Podcasts about Congo River

* Israel bombs homes and tents in besieged Gaza "Israel has killed at least seven more Palestinians in nighttime strikes on a home and tents for the displacement across Gaza. Four people, including two children and a girl, were killed in a strike on a tent for the displaced in the Al-Mawasi area in western Khan Younis in southern Gaza. One person was killed and 20 others, including 15 children, were wounded in a separate strike on a home in the Khan Younis refugee camp. And two people were killed and several others wounded in another strike that hit a tent in western Gaza City." *Death toll from US strikes on Yemen mounts to 74 Yemen's Houthis have said US strikes on a fuel port killed 74 people and wounded more than 170, making it the deadliest attack of Washington's intensified month-long air campaign. *Iran and US to resume crucial nuclear talks in Rome " Iran and the United States will hold a new round of nuclear talks in Rome to resolve their decades-long standoff over Tehran's atomic aims, under the shadow of President Donald Trump's threat to unleash military action if diplomacy fails. Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and Trump's Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff will negotiate indirectly through mediators from Oman, a week after a first round in Muscat that both sides described as constructive." *DRC boat disaster leaves at least 148 people dead " At least 148 people have been found dead in Democratic Republic of Congo after a motorised wooden boat caught fire and capsized. Officials said that the boat was carrying as many as 500 passengers, including women and children, when it overturned in the Congo River located in the country's northwest region." *Erdogan: Al Aqsa Mosque is our red line " Turkish President Rejep Tayyip Erdogan has strongly condemned Israeli actions at the Haram al Sharif, reiterating that the Al Aqsa Mosque and the surrounding complex belong solely to Muslims and must remain intact. He declared that Al Aqsa is a “red line” for Türkiye, emphasising it would remain so forever. Erdogan called on Israel to immediately halt all provocations, raids, and actions that threaten the sanctity and unity of the holy site."

National Book Award-winning author Colum McCann says he chooses what to write about based on what he most wants to know. His latest novel “Twist” springs from his fascination with the underwater cables, no thicker than a garden hose, that carry some 95% of the world's telecommunications. McCann's protagonist is a journalist who goes asea to investigate a cable break off the coast of Africa after the Congo River floods. We talk to McCann about themes of sabotage and repair – both in the abyssal zone he writes about and in our lives. Guest: Colum McCann, author, “Twist”; His other novels include “Apeirogon,” “Transatlantic” and “Let the Great World Spin,” which won a National Book Award. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Can You Segway?Book 3 in 18 parts, By FinalStand. Listen to the ► Podcast at Explicit Novels.So exactly who was going to be sympathetic to their plight, who we cared about?Beyond my fevered dream of making a difference there was a pinch of reality. See, the Cabindans and the people of Zaire were both ethnic Bakongo and the Bakongo of Zaire had also once had their own, independent (until 1914) kingdom which was now part of Angola. The Bakongo were major factions in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) -(formerly for a short time known as the nation of Zaire, from here on out to be referred to as the DRC and in the running for the most fucked up place on the planet Earth, more on that later)- and Congo (the nation) yet a minority in Angola. Having an independent nation united along ethnic and linguistic lines made sense and could expect support from their confederates across international boundaries.The Liberation Air ForceThe Earth & Sky operated under one constant dilemma ~ when would Temujin make his return? Since they didn't know and it was their job to be prepared for the eventuality if it happened tomorrow, or a century down the line, they 'stockpiled', and 'stockpiled' and 'stockpiled'.That was why they maintained large horse herds and preserved the ancient arts of Asian bowyers, armoring and weapons-craft. That was why they created secret armories, and sulfur and saltpeter sites when musketry and cannons became the new ways of warfare. They secured sources of phosphates and petroleum when they became the new thing, and so on.All of this boiled over to me being shown yet again I worked with clever, creative and under-handed people. The Khanate came up with a plan for a 'Union' Air Force {Union? More on that later} within 24 hours, and it barely touched any of their existing resources. How did they accomplish this miracle? They had stockpiled and maintained earlier generation aircraft because they didn't know when Temujin would make his re-appearance.They'd also trained pilots and ground crews for those aircraft. As you might imagine, those people grew old just as their equipment did. In time, they went into the Earth & Sky's Inactive Reserves ~ the rank & file over the age of 45. You never were 'too old' to serve in some capacity though most combat-support related work ended at 67.When Temujin made his return and the E&S transformed into the Khanate, those people went to work bringing their lovingly cared for, aging equipment up to combat-alert readiness. If the frontline units were decimated, they would have to serve, despite the grim odds of their survival. It was the terrible acceptance the Chinese would simply possess so much more war-making material than they did.Well, the Khanate kicked the PRC's ass in a titanic ass-whooping no one (else) had seen coming, or would soon forget. Factory production and replacement of worn machines was in stride to have the Khanate's Air Force ready for the next round of warfare when the Cease-fire ended and the Reunification War resumed.Always a lower priority, the Khanate military leadership was considering deactivating dozens of these reserve unit when suddenly the (Mongolian) Ikh khaany khairt akh dáé (me) had this hare-brained scheme about helping rebels in Africa, West Africa, along the Gulf of Guinea coast/Atlantic Ocean, far, far away, and it couldn't look like the Khanate was directly involved.They barely knew where Angola was. They had to look up Cabinda to figure out precisely where that was. They brought in some of their 'reservist' air staff to this briefing and one of them, a woman (roughly a third of the E&S 'fighting'/non-frontline forces were female), knew what was going on. Why?She had studied the combat records and performance of the types of aircraft she'd have to utilize... back in the 1980's and 90's and Angola had been a war zone rife with Soviet (aka Khanate) material back then. Since she was both on the ball, bright and knew the score, the War Council put her in overall command. She knew what was expected of her and off she went, new staff in hand. She was 64 years old, yet as ready and willing to serve as any 20 year old believer in the Cause.Subtlety, scarcity and audacity were the watchwords of the day. The Khanate couldn't afford any of their front-line aircraft for this 'expedition'. They really couldn't afford any of their second-rate stuff either. Fortunately, they had some updated third-rate war-fighting gear still capable of putting up an impressive show in combat ~ providing they weren't going up against a top tier opponents.For the 'volunteers' of the Union Air Force, this could very likely to be a one-way trip. They all needed crash courses (not a word any air force loves, I know) in Portuguese though hastily provided iPhones with 'apps' to act as translators were deemed to be an adequate stop-gap measure. Besides, they were advised to avoid getting captured at all cost. The E&S couldn't afford the exposure. Given the opportunity ~ this assignment really was going above and beyond ~ not one of these forty-six to sixty-seven year olds backed out.No, they rolled out fifty of their antiquated aircraft, designs dating back to the 1950's through the mid-70's, and prepared them for the over 10,000 km journey to where they were 'needed most'. 118 pilots would go (72 active plus 46 replacements) along with 400 ground crew and an equally aged air defense battalion (so their air bases didn't get blown up). Security would be provided by 'outsiders' ~ allies already on the ground and whatever rebels could be scrounged up. After the initial insertion, the Indian Air Force would fly in supplies at night into the Cabinda City and Soyo Airports.The composition,14 Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 jet fighters ~ though she entered service in 1959, these planes' electronics were late 20th century and she was a renowned dogfighter. 12 were the Mig-21-97 modernized variant and the other two were Mig-21 UM two-seater trainer variants which could double as reconnaissance fighters if needed.14 Sukhoi Su-22 jet fighter-bombers ~ the original design, called the Su-17, came out in 1970, the first 12 were variants with the 22M4 upgrade were an early-80's package. The other 2 were Su-22U two-seat trainers which, like their Mig-21 comrades, doubled as reconnaissance fighters. The Su-22M4's would be doing the majority of the ground attack missions for the Cabindans, though they could defend themselves in aerial combat if necessary.6 Sukhoi Su-24M2 supersonic attack aircraft ~ the first model rolled off the production lines in the Soviet Union back in 1974. By far the heaviest planes in the Cabindan Air Force, the Su-24M2's would act as their 'bomber force' as well as anti-ship deterrence.8 Mil Mi-24 VM combat helicopters ~ introduced in 1972 was still a lethal combat machine today. Unlike the NATO helicopter force, the Mi-24's did double duty as both attack helicopter and assault transports at the same time.4 Mil Mi-8 utility helicopters, first produced in 1967. Three would act as troop/cargo transports (Mi-8 TP) while the fourth was configured as a mobile hospital (the MI-17 1VA).4 Antonov An-26 turboprop aircraft, two to be used as tactical transports to bring in supplies by day and two specializing in electronic intelligence aka listening to what the enemy was up to. Though it entered production in 1969, many still remained flying today.2 Antonov An-71M AEW&C twin-jet engine aircraft. These were an old, abandoned Soviet design the Earth & Sky had continued working on primarily because the current (1970's) Russian Airborne Early Warning and Control bird had been both huge and rather ineffective ~ it couldn't easily identify low-flying planes in the ground clutter so it was mainly only good at sea. Since the E&S planned to mostly fight over the land,They kept working on the An-71 which was basically 1977's popular An-72 with some pertinent design modifications (placing the engines below the wings instead of above them as on the -72 being a big one). To solve their radar problem, they stole some from the Swedish tech firm Ericsson, which hadn't been foreseen to be a problem before now.See, the Russians in the post-Soviet era created a decent AEW&C craft the E&S gladly stole and copied the shit out of for their front line units and it was working quite nicely ~ the Beriev A-50, and wow, were the boys in the Kremlin pissed off about that these days. Whoops, or was that woot?Now, the Khanate was shipping two An-71's down to Cabinda and somewhere along the line someone just might get a 'feel' for the style of radar and jamming the Cabindans were using aka the Swedish stuff in those An-71's. The Erieye radar system could pick out individual planes at 280 miles. The over-all system could track 60 targets and plot out 10 intercepts simultaneously. NATO, they were not, but in sub-Saharan Africa, there were none better.Anyway, so why was any of this important?Why the old folks with their ancient machines? As revealed, since the Earth & Sky had no idea when Temüjin would return, they were constantly squirreling away equipment. World War 2 gave them unequaled access to Soviet military technology and training.Afterwards, under Josef Stalin's direction, thousands of Russian and German engineers and scientists were exiled to Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan who were then snatched up (reportedly died in the gulags/trying to escape) and the E&S began building mirror factories modeled on the 'then current' Soviet production lines.So, by the early 1950's, the E&S was building, flying and maintaining Soviet-style Antonov, Beriev, Ilyushin, Myasishchev, Mikoyan-Gurevich, Sukhoi, Tupolev and Yakovlev airplanes. First in small numbers because their pool of pilots and specialists was so small.The E&S remedied this by creating both their own 'private' flight academies and technical schools. They protected their activities with the judicious use of bribes (they were remarkably successful with their economic endeavors on both side of the Iron Curtain) and murders (including the use of the Ghost Tigers).By 1960, the proto-Khanate had an air force. Through the next two decades they refined and altered their doctrine ~ moving away from the Soviet doctrine to a more pure combined-arms approach (the Soviets divided their air power into four separate arms ~ ADD (Long Range Aviation), FA (Front Aviation), MTA (Military Transport Aviation) and the V-PVO (Soviet Air Defenses ~ which controlled air interceptors).).It wasn't until the collapse of the Soviet Union and the independence of the various former SSR's that the E&S program really began to hit its stride. Still, while Russia faltered, China's PLAAF (Peoples' Liberation Army Air Force) began to take off. Since the Chinese could produce so much more, the E&S felt it had to keep those older planes and crews up to combat readiness. The younger field crews and pilots flew the newer models as they rolled off the secret production lines.Then the Unification War appeared suddenly, the E&S-turned Khanate Air Force skunked their PLAAF rivals due to two factors, a surprise attack on a strategic level and the fatal poisoning of their pilots and ground crews before they even got into the fight. For those Chinese craft not destroyed on the ground, the effects of Anthrax eroded their fighting edge. Comparable technology gave the Khanate their critical victory and Air Supremacy over the most important battlefields.What did this meant for those out-of-date air crews and pilots who had been training to a razor's edge for a month now? Their assignment had been to face down the Russians if they invaded. They would take their planes up into the fight even though this most likely would mean their deaths, but they had to try.When Operation Fun House put Russia in a position where she wasn't likely to jump on the Khanate, this mission's importance faded. The Russian Air Force was far more stretched than the Khanate's between her agitations in the Baltic and her commitments in the Manchurian, Ukrainian, Chechen and Georgian theaters.With more new planes rolling off the production lines, these reservist units began dropping down the fuel priority list, which meant lowering their flight times thus readiness. Only my hare-brained scheme had short-circuited their timely retirement. Had I realized I was getting people's grandparents killed, I would have probably made the same call anyway. We needed them.The KanateThe Khanate's #1 air superiority dogfighter was the Mig-35F. The #2 was the Mig-29. No one was openly discussing the Khanate's super-stealthy "Su-50", if that was what it was, because its existence 'might' suggest the Khanate also stole technology from the Indian defense industry, along with their laundry list of thefts from South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, the PRC, Russia and half of NATO.Her top multi-role fighters were the Su-47, Su-35S and Su-30SM. The Su-30 'Flanker-C/MK2/MKI were their 2nd team with plenty of 3rd team Su-27M's still flying combat missions as well.Strike fighters? There weren't enough Su-34's to go around yet, so the Su-25MS remained the Khanate's dedicated Close Air Assault model.Medium transport aircraft? The An-32RE and An-38. They had small, large and gargantuan transports as well.Bombers? The rather ancient jet-powered Tu-160M2's and Tu-22M2's as well as the even older yet still worthwhile turboprops ~ from 1956's ~ the Tu-95M S16.Helicopters? While they still flew updated variants of the Mil Mi-8/17 as military transports, the more optimized Kamov Ka-52 and Mil Mi-28 had replaced them in the assault role.Bizarrely, the Khanate had overrun several Chinese production lines of the aircraft frames and components ~ enough to complete fairly modern PLAAF (Peoples Liberation Army Air Force) FC-1 and J-10 (both are small multi-role fighter remarkably similar to the US F-16 with the FC-1 being the more advanced model, using shared Chinese-Pakistani technology and was designed for export,).They did have nearly two dozen to send, but they didn't have the pilots and ground crews trained to work with them, plus the FC-1 cost roughly $32 million which wasn't fundage any legitimate Cabindan rebels could get their hands on, much less $768 million (and that would just be for the planes, not the weeks' worth of fuel, parts and munitions necessary for what was forthcoming).Meanwhile, except for the An-26, which you could get for under $700,000 and the An-71, which were only rendered valuable via 'black market tech', none of the turboprop and jet aircraft the Khanate was sending were what any sane military would normally want. The helicopters were expensive ~ the 'new' models Mi-24's cost $32 million while the Mi-17's set you back $17 million. The one's heading to Cabinda didn't look 'new'.The Opposition:In contrast, the Angolan Air Force appeared far larger and more modern. Appearances can be deceptive, and they were. Sure, the models of Russian and Soviet-made aircraft they had in their inventory had the higher numbers ~ the Su-25, -27 and -30 ~ plus they had Mig-21bis's, Mig-23's and Su-22's, but things like training and up-keep didn't appear to be priorities for the Angolans.When you took into account the rampant corruption infecting all levels of Angolan government, the conscript nature of their military, the weakness of their technical educational system, the complexity of any modern combat aircraft and the reality that poor sods forced into being Air Force ground crewmen hardly made the most inspired technicians, or most diligent care-takers of their 'valuable' stockpiles (which their officers all too often sold on the black market anyway), things didn't just look bleak for the Angolan Air Force, they were a tsunami of cumulative factors heading them for an epic disaster.It wasn't only their enemies who derided their Air Force's lack of readiness. Their allies constantly scolded them about it too. Instead of trying to fix their current inventory, the Angolans kept shopping around for new stuff. Since 'new'-new aircraft was beyond what they wanted to spend (aka put too much of a dent in the money they were siphoning off to their private off-shore accounts), they bought 'used' gear from former Soviet states ~ Belarus, Russia and Ukraine ~ who sold them stuff they had left abandoned in revetments (open to the elements to slowly rot) on the cheap.To add to the insanity, the Angolans failed to keep up their maintenance agreements so their newly fixed high-tech machines often either couldn't fly, or flew without critical systems, like radar, avionics and even radios. Maybe that wasn't for the worst because after spending millions on these occasionally-mobile paperweights, the Angolans bought the least technologically advanced missile, gun and rocket systems they could get to put on these flying misfortunes.On the spread sheets, Angola had 18 Su-30K's, 18 Su-27, 12 Su-25's, 14 Su-22's, 22 Mig-23's, 23 Mig-21bis's and 6 Embraer EMB 314 Super Tucano (a turboprop aircraft tailor-made for counter-insurgency operations), 105 helicopters with some combative ability and 21 planes with some airlift capacity. That equated to 81 either air superiority, or multi-role jet fighters versus the 12 Union Air Force (actually the Bakongo Uni o de Cabinda e Zaire, For as Armadas de Liberta  o, For a Area ~ Liberation Armed Forces, Air Force (BUCZ-FAL-FA) Mig-21-97's.It would seem lopsided except for the thousands of hours of flight experience the 'Unionists' enjoyed over their Angolan rivals. You also needed to take into account the long training and fanatic dedication of their ground crews to their pilots and their craft. Then you needed to take into account every Unionist aircraft, while an older airframe design, had updated (usually to the year 2000) technology lovingly cared for, as if the survival of their People demanded it.A second and even more critical factor was the element of surprise. At least the PRC and the PLAAF had contingencies for attacks from their neighbors in the forefront of their strategic planning. The Angolans? The only country with ANY air force in the vicinity was the Republic of South Africa (RSA) and they had ceased being a threat with the end of Apartheid and the rise of majority Black rule in that country nearly two decades earlier.In the pre-dawn hours of 'Union Independence Day', the FAL-FA was going to smash every Angolan Air base and air defense facility within 375 miles of Cabinda (the city). Every three hours after that, they would be hitting another target within their designated 'Exclusion Zone'. Yes, this 'Exclusion Zone' included a 'tiny' bit of DRC (Democratic Republic of Congo) territory. The DRC didn't have an air force to challenge them though, so,Inside this 'Exclusion Zone', anything moving by sea, river, road, rail, or air without Unionist governmental approval was subject to attack, which would require neutral parties to acknowledge some semblance of a free and independent B U C Z. Worse for Angola, this 'Zone' included Angola's capital and its largest port, Luanda, plus four more of their ten largest urban centers. This could be an economic, military and humanitarian catastrophe if mishandled.The Angolan Army did not have significant anti-aircraft assets. Why would they? Remember, no one around them had much of an air force to worry about. The FAL-FA in turn could hit military convoys with TV-guided munitions 'beyond line of sight', rendering what they did have useless. It got worse for the Army after dark. The FAL-FA could and would fly at night whereas the average Angolan formation had Zip-Zero-Nadda night fighting capacity.Then geography added its own mountain of woes. As far as Cabinda was concerned, there was no direct land line to their border from Angola. Their coastal road only went as far as the port of Soyo where the Congo River hit the South Atlantic Ocean. Across that massive gap was the DRC where the road was not picked back up. Far up the coast was the DRC town of Muanda (with an airport) and though they did have a road which went north, it did not continue to the Cabindan border.Nope. To get at Cabinda from the south meant a long, torturous travel through northeastern Angola, into the heart of the DRC then entailed hooking west to some point 'close' to the Cabindan frontier before finally hoofing it overland through partially cleared farmland and jungle. Mind you, the DRC didn't have a native air force capable of protecting the Angolans in their territory so,In fact the only 'road' to Cabinda came from the Republic of Congo (Congo) to the north and even that was a twisted route along some really bad, swampy terrain. This had been the pathway of conquest the Angolans took 39 years earlier. The difference being the tiny bands of pro-independence Cabindan guerillas back then couldn't hold a candle to the Amazons fighting to free Cabinda this time around in numbers, zeal, training and up-to-date equipment.Next option ~ to come by sea. They would face a few, stiff problems, such as the FAL-FA having ship-killer missiles, the Angolan Navy not being able to defend them and the Unionists having no compunction to not strike Pointe-Noire in the 'not so neutral' Republic of the Congo if they somehow began unloading Angolan troops. It seemed the Republic of the Congo didn't have much of an Air Force either.Before you think the FAL-FA was biting off more than they could chew, Cabinda, the province, was shaped somewhat like the US State of Delaware, was half the size of Connecticut (Cabinda was 2,810 sq. mi. to Conn.'s 5,543 sq. mi.) and only the western 20% was relatively open countryside where the Angolan Army's only advantage ~ they possessed armed fighting vehicles while the 'Unionists' did not (at this stage of planning) ~ could hopefully come into play.Centered at their capital, Cabinda (City), jets could reach any point along their border within eight minutes. Helicopters could make it in fifteen. To be safe, some of the FAL-FA would base at the town of Belize which was in the northern upcountry and much tougher to get at with the added advantage the Angolans wouldn't be expecting the FAL-FA to be using the abandoned airfield there, at least initially.Where they afraid attacking Angolan troops in the DRC would invite war with the DRC? Sure, but letting the Angolans reach the border unscathed was worse. Besides, the DRC was in such a mess it needed 23,000 UN Peacekeepers within her borders just to keep the country from falling apart. Barring outside, read European, intervention, did "Democratically-elected since 2001" President (for Life) Joseph Kabila want the FAL-FA to start dropping bombs on his capital, Kinshasa, which was well within reach of all their aircraft?Congo (the country), to the north, wasn't being propped up by the UN, or anything else except ill intentions. In reality, it hardly had much of a military at all. Its officer corps was chosen for political reliability, not merit, or capability. Their technology was old Cold War stuff with little effort to update anything and, if you suspected corruption might be a problem across all spectrums of life, you would 'probably' be right about that too.If you suspected the current President had been in charge for a while, you would be correct again (1979-1992 then 2001- and the 'whoops' was when he accidently let his country experiment with democracy which led to two civil wars). If you suspected he was a life-long Communist (along with the Presidents of the DRC and Angola), you'd be right about that as well. Somehow their shared Marxist-Leninist-Communist ideology hadn't quite translated over to alleviating the grinding poverty in any of those countries despite their vast mineral wealth,At this point in the region's history, little Cabinda had everything to gain by striving for independence and the vast majority of 'warriors' who could possibly be sent against her had terribly little to gain fighting and dying trying to stop them from achieving her goal. After all, their lives weren't going to get any better and with the Amazons ability ~ nay willingness ~ to commit battlefield atrocities, those leaders were going to find it hard going to keep sending their men off to die.And then, it got even worse.See, what I had pointed out was there were two oil refineries in Angola, and neither was in Cabinda. Cabinda would need a refinery to start making good on their oil wealth ~ aka economically bribe off the Western economies already shaken over the Khanate's first round of aggressions.But wait! There was an oil refinery just across the Congo River from Cabinda ~ which meant it was attached to mainland Angola. That had to be a passel of impossible news, right?Nope. As I said earlier, it seemed the people of northern Angola were the same racial group as the Cabindans AND majority Catholic while the ruling clique wasn't part of their ethnic confederacy plus the farther south and east into Angola you went, the less Catholic it became.But it got better. This province was historically its own little independent kingdom (called the Kingdom of Kongo) to boot! It had been abolished by Portugal back in 1914.The 'good' news didn't end there. Now, it wasn't as if the leadership of Angola was spreading the wealth around to the People much anyway, but these northerners had been particularly left out of this Marxist version of 'Trickle Down' economics.How bad was this? This northwestern province ~ called Zaire ~ didn't have any railroads, or paved roads, linking it to the rest of the freaking country. The 'coastal road' entered the province, but about a third of the way up ran into this river, which they'd failed to bridge (you had to use a single track bridge farther to the northeast, if you can believe it). It wasn't even a big river. It was still an obstacle though.How did the Angolan government and military planned to get around? Why by air and sea, of course. Well, actually by air. Angola didn't have much of a merchant marine, or Navy, to make sealift a serious consideration. Within hours of the 'Union Declaration of Independence' anything flying anywhere north of the Luanda, the capital of Angola, would essentially be asking to be blown out of the sky.Along the border between Zaire province and the rest of Angola were precisely two chokepoints. By 'chokepoints', I meant places where a squad (10 trained, modernly-equipped troopers) could either see everything for miles & miles over pretty much empty space along a river valley and the only bridge separating Zaire province from the south, or overlook a ravine which the only road had to pass through because of otherwise bad-ass, broken terrain.Two.Zaire Province had roughly the same population as Cabinda ~ 600,000. Unlike Cabinda, which consisted of Cabinda City plus a few tiny towns and rugged jungles, Zaire had two cities ~ Soyo, with her seventy thousand souls plus the refinery at the mouth of the Congo River, and M'banza-Kongo, the historical capital of the Kingdom of Kongo, spiritual center of the Bakongo People (who included the Cabindans) and set up in the highlands strategically very reminiscent of Điện Biàn Phủ.Of Zaire's provincial towns, the only other strategic one was N'Zeto with her crappy Atlantic port facility and 2,230 meter grass airport. The town was the northern terminus of the National Road 100 ~ the Coastal Road. It terminated because of the Mebridege River. There wasn't a bridge at N'Zeto though there was a small one several miles upstream. N'Zeto was also where the road from provinces east of Zaire ended up, so you had to have N'Zeto ~ and that tiny bridge ~ to move troops overland anywhere else in Zaire Province.So you would think it would be easy for the Angolan Army to defend then, except of how the Amazons planned to operate. They would infiltrate the area first then 'rise up in rebellion'. Their problem was the scope of the operation had magnified in risk of exposure, duration and forces necessary for success.The serious issue before Saint Marie and the Host in Africa were the first two. They could actually move Amazons from Brazil and North America to bolster their numbers for the upcoming offensive. Even in the short-short term, equipment wouldn't be a serious problem. What the Amazons dreaded was being left in a protracted slugfest with the Angolan Army which the Condottieri could jump in on. The Amazons exceedingly preferred to strike first then vanish.There was reason to believe a tiny number could have stayed behind in Cabinda to help the locals prepare their military until they could defend themselves. They would need more than a hundred Amazons if Cabinda wanted to incorporate Zaire. The answer was to call back their newfound buddy, the Great Khan. While he didn't have much else he could spare (the Khanate was ramping up for their invasion of the Middle East after all, the Kurds needed the help), he had other allies he could call on.India couldn't help initially since they were supposed to supply the 'Peace-keepers' once a cease-fire had been arranged. That left Temujin with his solid ally, Vietnam, and his far shakier allies, the Republic of China and Japan.First off ~ Japan could not help, which meant they couldn't supply troops who might very well end up dead, or far worse, captured.. What they did have was a surplus of older equipment the ROC troops were familiar with, so while the ROC was gearing up for their own invasion of mainland China in February, they were willing to help the Chinese kill Angolans, off the books, of course.The ROC was sending fifteen hundred troops the Khanate's way to help in this West African adventure with the understanding they'd be coming home by year's end. With Vietnam adding over eight hundred of her own Special Forces, the Amazons had the tiny 'allied' army they could leave shielding Cabinda/Zaire once the first round of blood-letting was over.To be 'fair', the Republic of China and Vietnam asked for 'volunteers'. It wasn't like either country was going to declare war on Angola directly. Nearly a thousand members of Vietnam's elite 126th Regiment of the 5th Brigade (Đặc cáng bộ) took early retirement then misplaced their equipment as they went to update their visas and inoculations before heading out for the DRC (some would be slipping over the DRC/Cabindan border).On Taiwan, it was the men and women of the 602nd Air Cavalry Brigade, 871st Special Operations Group and 101st Amphibious Reconnaissance Battalion who felt the sudden desire to 'seek enlightenment elsewhere, preferably on another continent'.They too were off to the Democratic Republic of Congo, man that country was a mess and their border security wasn't worth writing home about, that's for damn sure, via multiple Southeast Asian nations. Besides, they were being issued fraudulently visas which showed them to be from the People's Republic of China, not the ROC/Taiwan. If they were captured, they were to pretend to "be working for a Communist Revolution inside Angola and thus to be setting all of Africa on fire!" aka be Mainland Chinese.There, in the DRC, these Chinese stumbled across, some Japanese. These folks hadn't retired. No. They were on an extended assignment for the UN's mission in, the DRC. OH! And look! They'd brought tons of surplus, outdated Japanese Self Defense Forces' equipment with them, and there just so happened to be some Taiwanese who had experience in using such equipment (both used US-style gear).And here was Colonel Yoshihiro Isami of the Chūō Sokuō Shūdan (Japan's Central Readiness Force) wondering why he and his hastily assembled team had just unloaded,18 Fuji/Bell AH-1S Cobra Attack helicopters,6 Kawasaki OH-6D Loach Scout helicopters,12 Fuji-Bell 204-B-2 Hiyodori Utility helicopters,6 Kawasaki/Boeing CH-47JA Chinook Transport helicopters and4 Mitsubishi M U-2L-1 Photo Reconnaissance Aircraft.Yep! 46 more aircraft for the FAL-FA!Oh, and if this wasn't 'bad enough', the Chinese hadn't come alone. They'd brought some old aircraft from their homes to aid in the upcoming struggle. Once more, these things were relics of the Cold War yet both capable fighting machines and, given the sorry state of the opposition, definitely quite deadly. A dozen F-5E Tiger 2000 configured primarily for air superiority plus two RF-5E Tigergazer for reconnaissance, pilots plus ground crews, of course.Thus, on the eve of battle, the FAL-FA had become a true threat. Sure, all of its planes (and half of its pilots) were pretty old, but they were combat-tested and in numbers and experience no other Sub-Saharan African nation could match.The Liberation Ground Forces:But wait, there was still the niggling little problem of what all those fellas were going to fight with once they were on the ground. Assault/Battle rifles, carbines, rifles, pistols, PDW, SMGs as bullets, grenades and RPG's were all terrifyingly easy to obtain. The coast of West Africa was hardly the Port of London as far as customs security went. They were going to need some bigger toys and their host nations were going to need all their native hardware for their upcoming battles at home.And it wasn't like you could advertise for used IFV (Infantry Fighting Vehicles), APCs (armored personnel carriers) and tanks on e-Bay, Amazon.com, or Twitter. If something modern US, or NATO, was captured rolling around the beautiful Angolan countryside, shooting up hostile Angolans, all kinds of head would roll in all kinds of countries, unless the country,A) had an Executive Branch and Judiciary who wouldn't ask (or be answering) too many uncomfortable questions,B) wasn't all that vulnerable to international pressure,C) really needed the money and,D) didn't give a fuck their toys would soon be seen on BBC/CNN/Al Jazeera blowing the ever-living crap out of a ton of Africans aka doing what they were advertised to do and doing it very well in the hands of capable professionals.And politics was kind enough to hand the freedom-loving people of Cabinda & Zaire a winner, and it wasn't even from strangers, or at least people all that strange to their part of the Globe. If you would have no idea who to look for, you wouldn't be alone.That was the magic of the choice. See, the last three decades had seen the entire Globe take a colossal dump on them as a Nation and a People. They were highly unpopular for all sorts of things, such as Crimes Against Humanity and 'no', we were not talking about the Khanate.We would be talking about Република Србија / Republika Srbija aka Serbia aka the former Yugoslavia who had watched all their satellite minions (Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Montenegro, Kosovo and Macedonia) slip away. Despite being reduced to a tiny fraction of their former selves thus fighting two incredibly brutal and bloody World Wars for nothing, Serbia insisted on maintaining a robust armaments industry.Mind you, they didn't make the very best stuff on the planet. That didn't stop them from trying though. Of equal importance was their geographic location and the above mentioned desire for some hard currency without asking too many questions. The geography was simple, you could move even heavy gear unnoticed from central Serbia to the Montenegrin port of Bar by rail and load them up on freighters and off to the Congo you went.The Serbians produced an APC called the BVP M-80A's which weren't blowing anyone's minds away when they started rolling off the production lines back in 1982, plus some over-eager types on the Serbian Army's payroll sweetened the deal by offering 'the rebels' some BVP M-80 KC's and a KB as well.Then they slathered on the sugary-sweet Maple syrup by upgrading a few of the M-80A's to BVP M-98A's. Why would they be so generous? The KC's and KB were the Command & Control variants, so that made sense (C = company & B = battalion commander). The -98A had never been tested in the field before and they were kind of curious how the new turrets (which was the major difference) would behave. 'Our' procurement agents didn't quibble. We needed the gear.Besides, these Slavic entrepreneurs gave them an inside track on some 'disarmed/mothballed' Czech (introduced in 1963) armored mobile ambulances and Polish BWP-1 (first rolled out in 1966) APC's which were either in, or could be quickly configured into, the support variants those ground-fighters would need. The 'disarmed' part was 'fixable', thanks to both the Serbians and Finland. The 'missing' basic weaponry was something the Serbians could replace with virtually identical equipment.It just kept getting better. Unknown to me at the time, the Finnish firm, Patria Hágglunds, had sold twenty-two of their 'most excellent' AMOS turrets ~ they are a twin 120 mm mortar system ~ then the deal fell through. Whoops! Should have guarded that warehouse better. Those bitches were on a cargo plane bound for Albania inside of six hours.The ammunition for them was rather unique. Thankfully, it was uniquely sold by the Swiss, who had no trouble selling it to Serbia, thank you very much! Twenty-two BWP-1's became mobile artillery for the Unionist freedom fighters, though I understood the ship ride with the Serbian and Chinese technicians was loads of fun as they struggled to figured out how to attach those state-of-the-art death-dealing turrets to those ancient contraptions.To compensate, the Serbians added (aka as long as our money was good) two Nora B-52 155 mm 52-calibre mobile artillery pieces and one battery of Orkan CER MLRS (Multiple Launch Rocket System) for long-range artillery, two batteries of their Oganj 2000 ER MRLS for medium range carnage and six batteries of their M-94 MRLS for 'close support' as well. More field-testing new gear for the "freedom fighters" We also managed to 'purchase' ten M-84AS Main Battle tanks plus an M-84A1 armor recovery vehicle. It should have been twelve tanks, but two had 'loading issues'.Not to be deterred, our busy little procurement-beavers discovered four tanks no one was using, in neighboring Croatia. Why wasn't anyone immediately keen on their placement? They were two sets of prototypes, Croatia's improvements on the M-84; the M-95 Degman which was a 'failed redesign' and the M-84D, which was a vast up-grade for the M-84 line which had been sidelined by the 2008 Global economic collapse, after which the project stagnated.It seemed they were all in working order because late one night 'my people' exited a Croatian Army base with them, never to be seen again, until two weeks later when an intrepid news crew caught the distinctive form of the M-95 sending some sweet 125 mm loving the Angolan Army's way. Whoops yet again! At least they hit what they were aiming at and destroyed what they hit, right?By then, millions of other people would be going 'what the fuck?' right along with them as Cabinda's camouflage- and mask-wearing rebel army was laying the smack-down on the Angolans. That was okay; over a million 'free Cabindan Unionists' were in the same boat. Over a thousand Asians with their mostly-female militant translators were right there to prop up their 'Unionist Allies', but then they were the ones with the tanks, armored vehicles, planes and guns, so they were less worried than most.To pilot these tanks, APC, IFV and man this artillery, they had to go back to the Khanate. Sure enough, they had some old tankers used to crewing the T-72 from which the M-84's and -95 Degman were derived. They'd also need drivers for those BVP M-80A's and Polish BWP-1's and OT-64 SKOT's... who were, again, derived from old Soviet tech (just much better). The Serbian artillery was similar enough to Soviet stuff, but with enough new tech to make it 'more fun' for the reservists to 'figure out' how to use.More volunteers for the Liberation Armed Forces! More Apple sales, great apps and voice modulation software so that the vehicle commanders would be heard communicating in Portuguese if someone was eavesdropping. As a final offering the Turkish Navy spontaneously developed some plans to test their long range capabilities by going to, the South Atlantic.On the final leg they would have six frigates and two submarines, enough to give any navy in the region, which wasn't Brazil, something to think about. This was a show of force, not an actual threat though. If anyone called their bluff, the Khanate-Turkish forces would have to pull back. These were not assets my Brother, the Great Khan, could afford to gamble and lose.If someone didn't call that bluff, he was also sending two smaller, older corvettes and three even smaller, but newer, fast attack boats, a "gift" to the Unionists ASAP. The frigates would then race home, they had 'other' issues to deal with while the submarines would hang around for a bit. The naval gift was necessitated by the reality the Unionists would have to press their claim to their off-shore riches and that required a naval force Angola couldn't hope to counter.As things were developing, it was reckoned since a build-up of such momentous land and air power couldn't be disguised, it had to happen in a matter of days ~ four was decided to be the minimum amount of time. More than that and the government of the Democratic Republic might start asking far too many questions our hefty bribes and dubious paperwork couldn't cover. Less than that would leave the task forces launching operations with too little a chance of success.Our biggest advantage was audacity. The buildup would happen 100 km up the Congo River from Soyo, the primary target of the Southern Invasion, in the DRC's second largest port city, Boma. Though across the river was Angolan territory, there was nothing there. The city of roughly 160,000 would provide adequate cover for the initial stage of the invasion.There they grouped their vehicles & Khanate drivers with Amazon and Vietnamese combat teams. The Japanese were doing the same for their 'Chinese' counterparts for their helicopter-borne forces. Getting all their equipment in working order in the short time left was critical as was creating some level of unit dynamic. Things were chaotic. No one was happy. They were all going in anyway.What had gone wrong?While most children her age were texting their schoolmates, or tackling their homework, Aya Ruger ~ the alias of Nasusara Assiyaiá hamai ~ was getting briefings of her global, secret empire worth hundreds of billions and those of her equally nefarious compatriots. She received a very abbreviated version of what the Regents received, delivered by a member of Shawnee Arinniti's staff.When Aya hopped off her chair unexpectedly, everyone tensed. Her bodyguards' hands went to their sidearms and Lorraine (her sister by blood), also in the room on this occasion, stood and prepared to tackle her 'former' sibling to the ground if the situation escalated into an assassination attempt. No such attack was generated, so the security ratcheted down and the attendant returned her focus to her Queen. Aya paced four steps, turned and retraced her way then repeated the action three more times."How many people live in the combined areas?" she asked."The combined areas? Of Cabinda and Zaire?""Yes.""I," the woman referenced her material, "roughly 1.1 million.""What is the yearly value of the offshore oil and natural gas production?""Forty-nine billion, eighty hundred and sixty-seven million by our best estimates at this time,""How many live in Soyo City proper?""Roughly 70,000.""We take Soyo," she spoke in a small yet deliberate voice. "We take and hold Soyo as an independent city-state within the Cabindan-Zaire Union. From the maps it appears Soyo is a series of islands. It has a port and airport. It has an open border to an ocean with weaker neighbors all around.""What of the, Zairians?""Bakongo. As a people they are called the Bakongo," Aya looked up at the briefer. "We relocate those who need to work in Soyo into a new city, built at our expense, beyond the southernmost water barrier. The rest we pay to relocate elsewhere in Zaire, or Cabinda."By the looks of those around her, Aya realized she needed to further explain her decisions."This is more than some concrete home base for our People," she began patiently. "In the same way it gives our enemies a clearly delineated target to attack us, it is a statement to our allies we won't cut and run if things go truly bad.""In the same way it will provide us with diplomatic recognition beyond what tenuous handouts we are getting from Cáel Wakko Ishara's efforts through JIKIT. Also, it is a reminder we are not like the other Secret Societies in one fundamental way, we are not a business concern, or a religion. We are a People and people deserve some sort of homeland. We have gone for so long without.""But Soyo?" the aide protested. "We have no ties to it, and it backs up to, nothing.""Northern Turkey and southern Slovakia mean nothing to us now as well," Aya debated. "No place on Earth is any more precious than another. As for backing up to nothing, no. You are incorrect. It backs into a promise from our allies in the Earth & Sky that if we need support, they know where to park their planes and ships."Aya was surrounded with unhappy, disbelieving looks."The Great Khan is my mamētu meáeda," she reminded them, "and I have every reason to believe he completely grasps the concept's benefits and obligations."The looks confirmed 'but he's a man' to the tiny Queen."Aya, are you sure about this?" Lorraine was the first to break decorum."Absolutely. Do you know what he sent me when he was informed of my, ascension to the Queendom?""No," Lorraine admitted."We must go horse-riding sometime soon, Daughter of Cáel, Queen of the Amazons."More uncertain and unconvinced looks."He didn't congratulate me, or send any gifts. He could have and you would think he would have, but he didn't. He knew the hearts of me & my Atta and we weren't in the celebratory mood. No. The Great Khan sent one sentence which offered solace and quiet, atop a horse on a windswept bit of steppe."Nothing.Sigh. "I know this sounds Cáel-ish," Aya admitted, "but I strongly believe this is what we should do. We are giving the Cabindans and Bakongo in Zaire independence and the promise of a much better life than what they now face. We will be putting thousands of our sisters' lives on the line to accomplish this feat and well over two hundred million dollars.""What about governance of the city ~ Soyo?" the aide forged ahead."Amazon law," Aya didn't hesitate. "We will make allowances for the security forces of visiting dignitaries and specific allied personnel, but otherwise it will be one massive Amazon urban freehold.""I cannot imagine the Golden Mare, or the Regents, will be pleased," the attendant bowed her head."It is a matter of interconnectivity," Aya walked up and touched the woman's cheek with the back of her small hand. "We could liberate then abandon Cabinda with the hope a small band could help them keep their independence. Except we need the refinery at Soyo so the people of Cabinda can truly support that liberty.""So, we must keep Soyo and to keep Soyo, we must keep Zaire province. There is no other lesser border which makes strategic sense ~ a river, highlands, a massive river, an ocean ~ those are sustainable frontiers. You can't simply keep Soyo and not expect the enemy to strike and destroy that refinery, thus we must take Zaire province.""But the Bakongo of Zaire cannot defend themselves and will not be able to do so for at least a year, if not longer. That means we must do so, and for doing so, they will give us Soyo and we will be honest stewards of their oil wealth. We cannot expect any other power to defend this new Union and if we don't have a land stake we will be portrayed as mercenaries and expelled by hostile international forces.""So, for this project to have any chance of success, we must stay, fight and have an acknowledged presence, and if you can think of an alternative, please let me know," she exhaled."What if the Cabindans and Bakongo resist?""It is 'us', or the Angolans and they know how horrible the Angolans can be. Didn't you say the average person their lives on just $2 a day?""Yes.""We can do better than that," Aya insisted."How?" the aide persisted. "I mean, 'how in a way which will be quickly evident and meaningful?'""Oh," Aya's tiny brow furrowed. Her nose twitched as she rummaged through the vast storehouse of her brain."Get me in touch with William A. Miller, Director of the U.S. Diplomatic Security Service. He should be able to help me navigate the pathways toward getting aid and advisors into those two provinces ASAP.""I'll let Katrina know," the attendant made the notation on her pad."No. Contact him directly," Aya intervened. "We established a, rapport when we met. I think he might responded positively to a chance to mentor me in foreign relations.""Really?" Lorraine's brows arched."Yes," Aya chirped."Are you sure, Nasusara?" the attendant stared. She used 'Nasusara' whenever she thought Aya had a 'horrible' idea instead of a merely a 'bad' one."Yes. He owes me. Last time we met I didn't shoot him.""Didn't?" the woman twitched."Yes. I drew down on him with my captured Chinese QSW-06. I didn't want to kill him, but I felt I was about to have to kill Deputy National Security Advisor Blinken and he was the only other person in the room both armed and capable of stopping me.""Why is he still alive?""Cáel Ishara saw through my distraction and then took my gun from me, asked for it actually," she shyly confessed."Would you have shot him?" the aide inquired."What do you think?" Aya smiled.And Then:So, given t

