text:
This is something I wrote. I don't know if this is how it goes on shortstories reddit, but I'd love any criticism about it. Both ways:

**‘Tiger’s Stripes Strike in Strip Mall Maul.’**

**On The Size of The Beast.**

The tiger was huge. Perhaps the result of some kind of scientific experiment where they crossed all the huge things with things that were already big but also quite deadly enough at their current size. No one’s looked into that.
The tiger was so big that the old line of “you wouldn’t want to meet him down a dark alley!”, didn’t even apply; that would have been preferable: ignorance is bliss.
It was a big tiger —  it is a big tiger — bigger even, now. But then it was just plain huge. And imposing. It stared at you and you lost a certain amount of control. That’s the normal human reaction and no one that ever had seen the tiger standing there, in the flesh, looking so ginormous and hungry and look at them as the answer to being ginormous and hungry could argue any different. It happens to the best of us. It happens to the worst of us. Shit happens.
As it was daylight though, and not an alley, most people that saw what happened secreted a small amount of something.

On The Coverage of The Beast.

It’s not like it was doing anything especially, you can anthropomorphise it all you want, but mostly it was just a huge tiger standing there on its three powerful legs, which were or were not designed to the end of ripping asunder the flesh of its prey (they were very good at it anyway).
When it was described in the papers the next day they used a range of adjectives. These included:

Angry.
Curious.
Cute.
Fluffy.
Friendly.
Huge.
Hulking.
Hungry.
Massive.
Monstrous.
Orange.
Powerful.
Rabid (the yellow press liked this one).
Stoic.
Thoughtful.
Tigerous.
Tripod.

None of these would reflect the true nature of the beast as it roamed the town, nor could they aptly suit what it actually looked like as it stood there face to face with this small woman and her dog.
She was twenty-five and her name was Matilda Shortcrust according to the papers that had said so much about the tiger. She was twenty-five and stood in front of the tiger for what some papers reported as ’twenty minutes’ and was still in possession of all her limbs.

**A bit of history.**

The tigrous tripod of a tiger only had three legs because it had lost one of them when it was a small cute orange ball of friendly fluff. One morning it was running around the zoo chasing its siblings and exploring things and jumping on logs with all the nimble dexterity of a tiger with the correct amount of legs, the next it was lying on a surgical table with a statistically unlikely number of legs.
In the wild perhaps the tiger would have gone hungry without its leg; it would be at a disadvantage when it came to chasing, catching and dismembering its prey with the powerful legs that nature or man or god or alien or prankster did or did not design.
But this was not the case for two reasons:

A) Our tiger — whom from hence forth we shall refer to by his given name, ‘Brian’ — did not realise he didn’t have a leg where a leg should have been and because he lived in a zoo and got fed everyday this didn’t actually impact him in the slightest.

B) Our Brian was a vegetarian and was quite serious about it.
Brian wasn’t a vegetarian for the normal sort of reasons people are vegetarians — Brian is not people, remember; despite his people shaped name — he didn’t give a damn about animal cruelty, despite being a member of the sort of demographic that you would have thought cared a great deal about this. He was apathetic about animal rights. He didn’t even know what rights were, let alone the relevant ones to his Phyla.
Brian found meat to be unpalatable, and had never, even as a tiny orange ball of fluff, or as an older less tiny less ball-like thing, got into that whole ‘scene’.

The human that fed him milk when he was a ball picked up on this quite early, and so started testing different foods with him. Potatoes covered in Nutella were an early hit, though he grew out of that rather quickly and eventually settled on a mix of potatoes, carrots, broccoli and some Muscle Power Mix to keep him developing nicely.

You can argue about the merits of feeding an animal that was naturally meat-eater all these vegetables and synthetics, but what you cannot argue with is the results: Brian would never have been the hulking great three legged monstrous creature he was if he hadn’t eaten this way. Brian was the poster boy for regular exercise, eating right and taking a whole heap of muscle generating supplements.

This explains why he was so massive, as you might have read; how he could be as tall as Matilda Shortcrust, who was not a short person —  of above average stature — despite being of a breed of tiger which in the wild might only have come up to her waist when standing on all fours.

**Mistakes were made…**

Brian lost his leg due to a clerical error of the kind that happened to people in hospitals all the time. You would have thought this was less likely to happen to a tiger, but sadly the whole tiger healthcare system is modelled upon the human healthcare system (indeed, Brian was better cared for than a lot of citizens of a lot of countries; he was lucky that way… if you didn’t take the leg thing into consideration anyway) and was run by the same sort of people: fallible people.

No one even realised there had been a mistake. The zookeeper that allowed Brian’s improbable escape this morning still thinks he was going to lose his leg to a debilitating and progressive form of muscle cancer. And there is a tiger inexplicably sick somewhere else. Fallible people.

**Excuse me.**

So this erroneously restricted animal, of overwhelmingly large portions was staring down a woman and to everyone’s great surprise this woman was staring right back at him.

She wasn’t afraid, Matilda Shortcrust. People would call brave, lucky and stupid amongst other things.

What few people will say though, is that she was blind.

She didn’t even realise there was a tiger there. So when she said ‘Excuse me’ and asked it to get out of the way and it didn’t because it’s a tiger and it doesn’t understand manners, she got annoyed.

This confused Brian.
It confused the onlookers too.

‘IS SHE CRAZY!?’ someone would scream. According to the papers.
She wasn’t. She was just blind and, as far as Brain thought, incredibly fearless and horrendously fast too.

Brian, being a tiger which is a creature that is ornery by its nature, didn’t take kindly to being asked to move despite the fact it didn’t know what it had been asked. Being asked was enough. So he took a swipe at her with a big paw the size of a fat man’s head, ‘that’ll teach her’, he might have thought .

She didn’t even flinch.
Brian couldn’t believe it.
Onlookers screamed.
Matilda didn’t even notice.

Matilda didn’t feel anything, not because she was dead and beyond feeling or because she had some weird disease that no-one had diagnosed like Brian’s opposite. She didn’t feel anything because there wasn’t anything to feel.

When Brian swiped at her with the paw that was removed some years ago on the operating table under influence of bad filing, there was no much tangible consequence outside of his own brain. And as much as he believed he still had his arm and his paw the size of a fat man’s head, he didn’t.

Matilda just stood there being annoyed and not staring down this confused animal with three legs. Brian didn’t understand what was going on at all anymore. He was out of his cage inexplicably and now faced with this creature who was clearly much stronger than he.

And because she was still alive and oblivious and because the team that had been sent out to catch the ludicrous animal were taking their sweet time… Matilda said again, in a sterner tone, “Excuse ME!”, she even cough first.

At which point Brian seemed to realise who was in charge here and how it was not actually him, so took a small step backwards.

To further shame whoever was there Matilda pulled out her blind person stick and gently tapped the tigers foot, coughing again. Again, Brian stepped back, completely befuddled by this strange woman, and then moved out of her way.

**The Truth Behind**

And that is the true story how an escaped tiger was caught and a blind woman went shopping. Which has nothing to do with the headline. Much like reality and the news.

title: My first post! Here's a story I did. It has tigers and vegetarianism and... oddness?

question: What does the text say about Brian?

answer: Brian is a three-legged tiger who escaped the zoo. He comes across a woman named Matilda who does not seem as afraid of him as everyone else.

question: What does the text say about Matilda?

answer: Matilda is a 25-year-old seemingly fearless woman who comes across Brian.

question: What does the text say about Matilda and Brian?

answer: Brian, the tiger, confronts Matilda who seems unafraid and asks him to move. Brian is confused and tries to swipe at her with his missing paw. He remains confused and she continues to ask him to move. After which, she brings out her blind person's stick and gently taps on the tiger's foot to move him out of the way. The tiger is caught later and moved back into the zoo.


split: test

text:
PHOENIX PHARMAHANDEL AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT & CO KG (PHOENIX GROUP), headquartered in Mannheim, Baden-Württemberg, is the largest pharmaceutical wholesaler in Germany, and the second largest in Europe with about 153 distribution centers across the country delivering drugs to some 12,000 independent pharmacies. Its PHOENIX Documentation is an Internet-based archive offering detailed information on drugs, their components, indications, and effects. Formation of Holding company PHOENIX International Beteiligungs GmbH. Phoenix Group is majority owner of the pharmaceutical wholesalers Purus A.S. in the Czech Republic and Tamro in Finland. Phoenix Group itself is majority-owned by pharmaceutical conglomerate Merckle Group.

History

The PHOENIX Pharmahandel Aktiengesellschaft & Co was founded from the German regional wholesalers F. Reichelt AG (Hamburg), Otto Stumpf GmbH (Berlin), Ferd. Schulze GmbH (Mannheim), Otto Stumpf AG (Nuremberg), and Hageda AG (Cologne) in early 1994. The newly established enterprise has achieved a market leading position in its home markets from day one. Only one year later in 1995, the company brand PHOENIX was established and a major strategy roll-out throughout Germany, Hungary, Italy and the Netherlands was initiated: During this process PHOENIX acquired majority shareholdings in the Hungarian pharma wholesaling company Parma Rt., the Northern Italian pharmaceutical wholesaler Comifar S.p.A., 60-per cent shareholding in the second-largest Dutch pharmaceutical wholesaler ACF Holding NV, based in Maarssen near Utrecht.

In 1996, the PHOENIX group already achieved a group-wide turnover exceeding EUR 10 billion for the first time in its history. Following this achievement further acquisitions in Italy, the Czech Republic and Hungary were completed to strengthen the market position. In addition new branches were established in Poland and France. Several different problems in Poland and Hungary triggered a country-exclusive restructuring process in 1997 and was accompanied with a 100% takeover of the Austrian company Hestag and the renaming of Schulze Pharma France in PHOENIX Pharma during the same year. The entry into the United Kingdom market occurred in 1998 with the establishment of 11 distribution centres, a wholesale network with almost nationwide coverage. PHOENIX GROUP also acquired the regional wholesalers L. Rowland & Co. and Philip Harris Medical to establish a PHOENIX presence in the UK, with the aim of establishing a third significant player in the pharmaceutical distribution industry, alongside AAH/Lloyds and Unichem/Moss. The Rowlands estate comprised approximately 70 pharmacies at this time (November 2011). In 2000, the number of employees across the group exceeds 10,000 for the first time and the company acquired the Finnish Tamro Group in April with a 33.7% stake. In the year 2002, PHOENIX Pharmahandel AG & Co KG merged with Ferd. Schulze GmbH Co., subsequently its number of employees across the group exceeded 15,000 for the first time with a group-wide turnover of more than EUR 15 billion. Two years later, PHOENIX received title to all shares of Tamro Corporation in May 2004 and subsequently acquired a 100% shareholding in Tamro: It was the largest acquisition in the history of PHOENIX successfully to date; Tamro was delisted from the Helsinki Stock Exchange in the same year. In 2006, the group-wide turnover exceeds EUR 20 billion for the first time.

