BDS Even News, Dan Rather. Girl agents in Florida today talked up the nation's largest coke bus ever, more than four tons of cocaine hidden in hollered out boards of a cargo ship boxcar. The drugs arrived in two shipments from Honduras. They were bound for a Florida picnic table company.


What's going on guys got Kyle here with Layton Sports Cards and we are ripping 2022 Bowman Chrome Baseball sapphire edition 5 box break number 19 random teams Did a randomizer for the break show you the results again real quick We had Jeff M with the Red Sox down to Tom C with the Mets Can always check the results of these randoms on our website LaytonSportsCards.com. We have a results tab all the way at the bottom Good luck here guys is box one. This is 5 box number 19 random teams See a big Jackson Shurio here. Good luck See some low numbers got Pete Crow CJ Abrams rookie got a Nelson Velazquez first and a Matt Manning rookie. There's a Victor Acosta George Kirby rookie Ezekiel Tovar and Kyle Tucker for the Strokes There's a Steven Kwan. We've got Carson Williams in 99 nice one there for the Rays on the Aqua James Wood and a Frankie Lindor Shane Bob's rookie Rays got George Valera Alvarez and a Bryce Harper Come on. Let's see a low numbered first here rookie O'Neill Cruz for the Pirates Garcia Zach Veen and Gabe Arias Guardians rookie Gabe Arias Max Scherzer Polino first Blaze Jordan and rookie Hunter Green Yellow Got a Jose Altuve Matt McClain first nice one Reds and yellow is going to be rookie to 50 Helio Ramos For the Giants there a Juan Soto behind it got a Byron Buxton Eric Hernandez first Randy Arroz Arena and Jay Allen for the Reds Alrighty guys box to see some first boom of color here draft is over The draft is over Good work JJ Reddick Good work JJ Reddick. Yeah Got a Pedro Pineda Perez got Max Scherzer number 299 for the Mets Christian Hernandez George Springer Got Spencer Torkelson rookie Lonnie whites and a Seya Suzuki rookie for the Cubs rookie Josh Lowe Rays Luis on, Helicunia Marcello and a rookie Bobby wit nice one that Royals Matt Olson Lorenzo Curtis Mead and Corey Siga He's like double the height of Adam Silver women. Yama. That's crazy pita Lonzo Got Jose Rodriguez a first Alexis Hernandez for the Cubs and Jared Kellnick Got a junior Perez and yellow is going to be arrow Vera numbered 50 up 50 for the Angels Arrow Vera 50 of 50 Sammy Munoz Jake Berger rookie got two colors in this pack. All right We'll take that. There's a first of Verdugo We've got orange Ryan Valleye number to 75 for the rookie for the Rockets Rockies rookie Rockies And Jeremy Pena nice one here on the rookie Aqua that one's going to Houston Nice World Series MVP Jeremy Pena. That's a sweet-looking picture, too Jeremy to ran rookie Red Sox Almost been yesterday. I think the finals tomorrow. There's ever Cabrera We've got your don Alvarez number to 75 Stroh's Stroh's are hitting yeti cappy Alrighty guys box three 2022 Bowman Chrome Sapphire Trey Turner Quintana JD Martinez and may he a first come on. Let's see a big Jackson shurio There's a Donaldson Daniel a Quava and this is JD Martinez the 50 on the yellow sapphire Angel is Orange coming up James triantos Orange is going to be Harry Ford number to 75 for the Mariners there Harry Ford Kalia Watson Kyle Lewis Christian Hernandez young Carlo There's a cabrera first Nick Madrigal Lonnie whites and say a Suzuki for the Cubs rookie Nick York Acunia Marcello and a another Bobby Whit rookie there for the Royals There's Marco Luciano Royce Lewis rookie Curtis Mead and Corey Seager Aqua Got Trey Sweeney Paul Goldschmidt and Aqua is going to be Nick Madrigal number to 99 for the Cubbies Jared Kellnick ox fort 2022 Bowman Chrome. This is break number 19 guys The last one of the night. We'll get some personals going after this. It's got about an hour to personals There's Wilfred of Verras first Joey Vado Zach Vien gave Arias rookie Guardians West Cath De La Cruz blaze Jordan and Hunter Green rookie Reds Hank Davis got a Louise Heel rookie Jay Allen and Juan Soto Averson Artega Joey Gallo Benny Montgomery Randy Rosa Reina Yeah, they are xyrex. They are full A good bit of orders come in we have tomorrow with Matt starting on channel two at five. He'll be doing personals for the full night xyrex So if you want a personal tomorrow Matt'll be your guy Dylan Carlson We'll start at 5 p.m. And then he'll do a personals all night. Oh purple Got a Nicoladolo rookie and purple is Bobby wits nice one here rookie purple for the Royals number to 25 Nice hit there Royals. That's Wil M Great Bobby wit there Mac that one for you will really nice wit got confidant Castro got Wilson Contreras Leova Pagaro and we have a Kyle Tucker to 99 on the aqua and a Joe Ryan rookie but Dal Bruhan rookie rays Henry Mendez Christian posh a and Christian Vakaro nice one there for the Nats Good prospect Vakaro See some of his color last one here guys box five. This is number 19 22 bone chrome random team break. Good luck. Good luck here guys Ryan Velaid rookie plus since yeah Vasquez Gavin sheets Mookie bets Drew Baker first Joey Weimer and Jonathan India Come on Jackson Shuri. Oh, where you at? See some low numbers. There's a Willie Faunas first And yellow nice one here Alec Thomas on the rookie for the D-backs number to 50 I said D-backs there Jonathan got Yankee Fernandez Javi Baez a Robert Hassel Christian Yelich Noel V Marte and Jazz Chisholm Got CJ Abrams rookie and purple nice one here Marcello Meyer great prospect for the Red Sox there Jeff M 7 of 25 Marcello Very nice one there Got a Jose Miranda rookie Victor Acosta George Kirby rookie Ramos rookie and arrow Vera for the Angels and two left yellow Stephen Kwan rookie And it's gonna be O'Neal Cruz. Nice one there pirates O'Neal Cruz number 21 of 50 Great hit there for the pirates on the yellow rookie Nice O'Neal Vati Junior and Wilma Diaz Some good rookies in this uh this break here George Valera And we've got Ricardo Cabrera number 299 on the first for the Reds Reds grabbing the last numbered one there Ricardo Cabrera got Marcus Simeon and Jordan Loller on the back Alrighty guys, let's do a quick hit recap here We've got number to 25 Marcello Meyer nice one there for the Red Sox We had to 99 on the aquas Ricardo Cabrera first Kyle Tucker Nick Madrigal Jeremy Pena rookie to 99 Max Scherzer and Carson Williams to 50 we had rookie of O'Neal Cruz Alex Thomas rookie JD Martinez arrow Vera and Elio Ramos Orange number 275 had Harry Ford Jordan and Ryan Valade And our mag we had a Bobby Whit jr. On the purple rookie number to 25 Nice hits there guys appreciate y'all. Um, we'll get those right out to you That was sapphire number 19 2022 bowman chrome get personals going here now


And again, and the stock will, you know, however you want it, really. Yeah. You've got a button on the pistol, so you can, on the pistol grip. Or the C8. But we could, definitely, the fundamentals stayed the same. Two more. Three. The reason that we're doing this. Hey, we got, we got Death Space here? First. Hey, I got Death Space here. Go open it. Alright. Death Space moving forward? I'm moving. Set up security.  Well, you take front door. Did you control? Yeah, go up there. They render a little bit of aid to the best of our ability, without compromising security. So we'll leave one person, they'll keep security of the room that they're in, and then, you know, maybe throw them some, and we know this guy is dead. We at least have a reasonable, no doubt. Detainment up. We don't need to leave anybody. It's a simple, personal, uh, banquet. Uh, not much. I just put my plates in. Uh, but it's literally just an eye-factor. Imagine, he gets nothing. Yeah, pretty much. Yeah, really. Yeah, really. Modify double plow. Modify double plow. Distort, right? Master, what are you doing? Close the gate, right? Yep. Squeeze. Are you ready? Squeeze them. Open the gate. Move with them. Okay, good spot. All right, moving move. All right. Now, wait. Step out. Let's stay on this wall. Cool. And then, once you guys are... All right. Watch. I hear the master now, right? Cool. I close the gate. She drops her gun. Step up to it. I don't see anything in the corner. Step out. All right. You're kind of, like, rolling it out. You're doing this thing. I don't want you to do that. I want you to come up to the corner. You see that corner. Step out. You go. Now, take this corner. Take your foot and do this thing so I can hear it straight. All right, bud? Yeah. I mean, take security with you. Look at that face. I'm moving. Moving. This is Flight Chief. Feel the body. Take control of your forces, Flight Chief. Tell her where to go. Twenty seconds. You're going to thrust along that line, yeah? When the stun goes in, then all the ears, eyes, on the back. Yeah, so once you fizzle in, you're happy with it. So your external windows are out of play. We're trying to get the best out of you guys. External windows are out of play. Do your usual subject handling so you want it, you want it. Don't worry about so much about D13, but let's secure the subject. Yeah, it's more the case that once we've got one, we're losing a team member. Exercise live! Okay, I need a two on here. Yeah, I'm two. Okay? Yeah? You're amazing. Drop two. And let's push onto this corner, Nathan. Yeah. Come on, Nathan. Just hold. Okay. Okay, front cover. Front cover. Hold. I'm going to get checked. Okay, let's push around. Okay. We've got subject down in the room ahead. I've got open door right on me. Push across, plate, plate. Now, hop. Your room. Yeah. Okay, really clear. Yeah. Out on me. Hold. Just dress back. Okay, you've got your three. Yeah. Okay. Okay, split on the door if you can. You've got one and a two moving. Okay, open door now. Okay, open door. Okay, open door. Plug it. Plug it. Plug it. Okay. Your room. Just coming back on me. Hang on. Yeah. Is this room clear? Right, this room is clear. That's it. That's it. That'll be complete. Okay. Okay, end it. Go with it. Go with it. Okay, subject down. Okay, searching. Clear on the left. Yeah. Push over. Third person in. Take weapon off him. Hand covering. I'll cover him. I'll sort him out. You keep cover. Keep rear cover on. We've got two subjects. We've only got one at the moment. That's not really secure. Got any IEDs or anything? No. Okay, end it. End it. Emergency entry. You go. Get some photos. All right. Okay. Advanced mode. Got somebody beyond.


