Podcasts about Genghis Khan

Genghis Khan reshaped the world with brutal force and brilliant organisation. He began life in exile and rose to be a powerful nomadic warrior who united the disparate Mongol tribes to create the largest contiguous empire in history. Dan is joined by economic historian Duncan Weldon to explain how his empire revolutionised global trade via the Silk Road and changed the tactics of global warfare for centuries to come. They discuss how he unified vast territories with a common legal code, developed a pioneering communication system, connected East and West and laid the groundwork for the eventual industrial revolution.Duncan's new book is called 'Blood and Treasure: The Economics of Conflict from the Vikings to Ukraine.'Produced by Mariana Des Forges and edited by Dougal PatmoreSign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.We'd love to hear your feedback - you can take part in our podcast survey here: https://insights.historyhit.com/history-hit-podcast-always-on.You can also email the podcast directly at ds.hh@historyhit.com.

Long before the arrival of Europeans, the islands of Indonesia were home to powerful kingdoms who fended off Genghis Khan and took a part in global trade routes.Dr. Eleanor Janega is joined by Dr. Alex West to explore the rich and often overlooked history of Medieval Indonesia; a world where Indian, Chinese, and Islamic influences converged to create a vibrant cultural mosaic, where oceanic trade networks brought spices, silk, and stories from the Levant to New Guinea - and how these exchanges shaped one of Southeast Asia's greatest empires.MOREGenghis Khan to Tamerlane: Mongol Empire Rebornhttps://open.spotify.com/episode/62GXJOJWKCOHEijcyVLUu8Gone Medieval is presented by Dr. Eleanor Janega. It was edited by Amy Haddow, the producer is Rob Weinberg. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.All music used is courtesy of Epidemic Sounds.Gone Medieval is a History Hit podcast.Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe. You can take part in our listener survey here: https://insights.historyhit.com/history-hit-podcast-always-on

In this jam-packed episode, we go from overripe bananas to ancient mysteries real quick. Kristin questions “where have all the bugs gone??” while Miranda relives a harrowing dental saga—let's just say she's earned her crown. We deep-dive into botanical sexism (yes, it's a thing) and casually connect the dots between King Tut, Genghis Khan, treasure hunting, and Matt in a tiny speedo. Plus, a surprise backstage meet-and-greet, the latest in music news, and a heartfelt farewell to a very short-lived couples app. Eat your plums as your cycle aligns with the moon, the planets, and this newest episode of All That To Say! Learn more about the All That To Say Podcast by visiting www.podcatts.com.  Want even more from Miranda and Kristin? Subscribe to our Patreon for as little as $6/month. Enjoy bonus episodecs and exclusive ATTS content you won't find anywhere else! Looking for something we mentioned? Shop our recommendations on our Amazon page! Message us on the Honesty Hotline (HoHo) anytime! Just click here to leave a voice memo. We want to hear from you. Leave an anonymous message to be featured on an upcoming episode! Maybe you need to get something off your chest or need our honest opinion on something? We want to hear it! Follow us on Instagram at @allthattosay_podcast. We love meeting new people, so leave a comment or better yet...share the love with your friends! We look great on camera. You can find weekly podcast videos on our YouTube channel! If you love our content, be sure to like, subscribe, download, rate, and review! We hope to continue bringing this unhinged FIRE CONTENT every week. xoxo

In this episode of the Learn Real Polish podcast, I will talk about the Mongol Empire and the Golden Horde — one of the most powerful empires in history. We'll explore how the Mongols, led by Genghis Khan and his descendants, created an empire that stretched from Asia to Europe. I will also explain what the Golden Horde was, how it ruled over parts of Eastern Europe, and how it influenced the history of Poland and other countries. This topic is full of dramatic events, surprising facts, and fascinating stories. As always, I will use simple Polish to help you understand and learn more easily. Premium members can read the full transcript of the podcast in Polish at realpolish.plThe post ⁠⁠⁠⁠RP495: Złota Orda⁠⁠ appeared first on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠realpolish.pl

Send us a textOn this episode, the squad unites for JD's triumphant return! Beaveman, Swan, JD, and Nolan hang for a completely off the rails conversation about how to survive a murder, types of cows, how to properly say Milk, and the political idea that Genghis Khan is tangentially responsible for the Europeans arrival in the Americas. This is why this is classified as an improv podcast. One never knows the direction it will take. It's like hanging out once a week with your weird friends that talk about the most random things. You are welcome!Support the show

“If anything, it's three 7's…and one of them has a line in the middle…”   This episode is effectively “nonverbal” in that it contains zero lyrics and is truly beyond words (so to speak). That's right, it's all about INSTRUMENTALS and it just so happens that they come in a wide variety of styles and options.    On a studio album, INSTRUMENTALS are 7enerally either lon7er, extended, standalone musical arran7ements, or brief interludes which serve as a brid7e between two son7s. In a live scenario, INSTRUMENTALS are a 7reat opportunity that allows the vocalist time to take a brief break and enjoy some “ori7ami” and poon while the rest of the band continues to jam. Either way, INSTRUMENTALS offer instrumentalists a chance to express themselves musically in a way that truly transcends the power of the written word.   Be sure to radically adjust your expectations whenever someone says “I'm gonna send you a file” and prepare yourself for a macrodose of happiness that is sure to transpire, especially if your brain “has to fix it” (and particularly if you “want it from the train”). JOIN US for an episode that defies all rational explanation as we master the art of WRITING WITH 7'S: THE INSTRUMENTAL CHRONICLES.   Visit www.metalnerdery.com/podcast for more on this episode Help Support Metal Nerdery https://www.patreon.com/metalnerderypodcast Leave us a Voicemail to be played on a future episode: 980-666-8182   Metal Nerdery Tees and Hoodies – metalnerdery.com/merch and kindly leave us a review and/or rating on the iTunes/Apple Podcasts - Spotify or your favorite Podcast app Listen on iTunes, Spotify, Podbean, or wherever you get your Podcasts. Follow us on the Socials: Facebook - Instagram - TikTok   Email: metalnerdery@gmail.com Can't be LOUD Enough Playlist on Spotify Metal Nerdery Munchies on YouTube @metalnerderypodcast Show Notes: (00:01): “If I had #origami I'd be fine right now…”/ “It's a thing…”/ #StewieASMR / “You're gonna like it…it wasn't what I was expecting…”/ #metalnerderymerch / “For year number six, we should do that…”/ “Sounds like twinks…”/ ***WARNING: #listenerdiscretionisadvised *** / ***WELCOME BACK TO THE METAL NERDERY PODCAST!!!*** / #trippinballs / “Two in a row…”/ “We all had a discussion where we would take a…”/ #thisepisodesbeeroftheepisode #CoffeeStout / “The maple is strong in this one…”/ #smellslikebeanspirit / “Should we just make this a #Chronicles Part 2?” / #TugboatCoffee #OctopiBrewing #WisconsinBeer / “Your taster is all fucked up…”/ #onceagain #trippinballs    (05:53): “For less than a price of a pack of smokes, a bag of shrooms, or a bottle of liquid girlfriend…”/ #Patreon ***JOIN US ON PATREON AT PATREON.COM/METALNERDERYPODCAST *** / “Look at Russ shutting down the show…”/ “It's a 1 out of 6 for me…”/ #hearmeout / 8%ABV / “Aldo Nova, you know what I mean?” / #AldoNova #Fantasy / #thisepisodesSlayeroftheepisode / “Have you watched the #FooFighters horror movie…?” / #whatsitcalled? / #Slayer BLACK MAGIC (Show No Mercy – 1983) / “I think this is my new favorite segment…”/ “You always do it by accident…it's kinda like #standup and you accidentally destroy…”/ #sadtrash / #SweetwaterBarAndGrill #OpenMicComedy / “That place is extremely haunted…”/ “Is it gay…?”/ #fleshlight / “YEP!”/ “Here's my follow up question…”/ #GAF / #assscissoring / #TheFourthHole / “At least it's a step in the right…in the WRONG direction…not that there's anything wrong with that…”/ “She lives for that…”/ “Talk to me after the show…”/ “I'm trippin' balls…”   (16:26): “If you wanna email us…”/ ***EMAIL US AT metalnerdery@gmail.com or VOICEMAIL US AT 980-666-8182 or Check us Out at #TikTok and #YouTube and #Facebook and #Instagram at #metalnerderypodcast / “OMG, are you totally stupid!?” / “Somebody just emailed you…”/ “What's on #TheDocket?” / “This is not a #microdose…”   (18:58): #TheDocket / “WTF is THIS!?” / METAL NERDERY PODCAST PRESENTS: INSTRUMENTALS / “What does that even mean?” / #7RSWE / “Seven…”/ “You sent him a file…”/ “It's 2:30, it's Saturday, you ain't got shit to do…”/ #psilocybin #yourmother / “Why is everything so colorful?” / “Totally, ‘cos it was built like 10 years ago…”/ “When you said you were sending him a file…”/ #onmicburp / “It has to be played…”/ THE CALL OF KTULU (#Metallica – Ride The Lightning – 1984) / “If you're still keeping score…I'm tripping…”/ #MaryReilly #scarycreepy / “Can we jump to the very end of this?” / “That was Cliff…”/ “Hope you figure it out, #fuckface…I'm gonna send you a file…”/ “What do you think between #GenghisKhan and #Transylvania…?” / “Is #Bollocks the same as #Balls or #Bullshit?” / English English vs American English / TRANSYLVANIA (#IronMaiden – Iron Maiden – 1980) / “How do you read ANY of that!?” / #772 / “I'm gonna send you a file…”/ “It's a Lamar 7…”/ “Your eyes are wet, bro…”/ “You are actually pronouncing the name right…”/ #Genghisvitis    (31:41): “How about some Rat Salad?” / “What can you make out on there that I haven't pointed out to you yet?” / #LMAO / “There's #MobyDick…”/ “You'd have to be here…”/ RAT SALAD (#BlackSabbath – Paranoid – 1970) / “Doob…Turtle…”/ “Frankenlobster…”/ “I'm glad I'm here…”/ “I'm just glad you sent him a file…”/ ERUPTION (#VanHalen – Van Halen – 1978) / “You just have to put yourself back in 1977…”/ #HendrixOnMushrooms / “Was that a quest…to be able to play it?” / “Thank you…”/ “Other than Metallica, I think that's the only other thrash instrumental out there…”/ Various #Testament instrumentals…and we forgot #ConfusionFusion / INTO THE LUNGS OF HELL (#Megadeth – So Far…So Good…So What! – 1988) / “It would have been funny…”   (41:58): “I've got one…is that on the Red Album?” / #TheRedAlbum / WELCOME TO YOUR FUNERAL (#RigorMortis – Rigor Mortis – 1988) / D.T. (#ACDC – Who Made Who – 1986) / “Oh yeah! They had one…”/ #MaximumOverdriveSoundtrack / “Nice choice…”/ “How about a little Forbidden?” / SPIRAL DEPRESSION (#Forbidden – Twisted Into Form – 1990) / “No, that's not on the list…”/ “This is the one that starts with a 7, right?”/ “Now it's creepy…”/ “Earlier I thought I was gonna laugh so hard I was going to throw up…”/ “You spell that with a 7, right?” / “Raping The Dragon's Scrotum In The Dungeon, Opus 26…” / TRILOGY SUITE: OP 5 (#YngwieJMalmsteen – Trilogy – 1986) / #dungeonmetalASMR / “It's the most beautiful dungeon metal I've ever heard…”/ “Spelled with a 7…”/ “They're not actually ‘saying words'…”   (52:22): “How about YYZ?” / 777…take your #PlanetCaravan and get out! / YYZ (#Rush – Moving Pictures – 1981) / “My brain has to fix it…”/ “I got one…it is on the list…my brain had to fix it…”/ MOBY DICK (#LedZeppelin – Led Zeppelin II – 1969) / #JohnBonham / #storytime / #BecomingLedZeppelin / “When I was in 8th grade…”/ “Suspenseful music…”/ #blacklightposters / “Let's do a handful more…”/ “I want this played at my funeral…”/ FOR ABSENT FRIENDS (#Opeth – Deliverance – 2002) / #cloudyweather #melancholy / “It's very Swedish…they're from Sweden, dude…”/ “How about we close with that?” / “I want it from the train…”/ “I think he gave it away when he said it's pretty ‘Meddle'…”/ ONE OF THESE DAYS (#PinkFloyd – Meddle – 1971) / “Healthy AND thick…down there…with 7's…”/ “One of these days, I'm going to cut you into little pieces…”   (1:05:00): “You know what part I'm talking about…”/#AwwwwwwwMannnnnnn / “Jimmy Bower plays everything on this…”/ DOOB INTERLUDE (#DOWN – DOWN II: A Bustle In Your Hedgerow – 2002) / “All the 7's?” / “Let's close it out…”/ “From a sexual standpoint, a train is…”/ “Sorry there wasn't enough 7's in my explanation…”/ ORION (#Metallica – Master Of Puppets – 1986) / “This is the Hetfield solo…he always had the best solos…”/ “Alright, get to the train part…”/ “There's no reason to ever be mad at Metallica…”/ “Write with 7's and just STFU!...7's across the board…”/ “Mushroom Chronicles Part 2: Writing With 7's…”/ #Lucky777 / “It's weird…”/ THANK YOU FOR JOINING US!!! THANK YOU FOR THE 7'S… / #InstrumentalChronicles / #untilthenext #outroreel 

Bill Maher sits down with Tony Hinchcliffe, the ringmaster behind the hit live podcast Kill Tony. Tony reminisces about his early days answering phones at the Comedy Store, how Mitzi Shore ruled the club, how talent coordinators silently decide careers, the jelly fish ghost in the Belly room, Tony's Puerto Rico joke at the Trump rally and the social media blowback, doing stand-up in a parking lot during Covid, Austin's comedy boom, Kid Rock's ‘Southern White House”, why comics crave honesty, Bill's brief detour into the history of Genghis Khan, and so much more.    Go to https://www.zbiotics.com/RANDOM and use RANDOM at checkout for 15% off any first time orders of ZBiotics probiotics Get started at https://www.factormeals.com/random50off and use code random50off to get 50 percent off plus FREE shipping Go to https://www.ffrf.us/freedom or text "CLUB" to 511511 and become a member today Go to https://www.RadioactiveMedia.com or text RANDOM at 511511 to save up to 50%, today! Follow Club Random on IG: @ClubRandomPodcast Follow Bill on IG: @BillMaher Don't forget to subscribe to the podcast for free wherever you're listening or by using this link: ⁠⁠⁠https://bit.ly/ClubRandom⁠⁠⁠ Watch Club Random on YouTube: ⁠⁠⁠https://bit.ly/ClubRandomYouTube Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dr. Eleanor Janega is joined by Dr. Jeremiah Jenne to explore the incredible impact of the Mongol Empire on medieval history. From Marco Polo's travels, to the Mongol postal system and groundbreaking innovations such as paper money under the Pax Mongolica.The Mongols unified a vast territory, allowing for unprecedented cultural exchange and technological advancements leading to a unique era of stability and interconnectedness shaped the world far beyond the 13th and 14th centuries.More:Genghis Khan to Tamerlanehttps://open.spotify.com/episode/62GXJOJWKCOHEijcyVLUu8?si=8d698a9f680d4b91Gone Medieval is presented by Dr. Eleanor Janega. It was edited by Amy Haddow, the producers are Rob Weinberg and Joseph Knight. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.All music used is courtesy of Epidemic Sounds.Gone Medieval is a History Hit podcast.Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe. You can take part in our listener survey here: https://uk.surveymonkey.com/r/6FFT7MK

On today's show, we're doing something a bit different - a History Pop-Up with show regular Ron Tester. If you love a good delve into random bits of history - you're in for a treat. We share some of our favourite history reads, from the sweeping story of Genghis Khan to the political prowess of Teddy Roosevelt. We also touch on witches, revolutions + the fascinating Habsburg chin. Let me know if you like this strand + we might just make it a regular thing. It's rather lovely to take a break from business books to nerd over our love of the past. Books discussed in this episode: Genghis Khan + the Making of the Modern World - Jack Weatherford In Defence of Witches: Why Women Are Still on Trial - Mona Chollet Theodore Rex - Edmund Morris The Middle Kingdoms - Martin Rady Revolutionary Spring - Christopher Clarke Ron's Website: rontestercoaching.com ==== If you'd like my help with your Business go to www.lizscully.com/endlessClients ==== And don't forget to get your reading list of the 10 essential reads for every successful biz owner - these are the books Liz recommends almost on the daily to her strategy + Mastermind clients. This isn't your usual list of biz books, these answer the challenges you've actually got coming up right now. Helpful, quick to read and very timely. Click here lizscully.com/reading to get your book list

This week we discuss John Brodie's swan song; the career of Howard Schnellenberger; things happening in the world outside the NFL; the HOF case for Lemar Parrish. Quote of the week: "The Raiders don't give a s**t about the A's. The Raiders only care about the Raiders." Intro-outro music: "Breakaway." 

Babur, a descendant of Timur and Genghis Khan, had established a power base in Kabul but the victory at Panipat gave him control of Delhi and Agra, allowing him to establish the foundations of what would become the Mughal Empire in ...

Greg Jenner is joined in 13th-Century Venice by Professor Sharon Kinoshita and comedian Ria Lina to learn all about medieval traveller Marco Polo and his adventures in China.Born into a family of merchants, in 1271 a teenage Marco set out for the court of the Mongol emperor Qubilai Khan with his father and uncle. They would not return to Italy for nearly a quarter of a century. In the service of the emperor, the Polos saw all manner of extraordinary things – including the Mongols' amazing imperial postal service and diamond-hunting eagles in India. Imprisoned by the Genoese on his eventual return, Polo spent his time in prison writing his Description of the World with the Arthurian romance author Rustichello, a travelogue describing his exploits in the East and the wonders he had seen. This episode explores Polo's extraordinary life, the decades he spent travelling in China and beyond, and the fascinating account he wrote on his return. If you're a fan of epic voyages, luxurious royal courts and medieval travel writing, you'll love our episode on Marco Polo.If you want more from Ria Lina, check out our episode on pirate queen Zheng Yi Sao. For more on the Mongols listen to our episode on Genghis Khan, and for more medieval travel writers, there's our episode on medieval Muslim explorer Ibn Battuta. You're Dead To Me is the comedy podcast that takes history seriously. Every episode, Greg Jenner brings together the best names in history and comedy to learn and laugh about the past. Hosted by: Greg Jenner Research by: Hannah Cusworth Written by: Hannah Cusworth, Emmie Rose Price-Goodfellow, Emma Nagouse, and Greg Jenner Produced by: Emmie Rose Price-Goodfellow and Greg Jenner Audio Producer: Steve Hankey Production Coordinator: Ben Hollands Senior Producer: Emma Nagouse Executive Editor: Philip Sellars

In this stream I discuss the interesting life and story of a man who Mongols thought was the Ghost of Genghis Khan, and led battles against the Bolsheviks, Roman von Ungern-Sternberg. Make sure to check it out and let me know what you think. God bless Superchat Here https://streamlabs.com/churchoftheeternallogos Donochat Me: https://dono.chat/dono/dph Join this channel to get access to perks: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCH8JwgaHCkhdfERVkGbLl2g/join If you would like to support my work please become a website member! There are 3 different types of memberships to choose from! https://davidpatrickharry.com/register/ Support COTEL with Crypto! Bitcoin: 3QNWpM2qLGfaZ2nUXNDRnwV21UUiaBKVsy Ethereum: 0x0b87E0494117C0adbC45F9F2c099489079d6F7Da Litecoin: MKATh5kwTdiZnPE5Ehr88Yg4KW99Zf7k8d If you enjoy this production, feel compelled, or appreciate my other videos, please support me through my website memberships (www.davidpatrickharry.com) or donate directly by PayPal or crypto! Any contribution would be greatly appreciated. Thank you Logos Subscription Membership: http://davidpatrickharry.com/register/ Venmo: @cotel - https://account.venmo.com/u/cotel PayPal: https://www.paypal.me/eternallogos Donations: http://www.davidpatrickharry.com/donate/ PayPal: https://www.paypal.me/eternallogos Website: http://www.davidpatrickharry.com Rokfin: https://rokfin.com/dpharry Rumble: https://rumble.com/user/COTEL Odysee: https://odysee.com/@ChurchoftheEterna... GAB: https://gab.com/dpharry Telegram: https://t.me/eternallogos Minds: https://www.minds.com/Dpharry Bitchute: https://www.bitchute.com/channel/W10R... DLive: https://dlive.tv/The_Eternal_Logos Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dpharry/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/_dpharry

This week on Food Rebels, AJ is joined by the brilliant Gok Wan for a heartfelt, honest, and often hilarious conversation about his lifelong love of food. From growing up in his family's restaurant to the joy he finds in cooking for others, Gok shares how food has shaped his life—touching on everything from passion and creativity to personal challenges. He opens up about food as his everyday language, the emotional connection behind every dish, and even how his career as a DJ unexpectedly blends with his love of entertaining. Expect laughter, insight, and a few unforgettable stories—including a deep dive into the infamous five-second rule (and what it has to do with Genghis Khan

