text:
Last Stop

Sweat begins to drip down Reznov’s face as the countryside of his homeland rushes by his window. He knows what’s coming up and it’s a necessity that he maintains his composure yet his heart starts to palpitate and palms become clammy as the border crossing gets closer and closer. He’s confused and taken back by his anxious state. He’s forgotten the first rule in his line of work; maintain a calm state of mind and under no circumstances …break… character. This directly leads into rule number two; don’t, get, caught. Then again this time it isn’t really work. He’s not pretending anymore, not adopting a new character when he arrives at his destination nor are there any contacts to help…this time it’s just him. This time it’s personal. No more fake IDs and passports and most importantly no more help from Shinra Headquarters.

Shinra Headquarters. He shudders at the thought of his old place of work. What he believed in, what he worked for, what he fought for, what he lived for, and yet, the whole reason why he’s fleeing. He thinks back on what caused him to turn his back on his homeland, never to return, to effectively run from his country and kin and seek refuge in ‘enemy’ territory. All of his life he thought he was fighting for the right reasons. He’s seen so much now that he doesn’t know what to think. Was everything he believed in and dedicated his life for a lie? All propaganda from a totalitarian and fascist government that he himself worked for and gathered intel for and worst still…believed in. It’s like his whole world has been tipped upside down since he broke free from that world of despair and oppressive tyranny. He still can’t believe that he couldn’t see what kind of world he was living in worse yet working for. Not until now.  Peace sells…but who’s buying? They tried to control everything, control people to the point of oppression, control food, control luxury items, control thought, control free speech. Control freedom. It’s like the harder you squeeze your fist the more easily people will see cracks between your fingers like he did. He finally realised that the people and government he was working for and had once believed in was incompatible with his morals.

As he thinks this he is disrupted by the chime of a the train announcement; “Last stop coming up; The International border crossing at Safia” .

His stomach drops and he feels as though he’s just gone over the crest of a steep rollercoaster experiencing negative gravity. He turns pale, shudders as if someone had poured ice cold water down his back. Then Reznov feels unbearably ill. He takes several deep breaths trying to keep calm and collected. He reflects on  past missions he has completed - hundreds of dangerous and risky operations, with many involving tricky border crossings, even been in life threatening situations several times and he’s done this all without batting an eyelid. Yet now that has been backed into fleeing and he is a mess. He’s meant to be a professional yet right now he’s acting like an amateur, with nerves worse than the first day on the job. Not calm or confident in his expert ability. He’s mouth feels full of cotton wool and his throat dry.

Suddenly he hears foot steps behind him. This is it he thinks. It’s over. Well I’m not going out without a fight he mutters as he mentally prepares himself. The footsteps get closer. His fight or flight response kicks in and there’s an adrenalin surge throughout his body. He has the look of a prepared killer in is mako green eyes and he is ready. He feels a hand on his shoulder.

“Excuse me, sir...”

He grabs the hand and pins the person against the wall of the train violently. To his horror he sees a petrified young female train attendant. What has he done how could he do this he thinks.

“S..sorry” Reznov stutters then he runs to the restroom.

He slams closed the door, puts his hands against the sink and looks at himself in the mirror dripping in sweat still feeling unbearably ill.

He was ready to kill that poor young train attendant without so much as a second thought, thank god he didn’t he thinks. He splashes water on his face as deeply exhales; he doesn’t know what to do now. He’s questioning his ability, wondering if it’s worth it, wondering if he’ll even make it. He’s lost.

“This is your driver speaking, we are 5 minutes away from the international border crossing have your RFID chips and registration ready, thank you for traveling skyline railway have a safe trip”

He can’t do this he thinks. He looks in his front pocket at his last resort. The last line of defence for any Shinra covert agent. Cyanide. He takes out his forged registration and looks at where the RFID chip he made and programed was in his arm. In his right hand is his registration. In his left hand is a cyanide pill. Possible freedom. Or instant escape. He hears the train screech on the breaks as they arrive at their last stop. It’s time to decide…

title: Last Stop (Short story I wrote for school feedback is appreciated)

question: - What is "Shinra"?

answer: - It seems to be a special agency headquarters the protagonist has to infiltrate.

question: - Is this a choose-your-own-adventure?

answer: - It seems to end on a cliffhanger.

question: - What is the spy protagonist doing, and what did he fail at?

answer: - He seems to be followed by someone, and if his cover is blown, he will have failed.

question: - Why are the border crossings so tense?

answer: - There seems to have been some manner of civil unrest.

question: Write a ~3 sentence summary.

answer: Reznov is on a train, traversing the border between his homeland and a place that houses the Shinra Headquarters- where he's headed. He's especially nervous, and nearly attacks a harmless train attendant who checks on him in the restroom. As he approaches the order, the tension mounts, and he considers that he has cyanide-the last defense for any Shinra agent, should one be tailing him.


split: train

text:
[Marioending.jpg]
CONGRATULATIONS! THIS HAS BEEN CHOSEN TO BE A FEATURED ARTICLE, MAKING IT AN ARTICLE OF INTEREST.

_For the article about the series, please see "Super Smash Bros. (series)"._
For the other games see _Super Smash Bros. Melee_, _Super Smash Bros. Brawl_, _Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U_ and _Super Smash Bros. Ultimate_.
_SUPER SMASH BROS._ (ニンテンドウオールスター! 大乱闘スマッシュブラザーズ, _Nintendo All-Star! Great Fray Smash Brothers_) often known as _SSB_, _SMASH 64_, _SSB64_, and _SUPER SMASH BROS. 64_, is a fighting game featuring Nintendo's "all-stars" as playable characters, and is the debut game of the _Super Smash Bros._ game series. It has five sequels: _Super Smash Bros. Melee_, _Super Smash Bros. Brawl_, _Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS, Super Smash Bros. for Wii U_, and _Super Smash Bros. Ultimate_.

It was released in Japan on January 21, 1999, in North America on April 26, 1999, and in Europe on November 19, 1999. It is playable on Nintendo 64 and the iQue Player and was made available on theWii's Virtual Console on January 20, 2009 in Japan, June 12, 2009 in Europe, and December 21, 2009 in North America.

-   1 Intro
-   2 Gameplay
    -   2.1 Single Player
    -   2.2 Multiplayer
-   3 Characters
    -   3.1 Playable Characters
    -   3.2 Non-playable characters
-   4 Stages
    -   4.1 Playable Stages
    -   4.2 1P Game-only stages
    -   4.3 Non-playable stages
-   5 Items
-   6 Modes
    -   6.1 1P Mode
    -   6.2 Vs Mode
-   7 Tournament play
-   8 Online Play
-   9 Gallery
-   10 Trailers
-   11 Trivia
-   12 External Links

Intro

[Super_Smash_Bros._-_Intro_Nintendo_64_(HQ)]

Gameplay

The _Super Smash Bros._ series is a dramatic departure from other fighting games, such as _Street Fighter_. Instead of winning by depleting an opponent's life bar, _Smash Bros._ players seek to knock opposing characters off the stage, KOing them. Characters do not have "health bars" in _Super Smash Bros._; they can take an unlimited amount of damage, however, each hit adds to the character's damage percentage. This percentage starts at 0%, but can exceed 100% and caps at 999%, and the higher the damage percentage, the farther an attack will launch an opponent, and the easier it will be to knock them off the stage. Being knocked too far above, beside, or even under the stage will KO a character. If knocked off, a character may attempt to get back onto the stage by jumping or using various "recovery" moves before they reach the stage's boundaries. Some characters have different recovery moves, while others have better jumps. Some characters are heavier, making them harder to knock off the stage, and making it harder for them to get back onto the stage, while others are lighter, making it easier for them to get knocked away, as well as easier for them to get back.

Each character possesses distinctive and unique moves, and various items which can appear during fights. These items can be melee or long-ranged weapons, throw-able items, power-ups, items that lower a character's damage percentage, and more. Items appear randomly out of thin air, but the player can adjust how often the items will appear, if at all. Some items are references to past Nintendo games, like the Star Rod or the Bob-Omb, while others were specifically made for _Super Smash Bros._ Poke Balls are an item, and when thrown, a random Pokemon will appear and attempt to attack all of the players except for the one who threw the Poke Ball.

Most stages have a theme relating to a Nintendo franchise or a specific Nintendo game, and are interactive to the player. Although the stages are rendered in three dimensions, characters in _Super Smash Bros._ can only move on a two-dimensional plane. Some stages also feature random hazards that can help or harm players.

_Super Smash Bros._'s play controls are greatly simplified in comparison to other fighting games. While traditional fighting games require the player to memorize button-input combinations (sometimes lengthy and complicated, and often specific to a character), _Super Smash Bros._ features an easy-to-learn control scheme: A for stanadard attacks and B for special attacks, and the control stick to move. Characters are not limited to constantly facing their opponent, but may run around freely. _Smash Bros._ also implements blocking and dodging mechanics, as well as jumps and double jumps. Grabbing and throwing other characters is also possible. Combining these many ways to play allows different players to make the game as simple or complex as they like.

Single Player

Although the player can choose from five difficulty levels, the game's single-player mode always follows the same series of opponents. This game mode is called Classic Mode in sequels. The player will choose one unlocked character, and battle against a series of characters in a specific order, attempting to defeat them with only a limited amount of lives. If the player loses all of their lives (or runs out of time, regardless how many lives left), they have the option to continue at the cost of a considerable sum of their overall points. Selecting yes cuts their score in half and restarts the battle. Selecting no or not selecting within a ten second countdown will result in a Game Over.

The "Break the Targets" minigame as well as the "Board the Platforms" minigame are two of the remaining single-player games. The objective of the minigames is to break each target or board each platform, respectively. The goal must be achieved without falling off each character-specific stage. The last one is the "Training Mode" section, where the player can choose any of the available characters and the opponent, as well as any stage. When started, a menu can be brought up to gain almost any control, such as slowed game speed, spawning any item, and telling the opponent what to do.

Multiplayer

Up to four people can play in multiplayer mode, which has specific rules predetermined by the players. Stock and timed matches are two of the multiplayer modes of play. This gives each player a certain amount of lives or a selected time limit, before beginning the match. A winner is declared once time runs out, or all but one player are KO'ed.

Characters

There are twelve playable characters in _Super Smash Bros._, eight are available from the start, while four are unlockable.

[]
Official artwork of the default cast of _Super Smash Bros_.

[]
The character-selection screen of _Super Smash Bros._ (all characters unlocked).