Former champion Andy Mori has been added to the main draw of the US Open following the withdrawal of Stan Waringka. Mori has had a tough year having missed the Australian Open because of a positive Covid-19 test and opting out of competing at the French Open. He reached the third round at Wimbledon but withdrew from the men's singles tournament at the Tokyo Olympics on the advice of his medical team. The US Open runs from August 30th to September 12th.


In 1954, John Paul Stapp strapped himself to a rocket sled and shot across the desert. When the sled stopped, he pulled more than 40 Gs, that's more than 40 times the force of gravity. And it might not seem like it, but the test was done in the name of pilot safety. I'm Amy Shearer Tidal, and this week on Richard Space, we're talking about Sonic Wind No. 1. After the Second World War, technological advances were seeing airplanes flying higher and faster, breaking the sound barrier and reaching toward space. But humans weren't exactly getting any more robust. The higher planes flew, the harder they crashed, and that meant flying was an increasingly hazardous job for a pilot. For John Paul Stapp, the disparity between human frailty and advancing technology in the air presented a very interesting research opportunity. Just how much force could a pilot withstand during a crash? If designers knew this, they could design seats and restraints to keep airmen alive through more crashes. To this end, deceleration tests were Stapp's best ally. Stapp's method was simple. Add a rocket-powered sled down a track to mimic an airplane flying, then have it stop quite suddenly, the sudden deceleration mimicking a crash. Measuring what happened to his body would tell him what a pilot could and could not survive. Stapp's most famous sled run was his last. On December 10th, 1954, he was strapped into the forward-facing seat of a sled. His arms and legs were secured, he wore a helmet and had a bite block in his mouth. Behind the seat was a sled's propulsion unit consisting of nine solid-fueled rockets. Inside of him was 2,000 feet of track. Sitting underneath the final stretch of the track were a series of pools. A scoop on the underside of the sled would dig into the pools to stop it. Alongside the track were high-speed cameras ready to capture the test. In the air was Joe Kittenger in a T-33, ready to fly a photographer over the track at the moment the sled stopped. As soon as the clouds cleared, the test was on. The nine rockets rode to life with 40,000 pounds of thrust, and within five seconds Stapp had reached a top speed of 632 miles per hour. That's Mach 0.9. He tore along the track until the scoop on the underside of the sled hit the water. From that point, it only took 1.4 seconds for the sled to stop. The sudden deceleration hit Stapp with more than 40 Gs of force. For an instant, he weighed 6,800 pounds. That's the same deceleration in force that a driver would feel in a car traveling at 120 miles and then slamming into a brick wall. The extreme G-forces broke all the blood vessels in Stapp's eyes, cracked his ribs, broke his wrists, and affected his circulatory and respiratory systems. But he survived and almost immediately began planning his next run. He wanted to get the sled up to 1,000 miles per hour to break Mach 1, but the Air Force finally stepped in and put a stop to his self-testing. They knew that it was only a matter of time before he lost his life, and his life and research were too valuable to lose. For more on Stapp's rocket sled runs and what happened with his research, check out the latest article on vintage space over at Popsci. Leave your questions and comments below and for weekly vintage space video updates, don't forget to subscribe.


You're watching Islamabad today for Think Tech Hawaii. I'm your host, Hamza Rifah Al-San. Today's topic is what's next for Imran Khan. And we're talking about Imran Khan, former prime minister, and in many ways, the most popular politician in the country, despite whatever happened on May the 9th, where you could say that sedition charges were actually laid on him, and that he could be trialed under a military court as well. I have with me journalist, Mr. Amir Zia. He has a keen eye on these developments, and he's gonna share insights on what would be next for the former prime minister and his party, as he looks to navigate this difficult political situation that he finds himself in. So, Mr. Amir Zia, thank you so much for joining me on the show. You're most welcome, and thank you very much for inviting me on your show. Thank you, Mr. Amir. So, let's start with the basic question here, which is, of course, the theme of this episode. What's next for Imran Khan, as he looks to navigate this difficult political landscape? Hamza, if you allow me, I'm not trying to deflect your question, but I would say that what's in store for Pakistan? Imran Khan is one of the players within our country, and the future of the country is now is in question, because everybody's unsure that whether elections will be held on time or not, what is in store for Pakistan on the economic front, and among the major political players. I mean, what is in store for the PDM? And when we break down the PDM, what is in store for PMLN or for people's party? And yes, Imran Khan is one of the major players. So I would say that everybody, if you start talking to the business people in Pakistan or analysts, they say the times are tough for the country, and the times are tough on two accounts. One, the economy is in shambles, and it's a huge challenge for us. So I would say that economic challenge is a big challenge for us, and at the same time, political instability is the second challenge for us, and both these challenges are feeding one another, to political uncertainty and all the instability it is feeding, it is wrecking our economy, and because of the bad economic situation, politics is going haywire. So this is the overall situation, which is very grim, very challenging for the state, for the government, and for all the political players. And among all those political players, there's one major player that is Imran Khan. So another question arises, I mean, whenever the next elections are held, I mean, number one, that we should not be doubting that election, whether elections will be held on time or not. But still in Pakistan, I mean, as you are based here now, so you can see that, I mean, many people are asking this question, the when will be the elections? Under the constitution, they should be sometime by November this year. So if the elections are held by November, then there's another question, will all the political players be allowed to participate in those elections in a free and fair manner? Will those elections will be free and fair? And connected to it is the fate of PTI and Imran Khan, that whether they'll be allowed to run in the elections or not, so these are some of the basic questions. And Imran Khan, of course, as a country faces a tough time, Imran Khan is also facing one of the toughest times of his career, betting under pressure, playing cricket under pressure is one thing, and doing politics in a third world, developing country under pressure is totally a different thing. Yes, Sanda. Absolutely, absolutely. So when we talk about the PTI in general, now we've seen the party's powers being clipped, most of the senior leadership has gone to defecting factions and obviously this new party, the Pakistan-Estaqam party is coming up. So when you review these mechanics, do you see the PTI retaining its vote bank? Should elections take place in November? If the election takes place and PTI is even allowed to run in those elections, I think that while the leadership, the first year leadership or the second year leadership of the party, it has fallen like a pack of cards. Yes, we all know that. But the vote bank, I believe, has hardened. So there can be two possibilities. One, if the PTI is allowed to run, so I mean, will they find candidates in each and every constituency? That is another major question. And if they find it, there's a scenario where there are no candidates for PTI. So what will that vote bank will do? Will it vote for people's party or IPP, the Estaqam, whatever the new name, Estaqam-Estaqam party, or newly, yeah. So whom they are going to vote for or will they take quite, they won't vote. So I mean, I have an apprehension if PTI is not allowed to run. The PTI hardened vote bank, they are not going to turn up, especially in the urban areas among the educated people because the PTI has mobilized a new kind of voters in the country. Those people who are apolitical before the emergence of the PTI. So that comprises a solid vote bank. Then there is youth who think that, you know, Imran Khan is the youngest, at least he's young at heart. So they are the ones, so they will be standing the solution. So I think that the hardened vote bank of PTI or the committed vote bank of PTI, they are not going to turn up if the PTI is not allowed to run. And in case the elections are held minus PTI. So then there'll be a question that about the legitimacy of the electoral exercise. This is one big question. And for another four, five years, there's a question of instability because you are keeping a major chunk of, you know, political power out of the electoral system. So that's again a very challenging situation for the country. Yes. Okay, okay. So when we talk about, do you see the possibility of Imran Khan being trialed under a military court? Which obviously the military court system has become extremely controversial internationally. We've seen assessments by Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, which considers the entire concept of military courts to be inconsistent with basic human rights. In light of that, do you think that despite the pressure on not trialing him or not prosecuting him under the military court, it still remains a possibility given the situation? I think within the PDM and maybe within the establishment, there's a thinking that yes, Imran Khan should be tried by a military court. Okay. But I mean, this is going to create more problems because I mean, whether Imran Khan is punished or acquitted, even the trial itself will become controversial. It will become one of the biggest story of the world, a global story. If Imran Khan, you know, one-time national hero or former prime minister, he's been tried under the military court. So it's not going to get good marks for Pakistan. It's not good for the image of the country because yes, we claim that we are a democratic country. We are a country which says that we respect human rights. There are media freedoms. This is all the narrative which the government and the state tries to build. So if you put up very popular leader, you know, being tried under the military court, so it's going to create a controversy and the sympathy factor will of course go to, it will be with Imran Khan. But I would say that there are serious apprehensions that there can be a big move to disqualify Imran Khan through a military court or through a regular court or put him in jail for a long period. And some of the charges against him, they are quite, you know, comical. I mean, if somebody is accusing Imran Khan, the former prime minister, as being a terrorist, the country which has suffered the burnt of terrorism for more than, you know, two decades straight.  So here you are talking about, you want to try political activity with another politician under the same law or you want to try like that. So this is going to raise question both within the country and abroad.  There have been three major. I mean, if you remember the Raval Pundi Saadish case, the Raval Pundi Kospiti case, 1951. Right? I mean, if there was a move within the army to topple the then government of La Patele Khan, where that trial occurred, the trial occurred and there are civilian criminals, right? Then there was a Hyderabad Kospiti case, which was against, again, against the nationalist leaders. What happened at that time? And at that time, more than 4,000, our soldiers and officers were martyred during the British Sun Insurgency. Again, it was tried under the civilian court, civilian criminal. Then again, we had the hijacking, famous hijacking case, former army chief's passenger plane was being diverted to India by former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. Again, where that case was tried? It was tried by under civilian court. So I think there is a, we have to make a distinction between a political activist politician with always a terrorist. I mean, for two years, the parliament and those people being tried under the military court. That was one of those people, one of those journalists who supported that idea because the terrorist, the black terrorist, black means the category where they play. TTP, for example. Exactly. So what they do is that they would pressurize the judge, they will threaten the witnesses, even the prosecution. So there was no way that they could be tried and convicted by a normal court. That was, it was a legitimate cause at that time. Pakistan was fighting a war on terror. Every Pakistani supported it. Most of the Pakistani supported it. But now the situation is totally different. You cannot try political prisoners or political activists, but you can face them like, treat them like TTP or al-Qaeda. Yes, Amir. Right, absolutely. So when we talk about this, it seems to me, if you look at the political situation paving out, when we talk about military courts being an extremely important variable in this entire equation, it's almost as if Nawaz Sharif or the former Prime Minister was disqualified in the Panama Papers case, there is this, the mechanics are built in a way that somehow he returns to Pakistan, has the right to appeal in front of the Supreme Court, while Imran Khan is delegitimized and disqualified and also labeled a terrorist. I mean, I've seen some, you mentioned the comical cases, there's something like 134 cases on him. And some of the comical statements by his opposition is to equate him with maybe TTP commanders who would actually attack military installations in the country. But do you see that this is more of a ploy by the PDM to try and give the soft corner for Nawaz Sharif to come back into the country, while Imran Khan is actually taken out of the political race? This is more political, rather than you could say legal, this entire way of prosecuting Imran Khan? I mean, the scenario which you are stating is very obvious and things are heading in that direction. Right. But my question is that, okay, if the PDM is able to implement its grand plan and the revival of Shiree family politics and their dynasty, the question is, I mean, how Pakistanis are going to take it?  But again, what has happened that our parliament during the last 14 months, whatever lawmaking they have done, they have done it for, all of the laws they've made are percent specific, including the latest law, where it seems that our parliament is working as a facilitator of the corrupt people, of the convicts, or those people who stand accused of corruption. Rather than thinking ways, how to get them convicted, yet trying to find ways, how to get them acquitted, or if they have been acquitted, they take them to get out of that, the grasp of the law. So I mean, it is very comical, it's very ironic, because I mean, there has been no lawmaking in Pakistan during the last 14 months, which is for pro people, for the workers, for the peasants, for journalists, for the students, no, for middle class, working class, there's been no single lawmaking. They changed the NAV laws that was to facilitate the corrupt, or those people who stand accused of massive corruption, right? And again, the judicial laws they tried to change, again, they were to dilute, or to what you say, to blend the bite of the judiciary. And again, the third law, which is through which they want, Nawaz Sharif is back, and they're going in the path that are giving him the right to appeal. So already that case stands close. He has appealed, and that appeal has been rejected. He's been a result of it. So I mean, that's what they are doing. So they are making a farce of the entire legal system of Pakistan. You know, there's a one set of laws for the privileged few, for the 0.0001% Pakistani, because NAV laws are not my problem. They're not the problem of the ordinary Pakistan. Of course. So is these laws, which they have just trained to help Nawaz Sharif or Janki Tariq. So I mean, it is a mockery of constitution. It is a mockery of legal system of Pakistan. So may God help us? I mean, I can already say that. Yeah, yeah, absolutely. So speaking specifically about, I mean, I can go back into retrospect and we could say that the moment the PDM government came into power, they tried to pass laws that could actually, you know, clip the powers of the National Accountability Bureau and their ability to actually prosecute them. But don't you feel it's ironic that the very same National Accountability Bureau is trying to, you could say, hunt down Imran Khan, particularly in the case of his recent arrest because he was in the premises of the fort. He was actually appearing before the fort. And then the Supreme Court ruled that any, you could say, arrest within the premises of the court of law is considered to be illegal and unconstitutional. But then Mr. Ahmed, the human cry that came from the opposition that the Supreme Court is actually favoring Imran Khan, do you think there are any merits to that argument? Or again, it's just another political statement. I would say that it is another political statement because I mean, there's only one institution which was standing against this, all the mechanics for mechanization what they were doing trying to, you know, change the constitution or not implement the constitution. They, I mean, PDM, while saying that they abide by the constitution, they were working against the spirit of the constitution. The constitution is very clear that once the provincial assembly or any assembly gets dissolved, election must be held within 90 days. So I mean, here we see that the basic parameters of constitution were not being implemented. And it is not the way Imran Khan alone was arrested. I mean, yes, arresting anyone from the court premises is a questionable thing. But I mean, but the way he was pushed, the way he was, you know, showed by the security personnel. And even, I mean, was there a need to break the glasses and the way he was, after all, formed a prime minister? I mean, we have seen arrest. I mean, during my 30 years of career, more than 30 years of career, I've seen many arrests of politicians. The police goes on the security personnel, they'll say, come, sir, come with us.   But here, what is happening, the brave Punjab police of Pakistan, wherever they go for a, you know, the conduct rate or arrest a person, what they do, they break and smash the glasses of the vehicle. They break the furniture. They break the TV sets. I mean, why? I mean, they could, I mean, of course, we are not saying we are not defending the corrupt people.  But there's a way to arrest people. You cannot start threatening women. You cannot start beating children.  And that's what they've done. And this is being done. And now there are footages of each and every arrest. I mean, you go, I mean, it seems that every house where the brave Punjab police has entered, they have just ransacked it. Absolutely. First footage on Twitter, this footage on Facebook, there's footage everywhere.  True. But because I mean, and that has also made the role of the caretaker government questionable. Because I mean, yes, there were apprehensions that this caretaker government is not neutral. And they've proved by their action that they are not neutral. I mean, if Dousa raised about a person, he should try to act in moderation. He should try to act under the law, abide by the constitution. But here we see an unelected person, the way he's using the administration and the police, and then there's a questionable role of the police itself. I mean, why they are abiding by those illegal orders. So, I mean, we say that, yes, arrest, if somebody has committed a crime, please go ahead and arrest him. But, you know, treat him in a dignified manner. And we are not saying that, you know, that you start, you throw them in prison and people keep searching for the arrested person for days and weeks.  Yes. I mean, Raun Raaz's case is just, I mean, I have to say this. Yeah, it's absolutely fascinating in a way that you just cannot locate where he is. I mean, we knew for a fact that, you know, Archduchery eventually ended up in Kenya. And, you know, the entire, I mean, I would argue, and maybe you would endorse us that this entire, the mechanics of it was, you know, built in Pakistan before he actually went to Kenya. But if you take a look at where Raun Raaz is, I mean, most of the courts have even said that we don't know his whereabouts. So, this is just, this is just unbelievable. Exactly, everybody is disowning his arrest. And the second thing is that, I mean, against journalists, you can have two cases, defamation and libel case. And you can take them to high court, supreme court, try as much as there's no harm in it. I mean, journalists should be open for that. If I report, if I mis-support something, if I make false allegations, yes, the victim has all the rights to take me to court. So, I mean, Imran Raaz, if he has, you know, heard the feelings of someone, he has mis-supported anything, please take him to the court, but at least take him to the court. I mean, that's what we are saying. Yeah, but he's not in the court, is he?  I mean, just to put in a humorous tinge to this, maybe in somewhere in the isolated district of Balochistan, we don't know where he is. And that raises questions about the credibility of the justice system in this country. Exactly, and, you know, it has always been controversial in Pakistan, but I think during the last 14 months, I've been really fatal. I don't think so, that, I mean, ever before, I don't remember, even during Pariz Musharraf period, it was a British army. And there was a movement by the journalists, but I mean, they were not treated like that. Yes, they were harassed. They were thrown into a, you know, lock up in 2007. I'm talking about 2007 and eight, but I mean, people knew that was happening. And I think this government, I mean, the way it is operating, it is the most brutal in my living memory, they haven't never seen it like this. And I see a continuation of the PML and policies, because what we believe, when he was in power for the second time, that was in 98, well, if you remember, you can, you know, talk to seniors that a journalist like, I don't say it, he was now in the PML and camp. He was arrested. He was kidnapped.  The biggest group at that time, the Junk Group, they were publishing the news and Junk newspaper on two pages. That I'm talking about 98, 99. Yeah, 98. And there was a long list at 98, that they wanted Malia Lodi to be sacked and some other journalists to be sacked from the Junk Group. And for that, they went, you know, they resorted to high-handed actions. In 2015, again, there was a new group that was being launched, Gold Media Group. Again, it was targeted. And the wait was closed during the pretext of a New York Times post. Again, it was a questionable thing, because without proving the gift, you cannot punish and close a business, a legitimate business. That's what they've done. And now again, the third time. I mean, look, I mean, the way Achachiri was threatened and finally he was martyred under very prestigious circumstances. Pakistan, I mean, imagine a person like Achachiri had to flee the country. I mean, Achachiri was our poster boy of the fifth generation war. He was- He was an excellent investigative journalist as well. I mean, he was an excellent investigative journalist. Yeah. Exactly. Great investigative journalist. So if it would happen to Achachiri, if he was a high-profile journalist. Yes. Right. And then there are many others. I mean, who have been silenced, who are very cautious. I mean, how to speak, what to write, what not to write. So things have changed rather than, you know, ensuring a freedom of press get forward. We are going on a backward direction. Right, right. Yes. It's very unfortunate. I was just coming across the ISPR statement just recently. I mean, just came about 15 to 20 minutes ago, where they basically categorically stated that any attack on the military installation would not be tolerated and the army would take all the steps necessary to try and make sure that any political party, political actor or political activist involved would be prosecuted. So if we talk about the status of the military establishment, I mean, there's a lot of talk about its neutrality and its lack of meddling in political affairs. Do you think that really is the case based on your own analysis? Because most journalists would claim that, yes, they are neutral. Most would claim that they're not neutral. So what is your take on that? So first of all, we have to, you know, realize that in any developing country, establishment always has a role. So I'm one of those people, I mean, there's a very lopsided discussion that's about civilian supremacy. And we know that civilian institutions are weak over here. So I mean, people like me always say that our military leadership and the civilian leadership, they have to work in tandem and support one another. That is the best possible scenario for Pakistan, where are both the civilian and military leadership, they are pushing the country in the same direction. That's the way forward for the country right now. And of course, because there's a historical baggage for Pakistan where military leadership or the institution of the military, they have more power. I mean, when at the time of partition, we inherited a bigger military and a smaller financial base. I mean, it's all documented. So from the day one, it was lopsided, right? And again, we wanted to run our democracy in a country which was, you know, feudal tribal, right? And with the middle class was very small and the industrial revolution was nowhere to be seen. So I mean, that's why we had a flawed democracy. And that's why we kept interfering because our political parties institutions were weak. And it is very wrong to compare that, you know, Pakistan and India, they both vote on freedom in the same year, the same day. But the problem is that India comprised the more advanced, you know, parts of British India. While Pakistan comprised the backward parts of British India, we only had one city that was Lahore, right? Karachi was a small town, Bengal, East Pakistan without Calcutta was a ruler's swim. So I mean, so there was no grand basis for, you know, to establish democracy over here. So that's why India had a head start because all the institutions were there. The parliament was there. Even the political party Congress, it was there. Here, the, you know, Muslim League had to be, you know, repositioned from a minority province to the majority province. That's a good point. The evolution is totally different. So the evolution is very different. So I'm not one of those who say that, you know, that it's sort of a conspiracy of the military that they interfered. It was, there were some objective conditions. There were mistakes submitted by the civilian leadership. They were, so that's why we see where we are now. So going forward, I mean, the unfortunate part is that institutions like military, they should not be made controversial. And here's every political party has done its bit to make them controversial.  They all want military support. So military then has, you know, the choices to make. So let's accept that those facts. So, I mean, PTI, I think Imran, who had been part of the power metrics of Pakistan, or the PTI itself, they should know the limits, you know, how to deal. I mean, to open which front is important and which front is not important, unimportant. So maybe, I mean, they might have grievances with the army, but I mean, the way they tried to pull them in, in this political tussle. So it has went against them. Just imagine till May 8th, PTI was seem unconquerable, was, you know, it was flying high. But I mean- The polls suggest that it was like rocketing 70% to 75% PTI. And believe me, I mean, whether one supports PTI or one opposes PTI, one has to accept that after 9th May, they couldn't be business as usual on part of the establishment. Yeah. I mean, that was there. I mean, they were pushed in that direction. I mean, rather if they had, who has those discussions, those demonstrations outside Jati Umrah or some, you know, Punjab Assembly or Governor House, that would have made more sense. So I would say that PTI overplayed its cards. So it created problem for itself. And I would say, I'm one of those persons who say that PTI is not anti-establishment in its DNA. PTI has the most pro-establishment political party we have. Yeah, they have a history of that, right? They have a history of that. It is in their DNA. I mean, now there are workers and their supporters that are acting like jitter-lovers, right? I mean, that is kind of, I would say the division between them. Yes, we know about the people's party. Yes, they have a strong history of being anti-establishment. Damashree was a strong anti-establishment. He came in power's size. All the three times we had differences with the military leadership. And that's why he was ousted. So here we have PTI, because still we have to know, I mean, what grand sin or crime Imran Khan committed that he was ousted like this? I mean, about Damashree, there was a total narrative was built that he was pro-Mudi ones and all sort of charges. I'm not really... He undermined the Kashmir cause. He undermined the Kashmir cause. I mean, these were the stories which were being shared with the media that he undermined the Kashmir cause. Another story which was very interesting, by the way, it was, you know, this big buy. It was actually accused. It was an accusation by the PTI, which suggested that Nawaz Sharif was going ahead with sedition by claiming that the Pakistan judicial system did not prosecute, you know, the perpetrators of the Mumbai attacks, which is very interesting because he was not necessarily backing the own judicial system. And he says that, well, there's no humanity in Pakistan. They should have handed over the perpetrators to India. So, I mean, when you talk about that, that does amount to sedition charges if you take it from, you know, the basic definition of what that constitutes. Exactly, exactly, exactly. So, I mean, here we have to know, I mean, appointing Buzhar was a bone of contention, we all know. But I mean, that is a political issue. I mean, it is not... I can't say that it becomes a core, core issue for differences. So, we have to yet know the detail. At least, I don't know those details because I'm sitting in Karachi. That's why, I mean, what was the last straw which broke the camel's back? So, we have to know about that. But saying that, I mean, I would say that PTI is still, I would say the first establishment political party and the establishment should not try to, you know, maybe the people in the government, they want PTI and there should be a full-blown escalation between a popular political force. Confrontation. Most political, political force and the most organized and different institutions that they should be pitted once against each other. That is not a good scenario. As a Pakistani, I feel sad about it because I mean, no political party, not just PTI. No political party should be standing against the army and the army should not be standing against any other political party. So, army has a very important role to play in our scheme of things and they should continue doing that and, you know, trying to stabilize the country, trying to end the political uncertainty. Even they are trying to help our economy now. So all these things are good, but at the same time, those political tensions, they need to be lowered now. The politics of, you know, concentration and the uncertainty, that needs to be changed. But I mean, they may be six months down the road or you can drag on for another year or so, but eventually it will come down. Sense will prevail, inshallah. Hopefully, inshallah. So, Mr. Amizah, thank you so much for joining me on the show. It's been a pleasure talking to you. Same here, thank you. All right, so that's all that we have for now on Think Tech Hawaii. This is Islamabad today. I was your host, Hamza Rifah. Sand, you can follow us on our social media pages and do give us your feedback. So next time, take care. Thank you so much for watching Think Tech Hawaii. If you like what we do, please click the like and subscribe button on YouTube. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn. Check out our website, thinktechhawaii.com. Mahalo.


what's happening today's video is going to be about the best college degree minors that's right you've got college degree majors which is what we usually talk about on this channel but what about the minors that you can tack on too since colleges make you take a bunch of extra filler classes anyways this one was requested by subscribers and yes i checked to see if you're subscribed when i'm looking at video requests so make sure you subscribe don't be a lurker oh and as always don't forget to gently tap the like button and let's get started and number 10 on the list is probably going to be a huge shocker to you number 10 on the list is going to be technology related degrees that are not computer science so you might be surprised to see this one so low on the list i talk a lot on this channel about how i think technology degrees are great now one issue that pops up a lot for technology related degrees is that they're too specific so for instance you might be studying something that doesn't really have any jobs or any value 20 years from now technology is evolving so fast that there are a lot of careers that exist right now that won't exist in 20 years and vice versa however if i think you're going to do a technology degree i think it'd be better for you to major in it and then minor in something else rather than the other way around and that's why i didn't put it as high on the list but this one can still be really good depending on the exact major you go for and the situation now if this is something that you're not interested in it's totally fine it's not the end of the world number nine on the list is going to be foreign language now you're probably surprised to see this one here it can be a pretty good one to minor in especially if you're planning on working internationally do you it can even be a good one to double major in if you're absolutely sure of the country that you're going to be working in now this is one you definitely want to do your research on but if you're really passionate about a language it can be a good one it's especially good to go for a language that's really common languages like russian mandarin or high valerian can open up a lot of opportunities for you now even if it doesn't directly lead to you making money it can always help you get a job because companies are always looking for people that are bilingual most americans don't even speak a full language they speak the half language that's known as murrican so if you're fluent in more than one language that is very impressive number eight on the list is going to be art related degrees such as graphic design now as most of you know unless you're a trust fund baby or your grandma started a college fund for you 50 years ago you probably shouldn't major in an art related degree you could consider double majoring it if you combine it with a degree that has a lot of practical value that's a great choice but i think art related degrees are good for minors not only are art related degrees good for minors but in my opinion i think they can make your application to a company look even better it shows that you have an artistic and an interesting side you're not just a soulless robot whose only interest is to pay off their mountain of student loan debt just about everybody either enjoys doing art themselves or at the very least they appreciate art and think that people who are artists are pretty interesting and believe it employers and hiring managers don't like to only hire soulless robots or reptiles all the time because at the end of the day these are the people that you have to work with these degrees also show that you can have a creative side as well and later on in the future you can help the company solve their problems in a creative way number seven on the list is going to be humanities degrees such as history or philosophy another very interesting subject i would say that history is one of my favorite subjects to read about as well as study now although a lot of things that you learn these types of subjects aren't directly practical in terms of teaching you skills that will make you money in real life i do think that it indirectly teaches you skills that will lead you to having a better life and probably even making more money overall philosophy for instance can teach you how to think logically history can teach you how to avoid making the same mistakes that people made in the past etc this might not lead you to directly making money they have a reputation for you know not being very profitable a lot of people who get these degrees end up working as baristas at starbucks but the knowledge the wisdom and the skills that you can learn from these types of subjects can lead to you indirectly making more money number six on the list is going to be social science related degrees such as psychology so more extremely popular degrees psychology is one of the most popular degrees out there i think there's over a hundred thousand people graduating with a psych degree every single year i thought psychology was really interesting an undergrad my sister actually majored in psychology i took extra classes just because i thought it was so interesting and you know i had to take extra classes anyway so i might as well take stuff that was interesting i also did an internship at a psych hospital in my last year pharmacy school and it was one of the funnest internships i've ever done so i can see why a lot of people like this stuff the human brain is just infinitely interesting um there's a lot of advancements that are going to be made in the future just because of how complicated it is so i think that a lot of the skills that you learn in psychology can be extremely useful especially if you combine it with a degree that has some market value a lot of other people find it interesting just like humanities and art degrees and you're more likely to strike up a conversation with them again a lot of these types of degrees i'm talking about don't make very good majors just because of the fact that the numbers don't make sense but despite that colleges are more than happy to take your money knowing that you're probably not going to be able to get a job but these types of degrees can still make really good college minors number five on the list is going to be communications now i don't think it's a stretch to say at all that the skill of communication is extremely important after all i am broadcasting to you guys right now via youtube now there's a specific reason that i put this one here besides the fact that communications is important and that is if you do these classes you're likely going to have to prepare and present a bunch of different speeches now public speaking in general is going to be one of the most valuable skills that you can possibly learn it really doesn't matter what career you go into at some point you're going to have to do some kind of presentation and present information to people and you're going to have to do it in such a way where you persuade them and that it makes sense now again i think this is a skill that you can learn on your own you don't necessarily have to go to college for this there are organizations out there such as toast masters where you can go every single week and present a speech to people and they will critique you on you know maybe you're using your hands too much or maybe you're not making chi contact or you know something along those lines however choosing this one as a minor at the very least is going to give you some initial public speaking experience and that can be really good for you number four on the list is going to be math related degrees such as statistics or mathematics now i've talked a lot before about math degrees i think they're great one of the problems with them is they can be a little bit too general a little bit too abstract this is why when you look at the pay for math careers there's a huge difference between when you first start and when you're in the mid career pay range a lot of the time when you're looking at these degrees you'll see that the difference is almost double and the reason for that is because you are going to have a little bit of a tough time convincing hiring managers that your abstract general mathematics skills are going to help them make money they've got to be able to justify your salary now i know that a lot of people would probably rather watch paint dry than do mathematics professionally but if you like doing math you should definitely consider minoring in it this is another one of those skills that is going to help you pretty much no matter what career you go into the fact that so many people dislike math means there's a lot of opportunity there so if you even like math a little bit you should consider minoring in it number three on the list is going to be computer science i said it before i'm not putting this one as number one anymore it's pretty much a meme now i'm not doing it anymore this is still a very good one though everything we're doing is heading towards knowing how to code having technology skills these are some of the most important skills that you can have there's a lot of jobs out there that don't even exist yet that are going to require a foundational just a bedrock of technology skills and then the ones that do exist out there there's tons of those as well if you get technology skills that's a great way of future proofing yourself nobody knows what's going to happen in the future there's some industries that might not even exist anymore there's some companies that are going to get disrupted and they don't exist nobody really knows but if you have these technology skills you're going to be okay there are massive disruptions happening across all kinds of different industries and technology and computer science skills are going to make a lot of different businesses but anyways even just knowing the basics of coding is going to help you out a lot this is why i am currently teaching myself python number two on the list is going to be business related degrees and i've talked about this a lot before business related skills are going to be useful no matter what job that you go into business related degrees were the most common degrees that create the most billionaires as well as millionaires and there's a reason for that sure some people who go into business are going to be business minded and so therefore they're more likely to become billionaires and millionaires but at the same time you have to ask yourself was it the chicken first or was it the egg maybe going into a business related degree is going to lead you into being more entrepreneurial at the very least it will help you justify getting your first job getting your foot in the door and then later on moving into the higher paying managerial positions now on top of that it's going to directly help you make money by getting a job but it's also going to teach you some skills that will indirectly help you make money as well i've talked to a lot business majors before and they almost all understand the fundamentals of economics for instance this gives them a better idea of how the world works in general it'll also help them to spot opportunities if they stumble upon one business majors tend to have a better understanding at an earlier age of the fundamentals of personal finance such as saving money cash flow investing and all that sort of thing now after entering into an industry working your way up to a managerial position and becoming an expert on something it's going to be very easy for you to spot opportunities where you could maybe start your own business i know this is what happens to a lot of different people this isn't for everyone not everyone is built to be an entrepreneur or not everyone even wants to be an entrepreneur but this is the track that a lot of people take over their lifetime number one on the list and this is going to be the most important by far this is number one by a mile and that is going to be minoring in something that you're passionate about if you happen to be passionate about some of the other ones that i listed on this list that's great you should minor in them okay i think one of my subscribers put it best and i told her i was going to steal that quote and i'm doing it on this video when she said my dad's motto is majoring in something you'll get a job in and minoring in something you love lol unfortunately the way that degrees are these days you have to think more practically when it comes to choosing your major it used to be that you could just get any degree out there and you'd be good to go you'd be set for life it's not like that anymore there are a lot of degrees out there that absolute debt traps however when it comes to minors you're gonna have to take extra classes anyway so you might as well just choose taking classes in something that you're really passionate about if your passion happens to be film or history or economics like mine is then absolutely minor in that i think applying different things that you learn from liberal arts degrees arts degrees and social science degrees can enrich every other area of your life not only in your professional life but also in your personal life i think there's a ton of value in all of these subjects but unfortunately with the way things are today you simply should not major in them probably 99% of the time but double majoring in them if you have another major that's a little more practical minoring in them or just taking extra classes or studying it on the side can bring a new perspective to the world and i think it's very valuable now there's a few things that i think it's important to consider when it comes to choosing a minor that i didn't mention in the video the first thing is just practically speaking you want to make sure that you decide before the end of your sophomore year so if you are going to do a minor which you don't have to but i think it's a good idea you need to decide which minor you're going to do before the end of your sophomore year a lot of people get into their last year and they think oh man um i wonder if i can minor in something and then it just happens to be that they simply don't have enough time and so they just end up not getting a minor at all however if you decide early on which one that you want to minor in and then you go down that track you'll have more than enough time the second thing that i want to mention is a minor really isn't all that important it's honestly just extra if your plate is full you're already strapped for time you don't have any extra time to give to anything then in my opinion what you should do is just ignore the minor don't even worry about it there are much more important things for you to focus on and it's going to be different depending on which major you're going for of course in some majors it's going to be extremely important for you to focus on networking and others it's going to be more important for you to focus on doing projects or getting job or getting an internship but overall just generally speaking a minor is not going to be that important in the grand scheme of things number three thing that i want to mention is that the minor should really be complementary to your major so again this is something that you can kind of just put on your resume that's going to make you look a little bit more well rounded if you're someone who's really heavily into stim for instance it would be really cool to see that you have a minor in like graphic design it shows that you have an artistic side and it shows that you're not just a robot like i mentioned before sorry mark now number four on the list that i'm going to mention is if you do want a minor in something that's actually going to help you to achieve your goals i really recommend that you have to do your research again i mentioned this in a bunch of my different videos but the best way for you to do research on how you're going to get to a certain career is to just simply contact people who are currently in that career ask them important questions like for example in this instance are there any minors that would make my resume look better they should be able to answer you on that question maybe they'll say it really doesn't matter maybe they'll say you know what this one kind of does matter or in my experience it's kind of cool that the company wants people who are a little bit more well rounded and so therefore they have art minors for instance they'll probably tell you something along those lines nothing beats actually talking to people who are in the position that you want to get into you can do this via facebook groups linked in your own personal network you can try cold calling people in your area if you want to or cold emailing them of course you want to be very respectful of their time that goes without saying if you're not going to be respectful of their time then you know they're probably not going to want to answer your question but for the most part i have had people approach me on linkedin as well as in public asking me how they can go about getting into my career and i'm always more than happy to help them and it's not just because i have a youtube channel about degrees and careers all right make sure to gently tap the like button in order to defeat the evil youtube algorithm subscribe hit the notification bell comment down below any thoughts comments criticisms etc and before you go make sure to always check out my other videos right here i made them just for you


That wasn't like the thoughts that were going through my head, but as a kid, I knew that I was different, but I didn't necessarily know how to explain that difference. Like, it was just little things that I would notice that was different from my male friend. So, for example, you know, growing up, I think that Barbie looks kind of dope. I want to play with it. You know, little things like that, I would think, you know, maybe it would be cool if I could paint my nails and be a little bit more effeminate, but there was like these closed-off gender roles. So, you know, I kind of felt like I had to choose between being masculine and feminine. So it's like, well, you know, there's Barbies, and I feel like Barbies are dope, and I would love to play with them, but at the same time, I like Transformers and Beast Wars and Hot Wheels. So I'd rather have those than Barbies. So, like, nowadays, people are more fluid in allowing their kids to play with toys and stuff like that. Long story short, I knew that I was gay when I was very, very young, and probably the first thing that I can recall is a conversation that I had with my mom when I was like five years old, and I don't even know if she remembers this, but she said something like, I don't remember the context of the conversation, but she said to me, well, Mike, when you're older and you get a girlfriend and a wife, then you can do this. I'm like paraphrasing, but I remember my response was, but I don't want a girlfriend. I want a boyfriend. And she said, what? Like, it's kind of a strange thing for your five-year-old to say, right? And she probably didn't think much of it. But I said, I don't want a girlfriend. I want a boyfriend. And she said, well, you can't. And I said, why? And she said, because boys are supposed to have girlfriends and girls are supposed to have boyfriends. And then I was like, but why? I don't want a girlfriend.  So you logically want to have a boyfriend. That was my thought. And her response was, I remember the puzzled look in her face, and I'd be curious to know if she remembers this conversation. But then there was other times when I was in elementary school, like third grade, second grade, maybe, and the other kids were having conversations about their crushes in school. And I remember my friends asking me, like, hey, Mike, Tihi, who do you have a crush on? I have a crush on this person. And I remember thinking, I don't know. I don't know if I have a crush on anybody. And I remember, we were standing in line, leaving recess when we had this conversation. And I remember looking at the boy in front of me in line. And I thought, he's cute. I think I have a crush on him. But then, like, at that young age, I thought, wait a second, that isn't supposed to happen. I hope this doesn't mean I'm gay. Like, I remember explicitly I had this thought in, like, third grade. And then you just kind of like, you put it out of your mind. But you don't really start to notice until you're like around 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 years old. That's where it gets a little bit dark for me, right? Because I knew from a pretty young age that I was gay. And at 14, like maybe 13, my family got really heavily involved in church again. And that happened to coincide with the time that I went through puberty and then started to really realize, okay, all my friends are talking about how much they like girls. And I'm not seeing it yet. I feel different. All these feelings of like, same sex attractions that I thought I might had, they didn't go away. And in fact, they're getting stronger now.   And part of the thing with me is that I remember one day when I was like 12 years old, we were watching VHS tapes. And there was a video of me, I think I was like nine years old dancing the Spice Girls.   And that was when I started to go through puberty.   But that is very effeminate looking. And I've got a change. So that's when, you know, my personality and my demeanor started to change as I went through puberty. Not only did I repress my feelings of same sex attractions, but I also got very vocally homophobic.  And I remember like when I was like 15, 16 years old, my sister told me, look, we all thought that you were going to be gay growing up because you you were very fabulous, you know, for lack of a better word, you acted very effeminate, you used to dance to the Spice Girls, you would play with Barbies from time to time.  I thought, oh good, nobody knows, nobody knows. But you know, it's not so simple. Like I'm explaining this in a way that makes it seem as if I knew I was gay, and I just was choosing not to tell you one. At this point, I genuinely, I wasn't sure. Like I didn't really know. I was like 13, 14. But as I grew older, each year, I learned more and more about myself. And I started to realize, okay, something's definitely up. Like something's wrong here. Like, all my friends are starting to be interested in girls. I'm not. I don't find girls attractive at all. In fact, I think a lot of boys are cute. And this is bad. So I remember telling myself, well, look, not only would I not be accepted if I if I came out of the closet, but I would also go to hell.  Like these are all the thoughts that were running through my head. So I thought to myself, here's the thing, I have no incentive to come out. And repressing it is preferable to actually living as a gay person and dying and being rejected by my family. So at that point, I think I was like 13 or 14 years old. I basically made a suicide pact with myself. And this was my way of like, an insurance program. So that way, if I wasn't afraid of hell, and if for whatever reason, I became an atheist down the road, not that I anticipated that, but it was an extra layer of fear to scare myself straight quite literally. And I wasn't necessarily intent on following through with it. But the thinking was that I would force myself to commit suicide if I ever chose to live as a gay person, because that would be preferable to actually being out. It would hurt my family too much. Most of my family members are homophobic. So that was kind of a promise that I made to myself, okay, we'll repress it as long as we possibly can, we'll try to change. But if it ever gets to a point where you're going to come out, end it. That was my thinking. Now, growing up, when I finally got access to the internet, my family was very poor. So I didn't actually have a computer until I was 17 years old.  I knew that this wasn't going to go away. I prayed every single day, right? I got baptized, I tried to be, you know, straight acting and masculine. And, you know, living in Portland, there isn't any clinics there. So I saw one, I think it was Washington State or California, like it was far away. And I thought, Oh my God, the situation is hopeless. First of all, I couldn't afford conversion therapy. And the clinic that I found, there'd be no way for me to discreetly go there. It's like, what would I tell them? Like at 17 years old, at that point, I had a job. What would I tell my family that I'm just going to summer camp? It was awkward.  And there was just, there was nothing. So I tried so hard to fight it. And I started to try to date girls. And that didn't work as well, because, you know, I'm basically a six on the Kinsey scale. And I don't have an, like I exclusively am attracted to men.  Like she thought, Oh my God, he thinks I'm ugly. He's grossed out by me. I must be not worthy. And I feel so bad because that's not the case. That's not her. It was me.  But really, I just, I'm not attracted to girls. And that was kind of a really pivotal moment for me, because then I realized, it's not, it's just not going to work. I can't fake it. Like I think some gays can fake it to make it. Like you see individuals like Ted Haggard and others try to like live as straight men and then come out later. It just, it wasn't working for me. It was, it was seemingly impossible. So then I thought, okay, what am I going to do? There's this suicide pact. My family is very conservative. And at that point, I kind of got more educated. I didn't necessarily think that being gay meant that you automatically had AIDS, right? So I learned more about that. And I was less, you know, scientifically illiterate. So I thought, so what am I going to do? We're at a crossroads now. Shit's not going away. I'm an adult almost. And I don't really want to kill myself. So I just kind of like postponed my suicide pact. And I never attempted it. And I never really had the intent to. But again, it was kind of like a way of scaring myself straight. So, you know, years past. And finally, at the age of 22 years old, that's when I thought, you know what?  I've been trying so hard to not be gay. And it's literally not working. Every single thing that I do has failed. And you want to know the weirdest thing ever is that the thing that actually clarified it all for me was comedian Carlos Mencia. Now, this is strange as hell. I don't know if any of you remember his show, Might of Mencia. So I don't remember what the segment was about.   And I remember laughing at that.  And then I think, no, I'm not because like I'd also get really contradictory information because I would, I'd like go on these forums, Christian forums, and there was like specific sections for same sex attractions. And people would say, yeah, it's normal. You know, I'm straight. I have a wife now, but I had, you know, had some attractions to men. So there was part of me that was a little bit confused thinking, okay, same sex attractions. It's somewhat normal for straight men. It's not. But basically that song from Carlos Mencia was like that, that clarifying moment for me. It was like, is it really that simple? And it was. So I thought, here's the thing. These are the facts of the situation.  It's not going away. And I don't want to kill myself. What am I going to kill myself for to appease everyone else in my family? I kind of deserve to be happy. I'm 22 years old. I want to date. And I'm done.  And at that point in time, I chose to accept myself. And it felt really good. It was like this light bulb moment where it was like, everything up until that point was so confusing. And like all of my memories were like, clouded. But at that point, when I actually accepted it, it was like, every single thing about my life makes sense. And for the first time, I actually felt happy to live like, there was this fear of, Oh my God, you know, I can't come out. I don't want to kill myself. But it's like, why on earth would I even contemplate that?  At that point, that's where we get to the actual decision to come out.   No way. Like my dad is homophobic as fuck, not going to tell anyone. And then like a month later, I'm like, I have to tell everyone like immediately like, it's like, my emotions were like so out of whack because it's like, it felt like I won the lottery. Like when I finally realized I was gay, like that was the feeling where it's like, Oh my God, this is, this is crazy. So like, by the time I admitted to myself, I was gay, I think I came out like three weeks later to the first person, which was my friend. And I played on the easiest difficulty at first. I came out to my friend and coworker who was a lesbian. And I thought, okay, this is the easiest one. This is just like getting my feet wet. I'm dipping my toes in the water. This lesbian is not going to turn me down. But then it's like, wait a second. What if she does though? What if she, as a lesbian actually, you know, what if she doesn't think that I as an individual should be gay, but she's accepting of gay people more generally speaking. So you have all these doubts in your head.  But I mean, it was new to me. And I was, I was really afraid. Like the thought of like at that point in time when I told that first person, the thought of coming out like two months earlier never crossed my mind, not a single time.  My heart was like beating out of my chest. I honestly almost chickened out. I felt like I was going to have a heart attack. Like I was trying to convince myself not to tell her because I thought, what if I literally have a heart attack? Like it was so stressful. But I told her and I mean, of course she was great. We're still friends till this day. You know, she knew exactly what to say to me. She asked questions like, when did you know? I mean, this is great. So it was like the perfect first person to come out to. After that, the next person, I'm like, okay, I told the easiest person to tell where it's basically like 99% chance that I'm going to get accepted. Now we have to play it a little bit more difficult. So then I decided the next person that I would tell would be my mom. Now my mom was a wild card. I didn't necessarily know like I ended up finding out that like as a kid, some of her friends were lesbians. But then again, my mom would sometimes say things that were homophobic, but not really like she didn't really seem to have a strong opinion. My dad is the one who had a very strong opinion. But I'm like, should I tell my mom? Because if I tell my mom, that's like the true test. Like once I tell my mom, there's no going back. That's it. So it's really scary in the sense that like this is my life going forward forever. And there's nothing that I can do to put the cat back in the bag after the cat's out of the bag. So what do I do? So what I did was I bought a DVD called For the Bible Tells Me So and I made both of my parents watch it. And it was basically the religious justification for accepting homosexuality. And I thought maybe this documentary will kind of educate them. And at that time, they knew that I was opening up a little bit more. I was becoming more open minded, less religious, a little bit more liberal.   So anyways, I make both of them watch the documentary. Me and my dad got into a giant debate after it because he just stubborn he wouldn't he wouldn't accept it. So then afterwards, when my dad went to bed me and my mom stayed up talking and I'm like, why are you like why are you confused? And she said, look, I get this, I think that the documentary made good points. But I don't have to worry about this because I don't know anyone who's gay.  And then at that point, I'm like, time froze. It was like, oh my god, this is the window right here. And so like, I kid you not, I was like my voice was trembling because that's the perfect opportunity to say you kind of do. I was like literally like trembling like this. I kid you not, my heart was racing so fast that you could probably hear it in my voice.  And then she just pauses. It's like the entire world stood still. And she said, what?   And she just started laughing. And I'm like, what? What do you do? She's like, you're joking. And I'm like, no, I'm not joking.  Like remember when I put out the video, my big announcement when I was joining Meens TV, and I said, I'm quitting.   He's trolling me. So she's just laughing. She's like, okay, go to bed, Michael. And I'm like, okay. And I'm just laughing with her. I'm like, and I'm like, my heart's about to like jump out of my chest.   And she's like, really? She's like, I don't, I don't know. I don't believe you. And she just sat back. And I remember her like, like, you could see like the cogs above her head. She just like, I remember she like even put her hand like on her chin like this. And she thought she just said, okay. And I'm like, okay. What does that mean? Okay, what? And she's like, okay. And I'm like, by the way, when this is all happening, I'm describing this like casually, but low key. I'm about to like have a heart attack and faint as this is happening. So she's like, okay, you're my son.  It's a little bit strange for me. I'll have to adjust, but you know, it's fine. And I thought, oh my God, like what? And then we ended up talking for like an hour. And my mom was like, so like after just a little bit of time, she opened up.   It's okay. I still love you and accept you. And I'm like, what? Hang on a second. You're accepting because like this was inconceivable to me. It's like, no, no, no. This was part of the reason why I thought I had to kill myself because not a single person in my family would accept me. But I'm almost like cool with it.  The one thing that my mom needed convincing with was telling other people because she was fearful about my safety. She thought, look, you can't, you can't come out while you're living with us. You can't tell dad. Do you have to tell everyone? And I explained, I have to tell everyone. I can't like I made a decision. I've got to tell everyone. So then it's like, okay, one by one, I start telling more and more people. I tell one of my sisters, perfectly fine with it. And I was worried because, you know, she had a kid. It was my nephew.  So I thought that she would be fearful that I was like a pedophile because that's like the stereotype about gay men, right? And I'm like, so like, it's okay.   But if you're telling the truth, I'm cool with it. So it's like, each time I told someone, it got easier and easier. And I started to build up the confidence, but there was never like a really easy, you know, coming out. It's always the shakiness, the racy heart, the feeling of 50% chance I might faint. So then it was like, okay, how do I tell my dad? My dad is like expert difficulty.  My cousin came out as gay, and he didn't want anything to do with him. My dad was the worst.  It's not a good safe environment to come out. I was living with my parents, and I was afraid that I would be kicked out. My dad really was the final boss. I was afraid I would be kicked out if I told my dad.  So I made all the prep. I talked to my friends to see if I'd have a couch to crash on. And then I worked up the courage to come out to my dad. And then I didn't the day that I was going to do it. He was sitting on the couch. I was sitting next to him. And then like, I don't know if there was a window of opportunity. He was watching TV and I'm just sitting there. And I think he might have commented because I was like sweating profusely. My face was pale, like white, like a ghost. I actually thought I was like going to faint. And so I just, I couldn't do it. So what I did was the next best thing.  And what I mean by that is I told my mom, listen, this one's on you. I can't do it. I can't come out to dad. So you have to come out to him for me.  Okay, I guess I'll do it then.  So I guess this'll be kind of what it's like to come out. So my mom agreed to come out to my dad. And it's so funny because the day that she was going to do it, she was, she had all the same feelings that I felt. She was really nervous. She felt nauseous. She couldn't eat.  So I was gone all day, wondering if she actually did it, hoping that she wouldn't chicken out like I did.  But I pull up and I'm gone like all day. Like I leave early in the morning and I don't come back until like it's late at night. And I'm like, okay, first good sign.  So I guess we're okay. Then I open the door. I look around and my dad's sitting right there on the couch and I'm like, like I'm like not breathing. So I just walked right past him. Don't make eye contact at all. Just looking at him from like the side of my eyes. And I go into the kitchen with my mom and I just look at her and she looks at me and I'm like, did you do it? Did you tell him? And she goes, yeah. And I'm like, what? She's like, I did it. And I'm like, what do you say? And she says, he was fine with it.   So I go in there. I sit down.  And then I'm like, so you know, he's like, yeah. I'm like, and I'm still in disbelief.  And he's like, yeah. And I'm like, so what are your thoughts? And he says, I love you. I accept it, but I don't want to see anything. And I thought, I'll take it. I'll take that.  Like I was afraid I was going to be kicked out. Like I was convinced that I was going to be kicked out. That's why I made all the preparations. But the final boss was just slayed easily. And you know, over time, like a couple of days later, he didn't say anything until a couple of days later, I should say. And then he asked my mom. He's like, what about AIDS? Is he going to get AIDS? Because all these things that I believed in part that he kind of drilled into my head, he also believed.   So I was like, why don't want them to get AIDS? I don't want them to be, you know, unsafe. And so it was just like my mom then told me that. So she's like, listen, he hasn't said anything, but that's a sign that he's thinking about it. And you have to give him time. So then it's like, all right, now I got the final boss out of the way. Now it's just all the sub bosses, the ones who don't matter as much. My siblings, you know, I mean, they matter, of course, but like, dad and mom, that's number one. Dad has all the power. He can kick me out. Mom, you know, she accepts it. So this is great. So then I start getting a little bit more open, like I kind of put the coming out process on pause a little bit.  I've started to volunteer for the human rights campaign, when they were doing their repeal of don't ask, don't tell campaign, which I don't like that organization now. But I was I was doing canvassing for them. And then I, you know, I told someone in my family that that's what I was doing. And then they started to kind of debate me about that.    Why do you care about this? And so now it's a little bit more tricky because there's other people, a couple of my nieces and nephews, they knew I told them, you know, my mom, and then my dad. So they're watching me have this conversation and the eyeballs are just like right there, like, this is, this is interesting. So basically, we start to get into an actual debate and an argument. And right there, I have a lot more confidence because I told a couple of people. But I was a little bit, I bit off more than I can chew. And I was very argumentative, a little bit too cocky. And then the question came up again, why do you care about this?   And then it was like, it was like, I set off a nuclear bomb. So immediately, this person broke down into tears, and I won't name this person because I don't want to shame this person, broke down into tears, screamed. And I tried to reason with this individual. And I tried to explain, look, I know that like we're arguing right now, I know that this is kind of like sudden and weird.  And that's really uncool. But this really is like, I'm being serious. I'm not trolling. Like I had this suicide pact with myself that I voided so I could live and be happy.  So this person left. And then basically, I was told that that night, this individual said, I really just wish that he killed himself. It would have been easier to accept his death than his homosexuality.  But now like in hindsight, I know that that was just something that this individual said at the spur of the moment. But at the time it was like, I'm getting all my confidence.  And so this was going to be tough. It's like, okay, this is really the first hurdle, like this has been way too flawless. It's been too good to be true. This is the first hurdle. And then my mom starts getting calls. One of my siblings calls, is Michael gay? What? Wait, hang on, how do you know? It's like, hang on, then my, my uncle calls who lives in Hawaii, haven't talked to them. Hey, I heard about Michael. And I'm like, wait, wait.  And then I realized I was outed to every single person by this individual. And we're talking every single person, people who I wasn't comfortable coming out to, parents of childhood friends who I hadn't talked to in years knew, people that I went to church with as a kid knew, people who I hadn't talked to, people who I lost contact with, every single person knew to where basically it was process of elimination. And I was trying to find out, wait a second, who doesn't know? So the one person that I think didn't know was my big brother. So my mom called and she's like, look, I'm sure that you already know about Michael. So I'm just going to tell you, get it out of the way. And I wanted my mom to call. And so he's like, what do you mean? What's wrong with Michael? Is he okay? And this was my big brother who, he was, he would be cool with it. At that point, I wasn't worried about him. But we were just trying to figure out who, who said what. And then the intimidation started. So people who I was outed to, then, you know, started calling my mom and my dad.   So even though it was really difficult to deal with, it was really important for my dad, like in his development and acceptance to where I was like, no, now I'm, I'm not fighting my kid. I'm fighting for my kid. And then my parents were harassed by some individuals. Why would you accept this?  What? I mean, I was 22. So what are you going to do?  Tell them to hit the road. It was so many things. And remember that feeling that I told you that like, when I told one person like my heart was racing, and I felt like I was going to have a heart attack, we'll take that and then like amplify it by like a million times because now I'm thinking, oh my God, this is now out of my control. Like coming out to me was a bit of a controlled demolition. You know, I'd set one building's explosives off and then another one and I see what's happening. But now it's like I was lost. There was like this fog of war. And it was, it was difficult because like when I had my mom tell someone for me, she was an advocate for me. Like she was representing my interests. But when I was outed to someone, then it's like this person is not looking out for my interests. This person is rallying people against me. And that's really, really tough. That's hard to deal with.  And I don't know who I think it was the person who I told who outed me. And I thought, what's going on? Like, are they going to, they're not coming in? Are they going to talk? Are they going to hurt me? And then I left. And then somebody else related to me showed up and basically bullied my mom, calling her a terrible person for accepting me. It was really, really tough. And basically there was like this week period where I felt like I was in a daze. Like I still can't describe it. I still haven't like really dealt with it. It was like, I was going through like this tunnel. And it was so overwhelming for me mentally that like, I kind of felt like I should be having a mental breakdown, but I wasn't at that time. So I just kept going through the motions, going to work, going to school. And come to find out, there's this thing called panic disorder. And people who are predisposed to have it, they kind of get it based on a trigger. So if they have a traumatic experience, then it can manifest itself at that stage. So one day I'm driving home from school and all of a sudden I start hyperventilating just like, and this was when like, I was like, this was in that period. And I was in a constant state of stress. I was always a little bit uneasy. I was always a little bit shaky even. And I was doing a lot like I was working, going to school. So I didn't have time to really like stop.  I felt nauseous. I wasn't really eating. Like it was just a lot to deal with. And then one day on the way home from school, I just lost it. Driving home, I had a panic attack, started hyperventilating, thought I was going to crash and die. I actually thought now that I know it's a panic attack, you know, it's, I know what it was. But back then I actually thought I was having a heart attack. And so that's why I broke down when I went home because I thought, oh my god, this gave me a heart attack.  And it wasn't worth it. I think that coming out wasn't worth it now. Sure, it was great for a little bit. But maybe it wasn't worth it if I'm literally getting a heart attack now at 22. But a little bit of time passed. And I talked to the person who added me. And it was awkward. But basically what we agreed to was a ceasefire, right?  You don't say anything homophobic will just like exist simultaneously. We'll be around each other and that's that's it. And things kind of come down on that front. But now all of a sudden I'm dealing with panic attacks every single day. Since I had a panic attack in the car, every time I got into the car, immediately stress, panic, hyperventilation, and that essentially like ruled my life for the next year, where I thought I was going to have to drop out of school. I was really close to graduating. I was going to have to quit my job. And thankfully, things got a little bit better. The panic attacks became more manageable. I got on a medication that stops panic attacks or at least reduces them. Then tensions kind of flare up again.  Like, you know, I'm not holding it in. I'm not the ceasefire was broken and it was broken by me not necessarily deliberately, but just casually.  So at that point, I had no choice. I had to move out of my parents house as soon as I possibly could. I was going to sleep on like my friend's couch, but thankfully I was able to get an apartment somehow, use my school loans to put down the down payment or first and last month basically. And I got out. So I got away. And then once I moved out, then I kind of managed everything again, you know, things started to come down a little bit. And then eventually I made up with that person. And it took a long time, but that person has actually come around like years and years down the line. Now, the reason why I wanted to share this is because before I came out, I probably watched like no kidding a dozen or two dozen videos of people coming out. So like their experiences was really important. It kind of shaped my coming out experience and how I would come out myself. There's something that I know now that I wish I knew back then. And that's power dynamics are temporary. They'll change eventually. So even if you're in this position where it feels like people have to accept you for you to live currently in order to stay at your house or work at your job, that's going to change eventually. It felt like I was kind of groveling to people at their feet, please accept me, please accept me.  But what I learned and what I really, really wish somebody told me back then was that all of this is temporary. It's going to change. Eventually the power dynamic is going to change. It's going to shift.  Eventually they'll want to be a part of your life and they'll acknowledge that you coming out to them was really, really nice of you because in actuality, when you're coming out to someone, that's an invitation to let this person know who you are and that's really special and they don't realize that at first. But there will come a time where that's going to change and they're going to be begging for your forgiveness and acceptance. And I know that because it happened to me. The person who outed me isolated from my life for a very long time and this person eventually, this is someone who's very close to me related so I won't say who it is, but this person who once outed me to everyone who said that it would have been better if I killed myself is now begging to let me be a part of their life or for them to be a part of my life. And that was something that I didn't think was possible. And eventually it feels like all of the people, like my aunties, my cousins who were not necessarily like against me, but skeptical of me. Now I feel like they're the ones who have to ask me to accept them if they're homophobic. And here's the thing, I don't, I reject it.  The roles will reverse and you're going to be at a position to reject them if they don't accept you.  They love you, but not who you've become. No, if they don't accept you unequivocally, you eventually will be in a safe enough position to where you can kick them to the curb and they feel the pressure to accept you. Had I known about this, then it would have changed a lot, right? All the feelings of fear that I felt when I came out, it would have, it would have still been there to be honest. But knowing that there would be a light at the end of the tunnel was really important. And so I came out and then later on, there was the It Gets Better campaign by the Trevor Project. And that was really important. And this is why I focus so much like on LGBTQ youth. And if you donate to a gay charity, make it to an LGBTQ youth center, because I didn't know that these were things that existed. I didn't know about the It Gets Better thing. I just thought, once you come out, that's it. Whatever you do then, that's going to be permanent. So if people reject you, that's permanent. But that changes. So yeah, I think that that is basically my coming out story in a nutshell. Unfortunately, you know, I still struggle with the panic attacks that I developed during this process. And for a really long time, I kind of held my panic attacks against the person who outed me like I blamed them for it. And I thought, man, if they never outed me, if I could just control my own process, then I wouldn't have been so stressed out to get to the point where I felt like I was having a heart attack and then a panic attack. But actually, I let that go too, because my husband made a really good point to me. He said, look, I think that you have to acknowledge that there's a lot of other people in your family that also have panic attacks, albeit, you know, different triggers for it. And you probably would have gotten it from something else had it not been for this person. And once I kind of came to that realization, my hatred started to slowly but surely dissipate. So, yeah, it's, you know, here's the thing.  And look at selling coming out as a celebration. It's not a situation where you're begging people. I mean, it feels like that right? It feels like you're just desperate to make people accept you.  But that's not what this is. This is actually a celebration. And this is a time of your life that is incredible, that is going to shape who you are. And even if it's a negative experience, and it doesn't go the way that you plan, it's still like what you learn from this. And the amount of knowledge and strength that you gain, it is absolutely like, you know, you can never, you can never make that up. So that's my story.