Chinese President Xi Jinping assured President Joe Biden

Our top 10 Vertical Horizon songs list looks at the catalog of an American band revered for its alternative rock sound influences. The band was formed in 1991 by rhythm/acoustic guitarist Keith Kane and vocalist/guitarist Matt Scannell‚ the latter being the only lasting original member in all Vertical Horizon’s lineups. Initially‚ the Matt-Keith duo took on acoustic rock playing in local venues and parties‚ exploiting their harmonized vocals during their performances. Matt and Keith went ahead to shape the future of Vertical Horizon‚ particularly after graduating from Georgetown University. However‚ acoustic rock would only get the duo so far in The post Top 10 Vertical Horizon Songs appeared first on ClassicRockHistory.com.

Welcome back to Dissecting The Dark Descent‚ where we lovingly delve into the guts of David Hartwell’s seminal 1987 anthology story by story‚ and in the process‚ explore the underpinnings of a genre we all love. For an in-depth introduction‚ here’s the intro post. Fritz Leiber has a gift for marrying the gothic with the mundane. His most famous creation‚ the Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser series‚ features two pragmatic rogues more interested in the next score than in any grand world-saving designs who nonetheless get involved in numerous dark fantasy escapades. Some of his best stories (“Gonna Roll the Bones” and “The Automatic Pistol‚” for example) are about relatively average people forced to confront the larger insanity of the world around them. “Belsen Express” continues this trend handily‚ forcing an irascible middle-class conservative man into a gothic morality tale where he’s beset by (and eventually meets his demise at the hands of) nightmares of being horribly murdered under a fascist regime. Through the eyes of George Simister‚ an average (but atypical for gothic horror) protagonist‚ Leiber uses a gothic morality framework to indict those who experience the atrocities of the world at a distance but refuse to fully understand‚ process‚ and confront the very real horrors around them. George Simister is a comfortable‚ middle-class‚ conservative man in the 1950s‚ happy to pass judgment on the events of the world from his easy chair by the fireplace. Having avoided most of the horrors of the twentieth century due to his weak heart and self-interest‚ he nonetheless harbors an irrational fear that in the middle of the night he will be dragged out of his bed by the Gestapo. When a mysterious (and possibly misdelivered) package containing books on Nazi atrocities lands on his doorstep‚ Simister’s comfortable life takes a turn for the unnerving‚ his hallucinations and nightmares leaking into his daily life. As his sanity erodes and his walls come crumbling down‚ it might be too late for Simister to avoid his nightmares becoming uncomfortable reality. “Belsen Express” has all the hallmarks of a gothic morality tale. There’s an ambiguity to the horror elements‚ erring mainly on the side that Simister’s torment is one cooked up by his mind‚ but with enough room for doubt. The protagonist is introduced sipping scotch and reading the paper by the fireplace (and engaging in some casual racism as he mutters to himself) when a mysterious package is dropped on his doorstep‚ and there’s an element of morality tale in the way that an irascible man with politically conservative views and prejudices is tormented by hallucinations and ominous figures related to his fears. This is matched by the ambiguity of his death‚ with both the fact of his weak heart (the thing that probably kept him out of direct conflict during the war) and being gassed by spectral Nazis treated as equally possibly explanations for his sudden demise. Leiber even structures “Belsen Express” like a gothic story‚ with Simister’s mental state deteriorating as the horror elements kick further into gear‚ ending with his final breakdown. With that in mind‚ Simister is (as noted above) an atypical target for gothic retribution. He’s an unpleasant man‚ but not an active sadist like Justice Harbottle. Nor is he a sympathetic victim like the protagonist of “The Crowd.” Leiber depicts him as aggressively middle-class‚ with mention that the scotch he’s drinking by the fireplace is cheap and diluted‚ and his house (“the most respectable and best-kept” home on his