Playable Characters

Starter characters (8)
[Mario - Super Smash Bros.png]
Mario
[MarioSymbol(preBrawl).svg]
[Donkeykong - Super Smash Bros.png]
Donkey Kong
[DKSymbol(preBrawl).svg]
[Link - Super Smash Bros.png]
Link
[ZeldaSymbol.svg]
[Samus - Super Smash Bros.png]
Samus
[MetroidSymbol(preBrawl).svg]
[Yoshi - Super Smash Bros.png]
Yoshi
[YoshiSymbol(preBrawl).svg]
[Kirby - Super Smash Bros.png]
Kirby
[KirbySymbol.svg]
[Fox - Super Smash Bros.png]
Fox
[StarFoxSymbol(preBrawl).svg]
[Pikachu - Super Smash Bros.png]
Pikachu
[PokemonSymbol(preBrawl).svg]
Unlockable characters (4)
[Luigi - Super Smash Bros.png]
Luigi
[MarioSymbol(preBrawl).svg]
[Captainfalcon - Super Smash Bros.png]
Captain Falcon
[FZeroSymbol.svg]
[Ness - Super Smash Bros.png]
Ness
[EarthboundSymbol(preBrawl).svg]
[Jigglypuff - Super Smash Bros.png]
Jigglypuff
[PokemonSymbol(preBrawl).svg]
Non-playable characters

Stages

There are a total of nine stages, eight starter stages and one unlockable stage.

Playable Stages

Stages
[PeachsCastleSSB.gif]
Peach's Castle
[MarioSymbol(preBrawl).svg]
[CongoJungleSSB.gif]
Congo Jungle
[DKSymbol(preBrawl).svg]
[HyruleCastleSSB.gif]
Hyrule Castle
[ZeldaSymbol.svg]
[PlanetZebesSSB.gif]
Planet Zebes
[MetroidSymbol(preBrawl).svg]
[MushroomKingdomSSB.gif]
MUSHROOM KINGDOM
[MarioSymbol(preBrawl).svg]
[YoshisIslandSSB.gif]
Yoshi's Island
[YoshiSymbol(preBrawl).svg]
[DreamLandSSB.gif]
Dream Land
[KirbySymbol.svg]
[SectorZSSB.gif]
Sector Z
[StarFoxSymbol(preBrawl).svg]
[SaffronCitySSB.gif]
Saffron City
[PokemonSymbol(preBrawl).svg]
Shown in BOLD, _Mushroom Kingdom_ is the only unlockable stage in _Super Smash Bros._

[]
All nine playable stages in _Super Smash Bros._

1P Game-only stages

Non-playable stages

Items

_CHARACTER ITEMS_
_SMASH ITEMS_

Modes

1P Mode

-   1P Game
-   Training mode
-   Break the Targets
-   Board the Platforms

Vs Mode

-   Versus Mode

Tournament play

Unlike Super Smash Bros. _Melee_, _Super Smash Bros._ never had a large professional competitive scene, but interest in _Super Smash Bros._ has been renewed in recent years with the popularity of Super Smash Bros. _Melee_ and Super Smash Bros. _Brawl_. Players can play _Super Smash Bros._ online through Kaillera using the Project64k emulator. However, there have been more and more tournaments of _Super Smash Bros._ recently due to an influx of new players. Most _Super Smash_ Bros. tournaments are paired up with _Melee_ or long events and most (offline) _Super Smash_ _Bros._ tournaments are located in California, Central Canada, or New Jersey.

Online Play

Although _Super Smash Bros._ does not feature online play, emulators have the ability to do so. Project64k and Mupen64k are the most used emulators of playing online.

Gallery

Trailers

[Super_Smash_Bros_Commercial_(N64)]
Super Smash Bros Commercial (N64)

[Japanese_Super_Smash_Bros._commercial]
Japanese Super Smash Bros. commercial

Trivia

-   It was revealed in an interview with Nintendo's president, Satoru Iwata, that Masahiro Sakurai had intended for Final Smashes to be included in the original _Super Smash Bros._ He claims that he has proof in the form of recorded voices for when characters used their Final Smash. Hacking into the debug menu of the game, Ness's and Captain Falcon's voice clips for final smashes. But there also exist voice clips for Pikachu, Kirby, and Fox that might have been intended for final smashes as well. The idea, however, was never actually implemented until Brawl due to software issues.
-   Super Smash Bros. was originally going to be a game named "Dragon King: The Fighting Game" for the Nintendo 64, and only featured placeholder characters. According to the wife of Masahiro Sakurai, Michiko Sakurai, the "in-house" nickname for Dragon King was "Pepsi Man."
-   The starting eight characters are placed in the order of when they first appeared in their respective titles on the character selection screen, starting with the oldest, Mario and Donkey Kong, and leading to the most recent, Pikachu.
-   When a character is chosen, they perform a brief animation in their player's display box below the character-select array. This is the only game in the series to have this feature.
-   In the credits, Charles Martinet, the voice of Mario and Luigi, was misspelled as "Charles Martinee".
-   In _Super Smash Bros. Melee_ and _Super Smash Bros. Brawl_, the characters are trophies that have been brought to life, as demonstrated in their intro sequences and continue screens. This is not the case in _Super Smash Bros._, in which the characters are instead toys that have been brought to life by Master Hand, and the stages are dioramas.
-   The Japanese Version lacks the "Congratulations" screen when you complete 1 player mode.
    -   The Japanese Version also has completely different sound effects for the hitting of the characters, which are much more realistic like those in _Super Smash Bros. Melee_ and _Super Smash Bros. Brawl_ and other arcade fighting games. This was probably a change done to make the game's sound effects more exaggerated and less realistic to be consistent with the cartoony violence and unrealistic environments/characters the game consisted of. Some speculate, however, that this was actually done for censorship reasons.
    -   The narrator also says "Fox" in a different tone than the Western version, and he says "Battle Royal" instead of "Free-for-all". In the Western versions, the re-recorded voices have a slightly different echo effect than the Japanese original.
-   In the European version of the game, when set to the German Language, the German announcer does not say "Captain Falcon" or "Team Battle" in German.
-   Some items (excluding battering items and containers) and all Pokémon are actually 2D sprites.
-   It's absolutely impossible (without hacking) to clear all the eight digits on the counter that tells how many points the player has earned in 1P Mode.
-   This is the only game in the series to receive a rating of E for everyone. Its sequels Super Smash Bros. Melee and Super Smash Bros. Brawl are both rated T for teen, while _Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS/Wii U_ is rated E10+.
-   This is the only game to exclusively feature Nintendo's heroes. Future installments included playable villains (Bowser, Ganondorf, etc.).
-   The playable characters are all veterans that return in future Super Smash Bros. installments.
-   The Mario and Pokémon universe are the only universes to have more than one playable character in this game. The Yoshi and F-Zero universes have only one playable character in all iterations of _Super smash Bros._
-   In the Japanese version, Mario and Luigi have slightly larger heads than in any other version.
-   Samus is the only female playable character. Nine characters are male, including: Mario, Donkey Kong, Link, Yoshi, Kirby, Fox, Luigi, Captain Falcon and Ness. Pikachu and Jigglypuff have not been confirmed to be male or female.
-   This game actually allows the player to fight characters in Classic Mode that have not been unlocked yet (Luigi is teamed up with Mario in the 2v2).
-   The playable characters in the original _Super Smash Bros._ are all starter characters in _Super Smash Bros. for Wii U_. Ness and Jigglypuff are unlockable characters in _Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS_.
-   _Super Smash Bros._ is the only game to show all the unlockable characters in the intro, being Luigi, Captain Falcon, Ness, and Jigglypuff.
-   There was supposed to have a Racing Mini Game, but it was scrapped.
-   Super Smash Bros. was meant for a Christmas release in December 1998, but was pushed to 1999 for unknown reasons. As the final build of the Japanese version of the game was dated 12/11/1998. (Source: The Cutting Room Floor and SourceGaming).
-   In the intro video the Pokémon Trainer that is walking by Pikachu is possibly was Ash Ketchum from the Pokémon anime series. The Trainer's shoes closely matches of Ash's shoes from the original series.

External Links

-   Wikipedia's _Super Smash Bros._ article
-   Official _Super Smash Bros._ Japanese website
-   Official _Super Smash Bros._ English website (archive)

v • d • e

Super Smash Bros. series
_Super Smash Bros._ · _Super Smash Bros. Melee_ · _Super Smash Bros. Brawl_ · _Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U_  · _Super Smash Bros. Ultimate_

question: What is the game about?

answer: Super Smash Bros. is a series of fighting games.

question: What makes Super Smash Bros. different from other games?

answer: What is different about this game is that, unlike other fighting games where the opponent's life bar depletes, here, players seek to knock opposing characters off the stage.

question: Who developed the game?

answer: The game is developed by Nintendo.

question: What all player functions does the game support?

answer: The game allows single-player, multiplayer, tournament play, and online play.

question: Write a ~4 sentence summary.

answer:
Super Smash Bros. is a series of fighting games developed by Nintendo. The game involves playing having to knock opposing characters off the stage, KOing them. The characters do not have "health bars" instead, they have a damage percentage that begins at 0% and goes on till 999%.

The game allows four different modes to play: single-player, multi-player, tournament play, and online play.


text:
**This story I wrote as a response to a CW WP where the stipulation was You have to write the sentence "I was so close to getting a Tetris" 3 times in your story.**

_______________________________________________________
There I was pondering my years of training and discipline, I was so close to getting a Tetris.

Everyone I knew had already gotten theirs, I was the only one who didn't have one! I thought I was stupid, incompetent, unworthy of receiving one.

"Hunter!" My friend Whisper called out to me, she is the only one who continued to believe in me and pushed me in my training, always reminding me that I was **so** close to getting a Tetris.
I respond with a bashful "h..Hey Whisper".

We had grown up together and had been friends forever, though we are 16 years old now and every time I am around her I have trouble speaking, I get butterflies in my stomach and my hands start getting all clammy.

She was truly beautiful, and so was her Tetris! Her Tetris was at least a good 280 pounds, had the usual 4 legs, big floppy ears, two silky soft angelic wings, and a 3 foot long bushy tail,  all covered in white fur with black spots.

Perhaps you are not from around here, maybe it's your first time hearing about the land of Artelia.
Then allow me to shed some light.