The last days before the Great Hunt.Book 3 in 18 parts, By FinalStand. Listen to the ► Podcast at Explicit Novels.“Can the scorpion ever stop being a scorpion? “"Do we get our legally permitted weaponry back?" The bishop still held my hand."Sure. If it makes you feel better.""I would like to meet your people then," he gave my paw one last shake then released me. "Shall we go?""I will have someone take you to your car. I want to briefly meet with the President, of Havenstone, then I'll join you in the garage. We'll drive over to JIKIT and I'll make the introductions. Good enough?""That is acceptable," he nodded."What about you two?" I regarded the nun and the Swiss Super-soldier. The nun remained vigilant, and silent. The Swiss' eyes flickered to his boss before settling back on me."It is what I volunteered for," he stated firmly."Okay. Please never say I didn't give you a chance to take the sane way out. Also, Bishop Nicolö, circumstances have conspired to up my prospective wedding date to January 1st.""That will be more difficult. Why the change?" he remained grim."We are having twins. By March, this will be very visible.""That is, unfortunate," he shook his head."You have no idea," and then a brainstorm. "And I am curious about resurrecting the Order of the Dragon, the Societas Draconistarum." Technically that meant 'Society of the Dragonists' which was more appropriate than the literal Ordo Draconis."Precisely how do you plan to recreate a crusading Christian Order which was the purview of the Hungarian monarchs?" he didn't sound the least skeptical, just curious."I have billions of euros to fund such a thing," I winked. "Of far greater critical importance, I know where I can find the supernatural guidance and spiritual imperative for such an organization.""You are going to produce a dragon?" his eyes grew larger even as he fought down his fear. Good man. He was adaptive. He'd need to be."I never said such a thing. That would make me sound crazy," I smiled broadly. "Besides, when I say 'dragon', you think 'devil' and that's way too pedestrian for where we are going.""I am not a moral relativist.""Neither am I. I'm out to save lives and nurture the drive in the human spirit to reach for freedom, love and liberty. As you might imagine, I'm pretty freaking outnumbered.""I think you are crazy," he re-evaluated things."I just might be. In all honesty, you should back out now. Take your two compadres back to 25 East 39th Street (the Holy See's Permanent Observer Offices to the UN in NYC) and report 'Mission Failure'. You'll most likely live longer," I reasoned."I am not afraid to die," Sister Rafaela Sophia finally voiced an opinion."That's idiotic," I scoffed before the bishop could reprimand her for opening her mouth. "You should be.""My soul is in God's hands," she set her jaw."Does he talk to you?" I countered."His message is clear.""Not what I asked. I asked if he specifically directed you to toss your life fruitlessly away as an object lesson for the reckless, or careless?""This is uncalled for," Nicolö intervened."Nope. I bet you a phone call to my Brother to physically restore your bishopric that there are four people in this room who have murdered in cold blood," I kept eye contact with the nun, "and she's the odd one out. Right Juanita?""Yes, Ishara," Juanita slipped up. Her spycraft, like mine, needed work."You were in the military?" the bishop asked my bodyguard."Was? I am. Right now," she related. "I will be until I die."That earned me looks from the three Catholics."She is loyal," Nicolö nodded slightly toward her, referring to Juanita's declaration."Huh? To me? Nope. She's loyal to my office, which we shan't get into right now. Back to you, Sister Rafaela Sophia. Are you out to be a martyr, or has some saint, or angel, given you a directive the other two seem to be unaware of which causes you to devalue your life?""I am devoted to the One True God, Christ, our Savior," and Juanita snorted, "and the Virgin Mary," the nun stated firmly. "I don't hear voices in my head.""Juanita, that was rude. Apologize to our guest," I kept looking forward."No." Well, fuck you too."Gun," I commanded. I held out my left hand."What? No. I will not give you one of my guns," she resisted."Juanita, give me your primary weapon, or I will ask Pamela to beat you up the moment I depart for the Great Hunt. After yesterday's stunt, you know she will," I threatened. Fair, I was not. She drew a Glock-20 and handed it to me. I went through the routine, dropped the magazine then ejected the round before opening the door.Oh look, there were four SD chicks outside, ready to escort my visitors downstairs. I didn't even need to waste a phone call. It wasn't like the conference room wasn't being monitored."Excuse me," I took a half step out the door then hurled all three items down the hall. Looking back at Juanita. "Go fetch.""Fuck you," she snapped."And insulting her faith was as degrading to both her faith and her as me doing this to you is degrading to you right now," I lectured her. "It is important to her, therefore it is important to me because she is my guest in the same way it is important to me that I let my bodyguard do her job without being a total asshole all the time. Now go get your God-damn weapon," I barked. Off she went. I left the door open."Now Sister Rafaela Sophia, the point of all this is: I don't give a crap if you are willing to die for God. In fact, that makes you less than worthless to me and the team. I want to know if you are willing to put other motherfuckers in the ground so that Bishop Nicolá, or Mathias, might get to keep doing their jobs.""Murder is a sin," she declared."Go home," I sighed while shaking my head."She answers to me, the Church and God, not you, Mr. Nyilas," the bishop stepped forward."Then you can go home too," I shrugged. "I'm not asking for remorseless killers. I'm asking for people willing to kill to get the hard work done and best of all, for people who know the difference.""Everyone on JIKIT is a professional soldier, or killer?" he asked."No, but the ones who aren't don't carry guns and know to get down when things get funky," I bantered."I vouch for her," he insisted. Juanita came running back into the room."Cool beans. I don't know you either.""You apparently know my service history," he volleyed."Yeah. Ten years a foreigner in the service of France, then you went straight into a university which turns out Jesuits," I riposted."What turned your life around?" he evaded. That was okay. I'd gotten what I wanted. I was willing to bet he had read every bit of public information about me and it was rumored the heavy Catholic membership in the FBI had its benefits to the Church as well. Not so much as to give them insight into JIKIT, but,"Someone risked their life for me. It's been pretty much downhill from there," I confessed. It was the truth. After Katrina gave me the life line on Day Two, it had all spiraled to the revelation of my heritage, Dad's death, Summer Camp, the Hamptons, Romania and Aya's kidnapping."A person, a soldier, died saving my life," the bishop empathized. "Her story is similar. She seeks redemption. She is not suicidal. I am staking both our lives on it."Did he mean him and Mathias, or him and me? I wasn't certain. Still, it was good enough for now. I'd gotten a look at their emotional make up, even the relatively quiet Swiss."Very well," I agreed. "I have to go see the President about my new job description. I'll catch up with you at your car." To the SD team leader, "Take them to the garage. I will join the group of you very soon.""Yes Ishara," she nodded. I exited the room, Juanita in tow. Two SD entered. I was gone before the Papal team left. Upstairs we went, with one last chore to discharge. I had to check on Ms. French to be absolutely freaking sure it was Shawnee, because anyone else would spell disaster.{8:30 am, Monday, September 8th. Last day}A Room full of asistants:Well, there it was, the office of the Executive Director to the President, and not 'Executive Assistant', because this was Katrina's final 'fuck you, no, just her final 'fuck you' before the Great Hunt got underway. I shouldn't assume things, dang it!Anyway, according to the gray-haired matron running gatekeeper to the Office of the President, this was where I was supposed to show up. I shot Juanita a worried look. She glanced my way and shrugged, momentarily willing to not give me shit about the past 24 hours because where I was situated would determine how easily she could do her job.In we went. In the suite were three desks, the 'big' desk situated at the far end of the office space and two far more modest ones on either side of the entryway. The room expanded beyond the chokepoint formed by the two closest desks into a cluttered area. The walls were cluttered with inset bookshelves and portraits of women. Facing one another were a loveseat on my left with bookend plush chairs in an 'L' facing and a full sofa on the right. There were end tables at the ends of the sofa and the corners between the loveseat and each chair.As the door opened, I hadn't knock as this was my office, or so it seemed, the occupants, who had all been sitting in quiet conversation in the central section, began reacting. Oh look ~ Constanza! I nearly had a heart attack before I realized there were three other Amazons also in the room. Sadly, none were behind the 'big desk', so I couldn't tell who was in charge. Two of the other three choices weren't too much better. First off,"Ishara," Marilynn Saint John stood to greet me. I'd last seen her when I'd dedicated her grandmother's (Hayden's) spirit to the halls of my ancestors, not hers, after forcing the political crisis leading to Hayden's suicide ~ her taking herself to the cliffs and in doing so, destroying the Amazon Cult of Blood Purity. Marilynne was clearly still bitter with me. Umm, I could still incite passion in women I hadn't slept with, yet, woot?"Cáel," the senior-most and only friendly face in the room spoke next. Thank goodness it was Beyoncé Vincennes, Head of House Hanwasuit and House Ishara ally."Cáel Ishara," the third individual was deferential which I wasn't sure how to take as the last time I'd encountered her, yeah, things hadn't gone well either."Beyoncé," I started off with a smile. From there, I had to figure out, ah, Beyoncé's eyes flickered to Constanza then Sabia. I knew Marilynn, with her young age, had the least seniority, "Constanza, Sabia, Marilynn. How's tricks?"Glum faces by everyone except Beyoncé. I didn't ask about Sabia's particular well-being. It had been months since I'd beaten her into the mats of the Full-blooded gym. She'd attacked Yasmin, the Brazilian Hottie and my Brazilian Jujutsu sparring buddy, and I'd retaliated by ambushed her when she turned her back on us. Besides, she'd been giving me shit before I even could see straight.Constanza was minus her left eye because of her dire insult to me. If she wasn't capable of working, she wouldn't be here. If she appreciated my 'mercy' in sparing her life ~ her insult was worthy of her death ~ Constanza hid it well. I hadn't spared her expecting a change of heart. I hadn't felt words alone warranted anyone's death. I was a big boy and could take a few insults. House Ishara, as represented by me, could care less. These days, my sisters would be less understanding despite them knowing my heart."Constanza Landau of House Jaya and Marilynn Saint John of House Anahit are Assistants to President Shawnee French," Beyoncé eased things along, "so will be working closely with us, at least for the short term. Sabia Noel of House Guabancex, who I now think you know as well, has joined you as the other 'Assistant' to the 'Executive Director to the President', (that would make me an 'adept', but adept at what?), and since two of the three Regents are unfamiliar with the workings of Havenstone proper, Shawnee has asked me to perform in that role."Beyoncé was, or had been, Havenstone HQ's CFO (Chief Financial Officer). From what I was quickly piecing together, she would essentially be making all the day-to-day decisions concerning the running of Havenstone (how the Host made the majority of its money) until the Regents got up to speed.Only Buffy had actual experience with the New York office and, from what she had told me, solely within Executive Services. While ES knew 'who' did what inside Havenstone, they weren't aware precisely how those Amazons got their jobs done. That would have been an impossible task. Katrina could do it, but she knew it was beyond the ability of most of us 'mere mortals'. Since we were currently at war, the Host needed Katrina completely focused on her duties as Chief Spy-mistress, not baby-sitting the adults.Shawnee indeed had much gravitas among the other House Heads. Not only had she risen up to lead a First House, she had performed heroically during the final days of the last Secret War. Afterwards she had moved into the realm of Amazon jurisprudence and mediation. Until yesterday, she had lived in a House Arinniti freehold in Minnesota's Great Lakes region thus her desire for the 'Training Wheels' period.The Regency would not rule through telecommunication (the upper echelons feared being eavesdropped upon beyond the standard Amazon (read: paranoid) levels) and Havenstone: New York was the center best situated for the current war-fighting operations, so here she lived. I was sure a team from Executive Services was buying, outfitting/spy-proofing and fortifying a dwelling suitable for the President of a Fortune 500 company. Hayden's home would remain the domicile of Sydney thus Marilynn.The same rigmarole would be done for Rhada and Buffy (though I imaged Buffy would bitch endlessly). Publically, they were VP's of a company worth hundreds of billions of dollars and they had to present the public trappings of such leaders.Why did the Amazons do this ~ unmask their leadership to public exposure? Legal-simple: they could request and expect all levels of public and private security for their executives who happened to also be important officials of the Host. Certainly not all executives at Havenstone were officeholders, House Heads, or House Apprentices, but the high level of competence which permitted one often led to the other.Beyonce:As an example: Beyoncé wasn't the most 'bad-ass' lethal chick in House Hanwasuit. As she was preparing to be casted, her intelligence, creativity and diligence at her future craft, finances, was noted by the Host and the members of her House. In due time her name was circulated as Apprentice and the elders approved. When her elder cousin, the prior House Head, took herself to the cliffs, Beyoncé assumed the top spot. Beyoncé wasn't even one of that woman's three daughters.Mirroring her advancement in her House was her advancement in Havenstone's Accounting, Acquisitions and Banking Divisions until she was appointed CFO Havenstone HQ ~ the supreme financial authority inside Havenstone, though the individual regional branches had a greater degree of autonomy than you might normally expect from a 21st century conglomerate, or a Bronze Age autocracy.I had to constantly remind myself, despite the near-constant feuding, Amazons exhibited a phenomenally higher level of trust than I'd ever found in any other society I'd ever witnessed, or read about, before. Though technically Beyoncé could have gone to President Hayden to enforce her decisions ~ or now the Regency ~ she was far more diplomatic in her approach in dealing with the other 'continental' CEO's and CFO's.That meant she had to wrangle the aspirations and resources from:North America (including Latin America, the 'Canadian Arctic' and the North Pacific Ocean),South America (includes both the South Atlantic and South Pacific as far as Samoa),Europe (mostly Central Europe these days plus Antarctica, the 'Russian' Arctic and the North Atlantic),Africa (mostly West-central Africa),India (the subcontinent plus the vast expanse of the Indian Ocean) and,Southeast Asia (which includes Australia)All of which suggested Havenstone hadn't redrawn the Amazons' geographic demarcations since the late 19th century. As an example, an East African venture, say in Tanzania, was as likely to be under the purview of Havenstone: India (due to its control over the Indian Ocean) as Havenstone: Africa (which traditionally had no East Coast holdings due to their constant struggles versus the Arabic slave trade).Returning to Beyoncé: initially she had held the proper 'conservative' (aka man-hating) mindset. My behavior during that first Board Meeting began to change her opinion of me and the New Directive. After the Archery Range incident, Beyoncé became a vocal proponent of the New Directive and faced challenges within her ranks. House Heads do not have to accept challenges and Beyoncé didn't, reasoning with her detractors they had no alternatives save the 'Old Ways' which spelled doom for the Amazon Race.Bing-bang-boom ~ I became the Head of a resurrected House Ishara by the Will of the Ancestors and Beyoncé was vindicated. Not necessarily in the New Directive, but in her support of me thus the rebirth of a sister First House. The purge following High Priestess' Hayden's death was her ultimate absolution. The Ancestors and Destiny had spoken and shown Beyoncé had been piloting House Hanwasuit along the proper course all along.Back to my current circumstances:Oh, why was I Assistant to the Executive Director to the President? It gave me direct access to the finances of Havenstone which was a critical leg of the war-fighting stool ~ people, morale, money and equipment. As Chief Diplomat, I helped with all four of those in varying degrees, allied troops, allied victories, allied bank accounts and allied armaments.The Great Khan, my spiritual 'Blood-Brother', was ramping up his logistic support for my Amazons in Africa, Asia and the Americas. We were 'Allies in the Struggle' and he wasn't going to wait for the Condottieri to begin coordinating with the Seven Pillars to declare them to be his enemies. They were already fighting the Amazons and 9 Clans, his allies, so their fates were sealed.In Japan, my Amazons provided small yet highly effective strike groups which the Ninja families furnished all the support services for. Everything from food to bullets to medical attention as needed. Without reservation, we shared their death-grapple with the Seven Pillars.From the dispatches I was getting back from my family members and envoys in Japan, we were making serious diplomatic inroads with the Ninja. Once again, it was the Amazons shocking capacity for violence as well as their fanaticism, professionalism and proficiency which all impressed our hosts and terrified our enemies, and this from people of a philosophical mindset which had them historically battling samurai.The Black Lotus were running around like rhesus monkeys on crack cocaine unleashed in a China Shop and given RPG's. While the Amazons couldn't help them in China, Indochina & Thailand ~ the Khanate could and was. The Amazons were of more help in the Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia, where the Black Lotus and Amazons were going everywhere on the offensive against the Seven Pillars while the normal tight cohesion and iron-clad confidence, traits which made the 7P's so dangerous ~ were shaken by their horrendous losses in the 'Homeland' aka Mainland China.Less we forget, the 'military intelligence' wing of their organization had been decimated by the Khanate's Anthrax attack due to members of the Earth & Sky sacrificing themselves by being injected with the toxin then allowing themselves to be captured, which always ended in torture and death.Furthermore, the People's Republic of China, while having a scary 18% of the population either captured, imprisoned, dead, or displaced due to the Khanate invasion, that had come with the loss of 63% of their landmass (they had lost all of Nei Mongol, Ningxia & Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Regions, Qinghai and Gansu as well as 90% of Yunnan, 80% of Sichuan and 20% of Shaanxi provinces) to the Khanate and the 'abomination' that was a free Tibet.Then came the Russian 'stab in the back' which entailed the loss of another 10% of their people falling under foreign dominion as well as losing 8% of their most industrialized territory, Manchuria (Heilongjiang, Jilin and Liaoning provinces ~ the Nei Mongol portion of 'Manchuria' was in the Khanate's greedy clutches, from the viewpoint of a Seven P's warrior).Don't get me wrong, they weren't about to throw in the towel. If anything, they were becoming more dedicated to trying harder, digging deep into their knowledge of every atrocity, inhumanity and perversion now deemed necessary to re-chart history back onto its 'correct' path. It was this willingness to act in an even greater sociopathic manner which was being used against them. After all, the 7P's had plenty of proxy allies, who were starting to get really nervous about what their paymasters were now asking them to do,We Amazons were getting some extra special help too. The Booth-gan (Do not call them Thuggee ~ the confederate 9 Clan member based out of India though long since ensconced within various Hindi enclaves across the Globe) had created an all-female group of ultra-fanatical Kali-devotees ~ a gift for the upcoming battle fomented by the Will of the Goddess herself.While Aya was our Queen and the Regency would rule until she wished to assume command of the Amazon People, the nuts-and-bolts of the Host's activities were handled by Saint Marie as Golden Mare (our Minister of War) (technically she held the top spot due to our State of War, though no Golden Mare had ever exercised such authority over a Queen (and she definitely believed Aya was our Queen)), Katrina (as Minister of Intelligence and Security), Beyoncé (as Havenstone (the multinational corporation) ~ our Treasurer/Economic Tsarina) and me (our Foreign Minister).Saint Marie had decided to forgo a public face in order to better facilitate her moving around to various battle fronts and holding clandestine meetings with her junior regional commanders. Her Havenstone corporate title was 'Chief of Security Training and Certification'. As an extra level of deception, the head of Security Services wasn't even a Director-level position, instead being folded into the duties of the Office of the President.To my current circumstances ~ I had been given Constanza's house name which could only mean she wasn't currently assigned to the Security Detail; a fact that couldn't have made her bad attitude any better. Marilynn had completely lost her way as an Amazon when I first met her, burying her pain and confusion in endless partying and intoxicants. I believed only her grandmother's status as High Priestess kept her from the severest of reprimands, or death. I didn't even know what Marilynn's caste was. Sabia,"While I'm sure you are both far more qualified than I, precisely how did you two get these jobs?" I had to ask my two non-coworkers. Constanza glowered. Marilynn flinched."I have an in depth knowledge of Havenstone security procedures and resources," Constanza replied."Shawnee requested me," was Marilynn's comeback. "I also have intimate knowledge of the City of New York and its environs.""Actually, Buffy Ishara recommended you both to Shawnee," Beyoncé corrected their misconceptions. I knew the score. I'd be working intimately with the tight community around the President (Shawnee) and Vice Presidents (Buffy & Rhada). Buffy wanted me to be surrounded by women who hated my guts, so I wouldn't end up boinking them. It rarely worked that way. All too often ladies who hated my still-beating heart ended up punishing me with sex. I wasn't sure why that happened, but it did."Beyoncé, didn't the Chief Diplomat of the Host have her own office? I'm pretty sure Troika had one before her unfortunate collision with Saint Marie," I felt entitled to inquire."Do you feel you've earned that office space?" she riposted."Oh, fuck no!" I waved my hands one over the other to accentuate my denial. "I was just wondering where I could stick Juanita while I'm hanging around, here.""She has the desk right outside the door, Cáel," Beyoncé smiled knowingly. "So there is no way you can sneak past her.""Oh," I grunted. "Buffy again?""No. Pamela Pile put in that particular request.""Oh, Sweet Mother of God, now she is conspiring against me too?""Yes. Some of us realize the greatest hazard to your health is yourself, Ishara," Beyoncé chided me. "We'd like to keep you around, so we listen to those charged with that nigh impossible task.""Is she going to be hanging around the office often?" Constanza asked, either myself, Juanita, or Beyoncé; I wasn't sure. She = Pamela."Please, Constanza," I attempted to intervene, "don't make Pamela kill you. It will upset Mona." Constanza's scowl was accentuated by the eyepatch covering her ruined left socket, the one Pamela had carved out when Constanza had insulted me and House Ishara on our first day of rebirth. I didn't tell Juanita this, because Juanita might just shoot Constanza over the insult before Pamela got a chance to finish the job.The tension was palatable."Mona and I have talked, about Romania, and other things," Constanza grudgingly allowed. It took me a second to realize there was a hidden meaning to what she said. Mona was part of my personal Security Detail bodyguard unit. If she felt Constanza, the woman who had raised her after her birth-mother had died, was a threat to me, she'd feel duty-bound to snuff Constanza first. Amazons were hard-ass bitches alright and I think Mona had made that clear."I hope things can improve between us," I offered to Constanza. "Beyoncé, I just stopped in to say 'hey'. I'm off to JIKIT and I've got three of the Pope's people waiting on me in the garage so,""Vice President Varma requested a moment of your time," Beyoncé smirked. "She is in 2604.""Who?""Vice President Rhada Varma, a moment of your time, alone?" she clarified."Sure thing," I backed out of the office. Once I had some space, I turned to Juanita. "Give me three minutes then bust in and say, I don't know, a tsunami is about to overwhelm the city, or something. Otherwise, I won't get out for at least an hour and I think I've put the Bishop and his people through enough delays as it is.""Are you actually asking me to stop you from having an in-office liaison?" she studied me intently as we walked in the direction of Rhada's office."Yes. It's not likely to happen often, believe me.""Oh, I do, in that you won't ask me to do it often," she grumbled. I'd deal with Juanita's morale problem later. Right now, I had to gird my loins so they wouldn't do anything else with Rhada. I had work to do, damn it!Rhada was sitting at her desk, working on something, stylus raised up so she could chew on the end. Her hair was pulled back in a half-ponytail, the type that captured the rear half of the hair in a ponytail while leaving the front and bangs free to flow down. Rhada's blouse was white & billowy and, as I was soon to discover, her pants were ultra-tight and contour hugging."Mr. Nyilas," she greeted me. "I would like a moment of your time," she relayed what I already knew. She was more than a tad nervous to boot."Vice President Varma," I started off."When in private you may call me Rhada," she interrupted."Rhada, you look more ravishing than ever."That got up her and coming around her desk, which revealed her ultra-tight pants with no sign of her wearing underwear. Yikes! My cock was preparing to do what a cock was meant to do and I just didn't have the time, Really!"Do you have any time?" she let her bosom heave."Not today, ugh," I groaned. See, Rhada took the stylus and dragged it down her chin, throat and in between her bountiful mounds.All of which exposed the top of her black bra."Are you sure, Master?" she enticed me by turning around and then leaning over her desk, point that ass in my direction. My mouth began salivating and my groin ached. I found myself quick-stepping to her and giving those buttocks two firm slaps, one on each cheek."No, damn it, though I'm going to make you pay for this when I get back," I rumbled."Master will make me wait?" she taunted me."That will cost you even more," I growled. "I have business which simply won't wait and here is my captive teasing me with the treasures of her flesh. Bad, war captive," I spanked her yet again, hard. "Bad!" and I spanked her a fourth time. With each beating, Rhada gasped in pain and then exhaled in pleasure."If I've been bad, Master must be extra harsh with me when he returns in triumph from the Great Hunt," she gloated. Rhada had gotten what she wanted, which was another affirmation of my lust for her and our 'game'. I could provide her the release she so desperately craved while allowing her the safety of remaining in the Amazon fold. It was a perfect pairing, for her.I had other problems, such as all the other baby mamas in my life plus the extra-marital affairs I was contemplating. I still took the moments we had to snuggle with Rhada, her grinding that tush into my rod while I held both her arms tightly to her side while raining kisses down onto her neck and head."Sir! A giant tsunami is approaching the city!" Juanita exploded through the door."What?" I coughed. I had a face full of hair."Huh?" Rhada pushed up and away from me. I let her go."Right now," Juanita insisted. She really needed to stop taking me so seriously when I gave her such advice."Really?" from Rhada. She shot me a curious look so I shrugged. What else was I supposed to do with such a flimsy lie forcing our separation? At least I got out of there on time?{9:50 am, Monday, September 8th ~ Last day}(JKIT HQ)"Is this a common occurrence?" Sister Rafaela Sophia whispered to the closest woman, who happened to be Wiesława, the Polish Amazon. Since she hadn't arrived with us from Havenstone, the nun might have assumed she was with the 'Americans', or British."What?" Wiesława responded evenly."Weapons combat, they look real," the nun clarified."They are real. We always practice with real weapons.""Really?""Of course," Wiesława smiled at her. "We believe a few cuts and scrapes now will save lives when the true tests come.""Oh, you are with, Havenstone?" Rafaela clued in."Yes. I am Wiesława of House Živa. I am currently assigned to Unit L, Cáel's unit within JIKIT," she offered her hand to shake. Despite being a full-blooded Amazon from a freehold, her 'human' skills were progressing nicely. The nun shook it."I am Sister Rafaela Sophia of the Handmaids of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, that is a Roman Catholic Religious Order." Pause. "Do you hate Catholics too?""Yes. We have lived beside your people for many centuries and found your clergy to be much more dangerous than your pagan predecessors. Still, Cáel thinks you can be relied on and he's proven we can trust outsider women, which I was raised to believe was unlikely, and outsider men, which was basically anathema, so I'm willing to set aside my prejudices and judge you as an individual," the Pole imparted."Outsider men?" Rafaela mumbled."Well, yes," Wiesława smirked. "You are a nun, right?""Yes.""So you set aside the World of Men to live mostly among women, right?""Not entirely," the nun chose her words carefully. "We still rely on priests for religious rights and of course obey the life teachings of Christ and follow the leadership of his Holiness, the Pope, a man.""No one is perfect," the Amazon bantered back."Do you know the teachings of our Lord, Jesus Christ?" Rafaela ventured into dangerous waters."Yes. He was the semi-historical Son of your supposed One True God. We are not monotheists. We are Polytheists. Živa is my House's matron Goddess. It is also the name of the first woman to lead the House, her birth name surrendered to Destiny so all the daughters who came afterwards would be equals.""Oh, is Mr. Nyilas also pagan?" she inquired."I am unsure. From what I have been told, he has commended the spirit of his fallen father to your Jesus in a sacred ceremony then, in the presence of your Trinity and the Goddess Ishara, brought in new members to his House. I suspect he may be both," Wiesława reasoned. "Why don't you ask him?""Because he's fighting for his life?" Rafaela looked my way.See, the entire time their discussion had been going on, I had been sparring in a spare room at JIKIT HQ with Estere Abed, the Hashashin assassin (rather redundant ~ like saying the Sahara Desert). I had two tomahawks while she had a scimitar and curved dagger. While we sparred using the furniture as obstacles, Agent-86 was briefing me on various World events to get my input.Addison Stuart (CIA) and Lady Fathom Worthington-Burke (MI-6) were having a chat with Bishop Nicolé de Santis, verifying for themselves he was worth adding to the team. Juanita was having a similar discussion with Rikki Martin (US State Department) concerning my earlier encounter with the Papal team. Nicolé's buddy, Wachtmeister Mathias Bosshart of the Swiss Guard, was getting acquainted with the other security personnel.In comparison, those two had it easy. Both men were in their elements. Nicolé was a spook who pretended to be a diplomat for the Pope and was well acquainted with terms like 'deniable assets', 'plausible deniability' and your direct superior referring to requests concerning your identity/diplomatic status by saying 'I never heard of him and if I had, I have no idea what he was doing when you caught him doing what I don't know what he was doing', or something like that.Mathias was in the company of military-security specialists, brother professionals who were introducing him to his 'sister' professionals. Our Homeland Security gang were almost entirely former military by now. They got along with our JSOC folks and both had gained a limited acceptance with the Amazon security contingent.They bonded over the fact they were forced to work with really shady characters ~ the 9 Clans menagerie ~ who didn't always appreciate JIKIT operational security. Without going into particulars, the Wachtmeister was given the impression the abnormal was the norm and if you didn't think there was a 'down-side' to being able to carry your personally favorite bang-bang (the SG 552-2P Commando in his case) with some serious attachments (read: grenade launcher) around in downtown Manhattan, you probably didn't belong on this team.Back in the room,"He's not fighting for his life," Estere laughed. "He is fighting for mine.""Right," I responded sarcastically. We went through a flurry of exchanges, ending up with me kicking a chair at her. Estere stepped over it, colliding with me.I blocked her dagger, disarmed her scimitar and,"You are dead," she panted down at me, smiling. I was on my back, her straddling me. She had a belt-knife to my throat. I hadn't see her draw it. The scimitar 'disarm' had been a distraction."Woot!" I exhaled."But you're dead," Sister Rafaela misunderstood my good humor."He survived a minute and thirty-four seconds more today than his previous record," Estere responded. She slithered off of me, doing my arousal no good whatsoever, then offered me a hand up."And that's better?""He's a rank amateur with a few months on the job. I've been training to kill people for nearly two decades," Estere smiled. "Care to have a go?""With him, or you?""Either," Estere offered."I don't have a knife, or any hand weapons," she stated."We'll need to remedy that," Wiesława stated. "You should at least carry a knife.""Really? Why?""It is a nearly universal tool," I verbally stepped up. "Even if you are disarmed, you should be able to find one relatively easily, people are less likely to miss a stolen knife than a purloined gun, and a concealed blade could come in handy.""Do you train in knife-work?" Rafaela eye-balled me."Absolutely. It is part of my culture," I grinned."Okay. Can we spar, hand-to-hand?""Sure," I nodded. I put my tomahawks in their harnesses then put my harnesses aside. Estere gave me a wink before giving us the fighting space."So," Rafaela began to circle, "are you Christian?""By your definition, or mine?""By the definition of the Catholic Church."Oh cool, she went for a Savate stance. This was going to get ugly.My "no," was followed by her kick and my block, lunge and grapple. She wasn't nearly as good as Felix. I had her down and in a choke hold within fifteen seconds.Perhaps she thought I'd take it easy on her. She tapped out. I released her, retreated and flowed back to my boxing stance. It took her a moment to realize this was 'practice', not 'an interview'. She hadn't failed in anyone's eyes. We were both doing this to get better."See, I really, truly believe I have talked to supernatural entities ~ some who are considered divinities," I continued. This time she was more careful, trading jabs and blocks with me. "They don't claim to be the One True God. I believe in such a thing, but I also believe having been given the Message, Humanity has been left to muddle things out for ourselves."Whoops, she popped me one."The Woman-Thing this morning?""Yep," I evaded another flurry. She got cocky and I landed three blows, dropping her to the ground. I didn't help her up. Instead, I withdrew and let her get back up on her own before deciding if she wanted to continue. She did."I believe I've seen dragons and ghosts. I have felt legions of my ancestors give me quiet encouragement when I needed it. I know the dead have been brought back to life," I came at her. This time we both went for body blows, knees, elbows and fists. She was not SD-caliber and she needed to be. I grappled and she was forced to tap out again. After she regained her feet, she held up a hand for a pause."Do you believe any of that?" she addressed Estere."I am an adherent of Ismaili Islam yet nothing Cáel has encountered is contrary to my belief system. The Universe is a complex place and the Divine Light is often seen through a fractured lenses," she counseled the nun."Among the escapees were lawyer Francisco Luemba, Catholic Priest Raul Tati, economist Belchior Lanso Tati and former policeman Benjamin Fuca who are serving jail sentences of between three and six years each for supposed links to the rebel group FLEC (Frente para a Libertaé'o do Enclave de Cabinda), which carried out the attack on the Togolese football team at the start of the Africa Cup of Nations in January, 2010," Agent-86 read off yet another bit of global minutia."We need to get to them," I half turned. Sister Rafaela punched me in the gut and I folded up."Oh!" she gasped. "I'm sorry.""Okay," I mumbled. I had to keep with the plan. "Those men. We need to contact our Coils people in Kinshasa and the Warden of the Mountain Ways ('she' was the Amazon Host's leader of Africa ~ in the ancient times, the mountain ways had been the routes of southern vulnerability for the Amazon tribe thus the name).""Okay," both Agent-86 and Estere answered."Why?" 86 added."The Coils and the Host have had a serious problem with no nation in Africa giving them even back room recognition so we are going to take over our own country, Cabinda. It's been struggling to be free of Angola since 1975 and, by latest estimates, we've got strike elements of over 2,000 Amazons ready and waiting next door in Cameroon, Gabon and the Republic of Congo.""So you are going to go to war with Angola?" Estere frowned. "Don't we have enough enemies?""Au contraire," I grinned wickedly. "The resistance movement is genuine," I ticked off my points, "they have tons of offshore oil, and after we set off some spectacular explosions in the two main Angolan ports which are just down the coast, we allow global panic to bully the UN into intervening before the Angolan military launch an effective counter-offensive ~ considering the Angolan Armed Forces (I'd been reading up on a ton of CIA & MI-6 briefings) will most likely involve attrition warfare since they can't beat us in a stand-up fight.""They, the Angolans, have no overland access, they are separated by 60 kilometers of territory belonging to the Democratic Republic of Congo over some sad ass roads Plus the Congo River itself which is freaking huge by the time it gets that close to the Atlantic, Cabinda rests on the Atlantic Ocean by the way. No bridges. The Angolan Navy is anemic. Let me think."I began pacing."Hmm, they have no paratroopers though they have some Special Forces, we will need to hit as many of them in the barracks as we can. Their last invasion was from the north, overland, from the Republic of the Congo, in 1975, not likely to happen this time, though I may have my 'Brother' weasel up a battalion of Indian paratroopers to act as convincing peacekeepers after the initial take over.""Perhaps we can recruit some Vietnamese. I'm sure they'll love fighting in someone else's jungle for a change. We'll need some of 'our' guys to seize the port of Soyo, it is on the wrong side of the river, but has the major refinery the Cabindans will need. Since the entire surrounding province are the same ethnic make-up as the Cabindans, we'll have to take that too.""Man-o-man, I bet by the time this is over they'll really wish they'd given little Cabinda independence back in 1975. As for their other refinery, it is in their capital, Luanda, a few big explosions there too will get the markets jittery. Check that ~ the complete and utter destruction of their major petroleum facility will create a stampede for Peace," I continued. I walked over as our resident computer intelligence genius worked his magic."Blowing things up, you mean killing people," the nun blanched."Yes. This is what I do," I spared her a sympathetic glance. "I've got a madman roaming around in my head who provides me truly epic military advice which normally, but not always, means blowing shit up and killing folks. Welcome to the team," then as the data appeared, "Holy Shit! Did they build their oil refinery in the midst of their ghetto?" I was staggered. The refinery in Soyo was isolated from the town so it could be easily (and safely) seized. It was the one in Luanda which was the 'Holy Shit' site."It looks that way," Agent-86 agreed nonplussed. "Hmm, yeah, here is the port facility then your neighborhood of shoddily constructed one- and two-story dwellings between the refinery and the inland storage tanks, the perimeter barrier appears to be a chain link fence. I'd hate to be their Chief of Security.""Oh yeah," I choked. Estere slipped around to get a look."Whoops," she snorted."What are these people thinking?" I continued. "The whole shebang is exposed to the northern quarter of the city. The storage tanks have residential dwellings on all four sides with numerous side streets. Two teams with RPGs and four rounds apiece, Holy Crap. Sorry Sister.""But I want to save lives," she sputtered."Limiting the collateral damage could be pretty tough," Estere frowned. She toggled throw a series of maps to multiple pictures."Oh, look (dripping sarcasm); they light up the refinery at night. You can sit off the coast in a speed boat under cover of darkness and attack from there," she noted."Damn. Those are a lot of lights," Agent-86 agreed."24-7 operation," I suspected."We will need some experts," the government agent nodded."Or we are going to kill a fuck-load of innocent people. Not just the workers, but can you imagine a fire spreading to those neighborhoods? Shit," I muttered."You can't seriously be contemplating doing something like this," the nun sputtered. "It is inhumane. Think of the families, the children.""Lady, yes I am. Do you have any idea what the Human Rights record of the Angolan Army in Cabinda is? It is truly horrific and in case you missed it, one of the guys in dire need of rescuing by me, due to him being a huge rebel leader who has managed to escape, is also a Catholic priest. He's going to be part of the new government we are going to install once we kill a few hundred Angolans ~ mostly soldiers (more like well over a thousand).""We are going to kill a few hundred so a few hundred thousand can live free, democratic lives without worrying about the local police and political establishment torturing and murdering them. It is all part of the plan.""I think I need to talk with the Bishop.""Hang on. Let me finish," I forestalled her. "He'll get briefed along with everyone else. After all, it is a majority Roman Catholic country as is Angola, so I'm sure your guy can be of immense help.""The people you are putting at risk don't deserve this," she protested."They never do," I nodded in agreement with her. "It rarely stops terrible crap from happening to them though."I felt sorry for the Sister. She thought the Bishop was going to put a stop to this. Poor girl; he was going to do the exact opposite. See, the two competing forces at play here were a communistic kleptocracy (currently ruling Angola) and Catholic liberation theology united with a Cabindan national identity dating back to 1885. At stake was 900,000 barrels a day of petroleum. That was a bunch of funding for somebody. Last I checked, the state run energy conglomerate had misplaced $32 billion, in just three years.Mind you, the Coils of the Serpent and the Amazon Host didn't want to help the People of Cabinda out of the goodness of their hearts either. They wanted cover for the importation of weapons and other war-fighting material so they could kill the Condottieri in Africa. If the rebel leaders-turned-legitimate government didn't play ball well, the Coils were in the 'assassinating people' business and somewhere along the line the survivors would figure out keeping 'us' happy kept them alive. Problem solved.It was Bishop Nicolé de Santis' job to facilitate that understanding. If certain people with Vatican credentials explained the 'facts of life' to the new regime a lot more lives could be saved, Catholic lives. In turn, he could work to make sure the new group in power wasn't nearly as corrupt as the gang we were tossing out. Better education and quality of life, improved infrastructure & security and a nice shiny cathedral, or two.We, as in JIKIT and our component members, didn't want to rule the country and dominate the people's lives. We needed the ports and the airfields with a blind eye turned to our skullduggery. Sure, there would be future considerations. Amazons and Coil members would be fighting and dying for these people's freedom ~ public recognition definitely not required. No; the Amazons wanted to be left alone in their deep jungle homes which was an isolation they basically already had. This was a future chit which said 'don't come looking'.The Coils? Let's just say in the future Cabinda would have embassies around the globe and if occasionally they wanted someone to slip through under diplomatic cover ~ they were good for it. And if the Cabindans ever needed help in the future they knew they had friends in dark places who were now invested in Cabinda's survival. It was a win-win-win, unless you were an Angolan big-wig, or one of their foot-soldier currently serving in Cabinda. Amazons weren't big on taking prisoners, or even giving the opposition the option of giving up.For me, it wasn't lunch yet and here I was plotting to overthrow yet another government in yet another country ~ though in only two, small provinces this time. Thank the Goddess I had the rest of the week