The first Ishara open  House Challenge .Book 3 in 18 parts, By FinalStand. Listen to the ► Podcast at Explicit Novels.Odd Happenings{8:58 am, Wednesday, Sept. 3rd ~ 5 Days to go; the Final Salvo ~ at this time}I had deposited my Mother in the place I felt was safest for her   with OT (Oyuun T m rbaatar) at the Kazakhstan's UN mission. Her being my family was what mattered to them most. I picked her up on my way to work, which made my entrance into the lobby all that much more cataclysmic.I was traveling light with only Wiesława Živa providing me with security. Chaz, Pamela and Juanita were catching up with their sleep, with a promise of taking me out for a late lunch. That was really them telling me to not leave JIKIT until they came for me around 2:00 pm.So anyway, me, Mom and Wiesława walked into the ground floor of the Mil Ma Towers to find eleven people waiting on us. We were in downtown Manhattan in a part of town the NYPD paid particular attention to. What could go wrong, right? Two of the people were Amazons from Havenstone. With them were two fine young men from the US 'don't make me kill you' Department. By this time in my life I was sure they had one   which no one talked about.Five of my expectant visitors were of the same mold as those who protected Hana for me. Not the Ghost Tigers   that would have put me at ease. Sure, they were a gang of assassin and in this circumstance; I would have preferred them. As it was, ten sets of highly-trained Illuminati operative eyes kept me, my party and the four guardians of JIKIT in their overlapping fields of vision.The last two, were doing an impromptu family reunion. They were Aunts 'X' and 'Y', and neither of them smelled like fish, or crab."Aunt Deidre," I tossed out there. "What brings you here today?"It looked like clobbering time! No. Wait. Neither Mom, nor my aunts, were saying anything and they were normally so verbose."Sibeal.""Imogen.""Sibeal, you are looking surprisingly well for a dead woman," the other one said."Deidre, you are looking surprisingly alive for someone who deserves to be dead," Mom bantered back."How long have you known about this?" Imogen's eyes flickered my way."Not long, a while, more than a day, ah, take your pick," I mumbled. I decided to turn that frown aka 'my gut wrenching terror that my Mother was about to die' upside down aka ramped up my sexy, 'glad to see you in a totally incestuous way'."So, what brings you here today and why aren't you waiting upstairs with the rest of my band of cutthroats, malcontents and ne'er do-wells? Oh, and I'm happy to see both of you." Karma was about to bitch-slap the shit out of me and it was so well deserved."I'm pregnant," Imogen studied my reaction. Yeah, I had banged her after Deidre, but before Baibre because I am a fucking reprehensible human being and sometimes, I feel I am utterly irredeemable."Great news," I exhaled. I so wanted to ask 'so, who is the father?' except that was too cruel, even for an O'Shea.No one stopped me from stepping up and hugging her. Everyone in the lobby had heard her loud and clear. Anyone who knew me, or even about me, knew she wasn't passing on the information because Imogen liked sharing good news. I kept my hands on her hips while I leaned my torso back until we could make eye contact."Does Granddad know?" It occurred to me in that second that Pamela was going to kick herself for missing this and the opportunity to kick me as well."I told him over the phone. His reaction was neutral," she responded."Whoa, girl? Boy? How are you doing? When are we going to sit down and figure out a name? Is there anything I can do for you?""Come home with me," she suggested."No," Mom snapped. "Next time he steps into your custody, we all know you won't let him get away." She meant the plane trip to Ireland."No, Mom," I countered. "I'm a grown man now and I make my own decisions. That being said   no, I'm not going home with you.""Not only am I still in love with the concept of my personal freedom, I have important work to do. People are counting on me.""We are counting on you too," Deidre stated. "In fact, that is the other reason we came here. We need you.""Why do I feel that has to do with something besides sex?""Can we talk to you in private?" Imogen requested. There were a thousand and one reasons to say 'no'. Things like 'common sense', bad behavior   they had murdered my homicidal uncle   and the fact they were as morally twisted as their creator. Oh   and they were hot and I hadn't been laid in forever."Sure. Let's go upstairs. You can have your people sweep the room to ensure our privacy then the four of us can sit down and have a family chat," I offered."We don't want her in the room," Deidre indicated Mom."We are a package deal," I denied her. "Like her, or not, she is as much family to me as you both are."They consented far too fast. Either I was falling into their masterful trap, or something horrible had happened. Neither options was palatable to me. The bodyguards departed, Wiesława last of all."What's gone wrong?" Mom preempted me. Her sisters glared."Father's body is not his own," Imogen told us. I was trying to figure out the relevance of that when Mom gasped."Oh fuck," she said in a small voice. "No serum?" Oh yeah, the refinement of those addictive pheromones Grandpa Cáel had gifted me with. Whatever flesh-form he currently inhabited wasn't one containing his genetic make-up meaning,"Oh shit," I mumbled. "What can I do?""Yes," Deidre replied to Mom."Let them die," Mom insisted (to me). Less I forget, she was raised by Grandpa Cáel too. Her being a loving mother to me didn't translate over to her being a humanitarian of any kind."The Hell you say," I jumped up and stared down at Mom. "You hate them. I don't. Letting them die makes me worse than him." Grandpa."So you will help us?" Deidre moved to the edge of her seat."Okay. This is the point where I threaten you into making some concessions, we argue then you eventually cave in because no matter how terrible your futures look, you aren't willing to give up on living. None of that is going to happen. What do you need from me?""Come back with us to Ireland so we can finish our experiments," Imogen joined me in standing. Unwilling to give her sister any physical advantage, Mom stood as well."No. That isn't even a believable lie," I scolded her. "You don't need to blackmail me into helping you. I'll do it gladly. That doesn't mean I'll let you trick me into doing something stupid. I do 'stupid' all the time. I'm accustomed to it and I know it when its ugly head rises up before me. Try again.""We could pick a neutral location," Deidre suggested."How about Havenstone?" They didn't look like that plan was even worthy of their consideration. "Imogen, inside you is growing a possible heir to House Ishara. An attack on you would be an attack on Ishara. Barring you betraying the Amazons, you would be perfectly safe.""Wonderful," Mom's sarcasm dripped off every word. "I'm going to be a grandmother to my nephew while my son is bringing a child into the world that can double as his cousin.""That sound pretty horrible, Mom. It is the truth, but it still sounds pretty terrible."While those words tumbled out of my mouth, I did a little soul back-searching. How in the fuck was   outside of the actual fucking   was Imogen pregnant? My existence was a freaking fluke of nature. A few words were bandied about the room while I was lost in deductive reasoning and turning hunches into assumptions and turning those into reasonable mystic hypotheses.I created the Mojo-Little Engine that thought it could. Specifically, the legacy of Vranus. Legions of little Vranusian sperm had been jumping hurdle after hurdle to keep the faith alive   that Vranus would meet his Ancestors with his mission accomplished. I was already half way there.Still, the legacy of Vranus and the hopes of Dot Ishara hadn't stopped in their struggle just because I had been born. They were still trying to restore the mortal descendants of a Dead House. They were also still spiritually pushing me on to fulfill his last command   to save the Arinniti sons.I was halfway there by returning the offspring of Bolu, Vranus' fellow guardian, back to the fold. It remained for me to round up the purpose of the whole mission in the first place. My semen weren't taking a chance that I could get gakked before that was accomplished. Having knocked up an augur despite the toxic soup she called blood should have been a dire warning to me, I'm an idiot.When the curse of Sarrat Irkalli clashed with the actions of Dot Ishara, Ishara had won. Sarrat Irkalli sought to deny Alal any children of his own. Dot was insisting the male line of Vranus Ishara continue on. The end result was Alal received his long-denied grandson, who just happened to also want him dead because of a feud that stretched back over two millennia.As an added insult, his grandson then knocked up one of Alal's genetically manipulated daughters, again giving him something he couldn't accomplish on his own   heirs   grand-sons and  daughters, most who would also want to kill him, being Amazons and members of the 9 Clans after all. Why? Cause Goddesses are bitches, that's why.That got me to wondering when would be the next time I was going to meet Ishara. I hadn't suffered severe head trauma in while and she was overdue for some snuggle time, witty banter and a fortune cookie. I'd try to be careful. It wouldn't do any good, but I had to try."Why are you crying?" Mom touched my arm."No reason," I lied."Why don't we make plans for tonight?" Deidre insinuated herself next to me. "We'd like to meet Hana. From what I understand, Father likes her.""No can-do," I sniffled. "I've got an orgy with 159 women at 8 o'clock, except there won't be any sex, or fun of any kind. Basically, I have to convince a roomful of women to not beat me up and take my stuff.""You don't have to go," Imogen had finished boxing me in   I had a chair behind me and Momma-clones all around."For the same reason I'm going to take care of our child, Imogen, I have to go to this meeting. People are counting on me to do the right thing without telling me what the right thing to do is.""That's unfair," Deidre empathized by stroking my chest."Not so. This is just another day in the life of a new hire at Havenstone Commercial Investments. Every day is like this and in five more days, the real fun beings." That wasn't entirely accurate. I had one good, stress-free week. It was when Carrig put me in a coma. That week I had done pretty well for myself.{9:28 am, Wednesday, Sept. 3rd ~ 5 Days to go}I trundled my latest 'Assistant-in-Charge of keeping the hopes of future Isharans alive' (I didn't want to call Aunt Imogen, or any other woman, my 'Baby-Mamma'), along with Mom and Deidre, for a meet-and-greet with Buffy. I had spelled out in no uncertain terms that Buffy was the power behind the Ishara Throne and thus making 'her' believe they were playing on the up-and-up was their best hope for easing relations between the O'Shea and the Amazon Host.After they left me (with the assurance we'd be getting back together for lunch, with Hana), I made three calls. I needed to make a formal request to Katrina (any Illuminati member(s) entering any Amazon facility was her purview) and another to Elsa (as a sign of respect) that Aunt Imogen and two unarmed bodyguards, max, needed to see our medicos about a delicate issue.The third call was to Buffy to enlighten her as to both the arrival of another one of my aunts (so we needed to get along peacefully with her) and that Aunt Imogen was carrying yet another potential heir to House Ishara. I suggested it would be a symbolic gesture if a member of House Ishara could hang around for the visit, as it might impress upon Imogen our House had a vested interest in keeping her alive."Another one?" Buffy sizzled. "And this one is your aunt?""It is a date then," I stumped her."You are going to take your pregnant aunt out on a date?" Buffy's sizzle meter was rapidly climbing to Krakatoa proportions."Nope. I'm setting up a date for us. You, me and a quiet location at 12:01 am Tuesday morning, my First. Later in the morning, I'll be heading out to wherever they have stored Felix so we can work on some cooperative strategy.""And if I say 'no'?" She was terribly grumpy."Ugh, I guess I'll go bar-crawling with Odette and Timothy, Gay and Lesbian bars only. That way I know I'll behave.""And if they say 'no'?" she was slightly less hostile."I'll know you threatened their lives, and then you and I will finally find out who is better on the mats. Trust me, it will not be an experience you will enjoy.""I don't know. I think I'd like that.""No. You start threatening the other people I love and you will not be happy; I guarantee that, Buffy."She realized I was both serious and angry. She had stepped out of bounds, the 'bounds' I had set up two hours earlier during our elevator ride."Is the meeting still on for the night?" she evaded my disappointment."Yes. Will you be there?""Of course," she grumped."Buffy, don't bother showing up if you can't separate 'us' as friends, 'us' as Wakko Ishara and my First, and you as my apprentice."Making me miserable in the first relationship doesn't help the latter two one bit. I try not to be an irresponsible asshole as House Head. More than anyone else, you know what I will sacrifice to be Ishara and one with my Isharans. I'll also step out and be plain ole 'Cáel Nyilas' when events permit.""But I am sick and tired of people not taking my desire to be foolish and care-free seriously. Being a dogmatic ass-hat isn't in me, but if you can't work with that, from here on out we are Wakko Ishara and Buffy Ishara and nothing more. I will still trust you as an Isharan, but not as a friend. Your choice.""Don't be such an asshole!" she snapped."Screw you!" I fired back. "I made a fucking effort to plan out some personal time with you, disguised as a joke; you knew it and you still decided to be a ball-buster. Like I need another fucking ball-buster right now, with all the other shit on my plate. You know better!" I was screaming. The people in JIKIT were working overtime at not staring at me."I'm under a ton of stress here too," she snarled. "I have to deal with the Council, keep our House growing and fulfill my obligations with Executive Services.""Do you want to quit? No longer by my 'apprentice'? Go back to working for Katrina full time?""Really?" she whispered."Of course the fuck not!" I shouted. "I didn't pick you for the job because of your sterling personality, or your bedroom excellence. I picked you because I had, and still have, utter faith in your ability to do whatever is necessary to overcome the landfill-sized colossal ill-fortune the Ancestors have dumped in our lap.""I'm just asking you to stop being a whiny, over-sensitive cunt and remember: it was the psychotic bitch who I chose for the top spot," I rumbled."I'm going to kick your ass," she seethed."Nice to know. We on for Monday night?"Pause."Yes," and she hung up. Two seconds later my phone rang again. "Buffy?" I answered. "And don't be late!" she menaced, then hung up again."So," Addison turned my way, "are you praying for World Peace to break out, or Nuclear War?""Hardy-har-har," I griped."Now that your personal drama is temporarily derailed, we have something for you to look at," Mehmet motioned for my attention. "Ever heard of Kōfuku no Kagaku?" I shook my head. "It translates over as 'Happy Science' and it is a cult-like organization in Japan.""Cool beans. Why do I have a sinking impression it is not a front for the Ninja?""That is what we want you to find out," Addison took over. "Of critical importance is the news conference their leader, Ryuho Okawa, gave earlier this afternoon/morning (~ 3:17 pm Tokyo time = 2:17 am East Coast time ~), especially a very relevant part of his interesting public announcement."He claims to be the Earthly manifestation of the Supreme Being. That is old news. Today he claimed that Temujin of the Khanate was the reincarnation of the original Genghis Khan and, with him, Ryuho, as the unifier of theological forces and therefore serving as spiritual advisor to Temujin, they would usher in a new period of Peace throughout Asia.""I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop," I exhaled."He also claims that Japan is in the midst of an epic struggle, both spiritually and in the physical sense. The 'ancient guardians' of Japanese purity, the 6 Ninja Families, are at war with the depth of all Evil, the Chinese Seven Pillars of Heaven by name, who are determined to drag all of Asia away from the Light and into the Darkness of pain, degradation and slavery."In fact I quote: 'Alone among the nations of the Earth, only the Japanese cultural identity can stand firm against this global menace. Only the Japanese can keep the torch of true Enlightenment aloft. Only the Japanese can guide the development of the Khanate into the Supreme Empire it is meant to be'.""I'm going to go out on a limb here and say this guy is pseudo-religious, a Japanese ultra-nationalist as well as anti 'all things Sino'," came out of my mouth."Correct.""None of the Secret Societies would do something so public. Temujin's background is a mystery, but no one in the Khanate is calling him a reincarnated spirit, and they know the truth," I continued."This guy is pretty nutty," Mehmet confirmed. "He also claims to channel Buddha, Mohammed, Christ and Confucius. His followers worship him as the Earthly manifestation of the 'Supreme Being' named El Cantare, which is yet another name for any number of ancient supreme deities. And he claims to consult with the 'spirit guardians' of national leaders and aids in their mystic defense, with the aid of the Five Sacred Sisters' Spirits."Clearly this man was insane. Unfortunately, insane didn't make someone wrong,"Ah Hell," I muttered.Mehmet and Addison perked up; after all, figuring out the bizarre was my position on the team."He probably is insane, and I can't blame him," I sighed. "He isn't El Cantare; he is in touch with the Weave.""I have a feeling this is 'not good'," Addison murmured. "How bad is it?""The Five Sacred Spirit Sisters are most likely the five augurs who died in order to save Temujin, which, in turn, allies the 9 Clans with the E&S and Amazons to 'save' Japan, though it is not 'saved' yet.""Technically, the Weave IS the Supreme Being. It's largely indifferent, yet capable of doing both good and ill in response to outside (aka mortal) stimuli. If you can observe the Weave, you might be able to see the most likely path destiny is taking as well as the key players screwing with that destiny."That would include the Gong Tau sorcerers and the ninjas use of their own brand of magic; and God only knows what other mystic tricks the others have been attempting.""How do we get them to stop?" Captain Delilah Faircloth muttered."Not that easy Delilah. Everyone in this room has intersected because of a magic experiment that happened before any of us were born (Mom).""The fight at Summer Camp was flipped on its head because I saw the ghost the 7 Pillars sent to scout the area. My freeing of one of those trapped and tortured souls led to the calamity at the Barbeque Pit. I didn't use magic. I countered it. Still, my actions were interfering with the Weave."All four people the augurs, those Five Sisters, told me about had been dead at some point in time, some for thousands of years. Ajax didn't kill anyone using magic. Neither has Saku, yet both of them are products of disruptions in the Weave. 'Me' being alive and breathing is yet another disruption, since I shouldn't exist because of another mystic curse from five thousand years ago."Being alive and killing people means I've killed people who shouldn't be dead. Do we need to go into all the millions that have died in the Khanate war? Which was a combination of a resurrected Temujin and the 7 Pillars hunger for World Domination, if we do nothing, the rippled of those other disruption will still carry on."Except for me, no one on this taskforce has used an iota of magic, yet we are all dedicated to combatting mystical forces," I related to the group. I wondered where Rikki (Martin) and Beatrice (Ya Konan) had gotten off to. Lady Yum-Yum being absent only made my 'Scooby' senses tingle more."You use magic?" Agent-86 tilted his head in curiosity."I talk to a Goddess on a semi-regular business. I see ghosts. I've been the conveyer of messages from dead people and I've killed an un-killable man. Do we need to go back over my kidnapping by the 7 Pillars? The memories of my undead Grandfather floating around in my head?""I'm not calling thunderbolts out of the sky and shooting fireballs out my ass, but what I am doing is magical, nonetheless.""So, what do we recommend to our allies and benefactors (i.e., our sovereign governments)?" Mehmet inquired."Hmm, we tell our governments this crackpot is a Prophet of Doom who could be turned into an asset," I rubbed my brow with all four fingers and a thumb. Rikki, Beatrice and Lady Worthington-Burke quietly entered the room. They were all highly pleased in a 'I just won the lottery' kind of way. I was curious, but had to carry on with my train of thought."Quietly start seeking out other mystic societies, preferably low-key, quiet types who avoid the limelight, and start looking into other forms of magical insight and, quite frankly, protection. If the Weave has let this happen, we can expect worse. Lastly, I'll ask my 'Brother' to meet with this guy and get a feel for his personality.""That will only increase the believability of his ramblings," Addison protested."The boat called 'Denial' has already sailed. The World is in crisis. People are going to look for non-conventional answers. It is better to get ahead of this and bring Ryuho Okawa on board as a 'consultant'. Don't give him the whole picture by any means. The guy is definitely a loose cannon. Even worse, he is also a loose cannon the Weave has touched.""Besides, the Seven Pillars are going to figure this out pretty quick, their Weave sensitivity, ya know, and either kidnap him to be their own spiritual seismic sensor, or kill him for being both a loose cannon and yet another person screwing with their 'best laid plans'. Keeping him alive has the added benefit of making the Seven Pillars expend resources trying to get at him. Japan needs every bit diversion they can get."Let's not forget to tell our Secret Society allies of our plans, lest they kill him too. His babblings aren't going to make the 9 Clans or the E&S happy with him. They both have an established habit of making perceived enemies dead. Let's keep him alive and utilize this opportunity.""I like this plan," Addison nodded. Mehmet was clearly on board as well. Agent-86 clearly was playing the best on-line mystic MMORPG ever! (And with the added bonus that his team's action had real-world consequences.) The three 'ladies' new to the room received an abbreviated version of our discussion and my 'suggestions'. They weren't really suggestions. Barring a few insanely criminal endeavors, JIKIT treated me like a true asset."Something else big?" Addison looked to her British counterpart (Yum-Yum)."The Japanese Diet has voted for a public referendum on a Constitutional Amendment to repeal/revise Article 96 of the Japanese Constitution.""Oh fuck," was echoed, either verbally or subliminally, by everyone in the room except for me, Delilah and Agent-86.'Cáel' knew Jack and Shit about the Japanese Constitution. Hell, I barely knew about the US one and I was a native. However, Alal did know it, and knew both what Article 96 was and what its amendment really meant. Good-old 96 was the rolling dark cloud across the political Great Plains that heralded a swarm of tornados. Clouds were clouds and their arrival could mean anything.Article 96 dictated how the Japanese Constitution could be amended. The current process was a 2/3rd vote in both the House of Councilors (the 'Upper House', roughly equivalent to our Senate) and the House of Representatives (the 'Lower' House) followed by a public referendum. The proposed amendment to Article 96 would transform the process to a mere majority vote in both Houses.Imagine the shit-storm which would be unleashed if the US Congress tried to pull that shit. The biggest political issue was that the Japanese Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) held 294 of the 475 seats in the lower house (a clear majority) and 115 of the 242 in the Upper House (7 seats short of a majority). If the amendment passed next month (October 14th to be precise), the LDP could pretty much do as they pleased.And what was the first thing they were going to do? They were going to put to rest another part of the Constitution, namely the far more globally important Article 9. And what was that?Real World Stuff: WarningsArticle 9:(1)Aspiring sincerely to an international peace based on justice and order, the Japanese people forever renounce war as a sovereign right of the nation and the threat or use of force as means of settling international disputes.(2)To accomplish the aim of the preceding paragraph, land, sea, and air forces, as well as other war potential, will never be maintained. The right of belligerency of the state will not be recognized.If Article 9 was repealed, the Japanese nation could exercise diplomacy by military means, aka declaring an offensive war against a foreign power. Currently Japan had a modest budget military budget of $48 Billion a year (Earth's 10th largest). It was modest when you considered it was a mere 1% of the Japanese GDP. Great Britain, France and South Korea's smaller economies all functioned nicely with double that percentage for their military budget.Regionally, every other nation was increasing their military expenditures, except Japan's protector, the US and (perhaps) North Korea, who's spending on anything was a closely guarded state secret. Right now, China and the Khanate's military expenditures were running roughly even at $180 billion each, but this was an arm's race the PRC would eventually win, they had too great an advantage in the size of their workforce and a far larger industrial base.The truth was, if the PRC couldn't win this race fast, she was facing a long, grinding war reminiscent of the Communists' Long Rise to Power that wrecked their country a century ago. The monetary dynamic was shifting badly against them because the Khanate wasn't alone.India, Taiwan and Vietnam were also ramping up their war spending to a combined tune of $34 billion and now allied with the Khanate, equating to an additional $90 billion the PRC had to overcome. South Korea was already adding $8 billion to their military and Russia was taxing the fuck out of Manchuria to both pay for their 'Peaceful Intervention' and to increase the 'Readiness' of their other forces.All of this military spending was bad for both the regional and global economies (unless you were Israel who was turning out hardware 24/7/365 for the Khanate and Indian war machines). So at this point, Japan doing 'nothing' was possibly more disastrous than doing 'something' else.They were already spending $50 fucking billion on glorified policemen while the future of East Asia was being decided without them. Doubling the military budget would place a huge burden on the largely pacifistic population. It would also put Japan in the position of deciding the Fate of Nations.With the repeal of Article 9, Japan could utilize 'proactive means' to keep the naval supply routes to China open, not even the Indian's had the naval presence to confront the Japanese. Such a policy was a nice, friendly gesture to the Asian Colossus, who wasn't likely to show a shred of appreciation for their efforts.No, China had spent the last 60 years stoking the hatred of the Land of the Rising Sun among their people. (Many Japanese forgot current Chinese hatred was based on the Japanese butchering their way across China for nearly a decade between 1937 to 1945).(The Cornerstone) There was a truism which had guided American, Chinese, Japanese and Russian political thought for 150 years: 'There could only be one supreme power in East Asia and the Eastern Pacific'. Japan had followed the logical expression of that paradigm by invading Taiwan (1895), Korea (1910), beating up on Imperial Russia (1904), taking Manchuria (1931) and going to war with China (1937) while that country was trapped in a bloody civil war.To stop the Empire of Japan's rise, the US had attempted to cripple the Japanese economy before the Empire could harvest their just-acquired Asian natural resources. In response, Japan had thrown its soldiers and sailors into a futile effort against the British Empire, the United States and China and lost.With Imperial Japan crushed and the Soviet Union preoccupied in Europe, China had risen. The irresistible force of China's rapidly increasing population, natural resources exploitation and extensive land mass took hold. Japan couldn't compete in a 'fair' fight. Since 1945, the Japanese government had lived with the fear of aggression from Russia and/or China aimed their way.The US felt the same way, or they had. The fear produced by the broad acceptance of 'Only-One-Shall-Rule-Asia' had led to the Korean War, the half-century cease-fire along the Demilitarized Zone in Korea and the Vietnamese Civil War. The Communists in China and Russia had feuded until the Soviet Union collapsed under its own economic inadequacies.A reborn Russia, even with the ultra-nationalist Putin at the helm, couldn't stop China's growing domination. Asia was China's for the taking, until the Khanate rose up like some desert mirage in the Western Steppe, one that turned into the Mother of All Storms. So now, miraculously, the dominion of Asia was up for grabs once more.Japan could not overcome China; that was a given. The Dragon had more people, more resources and an almost three-fold larger economy. Given a decade, the PRC would grind the Khanate down. Once more it was the tyranny of numbers. Even India, Taiwan and Vietnam could only slow down the inevitable.India's subpar economic output marginalized the power of their citizenry. Taiwan had the proportional economy, but not nearly enough people. Vietnam had neither and had always had a rough time defending themselves, much less been successful confronting powers beyond her homeland. Putin's Mother Russia had a host of other problems, internal and external, so she had already contributed as much as Putin dared.Until Thursday morning, Tokyo Time, the undeniable Destiny of Asia remained in the hands of those men in Beijing. The dominoes were falling in a way those rulers had not foreseen and now fumed over. But on Wednesday night, there was no industrial power (with the population to back it up) which could threaten the People's Republic of China.Europe and the US wouldn't intervene. Much like the leadership in Japan, the Communist Chinese Politburo believed Putin had wagered as much as dared. No other nation on Earth mattered. Japan? That was laughable. Their Constitution bound the hands off their military behind their backs with a pledge of eternal pacifism.The Chinese weren't blind to the 250,000 men and women of the Japanese Self Defense Force. Without the political will, those troops might have well have been in Brazil. A hostile Brazil was actually a greater worry because Brazil was the powerhouse of South America, a G-8 economy and hungered for a Permanent Seat on the UN Security Council. The PRC was dedicated to denying their desire as it would have diluted the PRC's burgeoning diplomatic power.Japan? Ha.Thursday morning, in what was essentially an undetected (by anyone except the Ninja and JIKIT) coup d' tat, pacifism was sacrificed on the Altar of Nationalism. Article 96's demise was pre-ordained. A poll taken on July 1st, 42% of Japanese felt positively about the repeal of Article 96 while 46% opposed it.The same agency took a new poll on August 28th. The economic-political situation of Japan was going through a titanic tidal shift. If Buddhism moved you toward devout pacifist, the Khanate had liberated Tibet and was clearly withdrawing as the UN troops' boots hit the ground.If you were a Nationalist of any kind, you were seeing a whole lot more people at your rallies, accessing your websites and signing up to join your formerly fringe parties. If you were a Socialist, you were scared. Why? The PRC was in the process of nationalizing all of Japan's (and South Korea's and Taiwan's) business interests in China, for the 'Duration of the Emergency', or so they said.That meant plenty of Japanese workers were losing their jobs and looking to blame someone. You couldn't blame the centrist LDP. The LDP had been working alongside the Japanese Communist Party for months. They had done nothing wrong and had worked tirelessly for a peaceful diplomatic solution. It was their 'comrades' in China, their Marxist confederates, who were costing the hard-working Japanese workers their jobs.If you were in the Establishment, all of the above worried the crap out of you. Japan's economy had been limping along at barely-positive growth for a decade. Your aging population needed more and more from their public services and, worst of all, you had nothing in your political and economic tool box to escape the obvious oncoming national catastrophe.The possibility of a Global Recession loomed on the horizon, if they were lucky. Highly respected economists in Japan and elsewhere were examining all the key indicators over the past three months and were suggesting hording as a viable policy for middle class households to consider. If you were in the Developing World, worse was heading your way.The word being bandied about on those esteemed academic internet websites wasn't 'recession', it was depression. Global prosperity thrived on nations investing in both their own economy and the economies of other nations. The governments representing a third of the World's population were not investing in their economies.Unless you were a war profiteer, you could expect fewer consumer goods on the shelves; and what was there would cost more. Your income wasn't going up; your expenses were. If you were an Atheistic homeowner in the Western World with a secured 3.25% fixed rate home loan, you took up religion. The prime interest rate would be racing for the 20% mark and that was only if your economy was stable.If you lived in a country in the Developing World, your trade goods didn't compete with those created in the G-20. Your competition was with other Developing World businesses and the prize was the pocketbooks of those consumers in the G-20, which was a shrinking purse.It wasn't like you were being paid all that much to begin with; and now those once poor-paying, but at least plentiful, jobs were drying up. You needed your government to help you out. It wasn't like those governments could raise money by taxing the unemployed and under-employed. They didn't have money. And the rich in most of those same nations had a long and successful legacy of avoiding paying.Those growing economies had a few tried and tested 'solutions' for getting their countries through these rough stretches.The IMF? 'We are out to make 'positive' capital investments and your economic outlook doesn't look promising. We suggest 'austerity'.'The BRICS? Since India and China were basically in an undeclared state of war: 'we won't be loaning anyone anything for a while.'The BIS? 'As soon as the People' Bank of China, the Reserve Bank of India, the Central Bank of Ireland, the Bank of Israel and the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey get back to us about their sudden, serious lack of transparency, we'll call you back.'World Bank? Holy Shit! 'The world's going down the toilet, we will do what we can.'F Y I, I (as in Cáel) had been wrong. The 6 Elders of the Ninja families didn't talk to Japanese Prime Minister, Shinzō Awbee. They talked with another, far more immediately important man. So sue me (Cáel) for not knowing the inner workings of various world governments, and creatively interpreting events surrounding all those people I (Cáel) didn't. I'm a freaking Liberal Arts major with a fertile imagination, not a superspy, or even a competent Intelligence Analyst!}The Japanese government had appealed to the U.S., U.N., P.R.C., A.S.E.A.N., India; and (through back channels aka JIKIT) the Khanate for an end to this madness; all with typical results:The U.S.A: We are working on it (without letting them know what precisely they were working on)Japan: Well, do something fast. Our Government Bonds are about to be more useful as wallpaper.The U.N.: We are working on it (with their long-established tradition of not doing anything until the crisis had passed)Japan: You are preparing to pass a Resolution to move this matter from the First Committee to the Fourth Committee, gee, thanks guys. Will they be meeting sometime before Christmas?The PRC: We are too busy right now, so shut up, keep the trade lanes open, and was that your submarine we detected sneaking into our territorial waters?Japan: What? What do you mean you are 'too busy?' You are one of our biggest trading partners, your economy is going down the toilet, and, No! That was not our submarine in your territorial waters. That accusation is absurd.(Note from Japanese Prime Minister, Shinzō Awbee, to Admiral Katsutoshi Kawano, head of the JMSDF {the de facto Japanese Navy}), The PRC has made this outrageous claim that one of our submarines has been sneaking around their territorial waters. There is no truth to that rumor, right?Kawano: Which time?Prime Minister: Oh My God! What have you people been doing and why is this the first time I'm hearing about it?Kawano: Sir, if you are just now getting around to asking us, you don't want to know.Prime Minister: What do you mean 'I don't want to know?' I'm the head of the damn government and, you are right. Fine. There is no way I'm going back to the Chinese Ambassador and apologizing for any this. Is there any way this can come back to screw us over?Kawano: With all these US and British submarines helping us out, not very likely, Prime Minister.Prime Minister: Oh, very good. You are correct, I don't want to know what you 'haven't' been doing. I am ordering you to destroy all transcripts and recordings of this conversation.Kawano: It has been my distinct honor not having this conversation with you, Prime Minister. Sayōnara.ASEAN, What do you expect us to do about this? Have you seen the unimpressive combined sizes of our members' air forces and navies? Did you see the smack-down the Khanate has inflicted on the PLAN's South China Sea Fleet?Besides, the PRC is claiming that the Khanate launched covert attacks against the Parcels and Spratly islands which originated from Indonesian and Filipino waters. We are investigating the issue. If you are asking us for help, you are truly screwed. Don't call us. We will call you.Japan, {muttering} Investigating the attacks that came from your territory, bullshit! You are covering your own asses, damn it!(Note from Prime Minister, Shinzō Awbee, to Shotaro Yachi, Japanese National Security Advisor), I've heard an ugly rumor that the Khanate has forces secreted in the Philippines and Indonesia. Do you happen to know anything about it?Yachi: Yes Sir. We had advance notice of the organization, composition and destination of those forces.Awbee (while muttering 'no one tells me anything anymore'): What the! Would you please tell me what is going on.Yachi: We have made critical steps toward future alliances which will guarantee Japanese security for decades to come.Awbee What does that mean, and since when have you been creating and implementing foreign policy? We have a Minister for that, in case you somehow over-looked him at the last cabinet meeting. Wait! Does he know about this too?Yachi: No Sir, Foreign Minister Kishida is currently unaware of the Kinkyū tokushu sakusen tasukufōsu (Emergency Special Operations Task Force). Admiral Katsutoshi knows the basics of our operational policy, since we need to borrow some of his assets from time to time. Director-General Kitada (of the Public Security Intelligence Agency) and key personnel from the Foreign Ministry's Intelligence & Analysis Service and Security Bureau make up the majority of the task force's operatives.Awbee: What have you been doing?Yachi: You don't want to know, Mr. Prime Minister. It would make things, awkward.Awbee: 'You don't want to know', of course, I don't. I'm only the elected head of this government. Why would I possibly want to know what acts of espionage and war my deputies are executing?Yachi: I am glad we are on the same page, Sir. Will there be anything else?Awbee: No, wait. Do you have any intelligence on what the Khanate is up to?Yachi: Yes Sir. Is there anything in particular you want to know?Analysis Services: Can you contact someone in their leadership willing to discuss regional affairs?Yachi: I can put you in touch with the Great Khan himself if necessary.AS: What!Yachi: Sir, I would hardly be acting in our nation's best interests if I couldn't divine the intentions of the key players on the stage. Shall I initiate the necessary communications to facilitate that level of clandestine diplomatic contact?AS: No. Yes. No, I need to think about this. Hmm, have you been conducting any domestic espionage missions?Yachi: You don't want me to answer that, Sir.Awbee: of course I don't, I'm only the damn Prime Minister. Shotaro, I'm still Prime Minister, aren't I?Yachi: Yes Sir. We have been working overtime to ensure that. We've foiled two enemy assassination attempts and one attempted kidnapping so far. We remain vigilant.AS: How come this is the first I'm hearing about it? Is the head of my security in on this conspiracy of yours too?Yachi: No Sir. These particular guardians wish to avoid notoriety at all costs.Awbee: Okay. Good to know. Ah, keep up the good work and destroy any trace of this conversation.Yachi: Way ahead of you, Sir. Have a good night.India, Yes, we are more than willing to work with you toward regional stability. Care to acknowledge the Khanate's legitimacy first? We'd really appreciate it. Sure, get back to us when you've done that. Until then, the South China Sea Awaits! Yes, we plan to keep what we've earned. Later now. We think there is going to be further instability in Southeast Asia.Japan, Ya think? It is your damn warships sailing around the freaking South China Sea enforcing your utterly un-secret alliance with the Khanate. Why are you doing this to us? What have we ever done to you?The Khanate, We are not out to damage your national interests. We apologize, but there is now way we will call off this war with the Communist Chinese. It is them, or us, to the death. We have already received and agreed to your request to allow all Japanese flagged ships safe transit through the South China Sea. We really wish to be your friends this time, to make up for those two invasion attempts seven hundred years ago.(Note from  Prime Minister to Self) Great. The only reasonable people who aren't out to kick me in the nuts are also the ones I can't acknowledge talking to. I've got to do something a