When an Artelian is old enough to start training in the mind and body through meditation and different levels of advanced combat, (the average Artelian starts at the age of 3) they spend their entire childhood and teenage years training in order to receive their Tetris.
If you refuse to train, you don't get a Tetris, simple as that, those who don't train are usually outcast to a society of people we call The Anti-Tetris.

Now let me explain to you more about the Tetris.

The Tetris is an individualized, soul-bound guardian that is assigned to you by our creator, given you have trained well and are worthy of receiving one. They resemble that of a dog, but much, much larger, with wings and a defining symbol of our creator on their head.
They can not speak, though they are telepathically linked to their master and are able to act and make decisions based on your emotions and actions.
Each Tetris is different in personality and appearance, I can not tell you what type of dog a Tetris resembles because each one is unique.
Whisper's Tetris looks a lot like a Saint Bernard.

I had trained so hard all my life and still I have yet to be awarded my Tetris. I told Whisper, " I just don't understand Whisper, why haven't I gotten mine yet?". She says to me "Hunter I know how special you are and I know there is a good reason why you don't have your Tetris yet, my guess is our maker sees you as special, too."

I pondered this for a while, wondering if she was right, it's not like I refused to train, quite the opposite, I started training at age 2, before I could even speak more than a couple words. I had been training harder than any of my friends.

I tell Whisper that I am going to call it an early night and head home and go to bed. It was still light out as I travelled the beaten path through the forest between our two small villages.

What otherwise seemed to be a perfectly normal walk home, I couldn't feel as if though I was being watched, the hairs on the back of my neck were going crazy, of course as I looked around I saw nothing unusual.

I arrive at my house and I open the door and kick off my shoes, my parents were already in bed, they didn't worry about me staying out late too much as they knew how strong I was and that I was more than capable of defending myself.
I head to my bedroom, strip down to my under garments and throw myself into bed, quickly drifting off to dreamland.

I awoke the next morning to a letter with a gold seal sitting in the window sill that read "Hunter" on the envelope.
Curious, I carefully open the letter and begin to read it.

**Hunter**

**You are special**

**You are chosen**

**I have a very special Tetris for you**

**In time**

I couldn't fully comprehend what I had just read, but I was sure of one thing.

I was so close to getting a Tetris.

title: [FN] Artelia

question: Summarize Hunter's relationship with Whisper.

answer: Whisper and Hunter grew up together and have been friends since they were young. They are now sixteen, and Hunter gets nervous around her due to feeling romantic towards her. Whisper believes in Hunter, seeing him as special and deserving of his Tetris. Whisper is supportive of him.

question: Summarize everything relating to Artelians.

answer: Artelians live on the land of Artelia. When they're old enough (usually around 3) they begin training the mind and body through meditation and different levels of advanced combat. They train through their entire childhood and teenage years so that they can receive their Tetris, an individualized, soul bound guardian. It's assigned by their creator. If Artelians don't train, they're seen as The Anti-Tetris and become social outcasts.

question: Summarize the story's main conflict.

answer: Hunter is the only one he knows who hasn't received their Tetris, even after years of the required training and discipline. This causes conflict in that Hunter is confused and starts to believe he is incompetent and unworthy of receiving one. He started training when he was two and trained harder than any of his friends. Usually those who don't receive a Tetris are those who refuse to train and are societal outcasts.

question: What does the story say about worthiness?

answer: Hunter begins to question his worth because he is the last of those he knows who hasn't received a Tetris. He has trained hard his whole life for one, so not yet receiving one makes him feel unworthy and incompetent. The ones who don't get a Tetris are those who refused to train and are deemed social outcasts. His friend whisper sees him as worthy and special. Hunter's worth is proven in the end when he receives a message from his maker saying that he has been chosen for a particularly special Tetris.

question: What does the text say about bravery?


text:
A small stream feeds a small pool that gradually grows larger. The stream grows until it becomes a river and bystanders come to watch. Two men come forward and try to dam the river, but the flow is out of control. The river’s red waters feed the pool until it spills over a curb and cascades down into a gutter. A lone women walks towards the river’s source and cradles it in her arms. Her face shows no emotion but her hands are a different story. The way they caress the man’s face is similar to that of a lover’s but not quite. There is a maternal quality to them. Those hands once held this man and seek to do the same now. Awkwardly they struggle to recreate something long gone from this moment and their failure only solidifies the fact that change is the only guarantee and who are we to argue with our only guarantee.

A man with a stretcher comes forward and attempts to take the body from the women but she resists, slapping at the man’s hands. The man persists. The woman starts screaming, it’s a lonely scream and the bystanders exchange glances, unsure of how to react, they look to the each other for suggestions. Nobody seems to have any so they simply gaze on as if it were a television drama and they were observing from the comfort of their favorite chair.

Two policemen approach and try to pry the women from her son’s body. With a superhuman burst of energy she rises, cradling her son in her arms, she makes a wild dash from the policemen. She makes it half way down the block then collapses spilling a body, it tumbles, finding the pavement it stops.

They come and take the body. They take it to a room and place it on a large metal tray. They cut at it and poke at it. They take it apart, weighing different pieces and then replacing them. After they are finished others come for the body. They wash the body and dress the body, then paint the body. They put it in a box and then place the box on display. People come to see. Prayers are said, words are exchanged, then they take the box to a hole and bury it. Above the hole they place a stone.

The stone is often alone. Sometimes the woman comes to visit the stone. She sits with the stone and together they bathe in memories. She remembers a man and she remembers a boy. She remembers birthdays, smiles, hugs, a wedding. She remembers happiness and she remembers meaning. She remembers being called mother.

These memories become an addiction and she visits often. As the time passes the smiles and the hugs are slowly replaced by visions of the stone until one day the stone is all she can remember. She tries and tries to recall just a glimpse of his face or a whisper of his voice, but the stone is a persistent memory. She must remember so she begins digging with her hands. She digs and she digs, snapping off nails. She digs until her hands begin to bleed and then continues. She is covered in dirt when she gets to the box. She opens it. Inside bones stare back at her. She can only return their look. She doesn’t remember this.

title: Inconsistent Memories

question: Why is the water red?

answer: The blood of the body

question: Is there an actual river or is that just the son's blood?

answer: Unclear

question: Write a ~6 sentence summary.

answer: A woman holds her dead son and fights off the medical professionals who want to transport the body. Eventually they succeed. A funeral takes place then a burial. The woman visits her son's grave all the time clinging onto memories of him until one day she can't remember his face only the tombstone. Desperate to remember her son's face she digs out the coffin. Only bones stare back at her.


text:
_TASMARUBRIUS_ is a genus of Australian tangled nest spiders first described by V. T. Davies in 1998.[1]

Species

it contains five species:[2]

-   _Tasmarubrius hickmani_ Davies, 1998 – Australia (Tasmania)
-   _Tasmarubrius milvinus_ (Simon, 1903) – Australia (Tasmania)
-   _Tasmarubrius pioneer_ Davies, 1998 – Australia (Tasmania)
-   _Tasmarubrius tarraleah_ Davies, 1998 – Australia (Tasmania)
-   _Tasmarubrius truncus_ Davies, 1998 – Australia (Tasmania)

[1]

[2]

title: Tasmarubrius

question: What is Tasmarubrius?

answer: It is a genus of Australian tangled nest spiders.

question: Who is V. T. Davies?

answer: He was the first to describe Tasmarubrius.

question: When did V.T. Davies first describe the Tasmarubrius?

answer: 1998

question: Name all five species of Tasmarubrius.

answer:
- Tasmarubrius hickmani
- Tasmarubrius milvinus
- Tasmarubrius pioneer
- Tasmarubrius tarraleah
- Tasmarubrius truncus

question: Write a ~3 sentence summary.

answer: Tasmarubrius is a genus of Australian tangled nest spiders first described by V. T. Davies in 1998. It has five species all native to Tasmania, Australia: Tasmarubrius hickmani, Tasmarubrius milvinus, Tasmarubrius pioneer, Tasmarubrius tarraleah, and Tasmarubrius truncus. All species were described by Davies in 1998 except for Tasmarubrius milvinus, which was described by Simon in 1903.


text:
_NEGAYAN_ is a genus of South American anyphaenid sac spiders first described by M. J. Ramírez in 2003.[1]

Species

it contains twelve species:[2]

-   _Negayan ancha_ Lopardo, 2005 – Chile, Argentina
-   _Negayan argentina_ Lopardo, 2005 – Argentina
-   _Negayan cerronegro_ Lopardo, 2005 – Argentina
-   _Negayan coccinea_ (Mello-Leitão, 1943) – Argentina
-   _Negayan enrollada_ Lopardo, 2005 – Chile, Argentina
-   _Negayan excepta_ (Tullgren, 1901) – Chile, Argentina
-   _Negayan paduana_ (Karsch, 1880) – Chile, Argentina, Falkland Is.
-   _Negayan puno_ Lopardo, 2005 – Peru, Argentina
-   _Negayan tarapaca_ Lopardo, 2005 – Peru, Chile
-   _Negayan tata_ Lopardo, 2005 – Chile, Argentina
-   _Negayan tridentata_ (Simon, 1886) – Argentina
-   _Negayan tucuman_ Lopardo, 2005 – Argentina

[1]

[2]

title: Negayan

question: What is Negayan?

answer: Negayan is a genus of South American anyphaenid sac spiders.

question: When was the genus first described?

answer: The genus was described by M.J. Ramirez in 2003.

question: How many species does the genus have?

answer: Twelve.

question: Which species are found in Peru?

answer: Negayan puno and Negayan tarapaca.

question: Write a ~1 sentence summary.

answer: A Wikipedia page on Negayan - a genus of South American anyphaenid sac spiders.


text:
MICHAEL WAYNE ANTHONY EBANKS (born 2 October 1964) is an English former footballer who played at right-back for West Bromwich Albion, Stoke City, Port Vale and Cambridge United between 1981 and 1987. He helped Port Vale to win promotion out of the Fourth Division in 1985–86. He later became a police officer.