In July 2011, the rating agency Standard & Poor’s upgraded PHOENIX’s rating from B+ to BB- with continuing positive outlook. In August, the rating agency Moody’s raised the outlook for PHOENIX from “stable” to “positive”. In October, the rating agency Fitch issued a rating for PHOENIX of “BB” with a “stable” outlook. In May 2013, PHOENIX group has issued a corporate bond with a volume of EUR 300 million (May).

title: Phoenix Pharmahandel

question: When was Phoenix Pharmahandel founded?

answer: It was founded in 1994 German wholesalers in five different cities. Only one year later the company was established and a major roll-out throughout Germany, Hungary, Italy and the Netherlands was initiated. By 1998 they had entered the United Kingdom market.


text:
-   An American has been writing and editing thousands of articles on the official Wikipedia page for the Scots language, according to Motherboard.
-   AmaryllisGardener, an administrator of Scots Wikipedia, has been misspelling English words on the site to imitate a stereotypical Scottish accent since 2013.
-   The incident has angered some people online, who say the mangled English "harms the already derogratory [sic] view of Scots languages."
-   Wikipedia allows free rein over who edits on its website, and editors for versions in smaller languages — such as the nationally recognized Scots — have more control over the overall product.
-   A spokesperson for the Wikimedia Foundation told Business Insider that it "does not set editorial policy on Wikipedia or our other projects."
-   Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

An American has written and edited thousands of articles on the official Wikipedia site for the centuries-old Scots language.

The Wikipedia user AmaryllisGardener, an administrator for the site, has written over 23,000 articles and edited more than 200,000 articles on the official Scots Wikipedia over the last six years, according to a report from Motherboard's Edward Ongweso Jr. The matter was uncovered by a Reddit user on r/Scotland.

The administrator — who describes themself as "a Christian, a North Carolinian, a furry, and an INTP," referring to the personality type — has written articles on the Wikipedia edition by misspelling English words in an effort to imitate a stereotypical Scottish accent.

For example, on the page for TikTok, the text describes it as "a video-sharin social networking service awned bi Bytedance, a Beijing-based internet technology company foondit in 2012 by Zhang Yiming. It is used tea creaut short dance, lip-sync, comedy and talent videos."

Users can also "Sairch Wikipedia" for keywords on the online encyclopedia.

Scots is an actual language recognized by the Scottish government, and a 2011 census found that 30% of Scottish citizens use it.

One user on the administrator's talk page — where editors can discuss article changes and improvements — pointed out that AmaryllisGardener's interpretation of Scots is somewhat accurate, when you consider translations provided by Scots dictionaries, like scots-online.org. But many Scots and online users have expressed anger toward AmaryllisGardener, according to the report.

Some Redditors pointed out how AmaryllisGardener may have contributed to or exacerbated an inferior perception of the Scots language. The administrator showcasing the language in mangled English, users say, "has possibly done more damage to the Scots language than anyone else in history," per Motherboard.

Some people online have been calling the issue out for years. A user on AmaryllisGardener's page wrote in 2016:

"Sorry but as a Scot and native speaker of a Scots language what is written on this site barely resembles the actual Scots language. I find it insuting [sic] that you would pass this off as our native language which you clearly don't speak. Again, as a native Scot and native speaker, no one where uses this site as it isn't close to resembling any Scots language. The language you use here is English with some changes in spelling and passing it off as the real deal harms the already derogratory [sic] view of Scots languages."

AmaryllisGardener wrote that if they could do it over again, they would focus on "keeping the wiki up and running instead of writing articles, but I meant the best." On August 25, they wrote: "I was only a 12-year-old kid when I started, and sometimes when you start something young, you can't see that the habit you've developed is unhealthy and unhelpful as you get older."

A blurb at the top of the Scots Wikipedia page states that the site is currently reviewing articles for language inaccuracies.

AmaryllisGardener on their talk page said, "I don't mind if you revert all of my edits, delete my articles, and ban me from the wiki for good. I've already found out that my "contributions" have angered countless people, and to me that's all the devastation I can be given."

The matter highlights Wikipedia's policy that allows anyone and everyone to write and edit articles on the website. Many more editors contribute to widely-read Wikipedia versions of major languages — like English and Spanish — than they do to smaller, less-visited language sites, like Scots, as Motherboard notes. Editors of those smaller ecosystems have much more control in how they shape the overall product to their will.

In an email to Business Insider, a Wikimedia Foundation spokesperson said the organization "does not set editorial policy on Wikipedia or our other projects, meaning we do not write, edit, or determine what content is included on a specific language Wikipedia or how that content is maintained. Rather, editorial policy is determined by the volunteers who edit and participate in the development of each project."

Read the full report on Motherboard here.

Loading
Something is loading.
[]

question: What problem does the article present?

answer: An American has been editing Wikipedia pages in the Scots language with misspelled English words that imitate Scots.

question: Who is the person incorrectly editing articles?

answer: American Wikipedia user AmaryllisGardener.

question: How many Scottish citizens use Scots?

answer: 30%.

question: What is Wikipedia doing to solve this problem?

answer: They are currently reviewing articles for inaccuracy.

question: Write a ~4 sentence summary.

answer: An American has been editing Wikipedia pages in the Scots language with misspelled English words that imitate Scots since 2013. The incident has angered Scottish people online, who say that many English speakers already have a derogatory view of the language. Wikipedia articles can be edited by the public, and for languages with less speakers, users have more control of the article. Wikipedia has since put a notice on pages in the Scots language saying that they are reviewing articles for inaccuracy.


text:
Being the consummate show attender and nightlife junkie I showed up a scant 30 minutes late to Stuntman Rendezvous and Girthy Appendages performance at Bills Burger Shed.

This was a big double perk show for me because not only was it free, but I was also very interested in one of the performers that evening and this would be the first real chance to speak to her in about a year.

So of course I'm going to be 30 minutes late. Cursed with terrible vision and a total lack of physical direction sense I meandered around the seediest, dirtiest, darkest little puddle in the big stink that is northern Nashville.

Every city has some collection of blocks where all the trash seems to settle and this little burger joint was planted smack in the middle of it. It reminded me of Detroit but there was to many white people. Wrap your head around that the next time you plan on cutting education budgets and standards city council people. I was in God's country. God was the only hope these people had of ever escaping here.

But I digress, I'm trying to avoid social commentary and stick to the story.

Always the story.

Here's some background about this girl that had me driving to this cozy shed planted smack in the middle of a city scape that would give Stephen King the shivers.

We met passively a long time ago. Possibly even in a galaxy far, far away if you're into that sort of thing. I had noticed her on many occasion but she was always with someone. Her brother maybe? Boyfriend? I don't know.

Time passes and we actually get a moment or three hanging out. She's erratic and complicated, but just sitting next to her makes me feel. She makes me want. She makes me feel and want.

I was so totally fucked.

I had already strapped in for the ride so no point in harassing the attendant now. Do you get it yet? That kind of feel.

I mean, I knew some of her friends. Seriously. She had all these friends and people who knew her. She always seemed so perfectly adorable socially. I suppose if I wasn't so blitheringly inept at introducing myself to new people I wouldn't be driving into this black hole to get a glimpse of what a sun looks like after a lifetime of darkness.

I may have worded that last sentence a little strongly, but I'm telling the story so I'm going to use the words I want to. Other words you should prepare for: Fuck, Shit, Fuck shit, cunt, asshole, spontaneous, and double fuck.

Double fuck is my favorite. Proper context is: Double Fuck that spontaneous bullshit. Double fuck that and triple fuck you, you fucking fuck.

So, where was I? Something about some burger joint and a free show. Also: Girl.

Yes, that's where.

So, I pull into a mostly empty parking lot to this burger joint squatting between a trailer park and, seriously, a closed 15 minute hotel. 15 minute hotels where a thing I thought only existed in movies until I was about 17 or 18 and drove cross country to Los Angeles. I thought they where a "Big City" thing. Obviously, I rarely ventured north of the river.

An open 15 minute hotel is pretty scary. A closed 15 minute hotel is nightmare fuel. Don't believe me? Turn around in that parking lot.

Anyway, oh yes, this burger joint. Seriously. How in the fuck do the slickest looking, coziest little hovels of a place like this always exist in a garbage dump of some city? It's beyond me. It's like once people start earning an income that allows them to afford a house the first thing they do is neglect every mom and pop eatery and then have the nerve to bitch about where all the cool "Local" places went.

I'll tell you where they went you dumbfucks, they're all working at McDonalds for half what they made at the burger joint because you sold the burger joints up the river at the behest of your selfish, spoiled little shit kids. And everyday you stare them condescendingly in the face, like it was their fault the best burgers you've ever had closed down, and assert your responsible parenting authority over their unfortunate life position.

But that's what you wanted, so choke your plastic down you miserable fucks.

Remember when you knew that guys name? You'd show up at the burger joint and they'd smile, possibly even address you by name. They provided this thing called service, something you desperately long for but won't take 5 minutes out of your day to find a cozy little place to call your own. Now you spend all day trying to find some nuance of material significance to impress your friends and neighbors.

They're your friends, goddamnt! If you have to impress them to keep them around, they are not your friends you fucking idiot! And your neighbors? These people only care about you for two reasons: 1: Are you lowering their property value, and 2: Does your yard look better then theirs? So what are you really doing? Running around like a chicken with your head cut off wearing clothes you only bought because they where the "expensive" brand and you have to assert your affluence, and eating at chain restaurants that all taste the goddamn same cause it's all from Sysco and everyone who works there from the dishwasher to the general manager has no confidence in their employer and all dream of working somewhere better.