Charlie Walker's adventures have taken him to the most remote and challenging places in the world. During this episode he shares stories from his epic 43,000-mile cycle tour, spanning across Europe, Asia, and Africa. But his adventures are not just taken on a bike - he has also trekked across Papua New Guinea, hiked in the Siberian Arctic, paddled down a tributary of the Congo River and recently cycled (or hike a biked!) through the Gola Rainforest in West Africa.These adventures haven't all been smooth sailing. Indeed, Charlie has faced moments of extreme hardship, including an imprisonment in a Siberian detention centre in 2022 - within weeks of Russia invading Ukraine. Charlie also reflects on the awe-inspiring moments he's been lucky to have due to his adventures - enjoying times of pure solitude and the feelings of being alone in a vast and empty landscape. We also talk about  the changing landscape of travel brought on by technology, and how much things have changed since he first started taking long distance adventures.You can follow Charlie via his instagram account - @cwexplore and his website - www.cwexplore.com where you can also purchase his books which I highly recommend!!  Big thanks to our sponsor Old Man Mountain for continuing to support the podcast. Be sure to check out their new Hemlock Bags with FLiP Cages - via www.oldmanmountain.com/seektravelride - clicking this link helps me out as it lets them know you heard about them on the podcast. Beyond the Bike Live Shows - 2 Events in London all about Adventure Cycling!Panel Discussion, Film Screening + Audience Q&ABook tickets for London - May 14Book tickets for London - May 15 Support the showBuy me a coffee and help support the show!Sign up to the Seek Travel Ride NewsletterFollow us on Social Media!Instagram - @SeekTravelRideWebsite: Seek Travel RideFacebook - Seek Travel RideLeave me a voicemail message Seek Travel Ride Music Playlist available now on both Spotify or Apple Music Thank you to RedShift Sports for supporting the show! - Check them out here

