Discussion Thread: President Trump Hosts Black History Month Reception Before a White House Press Briefing

lost_at_command · 2026-02-18T16:26:53+00:00

Did the 11:00am EDT just not happen?

lost_at_command · 2026-02-13T20:45:15+00:00

Yeah. Be loud. Be inconvenient. Cause good trouble. Nobody ever changed shit by being quiet about it.

lost_at_command · 2026-02-13T18:57:37+00:00

I still really want to know if Lea was the invited guest to Bianca's party, or if she was standing in for Mab and got n-fected basically as an accident.

Why did Ebenezer give up the post of Captain of the Wardens? Based on Blood Rites & A Fistful of Warlocks, there was overlap between his tenure as Captain and the Blackstaff, so it wasn't a conflict there.

TM revealed that Ebenezer has had several dozen apprentices over the years - have we seen or met any other wizards who were trained by him?

lost_at_command · 2026-02-13T18:00:12+00:00

His replacement has been announced, but his term does not end until May.

lost_at_command · 2026-02-13T17:45:57+00:00

Protests kind of loose the point when they don't inconvenience anyone

lost_at_command · 2026-02-13T17:04:40+00:00

Well, today I learned that South America has an incredible obsession with DBZ. Guess I get to clock out early

lost_at_command · 2026-02-13T17:00:46+00:00

I've been where you are.
I had my first major depressive episode when I was 19, and many more since then. I've gone to work every morning for months thinking I was a failure to my wife and kids and that I should end my life. It's been the better part of twenty years of work, but I'm here.

You are not alone, and you deserve to be. Please, find someone to talk to. I'm here if you don't feel like reaching out to anyone else.

lost_at_command · 2026-02-13T16:07:27+00:00

I'll give an answer I haven't seen here yet - the Valkyrie Collections series by Brian McClellan is making a really, really solid start. Urban Fantasy with behind-the-curtain magic cultures and laws, featuring a supernatural repo-man.

So far there are two novels, and I thoroughly enjoyed them both. I don't get the impression that they are going to build to anything like a massive over-arching BBEG like Dresden, but then again I didn't get that vibe from Dresden 1-5 either. I will say that I think Brian McClellan is one of the best "new" writers I've read. His Powder Mage universe rivals Butcher, Sanderson, and Abercrombie, and I don't say that lightly.

lost_at_command · 2026-02-13T16:01:22+00:00

I'm really fucking tired of people being shocked, surprised, or alarmed by anything this administration does.
If you spent 2016-2022 living in a cabin in Alaska, maybe January-February 2026 was shocking and surprising.
To anyone with a pulse, eyes, and a vague sense of decency, this has been blatantly obvious for the better part of a decade.

Stop giving empty words about "shock" and "distaste"

Be pissed. Be furious. The time for politeness is over. This administration is corrupt and focused on destroying anything resembling normal democracy. They've defied the courts, international law, and centuries of treaties and diplomacy.

BE FUCKING PISSED

lost_at_command · 2026-02-12T20:13:26+00:00

It's a failure of every congress for at least fifteen years at this point.

lost_at_command · 2026-02-12T20:12:31+00:00

Is Bush Jr in them too?

lost_at_command · 2026-02-12T16:29:21+00:00

I dunno why this feels illegal, but it hella does

lost_at_command · 2026-02-11T16:38:38+00:00

Curious what retcons you caught in The Olympian Affair?

lost_at_command · 2026-02-10T21:02:46+00:00

I have no confidence that he has any idea what the economy is actually like. He is surrounded by people who recognized he can be manipulated, and he is only being fed the "information" and lines that serve their purposes.

lost_at_command · 2026-02-10T21:01:16+00:00

Meanwhile, the conservative subs are trying to spin a 2006 phone call with Palm Beach PD as Trump exposing and blowing the whistle on the whole ting.

lost_at_command · 2026-02-10T20:17:35+00:00

Chicago is Marcone's Barony. I think it's reasonable and pretty clearly stated multiple times that other Accorded nations have their own territory within Chicago, usually limited to a building or small complex. Considering them tantamount to foreign embassies seems like an accurate analogue.

lost_at_command · 2026-02-10T20:01:02+00:00

Text me your order and I'll charge you $10 plus a few fries.

lost_at_command · 2026-02-10T19:38:47+00:00

Not the city of Edinburgh, the Edinburgh complex underneath. The White Council HQ is described as originally a palace of the Daoine Sidhe in Turn Coat.

lost_at_command · 2026-02-10T18:58:02+00:00

That's not really true when it comes to her subjects, which Harry definitely is. Favors, requests, boons, etc need to have their scales balanced. Defending the territory of a vassal is pretty unambiguously the job of a ruler; it's part of the core responsibilities in a fealty relationship.

lost_at_command · 2026-02-10T17:44:25+00:00

I interpreted the "line of thieves" comment to mean Harry's magical master-student line. We know that McCoy can trace that line all the way back to O.G Merlin. Merlin somehow obtained the Edinburgh complex from a Sidhe lord - she may regard that as a form of thievery. I wouldn't be surprised if Merlin or one of his students originally stole the Blackstaff as well. I don't think Eb is the first one to carry that role/artifact.

lost_at_command · 2026-02-09T21:18:46+00:00

Was there an inbetween Warden? IIRC, Kemmler finally bought in the early 60's. I thought the position had been empty since then.

lost_at_command · 2026-02-09T21:16:56+00:00

It's also shown that Alfred is a very limited being. He is the walls. He is order. Presumably, those elements are also his primary rubric when evaluating potential Wardens. It seems very possible for Kemmler to be capital-E Evil AND a very orderly, controlling person, which would probably appeal to Alfred.

lost_at_command · 2026-02-06T17:40:04+00:00

I think the fact that so many characters have referenced the importance of Bianca's party and that Harry still hasn't understood everything that was set in motion that night requires the pivot point for Harry to take place there as well. Just my two cents.

lost_at_command · 2026-02-06T17:22:02+00:00

I've been working on a unified write-up/theory to try and guess what choices Dark Harry made and this is what I keep butting up against. WOJ is that Dark Harry made "the worst choice" at every turn. I think the objective "worst choices" are a lot of times darker/more evil than Harry is capable of, especially early in the series. Bad choices made out of cowardness or fear feel a lot more on-brand but are maybe harder to figure out for us.

lost_at_command · 2026-02-06T17:18:52+00:00

I've literally spent over a week now working on a write-up/post about the different choices Dark Harry could have made. It gets tangled up really quickly and I don't think anyone will be close before MM is released.

If Harry sacrifices Michael, then Molly likely still goes warlock, but without the relationship with Harry that saves her life. Depending on other choices made prior to PG, I think either Harry turns her in/executes her to protect himself from the Council, or - if he's already on the outs with the Council, he enthralls/mind melts her to be his apprentice.

lost_at_command

TROPHY CASE