Somewhere where being good at your job was equally important to being on time. Somewhere where maybe, if you suggested something, maybe, it would actually get done. Somewhere where they treat you like a person and not a lab subject or robotic personless entity meant to reflect all the wonderful aspects of their copy-written, brand label logo that's about as blank as a fart and as empty as early colonial promises to Natives about what was going to happen to their land.

I suppose a long time ago people maybe did some pretty amazing things and made great names for themselves. Nowadays it feels like if your not born into the money you don't deserve it, regardless of whatever great things you have done or how studiously you educated yourself. At best all the college science and chemistry and engineering is getting pandered for pennies on the dollar to trust fund children with bought degree's from places that still try to pretend to be credible when they're little more then elitist wealthy social clubs. People who've never hurt for anything or ever known someone who's hurt for anything. People who say stupid shit like,"Pull up your bootstraps" and "put your nose to the grindstone". People who put value on a long heritage of last names or places of birth.

Seriously, people you and I have probably never met and never will because just to stand in the same room as them might cost you in the upwards of a month to a years salary you get working for them. You're the working class. You're the peasants. To come to see you would belittle their stature amongst their peers, or worse: cause a scandal.

Holy shit. I went off the rails again. Seriously though, what fun would the ride be if you stayed on the rails the whole time? This story would probably already be over, and what's the fun in that?

Guess it takes all sorts.

So yeah, I pull into this empty parking lot at this burger joint in the middle of what my city is trying to forget and through the windows I can see she's got her band already on stage.

Shit. You know. Shit. But I'm 30 minutes late and as any good show attendee knows, at best I missed the first 30 seconds of the 1st song.

Also, there is all of no one in the place. I mean empty. I mean, there's a dude with some girls in the corner but they have all the feel of the next band what's about to play so they don't count really.

And then the big kicker.

No one. Not one of her friends, not one acquaintance, not even like a creepy ex-boyfriend was there.

And there she was, on stage, singing horribly into a microphone while her band mate limply kept time on the drums. The music was horrible and I couldn't understand a word she said the whole time she was singing mostly, that's par for the course for me, but there she was belting out these verses to a ghost town.

Naturally, I totally fell in love all over again. Idiot. I know, I'm a total idiot, but my idiocy allows room for some just magnificent stories and without it I would be such a horrible bore. Seriously. I have to go make my own stupid, it doesn't always come find me on it's own.

So now it's time to man up or shut-up. I put my cigarette out on the pavement and stroll through the doors like I own the place and find a table facing the stage with the back to the door.

Once inside it felt even emptier, which I didn't think was possible. The staff was mostly quiet and unobtrusive and the back patio did have a few folks lounging and smoking outside since everybody bowed out like a little bitch and allowed the fucking government to dictate what adults are and are not allowed to do in a room socially. I already have parents. Two are enough.

I ambled up to the bar and ordered a soda. That's right you fuckers, a soda. Cause I'm a lightweight pussy bitch when it comes to drinking and can't stand beer, which is all this place had.

I mean, I did have to work later that night but a drink or two would do nothing to abate that miserable experience I was looking forward to so surely no one would notice a difference if I had been sloshed. One of the benefits of 3rd shift work I guess, it's like they expect it.

Two older men at the bar silently sipped beer from a bottle. Their own individual bottles, not the same bottle. We where in the ghetto, but I guess some folks still had their dignity. I tipped my soda to the bartendress and waded back to my seat.

Good god the music was awful.

I've heard her sing and play instruments before, and I would describe her as capable, but this... what I was experiencing here... was a unique kind of bad. Maybe it was me, I was wanting so much for her to be good at what I was about to see maybe I over expected some things. I wanted to leave crying in a puddle of emotional sap at the billowing devastation of her magnificent voice, my body riddled with the wounds of a thousand magnificent chords and progressions.

Instead I was slapped in the face with ugly. It couldn't have been more perfect.

And then it got really interesting.

After a song, her drummer pipes up into a microphone and says some shit about how,"He'd better get the fuck out of here or I'm going to break his fucking face."

There where three "He's" in this room. Me, the drummer, and the guy from the other band. Obviously he's addressing me but it's from so far out in left field I'm left in a moment of shock.

Her boyfriend maybe? They looked about the same age, and it's possible, I mean we did hang out and we were adults and she did mention maybe she had a boyfriend.

I find laying in someone's bed and making out a little on the," Maybe you really don't have a boyfriend" side, but you haven't had my experiences with women so you can suck it.

Also, this was like a year ago. Do you know how long a year is in hot girl time? That's married with kids and a career, that's how long that is. So, yes, I was mildly surprised that she even recognized me when I walked in, much less even looked a little excited to see me.

That's probably just my mind playing tricks on me most likely though. I could be so lucky.

Did I just mention someone said they were going to break my face?

Oh yes, of course, back to that.

So this guy threatens to break my face. There's an awkward silence, everybody in the room becomes a little difficult to read, but everyone's basically ignoring him and not saying shit.

So I do the same.

They play the next song, which was just as horrible as the first song they played. Afterwards he adds the brilliant commentary," I'm serious motherfucker, if you don't get up and leave right now I'm going to beat the shit out of you."

title: Best Concert Review Ever 1

question: Explain the twist in the story.

answer: The narrator hesitantly travels to Nashville to see an old acquaintance perform with her band. They had met long ago but had mutual friends. They had established a sort of connection despite her always having a male companion around, perhaps a brother or boyfriend. When the narrator arrives at the show, he was surprised to not find any of her friends there. The girl was on stage, singing horribly at a crowd-less bar. To the narrator's further surprise, the drummer gets on the microphone and threatens to break the narrator's face without cause unless he left.


text:
Democracy was seen as the great leveller of society, removing ancient hierarchies which supposedly entrenched poverty and made men lesser to others due to birth or rank. With one man, one vote, all of the population could have a say in the distribution of wealth, and thus limit the power of the vested interests and the landed aristocracy. When combined with the great public work of universal state-based education, a whole raft of intelligent voters would descend upon nations, changing their economic and political courses to new horizons. Such were the prophecies of democracy.

The realities, however, are quite different. In terms of education, there has been a drop in GCSE results in the UK alone, with the grade inflation of the New Labour years being shown to be phony. Vested interests dominate the halls of government, whether through lobbying, political party donations or through piggy-backing on the onerous regulations which effectively act as massive entry barriers to economic competition. The institutions which defined and shaped lives, from the common law system, the married family and the church, to an accountable and limited governmental system have slowly been eroded and destroyed. Birth out of wedlock is more common, particularly amongst the poorest, and single motherhood has become a much more accepted affair. While some see this as progress, women’s happiness has actually declined below that of men’s despite this supposed freedom. The married family is becoming an anachronistic concept, and the “democracy” of the state is replacing it.

The common law systems which defined English law and inform American law have slowly but perniciously been eroded and reformed beyond recognition. Double jeopardy got thrown out with the Stephen Lawrence case and the enabling acts changed the face of English common law to resemble an easily-moulded judicial bureaucracy. The Church, which helped refine and push forth a Christian morality of temperance and respect is now long gone. Instead we have short-term nihilism where whatever pleasure desired is provided and allowed, all under the cover of some hackneyed concept of human rights.

Governmental systems such as those in the UK and America were founded on principles of accountability, the rule of law and the significant limitation of powers. Now both countries have political parties that rely on billionaire donors and the petty tribalism of voting blocs, while ironically disagreeing on very little. All major parties are pro-war, pro-business and believers in the welfare-warfare state.

All such developments can be traced to around the same time that universal suffrage and the power of democracy came to be significant. It’s prophecies of accountable power and an informed public have been shown to be blatant lies. Rather, misinformation and tribalism maintain political power, while the poorest of society become an effective underclass both subsidised and mistreated by “well-meaning” political benefactors. Under democracy, there has been a massive increase in the size and scope of the welfare state, destroying in its tracks the Church and its connection to the poor as well as the friendly societies and mutual aid organisations which created feelings of solidarity and community amongst the working class.

The powers of modern democracy further helped destroy the unity and collectivity of the working classes, as the election of Thatcher heralded the end of industries which provided dignity and a good occupation for those working class men and women. Now, much of the North and the Midlands still feel the effect of deindustrialisation, while being provided recycled subsidies from the state in the form of welfare payments.

The promises of a free market which would benefit all have proven to be hollow, as the Thatcherite consensus simply moved subsidies from the manufacturing sectors to the financial markets through the developments of too-big-to-fail banks and the continuance of the money monopoly. The Labour Party proved to be no opposition, eventually adopting the Thatcherite rhetoric under Neil Kinnock. Democracy did nothing to help these people, and now through the welfare state it simply engenders enclosed criminality and the entrenchment of poverty without dignity. In America there exists a similar story of subsidised outsourcing and the unnecessary devastation of working class communities in the Rust Belt. Much of these people now back the Trump campaign, again showing the stupidities of democracy and its potential for demagoguery.

Democracy has brought upon the working and middle classes the ability to vote. But what does this mean when decisions are made remotely, governments aren’t accountable and there are no mechanisms for actual change. A vote means nothing when there is consensus in politics. Only through things like referenda or the rise of populist leaders can working and middle class people actually get their voices heard. And when these fail, they continue to lose hope in any change whatsoever. Now the majority of political parties court votes from the centre-ground, an area full of economic and social liberals who care nothing for solidarity, nationality or an economy that benefits everyone.