Some rivers around the world are even more dangerous than the Amazon! First, there's the Congo River in Africa, with its terrifyingly deep waters and strong currents that could sweep away even large boats. Then there's the Nile River, which might seem calm in parts but has deadly crocodiles and hippos ready to defend their territory. The Mississippi River in the United States can look peaceful, but it has strong currents, hidden whirlpools, and frequent floods that make it hazardous. Over in Asia, the Yangtze River is another risky river with sudden floods and currents that have taken countless lives. And finally, the Mekong River, stretching through multiple countries, is filled with underwater hazards and giant catfish that could rival anything in a scary river story! #brightside Animation is created by Bright Side. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Music from TheSoul Sound: https://thesoul-sound.com/ Listen to Bright Side on: Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/0hUkPxD... Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id... ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Our Social Media: Facebook -   / brightside   Instagram -   / brightside.official   Tik Tok - https://www.tiktok.com/@brightside.of... Snapchat -   / 1866144599336960   Stock materials (photos, footages and other): https://www.depositphotos.com https://www.shutterstock.com https://www.eastnews.ru ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- For more videos and articles visit: http://www.brightside.me Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What happens when you push beyond your comfort zone? Could taking risks actually lead to more confidence? From surviving a mob attack in Ethiopia to being imprisoned in Russia, Charlie Walker's adventures push the boundaries of human endurance and reveal the astonishing resilience required to confront the unexpected.   KEY TOPICS Setting short-term goals to keep the primary goal from feeling insurmountable. Creating opportunities for restful moments of “blissful brainlessness.” Finding your limits by forcing yourself into uncertainty. Distracting yourself from the temptation to quit.   CHAPTERS 00:00 Sanger's Daily Breakfast 03:37 Introducing Charlie Walker 08:16 The Unexpected of Long-Distance Travel 13:20 Living Resourcefully 18:14 Building Relationships with Locals 23:26 Adapting to the Unexpected 28:09 Focusing on the Journey, Not the Destination 28:38 Starting Extreme Goals 31:01 Overcoming the Urge to Quit 31:31 Hiking through Siberia 35:18 Imprisoned in Russia 36:14 Getting Released from Russian Prison 39:03 Risk Assessment and Perception 42:23 Mental Struggles of Isolation 44:39 Navigating the Russian Legal System 46:34 Dealing with Accusations 49:22 Propaganda in Russia 52:11 Lessons from Isolation 53:51 Decision Tip for Business Owners 55:39 Key Takeaways 57:29 Producer Closing   CONNECT WITH US ⁠www.decidedlypodcast.com⁠ WATCH THIS EPISODE ON YOUTUBE Subscribe on ⁠YouTube⁠ Join us on ⁠Instagram⁠: @decidedlypodcast Join us on ⁠Facebook⁠ Shawn's ⁠Instagram⁠: @shawn_d_smith Sanger's ⁠Instagram⁠: @sangersmith   Thank you to Shelby Peterson of Transcend Media for editing and post-production of the Decidedly podcast.   SANGER'S BOOK: ⁠A Life Rich with Significance: Transforming Your Wealth to Meaningful Impact⁠   SHAWN'S BOOK: ⁠Plateau Jumping: What to Change When Change Is What You Want⁠   MAKING A FINANCIAL DECISION? At ⁠Decidedly Wealth Management⁠, we focus on decision-making as the foundational element of success, in our effort to empower families to purposefully apply their wealth to fulfill their values and build a thriving legacy.  LEARN MORE: ⁠www.decidedlywealth.com⁠   SUBSCRIBE TO THE NEWSLETTER:⁠ https://visitor.r20.constantcontact.com/manage/optin?v=001aeU_pPBHJPNJWJBdVbaci6bjGIuEJurH12xHBWDEVT_NxyCadMd7wLSZjcEZglkSjDjehuIbTHD8nABOIdV69ctfYpSzg24RCIytetBUrlIPPKgaGzjGZ8DkM0Wp1LMjbErcYUur7PbZGjeVo4gyXlz821AoJGZR⁠       CONNECT WITH CHARLIE WALKER Website: www.cwexplore.com Instagram: @cwexplore Through Sand & Snow: https://www.cwexplore.com/store/p2/Through_Sand_%26_Snow.html  On Roads That Echo: https://www.cwexplore.com/store/p4/On_Roads_That_Echo.html  Charlie Walker is a British adventurer who's tackled some of the most extreme journeys you can imagine, from braving the Siberian Arctic to exploring the Congo River. His stories of survival and exploration reveal what it truly means to push human limits and face the unknown.

If you're familiar with the sports history of the city of Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, it may be as the site of the famed “Rumble in the Jungle” boxing match between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. But in recent years, another effort is aiming to attract visitors to the African nation and build a lifelong culture of sport through running. Since they launched the Congo River Marathon, Rolly Kayumba and Nancy Bachmann have been slowly adding to the event's footprint, and using the opportunity to run along the Congo River and in the city of Kinshasa as a way to develop runners domestically and visitors internationally. Like all new events, it has had its challenges and opportunities, many of which are not unique to those faced by organizers around the world. But this year's race, which is scheduled for June 2, 2024, may be the biggest effort yet. In this episode, SportsTravel Executive Editor and Publisher Jason Gewirtz talks with Kayumba and Bachmann about how the race began, how it has grown and how running is being used as a method to promote sports tourism.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Robin and Adam proudly present Episode 285 of Scary(ish)! Adam covers a cryptid known as the Mokele-mbembe from Africa while Robin gives the gruesome details of a "cult" from the 1990's in Indiana and the crimes they committed. Listen, Share, Subscribe, and Review!

We're saluting Muhammad Ali on his 82nd birthday with a compilation of stories told on Press Box Access by sportswriters who crossed paths with The Greatest. Dave Kindred, Jerry Izenberg and other veteran scribes share their personal memories of Ali going as far back as 1960. They put us ringside at Ali's greatest fights such as “The Rumble in the Jungle” and “The Thrilla in Manila.” They take us on trains, into hotel rooms, and onto the banks of Africa's Congo River. We even go to the circus with the heavyweight champ and world-renowned activist and humanitarian. Enjoy our treasure trove of Ali tales.   Dave Kindred, on my Mount Rushmore of sportswriters, covered 17 of Ali's fights, dating back to when he wrote for The Courier-Journal in the champ's hometown of Louisville, Kentucky.   Jerry Izenberg, who began his amazing journalism career in 1951, covered more of Ali's fights than any sportswriter, including epic bouts with Joe Frazier and George Foreman that live on in boxing history.   Tom Archdeacon has covered more than 200 fights as a columnist and honored boxing writer in Ohio and Florida, and he not only sat ringside at Ali's final three bouts but also went to the circus with him.   Tim Smith covered the fight game for many years at The New York Times, New York Daily News, and Cincinnati Enquirer, and he now works for Haymon Sports, a boxing management company.   Thom Loverro, sports columnist at The Washington Times and an honored boxing writer, first met Ali as a young reporter visiting training camp in the late 1970s.   Vito Stellino is best known as a longtime NFL writer, but he was ringside at Madison Square Garden in 1971 as a reporter covering the legendary Ali-Frazier I.   Mary Schmitt Boyer puts us in Atlanta, Georgia on the night when Ali lit the Olympic torch, providing her a most treasured memory of the many Olympics that she covered.   George Diaz had encounters with Ali as a longtime Florida boxing writer, and he's also the ghostwriter of legendary fighter Roberto Duran's autobiography, “I Am Duran.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the first part of this episode of the Curious Realm host Christopher Jordan welcomes Jason McLean, host of Jason McLean Questions Everything, and author of the book Metroplex Monsters to discuss the truth behind modern sightings of dinosaurs! From Pteranodons flying across Texas, to sightings of Mokele-Mbembe in the Congo River basin, what is to be made of these out of place animals in our modern world? In the second part of the episode we welcome researcher and remote viewer, Lyn Buchanan. Member of US Government's now famous “Project Stargate”, using remote viewing for gathering of intelligence, Lyn has spent the better part of his life using this amazing mental martial art, and teaching others how to tap into their unseen mental powers. Join the Curious Realm as we delve into the topics of modern dinosaurs with Jason McLean and remote viewing with Lyn Buchanan. Curious Realm is a proud member of the HC Universal Network family of podcasts. For more great shows and content subscribe at HCUniversalNetwork.com. Curious Realm would like to thank the continuing support of our listeners and sponsors including PodcastCadet.com, Use Code Curious20 to save 20% off today! Curious Realm has teamed up with True Hemp Science, Austin, TX based suppliers of high-quality full spectrum emulsified CBD products and more. Visit TrueHempScience.com TODAY and use code Curious7 to save 7% off your order of $50 or more and get a free 50mg CBD edible! Website live streams powered by Web Work Wireless. For the best in home and business WiFi solutions visit WebWorksWireless.com. Intro music “A Curious Realm” provided by No Disassemble find more great music and content at: NoDisassemble.com. #curiousrealm #hcuniversalnetwork #podcastcadet #truehempscience #webworkswireless

In the first part of this episode of the Curious Realm host Christopher Jordan welcomes Jason McLean, host of Jason McLean Questions Everything, and author of the book Metroplex Monsters to discuss the truth behind modern sightings of dinosaurs! From Pteranodons flying across Texas, to sightings of Mokele-Mbembe in the Congo River basin, what is to be made of these out of place animals in our modern world? In the second part of the episode we welcome researcher and remote viewer, Lyn Buchanan. Member of US Government's now famous “Project Stargate”, using remote viewing for gathering of intelligence, Lyn has spent the better part of his life using this amazing mental martial art, and teaching others how to tap into their unseen mental powers. Join the Curious Realm as we delve into the topics of modern dinosaurs with Jason McLean and remote viewing with Lyn Buchanan. Curious Realm is a proud member of the HC Universal Network family of podcasts. For more great shows and content subscribe at HCUniversalNetwork.com. Curious Realm would like to thank the continuing support of our listeners and sponsors including PodcastCadet.com, Use Code Curious20 to save 20% off today! Curious Realm has teamed up with True Hemp Science, Austin, TX based suppliers of high-quality full spectrum emulsified CBD products and more. Visit TrueHempScience.com TODAY and use code Curious7 to save 7% off your order of $50 or more and get a free 50mg CBD edible! Website live streams powered by Web Work Wireless. For the best in home and business WiFi solutions visit WebWorksWireless.com. Intro music “A Curious Realm” provided by No Disassemble find more great music and content at: NoDisassemble.com. #curiousrealm #hcuniversalnetwork #podcastcadet #truehempscience #webworkswireless

Good afternoon, I'm _____ with today's episode of EZ News. Tai-Ex opening The Tai-Ex opened down 49-points this morning from Friday's close, at 16,391 on turnover of 3.3-billion N-T. The Tai-Ex lost ground on Friday along with other regional markets, as investors reacted to the prospect of a 5-per cent yield on 10-year U-S Treasury bonds for the first time since 2007, which added to pressure on Wall Street overnight. Ko Eyes Cross-Party Committee to Review Electoral Pact Taiwan People's Party presidential candidate Ko Wen-je is reportedly seeking to establish a cross-party committee to review and oversee plans for a electoral pact with the K-M-T. Ko says the committee will communicate with K-M-T presidential candidate Hou You-yi on issues concerning the forming a cross-party consultative (諮詢) group sometime this week. According to a spokesperson for Ko's office, the committee will seek to help the two parties discuss how to allocate government posts if they win the presidential election. Tsai Calls for More Diverse and Heart-Touching Taiwanese TV Dramas President Tsai Ing-wen is expressing her gratitude to film and television workers -- and acknowledging the impact (影響) of their work on people's lives and called for more diverse and heart-touching programs. Taking to social media following this past weekend's 58th Golden Bell Awards, Tsai congratulated those who won awards, while thanking those in the broadcasting and TV business for their "companionship." She also praised their consistent efforts to produce high-quality and diverse content, including entertaining variety programs, trendsetting reality shows and dramas that touched on many issues. US "Ready to Protect Personnel in Middle East" Secretary of State Antony Blinken says the United States is ready to protect U.S. personnel in the Middle East, should the Israel-Hamas war escalate (升級). AP correspondent Jackie Quinn reports. ((opens with actuality)) Congo Boat Capsizing Local authorities in Congo say st least 28 people drowned after a boat capsized in the Congo River in Equateur province. An administrator for the territory says the boat was traveling from Ngondo, about 120 kilometers from the province's capital and crashed Saturday night in Bolomba village. He said Sunday that about 200 passengers were rescued and an unknown number of others were missing. It was the second boat wreck (沉船) on the Congo River within a week. On October 14-th, another boat capsized, killing at least 47 people and leaving more than 70 missing. Iran Sentences Female Journalists to Prison A court in Iran has sentenced two female journalists to up to seven years in prison for collaborating with the U.S. government and other charges. Both have been imprisoned for over a year following their coverage (新聞報道,) of the death of Mahsa Amini while in police custody in Sept. 2022. They can appeal the sentencing within 20 days. The journalists broke the news of Amini's death for wearing her headscarf too loosely was sentenced to seven years in jail, while the other who wrote about Amini's funeral was sentenced to six. Amini's death touched off months-long protests in dozens of cities across Iran, and nearly 100 journalists were arrested during the demonstrations. That was the I.C.R.T. news, Check in again tomorrow for our simplified version of the news, uploaded every day in the afternoon. Enjoy the rest of your day, I'm _____. －－－－以下訊息由 SoundOn 動態廣告贊助商提供－－－－ 轉骨有成，日股長線續航仍強 日股專家－市佔No.1的日本野村資產管理 在地團隊發揮加乘效果 價值投資挖掘潛力企業 由下而上主動挑選優質個股 帶領您重新發現日股投資魅力 了解更多：https://bit.ly/45OUq8p

The Congo River is the world's deepest and most powerful waterway. In its basin, a wilderness bigger than Alaska, natural resources abound - oil, gold, diamonds, rubber. But this river, more than any other, is also linked with some of the darkest times in human history – with slavery, war and corruption.     So what do we know of the early communities who lived on its shores? Why did it take Europeans so long to explore the river? And what role did the Congo play in the development of motor cars, the atomic bomb and mobile phones?    From Noiser, this is a Short History of the Congo River.    Written by Jo Furniss. With thanks to Tim Butcher, a travel history writer and author of Blood River, based on his journey down the Congo. For ad-free listening, exclusive content and early access to new episodes, join Noiser+. Now available for Apple and Android users. Click the Noiser+ banner on Apple or go to noiser.com/subscriptions to get started with a 7-day free trial. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Heart of Darkness is a novella written by Joseph Conrad. Before its 1903 publication, it appeared as a three-part series (1899) in Blackwood's Magazine. It was classified by the Modern Library website editors as one of the "100 best novels" and part of the Western canon. The story centres on Charles Marlow, who narrates most of the book. He is an Englishman who takes a foreign assignment from a Belgian trading company as a river-boat captain in Africa. Heart of Darkness exposes the dark side of European colonization while exploring the three levels of darkness that the protagonist, Marlow, encounters: the darkness of the Congo wilderness, the darkness of the Europeans' cruel treatment of the African natives, and the unfathomable darkness within every human being for committing heinous acts of evil. Although Conrad does not give the name of the river, at the time of writing the Congo Free State, the location of the large and important Congo River, was a private colony of Belgium's King Leopold II. In the story, Marlow is employed to transport ivory downriver. However, his more pressing assignment is to return Kurtz, another ivory trader, to civilization, in a cover-up. Kurtz has a reputation throughout the region. (Summary by Wikipedia) --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/librivox1/support

Is there a Sauropod living in the dense habitats of the Congo River basin? Living dinosaurs fascinate and inspire us. You all love the first Jurassic Park, don't lie...but can they actually exist?Support the showSongs used in the episode by Kevin MacLeod are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)Source: http://incompetech.com/music/royalty-free/index.html?isrc=USUAN1300030The song "beyond the lows", by the whole other also featured. Artist: http://incompetech.com/

Join us for an impactful episode in the second season of 'Komunikate with the world' as we delve into the complexities of the Democratic Republic of Congo. In this compelling videopodcast, your host Marco interviews Sylvaine Boffel, a born and raised Congolese, renowned model for Wiener Models, and successful businesswoman with her own skincare line. Together, they explore the profound beauty and challenges of Congo. From breathtaking places like Virunga National Park, Garamba National Park or Congo River to encountering rare wildlife species like Okapi, Bonobo or Mountain Gorillas, Congo has an awe-amazing natural heritage. However, it is vital not to overlook the harsh reality of a long-standing civil war that has claimed the lives of millions. In this episode, we directly address this sobering fact, engaging in a candid conversation about the impact of the conflict on the Congolese people. Through Sylvaine's unique perspective, we shed light on the resilience and determination of the Congolese, as they strive for a brighter future amidst adversity. This videopodcast serves as a tribute to the beauty, strength, and spirit of Congo, while also acknowledging the challenges it faces. Join us as we uncover the multifaceted story of the Democratic Republic of Congo, celebrating its remarkable beauty and resilience while shedding light on the realities it confronts.

Investors sold stocks and bonds across the world on Thursday as US borrowing costs touched a 16-year high, US Treasury secretary Janet Yellen is in China, and Meta said more than 30mn people had signed up to its long-awaited competitor to Twitter. Plus, the FT's Africa editor David Pilling explains why conservation in the Congo has become contentious. Mentioned in this podcast:US borrowing costs hit 16-year high as markets roiled by jobs dataJanet Yellen to visit China in new US push to ease tensionsMeta says 30mn people have signed up to Twitter competitor ThreadsIn search of the ‘village of the elephants', deep in the central African rainforestThe FT News Briefing is produced by Fiona Symon, Sonja Hutson and Marc Filippino. Additional help by Katie McMurran, Peter Barber, Michael Lello, David da Silva and Gavin Kallmann. Topher Forhecz is the FT's executive producer. The FT's global head of audio is Cheryl Brumley. The show's theme song is by Metaphor Music.Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The US and Germany are among the western allies falling behind in delivering promised heavy weapons to Ukraine, and big asset managers are flocking to Latin American bonds and currencies. Plus, the FT's Africa editor David Pilling introduces us to some conservationists working to protect elephants from poachers in the Congo River Basin. Mentioned in this podcast:Latin America's bonds and currencies lure yield-hungry investors In search of the ‘village of the elephants', deep in the central African rainforestJapan Airlines gives tourists chance to reduce baggage by renting clothesThe FT News Briefing is produced by Fiona Symon, Sonja Hutson and Marc Filippino. Additional help by Katie McMurran, Peter Barber, Michael Lello, David da Silva and Gavin Kallmann. Topher Forhecz is the FT's executive producer. The FT's global head of audio is Cheryl Brumley. The show's theme song is by Metaphor Music. Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The UK's financial watchdog has summoned bank chief executives to address concerns that savings rates are lagging behind the surging cost of mortgages, Internet brand, Yahoo, is planning a return to the public markets, and the FT has released an investigation into sexual allegations toward celebrated architect, David Adjaye. Plus, the FT's Africa editor, David Pilling, takes us to one of the biggest rainforests in the world. Mentioned in this podcast:UK watchdog summons bank bosses to address ‘profiteering' claimYahoo plots return to public markets Sir David Adjaye: the celebrated architect accused of sexual misconductIn search of the ‘village of the elephants', deep in the central African rainforestThe FT News Briefing is produced by Fiona Symon, Sonja Hutson and Marc Filippino. Additional help by Katie McMurran, Peter Barber, Michael Lello, David da Silva and Gavin Kallmann. Topher Forhecz is the FT's executive producer. The FT's global head of audio is Cheryl Brumley. The show's theme song is by Metaphor Music. Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Two powerful swimmers must navigate winding river bends and high seas in this race from the Congo River to the Atlantic Ocean... Will Shonisaurus overshadow her smaller competitor? Or does speedy Nothosaurus have the edge? And will we meet a familiar face in the dark deep?

