still enjoy the beauty of the clean mountain stream pooling around me. I could laugh with my friends. Life flows. I flow. A real mountain and a metaphorical one are the same. We go up with a certain understanding of ourselves, and come back down changed.

Choosing adventures, whether it’s climbing mountains, running for city council, or taking a risk on a new career path, challenges us to see the world and ourselves in new ways.

And that, my friends, is awesome.

And a Lonely Stranger Has Spoke to Me Ever Since

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And a Lonely Stranger Has Spoke to Me Ever Since

When I saw the old man waiting by the pond with his camera my heart fractured a little along the fault lines, already weak, still vulnerable. He was counting on the cormorants, their wings spread wide, and waiting for the mating beavers, swooping under the surface, staying underwater longer than you’d think they could possibly hold their breath.

They trapped the nutria past the dam over there, he said, pulling his camera aside with one hand, pointing across the ponds with the other. They’re trapped between the two ridges of trees. There’s a male beaver with two females. His nicotine-stained mustache didn’t move when he talked.

He tells me the city is monitoring the trees for the Asian jewel beetle — an invasive and ravenously destructive insect outside its native habitat. I wondered how they got here, how any of us get anywhere, and I assumed he could probably tell me if I asked but I didn’t want to stay in this moment much longer. He was kind enough, talkative without being overbearing. And I thought maybe he was one of the lucky loners who preferred being alone. Maybe he even had a loving companion waiting for him at home, someone who would lovingly pour over his photography with curiosity and admiration.

While he was talking about the two female beavers, each of which had had two pups this season, I appreciated this man’s appreciation for nature, the patience to wait for the perfect moment, the sun setting behind the cattails and a woodpecker resting.

Though I suspected he was lonely I wanted to keep walking. I wanted to see the turtles lined up on logs like they do before the sunset. But I also suspected our brief chat about bugs and birds might be his only interaction today. Or this week. I had no way of knowing but I remembered the unexpected moments that pulled me out of my darkest places.

Though not miraculous, maybe a moment, like seeing the iridescent green of a beetle’s wing is enough beauty, even in its brevity, to create a connection. A flash of color not between us but between synapses. A spark of joy, a small whoosh of warmth that tells him to keep going, to keep waiting for the beavers, to get the perfect picture of the cormorants in their Christ-like perches drying their wings for flight.

I knew I couldn’t take away the invasive loneliness of a stranger, especially if it’s lying dormant beneath the bark. But maybe I could distract him from it for that moment like a bird alighting on a branch, catching his photographer’s eye. I remembered that even a little bit of conversation can feel like companionship. And at the very least we could pause from our own lives to acknowledge the parallel lives of the animals not abstractly analyzing each other’s.

The Scariest Moment is Always Just Before You Start

admin
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The Scariest Moment is Always Just Before You Start

When I was young I would pore over National Geographic magazines and dream of adventures like this — train hopping through the Sahara Desert on one of the world’s longest trains.

I had dreamt of the oceans, of the sand, the loud clattering noises of the train, the cold, the wind, the scorching sun. The unknown smells and sounds of the desert, and all the discomfort that goes with it.

That visceral experience was exactly what we got as we slithered night and day through the vast uninhabited desert, sleeping on top of Mauritania’s infamous iron ore train. Our unconventional 700km journey took us right through the Sahara to reach the coast, where we were hoping to find a place of forgotten shipwrecks and unknown surf.

From Nouakchott we worked our way through the interior, on what can barely be described as roads. On one particular day the weather conditions take a turn for the worse and a desert sandstorm begins to form on the horizon. I had stopped to take some photographs and before we knew it, the wind picked up considerably and it started to rain.

Within minutes, the sky darkens and the winds increase to what we guess is around 150km/hr. The stinging and blowing of the sand act as sandpaper and is so intense that I feel like my exposed skin is starting to come off.

We quickly find ourselves pinned to the side of our truck, as we try to find some shelter and reprieve. When the wind dies down and we are finally able to climb back inside the truck there are pieces of shattered glass everywhere. Our back window has completely imploded and the interior is soaked. Our guide, who had been waiting for us in the back seat, has cuts all over his body from the glass. As the storm settles we resumed our journey north through the desert, anxious to find the next unexpected turn of events.

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