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Court removes Pendley from role as public lands chief ~ The Hill

A federal judge on Friday ordered William Pendley to be removed as leader of the head of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), a role that typically requires Senate confirmation.

Judge Brian Morris ruled that Pendley “served unlawfully as the Acting BLM Director for 424 days” and enjoined him from exercising the authority of the agency’s director.

The ruling was issued in response to a lawsuit from Montana Gov. Steve Bullock (D) challenging Pendley’s continued tenure and follows significant scrutiny from conservation groups.

Pendley has led the bureau in a temporary capacity since July 2019. His role at the agency has come under scrutiny because he has not been confirmed by the Senate.

He’s also received criticism for advocating for selling off public lands, voicing skepticism about climate change and making comments about Islam, the Black Lives Matter movement and undocumented immigrants.

Pendley remained in his post first through a series of “secretarial orders” put forth by Interior Secretary David Bernhardt and later, as reported by The Hill, through “succession orders,” with which Pendley gave himself the authority to remain the temporary leader of the agency.

Morris, an Obama appointee, ruled that both a secretarial order and a succession order “represent unlawful attempts to avoid the constitutional requirements of the Appointments Clause and the statutory requirements of the [Federal Vacancies Reform Act].”

Interior spokesperson Conner Swanson said in an email that the department will be appealing the decision “immediately.”

“This is an outrageous decision that is well outside the bounds of the law. It betrays long-standing practice of the Department going back several administrations. Unfortunately, it appears the bias against this Administration was just too great to overcome,” he said, pointing to an instance where a succession order was used by the Obama administration.

An initial Interior statement said that Pendley would continue to lead the bureau, but Swanson later clarified that the department would follow the court order unless it’s overturned by a higher court.

The court said that unless the president temporarily uses powers under the Federal Vacancies Reform Act to fill the role, only Bernhardt can carry out the duties of the BLM director.

It also said that certain decisions made by Pendley, including the issuance of some resource management plans, “would have no force and effect and must be set aside as arbitrary and capricious.”

Democrats, including Bullock, and conservation groups cheered the court’s decision.

“Today’s ruling is a win for the Constitution, the rule of law, and our public lands,” the governor said in a statement.  “Montanans can rest easy knowing that National Public Lands Day will begin with William Perry Pendley packing his desk and vacating the Director’s Office at the Bureau of Land Management.”

After Bullock and environmental groups filed separate suits over Pendley’s appointment, President Trump did formally appoint him to be BLM director.

However, the White House later withdrew his nomination. It was not clear whether the Senate would have voted to confirm him, particularly as several Republican senators from states containing a lot of public land face tough reelection bids.

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Whats Happening ?

Ground paddle winding gear sorted!

Finally the winding mechanism for lifting one of the ground paddle gates has been assembled.  It still has to be bolted to the ground and have its safety pawl (the pecker) fitted but otherwise it works perfectly.  After much bolting together and then disassembling because bits were jamming or not aligning and a fair measure of metal cutting and welding, John, Trevor and Adrian manage to connect lifting rods, gates, reduction gears and up-stands so that everything does what is supposed to do.  John drills hoes in the ground to locate fixing bolts but before these can be inserted a heavy down-pour of rain stops play for the day.

The winding gear for the other gate should now be quite a simple and straight forward task.

Stubborn lifting rods

John arrives to help Trevor and Adrian to release and remove the bent lifting rod.  Trying unsuccessfully to undo the holding bolt John cuts it off with an angle grinder.  Taking the rod to an anvil, John hits it very hard with a large sledge hammer and straightens the rod considerably.  Unfortunately the rod is made of  wrought iron and a crack appears in the shaft.  John gives the rod one last hit which proves to be ‘the last straw’ and the rod breaks.  A replacement rod has to be manufactured from a length of galvanized pipe.

Leaking cills and rusty rods

Trevor and Adrian work down in the lock chamber.  First they clear out the large amount of silt that has accumulated behind the gate stop (again) and then caulk the gaps beneath  the stop boards with lengths of hemp rope wedged in with slithers of Oak.  Time is spent inside the ground paddle entrance  trying to remove the pin securing the lifting rod to the paddle gate so that the rod can be removed, straightened and made longer.  The pins is well rusted in and resists all attempts to move it.  It is given a healthy dose of penetrating oiland left for another day.

Historic boat acquired.

Following up on a telephone conversation with Alistair Ogden, Adrian has just acquired a very interesting piece of machinery to add to the site of Sea Lock.  This machine is a 1930’s weed-cutting narrow boat.  Her previous owner has spent much time in the past restoring her  but with more pressing commitments has not been able to keep her in pristine condition.  She had become something of a liability and he wanted to dispose of her to a good home otherwise  he would have been forced to sell her for scrap.

This vessel has several very unusual features.  She is powered by a side-valve petrol engine which drives a pair of paddles at the stern end.   The cutting mechanism at the front consists of two hinged, serrated blades mounted on a bow-sprit which can be lowered to a depth of 7 feet. (Shades of Queen Boadicea’s chariot).  The boat is 20 feet long but only 4 feet wide and is apparently quite unstable especially when trying to turn her around.

Sadly she requires quite a lot of work to return her to good condition but to allow such an unusual and rare boat to be cut up for scrap would be a crime.

Winding gear and platforms.

Trevor continues working on assembling the ground paddle lifting gear while Adrian sets about rebuilding the scaffold platform.  Barry arrives and having not been very well recently is unable to do much physically but tells Trevor and Adrian what the next stage of tub boat construction will be.  Michael Pryer arrives and moves the RB crane further along the wharf wall where Adrian intends to use it to lower  the scaffold platform against the damaged outer wing wall.

Later in the day, having attached strops to the platform, Adrian starts the crane.  Trevor and John, who had just arrived,  attach ropes to it and use them to guide the platform while Adrian lifts and lowers it into the lock chamber.  The platform sits a little lop-sided on the mud but is steady enough to be usable.

Adrian then lifts the platform back up onto the side and they pack up for the day.

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• There are no changes to the Grand Rapids insurance requirements, however, the city has clarified expectations of purchasing a policy when submitting an application
  • Insurance requirements include $1,000,000 per occurrence and $2,000,000 general aggregate from a company licensed to do business in Michigan having an AM Best rating of at least B+++

The City of Grand Rapids released their Medical Marihuana Ordinance in December 2018 and many questions have developed based on the release of the ordinance. The ordinance and application for Medical Marihuana Facilities states that one item required at time of application is proof of insurance. Per the application, the proof of insurance should show a valid and effective policy for general liability insurance. The general liability limits must be $1,000,000 per occurrence and $2,000,000 aggregate limit and issued from a company licensed to do business within Michigan and having an AM Best rating of at least B+++. The requirement also goes on to request that the City of Grand Rapids and its officials and employees shall be named as additional insured within insurance policy documents. All Grand Rapids medical marihuana information can be found on the city’s dedicated medical marihuana webpage HERE.

We’ve had many discussions with Grand Rapids applicants and everyone was asking the same thing – do I really need to purchase the policy when I don’t even know if I will be awarded a license? Our response was always, “Ask the City”! It sounds like the city is listening as last week they issued a statement advising that they will not require a policy to have been purchased and active at the time of application. Instead, an applicant can submit a letter of Intent for a policy meeting the requirements of the ordinance. If the applicant is approved by the Planning Commission, the applicant will then have to demonstrate that the policy has been purchased prior to receiving a license.

The Roots Insurance has issued many letters of intent and we would be happy to assist you as you make your way through the Grand Rapids Medical Marihuana application. Please click HERE to send us a request for a letter of intent and one of our agents will gladly assist in generating the necessary document to satisfy the city’s request.


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The Rumpus Book Club Discussion with George Saunders

The Rumpus Book Club chats with George Saunders about Tenth of December, sudden celebrity, why escalation matters if you’re a writer, and how to stick with a story for twelve years.

This is an edited transcript of the book club discussion. Every month The Rumpus Book Club hosts a discussion online with the book club members and the author and we post an edited version online as an interview. To learn how you can become a member of The Rumpus Book Club click here.

This Rumpus Book Club interview was edited by Rebecca Rubenstein.

Noah S.: Thank you so much for doing this, George.

David B.: Did you say you were on Colbert? How did it go?

George Saunders: My pleasure. Am just so pleased the technology seems to be working—am on satellite. And yes—I did Colbert and Charlie Rose on the same day. If only I’d scheduled a rectal, I could have accomplished the coveted “stress trifecta.”

I think it went okay—was sure fun. He is an amazing, bright, and funny guy. Just fun being around him, honestly.

Noah S.: Charlie Rose has a penetrating gaze.

George Saunders: I meant Colbert in the first response but yes—Charlie Rose, too, was so kind and intelligent.

Brian S: You said something yesterday on Facebook about wearing the same shirt and jacket to both. Do they tape near each other?

George Saunders: They are both in Manhattan but a pretty good distance apart. So I sort of went from one to the next. Plus I was feeling that that shirt/jacket combo were good luck. 🙂 A pretty strange and anthropologically interesting experience. Seeing how the whole thing works etc. etc.

Julie: I thought it was interesting how “scary” it must be for comedians to actually talk about the work. It almost seemed pathological to me the way Colbert kept reflexively bouncing away from discussing anything actually substantive about your great book.

George Saunders: He’s a great improv comedian, and I think that’s the game—to sort of comically skirt the substance—but then he’ll let you get in a shot or two.

David B.: Is this going to explode your readership?

George Saunders: Gotta hope. 🙂 (I find myself using that smiley emoticon a lot here. Hmm. Maybe just assume one in the future.)

Kevin T.: Speaking of TV, I loved that panel on Up with Chris Hayes. You never see that many fiction writers at one time. On camera.

George Saunders: Actually that Times Magazine piece sort of shot things out of a cannon. Very generous, and after that, seems like, the crowds right away got bigger at readings and so on.