Playing career

Ebanks began his career at West Bromwich Albion, and played seven First Division games for the “Baggies” in the 1983–84 season under the stewardship of Ron Wylie and Johnny Giles.[1] He then fell lout of the first team picture at The Hawthorns, and was loaned out to Bill Asprey's Stoke City, playing ten First Division and two cup games for the “Potters” in the disastrous 1984–85 season. After leaving the Victoria Ground, he returned to Stoke-on-Trent in March 1985, this time on loan to rivals Port Vale.[2] He featured eleven times in the Fourth Division for the “Valiants”, and impressed manager John Rudge enough to win permanent transfer in June 1985.[3] He featured 15 times as Vale won promotion to the Third Division in the 1985–86 season, and then played 22 games in the 1986–87 campaign.[4] He was given a free transfer in May 1987, and joined Cambridge United on a non-contract basis. He cut his time at the Abbey Stadium short to join the police force.[5]

Post-retirement

After leaving the game Ebanks joined the police force.[6]

Career statistics

Source:[7]

  Club                   Season            Division          League   FA Cup   League Cup   Other   Total
  ---------------------- ----------------- ----------------- -------- -------- ------------ ------- ------- ------ ------- ---- ---- ---
  Apps                   Goals             Apps              Goals    Apps     Goals        Apps    Goals
  West Bromwich Albion   1983–84           First Division    7        0        0            0       0
  Stoke City (loan)      1984–85           First Division    10       0        0            0       2
  Port Vale              1984–85           Fourth Division   11       0        0            0       0
  1985–86                Fourth Division   12                0        2        0            0       0
  1986–87                Third Division    16                0        1        0            4       0
  Total                  39                0                 3        0        4            0       2
  Cambridge United       1987–88           Fourth Division   4        0        0            0       2
  Career total           60                0                 3        0        8            0       2

    A.  The “Other” column constitutes appearances and goals in the Football League Trophy.

Honours

Port Vale

-   Football League Fourth Division fourth-place promotion: 1985–86[8]

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

title: Wayne Ebanks

question: Who is Wayne Ebanks?

answer: An English former footballer

question: Who did Wayne Ebanks play for??

answer: He played right-back for West Bromwich Albion, Stoke City, Port Vale and Cambridge United.

question: What did Wayne Ebanks do after retiring from football?

answer: He joined the police force

question: Which years was Wayne Ebanks active in English football?

answer: Between 1981 and 1987

question: Write a ~2 sentence summary.

answer: Wayne Ebanks is an English former footballer and was active between 1981 and 1987. After retiring from football, he joined the police force.


text:
Aman walks into a bar. He sits beside Nick.

“Did you see the game last night?”

“Ya”

“Me neither”

The bartender erupts in laughter. Both men give him a glare with such contempt you would have thought the bartender had just laughed at something ridiculous. The bartender kills himself with a pint glass.

“Free drinks for everyone” Nick announces to the crowd, raising his glass ironically.

“Ya” scoffs Aman “If you can beat the looters to ‘em”.

Of course Aman was right. They both let this dark thought sink in as they deliberate the truly awful porridge both of them had that morning. What was that ketchup flavoured? Gross. Aman finally decides to get up, extending his arm and going on his tip toes to grab the only remaining bottle lying on top of one of the cupboards. He pours both of them a glass.

“You’re lucky looters are so short” says Nick.

“Don’t I know it” Aman replies, taking a sip of his drink and wincing. He never much liked Windex.

Nick is staring at the wall, his drink untouched.

“You know” he finally says “My I finally found out that my sister…”

“SHUT THE FUCK UP” that guy is so annoying.

“Isn’t really a virgin, her boyfriend fucked her first!”

“Fucked her before whom?” Aman asks.

“Ya!” Nick says. “Think about that!”

Aman did think about that. Then he thought about something else, but who knows what that was. I’m not a fucking mind reader.

Neither of them walked out of the bar. The both fell asleep then woke up. It wasn’t morning yet so they both lay there silent, staring at each other. Finally the sun cracked through the broken windows of the looted bar.

“Is it morning already?” Nick asked

“Damn” thought Aman. “He beat me to it. What the fuck am I supposed to say now? I can’t afford to have another bowl of that goddam porridge”

The bartender was really starting to smell and the two were starting to fucking hate each other. They both came to the conclusion that they wanted nothing more than to leave. But what could they do? It was goddam chaos out there.

“So do you want to play some cards or something?” Nick asks

“No” Aman answers

And neither did they.

title: The Meaning of Life through Logical Deduction; A Manifesto

question: What is the bartender's reaction to the two bantering friends?

answer: He kills himself with a pint glass.

question: Whose sister isn't really a virgin?

answer: Nick.

question: Why is the bar a mess?

answer: It's been looted.

question: What terrible breakfast had Aman and Nick both had?

answer: Porridge.

question: What had happened to result in the outside's being chaos?

answer: It is not explained in the text.

question: Write a ~5 sentence summary.

answer: Aman and Nick walk into a looted bar, joking about how they hadn't watched the game last night. The bartender laughs uproariously then kills himself with a pint glass. Aman and Nick drink together, and talk about Nick's sister and the awful porridge they had for breakfast.  They fall asleep at the bar. They wake up, thinking how they hate each other now and the bartender is starting to smell, but there's nowhere to go, as outside is chaos.


text:
I walked across the back of the room. The noise of the crowd drowned out everything from the outside. The echoes of the hall, so deafening at the time, seemed like a blissful silence in this din. I watched as the crowd formed in groups; People joining, breaking off, moving away, like watching cells through a microscope. Amorphous globs always moving, never still, forming, dissolving, reforming. I watched as men no bigger my brother laughed and joked with men three times their size. Women, fragile and shy at first glanced, talked as loudly and easily as those oozing confidence. The group, it seemed, provided security. I could see an anxious few looking around, unsure of what to expect. I felt a smirk creep across my face. You could always tell the newbies. I stepped forward, moving through the crowded room.

"I'm glad you all could make it." I announced as I walked. Many of the gathering hadn't heard me and continued their conversations. They would quieten down soon enough. I continued towards the head of the room, not looking at anyone, but glancing at everyone.

"I felt like we should have a little chat." I raised my voice a little more. "There are some rumours floating around." I turned as I reached the head of the room.

"Some of you know me personally, others, perhaps not so much. However those who do, will be aware that I am not one for rumours. I find that they usually only provide a distraction from the real issue. However, even I must admit that from time to time, they can offer a certain insight into the feelings of the public, that can be quite informative. Before I discuss these rumours, I would like to share some thoughts with you."

I could still hear the murmurings of hushed discussion scattered throughout the room. I looked over the faces staring at me again, before moving slowly to my left. I could feel their eyes following me without looking.

"The world sees us as monsters of a kind. I'm sure you were all aware of this fact to some degree. We are seen as the violent goats, in long lines of sheep; The angry mistakes of the genial golden generations. And who can say they are wrong?  I have been thinking about this impression we have garnered. I have some thoughts, some ideas, as one is wont to do when thinking." I smiled as I heard some snickers. I turned and moved back towards the centre of the room.

"We are a generation of kids, so afraid of losing face, of losing any semblance of the respect we think we have, that any offence is answered with extreme responses. You insult someone, you get insulted back? No, you get beaten. Once upon a time, you hit someone, you have a fight, someone wins, someone loses, you both go home. Now? Now you get stabbed. Or maybe you do get home, only to be chased down and shot two days later. This violence, they blame it on movies, video games. This isn't the problem. Do they help? Probably not. Are they the cause? No. Media is made this way because its what people want. Their sense of what is right and acceptable and appropriate is warped. Why? Respect. They are so afraid of any assault on their character, any disrespect, undermining them they lash out. Does this sound like someone who feels secure of their place in society? We are a society raised to live beyond our means, both literally and figuratively. We cling to our delusions of power, artificial societal titles, we worked so hard to convince ourselves we earned. So hard we worked, to convince others to recognise our imaginary power. Secretly terrified it will all collapse around us, taken away by someone more deserving of our control. So any offense, any assault on our character is treated as a nuclear threat, capable of ripping apart our world, and is dealt with as such. Swiftly, brutally, finally." I stopped in the middle of the room and looked up. Silence reigned.

"So, these rumours. There have been mutterings in some parts of secret groups meeting. These groups, people can never decide on their purpose, size, or even name. They are a religious cult, they plan to cause havoc, they are starting a new sports team, they are a group of serial killers comparing notes, they are good samaritans, teaching manners and helping little old ladies across the street." hushed laughter spread through the back of the mob. I continued across the room. "What can I say, it seems we are becoming known, ladies and gentlemen. The question is, what now?"

I heard the door open and close at the back of the room. I paused for a moment, waiting for everyone to calm down again. That’s when I saw Stirling pushing his way through the crowd. I watched as he walked hurriedly towards me.

"There is a problem. You need to come with me." he whispered when he got close. I looked at him, his expression a measured image of urgency and assuredness. This was not something I could ignore.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"He's been found." I took a second, then turned back to the assembly. "I'm sorry, but I have to leave you all. There are matters I must attend to." The noise level rose dramatically as we worked our way towards the exit. "Where is he?"

title: Stronger

question: Summarize the motives of the speaker.

answer: The speaker spends most of the narrative riling up a crowd and at the end of the narrative, is being reported to by what appears to be a subordinate, indicating that the speaker is a high ranking person of the group or is likely to be leader. Based on the content and direction of the speech, the speaker wants the people to be emotionally charged, possibly as a way to encourage them to act towards a goal that would be otherwise be unattainable without provocation. In short, it can be said that the speaker's goal is to emotionally provoke his crowd of listeners into doing something for him.


text:
_SOME THINGS ARE MEANT TO BE_ is the fourth studio album by American country music singer Linda Davis. Her final studio album for Arista Records, it produced Davis's second-highest chart hit in its title track, a number 13 on the _Billboard_ Hot Country Singles & Tracks (now Hot Country Songs) charts in 1996. “A Love Story in the Making” and “Walk Away” were also issued as singles. The former peaked at 33, while the latter failed to chart.

Two of this album's tracks were also recorded by other artists. “Cast Iron Heart” was originally recorded by Pearl River on their 1992 album _Find Out What's Happening_, and later by BlackHawk on their 1995 album _Strong Enough_. “What Do I Know” was recorded by Ricochet on their 1996 self-titled debut album, from which it was released as their debut single.