block) constantly a target for local vandalism from the neighborhood youths. Even his complicity in events is minimal at best‚ since he’s at a remove; He’s introduced as “having survived well through the middle of the twentieth century without getting involved in military service‚ world saving‚ or any activities that interfered with the earning and enjoyment of money.” The closest he gets to any kind of actual political consciousness is bickering with his “friend” Holstrom and his secret fear that he’ll be scooped up by some kind of totalitarian regime and exterminated. He even starts questioning himself when the mysterious books are dropped on his doorstep‚ at which point he’s forced to confront the Nazi atrocities he vehemently tries to ignore. While Simister is unpleasant and acutely self-interested‚ he’s also aggressively average and capable of being emotionally and intellectually swayed when the distance and comfort he enjoys is stripped away.   In this way‚ the story feels like a much nastier version of “Young Goodman Brown.” Simister’s inability to process and confront the realities he’d distanced himself from causes him to spiral into madness and forces his horrors into his daily life. Leiber does an excellent job of meshing Simister’s nightmares with his daily commute‚ with each repeated morning journey growing more sinister (you have no idea how hard it is not to mistype that word in this article)‚ paranoid‚ and totalitarian the further he’s beset by his nightmares. His refusal to confront the horrors of the world‚ knowing that awful things are going on but choosing to avoid them until incontrovertible proof literally lands on his doorstep proves to be his undoing. His fear that he will be rounded up and exterminated—however irrational—is a sign that he knows awful things are happening‚ that “it can’t happen here” is a false statement of comfort. It’s a widening crack in the wall of his unpleasant‚ smugly conservative distance. A lot of “Belsen Express” deals with that level of distance and non-involvement. Simister’s torment begins when he’s sent a series of books confronting him with the horrors of the Holocaust‚ which exacerbate his already existent (if irrational and actively suppressed) fears. Holstrom engages Simister in constant political arguments‚ but neither of the men is directly affected by the issues they argue about. Even the inciting incident that spirals Simister into madness—Holstrom sending him the books—was meant as a prank. It’s important that the moment Simister’s torment by shadowy fascists starts is the moment all distance is removed from his life. When he’s confronted with the reality of the atrocity‚ he breaks down‚ and that’s when the strange knockings‚ suspicious-looking man in the overcoat‚ and threatening guard at the train station show up. By the time he starts to process the horror‚ it’s already too late. “Belsen Express” might be atypical to gothic morality‚ but that’s entirely Leiber’s point. It’s cathartic to watch the privileged get dragged off to Hell‚ but it’s also easy for most people to distance themselves the same way Simister does. There’s an idea that bad things will mostly happen to other people at enough of a remove that the average person internalizes it only as a vague‚ abstract fear. With “Belsen Express‚” Leiber removes that abstraction and tears down the walls‚ forcing the reader to understand that we must confront these things lest we be consumed by the horror we seek to tune out. It’s easy enough to sit someplace and pass judgment‚ to argue and harangue in the abstract the way Simister and Holstrom do. It’s a little harder to bear witness‚ comprehend‚ process‚ and confront those horrors. Leiber’s point is that we must‚ that we can’t live in comfort and abstraction. After all‚ one day the horrors might show up on our doorstep the way they did Simister’s. And now to throw it over to you: For those who’ve had brushes with Leiber‚ comment with your favorite non-Fafhrd and Gray Mouser work of his. Apart from that‚ I’d also like to know your favorite non-traditional gothic morality stories. Please join us in two weeks as we explore the other serial murderer that inspired multiple works from Robert Bloch in “Yours Truly‚ Jack the Ripper” icon-paragraph-end The post A Gothic Morality Tale Meets the Mundane: “Belsen Express” by Fritz Leiber appeared first on Reactor.