David B.: Is it stressful to have this large surge of attention?

George Saunders: It’s not that stressful, honestly. It’s more work—bigger crowds and all of that. But it’s less stressful than going somewhere and having eight people or whatever.

Brian S: Yeah, no writer wants to be the person alone at the table in the bookstore.

George Saunders: And I have been that guy. Trying to milk the last remaining person so you don’t leave too early…

Noah S.: Aside from it being a wonderful book, why do you think that this book exploded out of the gate like it did?

Natasha: I’m wondering the same thing, Noah.

George Saunders: Noah, it seemed like sort of the perfect storm deal—that NY Times profile by Joel Lovell and then, right before and after, some nice reviews in major places. And then, too, to be honest, I could feel—in the preceding five years or so—a slow building going on: bigger attendance at events and more interest from colleges.

Noah S.: Awesome.

Brian S: Which is how we wound up with this book: the packed house at Drake University.

George Saunders: Someone said that they thought part of this was just that the people who were, say, in college when CivilWarLand came out are now in positions of authority—editors and reviewers and so on.

Julie: Maybe it’s as simple as the fact that the book is really fucking great.

Brian S: I think there are a lot of really great books that don’t blow up like this.

George Saunders: In any event it’s pretty fun, and I think maybe more fun at fifty-four than at, say, thirty-five. At this age, you’re just kind of like: huh, interesting. It’s sort of like when you’re walking down the street and you smell some amazing cooking going on inside, and you enjoy it while not really feeling that it’s yours, or “real.” On the other hand, I really like Julie’s theory.

Natasha: I love that description of what it’s like to stumble across this kind of success.

Melissa S.: Are these all recently-written stories? By “recent,” I guess I mean, were you writing them for this collection specifically, or have some been around for a while and just fit in?

George Saunders: No, “Sticks” is circa 1994 (!), and [“The Semplica-Girl Diaries”] I started in ’98 and just finished. Otherwise they’re from 2006 forward.

Noah S.: “Sticks” is an absolute favorite of mine. I followed my girlfriend around the house reading it aloud, because I couldn’t help but share it.

George Saunders: Careful with that. If she is running really fast, stop reading. Actually, on a break last night, Colbert—out of character—read “Sticks” to his audience.

Bobby: That sounds intimidating. Super-famous person reading your work aloud to his audience…

George Saunders: Luckily I was in the Green Room, nearly barfing with relief.

Mira: I actually wonder if maybe your work has gotten the Colbert Bump—not from being on his show, but from his success in pop culture. Like, the success of people like Colbert has helped a wider audience embrace the absurd.

George Saunders: Mira, I think you might be right. There’s a feeling—or has been a feeling—that my weirdness is somehow less weird. Something like that—satire or irony is more mainstream? Not sure.

Ann B: Are you partial to any one of the stories?

George Saunders: At the moment I’m still feeling the “Semplica-Girl” story—because I finished it most recently.

Noah S.: What inspired “Semplica-Girl”?

George Saunders: “Semplica-Girl” came from a dream. I dreamed that I was that guy, looking out our bedroom window, and saw those Semplica Girls—and felt proud, like: finally, I did it! I’ve arrived!

Noah S.: And in the dream they had the microline running between their heads?

George Saunders: Yes, they did—microline and white smocks and long black hair.

Linda M.: I’m curious about the decision to go with the diary format for “Semplica-Girl.” They go so weirdly well together.

George Saunders: The diary idea came from a great book called I Will Bear Witness by Viktor Klemperer—a Holocaust diary. And he doesn’t know, of course, that it’s “the Holocaust”—his gaze is averted to these mundane, everyday things. Also, [it’s] really fun stylistically—all that truncation and so on…

Hannah: I enjoyed the story “Home,” and recently thought there might be a connection with that and the Hemingway short story, “Soldier’s Home”?

George Saunders: Hemingway, yes—although not consciously. Only afterwards I was like: huh. Actually, I was sort of riffing on Euripides, Herakles, but I mangled the plot in my memory…

Hannah: Regarding “Home”: as a military prosecutor I am always shocked by the people that are upset that we court-martial soldiers who have been deployed. It seems like you captured the public’s strange and sometimes misplaced reverence for soldiers…even those who commit crimes.

George Saunders: Yes. Especially with these wars, there’s that sort of auto-patriotic response—maybe a guilt response?

Brian S: But also the rote way in which that service is honored, Hannah.

George Saunders: Right, “rote” is the word.

Brian S: Anyone else get a chill by the end line of “Exhortation”? That riff on Julian of Norwich (or T.S. Eliot, from “Little Gidding”) just sent shivers down my spine, given what the rest of the story was hinting at. Orwellian in a really awesome way.

Janeen: Brian, I got chills so many times throughout the book. I had to read it slowly, because I found it so dark and frightening.

Natasha: What do you think “Exhortation” was hinting at? Maybe I didn’t think too deeply about it because it was starting to get so creepy.

Brian S: I felt like Room 6 in “Exhortation” was, in effect, a torture chamber of some kind. Bad things were happening in there.

Natasha: I can see that. There was certainly something sinister going on in there.

Julie: Can I ask how you get into the head of your characters? Their mentalese is so idiosyncratic and unusual and real. Do they just “come to you”? Do you do a lot of people-watching and are a natural mimic? How do you get in there? When I write, all my characters sound too much like me.

George Saunders: Julie, that is an exquisite and writerly question. They sort of do just come to me; I think of it as improv—with heavy revision.

Julie: It seems then that you must work on multiple pieces of writing at the same time. If this is accurate, how do you do that as well as teach? Do you work on something for a bit then go on to something else and then come back?

George Saunders: Yes, always. I try to have four or five things going so I can gravitate to whatever seems most interesting on that day—keeps it lively and productive, versus working out of a place of unhappiness or boredom. I work on something until it goes cold. Teaching doesn’t seem to bother me much, I just work in [and] around the cracks, so to speak—actually nice to get away from a piece sometimes, you know? So you can see it fresh.

Mira: A lot of your stories are written with multiple narrators. Do you start out writing a story from one character’s P.O.V. first, and then start to wonder how the other players would experience the situation? Or do you see it from multiple viewpoints from the beginning?

George Saunders: I think the idea is usually to limit it to one character, but then the story will start to tell you otherwise—for the story to unfold naturally, it seems to want someone else to get in there and start thinking. Sometimes, it’s just that the first character’s voice can’t accommodate the action, i.e. can’t make it happen convincingly. All very intutive and iterative in the actual doing.

Mira: Yeah, I guess I was kind of rooting around process with that question… Do you edit relentlessly? When I write, I edit over and over and over, and sometimes I worry I’m editing the life out of things. Do you edit a lot? Or do you leave that to others?

George Saunders: I edit a lot. Yes. Over and over. Hundreds of times. My theory is that it’s like decorating an apartment: say I give you a furnished apartment—it wouldn’t feel “like you.” But if I let you take out one item a day and replace it with something you chose, after a year or so, that place would be more “you” than you ever could have conceptualized at the outset. This is what editing is, for me. Trying to move the thing to be more like me than I could have imagined at the outset.

Jack W.: I re-read most of your other books along with Tenth; one serendipitous moment was reading your essay “Thought Experiment” and then reading “Escape From Spiderhead” afterwards. They went together beautifully. A question: do your own works somehow inspire you, i.e. something you’ve already written sparks a new idea?

George Saunders: Yes, and since we’re in such an intimate setting here, I’ll confess that sometimes a story will “fall out” of another. A riff will occur, but not be right for that piece. So I treat it as a gift from the subconscious, like it was in there trying to get out, but blundered into the wrong story, i.e. “Chivalric Fiasco” fell out of “Spiderhead,” etc. etc.

Brian S: My partner is using the book in her senior writing seminar this semester, and I’ll be subbing for her for a couple of classes, so I get to work with “My Chivalric Fiasco.” I’m very excited about it.

Michael: I also had my wife read the book. It’s funny, but I felt like the book expressed a lot of things I’d hidden from her. Unintentionally. I don’t know how to say it another way.

George Saunders: Like what sort of things? Not to pry…

Michael: Nothing particular, but a kind of continuous dilemma—work situations mostly, which I don’t bring home. I’d have to think it through, how to say it, but a sense of working in the wrong moral direction (“Semplica-Girl”) by way of making things what they are for your family. And the sense that death frees you to be moral: really painful.

George Saunders: I get that, Michael, yes—and have felt it.

Natasha: I’m really interested in the theme of parenting and other forms of control (“Escape From Spiderhead,” for instance). Is parenting something that you’ve always explored in your writing?

Noah S.: I was curious about that as well, Natasha. It feels like there’s lots of children in the book, and most of them are in either extremely restrictive or lacking situations.

George Saunders: Lots of parenting yes, and honestly it’s just because that was one hundred percent what our minds were on at the time…so it leached into the stories, for sure.

Noah S.: On the cover of the book, Jennifer Egan calls it “Hilarious…” Do you set out to have these stories make people laugh?

Brian S: It’s the twelve-year-old in me, but I found myself laughing every time I saw a new euphemism for penis.

Noah S.: Totally. There was a reference to “boners” in “Semplica-Girl Diaries” that made me laugh out loud.

Brian S: “Pre-bone” made me snort out loud in public.

Natasha: I agree. Lots of wonderful humor in these stories. Definitely laughed a lot.

George Saunders: I love to make my reader laugh. Love it.

Melissa S.: Speaking of images, some of the stories have some pretty eerie ones (drowning the kittens, boy chained to tree, etc). Do you ever think, Whoa, too far? Has anything been edited out of the book?

George Saunders: I would never say too much—unless the “too much” was also just wrong, i.e. was working against the larger artistic goal of the story. If you go too far, then the job is to justify it: make it worth the shock or disgust.

Melissa S.: How long does it take you to write a story? Have you ever stolen a story idea from one of your students?