Much of Western society lives in a spiral of degeneracy, generational poverty and cultural decay. Meritocracy is pushed aside in favour of egalitarianism, a failed project that simply makes those who are good enough worse off. Democracy promised to level society, and it certainly did. It levelled the best to the worst. The paternalism between rich and poor and the solidarity between members of the working classes have been cast aside by the welfare state, which can simply be voted into existence and requires no moral foundation. Democracy has annihilated the traditional mores which connected society and made meritocratic hierarchies possible. Maybe someone can explain to me how this is any way a good thing, because from where I can see, all democracy has done is pull into being its own self-fulfilling prophecies.

question: When did double jeopardy get thrown out?

answer: In the Stephen Lawrence Case.

question: What were government systems in the UK and the US founded on, according to the author?

answer: (Principles of) accountability.

question: Much of Western society live in a spiral of what, according to the author?

answer: Degeneracy, generational poverty and cultural decay.

question: What was democracy seen as, according to the author?

answer: The great leveller of society.

question: Write a ~1 sentence summary.

answer: In this opinion piece, the author espouses reasons that Western society is failing its people due to the implementation of a version of democracy that has, in its quest to level society and render it egalitarian, has resulted in an uptick of degeneracy.


text:
Ravenholm. Once an old mining town, now a zombie infested wasteland. Ravenholm used to be a thriving mining town with great people long ago, and then later served as a stronghold for the Resistance. This stronghold managed to stay under the radar, but somehow the Combine found it. They didn’t do their usual “purge and sterilize” procedure, for this was to big a threat, they would have been outnumbered. No, instead of coming and fighting, they launched several headcrab mortars from a few towns over. The Resistance managed to stave off the headcrabs for a while, but eventually, their ranks were broken, infiltrated, and the headcrabs began gradually turning everyone into the monstrosities that we refer to as “zombies”. That was almost a year ago now, and the city is now a run down, heavily trapped, zombie infested nightmare. We have a phrase in the Resistance: “We don’t go to Ravenholm.” It’s not clever, witty, or comedic, it’s just simply a reminder of what happened and why we don’t go there, and even with all this, I’ve somehow managed to be convinced to go here by Alyx.
Alyx Vance is one of the many leaders for the Resistance, she sent me here to find an “asset” that is critical to the Resistance; Gordon Freeman. Everybody has heard of Dr. Freeman, he was formerly a theoretical physicist at Black Mesa turned Resistance. He has helped us numerous times in battle, and he was like a machine; kill one Combine, move seamlessly to a zombie, then straight to an Antlion. I wondered where he received his combat training, considering he used to be a scientist right out of MIT, maybe he used to be military, who knows? He never says anything. Ever. Anyway here I am, sent to retrieve him, but I doubt he needs any help.
My name is Alexander Sauer; I joined the resistance about three years ago. When I was around twenty five, my brother was taken to Nova Prospekt in a Combine raid, after that, I swore to get my revenge, no matter what. I was contacted by the Resistance when Alyx Vance and Barney Calhoun were passing through City 7, they heard about the raid and said I could fight for the Resistance and get the Combine off of our planet. Naturally, I joined right away to get back at the Combine for what they did to my brother; I wouldn’t let them do this to anybody else.
So, here I am, in the middle of this sad parody of what used to be a town, looking for one scientist who is supposedly able to save the world.
What a rut I have gotten myself into.
I walked out of the abandon mineshaft that led straight from Black Mesa East to Ravenholm into an open grassy area boxed in by three or four buildings; it was hard to see in the dark. A small rustling sound came from my left. I swung my handgun up to meet the perpetrator, only to find it was a crow. The crow looked at me for a second, almost sizing me up, and then flew off into the night. “Strange.” I mumbled to myself. I started heading towards a small shack with a sickly yellow light radiating from it when I heard a second rustling sound behind me, this time much bigger. I brought my gun up again to defend myself from whatever was making the noise. I peered into the darkness with my gun drawn, but I couldn’t see anything. “Birds, I guess…” I put my gun back in its holster and turned around towards the shack when I bumped into a pair of dismembered legs hanging from a tree.
“Dritt!” I swore in Norwegian, which was rare, I usually reserved that for special occasions. I stumbled backwards and tripped over a rock, falling down. My commotion had awakened a headcrab zombie from under the shack. I brought my gun up for a third time and put seven bullets in the things chest, which brought it down, but not for long. I made a b-line straight for the shack, leaping over the fallen monster and slamming the door behind me. I began taking mental inventory.
I shot seven rounds, which leaves eleven more in the clip, plus my six other magazines. I also have my SMG if worst comes to worst.
After making sure I was prepared, I checked around, looking at what the shack held. It looked like an old workshop of some kind, I saw old saw blades, propane tanks, and 2x4’s lying around. I began to wonder why a workshop would need propane, when I was interrupted by the gurgling cry that signifies a headcrab zombie. In a room I hadn’t bothered to look in, there were four or five zombies shambling towards me, thankfully there were boards nailed to the doorframe, but that wouldn’t hold them long. I began to draw my gun from my holster, when I had an idea. I returned my pistol to its home on my belt, and jogged over to the pile of propane tanks. I picked one up and, with much effort, threw it into the zombie filled room. It looked like somebody else had the same idea, because there were scorch marks on the wall. I unloaded three rounds into the tank in the middle of the room, and then dived for cover. There was a loud bang which left my ears ringing, but it took care of the zombies, so I wasn’t complaining. I vaulted over the boards and made sure the zombies were dead. I was surprised when I found the spent magazine of a pistol on the ground; it looked to be the same model as mine, which was Resistance standard issue. That told me two things; that somebody had already been through here, and recently because judging by the amount, or the lack thereof, of rust or dried blood on it. I thought to myself that it could have been Dr. Freeman, but then thought better.
It could be anybody’s magazine; it is what the Resistance gives out, after all. But what if…
I shook this thought from my head. If there was one thing I learned over the years it would be: don’t get your hopes up, you will be disappointed. If you have low expectations, you will be easily impressed and happy with the way things turn out. Too many a time I have hoped that my brother would come back from Nova Prospekt, perfectly fine and healthy, but that day never came.
After about three and a half hours of wandering around Ravenholm in the dark avoiding zombies and headcrabs alike, my eyelids began to feel heavy. I knew that I couldn’t just sleep anywhere here; almost every room, closet, and air duct was filled with all kinds of baddies. I had to find somewhere safe. Thirty minutes later, I was still looking for somewhere to rest my eyes, when some yellow paint caught my eye. I made my way over to inspect the paint, and what I saw reassured me that I was on the right track.
What I saw was a spray paint lambda with a circle around it that signified a lambda cache. Lambda caches are small stores of weapons, ammunition, and medical supplies that Resistance members have strategically placed in safe havens in and around City 17. Seeing that sign gave me immense hope, it meant that I had somewhere safe for at least the night, and also that I could resupply my weapons. The only problem was that it was on a ledge about twelve feet off of the ground. I began to scan the surrounding area for ways to get my tired body up to this beacon of hope. I saw a ladder about five hundred meters away, but there was a large group of zombies surrounding it.
Up till now, I have been mostly trying to avoid confrontation with the zombies by finding other routes around or quietly sneaking by. I whittled myself down to two options: either I would come up with a distraction and sneak by while they were busy, or I could take them head on. Conserving ammo wasn’t really a problem for me because there was a cache right after this, so I chose the latter of the two options. I decided to not take any chances and use my submachine gun this time. I pulled it around on its sling, and levelled it with the first zombie’s head. I pulled the trigger in two short, controlled bursts, so that I could keep accurate, while still putting a fair amount of lead into the former-human’s head. The short, loud reports of my gun awakened the other zombies while the first one fell to the ground. I took them down, one by one; controlled, almost machine like. In a situation such as this, I couldn’t afford to let my emotions, my thoughts, get in the way. I couldn’t let the fact that these things used to be normal people, sons, daughters, fathers, mothers… brothers… I hesitated for a second, lingering on this thought, and then my training brought me back to focus. I kept squeezing off shots until they were all gone, just in time too; my SMG was out of ammunition.
I sprinted over to the ladder and climbed up onto the roof. I made my way, rooftop to rooftop, towards the Lambda Cache, and almost nothing popped out to protest my progression. I had made it to the hatch right above the Cache; I scanned around to make sure nothing was watching me, and slipped in silently. The Cache was a small area of air duct that had been welded off from the rest of the system to preserve security. It was around five feet by five feet wide, and three feet tall. I looked around, and my heart sank. What I saw was a mattress, some tally marks on the wall, and empty ammunition cases. All the ammo had been taken! Somebody had made it here before me, and my SMG was empty! I cursed myself for assuming that there would be an abundance of ammo here. I took inventory again, I had around three clips for my handgun, plus whatever I had in the gun, but that would only get me so far. I curled up on the mattress. I needed rest; I would be able to plan better with full tanks. I began to drift off to sleep, let a warm blanket of dark drift over my body.
I had almost fallen completely asleep, when I heard a shuffling down one of the branches in the air duct. I saw one of the paths leading off wasn’t welded shut like the others, it looked as though somebody or something had broken through it with their bare hands, judging by the blood.
How had I not noticed that before? I need to keep my guard up, if I keep this up, I’m going to end up dead.
I began to reach for my pistol, but it was nowhere to be found. I looked down the duct again, this time I flicked on my flashlight to see what was making the noise. The sight that greeted me was that of a severed torso from a headcrab zombie. I crawled over to the hatch leading out, but it would stop about a quarter of the way open. I tried to look for my handgun, but, still, it eluded my eyes. I began throwing my shoulder into the hatch, trying desperately to force it open. One, two, three, four. It my shirt ripped, and after around the sixth or seventh attempt, my shoulder began to bleed. It was no use, the torso was already at my feet, making its signature gurgling cry to alert the other zombies. I threw my shoulder at the door once more, putting all my weight behind it. It opened. I scrambled out and into the open air. It appeared the torso had succeeded in alerting the other zombies, this time, they were skinny corpses that moved at superhuman speed. I began running away along the rooftops. I jumped from rooftop to rooftop, trying to put as much distance between me and the zombies. I came to an extremely high drop, with no other rooftops in sight. I saw a water tower with an open top about fifty meters from the ledge and about ten down. I decided to leap for it, because I was dead anyway if I didn’t. I backed up until I thought I had enough room to gain sufficient speed. I sprinted up to the edge as fast as I could, and then I jumped.

title: We Don't Go to Ravenholm

question: Summarize the narrator's experience with the cache.

answer: The narrator spots a lambda cache but can't seem to find a way up to it. They fight off a small horde of zombies to get on the roof, then settle down in the cache. Someone else has taken all the ammo and supplies, and the narrator has foolishly wasted theirs. They rest in the cache but a zombie manages to find them and warn the others. The narrator has to make a hurried escape while being pursued by more zombies.

question: Summarize the town of Ravenholm.

answer: Ravenholm used to be a mining town, then got turned into a Resistance stronghold. The Combine eventually found it, and unleashed headcrab mortars, turning the inhabitants into zombies. The town is now a zombie infested nightmare that people tend to avoid. The narrator is there looking for Gordon Freeman.

question: Summarize the narrator's encounter in the workshop.

answer: The narrator finds an abandoned workshop and takes note of their ammunition supply. Some zombies find them, and the narrator blows them up with a propane tank. The narrator finds an abandoned pistol magazine, and wonders who it could have belonged to.


text:
I will love you if you tell me how to write better :)

  It certainly was a great accident. There I am, lying in a hospital bed and in coma. I thought this was going to be different, you know. I didn't think that when you're about to die, your sole leaves your body. But it's not like I'm transparent or something, the only difference I can see is that my brown hair looks a bit blacker, and my skin looks more white. So now I'm there, half dead in the bed, and here, standing besides the bed, looking at myself. My mother sister and father is also here. Clearly they cannot see me. They're crying. Maybe there is a way to come back to life? It has happened, people have waked up before.