Unwind with "Heart of Darkness," Joseph Conrad's classic tale of imperialism, race, and the darkness of the human psyche. This Chillbook is narrated by Bob Neufeld, accompanied by relaxing music and captivating visuals to help you stay engaged. Whether you're a fan of classic literature or just looking for something new to listen to, this Chillbook is the perfect way to experience "Heart of Darkness" in a fresh and engaging way. #audiobook #reading #relaxing About Joseph Conrad: Joseph Conrad was a Polish-British novelist and short story writer. He is regarded as one of the greatest writers in the English language; though he did not speak English fluently until his twenties, he came to be regarded a master prose stylist who brought a non-English sensibility into English literature. (Wikipedia) About Heart of Darkness: Heart of Darkness (1899) is a novella by Polish-English novelist Joseph Conrad in which the sailor Charles Marlow tells his listeners the story of his assignment as steamer captain for a Belgian company in the African interior. The novel is widely regarded as a critique of European colonial rule in Africa, whilst also examining the themes of power dynamics and morality. Although Conrad does not name the river on which most of the narrative takes place, at the time of writing the Congo Free State, the location of the large and economically important Congo River, was a private colony of Belgium's King Leopold II. Marlow is given a text by Kurtz, an ivory trader working on a trading station far up the river, who has "gone native" and is the object of Marlow's expedition. Chapters: 00:00 Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad 00:12 Chapter 1 1:40:30 Chapter 2 3:07:30 Chapter 3 More Relaxing Audiobooks: - Chillbooks Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL6wZrAjRwk7dVtEMejaRJpmeHdFuVoy52 Special thanks to Bob Neufeld and Librivox.org: https://librivox.org/reader/3912 --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/chillbooks/support

Welcome to the Democratic Republic of Congo, home to more French speakers than the country of France. That's right, the DRC is the #1 French Speaking country in the world. The Congo River is the second longest river in Africa and the #2 river in the world in terms of volume of water, but "volume" is different than "discharge." More on that one in this episode. You can find all of Clark's classes on Outschool at his Teacher Profile Page at https://bit.ly/clarkonoutschool or email clark at aroundtheworldwithmrclark@gmail.com or follow him on Instragram https://www.instagram.com/clarkvand/

This time I deep dive into the Congo with Thomas Minesi, known on Instagram as Congo Nature Photography. Thomas lives in the city of Kinshasa in the Republic of Congo and has become well known for his personal explorations into the Congo River and his documenting the natural habitats of Anubias. Every freshwater aquarist will know this most hardy and versatile plant and Thomas brings the eye of the hobbyist to his exposure of Anubias and other West African biotopes to aquascapers, aquarium and nature lovers alike. Insights and first hand observations from someone living deep in the heart of one of the great tropical zones can make all of us better aquarists, and Thomas is doing his part to show us the depth and wonder of perhaps the most important plant in the aquarium hobby.In this episode we discuss Thomas' history in the Congo, explore many facets of Anubias in the wild and how it relates to its application in the aquarium, other West African species he's finding, and much more.You can find Thomas here: IG: congo.nature.photography YouTube: @thomasminesi7366

ONRS-EP576- HomelessBagsandCuddle parties Cuddle party Orlando Oven Repair / Owens a handyman Homeless person bag Jordan meeks RIP Why are half of the ads I see for hiv prevention? Chinese spy balloon    Worst job / best job Theme park foods or janitorial  Pool guy or lawn guy Taxi driver or pizza delivery  Ghost tour guide or bus tour guide  Commissary's food at work is like prison food New policy at trash mountain, has caused some commotion Birthday cake isnt a flavor. There are flavors of birthday cake OH NO MINI GOLF TOUNREY 2: Return to Congo River  3/25 at 12 or 4pm ohnoradioshow.com patreon.com/onrs twitch.tv/onrslive 407-906-6466  

Hayley Stuart learned to kayak while attending an international traveling high school.  Today she works with indigenous river communities in South America to prevent dams from changing their rivers into reservoirs.  She is teaching these river communities to kayak, building films about this work, attends the United Nations COP meetings as a linguistics translator working to UnDam the UN, and recently earned a Masters from Oxford University  in water science, policy and management. ADVERTSJack's Plastic WeldingwebsiteInstagram GUESTHayley StuartemailinstagramTEDxRios to River biographyFilm: Silent River, Still Jungle  (scroll down for film)Beni River ORGANIZATIONSAmazonian River Allies Bolivia (Organization in Bolivia founded by Hayley)Rios to RiversPaddle Tribal Waters:  Bolivia  (Rios to Rivers)InstagramFacebookSchool of International TrainingOxford UniversityOttawa Kayak SchoolInstagramFacebookWorld Class Kayak Academy (formerly also known as The New River Academy)InstagramFacebook 

Last episode we covered one of 32 Battalion's darkest days, the mauling they received at the hands of SWAPO on 11th February 1985, where Charlie Company walked straight into one of the better prepared SWAPO bases after taking what some say was a short cut. The death toll on the South African side was heavy, 13 soldiers from 32 Battalion's Charlie company died either during the firefight or of their wounds later, 15 SWAPO were also killed. 32 survivors described what happened that day as a massacre as Charlie Company stumbled upon 100 SWAPO soldiers in trenches who were armed with 82mm mortars and machine guns and proceeded to mow down the soldiers of probably the best known SADF battalion. Thus, Operation Forte came to a bitter end, the Battalion had been operating deep inside Angola in support of UNITA but by the end of May 1985, 32 withdrew from Angola. The Joint Monitoring Commission came to an end at the same time. Normal service resumed as they say. With the JMC done and dusted, the covert war increased in intensity to a full-scaled mechanized war on both sides. In a few months, FAPLA and the Cubans were to launch an attack on UNITA in the south east of the country. But first, 4 Recce found itself embroiled in their next Operation. This was an ambitious project and took the special forces way beyond their normal stomping ground. They were heading to Cabinda Province far to the north, the province that produces most of Angola's oil and gas. It's an enclave inside the DRC, alongside the Congo River. Operation Argon in May 1985 would leave two Recces dead, one captured, and the South African government in a diplomatic pickle. Four Recce were once again the go-to organization seeing that they had already been successful in blowing up a pipeline in Cabinda in June 1984. Captain Wynand du Toit was to be Mission Commander, and Captain Krubert Nel was his 2 IC. I'm going to mention the others involved because this is one of the most viscious face to face fights involving the Recces of the entire war. Staff Sergeant Amilear Queiroz and Maddies Adam were joined by Corporals Michael Hough, Gert Engelbrecht, Toby Tablai, Rowland Liebenberg and Louis van Breda. The medical support were going to be very busy indeed -and it was fortunate for those who were going to return injured that two doctors were on board the sub, with Doctor Deon Erasmus and Frans Verster who were both qualified operators as well as surgeons part of this mission

Last episode we covered one of 32 Battalion's darkest days, the mauling they received at the hands of SWAPO on 11th February 1985, where Charlie Company walked straight into one of the better prepared SWAPO bases after taking what some say was a short cut. The death toll on the South African side was heavy, 13 soldiers from 32 Battalion's Charlie company died either during the firefight or of their wounds later, 15 SWAPO were also killed. 32 survivors described what happened that day as a massacre as Charlie Company stumbled upon 100 SWAPO soldiers in trenches who were armed with 82mm mortars and machine guns and proceeded to mow down the soldiers of probably the best known SADF battalion. Thus, Operation Forte came to a bitter end, the Battalion had been operating deep inside Angola in support of UNITA but by the end of May 1985, 32 withdrew from Angola. The Joint Monitoring Commission came to an end at the same time. Normal service resumed as they say. With the JMC done and dusted, the covert war increased in intensity to a full-scaled mechanized war on both sides. In a few months, FAPLA and the Cubans were to launch an attack on UNITA in the south east of the country. But first, 4 Recce found itself embroiled in their next Operation. This was an ambitious project and took the special forces way beyond their normal stomping ground. They were heading to Cabinda Province far to the north, the province that produces most of Angola's oil and gas. It's an enclave inside the DRC, alongside the Congo River. Operation Argon in May 1985 would leave two Recces dead, one captured, and the South African government in a diplomatic pickle. Four Recce were once again the go-to organization seeing that they had already been successful in blowing up a pipeline in Cabinda in June 1984. Captain Wynand du Toit was to be Mission Commander, and Captain Krubert Nel was his 2 IC. I'm going to mention the others involved because this is one of the most viscious face to face fights involving the Recces of the entire war. Staff Sergeant Amilear Queiroz and Maddies Adam were joined by Corporals Michael Hough, Gert Engelbrecht, Toby Tablai, Rowland Liebenberg and Louis van Breda. The medical support were going to be very busy indeed -and it was fortunate for those who were going to return injured that two doctors were on board the sub, with Doctor Deon Erasmus and Frans Verster who were both qualified operators as well as surgeons part of this mission

https://www.armatusoceanic.com/podcast/029-deep-rivers   Everyone has been very busy this month with Thom and the Professor officially describing a new species of blue snailfish, alongside their adventures in Singapore. We hear from one of our old students about the work he's been doing in deep freshwater ecosystems, which got us thinking about these unique environments and the kind of species that live there. We decided to throw one more curveball away from the deep sea and speak with Dr Melanie Stiassny, an ichthyologist who's focused her research on the deep-water fish of the Congo River. We couldn't go an episode without discussing the latest deep-sea related conspiracy theories. And of course, we hear from Don about how freshwater affects sub manoeuvres.   Check out our podcast merch! Which now includes Alan's beloved apron and a much-anticipated new design...   Feel free to get in touch with us with questions or your own tales from the high seas on: podcast@armatusoceanic.com We'd love to actually play your voice so feel free to record a short audio note!   We are also on Twitter: @DeepSeaPod, @ArmatusO Facebook: DeepSeaPodcast, ArmatusOceanic Instagram: @deepsea_podcast, @armatusoceanic   Keep up with the team on social media Twitter: Alan - @Hadalbloke Thom - @ThomLinley Georgia - @geeinthesea   Instagram: Georgia - @geeinthesea   Read the show notes and find out more about us at: www.armatusoceanic.com   Glossary Acoustic doppler current profiler (ADCP) - a device that uses sound waves to measure the speed and direction of currents throughout the water column. Delta - a landform shaped like a triangle, where the mouth of a river flows into an ocean. Halocline - a vertical zone in the water column in which salinity changes rapidly with depth. Giant Isopod - (Scientific genus: Bathynomus) carnivorous crustaceans which are abundant in the deep-sea. Giger - H.R. Giger an award-winning Swiss artist who designed the creature from the 1979 sci-fi horror film ‘Alien'. Rapids - sections of a river where the river bed has a relatively steep gradient, causing an increase in water velocity and turbulence. Sargasso Sea - a region of the Atlantic Ocean bounded by four currents forming an ocean gyre. Links Alans TEDx talk   The art exhibition that Alan and Thom visited in Singapore   John Quentin's new deep-sea sci-fi novel, The Verdansky Ultimatum   Alans paper on hadal connectivity   Dr Thom's new paper on the blue hadal snailfish   Eel love, Macduff aquarium releasing their eels   Lake Baikal sculpins!   Crocs on Helium story and video   Melanie's work and recent research Melanie's recent paper on the discovery of a new species of air-breathing catfish   Melanie's article on her work in the lower Congo   Melanie's research on the deep river Congo   Fishes in the lower Congo River. An extreme case of species divergence and convergent evolution   Dying Fish Revealed Congo Is World's Deepest River   Videos: https://vimeo.com/channels/nsf/24733777 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tObYa9KQb8w&feature=relmfu   Melanie's TEDx talk   Credits Oceanchild - Spidergawd Youtube Spotify   Selti - Skatatacama Youtube Spotify   Theme – Hadal Zone Express by Märvel Logo image Image courtesy of the American Museum of Natural History/Melanie Stiassny

In this week's episode, we're looking at the legendary African cryptid of the Congo, the Mokele Mbembe! How does this monster link to Nessie? And how are Germans the leading authors on this monster? Find out this week!Support the show

Located in the heart of the African continent is one of the world's largest rivers: the Congo.  The Congo basin covers much of Central Africa, winds through some of the world's largest rainforests, and carries more water than any other river, save for the Amazon. It also has the distinction of being the deepest river in the world. Learn more about the Congo River, why it is important, and what makes it unique on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. Subscribe to the podcast!  https://link.chtbl.com/EverythingEverywhere?sid=ShowNotes -------------------------------- Executive Producer: Darcy Adams Associate Producers: Peter Bennett & Thor Thomsen   Become a supporter on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/everythingeverywhere Update your podcast app at newpodcastapps.com Search Past Episodes at fathom.fm Discord Server: https://discord.gg/UkRUJFh Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/everythingeverywhere/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EverythingEverywhere Twitter: https://twitter.com/everywheretrip Website: https://everything-everywhere.com/everything-everywhere-daily-podcast/ Everything Everywhere is an Airwave Media podcast." or "Everything Everywhere is part of the Airwave Media podcast network Please contact sales@advertisecast.com to advertise on Everything Everywhere. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Our adventures in Key Largo take us to Mile Marker 100, where a special piece of film history floats along the dock next to the Holiday Inn. It's the iconic African Queen, the real boat on which movie legends Katharine Hepburn and Humphrey Bogart navigated their way through the Congo River in 1951 when filming the movie of the same name. The SoFlo team jumped onboard for this immersive history lesson. We also feature the haunting tales from the Titanic Artifact Exhibition in Orlando where restless spirits reside.

Colonel John Blashford-Snell CBE is one of the world's most respected and renowned explorers. The founder of the Scientific Exploration Society and Operation Raleigh, his many expeditions include a complete navigation of the Congo River and the first vehicular journey from Alaska to Cape Horn. He also 'invented' white-water rafting during a particularly perilous descent of the Blue Nile in Ethiopia. At the age of 85 he is already planning his next trip to Bolivia. But he takes time out of his preparations to talk with Catherine Fairweather about how he first discovered his love of exploring, the importance of continually challenging yourself and his brush with the Loch Ness monster.

