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Then it was Obama's turn. His eight-minutes of remarks signaled a global train wreck. Not hiding his anger and frustration, he said, "I think our ability to take collective action is in doubt." He maintained that his administration has started to mount an "ambitious" plan to cut emissions. And he contended that it is "in our mutual interest to achieve a global accord in which we agree to steps, and to hold each other accountable for certain commitments." According to his prepared text, Obama was next supposed to say, "I believe that the pieces of that accord are now clear." (Emphasis added.) Instead, he asserted, "I believe that the pieces of that accord should now be clear." That is, there was no consensus among the major global leaders regarding what a deal would look like--not even one that would paper over the deep differences that have plagued the Copenhagen summit from the start: what targets to set; how to include both developed and developing countries within the same framework; what financing would be available for international programs to help poorer nations contend with climate change.
Obama played it simple and hard. He maintained the United States was calling for three basic principles: mitigation, transparency, and financing. But he noted that it was absolutely necessary to verify the reductions commitments of the major emitters. (China is now Major Emitter Number One.) "Without such accountability, any agreement would be empty words on a page," Obama argued. And an international pact without such mechanisms, he remarked, "would be a hollow victory." He reminded the conference that the US pledge to contribute to a $100 billion international fund by 2020 was predicated on the establishment of a "broader accord" that contained effective reviews and covered all nations' reductions commitments.
Obama essentially accused other leaders of preferring "posturing to action." He explained, "I'm sure many consider this an imperfect framework...No country will get everything it wants...There are those developing countries that want aid with no strings attached and no obligations of transparency. And there are those advanced nations who think that developing countries cannot absorb this assistance, and that the world's fastest-growing emitters [that is, China, India and other major developing countries] should bear a greater share of the burden."
Obama was clearly venting: "We know the fault lines because we've been imprisoned by them for years. These international discussions...have taken place for two decades. And we have very little to show for it except for a increase in the acceleration of the climate change phenomenon." If an accord is not reached at this summit, he remarked, "we will be back having the same stale arguments month after month, year after year, perhaps decade after decade--all while the danger of climate change grows until it is irreversible."
This was not a speech of persuasion; it was one of positioning. After the morning meeting, Obama and his aides had obviously calculated that a deal was far off--perhaps not even possible--and that there was not much Obama could say in this speech to grease the way to a meaningful agreement. So the US president forcefully presented his stance, maintaining he was willing to compromise, and chastised others for failing to rise above their own interests.
full article here
Frak...that sounds frustrating as hell...
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Dear fanfic writers everywhere,
Not everyone will call their significant other pet names like "Honey", "Dear", "Sweetheart", and "Darling". Some people won't even use pet names at all. Others will only use them when they're mocking or teasing their other (and sometimes better) half. A few will try to use them, feel ridiculous, and cut themselves off halfway through.
So please, for the love of whatever god you believe in, actually put some thought into those loving scenes between your favorite pairings.
Vonnix.
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The White House will play an active role in moving health care legislation closer to the House's version once a bill passes the Senate and goes to conference committee between the two chambers, administration officials said on Thursday. But while much of the progressive community is hoping for a renewed push to expand the government's role in providing insurance, the president will likely focus on other priorities.
White House health care czar Nancy-Ann DeParle told a conference call of progressive bloggers that there "are some things I'd like to improve" in the Senate's health care bill once legislators merge it with the House's legislation. The primary objective for the administration is to adopt the House's language on making insurance more affordable (which is more generous than the Senate's), she explained.
"I'd like to make some more changes there and move a little bit more towards the House bill," DeParle said. "So we'll see, I don't know what we'll be able to do there. But I know we talk daily to our friends and colleagues in the House who are just as anxious to get this done."
The White House also has its eyes on legislative language in the Senate bill that -- in the near term -- limits the amount of money private insurance companies can pay on medical coverage annually.
"Where we are right now is, we are still working with CBO to see if we can do something before the [state health care] exchanges starts," DeParle said. "But if not, it is going to be just no annual limits after the exchange starts which is where the House is."