George Saunders: Have never knowingly stolen a story from a student, no. And they take, honestly, from three weeks (“Home”) to twelve years (“Semplica-Girl Diaries”).

Melissa S.: Wow, twelve years. And you never put it away. That’s amazing.

Natasha: I wish I’d read the book earlier so I’d have had time to process and really understand the themes. I’m still digesting “Semplica-Girl,” which I adored. And even though you’re lucky enough to have these images come to you in a dream, you must have been amazingly dedicated to keep coming back to it for so many years. Thanks, because it’s so worth it! Did “Semplica-Girl” threaten to turn itself into a novel? It does seem to be the perfect length, but I can imagine getting sidetracked and following more of what’s going on with the other characters.

George Saunders: “Semplica-Girl” tried to be a novel, Natasha, yes, boy did it. I have—embarrassing—but I have at least eight boxes of drafts. Ugh.

Natasha: Wow. Hopefully those boxes won’t string themselves up in your yard.

Hannah: It seemed like you used animals (dogs and a pony, I think) to emphasize poverty. Is this accurate?

Bobby: Has teaching had any positive influence on your writing?

Noah S.: What was your response to Adrian Chen’s “Write A Goddamn Novel Already” piece about you?

George Saunders: This is hard! Sorry I’m not keeping up…

Brian S: You’re doing great! We can be a little overwhelming.

Deborah M: Yes, we are bombarding, and you are doing great.

Janeen: So glad there’s a large and lively bunch tonight.

Ann B: Brian, how many of us are there?

Brian S: Pushing thirty.

George Saunders: Yes! No! Boxers! Briefs! Sometimes, but rarely in that exact manner!

Hannah—not intentionally, but seems like it. I don’t do a lot of symbol placement, but my guess is, my subconscious does.

Teaching is all positive, Bobby—we get 600 apps a year and the students we get are so amazing. Fires me up with love for the youngsters, and gives me hope for the future of literature. No downside, honestly, and it just gets sweeter as I get older—a great gift, to get to interact with talented young people who are not necessarily grossed out by you. 🙂

Noah, I actually found that Chen piece sort of sweet. I didn’t mind it a bit and it started a shitstorm, which is always good. The real answer, of course, is (as it so often is) provided by Flannery O’Connor: “A writer can choose what he writes but he can’t choose what he makes live.” Amen.

Noah S.: Do you consider yourself a “dark” writer?

George Saunders: That “darkness” question is interesting. I think what I’m doing is something like that Portuguese Fado music—where every song is ostensibly a dirge, but within each there is overflow that equals joy. So there is like a “negative offset” to each story, but hopefully the reader feels a sort of scale model of the world, where good is there, and bad is, but the whole frame is bent. Something like that.

Brian S: I get that. “Victory Lap” is an undeniable dark story, but it ends with the damage to everyone being mainly scars that they’ll carry with them. But nobody’s dead, so it’s a happy ending in a way.

Deborah M: The “good” definitely flows through the stories, and that’s what remains (rather than the dark details…).

Noah S.: I love that you ended with “Tenth of December”—it felt like the story that best captured that people, amongst all the badness, really do some good things.

Hannah: Why these particular stories in this book?

George Saunders: Those are just basically the stories I wrote during this period. And then the ordering was really the thing…

Linda M.: I am wondering about ordering decisions, as well. I first read “Semplica-Girl” in The New Yorker, on its own. But then, within a collection, the stories bounce off of each other.

George Saunders: The ordering thing…I got a little help from my daughter, who reminded me of how an album is ordered: something to get the person in easily, strong ending, and then pace the middle, so that one story propels the reader to the next. Or, another way to say it, stagger the stronger/weaker stories so the reader can never quite go “meh,” and walk off. 🙂

Janeen: Do you feel like the success of this book will help or hinder you when you sit down to write the next one?

George Saunders: As I get the real, physical sense of how many more readers there are now, it’s a little scary. Like if your party got really crowded, and everyone was waiting for the food. 🙂 But I’ll take it. The more positive way to think about it is to say, Well, they liked that last one, so let me do more of that, be bolder, trust the new readers, and just go for it. I really find that once the shit dies down and I get back in my little writing shed, everything feels pretty okay and normal.

Jack W.: Donald Barthelme is someone you’ve written about (and whose baton I’d declare from rooftops that you’ve been passed) as propelling his readers via a “series of pleasure-bursts,” followed by continual escalation. This seems to apply to your writing, as well. Do you have a method in capturing this feeling in your writing? I, too, find your courage thrilling.

George Saunders: Thanks, Jack. I think the only way is to re-engage with what you’re working on every day as you think a first-time reader might—to read it line by line, monitoring your own pleasure. When the pleasure goes down, something is off. Or—”pleasure” might not be the exact word. But you are sort of scanning the prose to see what it is causing to happen. And adjusting accordingly, in the only way possible, i.e. micro-adjustments of the sentences and phrases…

Ana: I have a rather focused question I wanted to make a point to ask. I was at a book reading recently with Junot Díaz, where people were asking about developing an ability to write about race. He lamented the fact more writers weren’t asked about race in their writing like, for example, George Saunders. So I thought I would ask: people talked about “write about race” as a sort of muscle you have to engage, train, and strengthen. Do you feel like that is a muscle you have developed, or worked on?

George Saunders: I’m not sure. I tend not to think, you know, that a story is “about” race, or gender, but it’s about people struggling against something or other. So those other things sort of get subsumed in that. Or, you know, “race” is part of a larger narrative about trying to be human. Hmm. Great question, but I am sort of going too fast here. Let me think about that one…

Mira: You write a lot about class and capitalism. Can you say something about how you see the role of writer—and, I guess, artist—in our culture? I’m thinking of the book The Gift here, and the idea of art as being beyond commerce. Curious about your thoughts on that.

Ana: Mira, I’m really interested in that question. Going off that, I was thinking back on the two stories, “Victory Lap” and “My Chivalric Fiasco,” and the characters’ interventions at different stages—both to varying degrees of success—driven by some sort of imperative. And I guess I’m wondering if you feel any similar imperative in the role as a writer to intervene in “injustice”? I love how both stories show the complex motivations and complicated success of such an endeavor.

George Saunders: Mira, I think that, when I’m writing, I try not to think about the role of the writer at all—when I do, I fuck things up; everything gets too literal. I mean, I kind of do that anyway. But I just trust that if I am trying to get the story to stand up and walk, and my heart is basically in the right place, then I’ll be fulfilling the correct role, if that makes sense…like a musician might have ideas about social justice and all of that, but the main and first job is to kick ass.

Ana, I think the main struggle, in the actual writing, is to come up with something important and then, once that’s in place, try to complicate it in a way that somehow escalates matters. Like, in that “Fiasco” story, the rape is major. I think the reader feels the horror and injustice of that, even with that comic/minimal prose style. So then you have that to work with: the feeling of wanting justice. And then you go: okay, so how can I now complicate that beat called “the feeling of wanting justice”? Well, she doesn’t want justice. She wants silence. So he complies. Now—how can we make him not comply? Etc. etc. So the thinking, such as it is, is coming from inside the situation, as opposed to being imposed from the outside.

Natasha: Escalating matters—that’s what I’m working on in my writing (I’m a playwright). I’m finding it takes much more planning and thought than I wish it did!

George Saunders: Yes, escalation is the golden ticket, isn’t it? I did an exercise in one of my classes—I played this crazy-ass song called “The Arizona Yodeler” by The Dezurik Sisters (circa 1938), that is nothing but escalation. They yodel, they whistle, they do these crazy mouth-sounds—and it’s a great way to isolate escalation as a very exciting thing, separate from content—the song is completely silly, has no content—but everyone in the room is grinning like crazy by the end. I recommend it highly.

Ann Nash: I appreciate getting into your head with writing with escalating complications. Perfect goal. Thank you.

We read your puppy story in our nonfiction class two years ago. Lots of heated discussion followed. It brings out a lot in those with and without children. Experience with [parenting] tempers judgment towards both mothers. How did you come to write “Puppy”?

Janeen: Ann, that story just slays me.

Natasha: I can see “Puppy” being read as part of the standard curriculum in high school classrooms in twenty years. I’d have loved to have it in mine.

Michael: The puppy story was the first one I read. How being a parent changed my perspective on that one! I don’t think I’d have got it the same way in high school.

George Saunders: “Puppy” was…we drove by a house in upstate New York, and there was a kid in the yard, on some sort of harness. And he seemed pretty happy. And we (my wife and then-baby daughters) were feeling, at least in my mind, sort of, you know, yuppie. In our new Nissan and all. So I had that in my mind for about five years, that basic setup. And then Zadie Smith asked if I had something for this Other People anthology, and that came out.

My dog is really pissed off that I am typing so late. And I just, twice, typed “my god is really pissed off.”

Melissa S.: “My god is really pissed off.” Best short short since “Baby Shoes, Never Worn.”

Hannah: Glad to see you have a dog. Hopefully bettered cared for than the ones in your stories.

Natasha: George, do you have any advice about writing process and other things that help you write successfully? If you wrote a book for aspiring writers, what would it boil down to?

George Saunders: I think it’s simpler than we’re taught, and I think it has to do with trying—or being willing to—entertain, in your own unique way. Or “compel.” I had a long period where I was trying to write with my head—to be smart or thematic or whatever, and not only was I not smart, I was boring. And my big breakthrough, if you want to call it that, came when I realized that, in life, I liked to be funny and strange and fast—and maybe those were literary virtues, after all. So with my students, I often find it’s a matter of somehow leading them to a place where they feel comfortable with their own real and natural strengths, and thereby free to walk away from approaches that confine them or feel false…

Natasha: Yes! That’s probably why your writing is, as I described to my boyfriend earlier today, “not highbrow,” even though you’re a renowned literary star these days. Willingness to write from your own reality is probably a big part of that.

