One common abbreviation used in Roman letters was SPD, which was short for salutem plurimam dicit, or “sends many greetings.” This served as a greeting at the beginning of a letter, to indicate the sender and the receiver, as in “Marcus Sexto SPD” (“Marcus sends many greetings to Sextus”). Another popular acronym was SVBEEV, which was short for si vales, bene est, ego valeo (“if you are well, that is good, I am well”). Such abbreviations saved space and time, just as acronyms (BTW, AFAIK, IANAL) do today in Internet posts and text messages.
Tom Standage,
Writing on the Wall: Social Media – The First 2,000 Years
An all-girls science club from San Fernando Senior High School near Los Angeles has designed a solar-powered tent meant to help homeless and displaced people around the world.
The tent — designed by a group of 12 high schoolers with the help of an organization called DIYgirls — uses solar power to charge electronic devices, provide light and sanitize itself via a system of antibacterial UV lights. And it folds into a backpack for easy travel.
The electronics cost about $40. The tent itself is made out of highly durable and water-resistant material. The idea for the tent came after some members of the team saw increased homelessness in their neighborhood.
“These girls saw a problem in their community,” Evelyn Gomez, an engineer and the executive director of DIYgirls, tells NPR’s Morning Edition. The group aims to get young girls from under-resourced areas interested in the fields of science, technology, engineering, art and math.
“I mean, look, we’re trying to take healthcare away from tens of millions of people, ensure that women are second-class citizens, remove the regulations that keep Americans safe, and put those uppity Black people back into their proper place,” Paul Ryan added, “and when I have to pretend to be a leader who cares about anything other than those things, it takes up precious seconds of my time that I could be spending writing even more Ayn Rand fanfiction disguised as laws.”
Ryan then looked at the reporters and added, “I mean, it’s not like anything I say right now matters, anyway. I’m in such a safe district, I can do whatever I want and stay in power. Watch.”
Mr. Ryan then kicked a puppy and continued. “But, let me say again: I will not stand by and say nothing when a rich, white celebrity is criticized by the president who I support in every single way that actually matters. You know it, I know it, and let’s continue to pretend that a single word I am uttering right now matters at all.”
The Speaker took no questions.
They hate him. With a passion. Even unhinged, mustache twirling, Supervillains tend to have some modicum of Standards. Crude, unwashed, imbecilic, viciously petty, blatantly vulgar, Apes are nearly universally… DISTASTEFUL. At the VERY least! EVEN those created/birthed in their own Supervillain Labs/Arcane Libraries. So, yes, even THEY hate him.
This does not, nor WILL it, stop them from SUPPORTING him.
His clownishly boorish antics have proven far too, conveniently, distracting. More than enough for them to operate, MOST effectively, in the shadows. They DESPISE him but, as long as he continues lumbering in a direction that accommodates THEM? He is to be TOLERATED. They are willing to take whatever superficial damage to their agenda that he manages to generate. EXCEPT for the one thing that’s proven more damaging to their Organization/Cause than ANYTHING else. The ONE thing that they, have so far passively but if necessary, will actively ASSIST him in avoiding at all costs?
Impeachment.
Been there, done that. NOT doing it again.
Yes, because he is a useful idiot.
He is so predictable. He overreacts to the simplest of provocations and puts himself in situations that eventually blow up in his face. It’s like watching a train wreck in slow motion.
And that’s useful.
It’s useful to Vladimir Putin and it’s useful to Steve Bannon and it’s useful to Jeff Sessions and it’s useful to Fox News and it’s useful to the Republicans in Congress. All anyone has to do is lay a trail of breadcrumbs along the path of his vulnerabilities (and he has laid many a landmine for himself) and he predictably blows himself up in a manner that captures everyone’s attention.
It’s a distraction from the AHCA just as the news had started to focus on the CBO report and protests are gaining energy.
Does he do it on purpose? Who cares. The effect is the same. His addiction to emotional drama makes him incredibly easily manipulated into providing a smoke screen for anyone who can get access to the media he likes.
Power is being able to say complete and utter nonsense and have it be believed, powerlessness is where no matter how much cogent evidence and proof one has, to not be believed.
today at goodwill i found a kirk/spock au where kirk is a lowly redshirt
Okay no but this book.
Do you know how fucking long I hunted for a copy of the first edition of this book? I can’t remember the specifics, it’s been ages since I read it, but in the first edition it had some line that was basically confirming Kirk/Spock that was removed after the first printing.
oh my god are you telling me i found a piece of fandom history and i had no idea
I AM BACK AT GOODWILL AND IT’S STILL HERE AND IT’S A FIRST EDITION WITH GAY STUFF???? IT’S A DOLLAR?????? I’M
it starts out with wholesome hand-holding and boyfriends worrying about each other
they’re in an au now and kirk is an angry ensign with a drug problem
“being the top felt weird and wrong”
SOMETHING STIRRED INSIDE HIM
no matter the universe kirk can’t keep his shirt intact
THIS IS WHERE SHIT GETS REAL Y’ALL I CAN’T
THE MIND MELD IS BARELY EVEN A METAPHOR
KIRK WAS ASKING FOR IT
aaaaaaaaaaah
this is the best dollar i have ever spent and yes that includes bearllionaire
I’d heard about this as some sort of fandom urban legend – everyone heard about it, no one seemed to have hard copy. Nobody was sure if it was some unpublished fanfic, a first draft, vanity press, whatever.
All right, here we go. Taking a stab at a bit of sculpturing. Here it is in process. The porcelain is at a soft leatherhard stage, so it’s about the consistency of cold Swiss cheese, except a little grainy. 🙂
Hearseeno 