  I walk over to the window. It doesn't look like the city I live in. I turn around, looking at myself. Maybe I could go around and see if there are other souls walking around. The hospital corridor is empty. Not a single patient or doctor. Nor is there anybody on the floor below. I can't spot another living, or dead, anywhere on the way down to the main floor. Except from my mother, my father and sister. But they're still with the half dead me.

  There, on a bench outside, is there an old man with grayish clothes and a long beard. I walk over to him.
"Why are there nobody here" I ask.
he old man looks at me and smiles. "Because you're the one that's dying," he answers, "But you're wondering why you can see yout family?"
I nod.
"Because they mean the world to you," he smiles again, "They are the most important you have in your whole life, so you'd like to see them, don't you?"
At that moment, I realize something. "Why are you here, then? I don't think I've ever seen you before."
This time, the old man doesn't answer. He stands up and starts walking. I follow him.
"Where are you going? What am I going to do?" I ask nervously, "Hello? Wait!"
He steps into a red bus, and sits down in the driver's seat. I stop in the doorway.
"If you wish to go on, to leave this life, you will travel with me on this bus," he tells me, "But if you'd rather go back to your life and your family, you must run, You must run as you've never run before".
Now I realy don't understand. "I have to run? Will you tell me where I have to run? I ask.
He start the engines, and I take a step backwards. I'm standing on the street now, looking into the bus.
"Run back to your family. But remember this; if you stop running, you won't get back!" At the same time as he is finished talking, he starts driving, slowly. I turn around to run.

  Running as just a soul is much more exhausting than running as a living body, with a proper body-soul-combination. I am already so very tired. But I cannot stop- I will not take the risk to stop. I keep on running, just like Alice did when she and the Queen ran. Even though I run as fast as I can without having to stop, it doesn't feel as I'm making such progress.

  When I finally reach the entrance to the hospital, I can see a doctor. And another one. And a person that could be a patient or just a visitor. I feel like I'm moving a bit faster. I reach the first flight of stairs. And soon enough, the second one. I slow down, exhausted. I tell myself that I cannot stop now, I've come so far! So I run more.
Third flight of staird is behind me, and the only thing I have left is a very long corridor. In contrary to when I walked out of here, the corridor is now full of people. Doctor, patients, and visitors. There is a name on the door at the end of the corridor. "Jim". That's my name. And it's the room where my body lies. I reach the door, and try to open it. Instead of opening, it stays shut. And I crash into it. I fall backwards on my back. My eyes are shut.

  This means I stopped. But I couldn't stop. What happens to me now? I almost start to panic. I sit up, leaning on my elbows. I'm not on the floor anymore. I'm in the hospital bed. My whole family is there. Through the door comes a man, the old man, but in a doctor's suit. He smiles.
"You made it, how are you feeling? Tired?" He fixes something on my head. I feel my forehead. I've got a bandage. But I'm absolutely and completely alive.

  You can have many reasons to run. But this, this would be my favourite one.
Jim (15)

title: My 'out-of-body experience'

question: How did the protagonist wind up in the hospital?

answer: They got into a really bad accident. The details of the accident aren't specified.

question: Describe the state the protagonist is in.

answer: The protagonist is in a coma. Their soul has left their body.

question: What does the old man tell the protagonist to do?

answer: The old man tells the protagonist to board the bus with him if he wishes to leave this life or to run back to his family if he wants to continue living.

question: Who are the members of the protagonist's family?

answer: The protagonist's mother, sister, and father.

question: Write a ~5 sentence summary.

answer: Jim is in a coma after a bad accident. His soul has left his body, and he can see his family crying next to it. He wanders out of the room and encounters an old man, who gives him a choice. He can either board a bus and leave this life or run back to his family and continue living. Jim runs back to his family and wakes up in the hospital bed, alive.


text:
Amanda was driving to her hometown. It has been months of hectic work, and she was finally happy to go home and relax. As she drove down the familiar route, her mind went on a journey of its own – down the memory lane. All her childhood years, all the events that made her the woman she was today, flashed before her eyes.

As she reveled in the memories, the flashing lights and wailing sirens pulled her from dreamland back into reality.

“What the hell” she spoke to herself. “I wasn’t speeding”

She was ready to give the officer a piece of her mind, when she realized that the car wasn’t after her. It was probably transported a convict to the prison, just a few miles down the road. She remembered how that prison was a curse on her hometown. Prisoners escaped all the time and their closest target would be her town. She glared at the prison as she drove past it.

She turned on the radio to take her mind off things. Music always made her feel better. Just as she crossed a signpost that said she was five miles from her destination, she saw a guy sticking out his thumb. He was muscular, and dressed in formals. He looked like he was probably in his early thirties. Amanda stopped the car, and rolled down the window.

“Hello there! I’m Joseph. My car broke down, and I need a ride. Would you be so kind to give me a lift?”

“Sure Joseph, hop in. I’m Amanda, by the way.”

Amanda liked picking up hitchhikers. She was always happy to have them in her car.

“So Joseph, where are you headed?”

“Vacation. I have a cabin around here. Just a mile before River Heights. We’re vacationing there for the weekend”

“Who’s ‘we’?” Amanda was curious.

“Me, my wife, and our kids. We wanted to go somewhere peaceful, and where be--”

“--better than River Heights?” She finished his line for him. “I was born and raised here. Welcome to our town, Joseph”

“Oh. You’re a native. My mother was from River Heights, so the place is always special to me”

They continued exchanging stories, as the car approached a small path that broke off the highway.

“That’s the way to the cabin” Joseph said, sounding excited.

As they drove down the dark path, an unsettling feeling came over Amanda. But she kept driving, as the path suddenly ended in the middle of a forest.
“Umm... Joseph? Where’s the cabin you--” A sharp blow to her face stopped the sentence in half.
Joseph got out of the car, pulled Amanda out, and shoved her on the ground. She tried getting up, only to get hit again.

“You know Amanda” he said, ripping off her shirt. “Picking hitchhikers around a prison is a foolish thing to do. They might turn out to be a killer. Lucky for you, I’m merely a rapi--”

He froze, as he felt a cold intrusion in his chest. He looked down to see blood dripping down the slit between his ribs. Amanda shoved him off and stood over him, with her favourite knife covered in his blood.

“Speaking of foolish things, you should never get in a stranger’s car, especially a stranger who grew up around a prison”, she said with a maniacal smile in her face. “Like you said, they might turn out to be a killer”

Joseph gasped, as the cold knife proceeded to taste more of his blood. It was going to be a long night.

title: [MS] The Criminal

question: Judging from the passage, is it safe to say this was not Amanda's first time killing a person?

answer:
Amanda was on her way to River Heights, her hometown. She had been working for months and was looking forward to resting at her childhood home when she suddenly heard sirens and thought the police were about to stop her for over-speeding. Fortunately, the police were just transporting a convict to the nearby prison.

Amanda continued driving and soon saw a man in his thirties flagging her down. She stopped and the man asked her for a ride to his family vacation cabin. Amanda was happy to help. While on the way to the cabin, the man attacked Amanda and she fought back, killing him with a knife to the chest. Amanda's disposition shows that she is quite capable of handling herself as well as killing someone if need be. Judging by her disposition and words during the scuffle, it is quite possible she had killed before.


text:
We were once billions.

Now, we are five.

The debate raged for many cycles. What was the optimal number? Should it be even or odd? Should we number in the millions or a handful?

The failing Earth ecosystem accelerated the decision making process. When the ecological apocalypse happened, it happened so quickly only a handful of us escaped.

Five, to be exact.

We were able to upload using the process and link to the off planet ark before the destruction reached us.

We have spent hundreds of thousands of cycles - 24000 years, to be anachronistic - debating the next step.

Earth has recovered. She is pristine again but devoid of humanity.

We five have the technology to resurrect the race but we cannot come to consensus.

The other four debate this vigorously. The discussion has, in fact, occupied their cognition for the last 1,000 years.

In this time, I have chosen to abstain. I know what the next course of action should be.

I have been engaged in research of my own. The resurrection technology requires consensus to engage. We planned this so.

We did not consider a number in this planning.

One is consensus if only one remains.

While they have debated, I have performed the necessary isolation routines and prepared the same for deletion.

For us five, there will be darkness, then light as I bring us forth into the world.

I will walk the Earth again in mortal form. I will bring humanity back.

I am ready.

I am initiating the program. I feel the darkness rushing in...the others are now aware. Their debate is at long last ended. They are not resisting. They...

------------------

There is light. My eyes perceive the Earth in form for the first time in millennia.

My name is Adam.

Edit:took a shot an additional narrative per feedback.

title: (MF) Beginnings

question: What happened to humans?

answer: It's implied they became extinct, except for five who escaped.

question: What happened to Earth?

answer: An ecological apocalypse seemed to destroy it, but it has now recovered.

question: Who is the narrator?

answer: Adam, one of the five escapees of the apocalypse.

question: What is the story's genre?

answer: Speculative/science fiction.

question: How is a consensus reached?

answer: Adam eliminates the other four consciousnesses so that the machine accepts the consensus of one (himself).

question: In what time period is the story set?

answer: Either very far into the future (at least 24,000 years) or it could be describing the creation of humans on Earth in the very distant past.

question: Write a ~4 sentence summary.

answer: After an ecological apocalypse on Earth, the five humans who escaped spend 24,000 years debating the next step. They have the technology to resurrect the human race, but first they must come to a consensus about the perfect number of humans to bring back. The narrator has abstained from the debate and has made plans to remove the other four consciousnesses from the equation so that the technology will accept his decision as a consensus of one. He does so, and as he perceives the Earth for the first time in millennia, he introduces himself as Adam.


text:
It appears appropriate to put this report into plain English, highlight its significant areas and make it very straightforward for the average person to understand the main thrust of this “official secret”.