This special edition interview of the SHINE podcast is in honor and gratitude of the earth. We are running out of water for our basic needs. There are activities and systems that may need to be hospiced out in order to reconsider the long term effects of how we're consuming water and energy. Today I am focusing this conversation on the six solutions to water conservation with my friend Brian Richter. Brian Richter has been a global leader in water science and conservation for 40 years. In this interview, Brian shares about his journey and leadership in water stewardship and sustainability. We talk about what the current state is regarding water needs and shortages, and most importantly, how to plan for our water usage as the planet continues to warm and actions we can take to conserve water and ensure there is enough for everyone. Thank you for joining me.   Guest Links: Sustainable Waters- sustainablewaters.org. Chasing Water: A Guide for Moving from Scarcity to Sustainability by Brian Richter- https://www.sustainablewaters.org/chasing-water/ BBC Documentary David Attenborough on “How Many People Can Live on Planet Earth?” https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1575870/ Austin's Water Pre-Planning- https://www.sustainablewaters.org/a-water-plan-for-the-22nd-century/ Austin's Great Springs Project- https://greatspringsproject.org/ SHINE podcast “Water Stewardship Creates Necessary Alliances in Leadership and Business with Greg Koch”- https://carleyhauck.com/podcast/45-water-stewardship-create-necessary-alliances-in-leadership-and-business-with-greg-koch “Desalination advances in California despite opponents pushing for alternatives”- https://www.reuters.com/world/us/desalination-advances-california-despite-opponents-pushing-alternatives-2021-07-28/   SHINE Links:   Thank you for listening. Want to build a high trust, innovative, and inclusive culture at work? Sign up for our newsletter and get the free handout and be alerted to more inspiring Shine episodes   Building Trust Free Gift — https://www.leadfromlight.com   Carley Links   Book Carley for Speaking — https://carleyhauck.com/speaking Leading from Wholeness Learning & Development — https://carleyhauck.com/learning-and-development Carley's Book — https://carleyhauck.com/shinebook Executive Coaching with Carley — https://carleyhauck.com/executive-coaching Contact Carley — https://carleyhauck.com/contact Carley's Patreon Page https://www.patreon.com/carleyhauck   Well Being Resources:   Inner Game Meditations — https://carleyhauck.com/meditations Doterra — https://www.doterra.com/US/en/site/carleyhauck 4 Sigmatic — 15% Discount code Shine — https://us.foursigmatic.com/?rfsn=4405553.d15cc7&discount=SHINE   Social:   LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/in/carley-hauck/ IG — https://www.instagram.com/carley.hauck/ Website — https://www.carleyhauck.com Newsletter — https://www.leadfromlight.com Shine Podcast Page — https://carleyhauck.com/podcast   The Imperfect Shownotes   0:01 Carley Hauck   Hi, welcome to the SHINE podcast. My name is Carley Hauck. I'm your host, thank you so much for tuning in. This podcast focuses on the intersection of three things: the how to be a conscious, inclusive leader, the recipe for high performing teams creating more psychological safety, trust, innovation, and belonging, and lastly, awareness practices that you can cultivate to be the kind of leader our world needs now. And when I say the word leader, or leadership, that is a title that we all can step into, because we lead ourselves every day, and how we show up at work, in our relationships with our families, with our friends, with our communities, and around the things that matter most.   And so for those of you joining for the first time, welcome, please go over to your favorite podcast subscription button and hit subscribe on the SHINE podcast so that you don't miss any future episodes.   We are in season six. And this is a special edition interview in honor and gratitude of the earth, being that it's Earth Day, and I am focusing this conversation on the six solutions to water conservation with my friend Brian Richter. In this interview, Brian shares about his journey and leadership in water stewardship and sustainability for the past 40 years. We talk about what the current state is regarding water needs and shortages, and most importantly, how to plan for our water usage as the planet continues to warm and actions we can take to conserve water and ensure there is enough for everyone.   Brian Richter has been a global leader in water science and conservation for more than 30 years. He is the president of sustainable waters, a global organization focused on water scarcity challenges where he promotes sustainable water use and management with governments, corporations, universities and local communities. He previously served as director of the Global Water Program at The Nature Conservancy, an international conservation organization. Brian has consulted on more than 170 water projects worldwide. He serves as a water advisor to some of the world's largest corporations, investment banks, and the United Nations. He also teaches water sustainability at the University of Virginia. And he has developed scientific tools and methods to support river protection and restoration efforts. And lastly, Brian was featured in a BBC documentary with David Attenborough on how many people can live on planet Earth. I learned a lot in this interview, and I feel inspired by the actions we can all take together now. I am delighted to have you. Thanks for listening.   Carley Hauck 03:18   Hi, everyone. Thank you for joining my friend Brian Richter, the author of Chasing Water. Brian, thank you so much for being with me today.   Brian Richter 03:28   Happy to be here. Carley, looking forward to it.   Carley Hauck 03:34   Well, Brian, we just had a lovely conversation before the recording. And I'm really looking forward to talking more about all the things related to water stewardship and scarcity. But before we begin, one of the first questions I often ask my guests is, how would you describe a conscious inclusive leader? What does that mean to you?   Brian Richter 03:59   Well, first, the inclusive part. I think that and you know, I'll answer your question through the lens of the work that I do in water, Carley, because inclusivity has really been a big issue. In our dealings with water. Historically, many of the decisions, many of the ideas that are brought forth have been primarily from a fairly limited field of expertise, and specifically from engineers. And that's understandable historically, because a lot of our struggles with trying to make clean water available to people was for a long time, pretty much an engineering challenge. How do you build the pipes? How do you clean the water in treatment plants and that sort of thing?   But as the problems associated with water have grown over time as our populations have grown, we've come to realize the importance of having a much more diverse group of people and participants in that conversation about what water do we need? Where do we want to access it from? What are our concerns about it? What are their ideas for making the world better, you know, in the way that we interact with water and water sources.   And so in my Chasing Water book, I talk about, you know, the really the need to think about sort of water democracies and communities of water users that share the same water sources, and the importance of opening the doors of the decision making to to really invite a much more diverse audience, either people who need to know or want to know, you know, into that conversation.   But then the leadership part, Carley, is also equally if not more important, in many cases. Because there are some really tough decisions, typically that have to be made these days over water. Sometimes it means that somebody might need to be charged a little bit more for the service of bringing clean water to their home. And that's fraught with political peril. Sometimes, well, there's all kinds of decisions around water that may, you know, may have a lot of dissent. Or it may be different opinions, or it may, you know, be difficult for some people to agree with. And so, being bold and leadership is also a really, really important aspect of managing water well.   Carley Hauck 06:35   Thank you so much, Brian, that was a great answer. I hear more of the inclusion pieces, the water democracy, but then the leadership piece is really having a consciousness that's really taken care of the greater whole. Yes, yes, just to share a little context with the listeners as to why I really wanted to have this conversation with you. So I moved to North Carolina, and 2020, shortly after the pandemic hit, and I have now relocated back to California in the last few months. And while I was in North Carolina, I was coming back to the west coast for a few months at a time. And every time I came back, I was very aware of how dry it was. And it was interesting to be in Oregon last summer, I timed it perfectly for the fires, I was there for the hottest period of time. And in fact, this is when Greg and I were actually having our conversation around water stewardship. And so Greg referred me to you because he and I had had this really wonderful conversation. And for those of you on the SHINE podcast listening, if you want to listen to that interview, it is on the podcasts, and you can look for it. It's a special edition podcast, because we had such a long conversation. But that would be a good precursor to the conversation I'm going to have with Brian or it can even just be a follow up after you listen to this one.   And I think one of the things that has been really important to me is how can we all be good stewards of the planet, in our leadership roles in the way that businesses are acting to be more socially and environmentally responsible? But also as consumers? What can we do? Because I really believe that we all have the opportunity and frankly, the responsibility to lead or we're not going to have a thriving world. You know, I keep seeing books and things out there that say save the planet. I'm like, No, it saved the humans, you know, the planets gonna be here. We have to awaken humanity from its slumber. And so I really wanted to talk to you based on your incredible breadth of knowledge and service, around water scarcity, to just kind of help educate me, bring more awareness, and education to the listeners and also some really important action steps that we can take now.   And so, you know, one of the things that was interesting to me is that when I was reading your book, I saw that you grew up in San Diego, and I just shared with you that I'm going to be in San Diego this summer. And as I was looking at my moving to San Diego, I was looking to see, you know what, it doesn't make sense to me. How are they growing all of this food in San Diego? They have tons of farmers markets, more than I've seen pretty much in any other city. Where are they getting that water? San Diego is a desert. So could you talk a little bit about how living in San Diego inspired this path of working and supporting stewardship of water but then also, what do we do about what's going on in Southern California? It's a desert. Right?   Brian Richter 10:10   Sure. Yes, . So there was a defining moment in my life, when I decided that I was going to go into the, you know, the professional aspects of water, and it was in the 1970s. And we had at that time, it was the drought of record. And there were mandatory water restrictions being placed on homeowners and businesses in San Diego at that time. And I just remember having this thought, so I was in high school at that time, and, and I remember having this thought that, gosh, if I could develop some expertise, some knowledge about water, I would likely have job security for the rest of my life. And it eventually worked itself out that way.   So it most definitely my growing up in San Diego and growing up with that rigidity, the concern over not having enough water to do all the things that we wanted to do in a rapidly growing community that was needing more and more water all the time. Those things all shaped my thinking. And I think position me for the 40 years, you know that I actually have spent, you know, in this profession.   Now, to answer your question about what we can do, I think I might start with where I start with my university students. So I teach a class in water sustainability at the University of Virginia. And in the very first week of class, we walked them through an exercise that's intended to help them understand three things. One is that I work them through an exercise where they actually calculate how much water they rely upon, on average, each day of their lives. And it's a very, very eye opening experience, because a lot of them understand that they use water in the shower, they use water for cooking, they use water to wash their clothes and dishes. But until recently, not many people thought about the fact that we also need water to grow our food, we need water to produce our clothing, we need water in so many aspects of our lives. So that initial exercise, using a simple calculator to come up with those numbers is a very, as I said, it's a very interesting exercise for the students to go through.   But then the second thing I want them to know about is where's that water coming from? What's your local water supply? What water sources are you depending upon? And are those water sources in good shape? Or not? Or are there problems? Are we using too much of the water? Are we drying up the stream? Are we drying up the underground aquifer? Are we causing too much pollution and that sort of thing. So that's the second part.   And then the third part is I want them to increase their awareness and knowledge so that they can become active, informed citizens of their community. And perhaps by extension, you know, of the world, as well. And so a major reason that I wrote the Chasing Water book was to try to provide some basic education about water so that anybody who wanted to learn a little bit more, become a more informed citizen could learn the basics from the book, and understand that this is how problems develop and these are some of the solutions that we can apply.   So by being aware of that, both individually, but then also thinking about their community, or, more broadly, I think that will make them a fuller human being, if you will.   Carley Hauck 14:00   So those were really wonderful questions that you asked your students and, you know, what are the calculations that you're inviting them to actually figure out what those numbers are? And I would imagine, there's probably a scale of this is a high amount of water consumption, this is a low amount of water, this is moderate, you're doing good, because we will probably want to, you know, have a baseline but then you want to curve our consumption based on whether that's high or low. And what are the water sources are right?   Brian Richter 14:34   Yes. Yeah. So there's a couple of things that we follow up on after they've done that basic exercise, then we have some really interesting conversation that gets to. One of the things that this exercise makes them aware of is that different aspects of their lives and their livelihoods results in their depending upon larger volumes of water. So for instance, what stands out for almost all of them is how, how much of their personal water footprint is tied to their food. And, and so they start to realize that boy, depending upon my diet, and what I choose to eat, has a very big influence on how much water My lifestyle is dependent upon. And the students are real quick to make that connection and it causes them to think about, ha, boy, the choices that I'm making have consequences. And that's why it's so important for me to connect them to, where's the water actually coming from that was used to produce the lettuce in your salad, or, you know, the barley in your beer, or, you know, or what have you. And so that's a big part of it.   And I also think that when they see how big their overall numbers are, it catalyzes the thinking in them that that's an awful lot of water that each of us depends upon, and we could probably easily find ways to use less. And if they happen to live in a place where water scarcity, where water shortages are a reality, then that sort of self reinforcing awareness or knowledge. Because if they realize how each of our water footprints add up, and that that number, that volume of water that our community depends upon, is is putting a lot of pressure on the local river or the local groundwater aquifer, then they start to connect the dots, that my personal individual actions roll up to my community, which then has a tremendous amount of influence on on the water sources. And so I think that part of that awareness also brings with it an ethic. It's built with the beginning of an ethic about what ethical responsibility means with regards to how we're utilizing our natural resources.   Carley Hauck 17:05   Great. Thank you. So that is something we'll pick up again later, you know, in the talk, because I know that you outlined six solutions to water scarcity of water conservation being the number one thing we can do. And that's really what you're inviting this awareness, this education, and then kind of new actions based on the information they're gaining from tracking their water consumption.   But I'd like to move into the actual water that we have to use. And you know a lot about this from your work in water in the last 40 years. But I was recently reading an article that came out a few weeks ago, and they were stating that we are going to have a very dry season in the spring. This was noted by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. And it's saying that, in fact, California, which is where I am right now, is returning to severe or extreme drought. And Central California is likely to be the lowest since 1922, 100 years ago. And what's so interesting about that year, is that's also the year when the law of the river was also signed. And that's basically sanctioning the Colorado River, which I learned about from reading your book to seven different states, New Mexico, California, Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, Idaho, Wyoming, Utah. But as you said, in your book, which I really liked this point, those seven states were basically being given water rights. But that law didn't take into consideration the river's voice itself- did it really want to give away its water. It didn't really think about Mexico. And we know that so much of our food is grown in Mexico as well. So how are they getting water?   I'd love it if you could just talk a little bit about, where are we getting the water? And, and even just I think you mentioned it. In the book, you speak a bit about though the water cycles. And I think that would be important for people to understand, you know, water budgets, water supply water withdrawal.   Brian Richter 19:26   Yeah. So one of the most, one of the most common questions that I get asked, either by my students or when I give a public presentation, Carley, is how can we possibly be running short of water? Don't we still have the same amount of water on the planet as we've always had? And so it's very understandable. We're taught in grade school that there is this global water cycle, that water is constantly moving around the planet, and there's water evaporating off the surface of the ocean. It goes up into the atmosphere and forms clouds, those clouds are blown over the land, and it comes down as precipitation, it comes down as rain or snow. And that cycle continues to work. And, there is no difference in the total volume of water on the planet as we as there has been for millennia.   But the thing that people have to gain some understanding of is that wherever you are in the world, you can't access water from anywhere else and from everywhere else in the world. Okay. Technologically, we could, so we could go to the Congo River and Africa, you're sitting in California, dry California, you could send a tanker ship over to the Congo River and Africa and stick in a hose and fill up the tanker ship and bring it back to California. But the cost of doing so is prohibitive. Okay.   So instead of thinking of the whole world, as your water supply, you have to think about the water that's within reach. And by reach I mean, in particular, the water that can be affordably provided to you for your water supply. Okay, so I often talk about it as your local bathtub, you know, it's your bucket of water and, and so now, if, if there's only a certain volume of water that is locally affordably available to then it is possible to use that water source at a rate faster than it's being naturally replenished by that rain or snow.   Okay, so, think about it like a bathtub. If you can't turn the water in flow up high enough to keep up with the water going down the drain, then the level in the bathtub goes down over time. And that's basically what happens with all of our water sources, it's a matter of the rate of use as compared to the rate of natural replenishment.   Then let's talk a little bit about the inflow into our local water supply, how our local water supplies are being replenished. So historically, we have always had dry periods and wet periods. Everywhere on the planet, you have dry periods and wet periods. And when it gets really dry, we call it a drought. And so there is a cycling, you know that you know, you have this intermittency between wet and dry. We have to be careful not to be using too much water during those dry periods, in particular, because we're not getting enough replenishment. The unfortunate thing about much of the Western US, so let's just say climate change is changing that availability of water, okay. Some places are actually getting, under climate change, some places are actually getting more rainfall. But other places are getting a lot less.   Carley Hauck 23:14   Can you name some places, just for our listeners?   Brian Richter 23:17   Well, generally the Eastern US, most of the Eastern US is getting more, the same or more. And much of the Western US is getting less than it has historically. And so in much of the West, the climate science is telling us that we're already experiencing less water supply and less replenishment of our water supplies, because of climate change. And it's going to get worse in the coming decades. So in the Colorado River system, they're saying that by mid century, we're going to have 20 to 35% less water coming down the Colorado River system because of climate change.   Okay. So a lot of people, a lot of the climate scientists in particular, but a lot of the water managers and people who depend upon the water supplies in the Colorado River, are coming to realize that we used to call this a drought, a dry period. But now it's been 22 years, and they're the driest 22 years in the last 1200 years. So that's the driest period in a very, very long period of time. And, but now they're saying you know what, let's just stop and they were calling the 20s. So because of that they're calling the 22 year, your period of mega drought and a super super drought.   But now they're saying let's quit calling it a drought because the pressure from climate change is causing what they're now referring to as long term or ratification, which means it's just getting drier in the background. And that's going to continue because the climate is going to continue to warm.   Carley Hauck 25:03   Well, thank you for sharing that. And, you know, one of the things I've also been hearing, and it's been written about is, you know, this summer is the coldest summer you've ever had. Yeah, because every summer, as we continue to warm until we can get to a place, which I'm hopeful of where we can pause, you know, this continual heating of the planet, it's going to take a lot of work. But you know, it's already been proven that we can do it, Paul Hawken in Drawdown and in his new book Regeneration has shown that we can actually pause it, we can reverse climate change, but we all have to get on board.   But, you know, even when I was in Bend, Oregon last year, and the whole state of Oregon was on fire, and it was 93, to 108. And Greg, and I just had a conversation, and he had just come back from Washington, where there were fires and smoke. And so, you know, I basically took Bend off my summer travel spot, because I, I couldn't, I couldn't live and flourish in those temperatures. And I actually see it as the new norm. Kind of like what you're saying, you know, we've talked about these mega storms, these mega fires that happen pretty regularly now in California and on the west coast, but I don't think they're a fluke anymore. They are going on for years, unfortunately.   Brian Richter 26:32   That's right. Yeah, it is. It's a hard pill to swallow. But it is kind of normal, that life is going to be different now going forward. And you know, and it's a real, it's having it's having really, really terrible consequences, because to your point, Carley, that do, we actually have the knowledge, the technologies, the money to deal with these kinds of problems? Whether it's to arrest climate change, or whether it's to avoid water shortages. We know how to do that. This is a point that Greg brought out in your last interview as well, we know how to solve those problems.   The problem is that human beings seem to be innately incapable of responding at the scale and the pace necessary to deal with these problems. It's a very unfortunate, from my 40 years of working in 47 countries around the world, I saw this just happening everywhere that people don't respond to a natural resource calamity, shortage of water, pollution of water, until it gets so bad that it's causing terrible, terrible problems, both for people as well as for the natural environment. And that's extremely unfortunate, it's extremely unfortunate that we can't be a little bit more proactive. So let's just take one, you know, one quick example, in the Colorado River system in the Western United States, in the 1950s, we had practically dried up the entire river system because of our use.   Okay. Now, you would think that the people in charge, the political leaders, the water managers would have said, you know, we better be careful about how much extra use of the water we're going to allow. Because if we're already using up the whole river, we could be in really serious trouble if we keep letting you know the need for the water grow. But no constraints were placed on it. There was no limit I talked about in the book, a cap, the concept of a cap. And that just says, you know, here's the reliable water volume that you could safely sustainably use year after year. And you don't want to go more than that. Or you start to have to face some really, really serious problems.   But the Colorado River just continued people just they just continued to more people came in more water got used more industries, you know, became dependent upon that water supply, more farms became dependent upon that water supply, to the point where now Carley, we're using more water on average each year, about 20% More water on average every year, then comes down the Colorado River system. And the only way that we can do that is because up until the turn of the century up until about 2000 there was enough water going down the river. And we had built some really gigantic reservoirs, particularly the two biggest reservoirs in America, Lake Mead and Lake Powell. And they hold that together, you know, they hold nearly four years worth of the entire flow of the Colorado River system.   So when we got into this period after 2000, which is the beginning of the 22 year mega drought that I was referring to a moment ago, all of a sudden, we're now in three out of four years, we're using more water than came down the river. And the reason we've been able to persist with that behavior for as long as we have is we just keep taking more water out of those reservoirs. It's like overspending your checking account and going into your savings account to replenish it. And so we continue to do that. Now those two reservoirs are between two thirds and three quarters empty.   And this year is looking like another terrible year for runoff in the Colorado River system. And so we're getting closer and closer to the brink, we're actually getting closer and closer to drying up the two largest reservoirs in the United States. So and, you know, and arguably, I don't think there's, I don't think there's anybody in the science community or in the conservation community that would, that would, that would disagree with my statement that what's being done in response is nowhere near the scale and the pace necessary to prevent this disaster from unfolding.   It's, it's excruciatingly frustrating for somebody like me, who spent 40 years of my life, studying these issues, learning about ways to try to avoid catastrophe, learning a ways to better manage water so that you avoid water scarcity to see this unfolding in the river system that I grew up dependent upon, is terribly gut wrenching.   Carley Hauck 32:14   Thank you for sharing that. Yeah. I'm just gonna pause for everyone to listen to that. Yeah. And so, you know, I agree with you. I've been brought in to create a lot of change within leadership within companies. And the only reason that I get called in is because there's enough suffering, and they've hit, you know, a wall of like, we can't, we can't continue to do it this way anymore. You know, these departments aren't getting along, they're not talking to each other. It's having, you know, huge impacts on retention on the culture, people are burned out, there's mental health, you know, whatever. I mean, we look at even the great reset that's happening in companies, people have had it. No, we're at this, we got to create a new foundation of work, a new world.   I mean, I really see this moment in time. Just we have to reset everything, including our consumption practices, whether that's, we're eating too much meat, and all that water is going toward livestock and agriculture, like we I mean, it's all connected, and I'd see it, but I agree with you. Oftentimes, we have to hit a certain level of suffering before we're ready to change. And that's one of the reasons I'm having you on the podcast. It's one of the reasons I wrote my book. It's one of the reasons you wrote yours. It's like, let's bring education awareness. Now, before, before we have to really deal with catastrophe was a word that you used. And so, when I even think about being in San Diego, it's beautiful down there. They have tons of farmers markets, right? It's paradise. But it's not because water is not going to be very sustainable. I don't even know where they're getting a lot of that water from right now. It's coming from the reservoir. It sounds like.   Brian Richter 34:09   Yes. Well, and so Carley, I wanted to just give emphasis to something the way that you said it, that unfortunately, the moment of breakthrough is when people say we can't keep on going the way that we're going. Right? We just can't keep doing this. It's sort of like when they finally realize that things are breaking apart, you know, that they can see the future and it's dark, it's not good. That's when you have that moment. And that's why, you know, there's this off using oft used phrase, you know, some attributed to, you know, to Confucius about, you know, in crisis is opportunity. Right, but, but what we're saying is it's unfortunate that the crisis has to get so accentuated before those opportunities. Use that awareness, that willingness to say we can't keep doing this the same anymore becomes available.   So let's talk a little bit about San Diego.   Carley Hauck 35:16   And then let's talk about Texas because so many people have moved to Texas. In some ways, it's a good thing they're moving to Texas because they're moving out of the west where we're running out of water. So it's going to take some of the pressure of the water needs off of the western states. Because yes, now in Texas, but then how do we protect Texas?   Brian Richter 35:36   Yes, and it's unfortunately, they're going from one dry place, or one place that has water problems and moving to one that's got them as well, unfortunately.   So there's a couple things happening in California, in Southern California that I think are really important. So one is that they have become excellent at the practice of water conservation. So we're just finishing up an exhaustive study of the 30 largest water utilities that use the Colorado River system, including San Diego, including Los Angeles, Phoenix, Denver, Albuquerque, and so on and so forth.   And the fascinating thing, Carley, is that over the last two decades, while the populations have grown substantially, maybe by as much as a third, across those cities, they've been actually actually able to lower their total water use by something like a quarter. That is miraculous success. Okay. So as you know, because you've read my Chasing Water book, I put water conservation sort of in a league of its own, because it is so critically important to addressing these problems that you're talking about. So the fact that these cities have become very good at Water conservation is a good thing.   They continue to do better. And that gives me some optimism, they can continue to push water conservation, and get down to their water needs lower and lower and lower.   Carley Hauck 37:32   I just want to pause this here, just briefly, just to give California a little a little, you know, woot-woot since I wanted to come back. In January, they have basically input a statewide composting program, which is going to help us you know, regenerate water, it's also going to regenerate the soil, it's going to take the carbon out of the atmosphere, put it in the soil, not in the water, not in the ocean. But even just where I am in the Bay Area. There are so many electric cars, you know, there's so many I hear them all over there. And then there's signs everywhere of severe drought, please conserve water. So you know, those messages make impact. I think they're saying if you see something seven times in marketing, then you take action. They're everywhere.   Brian Richter 38:22   Yes. Yeah, that's really good. It is really, really important to communicate that. So that we can do better. Well, yes, they can continue to do better. And there are some new water management strategies that are making a difference.   One in particular, is reusing or recycling water after we've used it.   Carley Hauck 38:50   Okay, so a gray water system, correct?   Brian Richter 38:52   Yeah, yeah, but but even even in a larger, you know, maybe even what you might call an industrial scale. So, this way to think about it, you take a shower, all that water, you know, pretty much all of the water goes down the drain, some of it evaporates off steam, and some of it ends up on your towel, but most of it goes right down the drain.   Historically, we would then, if you're in one of those southern California cities like San Diego, that water would have gone down the drain out to a water treatment plant to take some of the impurities out of it and then got flushed out into the ocean. Okay. Now though, this concept of reuse and recycling means that after goes down the drain, they then clean it up to a very, very high level of purity and they're able to put it back into the water supply system.   So you have this reuse and recycling of the water taking place and requires them to not have to continually go back to the river or to go to the underground aquifer for more and more water all the time so that reuse and recycling is a very very big and growing part of sustainable water management now.   The other one that I think there are a couple of others that are worth mentioning. One is what we call in urban areas stormwater capture. So you think about all the water, all the rainfall that falls on the roofs and on the parking lots and runs down the street and gets into the gutter. And that water to you know, historically would get flushed into some waterway and end up out in the ocean. If you're in a place like San Diego, they're now figuring out how to capture that water and clean it up and put it into the water supply. So they call that stormwater capture.   And then the other one is, we talked about this a little bit before the recording is desalination. So desalination is going to expand considerably. Presently, it makes up less than 2% of the world's water supply. And the reason, the primary reason, that it's not a big part of our water supply yet. So just for your listeners, desalination means the salting, which means taking the salt out of salty water, the easiest way to think about it is ocean water. You bring in ocean water, you take the salt out of it, you turn it into freshwater, and you can put it in your water supply system. That process is called desalination.   But the primary reason we're not using it very much is because it becomes very expensive. Because that process of taking the salt out of the salty water requires a lot of energy and the energy costs a lot of money. And that makes the water perhaps 10 times more expensive than other sources of water. That's been the primary limiting factor. But there are other big concerns that have to be dealt with. And one of them is in that process of removing the salt. from let's say ocean water, you end up with a half a gallon. So you take one gallon of ocean water, you end up with a half a gallon of fresh water and half a gallon of super concentrated what's called brine, briny solution. Okay, super, super concentrated salt, they then have to figure out some safe way to dispose of that very briny salt, well, salt, concentrated salt. And there are ways of doing it safely. But it can be difficult, and it can also be expensive to do it well. And so that's another inhibitor on the expansion of desalination technology.   But anyway, those are some of the ways that these cities are addressing some of these problems.   Carley Hauck 42:52   Can I ask you a question about desalination, because I hear that's a possibility to bring more water, but there's actually a plant that is being constructed. I think they've gotten permits. And it's, it's similar to the Poseidon Carlsbad plant, which is, you know, very close to San Diego, since we're talking about San Diego, and that has been operating since 2015. And apparently produces about 50 million gallons of drinking water. So that's about 10% of the San Diego county's water demand. But they're trying to create another one near the Huntington Beach.   And I mean, from what I've read about it, the environmentalists are just saying it wreaks havoc on marine life. And it just doesn't seem like an environmentally responsible way. Like it's, you know, it takes larvae and plankton and kit a fish are killed. And I just, there's so many other things that are being harmed in the process of creating these plants, not to mention their billions of dollars. I'm just wondering, can we increase our efforts towards other solutions and such salinization? And I hear you're saying, you know, it's one of the one of the things that's going to be increased?   Brian Richter 44:22   Yes. So, Carley, the most important argument against it is just what you just said, we should first use the other readily available solutions to their maximum potential. Okay. Water conservation is by far and away, the least expensive, safest, reliable, sustainable way of dealing with a water shortage challenge. Okay.   So in my book, one of my seven principles is to use water conservation to its absolute maximum potential. For that reason, I think, almost everywhere there is an argument to be made to the proponents of other technologies, like desalination proved to us that you've maximized the potential of water conservation first. And once you can credibly prove that to us, then we can have a conversation about the other alternatives. Okay. So that's really, really important. Now. You know, there are places in the world where you know, where they're at that crux point, Carley. Israel is the one that comes immediately to mind. They are by far and away the most water conservative country on the planet. They push water conservation in homes and businesses and farms more successfully than any other country.   Carley Hauck 46:01   This is Australia, correct?   Brian Richter 46:02   Israel, Israel.   Carley Hauck 46:07   One of the leaders in my book has a water sanitation service. And he actually started that when he was in Tel Aviv. So there you go.   Brian Richter 46:18   Yeah, there you go. So there's a lot to be learned. Another great book was written by a guy named Seth Segal, he wrote a book called Let There Be Water. And he really chronicles the evolution, the chronology of what Israel has gone through with their water management. And, you know, they're to a point Carley where if they want to allow their population and their economies to grow, and they've pushed water conservation to the max, and they've also, by the way, are pushing water reuse water recycling to the max, then, you know, they can make one of the more compelling arguments that, that they're going to use desalination, you know, to enable them to continue to grow their population in their economy.   So, but there, but there are, you know, I would be hard pressed to name another place in the world where they could make as strong of an argument as in Israel, you know, for going through that option.   Carley Hauck 47:28   So it sounds like we should look to Israel and model some of what they're doing in the United States, but across the world.   Brian Richter 47:42   Absolutely. Absolutely. Yeah. Yeah. So in Israel, they use the desalinated water only in the cities. And then after the cities have used that water, they treat it and they reuse it out on the farms. And the farms are extremely conservative in how they use water. So it's a pretty efficient system. There's an awful lot to be learned by their example, because they're doing it, you know, they're, they're pushing the level of water conservation in Israel is the gold standard.   Carley Hauck 48:08   Thank you. Well, let's move a little bit to Texas, because so many people have moved to Texas in the past two years. And I was recently in Austin, last week visiting a friend and I was actually spending some time with John Mackey, who just stepped down from his CEO role of Whole Foods. And he and is wife Deborah, both of them have been very involved in environmental sustainability around Austin. But Deborah has been part of the Great Springs project, which is really trying to protect the aquifers, the Barton Springs, which is all around Austin.   And I couldn't help but think about all the people that are moving to Austin. And how are we going to protect the water there, but not just Austin? Austin, I believe is going to be one of the, I think I have the stats somewhere. Let me pull this up really quick. It's one of the fastest growing cities in Texas, but actually, Houston and Dallas and San Antonio are also really increasing in size.   So you know, you had said before, they're moving from a dry area to another dry area. So what can we do as in preparation for the development that's already happening there to make sure that what doesn't happen out here happens there?   Brian Richter 49:38   Yes. So as it turns out, Austin is progressive in a lot of things, but they are very impressive in their water planning. And I even wrote a blog about this last year. Austin just completed a new 100 year water supply plan. Most cities at most they'll look at the next 50 years, Austin decided we're gonna look at a whole, you know, a whole 100 years ahead.   Carley Hauck 50:08   Yay, Austin!   Brian Richter 50:09   Yay, Austin, they do deserve a shout out on this one, Carley. Absolutely.   Carley Hauck 50:17   And I want to read your article. And I'm sure listeners would, too, you'll have to send it to me, and I'll link it in the show notes.   Brian Richter 50:21   I sure will, I sure will. So they made some very appropriate projections about what climate change is going to do to their water supply, which is, ironically, another river called the Colorado River that flows right through the heart of Austin. The Colorado River, in Texas is used very, very heavily, arguably, too heavily, particularly during drought periods. So they made assumptions about how climate change is going to reduce the flow of the Colorado River, how climate change is going to reduce the natural replenishment of their underground aquifers, and conservative assumptions about how far they can push water conservation and those kinds of things.   And they arguably have put forth a 100 year water supply plan that looks like it balances out, even when I looked at it with a very critical eye, a very careful eye, it looks it looks like a good piece of work to me, I think it's convincing that they're going to be able to meet their growth, you know, provided the growth isn't any any stronger than what they're projecting in a water supply plan. But it looks like they might be able to do it. Now. I can't say the same for the other Texas cities, you know, they're there, they're not in that place. And by the way, it's one thing to put something down on paper and a plan, it's another thing to try to implement it. So before we give Austin a full shout out, Carley, you know, the proof is in the pudding. Right? Let's see how they do over the next 5 to 10 years. Because some of their goals are quite ambitious, and they're gonna have to, they're gonna have to move really, really fast in order to live up to it.   Carley Hauck 52:05 There is massive growth happening right now. I mean, the estimations are that about 400 people a week are moving to Austin. And just being there, there's not there's not enough properties. So they're having to actually move into the high rises, I can't imagine how else they're housing all these people.   Brian Richter 52:21   And I'd be willing to bet Carley, that whatever growth rate was, was forecast in that 100 year water supply plan, the last couple of years, probably just blew it. Because as you said, during the pandemic, there were a lot of people fleeing California, and one of the places they went was Texas, and a lot of went to Montana, you know, in other places, but they're growing, they just got a big surge. And there's some big companies like Tesla that are building new factories, you know, in, you know, outside of Austin as well. So they're gonna need some more.   By the way, one of the really important things about good water planning is that you refresh it, you look at it again, on a regular basis. So, you know, they just signed, sealed and delivered the plan, I think last year, they're going to need to look at it within the next five years and see whether or not they're on track. Are they implementing the things they said they're going to implement? Is the growth at the pace that they thought it was going to be? And, you know, and all of that.   Carley Hauck 53:20   Well, thank you for sharing more of that. So let's move into the six solutions. And we've been talking about them quite a bit. So you talked about the six solutions to water scarcity, desalinization that we talked about. So this is kind of a last resort. You know, we have to be really focusing on water conservation. We have water importation, water storage, watershed management, and there's one more missing, because that's not six right? 1, 2, 3, 4. So is there one more than I'm leaving out?   Brian Richter 53:56   Yeah, water importation, desalinization, water recycling or water reuse, you know, must have been what as well?   Carley Hauck 54:05   Yes, I imagine. So you've already kind of spoken to that a bit. So which of these six do you want to go into in more depth? We've already talked a bit about water conservation. We could come back to that? Yeah. What do you think?   Brian Richter 54:20   Well, so let's, let's just explain a little bit more about a couple of the others just so that the listeners you know, understand what each of them mean. Okay. So, this concept of water importation is what it suggests: it's importing water from some other place. So earlier I talked about, you know, your bathtub, your water supply comes from your local bathtub. But sometimes, and it's important to us to not use the water in the bathtub faster than it's being replenished. Okay. But one of the ways that you can artificially replenish your bathtub.   We already talked about desalination as one way we talked about stormwater capture is another water reuse is arguably another, you know, instead of letting it go down the drain, you just keep putting it back in the bathtub. But there's also this concept of importing water from further away. It's a strategy. It's an idea that's been used for 1000s of years.   Remember the Roman aqueducts. When the Roman towns were outgrowing their local water supply, their local bathtubs, they built these elegant engineering structures that could bring in water from another spring or another, another river at some distance 10s of miles away from the Roman town. That's an idea that now has been taken to the extreme in many places in the world. California moves water from Northern California to Southern California. China's completing what they call the South North water diversion project that basically moves water from the southern part of China to the northern part of China. We're doing this, you know, we've been moving water around. And it is, it is a strategy for bolstering your bathtub, you know, for bringing more water in your bathtub.   But there's two primary issues on it. One is it again, it takes a lot of energy to move water around. So imported water is expensive water. The other is that in today's world, more and more places are becoming scarce in their available water, the people that live in those places need their available water supply, and they don't want to see some other city or community coming in and sticking a straw in their water supply.   And so you have the potential of just spreading and worsening the water scarcity problem, if you're trying to import water from a place that if it's not water scarce, now, the loss of that water to the importing city might cause it to become a water scarce place. So that's not really a good option, it can be used to some limited extent. For some minor fraction of your water supply, but it's not one that you know, it's certainly not one that I advocate for. Again, there are other much, much better ways of trying to bolster your water supply, or reduce how much water you need.   Carley Hauck 57:44   And then water storage. That's another one.   Brian Richter 57:47   So water storage is really a temporary way of making more water available when you need it. So many places in the world, particularly the places where we grow food, have seasonality in terms of their available water, in terms of, think about it as rainfall. So there's a wet season and there's a dry season, typically, what reservoirs do is that they store up water during the wet season and they hold on to it so that we can use it during the dry season. So it's not a long term way of increasing your water supply. It's just a way of managing it on short timeframes, say from the dry season to the wet season. Maybe if you've got a really big reservoir, it can help go from a wet year to a dry year. But it's not something that's going to bolster your water supply for decades. And that's really important to understand that one.   The last one that we haven't touched on is you know, I called it watershed management. And basically the idea is that the amount of water that runs off of the landscape is dependent upon a number of things. It's dependent upon what kind of soils are out there and how much water infiltrates or percolates into the soil. It's also dependent upon what kind of vegetation is out there. Forest grasslands, crop fields. And you can actually change how much water runs off the landscape by changing in particular the vegetation that's growing out there. Now, some places have been able to do this in a way that we might think of as a win-win.   So I'll use the example of South Africa. So in South Africa, you know, maybe 100 years ago, they started importing a lot of trees from other places in the world. And particularly they started importing a lot of eucalyptus trees from Australia, into South Africa. It was for windbreaks and for erosion control purposes and that sort of thing, but those, those new trees that were introduced into South Africa took off, they started growing all over the place. They are what we refer to as an invasive species, it just invade.   Carley Hauck 1:00:15   There's a lot in South Florida where I grew up. And there's a lot of eucalyptus in the bay area here, too.   Brian Richter 1:00:20   Yes. And in San Diego where I grew up, yeah. So it turns out Carley, that those imported trees, those invasive eucalyptus started using a lot more water from the landscape, and had the effect of reducing how much water was running off the landscape and getting into their streams. So it decreased their water supply industry.   And so what they're doing now, this is a great example of watershed management, because that unnatural non native vegetation is also not good habitat for the wildlife, the native wildlife there. So they are hiring particularly poor South Africans, giving them some employment opportunities, and hiring them to participate in programs to cut down those invasive eucalyptus trees. And they're seeing very impressive results in terms of more water now flowing in their streams, something on the order of, you know, 20-25% in some of these places. So they're improving the habitat for their need for wildlife, and increasing their water supply at the same time. And so that's a great example of watershed management.   Carley Hauck 1:01:41   Thank you. Yeah, well, I could talk to you all day. Okay. But I'd like to kind of hone in on action steps for, for business and for the individual, you know, really focusing on water conservation. So, you know, for drier states, for example, you know, how can we really align our business operations? I don't know, if you do any consulting? And I'm sure you did when you were working at the nature conservation. But, you know, for businesses, how can we really be mindful of how we're using water for our products, or our supply chains?   But I'm also just, you know, I talk a lot about how we can reduce our consumption, and that that goes along with water that goes along with, you know, reducing meat and our reliance on agriculture, because that's all taking water that's taking more of our natural resources. So I'd love to hear your thoughts on those.   Brian Richter 1:02:50   Yeah, well, two, two thoughts come to mind with respect to businesses and corporate responsibility around water. One is that a lot of companies are doing this and I assisted, and Greg Koch was, you know, an example of one individual who I worked with very closely with him, he was at Coca Cola. And he was in charge of their water stewardship programs. He was one of these individuals within the corporate world, who was aware that the way that they use water could have consequences, or could be risky to the business, if water was becoming scarce, or if there was too much pollution occurring in the area. Being fully aware of all of those kinds of environmental consequences.   And that was one thing that, that I and a number of my colleagues worked closely with some of the largest corporations in the world, on walking them through this process of helping them to understand where their business operations were, where their supply chains were, and what was the water situation in those places. Because the first principle with them was, don't be a contributor to a problem, okay? It's not good for your, for your long term, business profitability. And it's not good for your image, you know, in the communities, it's, it's, you know, it's risky to be, you know, in those places, so you have to be aware of that. So that was the first step.   And, and then helping them to understand how they could reduce their water needs to the absolute maximum extent whether it was inside their factories inside a bottling plant, or whether it was out in the farm fields where they were producing sugar or other ingredients that go into the product. So, awareness first, where are you and are there problems there. Two, do everything you can to reduce your own influence on that.   But the other gigantic challenge for many of these companies right now Carley is because a lot of the places that these people have been operating in may have been okay for decades in the past. But now you're in places like the Colorado River system, the Rio Grande, the Klamath Basin up in Oregon, the Central Valley in California could go on and on. And on the Snake River Basin in Idaho. These are places that where we're now in a situation where we're overusing the available water supply. We're using it faster than it's being replenished. Climate change is making less replenishment available. And we have to do something differently.   So we're at that cathartic moment that we talked about a while ago, we have we can't keep doing things, the way that we've been doing. It's important for these big companies, particularly food and beverage producers, to really understand that reality that they may have been doing okay for for past decades, but the future is not good. And they need to think very carefully about whether they can continue to source their ingredients from supply chains that are going through these that are going through these water supply crises.   Now, one of the really interesting things that's happening in the agricultural world right now currently, from my perspective, from the water perspective, is a conversation that's emerging about, should we be growing something differently in this place, that uses a lot less water, and yet still provides economic viability for the farmers.   Carley Hauck 1:06:48   Like vertical farming?   Brian Richter 1:06:50   Vertical farming, but it can also be shifting the crops, you can go from a really water intensive crop, like alfalfa to something else that might use half as much water, you know, on each acre. And then, of course, this is all tied up with the other decisions about what foods are we demanding as a society? And are we demanding foods that require the production of, you know, in areas that are that are water scarce, or experiencing water pollution? So one of the things that's going to be really important is for these corporations to participate in, facilitate and convene a conversation around, okay, if we're all embracing the reality that something's got to change, something's got to give, then let's have a conversation about where what we want are the future of agriculture to look like.   Carley Hauck 1:07:44   Right? Yeah, thank you. Well, there's a lot of exciting things happening in food tech right now. And three of the leaders I highlight in the book are really trailblazers in bringing more plant based alternative proteins to market. Just might be a company you are familiar with. It's called the just egg. And it's made completely out of mung beans. Soybean requires a lot less water than a big chicken farm. I believe one egg is seven times the amount of water needs, then, for example, the just egg which is made completely from plant based protein, yes. So we also have to think about the plastic and all the packaging, like there's, there's certain water and production levels, but I'm imagining it's still much less having, you know, these massive chicken farms, which, for one are treated very inhumanely. So I do feel like we're we're creating some different solutions. But as we've already talked about, it needed to happen a long time ago. So we're, you know, we have a certain level of intensity and speed that needs to happen right now.   Brian Richter 1:08:56   Exactly. Exactly. Yep.   Carley Hauck 1:09:01   Well, in our parting question, what are some things that individuals could do just just like after we get off the call after they get off the call today, for example, you know, if they're trying to understand their water use, and their water consumption, you have a lot of great questions that you talk about in your water conservation section of the book.   And so I mean, even just some of the questions I was trying to answer for myself and I and I couldn't, for example, let's see, hear some are there certain times of the year or certain years during which there's insufficient water available for your withdrawal needs in the vicinity of your water use? Who is withdrawing and using the greatest volumes of water? Can you or other water users reduce water withdrawals by implementing more efficient ways to use water?   I mean, some of these I can answer for myself, I'm being silly but some people may not know how to do this. And so obviously, we have to look to our cities and even understand our aquifers, overuse, like, how do we learn that information? And how do we be a voice in our communities in our states? If water is not being utilized responsibly, I would like to inspire people to speak up.   Brian Richter 1:10:21   Yes, yes. At the risk of sounding self promotional, but I wrote the I wrote the book out of a genuine feeling of a service.   Carley Hauck 1:10:34   It's an awesome book, plug the book I have right here. I love it. I've already shared it with a few people.   Brian Richter 1:10:40   I did not write it to make money, I genuinely wrote it to try to help educate people. At a very basic level, I kept thinking, how can I say every single sentence in the simplest way possible. And so I don't assume that you know anything about water going into it. But the book can help you not only to understand some things about water, but also help you to understand what some of the questions are that you should be asking of yourself, or asking of your water provider.   In terms of some of the questions that you just mentioned, if you live in a city, it's a good idea to figure out who provides your water, who sends your water in the pipes that comes out of your tap, you know, it's not that hard to figure it out, you get a water bill, you know, if you, perhaps if you own your own home, or you're renting, and get a water bill, and that tells you which company is cleaning the water and sending it to you, you know, in your home or business. And then, you know, you can go to their website, or you can just give them a call, and you can have a conversation with them about, hey, here's some questions. I want to know, is my water source being used in a sustainable manner? Have you ever faced problems with water shortages? Have you ever faced problems with pollution? You know, just some really, really basic questions that will help to get you connected to arguably the most important resource in your life, right? Yeah, if we're suddenly going without water.   And so it's really essential to just get that connection to know where it's coming from. Whether the provider of that water is doing it in a responsible manner, if the water source is in trouble in some way, those kinds of questions are really, really important.   Carley Hauck 1:12:35   Or if it's clean. It's interesting, because when I was living in North Carolina, I actually was looking into how the water was being treated. And it's so interesting, because a lot of people, you know, would talk about, oh, there's fresh spring water. Well, the fresh spring water isn't actually being treated, and it has lots of problems with it. I mean, people were having, what's the word? What's the bacteria?   Brian Richter 1:13:03   Giardia.   Carley Hauck 1:13:04   Yeah, thank you. But there were also a lot of additional chemicals that were being put in the water that were quite poisonous. That was not happening, where I was living in Oregon and in California. So, you know, again, it's like, why is this happening when this water could be much cleaner? And I use a filtration system. But still, why are we putting these contaminants in the water doesn't make any sense?   Brian Richter 1:13:30   Right, right. Yep. Yep. Well, we could do with a lot more ethical responsibility in the world. And we could do with a lot more awareness and learning. And so let's all make it a personal challenge, to learn a little bit more about some of these things that affect our daily lives and then become informed citizens of the world.   Carley Hauck 1:13:55   And take wise action.   Brian Richter 1:

For the #25 episode of We Belong, we met Elozi Lomponda, a professional in foreign policy and founder of DLSP, a Charity enabling young people and women living in areas located near the Congo River to access quality education. Since 2013, Elozi has held a position at the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In 2015, the news that nine school children had died when their canoe overturned on the Congo River spurred her to set up the Charity DLSP. Since then, her Charity impacted more than 400 children. In conversation with Elozi, we discussed her journey at the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, that she joined at only 24, and her mission to give back to both Belgium and DRC, the country of her roots.

The Russians were increasing their support for the MPLA in Luanda and one of those who arrived was Vladimir Vasilievich Kostrachenkov. He helped establish the Pechora Anti-Aircraft system between 1979 and 1981 in the south of Angola and published some of his thoughts in a book called Bush War, the Road to Cuito Cuanavale. While most of this book is about the major battles that took place later around Cuito, Kostrachenkov's explanation of what happened in the south in the very 80s is important for us at this juncture. It was his second tour of duty of Angola – his first was as a translator in 1976 and he witnessed the civil war break out between the FNLA, the MPLA and UNITA. He was based in Carmona, northern Angola, and was translating for a team of Russian advisors. He survived numerous FNLA attacks and explains how all attempts at sealing the border with the Congo failed. The FNLA fighters used dugout canoes and small light boats to move in complete silence along the many tributaries of the Congo River and could infiltrate up to 300 kilometers into Angola. They were supported by what he calls “…their fellow tribesmen…” who were scattered all over the region – and he knew then that the struggle inside the country was going to be a long drawn out affair.

The Russians were increasing their support for the MPLA in Luanda and one of those who arrived was Vladimir Vasilievich Kostrachenkov. He helped establish the Pechora Anti-Aircraft system between 1979 and 1981 in the south of Angola and published some of his thoughts in a book called Bush War, the Road to Cuito Cuanavale. While most of this book is about the major battles that took place later around Cuito, Kostrachenkov's explanation of what happened in the south in the very 80s is important for us at this juncture. It was his second tour of duty of Angola – his first was as a translator in 1976 and he witnessed the civil war break out between the FNLA, the MPLA and UNITA. He was based in Carmona, northern Angola, and was translating for a team of Russian advisors. He survived numerous FNLA attacks and explains how all attempts at sealing the border with the Congo failed. The FNLA fighters used dugout canoes and small light boats to move in complete silence along the many tributaries of the Congo River and could infiltrate up to 300 kilometers into Angola. They were supported by what he calls “…their fellow tribesmen…” who were scattered all over the region – and he knew then that the struggle inside the country was going to be a long drawn out affair.

In this episode Sevy

The Terra Firma Rainwater Collective is weaving together the gathering and storing of rainwater for household use with the prevention of destructive erosion undercutting the foundation of people dwelling in two large cities along the Congo River. Distributing this healing story is a dance of local circles; people conversing in council on how to best benefit the community they live in.

Reese, Jasmin and Emily discuss plans to replace Coney Island's wooden boardwalk with recycled plastic, Travis McMichael, Greg McMichael and William Bryan found guilty of the murder of Ahmaud Arbery, a power struggle over control of cobalt mining in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and the Thames in London being declared no longer "biologically dead".

A little over a year ago, Google's Project Loon launched in Kenya, 35 giant balloons with solar-powered electronics inside beaming a 4G signal to the central and western parts of the country. The project was ambitious; each balloon, when fully extended, was the size of a tennis court, and the plan was for them to hover in the stratosphere (20 kilometers above Earth), forming a mesh network to provide internet service to people in remote areas. Just six months after its debut, though, the project was discontinued. Loon's CEO at the time, Alastair Westgarth, wrote, “We talk a lot about connecting the next billion users, but the reality is Loon has been chasing the hardest problem of all in connectivity—the last billion users: The communities in areas too difficult or remote to reach.we haven't found a way to get the costs low enough to build a long-term, sustainable business.” Westgarth went on to extol the learnings from the project, of which there were many. And now, some of them are going into a new initiative, called Project Taara, that wouldn't have been feasible without the headway made by Loon. To send data between Loon balloons, engineers used optic communication, or as Baris Erkmen, Taara's Director of Engineering calls it in an X blog post, wireless optical communications (WOC). A laser sent out from one site transmits an invisible beam of light to a data receiver on another site. When two sites successfully link up (“like a handshake,” Erkmen says), the data being transmitted through the light beam creates a high-bandwidth internet connection. It's a complicated handshake. To give us an idea of the precision required in the laser and the difficulty of achieving that precision, Erkmen writes, “Imagine pointing a light beam the width of a chopstick accurately enough to hit a five-centimeter target that's ten kilometers away; that's how accurate the signal needs to be to be strong and reliable.” His team, he adds, has spent years refining the technology's atmospheric sensing, mirror controls, and motion detection capabilities; Taara's terminals can now automatically adjust to changes in the environment to maintain precise connections. Project Taara aims to bridge a connectivity gap between the Republic of the Congo's Brazzaville and the Democratic Republic of Congo's Kinshasa. The cities lie just 4.8 kilometers (2.9 miles) apart, but between them is the Congo River—it's the deepest river in the world (220 meters/720 feet in parts! Pretty terrifying, if you ask me), the second-fastest, and the only one that crosses the equator twice. That makes for some complicated logistics, and as such, internet connectivity in Kinshasa (which is on the river's south bank) very expensive. Local internet providers are putting down 400 kilometers of fiber connection around the river, but in a textbook example of leapfrogging technology, Project Taara used WOC to beam high-speed connectivity over the river instead. The connection served almost 700 terabytes of data in 20 days with 99.9 percent reliability. That amount of data is “the equivalent of watching a FIFA World Cup match in HD 270,000 times.” Not too shabby. WOC isn't immune to disturbances like fog, birds, and even monkeys, as Erkmen details in the blog post. But his team has developed network planning tools that estimate the technology's viability in different areas based on factors like weather, and will focus on places where it's most likely to work well; in any case, having occasional spotty service is better than no service at all. According to the Alliance for Affordable Internet, almost half of the world's population still lacks internet access, and a large percentage of those who have it have low-quality connections, making features like online learning, video streaming, and telehealth inaccessible. A 2019 report by the organization found that only 28 percent of the African population has internet access through a computer, while 34 percent have access through a mobile ...

In today's top stories, Microsoft thinks it has a better solution than passwords for authentication to its services. Meanwhile, Alphabet plugs connectivity gaps with laser

The high speed wireless optical link technology Alphabet originally developed for its shuttered Loon balloon company is currently being used for another moonshot called Project Taara.

Daytona Beach, FL - 32-year-old William "Bubba" Hodge was arrested after stealing an alligator from the Congo River Miniature Golf Course. Cops found him in the street fighting with the reptile and, in Bubba's words, "teaching it a lesson."  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

 Welcome to the radio magazine that brings you news, commentary and analysis from a Black Left perspective. I'm Margaret Kimberley, along with my co-host Glen Ford. Coming up: Whatever is wrong with the Democratic Republic of Congo, you can blame it on the United States, which has been running things ever since Washington helped kill Congo's first elected leader, Patrice Lumumba, six decades ago. We'll hear from the director of Friends of Congo. And, there will be one less King in Africa if a social movement in Swaziland is successful. Dr. Yannick Marshall is a professor of Africana Studies at Knox College. The title of his latest article in Black Agenda Report delivers a blunt message: “Black Liberal, Your Time is Up.” We asked Marshall, who are these Black liberals that have called the shots in Black politics for so many years?   The strategic center of Africa is the Congo River basin – an area that has also been ground zero for massive genocides and half a century of U.S. imperial dominance. Maurice Carney is a director and co-founder of Friends of Congo, which advocates tirelessly for African liberation. Carney was interviewed by Tierney Sheree, of African Esquire TV.   In southern Africa, a broad social movement  is determined to oust the King of Swaziland, one of the continent's few remaining monarchs. Abayomi Azikiwe, editor of the Pan African News Wire, reports that Swaziland's people are saying it's past time for the King to vacate the throne.

 Welcome to the radio magazine that brings you news, commentary and analysis from a Black Left perspective. I'm Margaret Kimberley, along with my co-host Glen Ford. Coming up: Whatever is wrong with the Democratic Republic of Congo, you can blame it on the United States, which has been running things ever since Washington helped kill Congo's first elected leader, Patrice Lumumba, six decades ago. We'll hear from the director of Friends of Congo. And, there will be one less King in Africa if a social movement in Swaziland is successful. Dr. Yannick Marshall is a professor of Africana Studies at Knox College. The title of his latest article in Black Agenda Report delivers a blunt message: “Black Liberal, Your Time is Up.” We asked Marshall, who are these Black liberals that have called the shots in Black politics for so many years?   The strategic center of Africa is the Congo River basin – an area that has also been ground zero for massive genocides and half a century of U.S. imperial dominance. Maurice Carney is a director and co-founder of Friends of Congo, which advocates tirelessly for African liberation. Carney was interviewed by Tierney Sheree, of African Esquire TV.   In southern Africa, a broad social movement  is determined to oust the King of Swaziland, one of the continent's few remaining monarchs. Abayomi Azikiwe, editor of the Pan African News Wire, reports that Swaziland's people are saying it's past time for the King to vacate the throne.

Cameroon sits just north of the equator, right on the edge of the vast Congo River basin. It has around 20 million hectares of tropical forest, mainly in the south, but according to data on Global Forest Watch it has lost nearly 4 percent of its primary forest since 2002. Knowing this about what's happening to Cameroon's forest is one thing, however, and doing something about it is another. Or is it? This podcast is about how satellite data translates into action to protect the forests on the ground. Nicholas Walton talks to an NGO worker, a journalist and a WRI staff member, all in Cameroon, and a WRI researcher who has analyzed the relationship between forest loss data and action. Useful links: * Learn more about Global Forest Watch's Small Grants Fund and Tech Fellowship programs: www.globalforestwatch.org/grants-and-fellowships/about/ * Learn more about Global Forest Watch's impact assessment: www.globalforestwatch.org/blog/data-and-research/glad-alerts-reduce-deforestation-africa/ * WRI's recent podcast analysing the latest tree cover loss figures: https://soundcloud.com/world-resources-institute/big-ideas-into-action-14-global-tree-loss-data-for-2020 * WRI's podcast page: www.wri.org/podcasts

A reading of "Heart of Darkness" by Joseph Conrad "Heart of Darkness is a novella by Polish-English novelist Joseph Conrad about a narrated voyage up the Congo River into the Congo Free State in the Heart of Africa. Charles Marlow, the narrator, tells his story to friends aboard a boat anchored on the River Thames" The book was adapted into the movie "Apocalypse Now".  Support the podcast on Patreon and join our secret book club, longer episodes + an extra episode EVERY WEEK (Exclusive readings and continued Alice in Wonderland, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and more) Patreon: https://www.Patreon.com/DownToSleep Website: https://www.DownToSleepPodcast.com Down To Sleep is a podcast to fall asleep to. Turn on & drift off. If you need help sleeping or just want to relax listening to classic tales as bedtime stories. Come gently nod off to sleep with me, a new episode every Monday. You can listen on Spotify, Google, Apple, and most podcast apps. 

The Congo River is massive. In today's Flashcast, Murray and Tamika take us on a journey along the deepest river in the world. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Congo River is massive. In today's Flashcast, Murray and Tamika take us on a journey along the deepest river in the world. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This week, Jonathan and Karel plan a trip to a country full of gorillas, volcanoes, lava lakes, pizza bars, and of course, the iconic Congo River. Listen in as we explore the very beautiful Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Season 4  Morality - In the Heart of Darkness the central character Marlow tells the story of his journey up the Congo River where he meets Kurtz, an ivory trader.

In the early 1870's the peoples of the Eastern Congo lived in a land dominated by the Arab-Swahili traders.  In search of Ivory these traders had traveled hundreds of miles inland from the Indian Ocean.  These traders settled in and established settlements where they loved in great comfort.  This was in great contrast to the subdued peoples who had inhabited these lands for hundreds of years.   But the curiosity of the American and European public was focused on this region. In 1873 The Daily Telegraph of London and the New York Herald sponsored the Victorian explorer, Henry Morton Stanley, to travel to East Africa to find the legendary source of the River Nile.  This voyage of explorations sent shockwaves through time to the present day ...    

In the early 1870's the peoples of the Eastern Congo lived in a land dominated by the Arab-Swahili traders. In search of Ivory these traders had traveled hundreds of miles inland from the Indian Ocean. These traders settled in and established settlements where they loved in great comfort. This was in great contrast to the subdued peoples who had inhabited these lands for hundreds of years. But the curiosity of the American and European public was focused on this region. In 1873 The Daily Telegraph of London and the New York Herald sponsored the Victorian explorer, Henry Morton Stanley, to travel to East Africa to find the legendary source of the River Nile. This voyage of explorations sent shock waves through time to the present day ...

*) Turkey summons US envoy over conditional condemnation Ankara has slammed US reaction to the PKK terror group’s execution of 13 Turkish citizens in northern Iraq. The bodies of hostages were found in a cave following an anti-terror operation by Turkish Armed Forces. The US State Department issued a conditional condemnation following the attack, which Turkish officials described as a “joke”. *) Dozens killed, hundreds missing in DRC boat accident At least 60 people have died after a passenger barge carrying more than 700 sank in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Some 300 survivors were found near the scene of the accident in the Congo River. Efforts are being made to find more than 240 people who are still missing. *) Rockets strike near US base in Iraq A rocket attack at a US-led military base in northern Iraq has killed a civilian contractor and wounded five other people, including a US service member. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said the US will support Baghdad in investigating and holding accountable those who are responsible. It was the most deadly attack to hit the US forces in Iraq in almost a year. *) Protests continue despite increasing crackdown in Myanmar Myanmar’s army has deployed extra troops around the country to intensify the crackdown on anti-coup protests. The internet was also blocked for a second night in a row, prompting condemnation from the UN. Myanmar's citizens continue to defy the military and protest the coup which overthrew leader Aung San Suu Kyi. And finally... *) Jaguar cars go fully electric from 2025 Indian-owned Jaguar plans to go fully electric from 2025. The company hopes the move will help turn around the fortunes of the 86-year-old luxury brand, which has struggled in recent years. Previously British owned, Jaguar was bought by India’s Tata Motors during the global financial crisis of 2008.

The Squiz is your shortcut to the news. Squiz Shortcuts: www.thesquiz.com.au/shortcuts/Yardi GrasMore details, and links to further reading for all of today's news can be found in The Squiz Today email. Sign up (it's free!) - www.thesquiz.com.au. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Greg Traverso vividly describes his encounters with the military in Zaire.  From an intense moment out of nowhere when machine guns are drawn, to a little bent nail serving as the lock on the door of his shack inside a remote military outpost, to an encounter with a scalawag corporal and his minions on the banks of the Congo River and a strange request for safe passage, Greg shares his foray into no man's land.Like this podcast? Leave us a five-star review on Apple Podcasts! We really appreciate it. Learn more about Metamo: https://metamo.travel/subscribe/Enquire about your next trip: https://metamo.travel/enquire/

Charles Marlow, sails up the Congo River to meet with Kurtz – a prosperous ivory trader and a man of great abilities...Uitgegeven door SAGA EgmontSpreker(s): B. J. Harrison

Dieudo Hamadi and Face2Face host David Peck talk about his new film Downstream from Kinshasa, resilience over resistance, responsibility and reality, politics and the human condition and a desire for life and a better tomorrowTrailerSynopsis:Dieudo Hamadi returns with his latest portrait of his native Congo, honouring survivors of his country’s Six-Day War in 2000. Since making his feature documentary debut in 2013, Dieudo Hamadi has produced an unparalleled body of work that captures glimpses of contemporary Congolese life.In examining elections (Atalaku, 2013), schools (National Diploma, which played TIFF in 2014), violence against women and children (Mama Colonel, 2017), and political mobilization (Kinshasa Makambo, 2018), Hamadi has told individual stories that speak to collective experiences and histories. With Downstream to Kinshasa, Hamadi perfects this approach as he follows a group of victims of his country’s Six-Day War in 2000, who are seeking reparations from the government.In June 2000, Kisangani became a battleground. In this northeastern city on the Congo River, Rwandan and Ugandan forces clashed in a conflict that was part of the bloody Second Congo War. Though a devastating conflict — so much so that it’s sometimes called the African World War — 20 years later survivors are still fighting for compensation and recognition of the atrocities they endured in this siege.Here, Hamadi’s focus isn’t on past geopolitics but rather on the present and very personal: a group of Kisanganians who were maimed by the heavy shelling and gunfire. Through musical theatre, the victims have reclaimed their voices. But having never had official acknowledgement or financial compensation for their pain, they decide to journey down the Congo River to the capital in a bid to finally make their stories heard.(With thanks to TIFF)About Dieudo:Dieudo Hamadi was born in Kisangani (Democratic Republic of the Congo) in 1984 and studied Medicine in 2005-2008. He then attended several documentary workshops. Dieudo is author of two short documentaries Ladies in Waiting and Zero Tolerance that caught the attention of several festivals in Europe and Toronto. Ladies in Waiting received the ''Pierre and Yolande Perrault'' scholarship at Cinema du Réel in 2009.In 2013, with Atalaku, his first feature documentary he won the Jory Ivens Award in the Festival du Réel in Paris, the best Foreign film Prize at the San Diego Film Festival and the Jury Prize in Fidadoc. In 2014,National Diploma received the International Prize of the SCAM and the Potemkine Prize at the Festival du Réel. The film is shown at the TIFF in Toronto and travels to 60 festivals around the world.In 2017, Mama Colonelle is presented at the Berlinale and wins two awards - Best Film, Tagesspiegel Prize, Forum Section. After that it wins the Grand Prix at Cinema du Réel in Paris. The movie keeps on traveling in many festivals and an award for best documentary - AMAA 2017.In 2015, Dieudo created Kiripifilms, his own production company. In 2019 Dieudo Hamadi has been attributed the McMillan-Stewart Fellowship in Distinguished Filmmaking by the Film Study Center of Harvard University.Image Copyright and Credit: Kiripi Films and Dieudo HamadiF2F Music and Image Copyright: David Peck and Face2Face. Used with permission.For more information about David Peck’s podcasting, writing and public speaking please visit his site here.With thanks to Josh Snethlage and Mixed Media Sound. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Jean was clearly EQUALTO the task of solving today's crossword, while Mike was a bit LATETO the party, getting stuck in, well, the sticky stuff -- 38D, Sticky stuff (PINETAR, not VINEGAR), among other places. Our favorite clue? 21D, Leaves home?, TEAPOT. Our least favorite? Trick question, we loved the entire puzzle, and give it a 5 squares on the JAM CR scale.Today's fun fact:The Congo River is the second longest in Africa, has the world's second largest drainage volume, and is the deepest river in the word, 720 feet in spots.