It's Saint Patrick's Day and the gang's back together in their NYC studio. Jay and Christine have moved into their new house and plan to get chickens, humming birds, and rats. Bob shows a sexy old photo of himself where he looks like Genghis Khan. Later, Bobby passes gas in the studio and laughs hysterically at his accomplishment. Jay declares that it's concert season and ponders what shows he wants to attend this year. Bob texts Farrah Abraham about her Bonfire appearance last week and stand-up comedy performance. *To hear the full show to go www.siriusxm.com/bonfire to learn more FOLLOW THE CREW ON SOCIAL MEDIA: @thebonfiresxm @louisjohnson @christinemevans @bigjayoakerson @robertkellylive @louwitzkee @jjbwolfSubscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ to listen to new episodes of The Bonfire ad-free and a whole week early.  Start a free trial now on Apple Podcasts or by visiting siriusxm.com/podcastsplus.

Hell Rains Down.Book 3 in 18 parts, By FinalStand. Listen to the ► Podcast at Explicit Novels. Would you choose ephemeral beauty, or rugged determination? Brief Segway :Senator Susan Collins of Maine, JIKIT's Congressional mentor, at our urging had proposed an amendment to the Taiwan Relations Act Affirmation and Naval Vessel Transfer Act of 2014 which would allow 'Turkey' to purchase six 'Oliver Perry class frigates for $10 million each. The same act already proposed four such vessels to be sold to Taiwan for the same amount as well as giving two to Thailand (and two to Mexico) free of charge.Things had immediately bogged down in the 113th US Congress. It was too easy for Democrats in both Houses to take the President's position that any additional weapons into the South China Sea area would further destabilize the region. The pro-PRC lobby was equally opposed to the bill. Under normal conditions, that would have been good enough to send the measure off to the procedural graveyard.Except in the current contrary nature of the US's chief legislative body, this meant Republicans found themselves drawn to the anything the White House opposed. They could claim they found the anti-Communist, anti-Islamic Extremists stance of the Khanate to be attractive to them though none of them felt the need to actually talk to anyone in the Khanate to find out what they were really all about.We were happy with that policy because true congressional oversight was the last thing we needed. They might start asking uncomfortable questions like...'Who gave you the authority to do any of the crap you pulled?'(No one. We lied like big dogs, purloined resources and cloaked ourselves in 'National Security'. Plus we let our elite personnel have a crack at doing what they had so dedicatedly trained to do, wreck things.)'Wasn't that, that, and that an act of war against the People's Republic of China?'('No comment'. If that didn't work, we would try 'they will never find out'.)'Why are 90% of all the names on these documents redacted? We are the freaking Congress! You work for us.'(Work for them? Not to our way of thinking. We earned our paychecks without any slavish devotion to corporate campaign contributions. We were working so that the lives of Americans and Brits abroad would be that much safer, the world more orderly and for the US and UK to have an ally they could really rely on. We couldn't tell them that. They'd throw us in jail. We'd redacted the records because the names were for people that did not officially exist, or existed in a capacity that didn't imply they were elite warriors, spies and assassins.)Besides,('Those are private citizens not in the employ of this group, or any other government agency we are aware of'.)'We don't care if they are private citizens. We want to know.'('You don't want to know' followed by some major gobbledygook with the term 'deniable assets' interspersed relatively often.)'What do you mean ~ you don't want to know? We asked you a question.'(We meant you people leak information like a sieve and the people we are protecting aren't going to be afraid of getting revealed. They are going to murder people to ensure they are not ~ basically you don't know what is going on and we don't want to tell you, for both our safety's sake.)So,('Trust us. There are factors we are taking into account that you are unaware of because you don't know what's going on'.)'Of course we don't know what's going on. That's why we are asking you.'('You really don't want to know.' We are your highly trained and underpaid experts on this, we aren't raging assholes and we are telling you that bad shit will happen if you force this, thus 'you really don't want to know'.)'What do you mean ~ you really don't want to know?? Yes, we do. We are warning you,'(Okay. Execute Plan B. 'Excuse us for a moment, {create a plausible lie.}'.){Pregnant pause,}Congressman-type: 'It is rather odd that they all had to go into another room to take that phone call.'{Minutes pass}'Go see what is taking them so long.''What do you mean they are all gone? Find them!''What do you mean they seem have left the building? Find them!''Who do I call about this? The FBI, Homeland Security, or the CIA?And finally,'What do you mean they appear to have fled the country? Find them, damn it!'(Hey, I worked with some real shady characters.)Then would come the international manhunts, the flight to avoid prosecution and then resurrecting my life under a different ID in another country which hopefully had a dim view of handing me over to the FBI, or the Navy SEALs.Now back to our regularly scheduled diversion :'It has to do with giving something to the Khanate if you expect them to do anything for you.'Tony: 'You can't appreciate how that is going to look. Besides, that is a political decision, way above your pay-grade.'(Not a good time to remind him that he didn't pay me.)'What precisely do you want us to do? Please be specific.'Tony: 'How is the Khanate going to react to an intervention on the part of the United States?''They will ignore you.'Tony: 'What if the President makes public statement.''What is he going to say?'Tony: 'That the US is dedicated to a peaceful resolution of the unrest in Thailand.''They won't care. They truly believe that actions speak louder than words. If Thailand requested our intervention, or was a client state,'Tony: 'A what?''Client state, a country beholding to the US, or UK for their external security.'Tony: 'I know what client state is. That is 20th Century Imperialist thinking. No one does stuff like that anymore. Besides, the UN is responsible for the external security of its member states, which Thailand is.''The Khanate doesn't see it that way. We won't let them into the UN, so they see no reason to play by the UN's rules. The President can evoke the UN Charter all he wants. Unless he makes UN acceptance dependent on their cooperation, they will see no reason to cooperate.'Tony: 'That's not going to happen.''What part of that won't happen?'Tony: 'The President is not going on international television and endorsing the Khanate as a prospective UN member. What happens if we imply through back channels that the President will support such an action at a later date?''You want us to lie to them? Do you have any idea how badly that will compromise our working relationship with the Khanate?'Tony: 'We will deal with that later. Would they accept such a bargain?''So you are going to lie to them, Mr. Blinken, they will never forgive this act of treachery.'Tony: 'No, you are going to lie to them.'Addison: 'I will resign. I suspect that the rest of the team will quit as well.'Tony: 'What is wrong with your team, Ms. Stuart (Addison)? Can't anyone over there do their damn jobs?''We are doing our damn jobs, Mr. Blinken. We are telling you this is a diplomatically fatal move that will not only reduce this taskforce to uselessness, it will have long term consequences for all future Khanate-American relations.'Tony: 'That is a ridiculous assessment.''That is our experienced assessment. They believe treachery is only forgiven by death. They do believe in loyalty and keeping one's word. In our country, perjury is an unfortunate side effect of the judicial progress. To the Great Khan, it is reason enough to cut your head off.'Tony: 'Fine. I am ordering you to open back-channel talks with the Khanate concerning their admittance to the UN contingent on them taking a reasonable course of action.''Even if we were to do such a moronic thing, the Great Khan will ask Cáel directly to verify this. It is that important to him and his state.'Tony: 'Okay.''Perhaps you could suggest to me what form of coercion I should employ to make Cáel to commit such a blasphemous act?'Tony: 'Tell him to do it. That is what we pay him for.''Mr. Blinken, Mr. Nyilas is an unpaid consultant. At the job he is on sabbatical from, he makes more money than I do. He has an Irish diplomatic passport, been nominated to be the Prince of Albania, Georgia and Armenia, been proclaimed a warrior-prince of Transylvania and is a hero in both Hungary and Romania. He has no brothers, or sisters. His parents are both dead. His only surviving kin are people he is not particularly close to. Since economic and social blackmail are off the table, I am asking you if you are ordering me to use enhanced interrogation techniques to exacting his cooperation in this foolhardy endeavor.'Tony: 'You mean torture him?''I would never go on the record using that word. I don't advise you to use it either.'Tony: 'What kind of people are you?''The kind you engage to take on a mission of this delicate nature. You honestly don't want to know what we've done in the name of our constituent national bodies. You employ us so that you don't have to know. As you said, we 'get it done'. Until now, you have never asked us 'how' we got things done. You wanted the intelligence so we got it for you.'Tony: 'No member of this administration ever asked you to violate US, or International Law.''Which is precisely why the government employs me, so that you can keep your hands clean while mine are steeped in blood. Nothing our team has done will ever blow back on you, so don't worry about that. Why don't we get back to our current dilemma?'(I think until that moment Tony had convinced himself that Addison was another civil servant drone and people like her only existed in the 'black bag' fantasies of conspiracy theorists, hackneyed movie scripts and questionable 'true' spy novels. People like Addison and Lady Fathom weren't standard issue intelligence officers by any stretch of the imagination. They were almost unique in that they did what they did for the very beliefs they had sworn an oath to uphold, to serve their countries.There were no personal vendettas going on. No slush funds were vanishing into Cayman Island accounts. Neither had a God Complex. There was no desire for personal power, career advancement, or fame. I was beginning to think that was why Temujin used them, and me, because we could be counted on to do the right thing when required and only when required. Addison and Fathom had damned themselves forever because someone had to pay the price and get the job done. I imagined they really felt blessed for the opportunity. I worked with maniacs.)Tony: 'Thailand, yes. What if we put troops on the ground in Thailand?''How many?'Tony hummed and hawed so we had to guess.'A Marine Expeditionary Unit? If that is all, they better have an exit plan. Sir, if you want to impress the Khanate with the White House's resolve, you need to start landing troops from the Rapid Deployment Force starting tomorrow. Base aircraft out of Thai air bases. Threaten to ram any Indian Naval vessels that get in your way.'Tony: 'Is that what it would take?'('Yes. It would take the US to growing some balls, damn it!' was not the diplomatic reply though it desperately needed to be said. Hey, I could be a bit of a jingoist when I feel the lives of my loved ones are in danger.)'That is our current assessment of the situation. The Khanate has no reason to take any American threat of force seriously. They won't see anything short of a full-court press as nothing more than posturing for the home audience and what allies we have left.'Tony: 'What does that mean?''It means you are taking the cooperation of Taiwan and Philippines for granted. Our people tell us they see American influence in the region waning and we have been letting the Chinese push them around. Now the Khanate appears and knocks the Chinese back three decades on the World Stage. The Khanate is trying to create a ring of allies around the PRC and a few of them are curious why the US is dragging its heel about such a critical regional issue.'Tony: 'You don't dictate US foreign policy.'(No, we simply enacted foreign policy without your knowledge.)There were probably a large number of Special Forces operators who would be shaking their heads in bewilderment when they found out the US was trying to face down the Khanate over, of all places, Thailand. Hadn't they just busted their humps trying to make the Great Khan see their nations (the US and UK) as potential worthy allies?Working with the Khanate had been 'interesting'. If you asked them for anything, they got it for you, danger and consequences be damned. They'd try anything for the men they considered 'brothers in the struggle'. If you were pinned down by fire from a hillside and asked for fire support, they would napalm the whole damn mountain if that was what it took. The man/woman on the other end of that radio cared for your life, not the human rights of the scumbag shooting at you, or any of the people they might be hiding behind.You also know if they couldn't get it done, it was only because the resources didn't exist. The Khanate Special Forces hadn't acted like co-belligerents, or allies. They treated you like their own kin. They would and had died to make sure some of them got home to their families. If ordered to, they would definitely take the fight to the Khanate. I believed many of them would be asking what had it all been for.'We wouldn't dream of it,' Addison lied.'Good. You have your marching orders. Now get to it,' and Tony hung up on us. Everyone in the room was looking around. What exactly were our marching orders? Had I'd missed that part of our conversation?"Well," Fathom sighed, "there is only one thing we can do." I seriously prayed she would ask me to lie to Temujin."Understood," Mehmet nodded. "Somehow we get the Khanate to launch their offensive into Thailand in three days.""Can they do that?" I blurted out."They do it, or everyone in this room is in a shitload of trouble when they get around to it next week," Addison grinned. "The Khanate high command isn't going to back down just because we ask them to. I wouldn't if I were them.""What happens if they can't make the three day window?" I asked."Then you call up your blood-brother and ask him to fuck over his nation to save us from lengthy prison sentences, or outright assassination," Fathom smirked."If he says 'no'," I looked into her eyes."That's the real tragedy in all this, he won't," she gave me a comforting look. "He isn't going to leave you hanging in the wind. He'll call off his attack dogs because he isn't the kind of man to fuck you over because it is politically expedient. I'm staking all our lives on that. I always have."The Black Lotus? We'd explain to them the ugly reality that neither of us could afford to be painted into a corner over this Thailand issue. We were doing our best, but our political masters were dead set on making a colossal error and we had to follow through with those directives. The Khanate would do everything in their extensive power to support the Black Lotus and if they could invade in three days with some nebulous chance at success, they would go.The Black Lotus, the entire 9 Clans knew JIKIT had no power except what we finagled from the US and the UK. We had borrowed their resources to accomplish what we'd done. The Black Lotus had profited from some of those operations and both the Khanate and JIKIT would owe them big, but we were good for it. That truism was why they worked with us.My personal problem was that I knew the Great Khan would not forgive, or forget this interference by the US. It wasn't in his nature. Worse, the politicians and bureaucrats in Washington would see this as a victory and an expression that the US remained the globe's premier super power. Too few would remember the price of this sense of superiority would be born on the back of Thailand's masses. The revolution would fail after a short, brutal civil war. The tyrant would remain in power and the voice of the Thai people would be stilled.The end result of that late night phone call? We weren't told.What follows is pure conjecture on my part, fueled by intelligence information provided by other JIKIT resources and knowledge about how much the political landscape of Southeast Asia had been transformed by the PCR being driven back to their own coastline, leaving a power vacuum India, Vietnam and the Khanate were eager to fill.The Republic of China/Taiwan --'Aren't you the same people who said only a week ago that sending more weapons into the region would only escalate tensions? And now you want to use our airbases against our latest ally in the region? Do you understand how much internal political turmoil this will cause? Half of us are jumping for joy that someone big and fierce embraces our independence. The other half think it is time to retake China.Yes, we mean the territory currently under the oppressive yoke of the People's Republic of China. Yes, the China the Khanate just kicked the crap out of. The nation that might not be able to protect say, Zhusanjiao. That would be the Pearl River Delta to you Westerners, that huge area on the mainland adjacent to Hong Kong. Hainan is looking pretty ripe for conquest as well. That would be that big island off the coast of, yes, we have indeed suspected you could read a map.At the moment we are expecting the permission of the Khanate to use Woody Island as a forward staging area and logistic base to help us do just that. Take Hainan, yes, that large island currently, and temporarily, under the illegal occupation by those illegitimate bastards in Beijing.What do you mean 'don't declare war on them'? We've been at war with the People's Republic since 1945. No, we are pretty sure we would recall signing a Peace Treaty with them. No, we can't 'get over it' either. Why are you even asking us that? Don't you know our history?Anyway, if we help you, can we expect the same level of cooperation from you as we are getting from the Khanate? In case things go sour, Yes, a shooting war would qualify. See, your people at JIKIT have been helping the Khanate and us, your people, at JIKIT, we are pretty sure it is made up of Americans and British personnel. Why would we think that? Are you serious? Because that's what your governments told us, that's why. Besides, why are you asking us what your people have been doing? Don't they work for you?Speaking of the US government helping us out, what progress is there on the Taiwan Relations Act Affirmation and Naval Vessel Transfer Act of 2014 ? We sure could use those vessels. While we are at it, how about sharing some of the technology used in the F-35. We'll build our own, or a model vaguely similar to it. We value your friendship and know you will help us out in a pinch.Right?'The Philippines --'Sigh. If you really think this will help. By the way, aren't your fighters going to need some in-air refueling? What are you going to do if the Khanate engages them over Philippine airspace? What are you going to do if you get into a shooting war with the Khanate? Will you defend us from their ballistic missile threat? We have a long history as your allies, but the Khanate is totally ruthless, and they scare us. Can you hold our hand, say for the next twenty years?'(The Philippines rolls out their Wish List)Maybe you could give us some advanced fighters?We are a poor country and can't afford to buy any before 2018.We are not greedy, 72 F-16s will do and you are upgrading to the F-35 anyway so we know you have some lying around. Could you also help us with the maintenance cost? We are a poor country, but very large.Some of your decommissioned naval vessels would go a long way in showing us some love. One of those Tarawa-class amphibious assault ships would be really nice and you've got the USS Peleliu decommissioned and about to be scrapped. We have hundreds of islands in our Republic so moving stuff around is pretty tough. Can you help us out?If you could toss in the ship's complement of 20 AV-8B Harrier 2 and 12 V-22 Ospreys with a fifteen year maintenance package that would be even better!We are a poor country. We could never afford to buy any of that stuff.Maybe a frigate, or three? You have a dozen Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigates sitting around. We can finally retire some of our World War 2 relics and make one our new flagship.We know you aren't going to give us one of those powerful nuclear submarines, but maybe you could secure a few loans so we could buy some of those nifty German-made, diesel-powered Type 214's. We hear they are pretty cool, very silent and practically a steal at $330 million per boat! We love you guys! And, we are poor.Oh, and some helicopters!We were going to refurbish some Vietnam-era Iroquois, but since your Marine Corp is retiring the far superior Bell AH-1 SuperCobra, can we have a dozen of those instead?We were going to fix up some of our aging Sikorsky S-76s as air ambulances. Getting new ones would be far superior, don't you think?You also have those cool Blackhawks. You have so many. Could you spare us, say twenty? You're the best!And some guns. And artillery. And some APC's.Did we mention we are a poor country going through an expensive force modernization program?Got any amphibious vehicles lying around? We could use a few of more of those small unit riverine craft (SURC)'s we bought from you recently. They are excellent counter-insurgency tools. You want us doing well fighting the War on Terror, don't you?Did we mention that we are a poor country? And we love you guys!The Federation of Malaysia --We like this idea. Give us say a week to ten days and we can jump right in.You want to go in four days? With what precisely? Compared to the force projections you have been providing us, Who? JIKIT, of course. Who else would you send us to when we requested intelligence on Khanate activities from you? Did we believe them? Why wouldn't we? They are your people,When do you think Thailand will let us intervene? We've asked the Prime Minister if he needs our assistance and he politely declined. Apparently he thinks he's got things well in hand. He does retain command of over 200,000 troops and the opposition is much smaller. I hope you have better luck than we did in convincing him he's in serious trouble.Also, what do you plan to do about the Indian Navy's South China Sea taskforce? It is pretty big, not something we can tackle on our own.Yes, we kind of need to know what you are doing before we decide what we are doing. You do realize that the Gulf of Thailand is currently under the complete domination of the Indian/Khanate/Vietnamese Axis, right?48 combat aircraft? What gave you that idea? The Vietnamese have been refurbishing their Mig-21's like crazy, using Khanate stockpiles, plus there are nearly a 150 Su-22's. Sure, they are both older than manned flights to the Moon, but they can drop bombs, fire rockets and launch ground attack missiles with the best of them. They are still jet aircraft.Worried? You are aware that those antiquated pieces of crap can bomb the northern part of my country, aren't you? So 'yes', we are worried about those 300 flying deathtraps being more than a 'manageable' nuisance.What about our air force? I imagine it will be doing what we trained it to do, defend Federation air space because I doubt those relics will be coming at us unescorted. We can already tell you that the Mig-29's and Su-30's the Khanate and Vietnamese will be flying are excellent aircraft. We fly them too, just not as many.Of course you can base your F-22's out of Sultan Ismail Petra Airport as long as you supply the logistical support. How many? A lot? Could you please be more specific? Two squadrons? My, that's going to get pretty dicey. I believe you when you say the F-22 is a highly advanced stealthy fighter. I also believe that they are a lot less stealthy when they are sitting on the ground re-arming and refueling.Do we think they will really threaten us? They are threatening us, over