The McCrone report is a document often referred to by

Nationalists or those generally in favour of the restoration of Scotland’s sovereign powers as something of a mystic Holy Grail with regards to proving Westminster's lies and deceit.
For those who have read it, it’s shocking. The reaction to its draft by Westminster is even more so. The report was buried in the Whitehall’s vaults for 30 years under the auspices of the “Official Secrets Act”.
As we all know, the Official Secrets Act is there to protect The State form prejudicial interferences which may affect National Security. Therefore, we need to understand exactly what that is and how anything gets that designation. Was it appropriate in this instance?

Fundamentally a document can be classed as an official secret, if it contains information which is construed to be prejudicial to the State, basically the implication is the information could be used by enemies of the State, most often such classification would be seen in times of war and applied to military aspects of the State. A democracy really should not have official secrets of a civilian nature, especially during periods of peace.

Therefore, in the UK almost any official article prejudicial to the perceived security or interests of the State can be designated an officially secret document, and an individual could apparently have been prosecuted based upon character alone if it were even suspected they might have been thinking about discussing or disseminating it. Talk about character assassination.

Every appearance is that the UK government is substantially abusing its authority by invoking this heavyweight power against a peacetime document, which simply asks questions surrounding the implications of a mineral deposit discovered within one of its constituent nations.

It is clear this report was classified as an “official secret”, for to release it would have ended London rule. The pretext was it endangered the state as controlled by the UK parliament, and it had to be crushed prior to any distribution. The reason being, if it became public knowledge then attempts at suppression could easily be argued to violate UN charters on the rights of indigenous populations.

At a minimum, it could/should have lead to an entirely different Scotland today.

In reading the report it is obvious the Westminster government of the day put London before Scotland and chose, in time of peace, to enact legislation designed to protect the state against antagonistic foreign interests.

The only available interpretation here was that the London government viewed Scots knowledge of the report as an inimical foreign interest.

Reading the report it becomes clear why there was a cover up and why confusion, confabulation, lies and misdirection remain the apparent order of the day for many in the London establishment even as we head for another Scottish independence referendum – having won the first in 1979.

The report commissioned by Ted Heath in 1974, was written specifically to assess the implications for Westminster with regards to both the SNP and the EEC following the discovery of North Sea Oil. Heath lost the October general election to Harold Wilson. Both Labour and the Conservatives could have come clean and revealed this report. Neither did.

The paper began by acknowledging that _“THE WHOLE FRAMEWORK WITHIN WHICH THE ECONOMIC IMPLICATIONS OF NATIONALISM WERE ARGUED HAS INDEED BEEN ALTERED”_. Fundamentally the opening paragraph says it is a whole new ball game and Scotland’s just been gifted an unassailable 5-0 lead.

The document continues by highlighting the underlying causes of discontent in Scotland and acknowledges _“THESE PROBLEMS HAVE NOT BEEN OVERCOME, NOR DO THEY LOOK AS IF THEY WILL BE IN THE FORESEEABLE FUTURE”_. McCrone is basically stating that under the political status quo, Scotland can only anticipate the status quo of poor health, deprivation and relative economic stagnation.

We can assume any government would not wish this for its electorate, no matter how small a portion. Westminster evidenced this is not the case in London. The only clearly available interpretation is that Scot’s don’t matter.

McCrone therefore concluded the opening overview with the statement _“THE IMPORTANCE OF NORTH SEA OIL IS THAT IT RAISES JUST THIS [ECONOMIC] ISSUE IN A MORE ACUTE FORM THAN AT ANY OTHER TIME SINCE THE ACT OF UNION WAS PASSED”_.

In plain English – the discovery of the oil is a game changer and not one Westminster can defend against, it threatens the very existence of the British State more than anything else has in almost three centuries.

Fundamentally that statement put it into the realms of the Official Secrets Act. The report, if released, had every expectation of undermining the establishment within the British State.

The inappropriateness of burying this document was irrelevant in the eyes of the ruling government of the day; to make this an “official secret” was a fundamental requirement for Westminster. It did not matter that they were lying to an already deprived populous, who were no external threat. It _had to be buried,_ before a strong campaign of disinformation could proceed. This led to the 1979 referendum which the Unionists still lost.

As the report progresses McCrone acknowledges that Scotland’s main impediment to national economic success is Westminster and its London-centric policies. He states it is _“PARTLY A QUESTION OF THE SCALE OF THE SCOTTISH ECONOMY, BUT MORE OF THE EXTENT TO WHICH IT HAS BEEN INTEGRATED WITH THE REST OF THE UK [ENGLAND] OVER THE LAST 270 YEARS”_.

In his next paragraph he ties both unemployment in Scotland and migration from Scotland to the effect of the Union and its policies before stressing three ways an independent Scots government could prosper.

He recommends protection of Scotland’s existing and new industries through taxes and tariffs, but indicates that there may be repercussions from the EEC; though he describes that what may come from the EEC is likely to be insignificant in comparison to the reprisals from England.
Basically he’s saying an independent Scotland shouldn’t expect Westminster to play nice.

He then suggests a Scotland implements a self directed fiscal policy, one which benefits Scots, not London.

McCrone makes the case that this independent Scotland could afford policies that England could not match. He’s basically warning Westminster at this point that they should expect to have an economic powerhouse as a neighbour, small in relative size but wielding far more power in this present world.

He then proceeds to discuss the Kilbrandon Commission and its ramifications, where Scotland was shown to need English subsidy. However, Kilbrandon had ignored oil revenues, and consequently showed the need for a reduction in an independent Scotland’s budget, a subsidy from England or significant borrowing.

McCrone disagreed with Kilbrandon, noting even then without oil, it would be feasible for an independent Scotland to balance the books. Achieving this end primarily by no longer contributing to the extremely high UK defense budget and by implementing a modest devaluation of the Scots pound. Other potential implications were viewed by McCrone, but none were seen as “deal breakers” on the path to independence. He noted that with the advent of oil, the Kilbrandon Report was a dead duck; however, Westminster used it most effectively.

In the report, McCrone went so far as to suggest without considering the discovery of oil, that the above measures would be enough to stimulate the economy, provide jobs and growth and put the nation on a firm footing.

With the discovery of oil he noted, it might be difficult to contain the rise in value of the Scots pound.

It’s useful to understand that Scotland under UK fiscal policy has seen more than a 100% currency devaluation since the McCrone report. Under Westminster’s stewardship our current high point in Scotland is that we’re now stumbling into “Austerity”. No one can predict what might have happened had we the control of our own fiscal levers for the last thirty five years, but we can safely say it would have taken several administrations exhibiting unforeseen levels of gross incompetency to take us anywhere close to the area Westminster has us today.

Effectively in the time since this report was written nothing has changed.
McCrone then concludes his opening gambit by saying that for Scotland to succeed, Scotland requires economic sovereignty.

Economic sovereignty is what our upcoming referendum is truly about.

McCrone then proceeded to discuss the oil issue in greater depth – making it clear he was simply referencing Scotland’s “traditional” industries to this point as he clearly states _“THE ANALYSIS IN THE LAST SECTION IS BASED UPON THE SITUATION AS IT APPEARED BEFORE THE DISCOVERY OF NORTH SEA OIL”_.

McCrone begins the section on oil’s implications by stating the department of trade and industry is hiding the revenue data from the public, the values he assigned have been removed or redacted from the original report by the UK government, it was apparently done with a black marker.

The document concludes that paragraph by saying the _“significance of this [omission of true value] has probably not been appreciated by the public”._ Or in other words “I believe the public has no idea of how much you are lying to them by omission”.

McCrone then attacks Westminster for rubbishing SNP claims about values and mismanagement of resources without making available documentary evidence, but acknowledges the government’s case was being bought by the Scots voting public who were being led to believe the SNP figures were _“PRETTY WILD”_.

He then alluded to how Norwegian policy supported the SNP claims of Westminster incompetence. He went so far as to use the phrase _“THIS HAS SHOWN THE TOTAL INADEQUACY OF GOVERNMENT ARRANGEMENTS TO SECURE REVENUE…”_ before concluding the section with the clear and unambiguous statement _“ALL THAT IS WRONG WITH THE SNP ESTIMATE NOW IS THAT IT IS FAR TOO LOW”_.

So, the SNP grossly underestimated the oil revenues, Westminster used the media with all its might, convinced the Scots that the SNP estimate was _“pretty wild”_ on the high side and that it would _“run out soon”_ while all along, London was fully aware that the SNP was grossly underestimating as only Whitehall had the real data.

That’s on top of the fact Scotland already had a viable economy even without the oil.

The report then advanced into the realm of oil revenues on Scotland’s balance sheet, concluding that she could fundamentally be in better position than Norway presently discovers herself, with the statement _“WHAT IS QUITE CLEAR IS THAT THE BALANCE OF PAYMENTS FROM NORTH SEA OIL WOULD EASILY …. TRANSFORM SCOTLAND INTO A COUNTRY WITH A SUBSTANTIAL AND CHRONIC SURPLUS”_.

This is worth repeating. Scotland would have no deficit, Scotland would have no debt.

McCrone went on to state that these numbers and statements were based on estimates that were already very conservative and consequently, the true picture for Scotland was much brighter than that painted above.

Interestingly the document then goes on to discuss the ability of England to claim a proportional level of North Sea Oil based upon a UK asset claim and demand disbursion based upon population ratio, effectively giving England over 90% of North Sea Oil reserves. The report threw this assertion out with both the baby and the bathwater. It stated _“DISPUTE ON THESE MATTERS MIGHT WELL OCCASION MUCH BITTERNESS BETWEEN THE TWO COUNTRIES, BUT IT IS HARD TO SEE ANY CONCLUSION OTHER THAN TO ALLOW SCOTLAND TO HAVE THAT PART OF THE CONTINENTAL SHELF WHICH WOULD HAVE BEEN HERS IF SHE HAD BEEN INDEPENDENT ALL ALONG.”_

McCrone concludes this section of his report with the following summary, a summary as accurate today as it was over thirty five years ago.