Track listing

1.  “Some Things Are Meant to Be” (Michael Garvin, Gordon Payne) – 3:29
2.  “A Love Story in the Making” (Al Anderson, Craig Wiseman) – 3:40
3.  “Walk Away” (Marc Beeson, Robert Byrne) – 3:58
4.  “Always Will” (Harry Stinson, John Hadley) – 3:20
5.  “Neither One of Us (Wants to Be the First to Say Goodbye)” (Jim Weatherly) – 4:04
6.  “She Doesn't Ask” (Nancy Lee Baxter) – 3:16
7.  “Cast Iron Heart” (Dennis Linde) – 3:02
8.  “There Isn't One” (Cathy Majeski, Sunny Russ, Stephony Smith) – 3:45
9.  “What Do I Know” (Majeski, Russ, Smith) – 3:24
10. “If I Could Live Your Life”(Tim Nichols, Mark D. Sanders) – 3:34
    -   duet with Reba McEntire

Production

-   Produced & Mixed By John Guess
-   Engineered By Derek Bason, John Guess & Marty Williams
-   Mixing Assistant: Derek Bason
-   Mastered By Marty Williams

Personnel

-   Charlie Anderson — bass guitar
-   Michael Black — background vocals
-   Mark Casstevens — acoustic guitar, mandolin
-   Joe Chemay — bass guitar
-   Terry Crisp — steel guitar, Dobro
-   Linda Davis — lead vocals, background vocals
-   Larry Franklin — fiddle, mandolin
-   Vicki Hampton — background vocals
-   Scotty Hawkins — drums
-   John Hobbs — piano
-   Paul Hollowell — piano
-   Dann Huff — electric guitar
-   Steve Nathan — keyboards
-   Don Potter — acoustic guitar
-   Lang Scott — background vocals
-   Doug Sisemore — keyboards
-   Harry Stinson — background vocals
-   Kent Wells — acoustic guitar, electric guitar
-   Lonnie Wilson — drums

Chart performance

+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| Chart (1996)                      | Peak                              |
|                                   | position                          |
+===================================+===================================+
| U.S. _Billboard_ Top Country      | 26                                |
| Albums                            |                                   |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| U.S. _Billboard_ 200              | 164                               |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| U.S. _Billboard_ Top Heatseekers  | 7                                 |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+

title: Some Things Are Meant to Be

question: What does the text say about the album 'Some Things Are Meant to Be'>

answer: It is the fourth studio album by Linda Davis. The songs 'A Love Story in the Making' and 'Walk Away' were also issued as singles. One of the songs from the album was originally recorded by Pearl River, and another by BlackHawk.

question: What does the article say about Linda Davis's life?


text:
    When the world was young and innocent of Death, and Light ruled while Darkness slept, my sister and I lived in a garden. In this garden there were many beautiful things: plants and creatures alike. While we loved this garden, we were not the caretakers of it and knew not who the gardener was who had planted it or who it was that took care of it; yet it was always quite luscious and constantly thriving. One day while wandering throughout the garden we decided to rest under our favorite cherry tree, which was in full blossom.

    While we rested and talked, there came a great rush of air and a tremendous beating of wings above the tree where we sat. It was a bird that landed gracefully but powerfully in front of us. But this was not just a bird, no, this was a beast of a bird, a king of winged creatures, a lord of the skies. Its colors were that of the rainbow and its feathers many and soft to the eyes. Its size was enormous and great: nearly ten feet from beak to claw and its wingspan at least that twice. We were, of course, amazed at the size and greatness of this bird. We both watched in wonder as all the birds of the garden, and all the animals too, came to this beast’s feet and offered gifts of fruit, flowers, and dance and song. All the creatures in the garden seemed to fear and worship this magnificent bird.

    Then, after seeing the respect and adoration this winged master was receiving, we grew jealous and began to hate the bird and despise it for its beauty and power. We wanted the love and worship of the animals, for we were the blessed, the human, the masters of the garden–or so we deemed. We befriended this beautiful beast and then poisoned an apple and gave it to the bird as a gift. The bird ate it eagerly. Soon the beast was crying out in pain while my sister and I danced around him and his misery.
Soon after that, the creature breathed his last. But our jealousy had grown, as it always does. I cut off his head with my sword, and my sister and I pulled off every last one of his colorful feathers and made a coat out of them. We marched and we pranced around the garden with our pride and our lust, brightly colored, while all the animals bowed to us now and gave us their wealth and their loyalty.
Before long, the sky began to weep, and the raindrops washed away the blood on our hands but not on our hearts. With the rain came the guilt of our sin, the knowledge of our transgression–the fruit of our conscience.

    For we realized then just what it was we had done. We had destroyed something beautiful, we had horrified something lovely, we had damned something blessed. The beautiful beast was now nothing more than bones which were scattered on the ground. And so we set to work in utter desperation: to try and piece the bird back together again. Yet our foolish attempt to mend that which we had broken was in vain; for we were destroyers, not creators; we were haters, not lovers; were children, not gods.
The product we created was far from the beautiful creature that once ruled the garden. This was no animal we made, it was a machine. Yes a machine: one with many whining gears and moving parts. We had destroyed beauty, and sought to recreate that which only can be created, not produced or made with human hands; it was not beauty at all.  We watched helplessly as our machine went on a rampage, cutting and burning all the trees and plants in the garden, and forcing all the animals to flee from their once-beautiful homes.

     So there we stood, my sister and I, amidst the ruin of our garden, the trees aflame, beauty destroyed, perfection mutilated: by us and our machine. We left the garden and found a cave far off where we spent the rest of our days: in darkness and not light, in horror and not beauty: in Death and not Life.

title: Something Beautiful Destroyed

question: Summarize the process by which Death first entered the garden where the protagonists lived?

answer: The garden where the protagonists lived used to be pure and devoid of death; until the giant bird came. The animals in the garden loved the bird, bringing it gifts and worshipping it. These acts aroused jealousy in the protagonists who despised the bird for the attention it was getting. The protagonists ended up poisoning the bird, killing it.


text:
ancient Indian class

WRITTEN BY

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree....

ALTERNATIVE TITLE: mleccha

MLECHCHHA, also spelled MLECCHA, people of foreign extraction in ancient India. A Sanskrit term, _mlechchha_ was used by the Vedic peoples much as the ancient Greeks used _barbaros_, originally to indicate the uncouth and incomprehensible speech of foreigners and then extended to their unfamiliar behaviour. _Mlechchha_s were found in northwestern India, and there is reason to believe that the people known in Akkadian as Mlakkha were the original _mlechchha_s. As a _mlechchha_, any foreigner stood completely outside the caste system and the ritual ambience. Thus, historically, contact with them was viewed by the caste Hindu as polluting.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Matt Stefon, Assistant Editor.

question: Who are the Mlechchha?

answer: A people of foreign extraction in ancient India.

question: What language does the term Mlechchha come from?

answer: Sanskrit.

question: What other language is than Sanskrit is the name Mlechchha attested in?

answer: Akkadian.

question: Why was contact with them viewed as polluting by the Hindu caste system?

answer: They were outsiders.

question: Write a ~1 sentence summary.

answer: This article from Encyclopedia Brittanica summarizes a term referring to an ancient people from Northern India attested in both Sanskrit and Akkadian literatures.


text:
[The _Dionysus_ of the Palazzo Altemps, Rome]

The over-lifesize marble _DIONYSUS WITH PANTHER AND SATYR_ in the Palazzo Altemps,[1] Rome, is a Roman work of the 2nd century AD, found in the 16th century[2] on the Quirinal Hill at the time foundations were being dug for Palazzo Mattei at Quattro Fontane.[3] The statue was purchased for the Ludovisi collection, where it was first displayed in front of the _Palazzo Grande_, the main structure of the Villa Ludovisi, and by 1641 in the gallery of sculptures in the _Casino Capponi_ [4] erected for Cardinal Ludovico Ludovisi in the villa's extensive grounds. By 1885, it had been removed to the new Palazzo del Principe di Piombino, nearby in via Veneto. With the rest of the Boncompagni-Ludovisi collection, which was open to the public on Sundays and covered in the guidebooks,[5] and where it had become famous,[6] it was purchased in 1901 for the City of Rome, as the Ludovisi collection was dispersed and the Villa's ground built over at the end of the 19th century.

The formula, with somewhat exaggerated _contrapposto_, the god's right hand resting on his head, is based on the Apollo Lyceus, which is variously attributed and dated. This ivy-crowned Dionysus is accompanied by the panther that signalises his numinous presence, and a satyr of reduced size, a member of his retinue. Long locks of his hair fall girlishly over his shoulders and in his left hand he holds a bunch of grapes, emblematic of his status as god of wine.

The original elements are the heads, torsos and thighs of Dionysus and the satyr. The arms of the satyr and the lower legs and base are modern— that is, 16th-century— restorations.

Notes

[1] Inventory number 8606.

[2] It appeared in Giovan Battista Cavalieri, _Antiquarum Statuarum Urbis Romae tertius et quartus liber_, (Rome, 1594), plate 74.

[3] According to the tradition recorded by the sculptor-dealer and diarist Flaminio Vacca, _Memorie di varie antichità trovate in diversi luoghi della citta di Roma_, Rome, 1704, (memoria 37).

[4] Gruppo colossale di Dionisio e satiro: description, history, conservation, bibliography

[5] (Octavian Blewitt) _Handbook for travellers in central Italy_ (Murray), Part II, 1853, _s.v._ “Rome §79 Villas” etc.

[6] “The youthful, or so-called Theban Bacchus, was carried to ideal beauty by Praxiteles... The finest statue of this kind is in the villa Ludovisi” (William Smith, _A New Classical Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography, Mythology and Geography_, 1871, _s.v._ “Dionysus”); “...the eyes most intense and soft; the hair in curls, close to the head, brown with streaks of gold, strangely resembling the hair of some Greek statue — perhaps the Ludovisi Bacchus...” (William Francis Barry, _Arden Massiter_, 1900, p. 16.)

title: Ludovisi Dionysus

question: Why is the work named as the Ludovisi Dionysus?

answer: The 2nd century AD roman work would be found in the 16th century and then purchased and added to the Ludovisi collection. Without an identifiable creator, the work is likely to have been named as such due to its association to the Ludovisi.


text:
DONALD THEODORE COCHRANE (October 23, 1906 – May 10, 1969) was a Canadian politician. He served in the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick as member of the Liberal party from 1944 to 1952.[1]

[1]

title: Donald T. Cochrane

question: Who is Donald Theodore Cochrane?

answer: He was a Canadian politician.

question: When was he born?

answer: Cochrane was born on 23 October 1906.

question: Which party is does he belong to?

answer: He belonged to the Liberal Party.

question: For how long did he serve the Legislative Assembly?

answer: He served the Assembly for eight years.

question: Write a ~2 sentence summary.

answer: Donald Theodore Cochrane was a member of the Liberal Party in Canada. He served the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick as a member of the party for 8 years.


text:
One day while wondering through the long cold corridors of his new Victorian-era manor, a young boy ascended the steps towards the dreary and dull floor above him.  He had been quite interested to see what there was to see, what it was he couldn't say. Something seemed so endlessly fascinating about the dull and dreary and desolate demeanor of this house.  He found beauty where others looked away, smells even the rats couldn't taste. Vibrant colors burst out of the ancient murals of his new ancestors.  He never imagined the up-stairs would be this interesting.

