As Timothy Snyder wrote today, it's Trump OR the Constitution. If Trump continues to get away with no consequences for breaking the law and violating the Constitution, then it's likely we'll see more of this lawless thuggery.
As Timothy Snyder wrote today, it's Trump OR the Constitution. If Trump continues to get away with no consequences for breaking the law and violating the Constitution, then it's likely we'll see more of this lawless thuggery.
Let us thank Trump for this disgusting action. It all started when he would whine about the press being mean to him or asking him nasty questions (all in his childish churlish whining voice like a little child). The name calling to erode confidence and instill doubt. He has single handedly created the world we are living in today by using hateful words and actions and making them the norm! He gave the ok and encouragement for hate to come out of the closet!
I am so dismayed by the number of hateful people in this country...it is truly astonishing. There should be absolutely no question that he is not qualified to run for office of any sort! None whatsoever! A convicted criminal is the republicans best choice? Let’s not forget he has been CONVICTED of sexual assault.
What concerns me the most is the enormous amount of hatred in the American closet in the first place. Trump might have released the genie from the bottle but he didn't create the genie.
Like a virus, hatred is contagious. Scholars of history, literature, science and human behavior have warned of this for centuries. Propaganda and fear spreads hate like a wildfire. We reap what we sow. Our brains are amazing because we can also grow love. We can stop the bullies. Putin is the worst of the worst right now, killing and killing to steal land. Biden is the best, encouraging what is best in us, bringing the good in the world together as one to stop the bullies, the hate. We must grow the good to overcome the hate.
Sam, I agree with you 150%. I have been on my soapbox for a long time about our lack of critical thinking skills being a part of our education for all our young students all the way up to and though higher education.
The low levels of that kind of teaching and training ( not the teachers- the curricula) has created a population of adults who are unable to discern truth from lies. And so here we are.
A few years back I became involved through my friend, author Chris Phillips..The Soc rates Cafe and other books. He opened a Socrates Group in Montclair New Jersey posting a small ad in the paper about the caFe and invited people to join. COMMUNITY ACTION BY FREE INVITATION.. We needed up with a packed room. People who were from 14 different countries. All walks of life.. professors, business people, students, etc etc. Ages ranged from 10 years old to a man in his 90s. It was SO much fun. A learning experience. Chris was the moderator, opening space for people to speak. The NY Times heard about us and one of their reporters came to witness and write about what we were doing. Front page of the Entertainment section. Chris went to teach in schools. Some elementary school immigrant children. We took 3rd grade school children who were familiar with the Socrates method to a Senior residence where the subject became 'what is home?...Chris Phillips has written other books and continues to hold cafes. He even held one in Saudi Arabia..I urge you and everyone, if you have place where you can create a Socrates Cafe to do so. Invite neighbors, teachers, students.. anyone you thing might enjoy it, Benefit from the connections. on makes...
Thanks Sam. I am going to do some searching about these ideas. I live in a small senior community where intelligent conversation is limited. My one neighbor who I interacted with passed away this year so not many other active brains in here that I have met. I am not an intellectual but I am a thinker so am starved for good conversation most of the time.
You are absolutely correct, Gina. This website https://thinkingispower.com/ is run by Melanie Trecek-King, an associate professor of biology at Massasoit Community College in Massachusetts. She should be at Harvard or MIT.* In my sometimes less than humble opinion, Prof. Trecek-King absolutely "nails" it. Misinformation is a formidable problem today. When I was in Texas at the family reunion a nephew of mine was convinced beyond any doubt that Trump had won the election. What are his sources of misinformation? Fox News, OAN (One American Network) and Newsmax, the latter two being undeniable conspiracy spreading vehicles.
Prof. Trecek-King wrote an article entitled "A Life Preserver for Staying Afloat in a Sea of Misinformation" published in the March/April 2022 edition of Skeptical Inquirer Magazine.
What is happening is appalling! Thank you, Richard! BTW, Gina and Richard.. check out the schwartzreport.net. It runs by donation. He was a medic during Nam, became a special asst to the highest ranking military officer in the nation, Admiral Zumwalt to create a program that opened the way for men and women who weren't wealthy to rise in the ranks to become officers. Before officers were from wealthy families. He went to work for Natl. Geographic and free lanced for The NY Times etc etc. He is a man of principles. For years, he's done experiments on remote viewing. One of his remote viewers, now deceased worked for years for the govt. Yes, it's real and he writes about that for Explore Magazine. Start with his blog! Get on his mailing list. He posts daily!