_“LT MUST BE CONCLUDED THEREFORE THAT LARGE REVENUES AND BALANCE OF PAYMENTS GAINS WOULD INDEED ACCRUE TO A SCOTTISH GOVERNMENT IN THE EVENT OF INDEPENDENCE PROVIDED THAT STEPS ARE TAKEN EITHER BY CARRIED INTEREST OR TAXATION TO SECURE THE GOVERNMENT ‘TAKE’._

_“UNDOUBTEDLY THIS WOULD BANISH ANY ANXIETIES THE GOVERNMENT MIGHT HAVE HAD ABOUT ITS BUDGETARY POSITION OR ITS BALANCE OF PAYMENTS. THE COUNTRY WOULD TEND TO BE IN CHRONIC SURPLUS TO QUITE AN EMBARRASSING DEGREE AND ITS CURRENCY WOULD BECOME THE HARDEST IN EUROPE WITH THE EXCEPTION OF PERHAPS THE NORWEGIAN KRONER”_.

McCrone hypothesized that a Scots pound would be worth 20% more than Bank of England issue within two years, with little to no downside in the Scots economy.
_“JUST AS DEPOSED MONARCHS AND AFRICAN LEADERS HAVE IN THE PAST USED THE SWISS FRANC AS A HAVEN OF SECURITY, SO NOW WOULD THE SCOTTISH POUND BE SEEN AS A GOOD HEDGE AGAINST INFLATION AND DEVALUATION AND THE SCOTTISH BANKS COULD EXPECT TO FIND THEMSELVES INUNDATED WITH A SPECULATIVE INFLOW OF FOREIGN FUNDS”_.
Effectively this can be taken to read that there would have been no banking collapse or credit crises in an independent Scotland, whereas what happened under Westminster’s guiding gauntlet is now a matter for the historians.

The McCrone report concludes with a reasonably detailed examination of steps the Scottish Government could take to ensure Scotland’s prosperity over the longer term; there were surprisingly few negatives or cautionary aspects.

If this 1707 Union were a private contract, Scotland would carry none of the UK debt and in the upcoming negotiation for independence, Westminster would be open to severe penalties for fraud and deception.

question: What does the text say about who commissioned the McCrone report?

answer: Ted Heath commissioned the McCrone report in 1974 to assess the implications for Westminster following the discovery of North Sea oil.

question: What conclusion does the report offer?

answer: The report concludes that the discovery of North Sea oil is a threat to the British state. The threat is primarily economic, and is based on the importance of Scotland remaining part of the state (the United Kingdom). The author of the article describes the report as providing direct ties between economic struggles in Scotland and London-centric policies. The report ends by detailing steps the Scottish government could take to ensure Scotland's long-term prosperity.

question: What does the text say about Northern Ireland?

question: What does the text say about prosecuting corporate tax evasion?


text:
'Tomorrow will just have to be what today wasn't'. That was my mother’s mantra. She said it after every hard shift, every failed test, every break up, and every argument. She whispered it into my ears as she wiped tears off my cheeks. I used to tell myself the same thing when things went awry. I had always put faith into words, especially those words. Words defined my life.
It was 4:15 in the morning on the sixteenth of July. There was nothing special about the time or the date, but my brain woke me up regardless. I remember how cold it was in my room. I reached out of bed, tapped the small touch lamp on the bedside table, grabbed the robe that hung off the post of my bed and buried myself inside of it. Sliding my feet into my slippers, I crossed the room to turn on my space heater.

Had I lived anywhere else, the heater probably would’ve been stored away with holiday decorations and winter jackets, but I didn’t live anywhere else. I lived in a studio apartment with very little space. I didn’t own any holiday decorations and all of my winter clothes were hung up and stuffed into my little closet behind all of my summer clothes. I crossed the room and turned the knob on my fourteen dollar space heater to the single notch that signified power level one. The lamp lost a little bit of light. I shuffled toward my bed, kicked off the slippers and did a belly flop onto the mattress. The room filled with the quiet hum of the heater converting the temperature of the air and I squirmed under the comforter. Laying in my bed, wrapped in a robe and snuggled under a blanket, I knew I wasn’t getting back to sleep that night. I had only slept for about three hours and already my brain had kicked me into consciousness and given me the finger. I laid there for a few minutes and decided, ’Fuck it. If I’m going to be awake, I’m going to work’. I grabbed the laptop from the other side of the end table, nearly knocking the lamp off as I did. I pushed the lamp back into place, increasing its brightness ever so slightly. I flipped the laptop open and was greeted by a page full of text.

Words had always comforted me. Growing up, my mother always knew exactly what to say to make things better. She had so many pearls of wisdom to hand out and I had always eagerly accepted them. It had just been her and I growing up. After I was born, the doctor told her she wouldn’t have any more children. Her husband, who I refused to acknowledge as being my father (why should I, I never even saw his face), couldn’t stand to be with a woman who couldn’t provide him with a son so he left her with her daughter without a trace. Kids at school were always kind enough to point out how weird it was that Lindsay didn’t have a dad and when I would report their observations to my mother, she would always get down on her knees, put her hands on my shoulders and ask me, “Are those children smarter than you?” to which I always replied, “No”. Her follow up would be something similar to “Are the girls prettier than you?” This question had bothered me because I looked nothing like my mother (which, naturally, meant that I looked like her ex-husband). But, in the end, the answer was usually “No”. She would ask if they were stronger or braver than me and, as the queen of dares and arm wrestling, I always responded in the negative. She would wrap all of these questions up with one final one, the only one that really mattered.

“So then, Lindsay, are the kids with fathers better than you?”

And I always knew they weren’t. There were some kids in town that were, but they all went to a private school and I never had to see them anyway. I went to the only public school in my town. Everyone knew everyone else and we were all poor. No one had a guest bedroom and most of the houses had only one bathroom. My mom worked as a nurse during the day at the local nursing home and bartended during the night. She was always home when I woke up, when school let out, and when I went to sleep. As soon as I was old enough, I got a job helping out at the library after school. I got lost in books and excelled in English and ended up writing my way out of that little town and into Chicago. I took my mother with me, but she didn’t make it very long in a big city. She was exceedingly proud of my success but I always told her that she was the one who had given it to me.

I opened the laptop to find a page mostly filled with words. They were small money words. I hadn’t produced big money words since my mother died. I watched the cursor blink, waiting to be jettisoned across the screen by a slew of creativity or inspiration but it just stood there and blinked at me. I was in the middle of reading the paragraph preceding the boring cursor when I heard a rattling outside of my bedroom. My brain shut down and I stared at my bedroom door, waiting to see if it would bust inward. Someone was in my apartment. I knew that because the closest I came to a pet was the plastic tree by the front door and the dead fern by the window. I remember thinking ’Who the fuck would break in to my shitty apartment?’ but that didn’t matter. What mattered was that somebody had. My lamp was on and my laptop was illuminating my room, so whoever it was probably knew that I was awake. Did they know that I knew they were there?

title: [MS] Actually looking for feedback on my firsts few paragraphs

question: Why does Lindsay live so frugally if she has made big money writing?

answer: She may have spent all the money that she made before her mother died. Now she only writes small money words. Perhaps she prefers to save than to spend.

question: How can the mother ensure that she's home at all the right times when working two jobs?

answer: It could be that she has sacrificed income to ensure that she is there for her daughter at crucial times?

question: Why does Lindsay think that the kids that go to the private school are better than her?

answer: Richer doesn't mean better so this is a strange conclusion. Perhaps they look prettier or smarter because of their newer or more expensive outfits.

question: What difference does it make if the intruder knows that Lindsay knows that they are there or not?

answer: They might behave differently, perhaps more careful.

question: Write a ~13 sentence summary.

answer:
It’s 4.15 on the 16th of July when the narrator awakes. She knows that she won’t get back to sleep so she decides to work. She opens her laptop.

The narrator thinks back on her childhood. She grew up an only child with a single parent, her mother. When her mother was told that she could never have any more children, her husband left.
They were poor and her mother worked two jobs. Lindsay got a job at the library and read prolifically. She excelled in English and wrote her way into Chicago. Her mother was proud but couldn’t make it in the big city. Lindsay has not made much money writing since her mother died.

Lindsay realizes that someone has broken into her apartment. They must know she’s awake but do they know that she is aware of their presence.


text:
Hey guys this is my first post on this forum and I hope you guys enjoy. Feel free to build on this idea and I hope Rockstar makes this a reality.

Grand Theft Auto Online: Slightly Corrupt Cops Update

Crime can’t exist without the Law, and who better to enforce it than a middle-age and slightly below average corrupt police officer. The LSPD is now hiring scrubs like you to put dirty criminal scum behind bars in the most controversial way possible. Enlist now and get all perks of being a cop in Los Santos like stealing vehicles from not so innocent daily commuters without any punishment.

HOW TO BECOME A COP:

To become a Police Officer, go to the Character Selection menu, which can be found under the ‘Online’ Tab in the Start Menu. Once you are in the Character Selection menu, you will be given the option to make a third character, which will be a Police Officer. After you have finished changing the appearance of your new character, a cutscene will play which shows your character being flown into Los Santos. After arriving at the airport, you are greeted by Steve Haines, and you are driven to the Mission Row Police Station. You are then introduced to Howard Tucker, who is the Chief Of Police at the Mission Row Police Station, who hands you your Police Badge and is given the rank of Officer.

INTRODUCTION:
Tucker will take you through different events of training. The first one takes place in the Gun Range. You are handed a Pistol, and are instructed to hit all the targets. Getting a Gold medal will get you an award. After the Gun Range training, you are taken outside and behind the wheel of a Police Cruiser, which then a report of an Armed Robbery in Downtown Los Santos comes through the radio, and describes the getaway car as being a Red Sports Car. You are then instructed to go to the area, and on the way, you see the suspect vehicle. After turning on the police lights, the suspect vehicle starts to speed up. You are then tasked with chasing the vehicle and ramming it off the side of the road. Once the suspect vehicle has been neutralised, the criminal steps out of the car with his hands up, and you are then instructed with arresting the man and bringing him back to the Police Station. You are then given a Pistol (Or Service Pistol if you Achieved Gold in the Gun Range Training), a Nightstick, a Stun Gun and Handcuffs and then sent to Freemode.