A ringing cry crept into the boy's brain:

"Excuse me, Lord Stephen, would you care for your dinner now?"

The words felt bitter in the young man's ears, he had expected to be alone. He imagined himself as an explorer, searching the vast confines of the manor for a Holy Grail.  He convinced himself that when he saw it, he would know exactly what it was. The boy's search had been going poorly up to this point.  He couldn't suspend his disbelief, his imagination had been very dull for the vast majority of the day.  Being an only child in a massive manor isn't surprisingly lonely.

He shuddered thinking about the place he was before; fortunately, he had gotten very good at pushing thoughts from his mind, so he did.

"Excuse me, Lord Step..."

"I'm coming good Sir, give me a moment to compose my self will you?"

"You really are quite a bore Bernard"

"Yes Sir, Quite a bore."

Bernard had come to like Stephen, he had expected the boy to be an infant, not in size, but demeanor.  It was a pleasant surprise to see that the young man had grown so much throughout the very few years  he spent at that juvenile correctional institute down the road.  The place always brought chills to the old man's spine. The image of the place had been particularly frightening. Bernard still remembered the day it was constructed.

The perimeter housed a few watchtowers, although, the security systems surrounding the place seemed insignificant, driving to pick up grocery's for the mistress under the blaring light of the moon hadn't been one of his particularly favorite activities.  Bernard always felt like he may be in the midst of Poe's poems around the place. He couldn't understand how such a well-mannered boy could pose a threat to the State, yet he was more fascinated that the young one never seemed frightened by his horrific image.

"I'm a brute, a bulging-bellied brute of a man"

Bernard thought, yet he thought it prudent to silence his words with a grunt in front of the child.

Bernard felt comfortable around Stephen, and grew to enjoy the boys company during the lonely Summer days that always seem to precede  timeless summer nights, night-time, like it wasn't even present.  He had noticed himself noticing the fact he'd lost track of time more and more as the days drag--? or was it hours?

Nevermore, the young boy's arrival was particularly frightening though.  Where in the world had he come from?

Bernard had walked into the night, the moonless night, past the lights hovering over the street...From there the scene seems fuzzy, unreal, but on his return, through the rain, he had found a boy. Stephen lay on the side of the road, in a ditch, a looming shadow engulfed his image.

The only way Bernard knew anyone was there was because of the beleagured cries of pain.

PROPERTY OF THE STATE OF MASSACHUSETTS, read the boys jump-suit, but Bernard couldn't let him go.

He could never let him go.

"Bernard, may I have a cup of juice?"

A smile spread across the man's face,
"Of course young sir, of course."

title: Stephen and Bernard

question: Is Stephen lonely?

answer: Despite being the only child in a massive mansion, Stephen isn't lonely. He let's his imagination lead him around the house.

question: How does Stephen cope with the memories of where he has come from?

answer: He pushes the memories aside, preferring not to think of them.

question: What does Stephen think of Bernhard?

answer: The old man's horrific looks don't appear to worry him. He tells Bernhard that he is a bore. The boy prefers to be alone.

question: How does Bernhard feel about Stephen?

answer: Stephen has brought some comfort to Bernhard who was previously very alone. Bernhard is comfortable around Stephen and he enjoys his company.

question: Write a ~8 sentence summary.

answer:
Stephen is an only child in a massive manor. Bernhard has come to like the boy. The young man had grown over the few years that he spent at the juvenile correctional institute down the road. The place brought chills to the old man’s spine. He couldn’t understand how Stephen could pose a treat to the state. It amazed him that Stephen was unafraid of his grotesque image.

Bernard had found the boy in ditch on the side of the road, crying with pain. The boy’s jumpsuit read Property of the State of Massachusetts, but Bernhard wasn’t letting him go.


text:
A shocking secret CIA assessment has concluded that Russia interfered with the U.S. presidential election expressly to help Donald Trump win, according to an exclusive report Friday by The Washington Post.

Until now, intelligence sources have indicated that Russian hacking throughout the campaign that repeatedly exposed information overwhelmingly embarrassing for Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton was an effort to undermine Americans’ faith in their government.

Now the intelligence community has concluded that Russia was clearly after a Trump victory and manipulated information to that end, according to sources who spoke to the newspaper.

“It is the assessment of the intelligence community that Russia’s goal here was to favor one candidate over the other, to help Trump get elected,” a senior U.S. official briefed on the CIA assessment told The Washington Post. “That’s the consensus view.”

The Trump camp has dismissed the report — along with the credibility of the U.S. intelligence community. “These are the same people that said Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction,” said a statement by the Trump transition team. “The election ended a long time ago in one of the biggest Electoral College victories in history. It’s time to move on and ‘Make America great again.’”

(The claim that Trump had won one of the “biggest Electoral College victories in history” is simply not true. He ranks 44th out of 54 electoral votes of presidents since the 12th Amendment passed, Mother Jones reports.)

It’s no surprise Russian President Vladimir Putin wanted Trump in the White House. Trump praised the former KGB leader throughout the presidential campaign. He even called Putin a “more effective leader” than President Barack Obama.

Leaked information through hacking operations traced by U.S. intelligence to Russia was eerily silent on Trump and the Republican Party throughout the presidential campaign. Yet the same operations exposed troves of secret, sometimes embarrassing, personal communication involving Clinton and internal planning by the Democratic National Committee.

U.S. intelligence agencies concluded that Russia hacked the Republican National Committee but chose not to release the information, according to a report in the New York Times late Friday.

In addition, intelligence officials discovered breaches by Russian government-linked hackers into the voter registration databases of at least two states.

Links to hackers and the Russian government were detected by U.S. intelligence earlier this year. But Trump dismissed a Russian hand in the operations. He again this week blasted the intelligence findings, even before the latest assessment emerged, as politically motivated and not based on hard evidence.

“I don’t believe it. I don’t believe [Russia] interfered,” Trump told Time magazine in his “Person of the Year” interview released Wednesday.

“That became a laughing point, not a talking point,” he added. “Any time I do something, they say, ‘Oh, Russia interfered.’”

The hacking, he said, “could be Russia, it could be China. And it could be some guy in his home in New Jersey.”

Yet at one point during the campaign in July, he appeared to appeal to Russia for hacking help, saying: “Russia, if you’re listening, I hope you’re able to find the 30,000 emails that are missing” from Clinton’s email servers. The seeming request for a foreign government to breach U.S. internet security sparked a storm of controversy, and Trump later insisted he was only being “sarcastic.”

In a September intelligence briefing, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) reportedly expressed suspicion about Russian links to campaign hacking. He hasn’t commented on The Washington Post’s report on the latest CIA information.

The chilling assessment that it’s “quite clear” Russia’s goal was to get Trump elected was shared with key senators last week in a Capitol Hill briefing, the Post reported. CIA officials cited a mounting body of evidence from several sources. Intelligence agencies have identified specific individuals with connections to the Russian government who are believed to have provided WikiLeaks with thousands of hacked emails, according to The Washington Post.

Obama has ordered a “full review” of Russian hacking in the campaign following pressure from Congress, the White House announced Friday. He expects to receive an intelligence report on any election interference before he leaves office. Congress will also be briefed on the report.

“We’ve seen in 2008, and this last election system, malicious cyber-activity,” Obama’s counterterrorism and homeland security adviser, Lisa Monaco, told reporters. “We may be crossing a new threshold, and it is incumbent upon us to take stock of that, to review, to conduct some after-action, to understand what has happened and to impart those lessons learned.”

_This article has been updated to include new details on where Trump ranks in electoral votes of presidents._

Calling all HuffPost superfans!

Sign up for membership to become a founding member and help shape HuffPost's next chapter

question: What is the role of Russia in the article?

answer: Russia is accused of hacking for the purpose of humiliating Hillary Clinton during the 2016 presidential election. Russia's aim appears to be to make it easier for Donald Trump to enter the White House. Russia want Trump to win as he was known for orasing Putin's leadership during his campaign.

question: What are the implications of the Russian hacking?

answer: The implications are that the cyber security of the U.S. has been easily compromised to benefit another world power. It also indicates how the U.S. electoral system can be manipulated in order to change the minds of its people. Even with the evidence showing that these manipulations took place, it made no difference to the situation after the fact, Trump still became president.

question: Why was Trump able to get away with this?

question: What does this article suggest about Trump's campaign?

answer: That it was based upon an unfair electoral campaign. A campaign in which Trump himself asked for help from Russia publicly and then appeared to gt what he asked for. The fact that Trump's team also made a false claim regarding the scope of their Electoral College victory is indicative of how the article would like us to perceive the campaign overall.


text:
My name is Joshua Callenway, written some time in 2013:

Im writing this because I have no idea what else to do. I don't know how long its been since the 21st. Nobody really believed this would happen, I didnt believe. But here I am, walking the same streets I did before. Why Am I still here? Im not the strongest, Im not the smartest, Im not even handy for fuck's sake! Im just an accountant! Yet im here. I haven't seen a living person since the office party. Im so lonley and scared. I need help, from anyone or anything. I see signs on buildings claiming " Survivers Inside!" But nobody is in there; only trash and blood. The rummbling in my stomach is so loud and painful; my once plump stomach has now receeded to expose my entire rib cage. Every time I sleep I only have nightmares, if I even dream at all. If this be Hell, where is Satan? Unless this is Purgatory. Im not a religious man, however I think I might start. I miss everyone I know. To whomever reads this, if anyone ever does, if you find a woman named Caitlin with a birth mark on her left elbow, tell her that Josh loves her and he spent the rest of his life trying to find her. Im in Boston now, but I need to see if my family is ok. Im going to start walking to Spokane Washington. I'll walk the I-90 until i get there or drop dead. Im sorry for the things I've done, but im going to make it up to everyone, somehow, someway, I will make things right...

title: To whom it may concern- The last written words of a surviving man.

question: Summarize everything that happened to Josh.

answer: Joshua Callenway is an accountant in the year 2013. Since the office party, Josh hasn't seen another living person and has been wandering the empty streets looking for survivors of some unnamed calamity. He has found no one and has lost a lot of weight, his ribs are sticking out. He has nightmares if he manages to sleep and thinks he's either in Hell or Purgatory. He's looking for a woman named Caitlin, whom he loves. Josh is in Boston now and will walk to Spokane Washington to see if his family is OK.

question: How old would you estimate Joshua's age is?

answer: Joshua is probably in his late 20's or early 30's based on the fact that he's not married to Caitlin yet and will do anything to see if his family is ok.


text:
Hey guys, I wrote a short story that I was hoping to get any feedback/criticism on. This is my first time writing a short story and also my first time posting to Reddit, and I appreciate any feedback.