Melissa S.: What you said about not wanting your students to feel confined—boy, is that ever true. I am friends with one of your former students and his entire (amazing) novel is so out-of-the box and free. So refreshing.

My husband saw you read at BookPeople in Austin the other night (I drew the short straw and had to stay home with the kiddo). He told me you read from “Spiderhead.” What made you decide to read that particular section, and how do you choose what you will read, generally?

Brian S: As an addendum to Melissa’s question: are there times on the book tour that you change up what you’re reading to keep from getting bored with your work?

George Saunders: I used to read whole stories at readings—thirty or thirty-five minutes. But now that the crowds are bigger and the signings take longer, the stores seem to be suggesting ten to fifteen minutes. And really, whoever left a reading going: damn, he read too short? I sort of just experiment and see what might make an entertaining ten-minute reading. Still am. At colleges, I read “Victory Lap” and I love doing that. I try to do all the voices and so on, which keeps it fresh. For me anyway.

Brian S: It was a killer performance in Des Moines. I’ve never seen that many people at a college reading, and that many people just rapt with attention.

Ana: I saw you read from “Home” earlier this month. It was very interesting hearing your voices, which is not how the story sounded in my head! I also loved watching you engage with [Deborah] Eisenberg, whose book I bought that night. Do you have a preference or not when it comes to doing joint readings?

George Saunders: I love joint readings if the person reading with me is as wonderful as Deborah. She is the bomb. Such a sweetheartand a genius, for real.

Ana: I’m really loving her stories, which I hadn’t read before. And thought it was so interesting how she was almost forced to take up writing as a result of quitting smoking.

George Saunders: The other amazing thing about Deborah that night was she was very, very sick. I mean high fever. And still killed it, right?

Brian S: Five minutes, everyone—any lurkers want to get in a last-minute question?

Kevin T.: With the obvious exception of “My Chivalric Fiasco,” it looks like you’re about done with theme parks. Have you mined everything out of them that you can? Has child-rearing replaced them as a preoccupation? Are there more theme parks in the pipeline?

George Saunders: I might be done with theme parks, but you never know. I really just am looking for a few good sentences to start me off, and I honestly don’t care where it’s set or what it’s about—just so it confuses and intrigues me and sort of obscures the trail, i.e. keeps me from repeating myself (too much).

Melissa S.: What are you reading right now?

Natasha: Ooh, I’d love to hear what your reading list is, too. Favorite books? Movies? What makes your short list?

George Saunders: Read Europeana (Ourednik) and Senselessness (Moya), and a really funny galley by Jack Handey called The Stench of Honolulu—he’s the Deep Thoughts guy. I just saw an incredibly sweet documentary called Buck, about a guy who breaks horses in a new and gentler way, because he was abused as a kid. Also read, for the first time, Tolstoy’s Resurrection, which I thought was about as dark a book as I’ve ever read, and totally convincing regarding the savagery of the rich-poor divide. That one killed me. He has this bit about how a human being should never act, at all, unless he/she is “feeling love.” Radical.

Noah S.: Buck is so incredible. The part with the crazy horse still appears in my dreams sometimes.

George Saunders: Yes. That poor crazy horse. Ruined by its owner, mostly.

Janeen: Are you working on new stuff now, or just taking a break (or, well, traveling and appearing everywhere)?

George Saunders: I have a new thing started, but I’m taking a big break with the new book. I think I’ll be able to get back to work in a month—although I have to also read for Syracuse admissions. We got 566 apps for six spots. 🙁

Brian S: Okay, that’s the hour, so we’re going to cut off questions.

David B.: Thanks, George, for staying up late.

Ann Nash: Thanks, George, for out-of-the-box writing. Inspirational to us all.

Ana: Thank you! Best of luck with all your work this year.

Julie: Yes, thanks so much for doing this. I sort of feel like there was the world-before-reading-George-Saunders and now the world-after-reading-George-Saunders. Mind-blowing and amazing. Please keep writing for a very long time.

Brian S: Any chance you’ll be in Boston for the AWP convention?

George Saunders: Brian—I will be in Boston. Syracuse is doing a 50th anniversary event.

Bobby: I will come and give you a high-five at AWP then, if that’s cool?

George Saunders: Bobby—definitely. Or just bring me a drink. Thank you all so much for your generosity—really enjoyed this.

Brian S: Thanks again, George. Hope to run into you in Boston.

Author photo © Basso Cannarsa/Opale

Learn more about The Rumpus Book Club here. More from this author →


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March 2020 Advice Column

Mayesha Soshi

Daniela Castro Garcet ’20 and Sofia Mahairas ’20 have a brand new Advice Column!

Hello Bronx Science! This is Daniela Castro ’20 and Sofia Mahairas ’20 speaking. Back by just our own demand, the Bronx Science Advice Column is back in action.  This time, however, we are doing things a bit differently. YOU guys are the ones who get to pick what WE write about. Just ask your senator for the link to the google form, and start submitting questions (don’t worry it’s all anonymous). Happy reading and thank you to all of those who submitted the questions for this issue!

Hi, I’m a junior completely stressed out about college already. My grades are all fine except my AP Physics grade. How badly will this impact my chances?

Hey, thanks for writing! Junior year is stressful for everyone, so you’re far from alone. Remember, you will be fine. Some classes are bound to be harder than others, and, needless to say, AP Physics is not an easy class. Doing poorly in one class, especially an AP, is neither as bad nor as uncommon as you might think, and it’s definitely not the end of the world. Colleges do not expect you to be perfect! This does not mean you should stop trying your best and let your grades drop. As long as you are doing as much as you can, don’t let just one class psych you out– and remember, college is not the end-all be-all. No matter where you end up, if you’re willing to put in the work, you’ll get where you want to go.

 How can I get soap and paper towels for the bathroom when they are missing?

You can email the school custodians at [email protected] with any bathroom issues you may have, and if something’s really an issue, feel free to tell a custodian or staff member nearby.

Where can I find a book that may not currently be in the library?

Fortunately, you have a couple of options with this one. First, I’d ask our amazing school librarians. If they can’t help you out, you can take a quick trip to your local public library and look for it there.  Through the process of inter-library loans, if the book isn’t at your local library, you can shipped it from any other library in NYC, either by asking your librarian or using the New York Public Library website! You can read more about this process on

How do I cope with the fact that I may not get accepted into my first choice college despite struggling for three years at Bronx science? ;(

We’re so glad you brought this up— this is so relevant this time of year! As a Bronx Science student, it’s pretty likely that the person who holds the highest expectations for you is you. Take a deep breath. You’re not letting anyone down, even if you do get rejected, and you’re not alone; many seniors are feeling the same exact thing. The college process is difficult. It’s hard during the application process and it becomes even harder once results start rolling in. It’s easier said than done, but know that you shouldn’t compare yourself to others. The decision of one college, even if it’s your dream school, doesn’t define who you are and how smart you are. It’s okay to be sad for a little bit, but then you have to realize that your first choice college is not the only school you can love. Remember to keep an open mind because there are so many more schools out there. Either way, you should stay positive and think about the goals you want to accomplish in the next part of your life. Be open to committing the next four years to the place that’s right for you.

As a Bronx Science student, it’s pretty likely that the person who holds the highest expectations for you is you.

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Wednesday, October 21, 2020

Newcastle preview – Magpies must survive

It’s been a long, tough summer for Newcastle United fans as the Geordie nation comes to terms with the loss of Rafael Benitez. Steve Bruce has been appointed in his place and his side are next up on our Premier League preview list.

State of play

Newcastle fans have endured one hell of a summer this year – the fans are divided, Rafa has gone to China, Steve Bruce is the new man in charge and worst of all – Mike Ashley still hasn’t sold up.

Despite all that, they’ve been quite active in the transfer market in the last few weeks with the Magpies having broken their own transfer record for the second time in less than a year. Brazilian forward Joelinton (£40million) has joined the club from Hoffenheim, winger Allan Saint-Maximin (£16million) has come from Nice, Dutch left-back Jetro Willems (LOAN) has joined from Frankfurt and they look set to announce the signing of right-back Emil Krafth (£5million) from Amiens too.

Despite that, sections of the fan base are still unhappy with their club – understandably so too. There are plenty of protests planned, with quite a lot of fans even planning to partake in boycotts until Ashley sells up. If his interview last week is anything to go by, they could be boycotting for quite some time.

Pre-season for Newcastle has been pretty decent – in their five games, they’ve managed three wins. The victories came against West Ham, Hibernian and Saint-Etienne while the other two games saw losses against Wolves and Preston. NUFC start their season this weekend at home to Arsenal – a game which has been heavily targeted by the fan groups as they encourage fans to “stay away”.

Newcastle’s Signing of the Summer

This one was actually quite difficult for me but in the end I’ve settled on Joelinton. It was a close call between him and the exciting young winger Allan Saint-Maximin, but I believe Joelinton will be the most important player at the club this year.

The Brazilian is a striker who is used to playing behind the likes of Andrej Kramaric at Hoffenheim – being used primarily to bring his teammates into play. However, at Newcastle he’ll have a slightly different role – a one where he will be the main man, where he’ll be expected to score the goals – especially wearing that famous number nine shirt. It’s certainly not beyond him either – his tall frame, raw athleticism and skill on the ball make him a daunting opponent for any Premier League defender. He’ll do the job.

Kieran’s verdict

Survival is the most important thing for the club this season – if they get relegated again, I think they’ll struggle to come straight back up the way they have the last two times it happened. I would say they’ve brought in a man who specialises in keeping teams in the Premier League, but a relegation last time he managed in this league says I’d be lying.

Maybe I’m just being optimistic, but I don’t see Newcastle getting relegated this season. Although I wouldn’t go as far to say they have a strong squad, they do have some good players. Keeping hold of the likes of Fabian Schar, Martin Dubravka, Isaac Hayden and especially Sean Longstaff will prove to be very important. All four of those players will have a big role to play if the Magpies are to stay in the league this season.