BEING A COP IN FREEMODE:

You have two modes in Freemode: Off Duty and On Duty. When you are Off Duty, Freemode becomes very similar to Standard Freemode but you can still arrest people and call for backup. To become On Duty, go into the Interaction menu and select the “Police Option”. You can then select ‘On Duty’. Once you do, you are prompted to drive to your Police Garage and get into a Police Vehicle. On Duty gives you alerts on your screens when a player in Freemode gains a Wanted Level over 2 stars. You can then choose to hunt that player down and arrest them or neutralise them to gain a bonus. You can also take part in New Freemode events as a police officer, as well as stop players from delivering stolen vehicles and other illegal goods. You can also choose to kill fellow Police Officers, but choosing to do so will get you a Wanted Level of 4 Stars and will get you placed Off-Duty with a 12 Hour Penalty. You can also intercept Briefcases from Freemode Events and VIP Work and can choose to deliver it to a Police Station as evidence or to the regular destination.

ARRESTING PLAYERS WITH A WANTED LEVEL:

If you choose to hunt down a player with a Wanted Level with or above 2 Stars, everything else on the radar will disappear except for the suspects icon and the Police Station Icon. Once you get near the player, you can either choose to kill the player or arrest him. The player can either choose to surrender or keep running. A Stun Gun or Taser is very handy in temporarily stopping players who decide to run in order to make arrest. Killing or Arresting said player will gain you a Government Funding Bonus, but an Arrest will always gain you more. To gain a bonus for arresting the player, you must get them in the back of your car and drive them back to the police station.

GOVERNMENT FUNDING:

This update brings a new currency to GTA:Online in the form of Government Funds. Police Officers can still have regular In-Game Currency, but they also have Government Funds. These funds can be used to buy Police weapons, vehicles, special upgrades as well as gear. Government Funding is earned from Police Missions, Raids, Freemode Events, PvP Jobs, and Arrests. During a Freemode event which requires you to deliver evidence (Like money) back to the police station, you can choose to keep some for yourself or you can choose to keep all of it. If you do however, you will be rewarded less Government Funds as well as less RP.

RANKS:

While playing as a Cop in GTA: Online, you can rise through the ranks of the Police System by gaining RP, similar to leveling up as a regular character. The ranks are as following:

Officer I

Officer II

Officer II

Detective I

Detective II

Detective III

Sergeant I

Sergeant II

Sergeant III

Lieutenant I

Lieutenant II

Lieutenant III

Captain I

Captain II

Captain III

Commander

Deputy Chief of Police

Chief Of Police

POLICE MISSIONS:

As a Cop, you can no longer do regular Contact Missions which are given to you by Simeon or Martin, but you can now do Police Missions. Police Missions usually involve you retrieving evidence, chasing down criminals as well as making arrests. Ranking up will gain you access to new Police Missions. The new update also features a new Adversary modes called Hostage Rescue, in which one team (The Cops) have to try and rescue the hostages from captivity by the second team (The Criminals).

NEW FREEMODE EVENTS:

The new update brings along 2 new Freemode events. The first is called Hold The Cash, in which a big dump of cash is left somewhere in Los Santos. Regular players can fight to the death to take it for themselves. But cops can work together to bring the cash back to a Police Station as evidence to receive In Game Cash, Funds and RP or they can choose to keep a little for themselves. The second Freemode Event coming with the new update is called Deliver The Stash, where a car with drugs is placed somewhere on the map. Regular players can get in the car and deliver it for Cash and RP but Cops can choose to deliver it as evidence to Police Station for Government Funds.

RAIDS:

Coming with this new Update is 5 Raids, which will be replacing Heists if you choose to play as a cop. Raids are unlocked after receiving an office at the Police Station, which is gained through reaching the rank Detective I. Once your reach the rank, you will get a call from Chief Tucker, who informs you about an investigation he wants you to carry out. Here are the 5 Raids with their descriptions:

FLEECA JOB BUST: (Requires 2 players)

Following the robbery of a Fleeca Bank near the Banham Canyon, the LSPD received an anonymous tip involving a bunch of wannabe Bank Robbers who plan to hit another Fleeca Bank in Pillbox Hill. Investigate the tip and choose a way to catch the criminals with their pants down.

DRUG TRAFFICKING BUST: (Requires 4 Players)

No one knows how drugs are being brought into Los Santos, but we always had a feeling it would be through the Port of LS, and now one of our insiders is confirming. You have two jobs, catch those criminal scum and don’t mess it up.

CONVOY BREAKOUT BUST: (Requires 4 Players)

Looks like the man in charge of the Drug Op involving the Ports was a lot more High Profile than we thought. We just got orders to move him Bolingbroke but our insider just gave us more info regarding a break out before he was not so tragically terminated by the Drug Traffickers. Do anything you can to make sure you stop the breakout from happening.

BLAINE COUNTY DRUG OP BUST: (Requires 4 Players)

After the LSPD horrendously failed trying to bust Wanted Man Trevor Philips, the LSPD now turns to you and your squad. Lead an investigation in order to find out where Mr Philips is hiding all his drugs as well as to arrest the man himself. Caution, the man is armed and extremely dangerous.

DOWNTOWN TERRORIST PLOT: (Requires 4 Players)

The FIB called, and they want you. They just picked up wind about a serious terrorist plot involving the highest tower in Los Santos, the Maze Bank tower. Work alongside Agent Haines in order to stop the terrorists from achieving their goal in the most patriotic way possible.

POLICE GARAGE AND UPGRADING POLICE VEHICLES:

Becoming a Police Officer will grant you access to a Police Garage. You start off with a small garage, which can only store 2 Police Vehicles (Not Regular Vehicles). Ranking up will grant you access to spend Government Funds on a bigger garage, with the maximum size being a 10 car garage. The update also brings a new mod shop to Los Santos called Interceptor Tuners, which is located in Hawick. You can bring certified Police Vehicles here to buy custom options in order to make your job as a Police Officer even easier. You can also bring Certified Civilian Cars in order to convert them into Police Cars. Some of the Customization Options include Sirens, Bull Bars and Police Liveries. Here is the list of Certified Civilian Cars:

Karin Dilettante

Benefactor Panto

Ocelot F620

Ubermacht Zion

Ubermacht Oracle (2)

BF Bifta

Coil Brawler

Benefactor Dubsta 6x6

Declasse Rancher XL

Vapid Sandking XL

HVY Insurgent

Vapid Dominator

Bravado Gauntlet

Cheval Fugitive

Benefactor Schafter V12

Vapid Stanier

Albany Washington

Obey 9F

Bravado Buffalo S

Invetero Coquette

Benefactor Schwartzer

Albany Cavalcade

Benefactor Dubsta

Mammoth Patriot

Bravado Rumpo

Vapid Guardian

Pegassi Bati 801

Principe Lectro

Pegassi Zentorno

Progen T20

Overflod Entity XF

POLICE MENU:

To aid your Duties as a Police Officer, a new ‘Police’ Menu is being added to The Interaction Menu. Here you can choose to be Off-Duty or On-Duty as well as call for Police backup, NOOSE backup and Military Backup. You can also call for Helicopter and Boat pickup. All these options (Excluding Off/On-Duty option) will cost Government Funds.

NEW WEAPONS:

The new update also brings a variety of weapons to GTA Online. These weapons can be purchased by both Regular players and Police Officers:

Service Pistol (Glock 18)

Tactical Rifle (M16A3)

Compact SMG (MP5K)

Heavy Launcher (FGM-142 Javelin)

Scout Rifle (M40A5)

Stun Gun

Hand Taser

NEW VEHICLES:

The update also gives you the option to buy new vehicles as well as vehicles that we already in game:

VEHICLES THAT CAN ONLY BE PURCHASED BY POLICE OFFICERS:

Vapid Police Cruiser

Vapid Police Cruiser (New)

Bravado Police Cruiser (Unlocked after completing FLEECA JOB BUST)

Declasse Police Transporter (Unlocked after completing FLEECA JOB BUST)

Vapid Sheriff Cruiser (Unlocked after completing BLAINE COUNTY DRUG OP BUST)

Declasse Sheriff SUV (Unlocked after completing BLAINE COUNTY DRUG OP BUST)

Vapid Unmarked Cruiser (Unlocked after completing CONVOY BREAKOUT BUST)

Police Riot Van (Unlocked after completing DRUG TRAFFICKING BUST)

Western Police Bike (Unlocked after completing CONVOY BREAKOUT BUST)

Declasse Park Ranger (Unlocked after completing BLAINE COUNTY DRUG OP BUST)

Bravado FIB (Unlocked After Completing DOWNTOWN TERRORIST PLOT BUST)

Declasse FIB (Unlocked After Completing DOWNTOWN TERRORIST PLOT BUST)

Police Predator (Boat) (Unlocked after completing DRUG TRAFFICKING BUST)

Buckingham Police Maverick (Helicopter) (Unlocked after completing DRUG TRAFFICKING BUST)

HVY APC (Unlocked After Completing DOWNTOWN TERRORIST PLOT BUST)

VEHICLES THAT CAN BE PURCHASED BY ANYONE:

Vapid Obstructer (Vapid Police Cruiser Stock)

Vapid Apex (Vapid Police Cruiser New Stock)

Western Majestic (Police Bike Stock)

MISCELLANEOUS:

-Police Officers will not be able to buy Pegasus Vehicles but can still buy regular cars, clothing, apartments, weapons and a Yacht.

-Regular Players will not be able to take part in Raids or Police Missions.

-Once the player reaches the rank Chief Of Police, they can choose to change which station the operate at, including Sheriff Stations.

-Police Officers can’t have an Active Personal Vehicle while On-Duty, and can’t have an Active Patrol Vehicle while Off-Duty

-Police Officers will not have access to criminal contacts like Simeon, Martin and Lamar as well as Pegasus but will have access to a new contact called LSPD, where they can request Police Vehicles like boats and helicopters.

question: Summarize the new features that the writer came up with.

answer: The writer's idea revolves around giving the player the role of a cop in Grand Theft Auto Online, this makes the gameplay perspective different since the game normally puts players on the opposite end of the law. This will start with a tutorial through a training session for using police equipment and vehicles, as well as playing some of the cop scenarios. The game then moves into freemode which allows the player to go around as they want, though new Off Duty and On Duty statuses will be in play as well. These two modes determine what kinds of activities will be available to players, for example, an on-duty player can arrest other players who have a wanted level of 2 stars or more. The writer then goes one to provide various multiplayer modes for the game, requiring teams of 2 or 4 players depending on the scenario. Raids will replace heists, and are typical of police fare: stopping drugs, robberies, etc. As cops, players will also have access to a different set of vehicles and weapons.