The specificity of DeParle's remarks suggests that the administration will indeed amplify the role it's playing in the health care debate as lawmakers enter the final stage for revisions. After the Senate passes health care legislation, the two congressional chambers will send negotiators to a conference committee, where their respective bills will be fused together and sent back for a vote.
rest
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"If a mandate was the solution we could try that to solve homelessness by mandating that everybody buy a house..."
By the way, in case anyone has missed it, the current bill as written further whittles down a woman's right to choose. If you're under 40 you may not have a particular appreciation for the implications of this, and that's what politicians such as Senator Nelson are counting on. Here's a pretty good explanation:  Posted by: Jessica Wakeman Filed in: news 4:45PM, Monday December 7th 2009
The House of Representatives’ version of the health care reform bill contained the Stupak-Pitts Amendment (explained in full here) to make sure health insurance doesn’t cover abortion. Today, the Senate began their own campaign for a similar amendment, when Senators [Ben] Nelson (D-NE), Orrin Hatch (R-UT) and others introduced an amendment to its version of the health care reform bill. Just like Stupak-Pitts, the Nelson-Hatch amendment will restrict federal subsidies for health insurance from being used for private health insurance plans that cover abortion. Let me try to explain this as simply as possible: Basically, if private health insurance companies want money from people who are getting their insurance because they’ve received government funding, then they can’t cover abortions at all. That, in turn, would mean every woman on that plan—regardless if she paid for it entirely herself—wouldn’t get health insurance coverage for her abortion.
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"Hey guys! I don't own anyone in this story except my OC. Trust me, she's great. You'll love her! If you have any questions about her or want to know more about her then please PM me! I'll write a summary about her in a later chapter. But please don't steal her for your own story. If you do, I'll know about it! LOL! But seriously don't steal her. I'm very proud of her and don't want to see her in anyone else's hands. LOL"
Okay, so there's nothing neccessarily wrong with your OC, author. She isn't a Sue and she helps carry the story along. But you really need to tone down your appreciation of her. It's starting to get in the way of the story.
I mean, do you really need to tell us in EVERY chapter how great you think she is?
And do you really need to keep warning readers not to steal her for their own work?
You wrote in chapter 1's disclaimer how much you loved her and how you didn't want anybody stealing her, then you wrote a similar thing in the A/N at the end of the chapter. Fair enough, that should be the end of it, right?
But instead of writing a chapter 2, you decided to write an A/N consisting of your OC's life story, which was longer than the first chapter itself and had no relevance to the fic's plot at all.
Then in chapter 3 you continued the story...after writing YET ANOTHER paragraph on how great you thought your OC was and how you didn't want readers to steal her.
Then you broke up the next few chapters with A/N's in the middle of the story (a big no-no in itself) with small notes like: "Remember to PM me if you want to find out more about my OC!"
What the hell, author? Your story was well-written, interesting and the characters were IC. And your OC isn't that bad either, even if her role in the story is rather generic and has been done numerous times in other fics in this fandom. So why-oh-why are you destroying your fic with your strange obsession with your own OC? :(
Sincerely,
A very disappointed reader
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From the same fic, some ymmv:
Dr. Spencer Reid would not break down crying in Hotch's arms if he had to shoot an UnSub to save said unit chief's life. He's done it before and he didn't cry the first time. Hell, we've only even seen it implied that Reid cried, let alone actually shown, a couple of times over the course of the entire series.
Further, he would not apologize to Hotch for shooting a man who was about to kill him.
Unless this is taking place prior to 3x02, Hotch no longer lives in the house he shared with Haley. Considering who got shot (name avoided for spoiler reasons), I'd hope it's not before then.
Healing sex is... no. Just no.
This is far from the first near-death experience any of the team has faced. Though it may be the most invasive, in that the UnSub came into Hotch's home, I somehow doubt he would spend more than a day dwelling on the fact that he was almost shot, when in the end, he wasn't even injured.
Good H/R fic is so hard to find. :\
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We know the characters you're AUing are in their twenties and one is about four years older than the other. Thing is, though, the characters don't know this about each other. In fact, one character spends most of this particular fic not knowing his own name, never mind his own age. So describing these two as 'the older man' and 'the younger man'? Not cool.