As they did every Sunday, Nora brought her daughter Jill to a new place for their mommy-daughter day. Jill skipped along side her mother as they made their way towards a towering glass building. Nora knew that Jill looked forward to Sundays because she was mostly absent during the week.

It's a sacrifice, but I'm doing important work.

She would tell herself that while trying to justify that what she was doing was the right thing. After all, it wasn't like Jill's father was around to support them. And these weekends together would make up for the lost time during the week.

The automatic glass doors swooshed open as Jill leapt through.

"C'mon mommy!! Huurrrryy!"

Jill was energetic, curious, and intelligent like her parents. She was only four but was already reading like a second grader.

"Oooo" Jill coo'd as she stared at a sphere hovering above a small pool of water. "Where are we today mommy?"

"This is a One World Science Exhibition honey."

It was after the last World War that the leaders of the world realized our eventual fate. Whether it was because they had finally smartened up or because nearly a tenth of the world's population had died, they finally decided to cooperate. Military funding worldwide was redirected towards science and technology. Together, the smartest minds in the world would come together and invent ways for us to flourish as a species. This was the start of the One World movement. A movement uniting the world towards one goal; longer healthier lives for all people, regardless of race or religion. One World Science and Technology Exhibition's opened up all around the world to showcase the remarkable breakthroughs that were being made and to foster a sense of unity.

"There are places like this all over the world honey. It's like a celebration of what we as humans are capable of imagining."

Jill's eyes darted from one exhibit to the next, eagerly bouncing in anticipation.

"Stay with me, Jilly."

Nora took her hand and led her to each exhibit, explaining the basic idea behind the invention and how it would benefit humanity.

In the distance something caught Jill's eye. Her mother could tell that she wasn't listening to her anymore. Jill was silent. She stared intently down a dimly lit hallway. At the end of the hallway was a girl, barely Jill's age. She stood staring back for a moment and then walked around the corner.

"I see you've noticed the main exhibit. Let's go take a look."

Nora led Jill towards the hallway and around the corner. Against the wall was a cylindrical glass tank filled with water. And floating in the water was the a little girl. The same little girl that Jill had just seen in the hallway.

"What.. who is she?"

"This is Summer. She is the whole reason the One World Exhibits exist"

Before Nora could continue explaining, Jill whispered,

"She's lonely."

"What was that honey?"

"She's lonely and she doesn't understand what's going on."

"Well I imagine she would be quite lonely Jilly"

Nora knew Jill's imagination could run wild.

"No mommy, she's telling me..."

"Jill, Summer can't talk. She's been in here for over hundred years and no one has heard her talk."

"But mommy..."

"Listen Jilly..."

Nora led her right in front of the glass tank. She took her hand and placed it on the glass.

"Summer isn't alive. Do you know what that means?"

"Yes mommy"

"She died a long time ago and her body was preserved using technology."

Jill was silent. Staring past Nora and straight into the blueish glow of the tanks water. But something was wrong. Nora turned around. Her eyes went wide as they stared straight at Summer's lifeless face. She was such a beautiful young girl. Much too young to have had her life taken from her. Her features were soft and her skin a light blueish gray.

"Mommy..."

Nora stood entranced by Summers face.

"Mommy... she's not dead"

Her eyes opened. And Nora screamed.

title: The Main Exhibit

question: What does the story say about how the One World movement started?

answer: The One World movement started when the smartest minds in the world came together and invent ways for people to flourish as a species after nearly a tenth of the world's population had died in the last World War. The movement units the world towards one longer healthier lives for all people, regardless of race or religion.

question: What does the story say about the girl called Summer?

answer: Jill notices a girl of her age in the hallway. The girl looks at Jill then walks away. Later, Jill and her mother see the girl in a cylindrical glass tank filled with water. Jill claims that the girls is telling her something, but her mother does not believe an explains that it is not possible since the girl died a long time ago and her body was preserved. Jill insists that Summer is alive, and the girl's eyes opened. Jill's mother screams.

question: What does the story say about what happened after it turn that the girl was alive?


text:
*When in Rome*

Back in the olden days, people would fight with knives and swords instead of guns. It made war much more slow and gruesome. Like if you were in the war you'd be going "This is taking WAY too long to chop this guy's head off." And you'd get bored and kinda walk away from the war and maybe get a beer. But then you'd have to walk back through the war again to get back home. So, then you'd have to fight again and you'd be like "Man, this is taking forever to stab this guy to death." But then you're not paying attention and this other guy takes an ax and starts chopping your torso in half. And then you're like "This is taking way to long to die."

That's how war was in the olden days.

*Bunker Buster*

In the last days of the war, we had run out of ammunition for the big guns and had to use P.O.W.s as artillery.

Sure, a human body cannot destroy a carrier, but a charred human body with branches taped to it and fake fangs in its mouth can really scare the shit out of a person when it comes flying at you at 100 miles an hour.

*Night Vision*

In the night, no one can see you. Just your eyes. We moved through the town and took up positions waiting for the convoy.

When it came, we took life like vampires in the night and there were no survivors.

It was beautiful.

Night vision wins wars, make no mistake.

But it totally makes masturbation out of the question.

*The Enemy Must Be Shot in the Face Several Times Before It Counts*

Evan and I had started a game. We began betting packs of cigarettes on who would have the most kills for the day. I won most of the time.

But one time, we bet a carton and there was a giant dispute over whether this enemy soldier was really dead or if he had just been shot in the face. Evan figured he killed him. But I could have sworn the guy walked away.

So, we went back and we found the man. He was very much alive. So, I shot him some more in the face and won the bet.

Tough shit, Evan.

*Don't Forget to Die*

Our company stopped by the river to rest. We had been hoofing it since France and we just entered Michigan.

Plus the guy reading the map was on acid.

But Detroit was beautiful.

*POW*

The thing they don't tell you about a P.O.W. camp is that there are no rules. They sit you in a bunker with a bunch of prisoners and a Monopoly board. No one had played Monopoly in years. We all forgot how to play.

And there were no rules. Totally lost. Just a board and pieces. We had to make up the rules. I still don't know what GO meant.

*GI Joe*

When I came back from the war there was a party. But there was no job, no wife, and no money. But they made sure to give me a party. Like some sort of celebration as if I had been with them all the last four years and not out killing kids younger than me.

It made me sick.

Except for the pinata - that was totally cool and kinda made up for their lack of understanding.

But the pain is still there.

*Betrayal on the Beach*

I looked at Salter. We both knew what he had done. And we both knew it was going to cost us the war. And we both knew that only one of us would live to tell or not to tell the story of his betrayal.

We eyed each other and waited for the other to flinch. But neither one of us did. Finally, he blinked. I knew then that it was Ramirez who did it.

But we continued having sex with the prostitute for the time being. There would be time to kill him and Ramirez later.

*Hand Grenades to Hell*

I once knew a guy who would pull the pins on hand grenades and juggle them and toss them at the enemy mid-juggle.

He died SUPER quick.

*The Battle of Unspecified Nation-State*

I was on the hill overlooking the ambush. It was a nightmare. We were losing men by the dozen. I tried to run down, but Hank stopped me.

"Patterson, that's not your war."

"But we gotta do something!"

"Patterson, a general once told me you have to know when to hold them and you have to know when to fold them. We are folding."

"That's a Kenny Rogers song."

"Yes, Kenny Rogers, the general."

*The Bridge Over the River Dead Bodies*

One thing they don't tell you in the movies is that war can be delicious. Every new town we would explore we'd eat local foods and they were delicious.

I remember I came back home and missed the exotic foods. Sure, we had our International district, but it just wasn't the same.

That's why I'm reenlisting.

Does that sound crazy to you? Anyway, two adults and three children for Frozen.

*Bloody Hill of Blood and Flags and Blood*

I turned to Johnson "Call in a strike!"

Johnson turned his head towards me and I realized he was...

His face...

Was gone.

He had put on clown makeup. Boy, that came as a surprise. You need humor if you are going to fight a war.

He beeped a horn and I laughed.

Then someone blew his clown face and his real face off.

title: [HM] War is Hell and Other Tales of Fighting and Stuff Like That

question: Summarize everything to do with weaponry.

answer: In the old days, people would fight with knives and swords instead of guns. You might get bored due to how long it takes to kill someone. When you weren't paying attention, the enemy might take out an ax and chop you in half. In the last days of the war, the narrator and his allies ran out of ammunition for the big guns. The narrator once knew a guy who would pull the pins on hand grenades, juggle them, and toss them at the enemy.

question: Summarize everything relating to prisoners of war.

answer: When the narrator and his allies ran out of ammunition, they used their P.O.W.s as artillery. They dressed the bodies up with branches and fake fangs in order to scare their enemies. There are no rules in a P.O.W. camp. The narrator likens it to a game of Monopoly with just a board and pieces but no rules.

question: What does the article say about the reason for the war?

question: What does the story say about the narrator's feelings toward life after the war?

answer: After the war, he has no job, no wife, and no money, but is thrown a party. Celebrating the past gour years killing kids makes him feel sick. He feels residual pain. He also misses the exotic foods he would eat while travelling to new towns.


text:
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and the Arab media have been claiming since Monday that 13-year-old Ahmed Manasra, who was documented committing a terror attack in Pisgat Ze'ev this week, has been "executed" by Israel.

-   Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter

Except that Dr. Asher Salmon, the deputy director of the Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem's Ein Karem, said Thursday that the boy is alive, and is in light-to-moderate condition.
Photos of Mansra from the hospital were released to support those statements.

[Ahmed Mansra in the hospital]
Ahmed Mansra in the hospital

"I want to report on the situation of the Palestinian teen who was involved in the stabbing in Pisgat Ze'ev," Dr. Salmon said. "He's being properly treated. Medically, I believe we could discharge him in the next few days."