Emperor Georgiou fans‚ it is officially our time. Star Trek: Section 31‚ which stars Michelle Yeoh as Philippa Georgiou‚ has begun filming. The movie—a spinoff of sorts from Star Trek: Discovery—will eventually appear on Paramount Plus. The film will follow Georgiou as she joins the titular secret division of Starfleet‚ which protects the United Federation of Planets. But being that she’s a temperamental former emperor‚ naturally she must also “face the sins of her past.” Paramount finally announced that the movie will‚ in fact‚ star people other than Yeoh. Omari Hardwick (Power)‚ Kacey Rohl (The Magicians)‚ Sam Richardson (Ted Lasso)‚ Sven Ruygrok (One Piece)‚ Robert Kazinsky (Pacific Rim)‚ Humberly Gonzalez (Ginny &; Georgia)‚ and James Hiroyuki Liao (Barry) have come on board the great ship Star Trek. Hardwick is probably best known for the series Power‚ but SFF fans may recognize him from Zack Snyder’s Army of the Dead or Boots Riley’s brilliant Sorry to Bother You. Rohl is the name I’m most excited about here; she was incredible as The Magicians’ prickly Marina‚ and also excellent on both Hannibal and Arrow. Sam Richardson faced shapeshifters in Werewolves Within and has done a ton of voice work‚ including roles on Harley Quinn and Star Trek: Lower Decks. Kazinsky is‚ depending on whether your tastes run to robots or vampires‚ best known for being a pain in the ass in Pacific Rim‚ or Sookie Stackhouse’s creepy love interest on True Blood. James Hiroyuki Liao appears in the upcoming Orphan Black: Echoes‚ while Humberly Gonzalez appeared in two episodes of the original Orphan Black. In short‚ the filmmakers have assembled an impressive cast of stars and actors-on-the-rise. Star Trek: Section 31 is written by Craig Sweeny and directed by Olatunde Osunsanmi‚ a producer and frequent director on Star Trek: Discovery. The movie is expected to arrive next year. [end-mark] The post <;i>;Star Trek: Section 31<;/i>; Adds Kacey Rohl‚ Omari Hardwick‚ and More to Cast appeared first on Reactor.

As per the rule of Palworld being a building game‚ people are bound to make some incredible base structures while hard at work in Palworld. Here are some incredible player bases in Palworld that have been built and displayed so far. Creative Palworld player base builds I personally still have my base at the bare minimum‚ meaning builds with a lot of effort easily enchant me. So‚ in no particular order — because greatness doesn’t need to be ranked — these are some standout builds posted on the Palworld subreddit. An entire little village behind stone walls Screenshot: Reddit I didn’t realize just how much area bases cover until I saw builds like this one. Presented by Lightless_meow in video tour form‚ this base looks like a little medieval village with a little protective watch tower‚ and it’s adorable. I want to live in one of the houses and explore the stone buildings! This chateau aesthetic with a regal interi...

One of the more underused Work Suitability types is Generating Electricity‚ but which are the best Pals for this job in Palworld? If you’re looking for certain Pals to help run your electric-powered base‚ here is a list of the best Pals for Generating Electricity. Palworld: Best Pals for Generating Electricity As you may have guessed‚ these Pals have to be Electric-type. But depending on their level of Work Suitability‚ they may be either subpar or excellent at their job. The best Pals for Generating Electricity in Palworld are Grizzbolt and Relaxaurus Lux‚ but here’s a broader list of the best picks. Level 1: Sparkit‚ Jolthog‚ Dazzi Level 2: Univolt‚ Beakon‚ Rayhound‚ Mossanda Lux‚ Dinossom Lux Level 3: Grizzbolt‚ Relaxaurus Lux Image: Pocketpair During the early game‚ your best options for Pals with the Generating Electricity skill would be Jolthog and Sparkit. Sparkit is easily found near the spawn area aro...

Once you progress far enough in Palworld‚ you will need Electric Organs to make different items that use electricity. How to find Electric Organs in Palworld Screenshot: PC Invasion The easiest way to get an Electric Organ in Palworld is by killing or capturing any Electric-type Pal. There are 12 Electric Pals in Palworld right now and almost all of them can drop an Electric Organ if you manage to defeat or catch them. However‚ we would recommend you to catch the Pals‚ as it would increase the number of Pals in your Paldeck and also grant you enough EXP to level up fast in the game. Another way to get an Electric Organ in Palworld is to buy it directly from the Wandering Merchant. The Wandering Merchant located at the Small Settlement on the northeast of your base sells Electric Organs in exchange for gold. However‚ this might seem a bit costly as it will cost you 200 gold coins for each Electric Organ. How to farm Electric Organs in Palworld...

Graphics cards are pushing the envelope of what is possible with every new series and release. In the past decade‚ we have really delved into the world of DLSS‚ Ray Tracing‚ and unbelievable resolutions with each new technological push. Now‚ with the impending release of the RTX 4080 Super‚ only Nvidia knows what we have in store. Nvidia RTX 4080 Super specs Without the public’s stress tests and hands-on reviews‚ we only have what Nvidia have given us to base our specifications on. In the past‚ their predictions and humble brags have usually been pretty much on point. Following their history of releases‚ we can usually estimate just what we can expect to see improvements-wise also. Nvidia A broad look at performance Looking at the performance graph released by Nvidia‚ we can expect to see their latest and greatest GPU running rings around the previous flagships. The RTX 4080 Super is promised to more than double the performance on the major...

Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League is a co-op game at its core‚ but you can play the game solo with AI companions at your side if you want. These bots use your own weapons and skills‚ but you can pull other players’ characters into your game for some help. What is Social Squad? Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League has a unique feature called Social Squad. This lets you use your friends’ Suicide Squad characters on your team when you’re playing by yourself. You can even pull characters from the global leaderboards if nobody on your friend list has the game. If you use somebody’s character‚ they’ll get a portion of the loot and rewards that you earn in your session whenever they log back into the game. The Social Squad feature is activated by default and will autofill your Suicide Squad team with other players’ characters if you’re in a clan‚ but you’ll have to manually make additions to your squ...

FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL: Catholic University confirmed to The Daily Signal that it has terminated the contract of the professor who invited a self-declared “abortion doula” to speak to students about coaching women through abortions and “pregnant men” through a “seahorse birth.” Catholic University President Peter Kilpatrick announced to students on Jan. 30 that the university “terminated our contract with the professor who invited the speaker” after obtaining “clear evidence that the content of the class did not align with our mission and identity.” “We first heard of the incident on Wednesday and began to gather information from the students and the professor‚” Kilpatrick explained. “We had been told that one student had a recording of the class‚ and had plans to send it to the media‚ but the recording was not shared with the university administration.” “We received one media inquiry Thursday‚ and one on Friday‚ asking for comment‚” he continued. “While we were unable to confirm what exactly was said in the class‚ we did determine that the speaker’s views on life issues and on the anthropology of the human person were not consistent with our mission and identity as a faithful Catholic university‚ and that she should not be allowed to address the class again.” Kilpatrick emphasized that Catholic University is strongly committed to promoting “the full truth of the human person and to protecting human life from conception to natural death.” “In our rigorous pursuit of truth and justice‚ we engage at times with arguments or ideologies contrary to reason or to the Gospel‚” he said. “But we do so fully confident in the clarity given by the combined lights of reason and faith‚ and we commit to never advocate for sin or to give moral equivalence to error. As witnessed by the life and virtue of St. Thomas Aquinas‚ whose feast we just celebrated as a community‚ such engagement with opposing ideas helps us both to grow in our command of truth and to respond to error with empathy‚ compassion‚ and mercy.” “Here at Catholic University‚ we have the unique opportunity and common blessing to pursue truth‚ to grow in faith‚ and to exercise charity‚” he added. “Our studies aim at producing wisdom‚ which includes excellence in living and sharing the truth with others. May our common study help us to understand life‚ to love goodness‚ and to promote and protect the dignity of the human person.” The Daily Signal first reported the story of the “abortion doula” last week after a Catholic University nursing student detailed the abortion lecture. The student noted that the guest speaker said she also practices Reiki‚ a controversial Japanese method of spiritual healing and self-improvement. “It was really unsettling‚” nursing student Felipe Avila‚ 20‚ told The Daily Signal in a phone interview Friday. “The fundamental point is to understand human development from conception to natural death‚ right? And they brought in someone who counsels women to terminate life.”  Psychology lecturer Melissa Goldberg (who did not respond to requests for comment) invited the doula‚ Rachel Carbonneau‚ to address her class‚ titled Psychology 379: Lifespan Development. The term doula usually refers to a professional who provides physical and emotional support to a woman before‚ during‚ and shortly after childbirth. Planned Parenthood‚ the nation’s largest abortion provider‚ defines an abortion doula as someone who “provides physical and emotional support to a patient during their abortion process.” Carbonneau identified herself to the class as an “abortion doula‚” according to the audio recording obtained by The Daily Signal. The founder and CEO of the LGBTQ-aligned doula company Family Ways also was an English lecturer at Catholic University from 2005 to 2008‚ her LinkedIn profile says.  Avila‚ the nursing student‚ said he first recognized the doula’s misalignment with the Catholic school’s values when Carbonneau began “using terms like birthing persons [and] pregnant person.” The lecturer was “very strategic in avoiding the word ‘woman‚’” Avila said. One of Avila’s classmates repeatedly asked Carbonneau how abortion ties into her work as a doula‚ which prompted the lecturer to share her pro-abortion stance openly.  “This is a space I feel comfortable navigating‚” the doula said in response to questions.  Carbonneau also described what she called “seahorse birth.”  “We work with trans clients‚” Carbonneau told students‚ according to the audio. “I have some men who have given birth; it’s amazing‚ we call it seahorse birth. It’s lovely‚ especially when it’s a water birth; it’s fantastic.”  Female seahorses still produce eggs and male seahorses fertilize them‚ but male seahorses incubate the young in a special pouch‚ from which the young emerge. This does not mean male seahorses become female‚ but they do appear to “give birth‚” in a sense‚ so pro-transgender activists claim that when a “transgender man” gives birth‚ that is similar to a male seahorse doing so. She insisted: “It’s not my business as a doula or a human being to pass judgment on how anybody else chooses to live their life.”  When discussing the stigma of “pregnant men‚” Carbonneau urged students to “normalize” the discussion of women who identify as men giving birth.  “I think just normalizing it‚ right? Using the gender-neutral language‚ talking about pregnant men as pregnant people‚ pregnant women‚ pregnant men‚ pregnant humans‚” she told the class.  Carbonneau acknowledged the tension between her support for abortion and the Catholic position on the issue‚ saying she herself had studied at the university. The Catechism of the Catholic Church states that abortion is a “moral evil” and “gravely contrary to the moral law.”  The doula’s presentation Tuesday at Catholic University felt “unsettling‚” Avila said. The student pointed out that “one of the many reasons that students like me and many of my peers made the decision to attend Catholic University is for that Catholic identity.”   “The university should not wait for there to be public pressure or a public outcry for there to be some kind of change … if they want to preserve the Catholic identity‚ then they need to take these things a lot more seriously‚” Avila added.  Carbonneau said she uses Reiki‚ a Japanese spiritual healing technique condemned by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops as incompatible with Christian teaching and scientific evidence. In 2009‚ the conference said that “it would be inappropriate for Catholic institutions … to promote or to provide support for Reiki therapy.”  Catholic University acknowledged the contradiction between Carbonneau’s support for abortion and the institution’s own values on Friday in a statement to The Daily Signal. “The Catholic University of America was appalled to learn about reports regarding this guest speaker‚” the university told The Daily Signal. “It does not reflect our mission and values as a university that is committed to upholding the dignity of life at all stages.” “The guest speaker will not be speaking again to the class‚ and we are re-communicating the terms and expectations by which all outside speakers are vetted and invited‚” the university‚ added‚ referring to Carbonneau. Virginia Allen‚ Mary Elise Cosgray‚ Tyler O’Neil‚ and Noah Slayter contributed to this report. Have an opinion about this article? To sound off‚ please email letters@DailySignal.com and we’ll consider publishing your edited remarks in our regular “We Hear You” feature. Remember to include the url or headline of the article plus your name and town and/or state.  The post ‘Did Not Align With Our Mission’: Catholic University Fires Professor Who Brought in ‘Abortion Doula’ appeared first on The Daily Signal.