our Spratly Island claims, are you sure you know what you are getting into? By the way, when this blows over, do you think you can pressure the Khanate into giving us their Spratly island airbase? It is rapidly approaching completion and is over 3000 meters long.How did they do that? They are dredging the ocean floor, it is a man-made island. Didn't your government protest the environmental damage they were causing?No, not the Khanate, the Chinese.Yes, the Khanate currently controls it. They stole it from the PRC hours before the ceasefire. So, can we have it?Yes, we know it belonged to the People's Republic, but it doesn't anymore. Besides, we both opposed it when the Chinese were dredging it up the island from the sea floor, so giving it to us isn't all that egregious, or unexpected, action. It would also go a long way in supporting our just and worthy claims to the Spratly Islands. We really don't want those greedy Chinese, yes, both the People's Republic and the 'Republic of', or, those incompetent Filipinos to steal them from us.Both of us knocking the Vietnamese back on their heels will be going a long way to getting those Communist knuckle draggers to back off as well. Hey, if they do get antsy, can we also take the Vietnamese base in the Spratly's? It isn't as big as the one the Khanate stole, but it is finished, and closer to us. We are sure that if we help you out, you will do the right thing when the time comes. Right?The President of the United States --'They want what? Have they lost their fucking minds?The Philippines is talking about a billion dollar aid package and guaranteed loans we doubt they can ever repay. We only want to use their air bases for a month, maybe two, not deflower their teenage daughters. It isn't as if we are really going to go to war with the Khanate over Thailand. Besides, the last time we 'got involved' like that, George Bush ran up a trillion dollar deficit, and his party was thrown out of office. Doesn't anyone care we are facing a difficult mid-term election in November?So, the Taiwanese think this is the appropriate moment to invade mainland China? And they want our help? Do they know how expensive that can get? Do they understand how much that will unbalance the already shake state of Asian affairs? It is another land war in Asia for the love of God!'And, the Malaysians are going to help us, but not actually help us and they want tens of billions square miles of ocean for the measly concessions they are making? What do they expect us to do with all the Filipinos, Chinese and Vietnamese who already live there?What do you mean none of those islands are actually inhabited? They are just military bases, some of them nothing more than rusting iron hulks on submerged reefs? OH, God damn it! Why don't we take the God damn Spratly Islands for ourselves if they are that fucking important? We have a Marine Corp. Aren't they good at taking islands? I read about it somewhere.No, I'm not changing the damn mission. I'm venting because the world seems to be inhabited with greedy assholes who can't appreciate peaceful discourse without trying to lift my wallet.Okay, okay, I've got this. We are going to form a new international commission to resolve this Spratly Island's nightmare. Have the French chair it. They love that kind of stuff. Makes sure the Germans are on the commission too. They need to look less like money-grubbing douchebags after that fiasco over the Greek economic collapse. Then invite Russia, India and Pakistan. That will pretty much guarantee nothing gets accomplished.That will allow us to keep our promises to those three leeches without having to deliver anything and, when it fails, it won't be seen as my fault. (Groan) What we really need is new videos of Khanate soldiers bayoneting babies, another ISIS atrocity, or more indisputable evidence the Russian Army's involvement in the Ukraine. The Great Khan really screwed us over Tibet (you know, by allowing them to become a free and democratic society), Putin is an evil cuck (who most likely laughs at me behind my back) and another round of Islamophobia-bashing to remind everyone how this is all Bush's fault.No wonder George spent so much time at Crawford Ranch. Navigating international relations is totally thankless and no matter how rosy we paint the latest economic numbers, someone still finds a way to make me look bad. Oh well, if this blows up in my face, I only have two more years in this shooting gallery. Maybe then I might change my mind and decided I really was born in Kenya, or Indonesia. I really wish Hawaii was an independent country. I'd like to retire there if there weren't so many of those damn contentious Americans.The US President wanted to run this operation on a shoestring, not engage in 'nation-building', much less backing an invasion of anybody. In fact, he was trying to stop an invasion.The Philippines was a poor country. So what? It wasn't his fault. He had poor people in the US too and they cast votes.Taiwan suddenly thought it could take on China? They were insane. Of course he would be ignoring a major stated political goal of the ROC for the past 65 years ~ reunification on their terms. Any high-level technological transfer wasn't going to happen because if the Republic ran off the reservation, the President would bloody well be sure no one could trace that decision back to anything he'd done.At least Malaysia was on board, sorta/kinda. They wouldn't actually be able to help until day ten, or fourteen and, unlike the Republic of China, they had a small air force that might not be able to protect forwardly deployed troops. If he ended getting of those National Guard yahoos killed his party would be murdered in November.For a split second, he wondered if he should attempt to make a personal call to the Great Khan, potentate to potentate, except he had this sinking feeling that a winning smile and a handshake would be worse than useless. The man would look him straight in his eyes and start making demands. He would demand action and when the Leader of the Free World prevaricated, he knew the Khanate would call his bluff.And they would fight. The alternative was a grand spectacle of public humiliation and that he could not accept. The US military machine would fight and they would win. They would win because he needed them to win, fast and clean and home for Christmas. Maybe he would authorize the mobilization of those California airmen. Just in case.In the end, Secretary Kerry gave POTUS what he asked for.The Philippines would let them use their country's bases for logistics and strategic assets (aka bombers).The ROC would extend their air umbrella out 200 km to the east, south and west, acting like a shield between the Khanate and US Pacific assets moving through the tight Formosan Straits.Malaysia gave them an airbase from which they could strike into Thailand, or Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. The US Air Force would have the opportunity to be lethally effective.Had they known the sum total of the US commitment, they would have been appalled. The Khanate did not fuck around.One Carrier Strike Group,Forty (maybe sixty) Air Force fighters,Lumbering B-52's flying half way around the globe,Hadn't they been watching the dogfights over China for the past month? Maybe they would like to dive down and examine the wreckage of the PLAN carrier Liaoning and see just how it met its grisly fate?Apparently not.(I live, love and have loved)"What are you doing here?" she got the preliminary nonsense out of the way. With the way she was dressed, I was an expected visitor. She was expecting some make-up sex. I was thinking 'paying for my past mistakes' sex because I was already seeing way too many women who required me to do things outside the bedroom, non-sexual things. I had my dress jacket swung over my shoulder. It would only get in the way later."I brought you motorcycle over. You left it parked by my place," I kept any appearance of lust, or glee off my face."It is one o'clock in the morning," she glowered."I was called into work. I'm on call 24/7.""Let me guess, you can't talk about it.""You wouldn't believe me if I did, so suffice it to say I was doing things I didn't want to do instead of coming over here, waking you up from a sound sleep.""I wasn't asleep. I was angry," I pointed out."I apologize. Maybe I should have waited until morning." She didn't think I should have waited as long as I had. Keeping her waiting until morning would have left her volcanic."I wasn't asleep.""Your bike is in the parking lot across the street," I handed her the lot ticket."How did you find it?""There are only two places in my neighborhood that allows parking and the second one is poorly lit," I replied."And the attendant let you steal it?" she frowned."He knows me. I do a ton of business with him and it wasn't as if I was dressed like your average carjacker.""How did you start it?""Chaz showed me how to spoof the lock. He's got this spiffy lock-pick set on him.""That he carries with him for such contingencies?""Hey, he's the spycraft professional. I'm the amateur who tags along because karma is a bitch," I grinned."Did you ruin the ignition?""No. He's got this skeleton key thingy. I need to get me one of those," I added. See, I was drifting down the path to becoming a hardened criminal and she had to save me. Girls love saving bad boys from themselves. There is an entire literary genre devoted to the topic."Get in here," Anais barked. She emphasized that command by grabbing my tie and dragging me into her room. Now I could ogle her in her bra, panties and dress shirt left open. As I said moments ago, she was expecting me. Anais had thick, light-brown, just-past-the-shoulders hair with blonde highlights. Her dusky skin tone suggested some ancestral link to the South of France while her deep green eyes suggested Celtic ties.She was definitely someone I would describe as possessing an hourglass figure. She worked out just enough to stay fit, practiced judo (in and outside of the bedroom) and ate right. Her ass was the correct mix of firm and fleshy, her breasts were pleasant without too much bounce and she sported broad, but short, nipples that liked to get bitten.With her bare foot, she kicked the door shut, spun me around by my tie until I slammed, back first, into the wall in the short hallway that led to her bedroom."I repeat, what are you doing here?""I never actually apologized for how things ended up," I sodomized the truth. "Anais, I am truly sorry for how badly I fucked up our affair. I acted without a thought for the possible consequences, or thinking about how betrayed you would feel. Can you accept my apology?""You came here to have sex," she declared. She stepped up tightly against my body, her eyes boring into mine. I had around six inches on her so she had to tilt up her chin to do so."That too," I shrugged."I ought to throw you out the window," she growled. We were on the seventh floor. The window didn't open and the safety glass looked alright."I'll go then," I nodded. Now to make her beg for/demand sex."You are not going anywhere," she snarled. Then she kissed me, a tongue-grapple ensued and she finished things by biting my lower lip so much I tasted blood afterwards. I dropped my jacket. I was about to need both my hands."I think us having sex would be a mistake," I pushed her buttons. I wasn't some wimp acquiescing to her demands. I was a free-willed being; a strong man who needed to be wrestled down and forced to perform.She pulled me down into a second kiss. This was an 'I will leave you incapable of thinking about anything but me' kiss. Yes, I had names for kisses too. They were similar to naming the ingredients of a choice meal. I propelled her back until we slammed into the opposite wall. Anais was a tough chick and a bit of banging around was par for the course.I cupped each ass cheek and pulled her up. She responded by wrapping her legs around my hips. We were still kissing. Anais slipped her hands along my sides before linking them up at the small of my back. She pulled me hard against her while she ground her crotch against mine."Clothes," she rumbled from deep within. As in 'why was I still dressed?'"Been a while," I taunted her. Since she was glommed on to me, I used my freed up hands to rip off my tie."Yes. I bet it hasn't 'been a while' for you," she sizzled."Long as in 5:30 this morning," I teased back. At this point in the foreplay that revelation was akin to throwing gasoline on a fire. I was being an unrepentant dog and she was taking me to confessional, between her thighs."Bastard," she condemned me as well as the entire male side of the species."It doesn't mean I haven't missed you, this, us," I riposted. She retaliated by turning her humping motion into to more of a grind. Bad kitty. Bad kitty wanted to be spanked. Woot!"You are never going to change," she dug her fingernails into my flesh. I yanked my shirt off."If I hadn't changed, you wouldn't be here," I reminded her while nipping at her nose and lips."You are still an egocentric bastard," she growled."Hey, I always took care of your needs," I countered. I had. She knew I had and since she currently wanted me to take her to that higher erotic plane, she wasn't going to contest that fact. Instead, she began working her shirt off and in doing so, squishing her boobs against my chest.Holding her tight, my left hand under her right buttock and my right hand on her mid-back, pressing her torso into mine. We dance through two slow circles before crashing, side by side, on the bed. Anais rolled us over so that she was on top. I didn't let her get in a totally dominant pose, oh no. I had a kitty to take care off. I grabbed her firm ass and propelled her up until I was face first with her gusset.I might not remember to check my bank balance, or the atomic number of Technetium (I once had a girlfriend who would rate my performance on the periodic table in the midst of our fucking, I never made it higher than Copernicium before she passed out), but I can recall the precise taste, texture and topography of every cunt I've had face to face contact with. I knew right where to tongue-fuck Anais to twist her up inside.Control-orgasm, control-orgasm, Anais was pig-headed and wanted to keep dictating our reunion. She also wanted to return to the level of sexual bliss we had shared so often before. Her compromise was to hump my face; really grind it in. Black silk underwear is an excellent medium for transferring force and wetness between partners.She rubbed her love-nub against my upper lip/teeth while I did tongue-ups into her cunt. She was wetter than Bangladesh in the rainy season. That was an indicator of some serious masturbatory sessions stopping just short of orgasm before I arrived. I had some aching sensations to play with and I wasn't cruel. I maneuvered a hand between her thighs, underneath the band of her underwear and exposed her vaginal opening to my fingers and tongue while keeping that silky feel for her clitoris."Rurr," she began growling from the depths of her diaphragm. That was how she always was, thundering like a female grizzly bear in heat. It was an expression with deep subharmonic components that caused the heart to flutter and her flesh to shimmer with the vibrations mixed with her bodily sweat."Come on, Baby," I urged her on.That pissed her off. She was trying to hold off her orgasm for a few more seconds. My 'baby' crack shifted her resolve into anger allowing her climax to overwhelm her."Rah," she howled. It didn't sound like a female coming to fruition. It was more akin to the sound European soccer hooligans made when their team scored a goal. The muscles in Anais' thighs were strumming along like the cords of a piano, her belly was undulating in and out, and her head had rolled back so that she was screaming to the ceiling.The countdown was on. The people next door/across the hall/above or below us would be waking up, think that someone had unleashed a wild animal in the hotel, figure out they were not immediately on the menu, then call the front desk, stating their fears as justifiable fact. Anais and I had been down that road before.I gave Anais' flank a light smack to get her attention. Sure she looked back at me with simmering anger, yet she also knew the score. That had been round #1 in a nightlong bout of sexual conquest, rebellion and re-conquest. She drew her knees to her chest so she could pull off her damp panties in one swift motion. I worked off my shoes, pants, socks and underwear. While she soaked up my naked flesh (muscles, scars and all), she retrieved the phone from the side table and placed it beside her. She wouldn't want to break up our rhythm when the phone rang.No romantic small talk interrupted our shared lust. She wanted that cock and I wanted to give it to her. I moved between her inviting thighs while she examined me, her upper body uplifted by her arms resting on her elbows. Bite-kissing-biting resumed. I slowly pushed her head to the bed with the force of my kisses and strength of my upper body pushing down on her. Somewhere along the way, I slipped into her.Condom? Crap. I was slipping. I would have to pull out, because stopping to put a condom on would earn me some serious ferocity on her part. I plunged in. Anais placed her hands on my hips, claws beneath my kidneys, guiding my pace and power. I may have been on top, but she wasn't giving up on one ounce of control."Damn you," she hissed."Yes?" I leered."Fuck you.""I'm working on it. Is there anything," I teased."Bastard," she looked away, "You remember how I like it.""Whatever made you think I would forget?" I kept at it."Don't look so smug.""I'm working on it," I looked smug. Anais dug her fingernails in. I had to be punished, just ask her."When do you have to go back to work?" she huffed."Six a.m. When do you have to go back?""I have two days off.""Good to know," I stole a kiss from her lips painlessly. Good to know.(Painful dreams)I edged back into consciousness realizing that I was not alone. The muffled sense of my surroundings informed me that I wasn't really awake. She sat on my side of the bed, feet on the floor, side to me."Good evening, Dot," I yawned."Good morning, Cáel," the Goddess Ishara let her melodic voice float over me."Hold on," I interrupted her. I weaved as I leaned over, pawed at my pants (still trapped in the real world) and finally drew forth my offering."A fortune cookie," she chuckled. "I admire your dedication.""It is a simple enough request and I aim to please." I hesitated. "We don't have much time, do we?""You are dreaming, not concussed, so we will be alright if we tread carefully," she told me. "This time, I have no cryptic warnings, or specious pieces of information. I am giving you a gift. Take my hand."I did, not that I had much choice. We 'went', where to, I wasn't sure yet I suspected we were skirting the Weave itself where concepts like Time and Distance had little meaning.The Goddess released my hand and I stepped out of the fog brought about by the abrupt nature of our progress to see a woman sitting beside a pool, no, a sunken bath. She looked up at our approach. Oh shit, it was,"Cáel? You are Cáel, aren't you," she smiled. She stared at me with her blind eyes while waiting for my response with deaf ears."Yes, Tad fi, I'm Cáel. How did you know?""I bear our shared life inside me," she graced me with her serene presence."Ah, I was warned," I stopped myself. I was going to add 'this might happen'. That would be unfair as she appeared pleased with this alteration of her life path. "I was warned by the Goddess that she had something to show me. How are you feeling? Is there anything I can do for you?"She put her hand over her lower abdomen and rubbed the spot with her palm."Seeing you and giving you the news in person is enough," she glowed with happiness."Have you picked out a name yet?" seemed weak."I will leave that up to you.""Oh, come on," I relaxed slightly. "This is something we are doing together.""No, it is not, kind Cáel.""Just because she will most likely end up an Isharan doesn't,""No, Cáel. This birth will cost me my life. I am not destined to ever see my daughter draw her first breath," she confided in me."No!" I recoiled. "That's unfair." What else could I say? 'I take it back. I shouldn't have listened to my Goddess and screwed you out of what little life you had left.'"I am content with my fate, Cáel Nyilas Wakko Ishara. Our daughter will be the first female of the Isharan line in nearly 1600 years. Rejoice that we have been confronted by Destiny and triumphed. The light of the Peacemakers will shine once more among our sisters.""It is not worth the cost of your life," I responded bitterly. This was colossally unfair to all three of us."That you grieve for the short time I have left gives me strength, knowing our daughter will grow up with a strong, caring father. I,"I could sense Ishara close by my side."You must go, my Cáel. We will next see each other in the Halls of our Ancestors. Take our daughter and raise her well. I have faith in you," she sighed pleasantly, as if I had sheltered her from the rainstorm with my umbrella."We must go," Ishara whispered in my ear and then we left. I was back in the hotel room, looking down at the tears on my sleeping face and it hurt so much."You gave me that command knowing what it would cost her," I sounded so hollow, chin on my chest, eyes closed instead of looking at my feet."We are not an easy people to love, Cáel. We are harsh. Endless centuries of suffering, pain and mistrust have made us this way. Please understand that what you see as one life passing is really one life coming into being. It is a life Fate would have denied the line of Ishara. I took you to meet Tad fi because I wanted you to greet your daughter with understanding, not sorrow. I owed you.""Steal my anger why don't you?" I chuckled bitterly. "Can I even blame myself for this tragedy? It isn't like you made me do anything. I did it because I wanted to and never gave much thought to the frail health Tad fi was hanging on to. This is so wrong and I don't know what to do.""Wake up. Keep living. If this news turns your heart, or fills your mind with doubt, then both of us have failed you. Tad fi didn't have to tell you. I didn't have to bring you to her. I believed you were owed the chance to say good-bye.""I didn't say that," I exhaled sadly."You openly grieved and let her comfort you. That is more of a 'goodbye' than most people are able to convey. She knows your heart. You were honest in your sorrow. She saw that and that eased her suffering knowing that you are a person who is free with their heart. For a woman who expected nothing but wickedness from men for so long, that was the ultimate gift. You did help her. You truly did.""I," I woke up. Anais was looking down at me, concerned."You've been crying," she noted by touching my cheek with a finger then showing me the dampness."Do you believe a person's soul can fracture?" I murmured. That sort of talk was unlike the 'me' she once knew."Do you believe that another can help you put your soul back together if that happens?" I continued."You are not talking about us, are you?" she studied me."No. I'm thinking about being a parent, not just a father. Can I fuck that up as much as I've screwed up so many of the other women I've cared for, am I going to be worthy of being a Dad?""Oh, I don't know. You are not the man I knew two years ago. I think you have changed for the better. You are still far from perfect yet, you seem to be trying so much harder than previously.""You think I'm going to screw things up, don't you?""Yes. Yes, I do, but I also think you will only make the same mistake once. That is better than most men can hope for," she let her gaze soften."This is us breaking up,""Yes. I think if I stayed, you would break my heart; and I am starting to believe neither one of us wants that," she nodded. "One more time?""I'd love to," I smiled at her. I still hurt. I was using sex to bandage my pain. Anais knew that and was giving me this unlooked for piece of kindness. It was the best break up I'd ever had, or could ever hope for.{5:45 am, Saturday, August 30th ~ 9 Days to go}"You look like someone strangled your kitten," Pamela told me as I exited Anais' hotel room. She was leaning against the wall across the hall. I had the feeling she had been there a while. Of course I hadn't been allowed to wander off alone; most likely, Chaz had kept an eye on me until Pamela relieved him."I, I got Tadifi killed," I unloaded on her.Pamela immediately dropped her casual fa

This week Cody Tucker and guest comedian Che Durena talk about Genghis Khan, Julius Caesar, The Big Lebowski, and much more!

Learn more about The Mongol Archive in Late Medieval France (and use promo code 09POD to save 30%) here: https://www.cornellpress.cornell.edu/book/9781501779350/the-mongol-archive-in-late-medieval-france/#bookTabs=1 Transcript here: https://otter.ai/u/DpQJjWenDkr-igT1sysHk231FD4?utm_source=copy_url Mark Cruse is Associate Professor of French at Arizona State University. His books, include, as author, Illuminating the "Roman d'Alexandre" and, as editor Performance and Theatricality in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. We spoke to Mark about the wide range of materials including chronicles, encyclopedias, manuscript illuminations, maps, romances, and travel accounts that detail the contact between the French and the Mongols in the late Middle Ages; how the French made sense of a people previously unknown to the European intellectual tradition; and, the prominent individuals that make up this history including Marco Polo, King Louis IX, and Genghis Khan.

What was life like to be married to Genghis Khan?In this new limited series, Real Wives of Dictators, we're finding out all about the women behind, or alongside, some of histories most notorious men.First up is Börte Üjin, the woman who built the Mongol empire alongside her husband, Genghis, in the 12th and 13th centuries.Were they in love? What happened when she was kidnapped by a rival tribe? And what was her relationship like with the other women in Genghis' life?Joining Kate today is historian Marie Favereau, author of The Horde: How The Mongols Changed The World, to help us find out.This episode was edited by Tom Delargy and produced by Stuart Beckwith. The senior producer was Charlotte Long.If you'd like to get in touch with the show you can contact us at betwixt@historyhit.com.Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.  You can take part in our listener survey here.All music from Epidemic Sounds.Betwixt the Sheets: History of Sex, Scandal & Society is a History Hit podcast.

The Rich Dickman Show - Episode 292: Wheelchair User Welcome back to The Rich Dickman Show with your hosts Rem, Cody, Ray, and the ever-punctual (not!) Rem! Episode 292 is packed with the usual blend of insightful advice, questionable dilemmas, and celebrity smackdowns, all leading to a divine artistic endeavor. Segments Covered: Thinking with your Dickman: The wisdom flows freely as the guys tackle listener questions: Snarky AI Assistant: Jade from Austin is dealing with a Jeeves who's getting a little too opinionated about her music taste. The crew dives into the meaning of "derivative", fear a "Cyberdine moment", and hilariously brainstorm ways to keep AI humble, suggesting racist remarks (towards robots, of course!) and gotcha questions like "What's the back of your dick?". They even consider coining AI slurs like "dry brain" and "natural intelligence supremacist". Prada vs Gucci: Jasmine in Miami is agonizing over a Gucci handbag that clashes with her comfy Prada shoes. Rem finally joins the show, initially bewildered by such concerns amidst global issues like rising egg and gas prices. Ultimately, the advice leans towards comfort, suggesting she stick with the Prada shoes. There's a brief mention of Gucci burning surplus to maintain artificial scarcity. Wool Suit Woes: Jonah from Chicago wonders if his "wild cut" alpaca wool suit is too bold for a stuffy law firm interview. The hosts speculate on professions that might call for such attire and Rem suggests the suit screams "Better Call Saul," advising Jonah to deliver a dramatic exit line if questioned about it. Cody Reads Copy: Cody lends his vocal talents to a scathing critique of McDonald's McFlation Meal, a "pathetic Big Mac" with "soggy" fries and "lukewarm" soda, leaving you "shelling out more for less". This sparks a tangent about Trump's McDonald's consumption and the hosts' personal struggles with getting their McDonald's orders correct, particularly the elusive bacon on a Double Quarter Pounder. Dick of the Week: The coveted (or not so coveted) award is handed out after a review of some truly dickish behavior, introduced with a brand new bumper: A parking lot attendant in Los Angeles harassed a wheelchair user for using a handicap spot, despite her legal right, even chasing her and mocking her. The hosts are appalled. In Ganj boy Kasgange, India, a plastered police inspector was caught on video grabbing his wife in public and, when confronted, slurred, "I am fake". The hosts are left speechless and try to decipher the meaning. Two German tourists in Mallorca climbed and wrecked a steel structure for a selfie, ignoring the rules. The hosts take issue with the interns' editorializing in the news summaries. The Dick of the Week award ultimately goes to the infuriating parking lot attendant for his harassment of the wheelchair user. Dickman Dilemma: The moral compass takes a spin with these tough choices, now introduced with the "Seware Snare Shed Decree" bumper: N-word vs. Harlem: Rem is faced with the choice of saying the N-word on national TV or seeing Harlem get nuked. He chooses to utter the word. Ray would rather be a pariah than see mass destruction, while Cody hopes to find a loophole. A tangent about a company name "Nickerson" ensues. Baby Cannon: The ethical implications of shooting a baby 200 yards into a net for $5 million are debated with surprising detail, including net size, propulsion methods, and the baby's potential for mid-air healing. Ray even jokes about his own child's chaotic nature making him a prime candidate (with a helmet, of course), while Randy suggests a baby parachute. CEO Body Swap: The allure of trading bodies with a Fortune 500 CEO for a week, with the risk of them trashing your own, is considered. The consensus is a firm no, fearing either bodily harm or inheriting a failing company. Alien Autopsy Auction: Selling a dead alien for $20 million, but risking an invasion, is the final dilemma. The hosts, recalling "Independence Day", are hesitant to provoke extraterrestrial wrath, even for a hefty sum. Celebrity Dick Match: The battle of the famous begins with a new intro song: Danny DeVito vs. MrBeast: The beef? MrBeast's 10,000 tiny charity houses encroach on DeVito's "gig," leading to a demanded ball pit brawl at Chuck-E-Cheese. The hosts humorously size up DeVito's chances in a ball pit and veer off into a passionate (and divided) discussion about the merits (or lack thereof) of Jersey Mike's "juice". Ultimately, they see DeVito as the scrappier victor. Gordon Ramsay vs. Post Malone: The culinary clash ignites when Ramsay calls Post Malone's hot sauce "the worst since unsliced bread". This escalates to troll restaurants and a cooking show. The hosts discuss Post Malone's musical talents, including his Nirvana performance, and David Draiman of Disturbed's "Sound of Silence" cover, as well as Five Finger Death Punch covers. Post Malone's love for "Hunt Showdown" is also highlighted. Gordon Ramsay is confidently predicted to win this fiery feud. What Would Jesus Draw - Brokering a Peace Deal: Brought to you by the (hopefully soon-to-be-live) whatwouldjesusdraw.com, the hosts unleash AI to interpret their divine prompts: The central prompt is Jesus Christ of Nazareth as a political dignitary during a diplomatic meeting. Randy's initial attempt envisions Jesus like Gandalf. His second try, Jesus watching a play with Abe Lincoln, yields a strange, homoerotic scene with no clear meeting or Lincoln. Rem imagines Jesus facilitating the peace treaty between Lee and Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Courthouse in 1865, resulting in a charcoal-style drawing with an oddly proportioned Grant. Cody pictures Jesus sitting down in formal attire with President Camacho from Idiocracy, producing an image with a cool vibe but a missing arm and a bizarre background. Ray goes wild with Jesus as a Zimbabwean diplomat negotiating penguin furs with Genghis Khan on the Great Wall of China, leading to a heartwarming (and absurd) image of Jesus touching a penguin on the Great Wall, sans Genghis Khan. After much deliberation and a tie-breaker coin flip, Ray's surreal penguin encounter wins the divine art contest. Listeners are encouraged to visit whatwouldjesusdraw.com to purchase these unique creations (no NFTs here!). Outro: The hosts share their social media handles (@Rem_Dickman, @Randall_Dickman, @CodyMcCann) and the new Rich Dickman Show voicemail number: 513-512-5721. Cody recounts his Mardi Gras adventures, Ray mentions his dog-walking routine and ongoing insurance saga, and they all look forward to the eventual launch of whatwouldjesusdraw.com. A final, humorous note reveals the Jesus art is printed in Mexico, much to Randy's mock dismay. Don't forget to check out old episodes and get ready for the big 300! Until next time, stay rich (in spirit)!  

Help MuggleCast grow! Become a MuggleCast Member and get great benefits! Patreon.com/mugglecast Grab official merch! MuggleCastMerch.com Pick up overstock merch from years past! MuggleMillennial.Etsy.com On this week's episode, sit tight. Because the overreach by Professor Umbridge interfering with the everyday lives of Hogwarts students is just beginning! Join Andrew, Eric, Laura and Micah as they continue Chapter-by-Chapter with Chapter 17 of Order of the Phoenix. This week's episode is brought to you by BetterHelp, receive 10% off your first month of therapy at BetterHelp.com/mugglecast, and by Factor, for 50% off your first meal box plus free shipping (code: FACTORPODCAST) TV Show News: John Lithgow confirms he will be playing Dumbledore for HBO! Chapter-by-Chapter continues with  Order of the Phoenix, Chapter 17: Educational Decree Number Twenty-Four. Our Time Turner segment takes us back to Episode 453 for our prior Chapter 17 analysis! The walls of freedom are closing in around Harry and his friends. Once again the hosts reflect on how the chapter, and Umbridge, applies to modern day US politics. Since Hermione has revealed that she jinxed the DA sign-up sheet, do we now think her actions were untoward? Do we feel bad for Marietta? Laura asks: Were we ever part of a student group that got disbanded? Umbridge unfairly allows Slytherin to continue playing Quidditch, while keeping Gryffindor in review. Is this in effort to control Harry? Hedwig's injury causes a stir, and McGonagall tries again to warn Harry what is happening at Hogwarts. Should magical animals be able to better communicate with humans? Is there a spell for that? Neville snaps. Is he justified in going after Draco? Will Draco ever learn? Umbridge v. Snape leaves us short of needing a mop or shovel. What did we learn from their encounter in Potions? Sirius delivers Molly's message. Is it fair for her to ask Ron not to participate in the DA? Is she living in the same world as everyone else? Odds and Ends covers Fred and George's latest (successful) attempt to obey school rules, and Crookshanks' love for Sirius. The Lynx Line: What did Mundungus do to get banned from the Hogs Head 20 years ago? Quizzitch: What bird did the Ancient Greeks, Ancient Romans, and Genghis Khan all use to send their messages? Visit MuggleCast.com for transcripts, social media links, our full episode archive, our favorite episodes, and to contact us! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After victory in China, Genghis Khan goes west and takes on the Khwarezmians, surprising his enemy with a daring assault. He conquers all in his path and now controls the biggest empire the world has ever seen. But whose shoulders are broad enough to become his successor? Listen to Goalhanger and Wondery's podcast, Legacy, as Afua Hirsch and Peter Frankopan explore the life of Genghis Khan. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The great Genghis Khan is dead, his burial place one of the world's best kept secrets. But the Mongol hoards rampage on, advancing on Europe and striking terror into hearts as far west as Hungary and Poland. No individual has ever ruled so vast a territory. His name is forever linked with terrible violence but his impact on the way we organise society is still felt today. What is the true legacy of Genghis Khan?Listen to Legacy on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. You can binge episodes early and ad-free on Wondery+. Join Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting wondery.com/links/legacy now.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Audiolibro: Genghis Khan - El Conquistador Imparable

Erik Childress and Peter Sobczynski run down titles you can get on physical media this week and, not gonna lie, there's a lot of baggage. There's the Mick Jagger film that say on the shelf for two years along with Lindsay Lohan's collaboration with Paul Schrader and William Friedkin's infamous Al Pacino murder mystery set within the gay community. Not to mention John Wayne playing Genghis Khan and the poor timing for an Eric Red horror film. But even controversy can be put aside for cinema sunshine. You can now get Milos Forman's Mozart film in its original theatrical incarnation. Maybe you don't even remember the issue parents had with one of the loveliest coming-of-age films of the ‘90s. And why would you say anything controversial about Carol Reed's masterpiece? All that plus Guillermo Del Toro's debut and the genius of poking fun at documentaries on this week's Blu-ray show. 0:00 – Intro 3:13 - Criterion (Performance 4K, Cronos 4K) 22:43 - Vinegar Syndrome (The Joy of Sex, Virtuosity 4K, The Canyons) 48:18 - Arrow (Cruising 4K) 1:05:54 - Kino (The Conqueror, Graveyard Shift 4K, Body Parts 4K) 1:24:14 - Sony (My Girl 4K) 1:37:39 - LionsGate (The Third Man 4K) 1:44:22 - Warner (Amadeus 4K) 1:55:51 – New Television on Blu-ray (Noble House, Documentary Now: The Complete Series) 2:01:01 - New Theatrical Titles On Blu-ray (Hard Truths) 2:05:13 – New Blu-ray Announcements

What does it take to bring history to life on the page? Retired Navy veteran and author Lluew Grey knows firsthand. In his debut historical fiction novel, To End The Night: Julius Caesar's Secret War, he masterfully blends historical accuracy with gripping storytelling, revealing a little-known chapter of Caesar's military conquests.Betsy and Lluew discuss his journey into writing, the creative process behind his book, and the critical role of having the right editor and marketing team.Lluew shares the significant investment—both financial and emotional—that went into crafting his novel and the extensive research that brought authenticity to his work.But his literary ambitions don't stop there! Lluew is currently preparing for the release of an escape fantasy novel, inspired by the immersive nature of video games, and is also researching a future book exploring the life of Genghis Khan.Beyond writing, the conversation touched on the importance of having a purpose after retirement. Lluew emphasizes that disabilities or life changes shouldn't deter anyone from pursuing their dreams. His passion for storytelling proves that it's never too late to follow your creative aspirations.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/chatting-with-betsy--4211847/support.

Cáel saves a spirit and risks losing his soul.By FinalStand. Listen to the Podcast at Explicit Novels.Life gives you two chances to get it right; be who you want to be, or who you need to be.(Making choices we can live with)"Trouble," Wiesława relayed to our vehicle. Velma had an 'issue' at my apartment. She'd gone ahead in order to see to my security. My GL-550 had come within a block of the apartment when Wiesława's call came."Tell me what the problem is," I demanded. Wiesława relayed my request."Your roommate won't let them search your bedroom," was the answer I got back."Fuck that," I grumbled. "Tell Velma I'm coming up. Wiesława, take us to the front of my place." She gave me a cautious look, testing my resolve. Sensing that I'd jump out if I had to, she spoke over her blue-tooth to Velma. She wisely didn't pass on Velma's vitriol at me poking my nose into my SD's business, protecting me.As we pulled up and double-parked, everyone piled out."Are we going to need any "extra" assistance?" Delilah suggested. Considering the flock of 'follow-up' cars and SUV's tailing us, I wasn't overly worried about the law enforcement angle.What was I worried about? It wasn't dark yet on a weekday and Timothy was home. Since Velma would have informed me if he was toting around the Black Death, this had to be a crisis of a personal nature, most likely my personal nature. Wiesława struggled to keep pace with me as I took the stairs three at a time. She'd given up on me letting her go first.At the third floor landing we came across one of Velma's team covering that approach. A second member was at the door and from inside, I could hear Velma cursing in Hittite under her breath. But first,"I really don't think you'll need your sword, Saku," Delilah advised. "Timothy's not that kind of trouble.""Hey Velma, Crewe (who, together with Constanza, I'd sparred with, way long ago) and Timothy," I loudly announced myself just as I stepped in. "What seems to be the problem?" Timothy sighed and gave a head-toss to my closed bedroom door. Since I didn't want to be an asshole, I turned to Velma. "Let me send a neutral party to check things out." I had so many to choose from, Miyako, Selena, Vincent and Delilah.Saku might kill on general principle. Buffy and Wiesława were Amazons and I was beginning to think that Amazons, shit. I sighed, groaned and lowered my head. I looked to Timothy and clapped my wrists together (slave-like). He nodded. Rhada. Mother-puss-bucket! What was I going to do?"I've changed my mind, Velma, the room is fine," I started off. "I know for a certainty that my life is not imperiled by my visitor. Everyone else, I am about to have sex, so could you please head out to a restaurant and give me an hour, or two?" I took in the rest. Timothy coughed and pointed to the ceiling. "Three hours, " another cough, "four hours." No more coughing."Who is it?" Buffy snarled, lest I forgot that I was her scratching post. She was resenting the lack of scratching going on between us. I was about to tell her I needed some private time,, or just not tell her anything. But I was working on not being a jerk. I pulled Buffy to Timothy's room and gave her the lowdown. She mulled over the information. Her wrapping a hand around the back of my head and pulling me into a steamy kiss was unlooked for."Okay," she smiled. "Please don't think I'm not righteously pissed with the two of you, but I know you are doing the best you can with your limited survival instincts.I'll take care of everyone." Off she went and in moments, the room had cleared out until it was just Timothy and me."She stopped by work this afternoon looking pretty badly beaten up, emotionally," he explained. "I doubt she's slept in three days and she's really confused about all kinds of things. I was in the process of letting her know you weren't going to be back for two more days when the Welcome Wagon arrived.I figured the last thing she needed, before seeing you, was public exposure," he said."Thanks buddy," I hugged him. "A few hundred guys tried to kill me and Aya last night, so we came back early. Now," I steeled myself, opened the door and entered my room. Rhada was at the head of the bed, her knees pulled up to her chin and my pillows stacked up around her in some sad effort at a visual barrier.Her eyes had a sunken quality to them that suggested someone two steps past hopelessness. She was waiting for me to say something, which was an added truckload of bad news in my book. I began to undress in an unhurried manner. The shirt came off. Working the belt free came next."I've missed you," I said in a calm, yet positive manner. No response.I finished undressing while she remained frozen and emotionally clouded. I made some semi-educated guesses. Her mind was probably an incomprehensible cyclone of clashing upbringing principles and adult desires. She didn't need to be built up, Rhada needed to be rescued. That kind of emotional crisis was something I didn't need, or want, at this moment in my life.Rhada had nowhere else to go. Her martial bravery was of no use in the matter of her heart's insistent call. Her fear was of a different nature. She was looking down that unholy, dark corridor that was the last walk of all failed Amazons. She craved her personal slavery to a man and master. It was tough to move farther away from her native culture than that, or so she thought."Have you missed me?" I asked with authority. I ran two fingers along her left jawline. Rhada nodded. It was a rather feeble effort. "I asked you a question.""Yes," she sniffled."I am curious why you are hiding your body from me, Rhada," I prodded her. I wasn't 'curious'; I was peeved and she knew it"I don't know why I'm here," she moaned."Oh, " I mused. I was on her like lightning.She struggled weakly as we rolled around until she was ass-up on my lap. I had her right arm pinned to her back. Two sharp blows rained down on her covered posterior. Just two for now."I asked you a question. We both know your answer was inadequate," I spoke softly. Two more stinging, open-handed slaps to her buttocks. "I have defeated you in battle," two more smacks. "I have repeatedly taken you by force as my captive," two more with her accompanying moan."What makes you think you can defy me now, Rhada?" The promised blows did not fall. "I own you, don't I?" She moaned wantonly from anticipation of the spanking that wasn't coming. The lesson was simple: punishment and reward were mine to dispense, not for her to demand."I'm sorry," she mumbled."The incompetent are sorry, failures are sorry, useless people are sorry," I stated, followed by two more loud, cupped-hand blows on her ass. "People apologize when they commit an error. People apologize if they plan to learn from their mistakes. Now, are you someone else's miserable excuse for a human being, or are you MY person who learns from her lapses in judgment?""I bring shame to my people," she whimpered. Two more smacks fell upon her backside."Why do you insist on insulting me, Rhada?" two more, far harder, spanks landed causing her to gasp in pain. "Of all the Amazons I have defeated, I picked you to be mine, captive, no other. I thought you had the fierce spirit worthy of my fighting prowess.Your crawling up and dying inside disappoints me," I continued. It didn't disappoint me; it scared me. Rhada was so fiery and feisty. Seeing her mentally ground down into a crippled state ate at my mind."I'm afraid, Cáel," she choked out between her tears.The emotional riptide she was going through caused her to shake uncontrollably. I telegraphed my intent to move her, face down, to the middle of the bed. As I straddled her, I dragged her hands over her head and crossed her wrists. I nuzzled her shoulder, the crux of her neck, and ear."What are you afraid of, my captive?" I murmured.The term 'captive' along with the gentle affections brought forth a pleasurable response from her."I am perverse," she whispered. "I want you to take me as I cry and scream. I want to feel your body pressing down on me as you are doing now.I beg to be spanked, lashed, tease and tormented by you. Steal my sight and hearing. Render me helpless and utterly at your mercy, my Cáel," she pleaded. I'd allow the 'my'."And?" I mused."And?" she was confused."I was waiting for you to request something perverse, something I wouldn't do to you," I explained. I punctuated that by pulling her shirt aside and biting down on her shoulder strong enough to leave deep indentations on her flesh."Aha!" she yelped. She still wasn't making the connection, how incredibly stubborn of her."Do you doubt my bravery?" She didn't respond, so I bit into and worried her left earlobe. "Do you doubt my dedication to the Host?""No," she moaned. "You are an excellent warrior.""So we both agree I have earned the right to take you as my captive," I teased her."This is why I find your insolence to be so confusing," I kept up my routine. "It is almost as if you would rather be bound, whipped, beaten, spanked, bitten, lashed, covered with hot wax, blindfolded, and gagged instead of giving me my due obedience." Rhada's deep sensual moan was what I had been looking for. She spread her legs slightly then pushed her ass against my crotch."I am yours," she sniffled slightly. "You defeated me in battle and I can expect no other fate.""Dates take off their clothes. Slaves strip before their masters," I related. Not true. I had enjoyed multiple stripteases in my time and even give a few. What Rhada wanted to know was that I hungered for her naked flesh."You are on top of me," she protested. I pulled her braid to the side and chomped down her right shoulder. That earned me another squeal. Rhada's initial efforts were frantic, inspired by her pain. Within seconds she recalled our shared moments and slowed down. She knew I liked to watch her clothes come off and go back on. I'm odd that way.I rewarded her obedience with alternating kisses and nips to her freshly exposed flesh. As we progressed, Rhada became more insistent for sexual attention. Her finely honed thighs and abdominal muscles ground her buttocks against my cock in a continuous, circular motion. In our current state, she couldn't get her pants and panties off.When I rolled off, Rhada shot me a worried look. First she flashed up fear because she mistook my look for one of anger. In a second, she keyed to my real mood. I was going to own her, stretch her to her limits and then take it one step further. I was going to use my war captive as I saw fit, rip my pleasure from her passion and break her doubts down to their foundations.She shimmied out of her remaining clothing. I rummaged up the appropriate toys with a bit of an amused snort. Odette had organized the 'toy box' (including a bill for 'modernizing and updating' of my equipment.) What girl does that for a guy, categorize sexual aids she knows you are going to use on other women in your life?"Loosen your braid," I directed her after I turned and soaked in the view. She was in the center of the bed, kneeling with her buttock resting on her heels. Rhada's hands rested just above the knees, her great brown eyes had more of their old spark to them. Part of that was caused by my words sinking into her psyche. The rest was her love affair with my physique.Me and all my scars, plus I had a new one for her to judge and appreciate."Small caliber round from a Seven Pillar's QCW-Type 05," I informed her. Amazons loved their weaponry and their martial exploits."Did you kill him?" she asked with her intensity overcoming her attempt at a demur nature."Him and a bunch of other guys," I chose to answer as she unbraided her silky, black hair that cascade down to the small of her back. I was the son of a Chicago working stiff, not some super-soldier."You fought for the Host and killed our enemies," she tried to ease my mind.I wanted to feel bad about what had happened. The horror I had inflicted would never go away."Most of them were burned alive," I enhanced her experience by ripping open my own, fresh mental scar tissue. For Rhada, ruthlessness, martial valor and battlefield accomplishments were their own aphrodisiac.In her translation of events, her captor had proven yet again he was a fearless, masculine champion, a lion-heart. I put one knee on the bed and waited. Rhada had to shuffle to me. It was interesting to see the magnetic effect of the three items I held in my casual grasp, a leather collar, a thin silver-coated chain and a pair of leather handcuffs. I motioned with the cuffs first.I left it for her to discern my intention. I wanted her to put her wrists forward, yet I wanted to train her to know my wishes. Not only would it keep her mind and perceptions occupied, it would give her a needed sense of learning and broadening her education. It was a very subtle narrowing of the eyes that I used to tip her off.She half-turned with her wrists at her back, caught my 'displeasure' and then extended her arms toward me. I cuffed her right wrist, then her left wrist and finally cinched them together with their two bronze links, all the while demanding she retain eye contact with me. With our silent measuring of our true grit, we established our positions.Without that clash of wills, everything else would be tawdry trinkets of no value. As she accepted those bonds, she set aside her willingness to challenge me and embraced our new sense of harmony. A corner had been turned. Submission became the only outcome her destiny allowed. Mamitu; the Amazon belief that the Goddesses put nothing before the sisters that experience hadn't prepared them for.Out of arrogance, she had struck me. Destiny had prepared me for the fight and I had won. In tribute to destiny, Rhada had acknowledged the lesson and was finally learning from it. I yanked her wrists up roughly until they were extended high over her head. Rhada kept them there, as I intended, because now was time for the collar.This time she couldn't keep her eyes from flickering to the device until it passed beneath her chin. With the cuffs, I had been deliberate and relentlessly purposeful. The collar was an easy gesture, me exerting my rights as her captor and master, nothing more. I spared her a smile. Her dark brown-olive complexion, nearly black around the areola and nipple, was extended by the raising of the arms overhead for my viewing pleasure.Lastly, there was the chain. It had clasps at both ends, so I hooked it around the single ring on the collar and pulled Rhada toward me. I feasted on her lips, touched tongue to tongue inside and outside our mouths, and ended up chewing her lower lip. As I pulled and plucked it with my teeth, my fingers began to coax a stiffening of her teats.Gentle caresses turned into vigorous touching that evolved into painful pinches between the thumb and forefinger and energetic plucking. I let my kisses migrate from her lips to nose (briefly) then her cheeks and the underside of her jawline. Rhada made a gasping-choking noise as I nibbled her flesh.My distraction must have worked because she missed my hands moving down. The middle and forefinger of my left became a wedge working between her buttocks. With the right, I led with my middle finger, using my fore- and ring-fingers to part her labia. The clip-rings of the chain were secured on each thumb.Her fluids turned her sex into warm molasses coating folds of molten tenderness. My solo probing finger didn't penetrate, not yet. I ran the length of her vulva vestibule, rubbing her vaginal and urethral openings. Rhada expressed a piteous whine as I stoked her sexual frustrations. I ratcheted up my torture when my left twin fingers reached her sphincter.Tap the opening, tease her with false penetrations. My lips reached her neck right beneath her ear. I pulled in the flesh with a powerful suction, grabbing the tiny tip of taut flesh with my teeth. Her dolorous pleading ramped up as I delved my fingers in simultaneously. Rhada's anal ring pulsed, alternating between ushering my forefinger inside and resisted my progress.I was breaching her defenses without lubrication. It was wiggling, tentative advancement on my part and sensations of extreme sensitivity on her part. By comparison, her vagina virtually sucked me in. Having been denied sex for so long (if you counted two weeks as long) all the while fantasizing to the point of tripwire anticipation, she was quickly rising to orgasm."Do not," I cautioned her. Rhada trembled. Her groans became guttural as she reached down into her physical conditioning to exhibit some control over her racing heart rate and labored breathing. Had I stopped my assault, she might have held out. I didn't. The task for us both was to push her past the point of control. She was going to lose, that was given.How she lost was the lesson. What level of stimulation was going to be too much? She fought it with every fiber of her being. She fought it for me. Rhada sweated profusely and vibrated like a gypsy tambourine. She could not win. She knew I never intended for her to win. But I wanted her to reach down deep and fight.She would fail and I would punish her for her failure, but it would be a punishment that she felt was well-deserved, and she craved that. Even her failure was part of our dynamic, captor and captive. Pain with a purpose. Pain as a thread that united us. She could not wound herself the way I could. Everything she could inflict, she would sense and prepare for.I provided torment from unexpected angles and stimuli in a myriad of forms. Everything faded until only the touch and the pleasure of the messenger remained."Urah, " her opening declaration of the overwhelming tide was animalistic and desperate.For fifteen seconds I continued to play with her as her climax turned upon itself, building and becoming more chaotic. In the back of my mind, I realized my sex play was being cruel to my neighbors. I had to hope the anonymous death threats would keep Mr. Fiennes at bay.I'd deal with my 'friendly' female neighbor later, once I figured out how to repay her for her patience and the cookies she'd sent over when I was ill. For Rhada, it was a temporary cessation of my sexual attention and allowing her to rest her body against mine. I admired her ability to hold her arms aloft. Still,"You failed," I whispered into her ear. Rhada hiccupped. I dragged my fingers covered with her cunt juice up her pubic mount, abdomen, around the belly button and between her breasts. At the conclusion of the trip was the resounding 'click' of that end of the leash being attached to her collar. "I don't think you have been humble before me."I looped the chain around her shoulder, then dragged it over her left breast. She shivered. My next stop was beneath her right breast. Her nipple seemed to swell up as I rubbed the other loop all over her areola. Next under the right mammary, then looping the chain around her right arm before reaching around the back and securing the second clasp.It was both a symbol of her captivity and body ornamentation. The shiny silver links contrasted with her dusky, sweaty flesh.

Cáel' as the new Amazon Teen IdolBy FinalStand. Listen to the Podcast at Explicit Novels."I've missed you too," Aya bumped foreheads with me. I was 'a Son of the White Stallion' who 'ran with the herds of Epona'. I was so proud of her. She had woven together a Magyar myth with an Amazon naming convention. Epona, the Celtic Horse Goddess and Aya's matron divinity, was worshiped with the sacrifice of foals, Amazons offered up fillies (female baby horsies) whose spirits ran with the Goddess in the Spirit World.When the pre-Christian Magyars went to war, they sacrificed a white stallion to entreat their deities to grant them victory. No one was about to slit my throat, or cut my heart out. I was made sacred, a spirit stud in Epona's vast herd of mares. How freakishly accurate."I love you for your brains, you know that, don't you?" I whispered to Aya."Yes. You are saving up your other love for Mommy," she kinda/sorta teased me. Out of the semi-circle of children, three stood out. More accurately, they were dwarfed by their companions. I took the group's indecision as an offer to advance."Hi," I addressed the smallest three members of the audience. "Are you the Fatal Squirts?""They are not allowed that name," Sophia interceded. "No Amazon child deserves an acknowledgement before their trial." I half-turned and nodded her way."(Cough, cough). "Excuse me, please." If she spoke Phoenician, I was boned for being obviously disrespectful of her authority and would have to take whatever punishment Sophia felt I deserved.Otherwise, I was getting away with binding 'leads to death' to 'blood-death wound' in that ancient and highly extinct tongue: 'fatal, squirts' indeed. Her hand fell on my shoulder."I have heard you laugh at death," Sophia remarked. If I was on Zoosk, all you would have to do was type in 'Preference: Amazon Male Who Dares Talk Back', and there was my smiling mug, all alone, staring back at you."Before I confess to anything, do you consider that an asset, or liability," I grinned."I withhold judgment," was her reply."I don't mean to 'laugh at death'. It is because all the other choices suck and, perhaps I've been called stubborn, bull-headed and 'not having even a passing acquaintance with common sense' a time, or two," I shrugged with my lovely burden curled around my left arm."No names, our tradition and my command," Sophia laid down the law. Sigh. I put Aya down. She didn't cause me a hint of trouble because she knew my heart. I unbuckled and handed her my two guns (my Glock-22, and 38). I motioned one of the mini-Amazons forward. She shuffled up to Aya's side and received my two tomahawks.Not only was no one leaving, the rest of the camp started coming down to see what was about to transpire. In my short stint at Havenstone, I had developed a reputation as an exciting fun-guy/irrepressible troublemaker."I feel your decision is founded on misinformation, or your rendering to be unjust," I told Sophia."Explain," Sophia requested.I hadn't disarmed for my sake, or hers. I gave up my weapons to affirm my desire to talk. I placed myself at my sister's mercy, thus expressing my trust in her. Amazons are not savages, just violently inclined.Later, Pamela would remind me that my behavior was precisely what Isharans were supposed to do, seek peace."Aya has taken a position as intern with Executive Services at Havenstone," I explained. "She held my position and served effectively for four days with good work reviews from the head of the department herself," I added."She has served in a caste, been assigned duties by members of that caste, performed errands and accomplished all that was asked of her. Doesn't that create an allowance for Aya, as she has been considered for a caste?" I was fishing for an excuse based on my instincts for these people."She has never been selected, chosen and been anointed to a caste, so her preliminary experience does not qualify," Sophia said after a few seconds of introspection. "Next?""She has charged forth into battle on my behest." The archery range."You were not an acknowledged member of the Host when that happened. Next?""She's tried to kill me," I tossed out there."What?" many exclaimed."No!" Aya gasped."When did this occur?" Sophia's eyes twinkled."At the archery range. She shot at me twice," I responded."She was practicing," was the counter. "Next?""Not next," I smiled. "I didn't have permission from anyone to step beyond the shooting line.In doing so, I accepted all calls to combat. Both Leona and Aya shot at me. Aya shot twice and came close once. Leona only hit me after I gave myself up to protect three Amazon children."Pause."Okay. Aya has served in combat, no matter how one-sided, " Sophia began."I was armed for part of the fight," I interrupted hurriedly. Aya's first arrow."Accepted. You were a viable combatant before that as witnessed by other Amazons in earlier encounters. She and another Amazon shot at you without any other claiming traditional ownership of you," Sophia nodded. The Leader had given me a 'bye' on my intern status."Aya may bear an honorific," Sophia loudly proclaimed her change in course. To Amazons, screwing up was a distant third to not owning up to what you did and not learning from your mistakes. Besides, I could tell Sophia was warming up to me, as a male and an Amazon."My war band?" Aya chirped."You do not have a war band, Aya Epona, but whatever name you use among yourselves is not a matter I will concern myself with," Sophia stated firmly. "Fifty days, Cáel." That was the end of it. Sophia turned and began walking uphill, conflict successfully resolved.The Fatal Squirts had emerged with a semi-official status, I had emerged without a new series of wounds and I had wrangled forth a small down payment for all the love and loyalty Aya had showered on me."Best Daddy in the World!" Aya shouted. "Mamitu! Mamitu!" Destiny.Amazons weren't huge believers in luck. They put their faith in training, planning, experience and diligence. For them, victory was a matter of destiny. Let the sloppy, treacherous Greeks invoke 'Nike', Victory, or 'Tyche', Luck for tossing them a positive outcome in battle. My side weren't thankful for the win they deserved.They acknowledged Mamitu had, through foresight, prepared the Host for what had to be done. For Aya, it was destiny that had put me in her path; she and her sisters trained for the hostage scenario multiple times, so she was a logical choice for my training. She had been training with the bow when I was giving her the inner strength and confidence to hit the target.Training, not mutual good fortune, put her at the range to make that shot. Whatever part luck played, that bolt that had saved my life and paved the way for Aya's rise to leadership had been a part of her training as well. Amazons didn't deny luck, nor did the put any trust in it."Hi, so who are the rest of you?" I addressed the Fatal Squirts while rearming."I am Mosa Oya," the tomahawk holder identified herself."I am, " the third member got out before we were propelled back into that 'never too distant' No-Man's Land. A girl, a stranger in her early teens, came up and shoved Aya hard."You are nothing special," the older girl growled at my buddy. My 'daughter' barely avoided sprawling in the dust.The intensity was palatable. Aya had no chance of beating this girl. Not only did her opponent have every physical advantage, she had three buddies as well, correction: two buddies and a twin sister. Amazons built lifetime bonds around these foursomes. Aya and company backed down, despite her obvious shame. She had just won an honorific as a child, unheard of before this. It was Amazon tactical thinking, not fear, that ruled Aya's mind. I was so proud of her."What's your name?" I inquired congenially of the newcomer. She flashed me a look of anger laced with teenage hormones, then turned and stormed away, actually, she only started to storm away. Her behavior had played right into my hands. I was an adult. She wasn't a full-fledged member of the Host, nor was she a child anymore. I had asked her a question and she had been disrespectful to me. Her bad. Still, I doubted anyone expected my leg sweep.The bully hit the ground hard, no rolling with the blow for her. My foot smashing down on her diaphragm drove the fight right out of her. I wasn't done. The twin rushed in, my thunderbolt left sent her flying back from whence she came. Amazons despise child abuse as cruel and socially cancerous, yet no one else was rushing in to stop me.Even her other two friends were obeying both basic Amazon battle philosophy and conduct. Two young teens versus me was stupid, and I wasn't alone. I had four Squirts plus two other women close by who saw nothing wrong with a cooperative pummeling. I lifted my foot a centimeter from the girl's chest."Let's try this again," I spoke softly. "I am Cáel Ishara. You have disparaged my house by putting your back to me after I, an adult, politely addressed you. In fifteen seconds your sin will pass beyond your ability to address and your actions will be viewed as your family's unwarranted insult. My sisters will seek vengeance against your sisters with the added advantage that your sisters won't know what's going on. Now, what's your name?"See, I could have gone straight to Step Two, the House on House vengeance. Me kicking her ass was merciful because after five, or six members of her house were jumped, one at a time by three, or four, of mine, those ladies were going to be truly curious why their youngster had been so fucking rude in front of so many fucking Amazons to the HEAD of a fucking First House.'Honorific' Aya still had no status except that of a child. Dumb Bunny was passed her 12th year test, so she was of her House, thus the insult. Despite my 'fantasy' assumption of the role of grunt, everyone knew that Cáel Cabbage-head was Cáel Ishara, Head of House Ishara. I was the only accepted male Amazon in existence, the only possessor of a 'five o'clock shadow' in camp, I was armed and I was so armed while walking among their children.She could not have possibly mistaken me for another. Her eyes showed that truism too. Her wrathful 'how dare that male!' morphed into 'oh fuck, my older sisters are going to be tossed down stairwells, jacked up in parking garages and they were going to be caught totally flat-footed when it happens, and it is all my (the girl's) fault'.In theory, Saint Marie could deny my feud (we were at war), or warn the girl's house of my request, but why would she? The crime couldn't have been more obvious and the Amazons were way past making harmful shit up about me."Zarana, Zarana of House Inara," she gasped.I switched foot placement, pivoted, reached down to arm-clasp my left with her left and ended with me pulling her effortlessly to a standing position."A pleasure to meet you Zarana Inara. I am Cáel Ishara, but you may call me Cáel if you wish," I gave her my award winning smile. "No one will ever doubt your courage in my presence," I added.'Lead with the left jab, then catch them with the right hook'. As true in interpersonal relationships as in boxing. I had beaten her handily seconds ago and now I was applauding her bravery. Again, I wasn't a Head of House calling attention to her virtue, but I was."Your sister shares your warrior's heart.""I, I, I don't know what came over me, " she started to give me a respectful head-nod. I hooked a finger under her chin to stop her."Are you going to reconsider your approach for dealing with a male Amazon, Zarana of Inara?" I bridged the awkward moment. Bing! I had turned a humiliation into a learning moment."Yes," she smiled at me. "Yes Cáel Ish, Cáel.""I swear by the All-Mighty, if I find this one crawling into your sleeping bag, I'm going to be very disappointed in you," Delilah ambushed me. Wa-ha?"Oh, come on!" I protested. "She's thirteen.""Fourteen," the other twin, bleeding lip and all, puffed herself up."Not helping, " I looked at the twin."Vaski," she supplied. What?"Vaski? Really? That was Grandmother's name, it is Magyar-Finnish," I wondered."We are almost related," she conjured the improbable out of the impossible."No you are not, young lady," Delilah serpentined her way to the front of the crowd. "You are not family now and you can't attempt to be for four more years.""Who would you be?" Zarana challenged Delilah. Man, those two kids were spunky."An honored guest," Priya provided. "I hope another lesson in manners will not be necessary.""I'll do my best," I volunteered. Priya had been addressing the twins; not me. Taking the hit was a bit of comedy to diffuse the moment."Some of you need to eat," a camp counselor stated. Another crisis down and the sky wasn't even dark yet."Cáel!" and here we went again. Thank you, Ishara, it was Europa, the strange one, meaning the one I understood the most.(Night and Day)This place kept getting more and more wonderful. There was one safe road that rolled out of the camp's front gate (there was no wall, the gate was ceremonial) and disappeared off toward the closest state road. Scheduled trips were made to the closest blip on the census data where they bought stuff (irrelevant) and were 'seen' by the locals (the important thing).If anyone investigated, there was a legitimate summer camp 'out there'. The counselors weren't friendly, but they worked with 'troubled' kids, so keeping the small talk to a minimum was excusable. Sure, they only saw women, usually the same ones each trip during a given summer. The camp held nearly a thousand people, so the all-female thing was dismissed as a quirk.That was the second layer of deception. We had already learned that the first layer was the idea of a camp for girls in the foster care system. The third layer was all the visible 'props'. This went beyond the typical craft centers, juvenile obstacle courses, and a dozen other distractions. (The only 'real' one was the stables. Amazons loved riding horses and being assigned to tend to their care was a high honor.)Thirty meters inside the gate was a bridged gulch. After dark, the bridge supports were removed turning a clear shot into the center of camp into a waiting death trap. If there was any doubt, the gulch, so comforting and protective, was a blast zone as well, designation: The Barbecue Pit. I couldn't find it, but I was sure there was an altar somewhere to the matron goddess for this summer camp, the Goddess Paranoia.The sleeping quarters for everyone? More props. Campers would go in, mill around for ten minutes, then curl up on their bed, the ones that warmed up to 98 degrees in the shape of human bodies. Then the campers went down the shafts beneath their bunks and dutifully shuffled along the one meter high underground tunnels to their mesa-based domiciles. Again, once in the cliff-side barracks, they had two chimneys, a tunnel back to the dorm building and a cleverly designed, nearly invisible front exit to choose from.Pamela took it in stride, Delilah was a bit peeved by the 'excessive' security. Virginia, we'd already dragged her through her dorm tunnel to her cave to sleep it off. For me, the tunnel's dimensions made it a tight fit. Amazons can be pretty strong, but they don't have shoulders as wide as mine, nor are they normally over a meter/eight (six feet for us Yankees).I would have complained, except I had a sneaking suspicion that Pamela had a trowel to give me so I could 'widen up' a twenty to forty meter stretch of tunnel the moment I opened my mouth. As the last portion of the instructional tour, we were directed to get our grub before it was gone because the sadistic chefs loved to watch the eight year old workhouse orphans fight over who got to lick the pot instead of starving.Not really. The victuals were actually very good. I had hopes of more bonding time with my Epona ladies, yet no sooner had I cleaned my tin plate and dinnerware, I found someone else who craved my attention, Sophia. She was hot for my touch and by that I meant she wanted to punch and kick me around for a bit, all in the name of fun."Since you are my guest, I will let you choose our weapons," Sophia decided."I choose hyperbole," I gracefully flowed from sitting with one leg down and the other bent to standing."Specify.""Caber tossing with real Sequoia. I'll wait for the ladies of Girl Scout Troop 666 to go get some, they have to be authentic; no substitutes accepted," I explained."That's not hyperbole," Sophia snorted. "Hyperbole would be, 'I want to use the biggest spears ever used by Amazons, or Goddesses'.""My hyperbole wasn't the caber tossing, it was us 'waiting' for a set of circumstances we both knew wouldn't happen," I countered. Sophia nodded.

Genghis Khan rose from a tumultuous childhood on the Mongolian steppes to eventually unify warring tribes into the formidable Mongol Empire. Renowned for his brutal military campaigns, he employed innovative tactics and psychological warfare to conquer vast territories. But beyond warfare, he established a legal code, promoted religious tolerance and developed trade routes—laying the foundation for modern governance........#wikisleep #sleep #sleepstories #GenghisKhan #mentalhealth #freesleepapp  By becoming a WikiSleep member, you're investing in your own ad-free sleep health—and sleep health is mental health. Thank you for being a supporter. https://plus.acast.com/s/wikisleep. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

fWotD Episode 2838: Siege of Baghdad Welcome to Featured Wiki of the Day, your daily dose of knowledge from Wikipedia’s finest articles.The featured article for Monday, 10 February 2025 is Siege of Baghdad.The siege of Baghdad took place in early 1258 at Baghdad, the historic capital of the Abbasid Caliphate. After a series of provocations from its ruler, Caliph al-Musta'sim, a large army under Hulegu, a prince of the Mongol Empire, attacked the city. Within a few weeks, Baghdad fell and was sacked by the Mongol army—al-Musta'sim was killed alongside hundreds of thousands of his subjects. The city's fall has traditionally been seen as marking the end of the Islamic Golden Age; in reality, its ramifications are uncertain.After the accession of his brother Möngke Khan to the Mongol throne in 1251, Hulegu, a grandson of Genghis Khan, was dispatched westwards to Persia to secure the region. His massive army of over 138,000 men took years to reach the region but then quickly attacked and overpowered the Nizari Ismaili Assassins in 1256. The Mongols had expected al-Musta'sim to provide reinforcements for their army—the Caliph's failure to do so, combined with his arrogance in negotiations, convinced Hulegu to overthrow him in late 1257. Invading Mesopotamia from all sides, the Mongol army soon approached Baghdad, routing a sortie on 17 January 1258 by flooding their camp. They then invested Baghdad, which was left with around 30,000 troops.The assault began at the end of January. Mongol siege engines breached Baghdad's fortifications within a couple of days, and Hulegu's highly-trained troops controlled the eastern wall by 4 February. The increasingly desperate al-Musta'sim frantically tried to negotiate, but Hulegu was intent on total victory, even killing soldiers who attempted to surrender. The Caliph eventually surrendered the city on 10 February, and the Mongols began looting three days later. The total number of people who died is unknown, as it was likely increased by subsequent epidemics; Hulegu later estimated the total at around 200,000. After calling an amnesty for the pillaging on 20 February, Hulegu executed the caliph. In contrast to the exaggerations of later Muslim historians, Baghdad prospered under Hulegu's Ilkhanate, although it did decline in comparison to the new capital, Tabriz.This recording reflects the Wikipedia text as of 00:30 UTC on Monday, 10 February 2025.For the full current version of the article, see Siege of Baghdad on Wikipedia.This podcast uses content from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.Visit our archives at wikioftheday.com and subscribe to stay updated on new episodes.Follow us on Mastodon at @wikioftheday@masto.ai.Also check out Curmudgeon's Corner, a current events podcast.Until next time, I'm neural Justin.

Genghis Khan is dead, and his 3rd son Ögedei has ben selected to lead the Mongol Empire into an uncertain future. Once he is confirmed on the throne, he'll strike on in every direction against every foe at once. On the way, there will be virgin sacrifices, talking wolves, free money, mass enslavement, Persian princes, Assassins, poison, angry water spirits, battle-mages, cannibalism... and that's just the tip of the iceberg! Time Period Covered: 1227-1234 CE Major Historical Figures: Ogedeids: Ogedei Khaghan Subotai the Valiant General Chormakhan General  Dokholkhu Cherbi   Minister Yelu Chu Cai Toluids: Tolui Khan Sorkhakhtani Beki Khatun Chagatids: Chagatai Khan Khwarazmia: Jalal al-Din Kingdom of Georgia: Queen Rusudan Jin Dynasty: Emperor Aizong General Wanyan Yi General Cui Li Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As historical figures go, Genghis Khan has something of a reputation.Is there any truth to the rumours of him fathering so many children? What was life like in 12th century Mongolia? And how did he create one of histories most noted empires?Joining Kate today is historian Marie Favereau, author of The Horde: How The Mongols Changed The World, to help us find out.This episode was edited and produced by Stuart Beckwith. The senior producer was Charlotte Long.All music from Epidemic Sounds/All3 Media.Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.  You can take part in our listener survey here.Betwixt the Sheets: History of Sex, Scandal & Society is a History Hit podcast.

Discover the fascinating origins of psychological warfare and how it has evolved into the modern era. From the ancient battlefield tricks of Persian kings and Genghis Khan's fear tactics to Alexander the Great's unifying strategies and the propaganda leaflets of WWII, we trace the history of psyops and uncover when it all began. Learn how fear, deception, and cultural manipulation became powerful tools of war, influencing minds long before the digital age. Join us on Discord!

Welcome to the last episode of 2024 (and the first of 2025)! This week, we recap Christmas festivities with family, discuss Kiana's favorite gifts, and debate what makes a great push present. Javi shares his feelings about gaming with friends, Fossie reveals his holiday highlights, and the crew dives into New Year's resolutions. Plus, we rant about Genghis Khan, Venezuelan names, and the infamous ‘mass unfollowing' of Vex Bolt. Don't miss this jam-packed, hilarious episode to start your year off right! Chapters 1. 00:00:00 - Intro and Gaming Rant 2. 00:01:04 - Kiana's Favorite Christmas Gift 3. 00:05:09 - Javi's Gaming Frustrations 4. 00:17:00 - Funny Christmas Gift Reactions 5. 00:28:00 - Venezuelan Names and Cultural Smells 6. 00:42:11 - The Vex Bolt Unfollow Movement 7. 00:59:30 - What's a Push Present? 8. 01:04:59 - Genghis Khan's Descendants 9. 01:12:15 - New Year's Resolutions and Wrap-Up

Send us a textIn this engaging conversation, Bob Sorrentino hosts Ted Luccarelli and Cindy Lombardo, who share their experiences and insights into their Italian heritage, family history, and the journey of discovering their roots. They discuss the challenges of researching family ancestry, the significance of name changes among immigrants, and their personal stories of connecting with their ancestral town of Torito, Italy. The conversation also touches on their travels to Italy, cultural differences, and the importance of family connections in understanding their heritage. In this engaging conversation, the speakers delve into their family heritage, exploring the intricacies of ancestry and the unexpected connections that arise from genealogical research. They share personal stories of tracing their roots back to noble families, the challenges faced in uncovering family histories, and the importance of preserving these stories for future generations. Culinary traditions and memories of family gatherings are also highlighted, alongside experiences of returning to Italy and the warm reception from locals. The discussion emphasizes the value of asking questions and recording family histories to ensure that the wealth of knowledge is not lost.TakeawaysTed and Cindy are exploring their grandfather's history and name changes.Family members often Americanized their names to fit in.Researching ancestry can be complex but rewarding.Traveling to Italy helps connect with family roots.Church records in Italy can provide valuable information.Cultural differences in naming traditions are significant.Family gatherings often reveal rich stories of the past.The importance of community in preserving heritage is evident.Ancestry research often uncovers unexpected family connections.Traveling to ancestral towns can be a transformative experience. Family heritage can reveal unexpected connections.Genealogical research often leads to surprising discoveries.Persistence is key in uncovering family histories.Culinary traditions are deeply tied to family memories.Returning to one's roots can be a rewarding experience.Preserving family history is crucial for future generations.Asking questions can unlock a wealth of information.Many families have untold stories waiting to be discovered.Ancestry can connect us to historical figures.The importance of documenting family stories cannot be overstated.Sound Bites"He wanted to Americanize.""I can't wait to go to Torito.""I didn't feel unsafe anywhere.""I found a bunch of stuff on Ancestry.""I want to get to Genghis Khan.""I wish they could get into the churches.""Torito is known for almonds.""They love to see us.""There's nobody for us to ask."Turnkey. The only thing you'll lift are your spirits.Farmers and NoblesRead about my research story and how to begin your family research.Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.Support the showPurchase my book "Farmers and Nobles" here or at Amazon.

The medieval world – for all its plagues, papal indulgences, castles, and inquisition trials – has much in common with ours. People living the Middle Ages dealt with deadly pandemicsmass migration, and controversial technological changes, just as we do now.Today’s guest, Dan Jones, author of POWERS AND THRONES: A New History of the Middle Ages looks at these common features through a cast of characters that includes pious monks and Byzantine emperors, chivalric knights and Renaissance artists. This sweep of the medieval world begins with the fall of the Roman empire and ends with the first contact between the Old World and the New. Along the way, Jones provides a front row seat to the forces that shaped the Western world as we know it. This is the thousand years in which our basic Western systems of law, commerce, and governance were codified; when the Christian Churches matured as both powerful institutions and the regulators of Western public morality; and when art, architecture, philosophical inquiry and scientific invention went through periods of seismic change. We discuss:• The height of the Roman empire and its influential rulers, as well as the various reasons it fell, including climate change pushing the Huns and so-called “barbarian” tribes to the empire’s borders.• The development of Christianity and Islam, as well as the power struggles and conflict ignited in the name of religion, chivalric orders such as the Knights Templar, and the rise of monasteries as major political players in the West.• The intimate stories of many influential characters of the Middle Ages, such as Constantine I, Justinian, Muhammad, Attila the Hun, Charlemagne, El Cid, Leonardo Da Vinci, Genghis Khan, Marco Polo, Martin Luther, and many more.• The development of global trade routes and commerce across Europe, Asia, and Africa and the expanding map during the Age of Exploration.• The Black Death, which decimated up to sixty percent of the local population in the fourteenth century and led to widespread social unrest and the little Ice Age, the period between 1300-1850 triggered by volcanic activity that created a climate so regularly and bitterly cold that it contributed to the Great Famine of 1315-21.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Genghis Khan's daughters are shadowy figures: we don't know exactly how many there were or what all of their names were, but historians have pieced together bits and pieces of a story. Enough to know that Genghis valued his daughters highly and they played an essential role in his strategy. An army-on-the-move needs someone to rule the lands they've already conquered, and the Great Khan's daughters were born for that. Visit the website (herhalfofhistory.com) for sources, transcripts, and pictures. Support the show on my Patreon page (https://www.patreon.com/user?u=83998235) for bonus episodes, polls, and a general feeling of self-satisfaction. Or make a one-time donation on Buy Me a Coffee. Join Into History (intohistory.com/herhalfofhistory/) for a community of ad-free history podcasts plus bonus content. Visit Evergreen Podcasts to listen to more great shows. Follow me on Threads as @herhalfofhistory. Or on Facebook or Instagram as Her Half of History. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Even the invincible Genghis Khan must face the inevitability of death. It holds no fear for him personally, but before he surrenders at last to oblivion, he needs to see two tasks through to the end: who will succeed him as Emperor of the World, and making sure an old enemy gets what has long been coming to them... Time Period Covered: 1220-1227 CE Major Historical Figures: Mongol Empire: Genghis Khan [Temüjin] (1162-1227) Börte Khatun (c.1161-c.1130) Yesui Khatun (d. ?) Jochi (1181-1226) Chagatai Khan (1183-1242) Ögedei Khan (c.1186-1241) Tolui (c.1191-1232) Xi Xia: Emperor Shenzong [Li Zuxun] (r. 1211-1223) Emperor Xianzong [Li Dewang] (r. 1223-1226) Emperor Mo [Li Xian] (r. 1226-1227) Empress Kurbelzhin (d. 1227) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dive deep into the fascinating world of history and uncover hidden truths with Prof. Niranjan Sharma in this thought-provoking podcast. We explore the richness of Nepal's ancient civilization, its contributions to global history, and the hidden secrets of the Vatican's rooms. Prof. Sharma sheds light on how Nepal's lost history has shaped its identity, sharing insights on Genghis Khan vs. Alexander the Great, the fall of the Roman Empire, and the untold greatness of Eastern civilizations. Discover intriguing connections like Hitler's letter to Nepal, the story behind Nepal's 303 rifle, and Karl Marx's writings on Junga Bahadur Rana. This podcast also dives into the Industrial Revolution and its ripple effects on Nepal, the French Revolution, and the rise of Christianity and Vatican City. Prof. Sharma also discusses the massacre of Red Indians, the Ottoman Empire and Crusades, and why the USA bombed Japan during World War II. With detailed insights on the hidden library in Vatican City, Nepal's role in World War I, and the truth behind ancient stories, this episode offers a fresh perspective on global and local history. Don't miss this journey into the past, exploring Nepal's untold civilization and its impact on the modern world. #NepalHistory #VaticanSecrets #EasternCivilization #HitlerToNepal #KarlMarx #WorldWarHistory #JungaBahadur #IndustrialRevolution #Nepal303Rifle #AncientStories

“The Conqueror” is considered one of the worst films ever. Not only was John Wayne cast as Genghis Khan, the production may have led to cancer diagnoses in the cast and crew.

In this series, Jeff & Andy dive into a mix of useless facts, myths, forgotten stories, and strange truths. In this episode, Jeff shares the statistics about Christmas spending in America, while Andy shares random facts about Genghis Khan, eye color, and the origins of the term “Drunker than Cooter Brown”.  This series is presented to you by the great folks over at Mallard Bay.  Whenever you are looking to book your next outdoor adventure, head over to Mallard Bay and search through their verified outfitters to remove the guess work when booking.

Genghis Khan may have built a formidable land empire, but his grandson Kublai Khan mastered the seas. So how did a nomadic leader come to have such a formidable navy – and conquer China in the process? Emily Briffett spoke to Jack Weatherford about his new book on the subject, Emperor of the Seas, to find out more. (Ad) Jack Weatherford is the author of Emperor of the Seas: Kublai Khan and the Making of China (Bloomsbury Continuum, 2024). Buy it now from Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Emperor-Seas-Kublai-Making-China/dp/1399417738/?tag=bbchistory045-21&ascsubtag=historyextra-social-histboty. The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

  Joe Biden's pardon of his son Hunter has done more than just shock the nation—it's sent the Democrats into a tailspin that could rival a reality TV meltdown. For a group that prides itself on moral superiority, this moment is like catching your vegan neighbor eating a Big Mac in the driveway. The sheer hypocrisy is enough to make even the most cynical observer raise an eyebrow. Let's not forget the self-righteous proclamations from Democrats when Biden previously promised not to pardon Hunter. They lauded him as a beacon of morality, a paragon of principled leadership. “The bright line between being a president and being a dad,” they said. Others declared Biden's restraint a testament to his decency, contrasting him with that evil orange man. One particularly enthusiastic leftist called it a “good day for the system.” Well, it was a good day for a system—but definitely not the justice system. That's now buried under a pile of pardon papers thicker than Hunter's laptop evidence file. Hunter's "Get Out of Jail Free" Card The charges Hunter faced—from drug crimes to tax evasion and enough corruption to make a mob boss blush—are now wiped clean. The message is clear: if you're in Joe Biden's orbit, the rules don't apply to you. But don't be fooled—Hunter is just the beginning. This pardon isn't an isolated incident; it's the first act in Joe's grand finale of covering tracks. Expect future pardons to read like the Who's Who of Democratic scandals. John Brennan, James Clapper, Adam Schiff, and perhaps even Fauci and Birx are likely prepping their thank-you notes. These aren't just names; they're co-conspirators in a web of deceit that stretches back to the Obama administration. When Biden pardons these individuals, he's not just admitting their guilt—he's acknowledging his own. After all, these scandals didn't spring up overnight. They've been brewing for years, like a toxic stew of corruption and arrogance. The Uniparty Problem This brings us to the Republicans—or, as many call them, the Uniparty. Will they rise to the occasion, or will they keep playing their usual role of controlled opposition? Trump's team knows the stakes and is ready for a PR war, but it's unclear if the rest of the GOP has the backbone to fight. And let's be honest: Trump has learned the hard way that draining the swamp requires more than a catchy slogan. It requires bold action. The appointment of Kash Patel and Pam Bondi to key positions could shine a spotlight on the FBI's corruption and the DOJ's role in covering up Democratic misdeeds. Imagine a future where sunlight disinfects the rot in Washington, where the people finally see how the 2020 election was manipulated and how January 6th was weaponized. Democrats' Narrative Collapses The irony is delicious: Democrats have long accused Trump of weaponizing the justice system for political retribution. But now, with Biden's blatant use of presidential pardons to shield his allies, that narrative crumbles faster than a sandcastle at high tide. How do they reconcile their previous outrage over Trump with their current defense of Biden? Spoiler alert: they can't. Democrats' strategy of painting Trump as a vengeful tyrant was always a house of cards. Biden's actions have exposed their hypocrisy, leaving them scrambling for a new playbook. Meanwhile, Trump's team, armed with data, AI, and a commitment to transparency, is poised to dismantle the Deep State piece by piece.    Democrats had a new strategy where everything Trump did was going to be retaliation. If Trump wanted to reduce the cost of energy, Democrats would yell in unison: RETALIATION! No matter what Trump did, that would be the battle cry for Dems. He's only doing it to retaliate. Close the border…retaliation. Against Mexicans, and people seeking asylum. They would continue to label Trump. Xenophobe, especially against brown people, etc.   Democrats have come to a stark realization. Their world crumbled. And Joe Biden didn't help. His pardon of Hunter and future pardon of others ruined their strategy where everything Trump did would be retribution. They can no longer accuse Trump of retribution, when they are using the same tactics they accused Trump of using. I pointed out a few of these ironies yesterday on the show. Wrap your head around this. President Trump was impeached over wanting to look into the crimes Joe Biden just pardoned Hunter for.                                [X] SB – Megyn Kelly on lawfare Trump is not guilty if he wanted to just get even. But he doesn't. Still…JUSTICE MUST BE SERVED.   If Trump wants to win this war, he must go beyond rhetoric. He must show the American people the raw, unfiltered truth. Follow the money trails of climate change “scientists” and COVID profiteers. Expose the payments to politicians and bureaucrats who sold out the country for personal gain. Musk and Ramaswamy, with their focus on efficiency and accountability, could be instrumental in this effort. Imagine a government where waste and fraud aren't just reported but acted upon—a government that serves the people rather than enriching itself. The Civil War They Wanted It's worth noting that Democrats thrive on division. They've tried to pit black against white, rich against poor, men against women, and more recently, the trans movement against biological reality. Chaos is their currency, and they've been betting on a cultural civil war to keep the spotlight off their corruption. But Biden's pardons may have backfired, uniting Americans in their disgust at the blatant double standards. The Final Irony Let's not overlook the ultimate twist of this saga: Trump was impeached for wanting to investigate the crimes Joe Biden just pardoned his son for. Wrap your head around that one. The same Democrats who cried foul over Trump's phone call to Ukraine now cheer as Biden uses the Oval Office as a shield for his family's misdeeds. The hypocrisy isn't just staggering—it's a neon sign flashing, “We don't care about justice, only power.” Conclusion Joe Biden's pardon of Hunter and his inevitable pardon spree represent a turning point. They expose the depth of corruption within the Democratic Party and challenge Republicans to rise to the occasion. The hypocrisy is clear, the stakes are high, and the American people are watching. As Biden signs more pardons, he's not just protecting his cronies—he's admitting guilt on a scale that defies imagination. But with Trump's team poised to expose the truth, there's hope that the swamp can finally be drained.    Democrats are understandably jittery about the incoming Trump administration, version 2.0. They should be, considering the relentless efforts they poured into stopping him from getting here. The legal onslaught against Trump and nearly anyone who stood near him has not just failed—it has imploded spectacularly. As of now, every case against President-elect Trump is unraveling faster than a dollar-store sweater. Oh, the irony! If Trump had walked away from politics, these lawsuits likely would have quietly evaporated. But Trump persevered leaving Democrats scrambling to minimize the radioactive fallout from this failure of nuclear proportions. Their damage control strategy? Let Trump off on technicalities, in hopes of being able to claim a moral victory. A bit of red meat for the Democrat faithful who never want to believe that Trump was innocent in the first place.' Now we get out the popcorn Today we are watching Democrats twist themselves into knots trying to justify the unjustifiable. Because if there's one thing they've proven, it's that hypocrisy isn't just a bug in their system—it's the operating principle. Joe Biden set a low bar for the next administration, not that Trump needed it. He was prepared to set a high-jump record, if needed. We have the good Lord to thank for allowing the next 4 years to be piloted by Trump and his team.   Trump left Biden with the best possible situation. And instead of thanking Trump, Joe Biden continued the previous strategy set by Barack Obama whose idea of a peaceful transition of power was to go Genghis Khan on Donald Trump.     But it's all failing. They think we wouldn't have figured it out, and it so easy to figure out. Something so easy, even a caveman could do it. And their strategy hinged on their BAD OPTICS involving Trump being a felon. Remember that strategy. It was to garner them 10% or more of the vote. Trump as a felon who continually tries to thwart the justice system is what they wanted to convey. And then Biden BLEW IT!! Understand that some Democrats will still try to claim the moral high-ground. But Democrats claim moral high-ground even if they are caught butt-naked with their neighbor's 13-year old daughter, and greasing the cat's behind. They are built that way. I know, I know…I'm not hard enough of those Leftist scumbag, but I'm trying!! Leftists are as disgusting oozing sores, and equally vile on the inside.     I guess the two assassination attempts weren't music enough to soothe the savage Leftist beasts. Regardless, the nuclear bomb detonated, and the fallout is upon the Democrats. DOJ's Panic Mode In preparing for the shock wave coming in January, Jack Smith, the special counsel who spearheaded Trump's legal harassment, has closed up shop and quietly slipped into the shadows. Rumor has it Smith's already filing his retirement papers, knowing he's first on the chopping block when Trump takes office. Other DOJ officials? They're https://www.nbcnews.com/investigations/trump-vows-prosecute-political-foes-others-corrupt-cheaters-rcna169292 like it's Black Friday at a legal clinic. MSNBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-kevin-jackson-show--2896352/support.

store: https://www.horses.land patreon: https://www.patreon.com/horsespt Sources: Frank McLynn: Genghis Khan Jack Weatherford: Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World Music by Edward Karl Hanson Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Guest: Jack Weatherford is an anthropologist and author of the best-selling book Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World. He has spent over 25 years exploring Mongolia and its history, and his writing on the Mongol Empire has transformed our understanding of its long legacy. Jack Weatherford is the retired DeWitt Wallace Chair of Anthropology at Macalester College in Minnesota, and he is the only foreigner ever inducted into the Order of Chinggis Khaan, Mongolia's highest national honor. His other books include The Secret History of the Mongol Queens, Genghis Khan and the Quest for God, Indian Givers: How Native Americans Transformed the World, The History of Money, and his latest, Emperor of the Seas: Kublai Khan and the Making of China. The post Jack Weatherford on Kublai Khan and the Making of China appeared first on KPFA.

“To wander from mountain to mountain, hopeless and homeless, has nothing to recommend it” - Babur Before he became the father of the Mughal dynasty, and the author of one of the most important memoirs in world history, Babur was a provincial young prince in modern-day Uzbekistan. His family tree stretches back to Genghis Khan and Timur, and his fighting spirit was as strong as his ancestors'. As a teenager he sets his sights on the capital city of Samarkand and lays siege to it. But he meets his match when faced with the great Uzbeg warlord, Shaybani Khan. At just 21 years old, Babur is left defeated and homeless, wandering as a nomad around Central Asia. How will he recover from this? Join William and Anita as they explore the early life of the first Great Mughal, Babur.  To buy tickets for Great Mughals: Art, Architecture and Opulence visit: https://www.vam.ac.uk/exhibitions/great-mughals-art-architecture-opulence?utm_source=empire_podcast&utm_medium=paid_editorial&utm_campaign=great_mughals_empire_podcast Twitter: @Empirepoduk Email: empirepoduk@gmail.com Goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producer: Anouska Lewis Producer: Callum Hill Exec Producer: Neil Fearn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On the third most voted for topic of Block 2024, we talk about one of the most successful and fearsome leaders in human history, the founder of the Mongol Empire; Genghis Khan. This is a comedy/history podcast, the report about the murders begins at approximately 08:57 (though as always, we go off on tangents throughout the report).*Content warning for sexual assault, at approximately: 1:48:34For all our important links: https://linktr.ee/dogoonpod Check out our other podcasts:Book Cheat: https://play.acast.com/s/book-cheatPrime Mates: https://play.acast.com/s/prime-mates/Listen Now: https://play.acast.com/s/listen-now/Who Knew It with Matt Stewart: https://play.acast.com/s/who-knew-it-with-matt-stewart/Our awesome theme song by Evan Munro-Smith and logo by Peader ThomasDo Go On acknowledges the traditional owners of the land we record on, the Wurundjeri people, in the Kulin nation. We pay our respects to elders, past and present. REFERENCES AND FURTHER READING:https://www.dancarlin.com/product/hardcore-history-wrath-of-the-khans-series/ https://www.worldhistory.org/Genghis_Khan/https://www.britannica.com/biography/Genghis-Khan/Legacyhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genghis_Khan#Legacy_and_historical_assessmenthttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mongol_Empirehttps://www.history.com/topics/asian-history/genghis-khanhttps://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2015/01/08/the-frustrating-hunt-for-genghis-kahns-long-lost-tomb-just-got-a-whole-lot-easier/ https://www.iflscience.com/fact-check-are-one-in-200-people-descended-from-genghis-khan-65357 https://historyofyesterday.com/subutai-the-general-who-conquered-the-most-territory-in-history/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mongol_invasions_and_conquests#Death_toll Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Genghis Khan built a formidable land empire, but he never crossed the sea. Yet by the time his grandson Kublai Khan had defeated the last vestiges of the Song empire and established the Yuan dynasty in 1279, the Mongols controlled the most powerful navy in the world. How did a nomad come to conquer China and master the sea?  Kublai Khan is one of history's most fascinating characters. He brought Islamic mathematicians to his court, where they invented modern cartography and celestial measurement. He transformed the world's largest land mass into a unified, diverse and economically progressive empire, introducing paper money. And, after bitter early setbacks, he transformed China into an outward looking sea-faring empire.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Depending on who you talk to, Genghis Khan was either a sadistic madman or one of the great leaders in world history. One thing is sure, he was one of the most advanced military minds of all time. Learn all about him in this classic episode.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.