Dr. Asher Salmon talks about situation of Ahmed Mansra

A Jewish 13-year-old boy and a 21-year-old were seriously wounded in the attack perpetrated by Mansra and another, 15-year-old, Palestinian teen.

Mansra, 13, and his cousin, 15, stab passersby in Pisgat Ze'ev    (חטיבת דובר המשטרה)

Shortly after the attack, a video of the neutralized Manasra bleeding on the ground went viral online.
Arab media and Palestinian social media pages claimed the video shows that the Israelis executed an innocent boy.

In a speech he made on Wednesday evening, Abbas insisted that the Palestinians would not surrender to the "Israeli aggression" against the Palestinian people, their holy places, homes, and the "executions of children like Ahmed Manasra."

In an English translation of Abbas' speech released by the PLO, however, the Palestinian president is quoted as saying Israel "shoots" Palestinian children in cold blood "as they did with the child Ahmed Manasra," replacing the word "executions" with a more moderate language.

But while Manasra's cousin Hassan was shot to death, Ahmed was not shot - he was hit by an Israeli vehicle, suffering a serious head injury.

The translation was released before the publication of the photos showing Manasra alive.

Security footage from the scene of the attack, however, shows Mansra and his cousin Hassan stabbing passersby.
Elior Levy and Roi Yanovsky contributed to this report.

question: What is the Palestinian's President's name?

answer: President Mahmoud Abbas

question: How old were Mansra and his cousin?

answer: 13 and 15 respectively

question: Who is Dr. Asher Salmon?

answer: The deputy director of the Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem's Ein Karem

question: What happened to Ahmed?

answer: He was hit by an Israeli vehicle, suffering a serious head injury

question: Write a ~2 sentence summary.

answer: The story is about how Ahmed Manasra has been executed by Israel because he was documented committing a terror attack in Pisgat Ze'ev. The situation is quite complicated and full of violence.


text:
Crown Prince LOUIS RWAGASORE (10 January 1932 – 13 October 1961) was a Burundian Royal and politician who is considered a significant figure in the history of Burundi nationalism. He was prime minister, and was assassinated shortly before Burundian independence.

Biography

Political career

Louis Rwagasore was the son of _Mwami_ (king) Mwambutsa IV and his first wife, Thérèse Kayonga. He attended Groupe Scolaire d'Astrida (now Groupe Scolaire Officiel de Butare) in Rwanda.[1] He briefly attended university in Belgium, but left to spearhead his country's anti-colonial movement. He founded a series of African cooperatives to encourage economic independence, but these were quickly banned by Belgium in 1958.

That same year, the prince established a nationalist political movement, Union for National Progress (UPRONA). Believing that the role of the royal family should transcend partisan politics, his father promoted him to Chief of Butanyerera, but Rwagasore turned down the appointment so that he could devote himself fully to the nationalist cause. Rwagasore, a Ganwa,[2] married a woman who most people thought was a Hutu. It is believed that Rwagasore did so in a bid to play down the ethnic divisions between ethnic groups, especially between Tutsi and Hutu, which he believed the Belgian colonial rule had pitched against one another. At the first UPRONA Congress in March 1960, Rwagasore demanded complete independence for Burundi and called on the local population to boycott Belgian stores and refuse to pay taxes. Because of these calls for civil disobedience, he was placed under house arrest.

Despite setbacks, UPRONA won a clear victory in elections for the colony's legislative assembly on 8 September 1961, winning 80 per cent of the vote. The next day, Rwagasore was declared prime minister, with a mandate to prepare the country for independence.[3]

Assassination

[Contemporary photograph of Rwagasore's mausoleum in Bujumbura ] Just two weeks later, on 13 October 1961, Rwagasore was assassinated while dining at the Hotel Tanganyika in Usumbura (modern-day Bujumbura). The assassin, a Greek national named Jean Kageorgis, was accompanied by three Burundians, all members of the pro-Belgian Christian Democratic Party (PDC). Within three days, all four suspects were arrested and they quickly implicated two high-ranking members of the PDC (Jean-Baptiste Ntidendereza and Joseph Biroli), with one initially admitting his guilt but later retracting his confession.[4] Following the assassination inter-ethnic rivalries between the Hutu and Tutsi within UPRONA flared.

Historians have suggested that the Belgian colonial authorities may have played a significant role in the assassination although no official inquiry has ever been carried out. As early as the 1970s, René Lemarchand, an expert on Burundian history, claimed that the PDC's European secretary, Ms Belva, was allegedly told by the Belgian regent Roberto Régnier that “Rwagasore must be killed”.[5] In addition, several days before his assassination, Rwagasore filled a complaint against seven Belgian officials including the Belgian Governor-General, Jean-Paul Harroy and Régnier.[6] Before being executed for the murder, Kageorgis explicitly accused Harroy and Régnier of responsibility.[7]

In 2011 the Belgian journalist, Guy Poppe, published _De moord op Rwagasore, de Burundese Lumumba_ (_The Death of Rwagasore, the Burundian Lumumba_) which claimed that irregularities in the investigation of the Prince's murder included, among other details, a lack of questioning of witnesses including Harroy, Régnier, Kageorgis' Belgian fiancee, and Ms. Belva. Poppe discovered that files from the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs's archives, including a transcript from an interview that was conducted with Régnier following his return to Belgium from Burundi, had been lost.[8] Poppe also claimed that the Foreign Ministry had threatened to fire three former colonial officers if they traveled to Burundi in order to testify during Kageorgis' trial.[9] Poppe noted the investigation's failure to follow up links between the Burundian PDC party and the Belgian Christian Social Party (PSC-CVP).[10]

In October 2018, Burundi officially accused Belgium to be responsible of the assassination.[11]

Legacy

Prince Louis Rwagasore Stadium was named in his honour and the football club Prince Louis FC. His tomb was constructed on the hills overlooking Bujumbura and consists of a memorial with three arches. The original inscription above the arches read “Dieu, Roi, Patrie” (God, King, Country). 13 October is a public holiday in Burundi, in his memory. His portrait appears since independence in the 100 franc banknote.

Ancestry

[1] Bucyensenge, Jean Pierre (JP). “GSO-Butare marks 83rd anniversary.” _New Times_. (Archive) 25 September 2012. Retrieved on 6 March 2013.

[2]

[3]

[4] Burundi: Ethnic Conflict and Genocide (Woodrow Wilson Center Press/Cambridge University Press, 1996), , 9780521566230, pg. 55-56)

[5]

[6] _afrika focus_ — Volume 28, Nr. 2, 2015 — pp. 156 -164, The murder of Burundi’s prime minister, Louis Rwagasore, Guy Poppe, https://ojs.ugent.be/AF/article/view/4874/4807

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11] _Le Vif_ 10-10-2019 — Les ombres du martyr Rwagasore, Vincent Delcorps, p. 9.

title: Louis Rwagasore

question: Why was Rwagasore assassinated?

answer: Rwagasore was assassinated because he was one of the key figures pushing for Burundi's independence from Belgian colonial rule, and there were parties like the pro-Belgian Christian Democratic Party (PDC), who didn't want him to succeed.

question: Why did Rwagasore turn down the promotion to Chief of Butanyerera his father gave him?

answer: Because he wanted to devote himself fully to the nationalist cause.

question: What might have happened if Rwagasore accepted the appointment as Chief of Butanyerera instead of pushing for independence from Belgium?

answer: There would've been no assassination and he could've succeeded his father as King of Burundi.


text:
All at once your anger dissipates, so fast as to be smoke from a fire. You look and me and smile, a twisted line drawn across a clown's face.
"Wanna see something cool?" You ask me, knowing how eager I would be to agree. You walk to the window and chirp, a bird like whistle that has me leaning in, fascinated. A bird, a robin with eyes brighter than the midday sun and wings like pointed razor blades hops closer, seemingly compelled to follow you. Closer, closer and closer still until it crosses the boundary, enters our world through the portal of a window frame. You reach out a hand, so slowly you are barely moving. And, to my surprise, it lets you.
"Beautiful," I say, barely more than a breath.
You continue reaching, until, at last, you finger brushes its wing. At once, it hops backwards, soaring straight for the window, but you get there first and slam it shut. The bird flies straight into it, chirping angrily; showing true terror in every action.
You turn to me. "This is what they do to us" You say, expression blank, angry. "That's not beautiful, that's cruelty."
And, despite the hurt done, I learnt more in that conversation than in all my years of schooling.

title: The Ornate Cage

question: Who are 'they'?

answer: It's not specified, but it could be referring generally to authority figures and social structures.

question: What perspective is used in the story?

answer: First and second person.

question: What is the story's genre?

answer: Literary; allegorical.

question: What happens to the robin?

answer: It is lured into the house and then trapped when it tries to flee.

question: Write a ~1 sentence summary.

answer: The story shows someone demonstrating to the narrator how they are treated with cruelty by allegorically luring a bird inside and trapping it at the moment it tries to flee.


text:
FILE PHOTO: U.S. Representative Raul Labrador (R-ID) talks to the media about U.S. Representative Paul Ryan (R-WI) after the House Freedom Caucus meeting on Capitol Hill in Washington October 21, 2015. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Prominent U.S. conservative congressman Raul Labrador has decided run for Idaho governor in the 2018 election, which will leave his seat in the House of Representatives up for grabs, KPVI television in Pocatello, Idaho, reported on Tuesday.

“Idaho needs a proven conservative leader who will stand against the special interests and politicians that have picked the winners and losers in our state Capitol for too long,” Labrador said in a statement obtained by the station.

“Idaho needs a governor who will provide a new vision, a new approach and new leadership,” he said in the statement.

The four-term congressman was a founding member of the conservative Freedom Caucus in the House of Representatives and was part of a rebel group of conservatives who were a thorn in the side of Republican John Boehner as House speaker.

Labrador voted in favor of the House’s compromise healthcare reform legislation last week. When confronted by angry constituents at a town hall meeting after the vote, he responded by saying: “Nobody dies because they don’t have access to healthcare,” a comment that provoked outrage on social media.

(This version of the story corrects source in headline)

Reporting by David Alexander; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama

for-phone-onlyfor-tablet-portrait-upfor-tablet-landscape-upfor-desktop-upfor-wide-desktop-up

question: Explain why Raul Labrador's seat in the House of Representatives was up for grabs.

answer: Because he decided to run for Idaho governor in the 2018 election.