In my personal opinion, Newcastle will just about survive. It won’t be plain sailing and they won’t be able to breathe easy until the season comes to an end BUT, they should stay in the league. It’s just important that at some point in the future, the club start actually trying to compete – rather than just bumbling along collecting £100m TV money every year – sooner or later, they’ll be punished for that… AGAIN.

*All transfer information taken from

< Manchester United

For more like this, visit our dedicated football page here. Meanwhile, follow us on Facebook for more opinions and analysis right to your timeline.

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How to Send Untraceable Email and Stay Hidden

Imagine this situation. You have some important information about your business and you need to send that to your colleague. However, you can’t have that email traced back to you. If it is and someone finds out it came from you, you’ll be in a lot of trouble.

So what do you do when you don’t want to discover that you’ve sent an email?

You create an untraceable email account and send it from there.

But how exactly do you do that?

Is it enough to simply create a new Gmail account, but under a different name? Or do you need to look for a different solution?

With that in mind, we are going to look into untraceable email services, what they are, how they work and how they can help you send anonymous email that lets you stay hidden.

Why Else You’d Need to Send Untraceable Emails and Why Regular Email Providers are No Go?

Email communication is a big part of our lives. Every day, an average person will send or receive dozens of email messages during the day.

A lot of these emails will be mundane, perhaps a newsletter to a website you forgot you signed up for, or even spam, but a few will actually be important.

For these kinds of emails, a Gmail or Yahoo Mail will be sufficient. Truth be told, most people think they don’t even need anything more from their email.

Well, that may or may not be true.

You see, the situation I laid out earlier is just one example of when you would need an untraceable email account.

And it’s not the only one.

Another such situation might be if you’re a reporter or whistleblower and need to send an email about a corrupt government official.

Numerous situations call for sending anonymous emails.

Unfortunately, a regular Gmail account won’t help you much there. This is because Google collects, keeps and often reveals to third-parties a frightening amount of information about you.

What does that mean?

Well, let’s take the reporter/whistleblower example above. What would happen if you send that email via a regular Gmail account to someone?

It would be very easy to track back to you. Even if you take all the precaution measures, like creating an account under a fake name, sending it from a public place instead of your home or office, or even using a VPN service to mask your real IP address, that might still not be enough.

What are Untraceable Email Services and how to Pick the Right One?

What you really need is to use untraceable email services.

Luckily, there’s no shortage of those on the Internet and all you have to do is find one that fits your privacy needs.

However, not all anon email providers are equal. Some will be anonymous only on paper. Suffice to say that you should stay clear of such, but the problem is, how do you know which ones are good and which ones aren’t?

An anonymous or private email service should help you stay hidden when sending emails, whatever the reason.

But that’s a tall task, especially if someone with plenty of resources like the government wants to take a look.

Now, let’s be perfectly honest. No anonymous email service is completely anonymous.

Some just do it much better than others and are truly dedicated to providing such a service to their customers.

What separates these anonymous email providers from others?

A couple of things, actually, but here are just a few things:

  1. A strong, two-way encryption.
  2. Protecting or better yet removing your real IP address
  3. Password protection (zero-knowledge)
  4. Anti-phishing protection
  5. Instantly deletes emails you send (many email services keep your emails due to certain laws in the countries where their mail servers are located for months sometimes).
  6. Anonymous payment.
  7. Built-in kill switch to protect users from malicious scripts.
  8. Javascript protection.

How to Send an Untraceable Email?

Now, let’s take a look at how to send an untraceable email. For this, we are going to use an encrypted email service called CTemplar.

The reason for this is that CTemplar offers all of the benefits an anonymous email service should that we mentioned just above.

On top of that, it’s incredibly easy to set up an untraceable email account with CTemplar. All you have to is:

  1. Go to Sign Up
  2. Select Your Account Type
  3. And then Create Your Account in just minutes using a unique username and password.

It’s fully anonymous and CTemplar won’t ask for your phone number, won’t trace or store your IP address (your emails will show CTemplar’s IP instead) and offers an anonymous payment option in Monero.

Once you’ve created your untraceable email account with CTemplar, you will get your own domain ending with For instance, if your username is Jon Doe, the whole domain will be [email protected].

With that, you can send anonymous emails without the fear that someone might trace them back to you.

CTemplar ensures this with several security features, including:

  1. Zero password knowledge.
  2. Not storing your IP.
  3. Strong 2-way OpenPGP encryption.
  4. Strong offshore jurisdiction (servers are based in Iceland, which has some of the best privacy protection laws in Europe).
  5. Instantly deleting your email (“delete” actually does what it’s supposed to do).

Wrapping it Up

For something that we use so much in our lives, we take email way too granted. Indeed, some folks open their email as soon as they get out of bed in the morning. Sometimes even before they get out of bed if their cell phone is in reach.

Well, most email messages you send are harmless enough that you don’t have to care who sees them. But what of those that aren’t and that can really damage your life if they are traced back to you?

For those situations (and others like them), use an untraceable email service that will help retain your privacy, like CTemplar.

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Monthly Archives: April 2018

Lauren Baker -017

What is it like to be the First Lady of Massachusetts?  This week, we packed up our recording equipment and headed to the gold-domed Statehouse in Boston to interview First Lady, Lauren Baker.  Her husband, Charlie Baker took the oath of office on January 8, 2015 and is widely heralded as the most popular governor in the United States.  His wife is a woman who has largely kept to herself, supporting Charlie but forging her own path as an advertising executive on Madison Avenue and at Hill Holliday in Boston, and as a devoted mom to their three children. When Charlie decided to run for governor, Lauren was by his side, campaigning hard in every corner of the state.  Today, she is championing a little-known non-profit called the Wonderfund, with a determination to help children at risk.  What started out as an initiative for the First Lady has become an avocation as she discovers the impact of early childhood trauma on a child’s well-being. Her life story and her vision for a better future for the state’s most vulnerable children will inspire you.  #storybehindhersuccess #16LifeLessons @charliebakerMA @WonderfundMA

Candy O’Terry -016

Hear the story behind the creation of this inspiring podcast series including losing my mom to breast cancer when I was a teenager, my career in radio and the creation of the Exceptional Women show, the decision to leave Magic 106.7 after 25 years, and the day I decided I couldn’t be without the stories anymore.  Spoiler alert:  I do cry a little at the end.  #getmeakleenex   #storybehindhersuccess    #16LifeLessons    #mydoveproductions

Angela Peri -015

Once upon a time, not so long ago, Angela Peri was working as a parking clerk at the Cambridge courthouse.  She wanted to be an actress, but her strict Italian family said: “no way.” She did it anyway, learning the ins & outs of the entertainment business, eventually realizing she could earn a better living as a casting director so she launched Boston Casting.  Thirty years later, Angela is so well respected, she has a direct line to Hollywood, working with A-list actors, discovering unknown local talent and casting Academy Award-winning films.  Find out how this East Boston girl made it big despite every obstacle in her path.  Her sense of humor, her crazy, but true showbiz stories and her life-changing experience as the single mother of a son with autism will inspire you. Subscribing is free and simple, found out how at

Megan Driscoll -014

Megan Driscoll was doing just fine as a pharmaceutical sales rep, but she wanted the challenge of starting her own business.  So she did.  Fifteen years later, Megan is overseeing a thriving, one of a kind global company called Pharmalogics Recruiting, headquartered just outside Boston.  In this episode of The Story Behind Her Success, this young, energetic, positive and determined CEO shares her drive to create a work environment where her employees can’t wait to come back to work every day.  Hear her leadership philosophy and find out how she took the seed of an idea and turned it into a reality.  As the 2015 winner of The Stevie Award, this wife, mother, and Entrepreneur of the Year is passionate about pay equality, transparency and Subscribing to The Story Behind Her Success is free. Have access to all the episodes and listen on your schedule!


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The Stronghold Mission

The Stronghold is a gallery and marketplace that offers a meticulously edited collection of the world's finest authentic heritage brands and the iconic products they create.

The oldest brand that we feature, Johnstons of Elgin, was founded in Scotland in 1797. The youngest brand that we feature, Marvis, was founded in Italy in 1958.

We believe that if a brand has remained in business for a minimum of fifty years without moving its manufacturing outside of its original country, while continuing to maintain the level of quality that was established at its founding, it deserves official recognition as a bona fide heritage brand.

For this reason, The Stronghold only presents brands that were founded more than fifty years ago, and only offers goods from those brands that are still manufactured in the original country of the brand's founding.

This means that brands must have been founded in or before 1968; and goods from American brands must be made in the USA, British brands in Great Britain, Portuguese brands in Portugal, Japanese brands in Japan, French brands in France, and so on across the globe.

Over time, some of the larger heritage brands have expanded to become multinational and/or globally sourced. In these cases, we will only offer items from their collections that are made in the original country of the brand's founding. This is not to imply that goods made by heritage brands in other countries are in any way inferior; it simply means that those products will not be offered by The Stronghold as part of our mission to support and encourage manufacture in founding countries.

We currently stock over forty authentic heritage brands at our flagship store on Abbot Kinney Blvd. in Venice, California, with many of them available on this website. We will continue to add numerous brands and products to our offering, with the ultimate goal of presenting the largest collection of authentic heritage brands and goods available anywhere in the world.

Join The Stronghold Email List

You'll be the first to find out about new heritage brands, special pre-sale offerings, and exclusive & limited edition products.


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The Uncanny Link where physics meets metaphysicsThe uncanny link - The Uncanny Link
The Uncanny Link

Sign up for our FREE online webinar: 'Ordinary to Extraordinary' discover the uncanny link to take you to extraordinary...

Physics and metaphysics went on a date

  • social distancing kept them six feet separate
  • yet love was in the air
  • and together they produced a heir
  • For you, the uncanny link awaits.....