On the season 1 finale of the Parts Now Known Podcast, Ben and Ray follow Anthony Bourdain up the Congo River into The Heart of Darkness. The first half of the episode is all about the history and politics of the Congo, including crossing over from Rwanda to Goma, Francis Ford Coppola's Apocalypse Now, all the militia's and conflict, Queen Elizabeth's old luggage plane, the explorer Stanley, the Belgians enslaving the Congolese, the Wakinia tribe fishing the river, the current state of things and the everyday way of life for the Congolese in Kisangani, and the city's train station that used to run all the way to South Africa. The second half of the episode covers Bourdain's trip up river to the old research station that was abandoned over 50 years after independence and the subsequent redistribution of workers to Rwanda. The guys talk about the boat, the group giving the king a goat and the king giving Bourdain a bracelet, the cooking dinner scene, debate how much money they'd need to swim in the river to tie off the boat for the night, alligators and crocodiles in New York, and wonder about the real purpose of the research station before ranking the episode, running through the categories, and locating Daniel McCabe's documentary "This Is Congo". For all things Spoon Mob, visit spoonmob.com and make sure to follow us on Instagram (@spoonmob), Twitter (@spoonmob1), and Facebook (@spoonmob). --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app

In the conclusion of our series, Brazza spends more than a decade as an administrator in Africa. He will then return to the Congo one final time, in 1905, to investigate the accusations of abuses against the native peoples. Website: https://explorerspodcast.com/brazza/ Map: https://explorerspodcast.files.wordpress.com/2020/08/ogowe5.png People and Places Pierre Savorgnan de Brazza - Born in Italy, but educated in France. Would join the French navy, and become interested in exploring Africa. Ogowe River (often spelled Ogooué or Ogoway) - River in central Africa that Brazza would explore. Congo River - River in central Africa. Livingstone Falls - 220 mile stretch on the Congo filled with rapids and waterfalls. Impassable for most river craft. Malamine Camara - Senegalese marine who would be Brazza's most trusted and capable comrade. Noël Ballay - Doctor on Brazza's first and second expedition to Africa. Charles de Chavannes - Friend and colleague of Brazza's in Africa. Thérèse de Chambrun - Wife of Brazza. Libreville - French outpost in what is modern-day Gabon. Francheville - Outpost established by Brazza at the confluence of the Ogowe and Passa rivers. Brazzaville - Outpost established by Brazza at the top of Livingstone Falls. Opposite the city of Leopoldville (now Kinshasha). Alima River - Tributary of the Congo. Controlled by the Bobangi people. Passa River - Tributary of the Ogowe. Location of Francheville. King Leopold II of Belgium - Monarch who wanted to take control of the Congo basin. Henry Morton Stanley - African explorer and journalist. Had crossed the continent and mapped the Congo River. Makoko - Important Bateke chief who would sign treaty with Brazza. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In part 3 of our series, Brazza returns to Africa, where he will establish two outposts, including one on the Congo River. In the process, he will thwart many of the plans of King Leopold II of Belgium, who wants to make the entire Congo basin his own personal colony. Website: https://explorerspodcast.com/brazza/ Map: https://explorerspodcast.files.wordpress.com/2020/08/ogowe5.png People and Places Pierre Savorgnan de Brazza - Born in Italy, but educated in France. Would join the French navy, and become interested in exploring Africa. Ogowe River (often spelled Ogooué or Ogoway) - River in central Africa that Brazza would explore. Congo River - River in central Africa. Livingstone Falls - 220 mile stretch on the Congo filled with rapids and waterfalls. Impassable for most river craft. Malamine Camara - Senegalese marine who would be Brazza's most trusted and capable comrade. Noël Ballay - Doctor on Brazza's first and second expedition to Africa. Libreville - French outpost in what is modern-day Gabon. Francheville - Outpost established by Brazza at the confluence of the Ogowe and Passa rivers. Malebo Pool - aka the Pool and Stanley Pool. Lake located at the top of Livingstone Falls. Brazza would establish a post here, which would eventually become Brazzaville. Alima River - Tributary of the Congo. Controlled by the Bobangi people. Passa River - Tributary of the Ogowe. Location of Francheville. King Leopold II of Belgium - Monarch who wanted to take control of the Congo basin. Henry Morton Stanley - African explorer and journalist. Had crossed the continent and mapped the Congo River. International African Association - Organization established by King Leopold to help him gain control of central Africa. Makoko - Important Bateke chief who would sign treaty with Brazza. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In part 2 of our series, Pierre Savorgnan de Brazza conducts his first African expedition up the Ogowe River. Website: https://explorerspodcast.com/brazza/ Map: https://explorerspodcast.files.wordpress.com/2020/08/ogowe3.png People and Places Pierre Savorgnan de Brazza - Born in Italy, but educated in France. Would join the French navy, and become interested in exploring Africa. Ogowe River (often spelled Ogooué or Ogoway) - River in central Africa that Brazza would explore. Noël Ballay - Doctor on Brazza's first expedition to Africa. Antoine-Alfred Marche - Naturalist on Brazza's first expedition to Africa. Victor Hamon - Naval officer who would be the quartermaster on Brazza's first expedition to Africa. Libraville - French outpost in what is modern-day Gabon. Lambarene - Town on the Ogowe River. Home to Chief Renoke. Renoke - Chief of the Enenga tribe. Enenga - A tribe living along the Ogowe River around the town of Lambarene. Okanda - A tribe living along the Ogowe River. Duma - A tribe living along the Ogowe River. Alima River - Tributary of the Congo. Controlled by the Bobangi people. Passa River - Tributary of the Ogowe. Louis de Montaignac - French admiral who would help Brazza gain admittance into the naval academy. Henry Morton Stanley - African explorer and journalist. Had crossed the continent and mapped the Congo River. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today we remember a gardener who became a saint. We'll also learn about the woman remembered forever in the name of one of the world's most popular hostas. We celebrate the Scottish botanist who was the first to describe the Prairie Buttercup. We'll also hear some wonderful words about simply being in the garden. We Grow That Garden Library™ with a book about gardening and friendship in a heartwarming book from 2015. And then we'll wrap things up with a wonderful pesto recipe. But first, let's catch up on some Greetings from Gardeners around the world and today's curated news.   Subscribe Apple|Google|Spotify|Stitcher|iHeart   Gardener Greetings To participate in the Gardener Greetings segment, send your garden pics, stories, birthday wishes and so forth to Jennifer@theDailyGardener.org And, to listen to the show while you're at home, just ask Alexa or Google to play The Daily Gardener Podcast. It's that easy.   Curated News My Relationship With My Garden Hose | May Dreams Gardens "In the spring, we optimistically buy that big heavy hose that is guaranteed to last a lifetime and never kink. And when we see that hose all wrapped up on the store shelf, we believe those claims. Then we get it home and discover what bad manners it has. Kink? Of course, it will kink the minute you look at it and even think about watering. Heavy? So heavy you can barely stand the thought of pulling it around the garden to water."   Plant of the Week: Mukdenia rossii' Crimson Fans' ("muck-DEEN-ee-uh") "In 2007, I bought Mukdenia rossii 'Crimson Fans' after somewhere seeing--I forget now--photos of the pretty leaves.  It grew. It's an easy plant with no fussy requirements at all except moist soil. (But wait.) ...Eventually, if the conditions are right, the green leaves develop a pretty crimson margin--the 'Crimson Fans'. Yes, I'm a fan of the crimson fans. And this, my friends, is where things get tricky--"if the conditions are right" being the operative phrase. Too much sun and the leaves will burn by turning brown. Not enough sun and the leaves will stay green. The challenge has been finding just the right balance between sun and shade. I've had this plant both in the ground and in a pot, as the trial and error experiment went on, year after year, trying one location after another to meet--but not exceed--the sunlight requirements."   Alright, that's it for today's gardening news. Now, if you'd like to check out my curated news articles and blog posts for yourself, you're in luck, because I share all of it with the Listener Community in the Free Facebook Group - The Daily Gardener Community. There's no need to take notes or search for links - the next time you're on Facebook, search for Daily Gardener Community and request to join. I'd love to meet you in the group.   Important Events 300 Today, Catholics honor St. Phocas the Gardener who lived in Turkey during the third century. A protector of persecuted Christians, Phocas grew crops in his garden to help feed the poor. Phocas is remembered for his hospitality and generosity; his garden played an essential part in living both of those virtues. When Roman soldiers were sent to kill him, they could not find shelter for the night. Naturally, when Phocas encountered them, he not only offered them lodging but a meal made from the bounty of his garden. During the meal, Phocas realized they had come for him. While the soldiers slept that night, he dug his own grave and prayed for the soldiers. In the morning, Phocas told the soldiers who he was, and the soldiers, who could conceive of no other option, reluctantly killed him and buried him in the grave he had dug for himself. Although gardening can be a solitary activity, Phocas, the gardener, paved the way, showing us how to use our gardens to connect us to others through generosity and hospitality.   1883  Today is the birthday of the woman who is remembered for one of the most popular hostas in American gardens: Frances Ropes Williams. Frances had a shady garden in Winchester, Massachusetts. And, what is the most-used plant by shade gardeners? Hostas. That's right. And Frances had an appreciation for hostas before they became widely used in American gardens. A graduate of MIT, Williams was lucky enough to get the chance to work with Warren H. Manning, the famous Boston landscape architect, for a little over two years. Frances stopped working to marry Stillman Williams. But sadly, he died after almost twenty years of marriage, leaving Frances with four young children - two boys and two girls. Frances and her family loved the outdoors. When the kids were little, Frances made them one of the very first playsets. When the children were grown, Frances found purpose in her garden, and she zeroed in on her hostas. She became known for hybridizing them, and she even wrote about them for various botanical magazines. Frances discovered the hosta that would be named for her honor quite by happenstance. She had visited her daughter in college in New York, and she stopped by Bristol Nurseries in Connecticut on her way home. Nestled in a row of Hosta sieboldiana, was a hosta that had a yellow edge. Frances bought it and continued to grow it in her garden. Years later, Frances hosta ended up in the hands of Professor George Robinson at Oxford. Frances had labeled the plant FRW 383. When the professor couldn't remember what Frances had labeled the plant, he simply called it hosta Frances Williams. Frances's work with hosta helped the newly-formed American Hosta Society. After she died in 1969, a hosta garden was planted in her memory at MIT.   1886  Today is the anniversary of the death of the Scottish-born botanist and author John Goldie. He led an extraordinary life. He started as an apprentice at the Glasgow Botanic Garden. As a young man, another botanist bumped him off what was to be his first plant exploration. However, the botanical gods were smiling on him. The expedition was doomed when most of the party died from coast fever along the Congo River. Two years later, William Hooker encouraged John to travel to North America. He started in Montreal and made his way down the Hudson River to New York. He wrote that he carried as many botanical specimens "as his back would carry." On June 25, 1819, John was in Toronto. When he reached the east side of the Rouge River, John wrote in his journal of the wildflowers and especially the Penstemon hirsutus ("her-SUE-tis") that was growing on the east slope of the riverbank. John was astounded by the beauty and of seeing so much Penstemon in "such a quantity of which I never expected to see in one place." During John's incredible walking tour of Canada, he discovered a yellow variety of pitcher plant as well as a rare orchid named Calypso bulbosa. He also encountered the Prairie buttercup. John was the first person to describe Prairie buttercup. The name for the buttercup family, Ranunculaceae, is from the Latin term Ranunculus which means "little frog." The name was first bestowed on the plant family by the Roman naturalist Pliny the Elder. The name Ranunculus, which I like to call the Ranunculaceae, is in reference to these mostly aquatic plants that tend to grow in natural frog habitat. After his North American tour, John returned to the Glasgow Botanic Gardens, and for five years, he trained an eager young apprentice and fellow Scottsman named David Douglas. When Douglas met an early death, John planted a Douglas-Fir next to his house to remember his young friend. After John discovered the giant wood fern, Hooker called it Dryopteris goldieana in his honor, and it earned the name Goldie's woodfern. John worked tirelessly, and he recorded a total of fourteen plant species previously unknown to science. In 1844, John ended up settling with his family in Canada. He brought them to Ontario - a place he had especially enjoyed during his botanical expeditions.   Unearthed Words Here are some wonderful thoughts about simply being in the garden. I love my garden, and I love working in it. To potter with green growing things, watching each day to see the dear, new sprouts come up, is like taking a hand in creation, I think. Just now, my garden is like faith - the substance of things hoped for. ― Lucy Maud Montgomery, Canadian author, Anne's House of Dreams   Gardens are not made by singing 'Oh, how beautiful!' and sitting in the shade. ― Rudyard Kipling, English journalist and poet   It takes a while to grasp that not all failures are self-imposed, the result of ignorance, carelessness, or inexperience. It takes a while to grasp that a garden isn't a testing ground for character and to stop asking, what did I do wrong? Maybe nothing. — Eleanor Perenyi, gardener and author    She keeps walking, so I keep following, making our way down a stone path that leads to a set of tiered gardens. It is magical back here, garden after garden, the first filled with herbs like Mama grows, rosemary and lavender and mint and sage. Beyond that is a rose garden. There must be fifty rose bushes in it, all with different-colored blooms. We keep walking, down to the third tier, where there are tended beds like Daddy's vegetable patch in our backyard. "Look at this," Keisha says. She stands beside row upon row of little green plants with thick green leaves. She kneels beside one of them and pulls back a leaf. There are small red strawberries growing underneath. She picks one and hands it to me. I've never eaten a strawberry that tastes like this before. It's so rich, with juice like honey. It's nothing like the ones Mama buys at Kroger. ― Susan Rebecca White, author, A Place at the Table   Grow That Garden Library Mister Owita's Guide to Gardening by Carol Wall This book came out in 2015, and the subtitle is: How I Learned the Unexpected Joy of a Green Thumb and an Open Heart. People Magazine said, "In this profoundly moving memoir, Owita teaches Wall how to find grace amid heartbreak and to accept that beauty exists because it is fleeting—as in her garden, as in life."  Oprah.com said, "With her children grown and out of the house, Carol Wall is obsessed—perhaps overly so—with ripping out her azaleas. That is until she meets a certain Giles Owita, Kenyan gardener, supermarket bagger, general-life philosopher, and perhaps one of the most refined and gracious characters to ever hit the page (except that he's real)… A warning for the shy: The basic goodness of Owita's attitude may cause you to beam spontaneously as you read, leading to off looks from strangers at the coffee shop." This book is 320 pages of gardening goodness - growing both plants and lovely friendship. You can get a copy of Mister Owita's Guide to Gardening by Carol Wall and support the show, using the Amazon Link in today's Show Notes for around $20.   Today's Botanic Spark Since we are in full-on pesto-making mode, I wanted to share a recipe that I discovered called Radish, Salmon, and Radish Green Salsa Verde Toasts by Amy Scattergood.   Radish-Green Salsa Verde  2 cups radish greens, from approximately 2 bunches, chopped 1 cup cilantro  1/ 2 cup extra virgin olive oil  3 garlic cloves  Salt  Zest and juice from 1 lemon  Zest and juice from 1 orange In a food processor or blender, combine the radish greens, cilantro, oil, garlic, a pinch of salt (or to taste), lemon zest and juice, and orange zest and juice. Blend until smooth. This makes about 1 1 / 2 cups salsa verde. Assembly  4 ounces crème fraîche  4 slices whole wheat or country white bread, toasted  4 ounces smoked salmon, more if desired  1 cup thinly sliced radishes  Prepared salsa verde Divide the crème fraîche among the toasted bread slices, spreading it evenly over each piece. Top with the salmon, followed by the radish slices. Drizzle or spoon over the salsa verde and serve immediately.

 The Congo comprises two countries, The Republic of Congo where Reche is from, which is on the western side of the Congo River. The Democratic Republic of the Congo (formerly known as Zaire)  is east of the river. The Congolese Civil War in Reche's home country occurred from 1993-1994 as well as from 1997-1999. This is the civil war Reche references that her parents were fleeing from.Reche's Favorite Quote: If you can think it, you can do it.The Congo: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CongoThe Congolese War: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Congolese_Civil_WarThe difference between the two Congos: https://www.thoughtco.com/which-congo-is-zaire-1434545The African Community Center in Denver: https://www.acc-den.org/

As American lawmakers reach a deal on the country’s largest-ever rescue package, we examine how planners are balancing the health of their citizens and that of their economies. China’s lockdown came in the midst of the spring planting season; what can other countries learn about how to keep food flowing? And the increasingly perilous lives of crocodile hunters in the Congo River basin. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/radiooffer See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

As American lawmakers reach a deal on the country’s largest-ever rescue package, we examine how planners are balancing the health of their citizens and that of their economies. China’s lockdown came in the midst of the spring planting season; what can other countries learn about how to keep food flowing? And the increasingly perilous lives of crocodile hunters in the Congo River basin. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/radiooffer See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

P&C review Pigweed's latest homebrewed pale ale, made with homegrown hops. Then they discuss that monstrous bastard, Leopold the 2nd, King of the Belgians. Leopold's reign began in 1865. At that time, slavery was on the outs in most of the world, but Leopold didn't seem to mind it. He thought that in order to be a major world power, Belgium had to have a colony. But the Belgian constitution forbade it. So Leopold did a fantastically sneaky end-around. (He was a bastard, but a clever one.) Leopold hired Stanley, the famous explorer, to go trick the people of the Congo to sign phony treaties. This set loose a horrifying series of abuses in the Congo River basin. Meanwhile, in Europe, Leopold is being praised as a humanitarian. It's a horrific story.

Between 1870 and 1900, the Congo River basin became “one of the most brutally exploited places on earth.” Traders in slaves and natural resources; explorers; and builders of would-be empires entered it from the west, east, and north. They were Arab, English, Belgian, French, and even occasionally American. What they entered into was an ecosystem … Episode 148: Land of Tears, or, the Exploitation of the Congo Read More » The post Episode 148: Land of Tears, or, the Exploitation of the Congo first appeared on Historically Thinking.

Between 1870 and 1900, the Congo River basin became “one of the most brutally exploited places on earth.” Traders in slaves and natural resources; explorers; and builders of would-be empires entered it from the west, east, and north. They were Arab, English, Belgian, French, and even occasionally American. What they entered into was an ecosystem […]

This episode is on a kid unknown yet but has the hottest skills in the streets right now, He is a pure lyricist with flow like the powerful Congo River. His name is Sain. Join us on this beautiful episode as we hear the kid do what he does best. Go check him out : https://manylink.co/@unitri_Records None of these Conversations/Episodes are scritpted.

August Around the World continues, this time in Africa!After a bit of clarification RE: the Fire Killer (namely the fact that Wyatt and Jake are not him), Wyatt takes off into the forests of the Congo River basin in search of an elusive ape. And this time, it’s not even an upright one! This is the story of how sometimes the legends really ARE true. And at the end of the journey, you find a creature that poops just SO big.Jake heads in a different direction, with some botanical buffoonery, namely the so-called Madagascar Devil Tree. Is anyone really surprised that a bunch of white people would totally eat up a story about a tree that totally eats up people? The tale itself may be absurd, but you won’t leave empty-handed! Jake also provides some half-assed science about the world’s REAL carnivorous plants, and then fails to remember the verb “to taper”.Get ready to meet your smash-y cousins, and don’t drink anything from any flailing plants as you tuck into this week’s episode of Superduperstitious!EPISODE LINKSPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/superduperstitiousFire Killer reports: https://www.superduperstitious.com/fieldreportsWyatt’s storyGorilla legend: https://theglyptodon.wordpress.com/2011/10/04/the-gorilla-500-bc-1861-ad/Ufiti: http://www.occultopedia.com/u/ufiti.htmAndrew Battell: http://bit.ly/2KpHrE2Bili ape mystery: https://www.karlammann.com/bili.php#.XUxk85NKjUIBili apes found: https://www.theguardian.com/science/2007/jul/14/conservation.internationalnewsOliver the chimpanzee: http://bit.ly/OliverChimpanzeeJake’s storyCrinoid: https://cedarvalleyrockclub.org/siteImages/Crinoids/Image14b.jpgDevil Tree of Madagascar: http://hoaxes.org/archive/permalink/man_eating_tree_of_madagascarMoar spooky tree: http://lostcities.weebly.com/articles/first-postSheep-eating plant: https://theextremehorticulturist.files.wordpress.com/2015/06/338.jpg See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Today, Catholics honor St. Phocas the Gardener who lived in Turkey during the third century. A protector of persecuted Christians, Phocas grew crops in his garden to help feed the poor. Phocas is remembered for his hospitality and generosity; his garden played an important part in living both of those virtues. When Roman soldiers were sent to kill him, they could not find shelter for the night. Naturally, when Phocas encountered them, he not only offered them lodging, but a meal made from the bounty of his garden. During the meal, Phocas realized they had come for him. While the soldiers slept that night, he dug his own grave and prayed for the soldiers. In the morning, Phocas told the soldiers who he was and the soldiers, who could conceive of no other option,  reluctantly killed him and buried him in the grave he had dug for himself. Although gardening can be a solitary activity, may we follow in the footsteps of Phocas the gardener, using our gardens to connect us to others through generosity and hospitality.     Brevities   #OTD Today is the birthday of Frances Ropes Williams, born on this day in 1883.  Williams had a shady garden in Winchester, Massachusetts. And, what is the most-used plant by shade gardeners? Hostas. That's right. And, Williams had an appreciation for hostas before they became widely used in the United States. A graduate of MIT, Williams was lucky enough to get the chance to work with Warren H. Manning, the famous Boston landscape architect, for a little over two years. Williams stopped working to marry Stillman Williams. But sadly, he died after almost twenty years of marriage, leaving Frances with four young children - two boys and two girls. Williams and her family loved the outdoors. When the kids were little, Williams made them one of the very first playsets. When the children were grown, Williams found purpose in her garden and she zeroed in on her hostas. She became known for hybridizing them and she even wrote about them for various botanical magazines. Williams discovered the hosta that would be named for her honor quite by happenstance. She had visited her daughter in college in New York, and she stopped by Bristol Nurseries in Connecticut on her way home. Nestled in a row of Hosta sieboldiana,was a hosta that had a yellow edge. Williams bought it and continued to grow it in her garden. Years later, Williams hosta ended up in the hands of Professor George Robinson at Oxford. Williams had labeled the plant FRW 383. When the professor couldn't remember what Williams had labeled the plant, he simply called it hosta Frances Williams. Williams work with hosta helped the newly-formed American Hosta Society. After she died in 1969, a hosta garden was planted in her memory at MIT.     #OTD  It's the anniversary of the death of John Goldie who died on this day in 1886.  Goldie was a Scottish-born botanist and author. He led an extraordinary life.  He started out as an apprentice at the Glasgow Botanic Garden. As a young man, another botanist bumped him off what was to be his first plant exploration. However the botanical gods were smiling on him. The expedition was doomed when most of the party died from coast fever along the Congo River. Two years later, William Hooker encouraged Goldie to travel to North America. He started in Montreal and made his way down the Hudson River to New York.  He wrote that he carried as many botanical specimens "as his back would carry."  Goldie returned to the Glasgow Botanic Gardens and for five years, he trained an eager young apprentice and fellow Scottsman named David Douglas. When Douglas met an early death, Goldie planted a Douglas-Fir next to his house to remember his young friend. After Goldie discovered the giant wood fern, Hooker called it Dryopteris goldieana in his honor and it earned the name Goldie's woodfern.  Goldie worked tirelessly and he recorded a total of fourteen plant species previously unknown to science.     Unearthed Words   Here's a poem from Raymond A. Foss called Summer Rain   "A break in the heat away from the front no thunder, no lightning, just rain, warm rain falling near dusk falling on eager ground steaming blacktop hungry plants thirsty turning toward the clouds cooling, soothing rain splashing in sudden puddles catching in open screens that certain smell of summer rain."       Today's book recommendation: The Living Landscape: Designing for Beauty and Biodiversity in the Home Garden Hardcover by Rick Darke and Douglas W. Tallamy    What if you're looking for a landscape that's not only beautiful, functional and productive, but also nourishes and fosters wildlife. That's the aim of The Living Landscape. Darke and Tallamy describe how plants can be used for multiple uses in the garden.     Today's Garden Chore   Buy a bolt of wedding tulle. Wedding tulle is the perfect protector for you summer crops and ornamental from Japanese Beetles and other ravenous insects. It's attractive and inexpensive; the perfect combination. You can get 600 feet of wedding tulle on Amazon for just $15.00 using the link in today's show notes.     Something Sweet  Reviving the little botanic spark in your heart   Since we are in full-on-pesto-making mode, I wanted to share a recipe that I discovered on called Tarragon & Cashew Pesto from Dunk and Crumble.   Cashew Tarragon Pesto 1 large bunch fresh Italian flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped 4 tablespoons roughly chopped fresh tarragon 1/2 cup raw cashews zest from 1 lemon juice from 3 lemons a handful of lemon balm or lemon verbena stripped from the stems 1 garlic clove, peeled 1/3 cup olive oil 3 tablespoons lemon vinegar or chive herbal vinegar salt and freshly ground black pepper   Directions:   Toast cashews in a dry pan over medium heat until lightly brown and fragrant.  Allow to cool slightly.   Purée parsley, tarragon, nuts, lemon and lemon juice, lemon herbs and garlic in a food processor. Add the olive oil, vinegar, and a bit of salt and pepper, and blend until a coarse paste forms.  Add a few tablespoons of warm water to thin the sauce to desired consistency, and adjust seasoning to taste.   Use as a sandwich spread, atop a bowl of hot pasta, or alongside roasted chicken. Makes about 3 cups pesto.     Thanks for listening to the daily gardener, and remember: "For a happy, healthy life, garden every day."

On this episode of Book Cheat, Dave has read Joseph Conrad's Heart Of Darkness. Joining Dave to hear about a steamship traveling up the unforgiving Congo River to meet a mysterious cult like figure, is Bec Petraitis and Alasdair Tremblay-Birchall.Support Book Cheat on Patreon: www.patreon.com/DoGoOnPodSuggest a book for Dave to cheat: https://goo.gl/jxMdiW To get in contact, email bookcheatpod@gmail.com or follow the show via the links below:Twitter: @BookCheatPodInstagram: @BookCheatPodFacebook: @BookCheatPodListen to Alasdair's podcasts:https://www.planetbroadcasting.com/our-shows/two-in-the-think-tank/https://www.planetbroadcasting.com/our-shows/shusher/Listen to Bec's podcast:http://www.sopod.co/index.php?redir=KentuckyFriedChattin See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Portuguese explorer Diogo Cão travels down the coast of west Africa in the 1480s, becoming the first European to discover the Congo River, and setting the stage for others to round the tip of the continent. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices