Buildings and Property can be Replaced…

The question I have is what is the end game of all this madness? I keep hearing this mantra from people I know, the media, celebrities and political figures say, ” Buildings and property and can be replaced, but lives cannot.” As I watched so many cities, local and across the nation, being destroyed, the depravity is unconscionable and feels beyond counterproductive to what this is all about. None of it makes sense.

For the first time in my lifetime, I saw a nation completely come together and condemn a heinous act of police officers towards another human being, a citizen, a black man. There was no debate. It was crystal clear the evil that is happening. The conversation of change was gaining momentum by leaps and bounds. People of all walks of life went out to support change through peaceful protesting. The leaders of communities even gave latitude to vent. Then it turned dark. All the momentum of unity was snuffed out and the narrative changed to this insane mantra of supporting the destruction of our communities in the name of protesting.

In just a matter of days we are back screaming at each other, afraid of each other and hating each other. I don’t agree with the idea that destroying a city or a community drives a point and will avenge a heinous history of unfair treatment of our citizens of color. It has not been productive and effective in the past, in fact it made things worse. It incites something so far from where this started. We are still in throws of a community economic nightmare of a pandemic and now our communities look like a war zone by the hands of our own citizens. These buildings and property were jobs, livelihoods, dreams and security. These action could be the final KO to so many.

So I ask those that keep saying that buildings and property can be rebuilt, what is the goal? Is it to completely bring the US to our knees with the hope when the smoke clears, all racism and hate is gone? Is it about making citizens pay for injustice or feel the pain of what people of color feel? What is the justification and support for this? Because before this happened we were on the track towards waking up and wiping the sleep of complacency from our eyes. There was a second of hope. There was this moment of thought that even though we could not bring back George Floyd, we could make his name be something powerfully good for our country and start the real healing. Now, I fear that moment has gone and I am not sure what our future brings.

 

*Apparently it took a pandemic and the US being destroyed due to racial injustice to bring me back to the Pie Hole.  Glad to be back writing, sad on the reasons. 

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Top Ten Things I Wish Politicans Would Say!

http://goodmenproject.com/good-feed-blog/study-of-the-day-political-disagreement-and-income-inequality-are-friends/

As you all know it is gearing up to be another doozy of a campaign year.  This is the inspiration for my Top Ten Tuesday!

10. Heck yeah I inhaled and then I followed up with one of the best munchy binges I ever had!

9.   Look Mr. John King, I get you are tying to showcase us as “hip – not in the dark ages” GOP presidential candidates, but with what is going on in this country and the world right now, I think my take on pop culture is a bunch of (bleep)!

8.   Of course I am going to raise your taxes.

7.  Everything I say during my campaign is nothing but smoke and mirrors.

6.  I may not know how many states there are in the Union, but I am only really counting the ones that matter to my campaign or political party.

5.  To be honest with you, I have no idea what is like to be poor or middle class, but I am going to legislate like I do.

4.  Constitution-smonstituion!  Who really reads that old rag anyway?

3.  You bet I had sexual relations with that woman.  It is just one of the many perks of being the leader of the free world.

2.  Attention Media: No matter how many times or ways you ask me a question I will never answer it. And another thing, take this to your breaking news desk . . .(bleep) off!

1. Yes, that was my Oscar Mayer all over the internet.  You got a problem with that?

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The U.S. Gets a Bad Mark on Humanitarian Acts – A Soap Box Sunday Post

As I was sitting in typical Southern California traffic I was listening to the news and the story was that was being covered made me spit out my latte out of laughter.  It was in regards to the grades the nations can give other nations regarding humanitarian acts.  Apparently, the US got a “needs an improvement” or essentially a D in needing to improve our humanitarian efforts in the department of prisoner treatment (they did not elaborate, but I assume it is GITMO they are referring to). 

Now, this is where the funny comes in to this. . . our grading peer were the likes of Libya, Iran and Venezuela. 

Getting a grade from the likes of those countries that kill, rape, mutilate the female gender, on their own citizens, including children, would be the equivalent of Ted Bundy coming to me and telling me that I need to get my house in order.

The US does have some bad apples in the military prison system, heck we have bad apples in the public prison system and even society.  But getting “schooled’ by the likes of the Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Hugo Chavez, and Wacky Qaddafi is not only laughable, but outrageous that it was even taken seriously.

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It’s Foodie Friday!

Since I took off last week from my “Foodie Friday” post I am going to grace all your palates with two recipes and one will include chocolate and peanut butter cups!  Yes, I thought that would get your attention!

Pie’s What Do You Do With the Leftover Grill Night Chili

When Camp Pie Hole decides to grill we throw a good-sized tri tip or hearty steaks on the ‘ol grill and end up with leftovers.  I take those leftovers and vacuum seal them and pop them in the freezer and when I am wanting to place a little hearty fire on our menu I pull it out and make a quick and easy chili that tastes like you have been cooking all day!

 In a dutch oven/cast iron pot (large soup pot if you don’t have either) add 2 tbsp of vegetable oil and heat.  Once heated add 2 gloves of diced garlic, 1/2 white onion diced, 1 cup of frozen diced bell peppers and 1 cup of frozen corn.  Add 1/2 tbsp  of salt and pepper.  Saute until thawed and onions are transparent. * You can use fresh veggies instead of frozen.  I just prep fresh veggies and freeze them for making recipes quicker.

Cut and dice 2 large jalapeno.  You can either seed them or for extra heat keep the seeds.  I like the heat so I seed one and keep the seeds in the other.  Place in chili mixture

Cube grilled red meat (in this recipe I used left over Tri-Tip) About 2-3 cups and add to vegetable mixture and brown.  * We tend to make our meat medium rare so when adding this meat to the chili stock allows the meat to cook without getting over done and adds more flavor.

Cook until meat is browning and warmed through 

Add drained and rinsed canned beans.  2 cans of pinto beans, 1 can of black beans, 1 can of red kidney beans and 1 can of garbanzo beans.  I usually just place in a strainer and rinse one can at a time.  Mix together.

 

Add 1 can of diced tomatoes,  2 cans of tomato sauce, 2 tbsp of chili powder,  1 tbsp of garlic powder, additional salt and pepper to personal taste ( The beans tomato sauce and tomatoes have added sodium. BE CAREFUL TO NOT OVER SEASON)  Mix together well and add water to meet a consistence of a spoon being able to stand in it independently.  Cover on low- medium low  heat  (a nice slow simmer) for about 40 -45 minutes.

Top with cheese, sour cream and fresh cilantro and onions and serve with corn bread or tortillas.  Left overs make great chili dogs!

Ingredients:

2 tbsp of vegetable oil

1/2 white onion

2 cloves garlic

1 1/2 tbsp of salt (use soft hand and taste tests before using full amounts)

1 1/2 tbsp of pepper

1 cup sliced/diced bell peppers (red, green, yellow) frozen or fresh

1 cup of corn frozen or fresh

2 large fresh  jalapeno

2-3 cups diced grilled red meat (tri-tip, steaks, brisket)

2 cans of pinto beans

1 can of black beans

1 can of red kidney beans

1 can of garbanzo beans

1 can of diced tomatoes

2 cans of tomato sauce

2 tbsp of chili powder

1 tbsp of garlic powder

1/2 – 1 cup water

Yields 8-10 servings

Total time (including prep): 1 hour 30 minutes

Prep time: 30 minutes

 

Pie’s  Creamy Peanut Butter Cup Brownies

 

Being a home cook comes with its challenges and one of the challenges I have is I am not a baker.  I have to work at coming up with successful recipes that I don’t flop miserably when it comes to the baking department.  There is a lot of “R&D” that happens in Camp Pie Hole’s kitchen and when I finally get it right, I get it right!  This is a quick and easy way to get away from the “boxed brownie mixes” and produce brownies that people will be talking about well after they are gone.  Hey, who does not love cream cheese, peanut butter and chocolate!

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a large bowl add 2 eggs, 3/4 cups sugar, 1 tbsp of vanilla, 1/2 cup of soften cubed cream cheese, 1/2 cup melted butter (cool to warm so you don’t scramble your eggs – usually takes a few minutes to cool).  Mix well.  It is ok if the cream cheese gets lumpy.

Add 3/4 cups of good quality sweet ground chocolate and cocoa mixture (Ghirardelli has a good product).  If you can’t find that.  Grind 1 cup of semi-sweet chocolate with 1/4 cup cocoa in a food processor for the 3/4 cups.  2/3 cups flour, 1/4 tsp baking powder, 1/4 tsp salt (if use unsalted butter). Hand mix well.  Should be a thick consistency.

Chop up around 10-15 peanut butter cups (I tend to use Trader Joe’s peanut butter cups)

Fold in chopped peanut butter cups.

Spread into a greased 8″-9″ pan/dish (I prefer glass).  Bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

 

Ingredients:

2 eggs

3/4 cups sugar

1 tsp of vanilla

1/2 cup of melted butter (cooled to “warm”)

1/2 cup of cream cheese soften to room temperature

3/4 cup of good quality Sweet ground Chocolate and Cocoa (Ghiradelli Sweet Ground Chocolate and Cocoa) If you can’t find product see above directions for substitute.

2/3 cup flour

1/4 tsp of baking powder

1/4 tsp of salt (if used unsalted butter)

10 miniature peanut butter cups

Yields: 16- 20 brownies

Time: 40- 50 minutes (includes 20 minute prep time)

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For Our Friends in Japan

Last night I was watching the news with the hubs and the breaking news hit that a 8.9 quake hit.  I stayed up until the wee hours of the morning, not that I was afraid of the tsunami that is to hit our coast this morning, but because I was glued to what was happening to our friends and worried about a family friend that lives and works in Tokyo (we still have not heard from her).  As I was watching the initial tsunami hit the farmland I was just dumbfounded and sick to my stomach.  I am overwhelmed. 

This does hit  close to home emotionally, because I live in Southern California and they have been predicting the Big One for 25 years.  I have experienced the Northridge quake of 1994 and that was scary and I can’t even wrap my mind around this magnitude of a quake and the devstation that has followed with the tsunamis.  They are having after-shocks the size of the Northridge quake.

I am going to go dark for a few days to just show my personal respect and reverence for our friends in Japan.  I can’t find humor in life right now and what I have to say is so insignificant compared to what has just happened. 

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Being Accountable: Where Does the Line Start or End?

This morning my neighbor and I went on our walk and the subject of NPR’s big brouhaha of management shake down came up.  To bring up to speed about the current event, NPR fired contributing journalist Juan Williams for saying he was uncomfortable boarding a plane with a Muslim on it, when he was on FOX news.  James O’Keefe, a conservative activist, recently did an undercover sting on one of the execs, Schiller, no relation to the CEO Vivian Schiller,  said that the tea party are racists Christian fanatics and that NPR does not really need the federal funding it gets from the feds.  Vivian Schiller stepped down because the board pretty much told her either she was fired or she had to resign and executive Ron Schiller was fired. 

First off did they not  fire Juan Williams for “racist” comments on another network?   Isn’t it what is good for the goose is good for the gander?  I really don’t care what was said about the tea party or Juan’s issue with getting on a plane with Muslims.  What I care about, and what I think NPR cared about, was Ron Schiller getting caught with his pants down on tape saying that NPR does not need federal funding.   He is one of the faces of NPR and even if he believes that, he is accountable to the board of directors and those that sign his paycheck to have and edit button on his pie hole, he just had a huge wake up call.  I feel NPR did the right thing.

Now, let’s get real here.  Anyone that listens to NPR on a daily basis, knows that NPR leans more to the social left so being targeted by a conservative activists because it is funded by the tax payers on where they really stand on issues is not suprising and they should know that as well.

I don’t like shady operations, I like everything out on the table and seeing everyone’s cards.  However we live in a society where both sides of the political spectrum do pretty outrageous things to prove or make a point and the conservative activist group found their golden nugget of opportunity and now we are dealing with the emotional fall out of that act.

 I see that many are outraged that NPR fired these two executives and a journalist for saying and doing things that are not “socially/politically correct”.  I say good for NPR.  These people were representatives for NPR and getting paid very well to be that face of NPR and there should be consequences to be in that role stating extreme opinions and speaking off the record about financial standings of that company.  Luckily for NPR President Obama is going to protect its funding despite this hiccup of diarrhea of the executive pie hole.  Yet, I do ask the question if NPR can really afford to be on the air without the federal dollars, then why are we not taking the money back and applying it to other areas of need?  Just a thought to ponder on.

The question I have for you fellow bloggers is the what was asked me today.  Where is the line crossed when you are accountable of what you say and do even if it is off the record and in a casual environment? 

My answer is that if you have a level of authority or a face of a “thing” you are accountable for everything you say and do on and off the record.   You are being compensated accordingly to be that face and it is a 24 hour job.  If you don’t want that responsibility, then step down.  I think the consequences that NPR handed out were fair.

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This Tiger Mother is Done with the Tiger Blood!

Soapbox Sundays! Better Late than Never!

Yes, I am the Chinese sign of the Tiger and I actually loved the book ,Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother.  I am not saying that I am for not allowing  my kids to attend sleep overs or make them practice the piano a million hours a day.  I just like the fundamentals of the book and the author is hilarious and laughing all the way to the bank because she has roused up a whole sect of “soccer moms”.  I digress . . .   What my Soapbox Sunday is about is good ‘ol Charlie Sheen and his “tiger blood” syndrome.

 I am going to own that I am going to be guilty of doing exactly what I am on my soapbox about, but maybe if I can get enough of you to agree with me, words like Charlie Sheen and tiger blood will fade away as quickly as it  ignited.

I get that for some sick and strange reason America loves to watch train wrecks of humanity Hollywood.  No one really wants to face the reality that the world is in economic crisis, the Middle East is in civil distress, the Mid-West is in civil unrest, we are going to be bellying up to the pump at $5.00 a gallon soon  and there are only three episodes left of Big Love.   I get watching some “fictious” character of Hollywood on his crash and burn tour to either Promises Rehab Facility or to something far worse with only a True Hollywood Story episode to be remembered by, seems to be a good way to fill up the days of our pathetic lives. 

Unfortunately, Charlie is not a fictious character. He has people who actually love him and hates seeing this happening.  You have the mothers of his children trying to shelter them from them seeing their dad self destruct and a family that just don’t know what to do, so they are just bracing themselves for his rock bottom moment, ready to pick up the broken pieces, if there is any left to pick up.

This is a man who is not fueled by “Tiger Blood”, even thought my Sirius Radio has a whole station dedicated to “Charlie Sheen’s Tiger Blood Radio”, like it is something real.   What he is fueled by is all the attention he is getting out of this.  He is an addict and this is classic text-book addict behavior, I should know I grew up with addicts my whole life.

The media, the fans or non-fans need to leave him alone; he should be hearing a million crickets, not a million tweets. No one should be adding fuel to this train wreck.  

He is losing everything tangible and in his surreal false reality he is thinking he IS gaining everything and has an edge on the market of life.  A life that is troubled, disturbed, and wounded.   Please America, can we please stop with the tiger blood and get back to True Blood.  At least that is fiction and not someone’s true reality.

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Foodie Friday’s: Pie’s Shepherd’s Pie

 Pie’s Shepherd’s Pie

It is cold and I am pulling out all the stops when it comes to comfort food! Since it is March, why not embrace a bit of the ‘ol luck of the Irish roots I have along with making an easy one-pot meal with a few quick elements added to have a home-cooked value in an hour!    

Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees. In a large oven safe cook pot (dutch oven), brown ground beef with 1/2 diced onion and 2 cloves of diced garlic.  Add 1/2 tbsp of Kosher salt and 1/4 tbsp of black pepper.  Drain only 1/2 of the excess fat. This will help establish a nice rich gravy. 

.  Heat should be at a simmer: Add 16 oz of beef broth/stock, 1 can of cream of mushroom soup,  2 teaspoons of Worcestershire sauce 2 tbsp of butter and about half of the 1/4 cup of flour.  Stir constantly for about 1- 2  minute until flour is dissolved and  NOT forming dumplings.  It should thicken. 

Add 1-1/2 cups of the following frozen vegetables – corn, carrots, peas, green beans.  Keep at a simmer level so you will need to increase heat.   Once veggies are defrosted and warmed through (about 5 minutes) add additional flour.  Stir for about another 1-2 minutes.  The consistency should be thick enough it can support a standing spoon for at few seconds.   Turn down heat and cover.

Peel, dice and cook 8-10 potatoes. I normally just put them in a large glass brown and microwave them for about 15-20 minutes. Or you can boil the potatoes the traditional way.   Drain water from cooked potatoes, add 2 table spoons of butter, 1/2 tbsp of Kosher salt, 1/4 tbsp of pepper and 2 tsp of milk.  Mash to a semi-lumpy consistency. 

Fold in 1/2 cup of shredded cheese. 

Add 1 cup of shredded cheese to the thickened base

Spread potatoe mixture over the top of the melting cheese and place in the oven. Bake for 30-40 minutes at 400 degrees or until the potatoes start to brown and the cheese is melted and the gravy is bubbly. 

 

Ingredients:

1-1/2 lbs of ground beef

1/2 white onion

2 cloves garlic

1 tablespoon of Kosher salt

1/2 tablespoon of black pepper

16 oz of beef stock (can substitute chicken or vegetable stock)

2 teaspoons of Worcestershire Sauce (a little goes a long way, be careful not to over season with this)

1 can of cream of mushroom soup

4 tablespoons of butter

1/4 cup of flour (you may need more or less depending on how you get to your correct consistency)

1 cup of frozen corn

1 cup of frozen peas

1 cup of frozen green beans (I did find a  green been combination of green and yellow “green” beans)

1 cup of frozen carrots (I did find a frozen carrot combination of yellow and orange carrots)

8-10 medium potatoes, peeled, diced and boiled

1 1/2 cup of shredded cheddar cheese

2 tablespoons milk

*Yields about  6-8  large and hearty servings

Time: 1 hour total time:  30 minutes of hands on time. 30 minutes of oven time.

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Top Ten Reasons Why Mankind is Becoming More Like Troglodytes the Smarter the Technology Gets!

We are in a world of Wi-fi, smart phones, DVR machines, Google, Facebook, Twitter, GPS, and even cars that can turn on by simply pushing a button.  Heck, my Miele double ovens have more features than the average mid-sized sedan.  In all of this advancement in technology there is one part of the equation that is not meeting its demands – the human race.  We seem to be reverting backwards in society where the only thing we have to show for the progression of technology are sore thumbs and more opportunities to morph into troglodytes.  This is the inspiration of my Top Ten Tuesdays:

http://visualrian.com/images/item/315389

10:  No one can spell anymore.  Yes, and I have to say I too, have thrown that whole notion out of the window.  Why would I ever continue to waste my time in learning to spell when  my smart phone not only checks my spelling but actually anticipates correctly the word I want to use with only two characters entered?

9. What would we do without  GOOGLE:  Why would anyone ever go to the library to do research and used the Dewey Decimal System when you can stay at home in you skivvies and drink booze while doing your reasearch?  All you have to do is type in your misspelled search words and Google will spit out nine million options on that subject AND most of all supply a healthy amount of porn to go along with it.  All the Dewey Decimal System did for me in college was add five extra hours to my time spent in the friggin’ libary with no “happy endings”. 

8. Blue Hairs.  This generation is just a lost cause.  They are still trying to figure out the  “Clap On” light switch and the thought of trying get them to hop on the world-wide web-internet highway without stalling out and having “fatal” error messages appear all over their computer screen is almost impossible.

7.  Customer service is no longer an instant service.  Yes, you know what I am talking about.  You call and you get a computer answering service that asks you to speak certain things, yet never understands what you are saying.  All you get out of the call is, “Sorry I did not get that, please try again.”  Which sadly ends in, “Sorry, we cannot understand your request, please hang up and try your call again.”  By this time you are throwing your phone across the room crusing up a storm and now you not only do not have the information you needed, but you have to go to the store and replace a phone to go through the same thing again.  

6.  No one can write with a pen or pencil.  Pretty soon babies are going to be born with hands and fingers in “text ready” position. It is already stating, all that most people can do is sign their name on the dotted line. 

5. Mail a letter? What is a Stamp? Isn’t that what email is for?  Who needs to know how to lick a stamp, let alone know even what a stamp is when all you have to do is send an email.  Right now I can tell  you that the mail I get on a daily basis is only advertisements and a few bills.  On the slim chance there is a card or letter in the mail from a friend of family member, I see the beam from heaven shining down on my little mail box and as I open it, I hear Handel’s Messiah!

4. Never leave home for it.  Who needs to knock the stank off,  get dressed, put on the war paint and drive to a store and interact with humanity to get items needed when with just one click of the mouse, you have your hearts’ desire with free shipping.  You can even have your groceries dropped off at your door. 

3.   Twittering and Tweeting are not longer just for the birds.  There was a time when all the tweeting you heard was the cute little robin or sparrow sitting outside your window.  Now all you get is the annoying chirp of your smart phone letting you know someone just tweeted.

2.  Who needs doctors when there is the internet?  It seems that thanks to modern technology and the internet, those that spent sleepless nights serving their medical residencies, are now being replaced by some blogger that is probably living his mother’s basement high on bad weed and is now your “authority” on the rash that you currently have.  Sure he may have a rash, but it is due to the combination of bad weed and not moving from his computer screen for  three days.

1. Diarrhea of the Facebook and Twitter:  I will admit, I enjoy getting updates and pictures posted to my Facebook account to stay connected with many of my inner and outer circle.  HOWEVER, I  did not need to know that you are checking in and out of the grocery store, the gym, Bed, Bath and Beyond, the proctologist, the local “dispensary”  and now the bathroom.   I also love those that have no sense of self edit or restraint of their virtual pie holes and accidentally post something catty about somebody on the wall of the person they are being catty about. Or better yet, just post something horribly embarrassing to their character of what a total tool they are.   It is amusing to watch that fire storms brew when that happens.  You can pretty much tell who will NOT be coming to the next Holiday dinner in certain families.

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If You Can’t Take Care of Your Teeth, You Probably Can’t Take Care of an Exotic.

There was this documentary I saw a while ago that disturbed me to the core.  It was on all the Burmese Pythons that are being released into the wild by their irresponsible owners here in the US.  Most of the offences are in the Florida and surrounding states, but it is expanding into the western states. 

Apparently, these snakes can pretty much adapt to any environments and they are at the very top of any ecological food chain destroying the balance of the natural habitat.  That was just one part of the documentary, the other part of the documentary is what shook me to the core and exposed the core to the problem of why these exotic monsters should be left where they belong.

People are dumping these snakes because when the 20 somethings buy them, they are a manageable baby snake and in a couple of years it is eating thier 3-year-old toddler while they are helplessly sleeping in their crib.  Really that has happen several times. 

First off, let’s just address that NO one should ever own something this insane and wild with small children.  I would go as far as to say that there should be legislation passed where if it is legal to have those types of “exotics” that you must meet certain criteria and responsibility levels and safe guards (like owning a gun) and if you don’t then no exotic for you.  

In each case I read about a snake of this magnitude killing a small child, it got out of its cage.  If you saw the people who owned these lethal animals, they barely could take care of themselves and their dental hygiene let alone take care of a snake that was 15 feet long and weighed more than they did. 

Personally, I think exotics being owned by uncertified personnel (meaning you need to be a zoo keeper in a zoo) should be outlawed completely and this is coming from someone who  has  libertarian view points.  But at the end of the day, it is the government agencies and taxpayer’s monies that have to clean up the mess and infestation of biting off more than one can chew owning animals like this so to me legislating heavy handed is fair.   

To conclude my segment of Soap Box Sundays, I feel animals, even the domesticated dog and cat don’t have fair legislation on protecting them from being placed into bad situations.  They have decent legislation of getting them out of horrific situations, but preventing it, is a whole beast in and of its self.  Owning an animal of any kind is a privilege, not a right and it is the owner’s fiduciary duty to be able to take care of it without putting the environment and people at risk.

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