The coolest social distancing child that can talk and interconnect

  • science and spirituality,
  • natural and supernatural
  • physics and metaphysics
  • logic and woo

Come and join me to discover the journey of creation & growth of my social distancing brainchild -- aka -'The Uncanny Link' podcast....

I am a left brain engineer who transitioned to a right brain psychic. This podcast is my brainchild of combining physics and metaphysics. Come and watch the magic of how reality is interlinked in this unique one of a kind podcast....

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Outburst Dreamer Boys

No trailer released yet

Outburst Dreamer Boys

Shugo Nakamura, Rikuya Yasuda & Chinatsu Akasaki

Air Date
Oct 4th, 2019
Mizuki Hijiri, is a high school girl who just transferred schools. At her new school, she has a fateful encounter with boys suffering from chuunibyou (adolescent delusions of grandeur). There is Noda who dreams of becoming a hero, the tragically handsome otaku Takashima who only likes 2D girls, Nakamura the supposedly "reincarnated" angel or devil (he can't decide which), and the self-professed...

All release dates

TV Air Date Oct 4th, 2019
DVD Release date TBA
Netflix DVD release date TBA
Netflix streaming Not available
Where can you stream Outburst Dreamer Boys?

DVD/Bluray via Amazon

Check Netflix and Amazon Prime availability in your country:

Is Outburst Dreamer Boys on Amazon? Amazon | Is Outburst Dreamer Boys on Netflix? Netflix
Stay up to date with the steaming options of Outburst Dreamer Boys & other streaming releases

Air dates of all seasons

On 2019-10-04 Animation TV Series Outburst Dreamer Boys first aired. Written and created by , and produced by Lantis & Studio Deen, Outburst Dreamer Boys has ended and last broadcasted on 2019-12-14.

IMDb Rating: /10
Outburst Dreamer Boys Official page
All Seasons: 1
All Episodes: 11
Average Episode length: 24 minutes

Season 1 - 2020-03-26 with 1 Episodes
Season 2 - 2019-10-04 with 11 Episodes


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$917 Raised
92% of $1,000
See The Project
 27 people will receive water thanks to...
On behalf of Sisto, Sheehan and O'Shea Families$85.00
Martin Cottingham $140.25
Edward F Esposito$250.00
Carol Jacob$26.03
Jeanne Butler$70.28
Elizabeth Jackson$34.00
Marie McGrath$35.29
Alayne Cox$136.00
Louise OConnor$70.28
Colleen Martin-O'Donnell$35.29

We hope you'll consider joining us to fund a water project. With your gifts and your help rallying support, we can provide clean, safe and reliable water to a community in Africa.

Today, too many children suffer needlessly - walking miles for dirty water that makes them sick. We can change that. Please consider making a donation and helping us make a difference.

On Behalf Of Sisto, Sheehan And O'shea Families
Donated $85.00 on 10/17/17
This donation is on behalf of Ann O'Shea, Ronnie and Jim Sheehan and Antoinette Sisto
Martin Cottingham
Donated $140.25 on 10/14/17
Great Work from the Cottingham Family!
Edward F Esposito
Donated $250.00 on 10/10/17
I am very proud of the students orgainizing this project
Carol Jacob
Donated $26.03 on 10/07/17
Great project for The Crew
Marie Mcgrath
Donated $35.29 on 09/25/17
Proud to be a part of this!
Alayne Cox
Donated $136.00 on 09/25/17
This is putting your faith into action! God will bless the Crew!!
Colleen Martin-o'donnell
Donated $35.29 on 09/25/17
Very proud of The Crew for taking on this worthy cause!

The Water Project is a U.S.-based charitable organization unlocking human potential by providing clean, safe water to communities around the world.

Read More About The Work

How this works

Dirty water impacts health, education, women, and income. Providing a reliable and safe water source allows communities to thrive.

The Water Project provides access to safe and reliable water across sub-Saharan Africa. Together, our support can end the water crisis and restore hope, one community at a time.

The coolest part? We'll all get to see our impact! Every gift is directly linked to a specific water project and community. We'll receive updates including photos and stories, maps and more!

Lives change when communities gain access to clean water. Let's experience it together. Make a donation to my fundraising campaign today!


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teaching children good etiquette

National food and drink guidelines

How will the National Food and Drink Guidelines affect my child in school or nursery? We are all hearing reports and statistics about how childhood obesity is spreading and the links between diet and behaviour may be impacting our children in school and no-one can forget Jamie Oliver’s school meals crusade! As a result, the

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Le giornate del cinema muto 2020: Ballettens Datter (DK, 1913)

Ballettens Datter is a star vehicle for Rita Sacchetto, a very important avant garde ballet dancer of the early 20th century.

As far as movies go, this is silly but very watchable, especially for a 1913 feature, and worth it for the excellent cinematography and for Rita Sacchetto. I wouldn’t call her the greatest actress, but she has an extremely compelling and charismatic screen presence, and it’s easy to imagine her holding a whole theatre spellbound.

Spoilers for a 107 year old movie.

Continue reading “Le giornate del cinema muto 2020: Ballettens Datter (DK, 1913)”

Le Giornate del Cinema Muto 2020: Where Lights Are Low (USA, 1921)

This year Le Giornate del Cinema Muto is entirely digital, which is great because it means I can actually go! It’s super cheap, too.

On top of that it has a special gift for us nerds in the form of a new Sessue Hayakawa film.

The National Film Archive of Japan has restored this from a print in Belgrade. I can’t compare prints (obviously), but the restoration looked great. It was wonderfully scored by Philip Carli.

This movie is very silly, but I loved it.

Continue reading “Le Giornate del Cinema Muto 2020: Where Lights Are Low (USA, 1921)”

Aankhen (India, 1993)

When a Govinda movie is very popular with the general public, you know you have to brace yourself, so I put off watching Aankhen for the longest time. But I knew I was in for it eventually.

Govinda fans are kind of lukewarm about this movie, and they are always right. I hated the first half, the second half was okay. On the Govinda scale, it’s a “Govinda is the only bearable thing in the movie” even though honestly he doesn’t deserve it. He only acts a little in the second half, the rest of the time he is definitely not trying.

Continue reading “Aankhen (India, 1993)”

Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan (India, 2020)

Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan is the movie that happens when someone reads an announcement for an academic talk about how 70s masala films are kind of gay, and then is like: “Interesting idea. What if I make this into one of those mid-level local films that are popular now?”

Let me preface this by saying of course it’s great this movie got made and it did well. It’s better than about 95% of Hindi films right now, which I don’t even do the honour of watching. But I have a bone to pick with it, because it’s a gay mainstream Bollywood movie that references the homoeroticism of all my gay faves from the 70s, and IT BORED ME.

But how?

Continue reading “Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan (India, 2020)”

Malaal (India, 2019)

I have a love-hate relationship with Bhansali, because I hate the stories and the morality of his films and love his aesthetics and how campy he is. Depending on the balance between each, I end up loving some of his stuff and hating the rest. He only produced this and didn’t direct it, which is probably why I loved it. Thanks to Angie for telling me about it.

Malaal is a remake of a Tamil film I have not seen, but more obvious to me is the influence of Titanic, a film I like in theory and hate in practice. It’s set in the year Titanic came out, but there is really no attempt at any kind of period setting except a few film posters, a few men’s vintage shirts, and the lack of computers and mobile phones. The lack of phones really is the reason for the period setting, I think, because it makes the plot make more sense.

Continue reading “Malaal (India, 2019)”

Rosita (USA, 1923)

I first watched this colour restored version of Rosita at Il Cinema Ritrovato last year, but didn’t have time to review it then, so I rewatched it recently and am reviewing it now.

Rosita reminded me of a good modern Bollywood movie, because it is so very mainstream, but it’s not simple. It’s a heroine movie like a big Bollywood actress would make at the top of her career, or the female flipside of say, a Fairbanks adventure movie.

Continue reading “Rosita (USA, 1923)”

Simon, king of the witches (USA, 1971)

Simon, king of the witches is a parody of sorts of Manson/cult/occult-sploitation movies.

The titular Simon (Andrew Prine) is a megalomaniac quack who lives in a storm drain with a rentboy he befriends. He can either actually do magic or is convinced he can do magic. Some bored and stoned rich people invite him to perform at a party, but they laugh at his weird and unspectacular magic act and the organiser further mocks him by forging his payment check.

Continue reading “Simon, king of the witches (USA, 1971)”

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If you can be anything, be kind

If you can be anything, be kind

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You know me, I love a motivational and inspirational quote. I know they are not for everyone, but just a quick look through any social media website will show you that I am not the only one who appreciates these. I read recently that reading motivational quotes is kind of like having a conversation with friends- only it can be done alone and at any time you need it.

They can help me put things into perspective if my mind is racing with too many thoughts (usually due to some anxiety) and make me smile if I am feeling low. But most importantly, they have a way to help me appreciate that every day is special and we should be grateful; because before you know it, in a blink of an eye, 10 years have passed.

And after all, that is why my blog is called; Think Less* Live More

But no matter what day I have, there is one quote that comes to mind if I am feeling reflective and that is;

Now, I am not going to lie or pretend I am perfect, some days are much harder than others. The daily stresses in life, hearing about such hate in the world through media and going through any personal issues we may have can have an impact on our thoughts and reactions.

For whatever reason, we are only human and certain things on certain days can push our buttons. But days like these always lead me back to the same quote; If you can be anything, be kind. If you are anything like me, I usually reflect on my day and I find this quote helpful. It can often remind me that I have no idea what is happening for other people, what they are going through or what they are thinking.

I believe that positivity and kindness is contagious! If I am around positive people, I also feel positive. And it works both ways, if someone is being very negative it can easily cause me to think in a negative way. In my experience, it takes just one person to be positive and it can change how everyone around them feels- now that is powerful!

A good friend of mine told me that there are two types of people in this world; radiators and drains. Radiators are those people who generate warmth, those we want to be around, those we feel good with. Drains are those who literally drain us of energy and are often negative about everything. My advice- strive to be a radiator!!

There is no better feeling than being kind to others or someone showing kindness to you. This can instantly make anyone feel happy and put a smile on their face. For me, showing kindness can come in different ways and it most certainly does not have to be big gestures. Taking the time to listen to someone, giving genuine compliments and showing you care in small ways are all acts of kindness. And for many of us, we strive to achieve this.

However, sometimes being kind needs to start with being kind to ourselves. I know so many people who are kind to others but struggle when it comes to themselves. Let’s be honest, we can be our own worst enemies at times.

Being kind to ourselves is just as important as being kind to others

My Top Tips for encouraging positive thinking and kindness;

Surround yourself with positive people- One word, Radiators!

Infuse yourself with positivity- Remember, how you start the morning can set the tone for the rest of the day!

Put yourself first- Take some time out to relax and do something you enjoy!

Think less*Live more- Challenge those negative thoughts and feelings of worry, enjoy life!

Focus on what you can control- worrying is like sitting in a rocking chair. It gives you something to do but it doesn’t get you anywhere!

Think before you speak- Is it True? Is it Helpful? Is it Inspiring? It is Necessary? Is it Kind?

Believe in yourself- Allow your inner critic to become your inner advocate; give yourself recognition, remind yourself of your good qualities!

 Count your blessings- Keep in mind that someone else is happy with a lot less than what you have!

Show yourself compassion- Don’t be so hard on yourself, forgive yourself and grow from the experience!

 Stop trying to be perfect- To be beautiful means to be yourself, you don’t need to be accepted by others, you need to accept yourself!

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What will you do today to change the world?

The very name resonates through everything that we do and believe in. We are professionals with natural curiosity to understand the world around us, question routine and create an impact on peoples lives.

Our passion ignites creativity and imagination to find ways of creating purposeful human experiences in a digitally connected world, where technology is increasingly disconnecting us from each other.

We use creativity to solve strategic problems and create unparalleled opportunity.

We believe the future is what you make it to be, and that starts with today.  We’re not an agency, and we’re not a consultancy.

We are the best of both worlds.

We hire for talent and personality to create rockstars.

If you’re looking for a challenge that will push your creativity and raise your game further than you thought possible, then there’s only one questions… Do you have what it takes? Do you #havegravitas?

If so, show us what you’re made off.

Explore Our Vacancies

We are Visionaries. Creators. Designers. Leaders. Explorers. Dreamers & Believers. We make ideas real.

Founded in the capital of ambition & imagination.

We are made in DXB.

We are an independent, fresh and ambitious strategic design company born in the global heart of innovation. We are based in the city that inspired the Middle-East to imagine beyond the possible and create the impossible. When we say “The United Arab Emirates”, we think “endless possibility”.

From work to lifestyle, the United Arab Emirates is a place of global culture, entertainment, luxury, sun and a lot of sun-screen. From dune-surfing to mountain hiking, luxury resorts to intimate boutique cafes, mega malls and even skiing slopes, the region offers a completely new lifestyle experience. And yes… salaries really are tax-free. Ready for a new adventure?


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Looking Inward & Outward (with the goggle of Faith) – Part 22

Posted: September 19, 2018 in Looking inward and outward (with the google of faith)

Dearly Beloved,

The following is another attempt to use the goggle of Christ’s Faith to weigh all conversation and filter all thoughts under the sun.Graceful Reading!

1. The Lord Jesus, in His love, wisdom and mercy, ensures some unbelievers and believers don’t come into material prosperity at some season of their lives or in any significant measure. He reserves this right, and sees what we can’t see, and by so doing, He delivers some from becoming inhumane, some from being distracted, and others from losing their souls or truncating His eternal purpose for their lives.

2. When your weaknesses, failures and mistakes becomes your meditation, you are doing so at the expense of God’s word and law. You are also entertaining a working of darkness, you are breaching a law of life in Christ and are also giving room for the formation of strongholds in your mind (Ps. 1:2, Phil. 4:8).

3. No believer is free from covetousness as long as he hasn’t been free from the longing to have abundance of things (possessions), or as long as he hasn’t prospered with commandments meant to regulate such things (1Tim. 6:10, Lk. 12:13-15, Matt. 6:31-33, Col. 3.1-4).

4. The daily and continuous sighting of Christ, or of the hope of the gospel, or of living by God’s Power, would cause Christ to come indwell us by His Faith, and gradually prepare us to someday attain God’s glory. No believer who is overtaken by this pursuit, would be moved or swayed by the cares and anxieties of this present life, and as such, would overcome such (Rom. 1:16, Col. 1:23,28, Col 2:2, Eph. 3:17, Ps. 82:1).

5. The monetary system has many servants within and without the Church, and would reign as king over any believer who can’t weigh his motive for adventuring gain. So believers are at the mercy of accessing the allocation of God’s word that has the ability to prove our heart’s motives and intents; even the incorruptible word of God. (Heb. 4:12, 1Thes. 2:4, 1Pet. 1:23)

6. The strength and power of the Church, cannot be different from what the founder said and proved it to be. It has never been and can never be monetary or intellectual. Rather, it is the gospel of Christ – the power of God! It is the technology of the Godhead to bring their life into man’s flesh (soul) (Rom 1:16, 1Cor. 2:2).

7. The system that would make men busy over decades, with apparently legitimate activities and cares that keeps men off the feasts of eternal life, was meticulously designed by the god of this world, and nothing but the wisdom of the new creation (i.e. the wisdom of Christ) can deliver us from it. One way it does so, is by exposing the futility of the wisdom of this world. (1Kg 20:38-40, Lk. 14:16-20, 1Cor. 2:6-8)

8. Some SEEDS of plants take months to bud, but those of trees like coconut bamboo or Iroko are raised after many years and decades. So is the SEED Jesus came to sow! When it takes root in us and bears fruit in our souls, it will handle lusts (corruption), but it requires the patience of the kingdom to do so until a tree of righteousness is raised – whose fruits should end up becoming a forest – for God’s Rest. (Lk. 21:19, 2Tim. 3:10, Jam. 1:4, Heb. 6:12, Rev. 1:9)

9. Believers hardly ever draw up a plan against darkness (ignorance), because a power concealed it and they don’t see the need for such (Acts 26:18). Even after hearing ministrations over years that should deal with this, we still love the light called darkness, and don’t desire to be saved in our souls from it. So the Lord in His wisdom has to employ our disappointments, discouragements and trials to birth a cry in us that would drive and keep us closer to him, so He can keep exposing and dealing with our darkness. (Ps. 18:28)
10. Don’t quit fighting, because it is costlier in time and eternity to do so! We should keep fighting, until, like Alexander the ‘great’, we can do nothing else but fight the good fight of faith against covetousness, unbelief, ease, discouragements, envying, evil speaking, unforgiveness, etc., so we can someday become a conqueror of this world, ultimately increase in strength, and overcome the god of this world (Isa. 40:29b, Col. 1:10c).

Pst. Tayo Fasan

You may share if blessed and inspired to do so

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TED Talks video subtitles

I like watching TED Talks videos. And, I have downloaded lots of videos from TED website. Actually, it’s okey if I watch them without subtitles. But, with subtitles I think it’s much better. The question is: is it easy to get the subtitles? The answer is: not that difficult to get it. But of course, not all videos having subtitles in multiple languages. English is more than enough, I think.

I came across to TED Talk Subtitle Download website and it’s easy to use, to get the subtitles needed. Enter TED Talk video URL and hit the “Download” button. If subtitles are available, just download which subtitles you want.
I’m using VLC on my Mac, and lots of my TED Talk videos now have subtitles. Watching the talks is more enjoyable right now. Time to get more subtitles!


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Information Security

Machine Language IA-32 Assembly

Machine Language is a must knowledge that IT-related staff learns during their studies era. Malware Researcher can be considered as one of the fields that Machine Language can use in their professional career. In this post, I would like to focus on IA-32 Assembly Language where hope it will useful to those people out there.

Introduction of Machine Language

Before we went deeper into IA-32 Assembly Language, we need to learn the basic and history of Machine Language.

Those are the categories that need to learn Machine Language or Assembly Language:

  • Shellcode Programmer
  • Bug Hunters
  • Malware Analysts
  • Code Exploit Writers
  • Reverse Code Engineers
  • Software Vulnerability Analysts

History of Machine Language

Machine Language was invented in 1957 by IBM team that been led by John Backus which they introduce FORTRAN language. The name coming from FORmula TRANslating system that include components that very simple and easy to the programming.

Since then, Machine language has involved and has become a computer program that CPU and programmer can be executed directly and those will cause the CPU to perform a very specific task like to load, store, jump and a lot more.

Basic of Machine Language

Machine Language only understood the binary format that can be used here are 0 and 1 such as the example “Hello World” below:

Function that people need to know when analyse the Assembly Language such as follows:

  • jump
  • mov
  • add
  • call
  • push
  • ret

IA-32 Assembly Language

IA-32 Assembly Language architecture should be supporting an address-size attribute either 16 or 32-bits but IA-32 assembler have only support attribute of 32 bits.

Example of the IA-32 Assembly Language can be seen as mentioned below:

add eax, ebx ; EAX = EAX + EBX

The format that been shown above are can be such as follows:

[label] mnemonic [operands] [; comment]

Let study further on the format above which mean something like below:

  • Label: this function can be used to show the CPU on identifier or constant
  • Mnemonic: this function can be show as verifies as the purpose of the statement. Depending on the line either contain label or comment, Mnemonic will not requirement for the statement.
  • Operands: this function will identify either the data or statement can be manipulate.
  • Comment: Text statement to show the purpose of the statement.