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Ok, lets see if I can get better reviews here, because the people at ff.net are not reviewing this at all. I wonder if it's just that good or just that bad. LOL. Let me know either way.
That will NOT make me want to read your fic. It just makes me want to run away in the opposite direction.
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Having watched a friend play through some of Castlevania: Lament of Innocence (I believe that's the right one; there are so many Castlevania games it's making me dizzy), I got a hankering for slash fic.
A semi-long and crimson tongue appeared and traced Leon’s jawbone
It took me a good minute and a half to realize that was Walter's tongue you were talking about. I thought there was some random monster appearing out of nowhere to join in molesting Leon. Not that I have any problems with that beyond the usual "WARN, DAMMIT!"
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THE WHITE HOUSE BLOG
Health Reform: Help for Families in 2010
Congress is on the verge of an historic achievement for which the American people have been waiting for decades: The passage of real health insurance reform that will bring stability and security to Americans with insurance and provide affordable options to those who don’t. It will protect individuals and families from unfair and arbitrary insurance practices and will at last shift the power away from insurance companies and into the hands of consumers.
Enactment of these historic reforms will be a monumental accomplishment and will be a victory for the interests of consumers against ferocious opposition from the insurance industry and others invested in the status quo. And while there are parts of reform that will take some time to get up and running, there are a great many benefits that will kick in during the very first year to help families and small businesses get control over their health and their health insurance costs.
If you or somebody in your family has a pre-existing condition, you’ll get help in 2010: Both the Senate and House bills will make it illegal for insurance companies to drop coverage for Americans who get sick. Insurance companies will also be barred from limiting the total benefits Americans can use over the course of a year or over their lifetimes. Affordable insurance coverage options will also be made immediately available through a high-risk pool for Americans who have been uninsured and have been denied coverage because they have a pre-existing condition. These options will serve as a bridge until the new health insurance marketplaces, or exchanges, are up and running.
If you or your family has insurance, you'll get help in 2010: The scales will no longer be tipped against you in your relationship with your insurance company. More of your money will start going towards your care instead of excessive insurance company profits or TV ads. Between 2010 and 2013, insurance companies will be required to report the proportion of premium dollars that are spent in areas other than medical care – including profits. If a company isn’t spending enough of its premium dollars providing benefits, it will be required to issue rebate checks to its customers to make up the difference. Insurance companies will also immediately have to begin creating effective appeals processes for customers who have been denied claims ---including independent reviews---and the legislation provides grants for states to create ombudsmen to act as consumer watchdogs on health insurance coverage.
If you want to keep your family from getting sick in the first place, you’ll get help in 2010: All insurance plans will have to begin covering preventive services. That means all Americans who purchase insurance on their own will receive preventive care from their doctor without paying a co-pay.
rest
I'm as disappointed as the next person with the Senate health care bill, but there are quite a few points on this list that would directly help me. I'm interested to see just how this bill would technically help reduce costs, and obviously that hasn't been documented in this blurb. I think it would be helpful for anyone in the know to post in this comm just what is being debated or established in the bill just so we're all on the same page.
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Okay, this is probably gonna be YMMV and I'll probably get people saying, "I have no problem with this," but I hope I'm not alone. I get really annoyed when somebody posts a fic that's s'posed to be part of the author's larger "'verse" and doesn't link to any of the other fics that might give readers the context of what's going on. For some reason, this seems to happen a lot in crossover comms. Guess what, authors? We're not Professor X or Matt Parkman or any other telepath, so you gotta give us an overview or link us to past fics! Do a master post! I've seen lots of other people do it, but there are also a bunch of people who don't, and when they don't, I think it looks like they don't want to draw new readers, but keep it as an inside joke with their five regular readers.
( Some Supernatural examples. What IS it with that fandom? )
Edited because everything somehow ended up in a Giant Paragraph of Doom.
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Dear FS/N author,
I see that you were trying to improve my reading experience. Awesome, and thank you for the consideration. However, something makes me think that you haven't really thought this gimmick through.
You see, you decided to give your fanfic a soundtrack.
...Yes, I know that sounds fine on paper, if a little pretentious, but allow me to illustrate how this works in execution.
( Slightly long post be slightly long, folks )
The moral of the story? Fanfics should not have soundtracks
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So. Writerface. Your fic wasn't bad -- in fact, the way you fleshed out the rather sparse canon setting was very creative and your prose, while having many, many grammatical errors, was fairly decent. I'll give you that. This is why I offered to be your beta, so your fic could reach its potential.
You posted as an A/N for your fic, "don't have a beta, if you are interested, drop me a line." (I paraphrase.)
I leave a review, offering my services as beta.
Your response (as the next chapter's A/N), dear Writerface? "Don't leave it in a review - e-mail me instead."
...Uh. Okay. Kinda rude, but partially my fault as well for misinterpreting what you meant by "dropping a line". So I send a polite e-mail, again offering my services as beta (strictly in regards to spelling and punctuation, which I explained - I didn't feel the author needed my assistance in any other area).
The answer: "Thanks but no thanks. Someone else more familiar with the fandom volunteered."
Again, uh... okay. Maybe it's true, that the other person who volunteered is more familiar with the canon Writerface was working with (even though it didn't seem like Writerface could tell how much I knew the canon, but whatever). I offered, Writerface didn't accept. Not the end of the world, really. I still continue to read Writerface's fic, though, because I liked it well enough before all this happened and just because Writerface was a tad blunt shouldn't influence my opinion of his work.
Then the next chapter, posted about a day later, features a line in the A/N: "Sorry about the poor spelling and grammar, but I don't have a beta. *shrug*".
Suddenly, I don't feel like helping you anymore, Writerface.
(Could be I'm being too sensitive, but... really. If you didn't want a beta, why did you ask for one? And then proceed to go about it so poorly? I just don't get it.)
Edited because punctuating was not the word I was looking for. XD
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Greetings, meatbags certain parts of the Knights of the Old Republic fandom!
I noticed you like to make your Player Characters light-sided. That's great, so do I! I also noticed that you like to make your light-sided PCs the biggest Mary Sues ever conceived. That's not so great.
Now, granted, it's not as if this doesn't have canonical support. Playing the game and choosing all the good options will turn your character into the biggest Mary Sue ever conceived. The kind you'd expect grow a halo and be announced by a spontaneously generated chorus of angels. The kind that would be able to circumnavigate Manaan on foot.
But just because I play as one doesn't mean I want to read about one.
There's a reason Inferno is more popular than Paradiso, and that's because unambiguously good characters are boring. I like a good light-sided PC, but it's more interesting to see someone struggle a little for it. And not just, "Oh, I nearly went into a righteous rage at the slavers on Kashyyyk! Woe is me!" I mean actual, honest-to-god flaws that aren't "cares too much about people". (Not that this couldn't potentially be an interesting flaw and a good reason to fall to the Dark Side if explored well, but most of the time it's just shorthand for, "Look at how compassionate my character is! Isn't he/she awesome?")
Also, you now what I'd really like to see?
( Oh hi there, huge spoiler for the first game! You know the one. )
Of course, no one is obligated to write what I want. (Otherwise the world would contain more T3-M4/HK-47*.) I realize that people are allowed to see their PC as they like — that's kind of the point of having customizable PCs. But I think it would make a much more compelling character than Mr/Ms Perfect, wouldn't it? The games do encourage you to either become the second coming of Christ or grow a goatee and kick puppies. But good gameplay choices don't always make interesting characters.
Bonus Star Wars Rant: You know, when you absolutely need an Imperial who would believably rape your OC** for the lulz, Grand Admiral Thrawn is probably not the best choice.
*T3 tops.
**At least, I'm assuming it's an OC. With the EU, it can be hard to tell.
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A month ago, I posted a fic with a cliffhanger ending. Several people were...unhappy and asked/demanded that I continue. After thinking about it for a long time, I decided to expand the original. It was originally written for a fest and I had to cut out a lot to make deadline and honor my recipients request, including the resolution of the hated cliffhanger. So, I've started posting the revised version and the silence is deafening. The same people who begged me to continue are nowhere to be found. I realize no one is owed a review but you'd think one of the people who begged for more would have responded with an "I'm so glad you're reworking this." Apparently not.