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Eleaf Pico Squeeze Kit Review

The Eleaf Pico Squeeze Kit is an ideal device for vapers who want to get into squonking. There are many mechanical squonkers on the market today like the Kanger Dripbox, but the Pico Squeeze stands out thanks to its 6.5ml  e-juice capacity and inbuilt safety features.

Compared to the Kanger Dripbox, the Pico Squeeze is visibly much smaller. The Eleaf Pico Squeeze has a dimension of 102mm by 46mm by 23mm. It comes with the Coral RDA which is about 22mm. This setup should be able to work with any squonking atomizer that has a width of about 22mm to 23mm.

The Eleaf Pico Squeeze comes in five colors; silver, white, gray, black, and hot pink. With a price tag of $33.99, this is one of the affordable squonkers out there. You can get the Pico Squeeze from many online vape shops.

Like other squonkers, the Eleaf Pico Squeeze comes with a squeezable bottle that pumps up e-liquid to the coils when pressed. The bottle in the Pico Squeeze has a capacity of 6.5ml. The bottle is fixed from the base of the mod. There is a really effective magnetic lock that keeps the bottle in place. A portion of the squeezable bottle is exposed on the side of the mod. That is where you hold it and press. The firing button is conveniently located just above this.

Above the bottle is the coil deck which is surmounted by the drip tip – very simple setup. The Pico Squeeze has a two-post coil deck. There is a small well for the e-juice under the tank to prevent spills and ensure the wicks get soaked very well. The e-liquid fills the well when you squeeze the bottle.

The Pico Squeeze comes with two Clapton coils and some pure cotton, so you are ready to start vaping once you get the package.

The Eleaf Pico Squeeze has adjustable airflow ports on the side of the Coral RDA. This allows you to control your vaping experience. If you want warm, flavorful vapor, it is better to have the air holes closed up. You can adjust the airflow by turning the drip tip. It doesn’t look like you can replace the drip tip of Pico Squeeze. There is no drip tip adapter in the package, and it does not come with an extra drip tip.

The Eleaf Pico Squeeze runs on a single rechargeable 18650 battery that is not included in the package. The battery compartment has a threaded cap which makes it easy to access. The battery can produce a maximum wattage of 50W. The Pico Squeeze can support a resistance range of 0.15ohm to 3.5ohm.

One of the downsides of the Eleaf Pico Squeeze is that it does not come with a small OLED screen to allow you manipulate the settings of the device. As a result of this, you cannot regulate the heat it produces. However, it has been observed that as the battery of the device gets weak, the amount of heat that it can send to the coil reduces resulting in less vapor and a less warm vape.  There is a small LED light on the side of the device above the charging port. This light indicator shows you the battery strength. The Pico Squeeze comes with a micro USB cord for charging the battery. It also has inbuilt reverse battery protection.

Overall, the Eleaf Pico Squeeze is a good squonking vape kit. There’s not a lot of branding on it, which is very good. I think the only thing it is missing is another squeezable bottle so you can easily switch the e-liquid you are vaping, and perhaps a changeable drip tip.

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Mark Cuban Says the Best Employees Are Smart, Driven, and Curious. But 1 Skill Matters Much More (and Makes Them Invaluable)

Mark Cuban says great employees have three basic skills. And one surprising trait.

Justin Sullivan / Staff / Getty Images
Justin Sullivan / Staff / Getty Images

Mark CubanShark Tank star. Investor. NBA team owner. Owner of a wide range of companies. Outstanding salesperson. (And, as I witnessed in person, a pretty darned nice guy.)

Over the years, Cuban has hired hundreds of people. So what does he look for in a prospective employee?

“The people that tend to work for me a long time not only are smart, not only are driven, not only are learners,” Cuban says.

Granted, that’s hardly profound.

Every small business owner–and every boss–wants employees who are extremely intelligent. Who work hard. Who possess a growth mindset, constantly seeking improve their knowledge and skills.

But Cuban also looks for one other quality not every smart, driven, and curious person possesses:

“They understand that the greatest value you can offer a boss is to reduce their stress.”

That makes sense at a basic level. As Cuban says,

“Anybody who reduces my stress becomes invaluable to me. I never want to get rid of them.

“The people who tend to think that they are invaluable are typically the ones who create the most stress by creating firestorms and creating drama and making things more difficult for me.

“If you are stress reducer, you’re going to do well. If you’re a drama creator, you’re not going to do well.”

Of course he’s right. No matter how talented, people who create drama almost always do more harm than good to an organization–and create more headaches than value for a boss.

They steal ideas. They take credit where credit is not due. They can always find the dark cloud. They invariably find a way to take something personally.

We all know people like that.

But on a deeper level, just being a person who doesn’t create drama isn’t enough to qualify as a stress reducer. The absence of a negative isn’t a true positive; not creating drama is a basic expectation.

Invaluable employees actively help eliminate drama–and with it, a boss’s stress.

1. They don’t care about (their own) job descriptions.

Stress reducers think on their feet. They adapt quickly to shifting priorities. They do whatever it takes–regardless of role or position–to get things done.

When there’s a problem, stress reducers jump in without being asked. Even if–especially if–it’s not their job.

2. They tell you what you least want to hear.

The more rungs on the ladder that separate you and an employee, the less likely that employee will be to disagree with you.

For example, your direct reports may sometimes take a different position or even tell you that you’re wrong. Their direct reports are much less likely to state a position other than yours. And entry-level employees almost always sing from the company songbook, at least when you’re the audience.

Stress reducers know that what you most need to hear is often what you least want to hear.

That your ideas may not work. That your point of view is off. That you made a mistake.

While telling you might increase your stress in the short term, it definitely decreases your stress over the long term.

Because what you care about most is doing what is best for your company and your employees.

3. They sometimes privately disagree…

Debate is healthy. Disagreement is healthy. Weighing the pros and cons of a decision, playing devil’s advocate, sharing opinions…every boss wants to hear what his or her team thinks. It’s not just enlightening; it’s stimulating.

Great employees share their opinions freely. They trust that you want them to–because you and your company benefit from an honest exchange of differing opinions and points of view.

But sometimes those conversations are best held in private.

Stress reducers know not only the right time, but also the right place, to express their opinions.

And once a decision is made…

4. …But they always publicly support you.

We’ve all been in a meeting where someone says, “Look, I don’t think this is the right thing to do, but I’ve been told we’re going to do it anyway. So let’s at least give it our best shot.”

After that little speech, does anyone ever give it their best shot?

And we’ve all seen people hold the meeting after the meeting, where they say all the (negative) things they didn’t say during the meeting.

Even when they disagree with a decision, stress reducers don’t try to prove you were wrong.

They do everything they can to prove you were right.

And if it turns out you aren’t right, that’s OK.

Because you know they’ll help you find a better way.

Originally published on Inc.

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People look for retreats for themselves, in the country, by the coast, or in the hills . . . There is nowhere that a person can find a more peaceful and trouble-free retreat than in his own mind. . . . So constantly give yourself this retreat, and renew yourself.

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July 29, 2020 11:00 AM EDT

New York City police officers aggressively arrested a teenage protester by forcing her into an unmarked van during an anti-police brutality demonstration in Manhattan on Tuesday.

Several videos posted online show NYPD officers pulling the protester into an unmarked silver minivan at the corner 2nd Avenue and 25th Street. As demonstrators congregated on the scene to call attention and challenge the arrest, additional officers surround the van and use their bicycles to fend off protesters.

Footage of the incident quickly went viral and criticism over the NYPD’s tactics grew Tuesday night. The use of an unmarked van in arresting the protester — identified by friends as an 18-year-old transgender woman named Nicki (or Nikki) — has drawn comparisons with recent incidents in Portland, Ore., where federal agents used unmarked vans to arrest people.

“Our civil liberties are on the brink. This is not a drill,” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez tweeted. “There is no excuse for snatching women off the street and throwing them into unmarked vans.”

The NYPD tweeted that the woman who was arrested “was wanted for damaging police cameras” and that officers from the department’s Warrant Squad were “assaulted with rocks and bottles” when they took her into custody, though videos from the scene do not show any such behavior on the protesters’ parts.

“The Warrant Squad uses unmarked vehicles to effectively locate wanted suspects,” the NYPD added on Twitter.

In a statement to TIME, the NYPD said Nicki was charged with criminal mischief and making graffiti. The NYPD also deadnamed her in the statement.

Carlina Rivera, a New York City Councilwoman who represents the district where the arrest occurred, said early Wednesday that the woman had been released. Rivera, along with multiple other New York City officials, called for an independent review and an explanation for why police are using unmarked vans to detain protesters.

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said the NYPD’s violent arrest of the protester was “troubling” in light of the federal policing tactics in Portland. (In a July 20 tweet, de Blasio wrote that similar incidents in the city were “divisive and dangerous.”)

“This is not Portland. What you see on the video is NYPD officers,” de Blasio told reporters Wednesday morning. “That was not the time and the place to effectuate that arrest.”

De Blasio said the woman was arrested for damaging police property, adding, “No one is allowed to damage police property. My message to everyone is if you’re out there protesting, protest peacefully.”

Protesters at the scene at the time of the arrest disputed the police’s claim that the demonstrators were violent and used rocks and bottles against officers.

“None of that happened whatsoever. We literally turned the corner and were met with a line of police who attacked us without warning,” Clara Kraebber, 20, told Gothamist. Kraebber said police were using pepper spray “seemingly at random” while they were making the arrest. “They were trying to make it painful to be there,” she added.

Another demonstrator, who identified himself as Derrick, said police were targeting Nicki specifically.

“Suddenly there was an unmarked grey van that moved out in front of us that had been waiting for us,” he told Gothamist. “Four guys jumped out and a line of police bicycles came out from down the block. We hadn’t seen them. They pushed us back. They grabbed Nicki like she was a rag doll … They had her arms on her neck and then they drove off.”

Write to Mahita Gajanan at mahita.gajanan@time.com.

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