Apologies if I'm coming off as entitled. I'm just so frustrated.
ETA to correct the timeframe.
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Title: St Michael the Archangel
Author: ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) lokifan
Word count: ~450
Characters/pairings: George, Theodore Nott
Rating: G
Summary: “George wanted to hide from their eyes at Fred’s funeral.”
Warnings: angst, canon character death
Disclaimer: The boys belong to JKR, even though I’m often much nicer to them than she is.
Author’s Notes: This was written for this week’s ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/community.gif) sortinghatdrabs; the characters were George/Theo and the prompt was carol of the bells.
St Michael the Archangel
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Dean Winchester was born on January 24th, 1979. He was not born in April 1978. The fic is great, but the timeline fail threw me out of it a little bit. And to other authors, Dean was not born in any other month after January in 1979. January 24th, 1979 is his established canon birthday, just like May 2nd, 1983 is Sam's.
People still mess up Sam's birthday somehow, too. I don't get it.
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Look, ficwriters.
I know Merlin is an anachronistic show, with historical realism downplayed like woah.
But, could you, I don't know, be a little more considerate? And stop with OKs and occasional mentioning of potato?
It's jarring.
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Title: Countdown to Christmas – December 17
Author: kinky_kneazle
Rating: PG
Pairing: Fred/Hermione
Wordcount: 371
Genre: Romance
Disclaimer: Owned by JK Rowling.
Summary: Hermione has started counting down to Christmas, but she's wondering if she should stop celebrating with the Weasleys. Can the last single Weasley change her mind?
A/N: Written for the Christmas Quickies at awdt where the fifteenth prompt is Secret Santa. Short and sweet today.
December 1 – the beginning
December 17 - I'm actually a Secret Santa for someone.
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Washingtonpost.com By Howard Dean Thursday, December 17, 2009
If I were a senator, I would not vote for the current health-care bill. Any measure that expands private insurers' monopoly over health care and transfers millions of taxpayer dollars to private corporations is not real health-care reform. Real reform would insert competition into insurance markets, force insurers to cut unnecessary administrative expenses and spend health-care dollars caring for people. Real reform would significantly lower costs, improve the delivery of health care and give all Americans a meaningful choice of coverage. The current Senate bill accomplishes none of these.
Real health-care reform is supposed to eliminate discrimination based on preexisting conditions. But the legislation allows insurance companies to charge older Americans up to three times as much as younger Americans, pricing them out of coverage. The bill was supposed to give Americans choices about what kind of system they wanted to enroll in. Instead, it fines Americans if they do not sign up with an insurance company, which may take up to 30 percent of your premium dollars and spend it on CEO salaries -- in the range of $20 million a year -- and on return on equity for the company's shareholders. Few Americans will see any benefit until 2014, by which time premiums are likely to have doubled. In short, the winners in this bill are insurance companies; the American taxpayer is about to be fleeced with a bailout in a situation that dwarfs even what happened at AIG. From the very beginning of this debate, progressives have argued that a public option or a Medicare buy-in would restore competition and hold the private health insurance industry accountable. Progressives understood that a public plan would give Americans real choices about what kind of system they wanted to be in and how they wanted to spend their money. Yet Washington has decided, once again, that the American people cannot be trusted to choose for themselves. Your money goes to insurers, whether or not you want it to. Read More...
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Dear yaoi author,
You have soiled my keyboard, for I was drinking when I read your fic, and this line:
the hot mouth that was currently suckling at his left nipple as though a babe were trying to nurse made me spew my drink all over.
( why oh why? )
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I love the read about unwarned gang rape in the morning! Also, I'm an idiot who goes to public 'search and find' comms and follows an unknown links.
Thanks so much for your ‘cracky’ fic where you stated that the main character was sexually abused by bunch of some guys (even if it took place in the past). And thanks for implying that the main character is so used to such a behavior from people that if someone corners him he submissively lets them take what they want. But you know, everybody in the fic are so OOC that it doesn't matter, really.
Thanks again! I really hate you.
Edit for clarification: in comm was used word 'assault' in the fic's description. In reality it was mentions of gang rape, and there was no warning about it. There's difference, IMO.
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annoyed
busy