You are right, the hatred was "in the closet." Two Univ. of Kansas professors, DavId Norman Smith and Eric Hanley, researched the issue and published their findings in the peer-reviewed journal, Critical Sociology, in Feb. 2018 entitled "The Anger Games: Who Voted for Donald Trump in the 2016 Election, and Why?" You can google it. Their conclusion: Trump's support is because he represents their prejudices, and in particular: racism, misogyny and xenophobia, anything that is not native white Protestantism.
John, I agree and merely would add that Trump has shown a nearly unprecedented talent for connecting with others’ grievances as a means for providing cause to galvanize unequivocal support to shore up his own self-serving impulses. Though for entirely different ends, Dems need to cultivate a similar talent.
There were millions of people running around bearing a burden of heavy guilt. They were full of hate with no object to pin it on. Trump showed them all how to expunge that guilt without apology and with great pride and conviction. Trump showed them who to blame and who to hate. They never questioned the validity of that. They never looked back.
Susan, I believe your analysis rightly goes deeper than mine. I merely would note I was searching for text I could extend, particularly to Biden’s inadequacy, in my view, to connect with the 60% of working people living precariously from paycheck to paycheck, wherein family income is sustained only by more people working longer hours, while still weighted down by mortgage debt, credit card debt, and the like.
How can he connect to those people? They are all reading what most of us are reading. The horror stories. Biden’s communication skills so far have been ACTION. In my community there are big orange barriers on most streets and freeways I drive on. My tax dollars at work I’m thinking. Biden, I’m thinking.
The conviction in NYC was for slandering E. Jean Carroll, who made credible statements about his having raped her. The statute of limitations expiration prevented trying him for the rape -- hence, the civil suit for slander. She told the truth, which the judge said was entirely credible, and he did not. The $5 million judgement against him was the result of that jury trial's verdict.
However, being the arrogant fool he is, within one day after the judgement, he was bruiting again about what a "liar" Carroll is, and how he didn't know her, never met her, and if he did meet her, never did see her at Bergdorf Goodman, and if he did see her at Bergdorf Goodman, he never went into a dressing room and forced himself on her sexually, and if he did force himself on her sexually, it was mutually enjoyable and "sexy," so she has no right to claim otherwise. In a public forum on CNN, he raged, claiming Carroll was a "whack job," and the whole thing "a hoax."
E. Jean Carroll and her lawyer weren't having it -- they filed an amendment to a pending suit against him, and the judge agreed -- the compensatory damages now an additional $10 million. And that doesn't include the punitive damages, which could soar to as much as $100 million before it's over.
Bullies and rapists who double-down on lies have to bear the consequences when the law steps in.
SHIRLEY ELIZABETH BARNES: TOTALLY AGREE. And, in thinking about what's happening in America today--There are among us, those who still cannot believe or refuse to accept that someone like a Barack Obama was elected President of the United States. And they are consciously or unconsciously determined to see this doesn't happen again--in any way, shape, or form. Therefore--they are willing to put up with dRUMPf or dRUMPf-like alternatives that espouse or thinly veil the rhetoric. Sadly, this message is reinforced and/or incited by certain echo chamber TV chains and Local radio stations. Unfortunately, this mood and direction of those kind of people, could over-shadow and erase the laudable ideals of America.
Unfortunately, most of those "local" radio stations are not local at all. The AM band and much of the FM band has been occupied for years now by neofascist voices. They are in many places in rural America the only voices.
Yes. But trace back the FUNDAMENTALS on as to HOW this happened? And WHY did people ALLOW this to happen? What were the messages of Fear that caused those who could have done something to avoid the present situation--decide not to speak out against it? There is an element/fear factor that manifests in questions like: And local TV/Radio stations are the carriers of the Fundament Message. Lots of issues impress Voting--but sub-texts include issues like:-EDUCATION: Questions like: (1)Are my kids going to be "bussed" to a school with lots of "minorities"--or will lots of "minorities" start overtaking our public schools? Or, ZONING: (2) WHO is that family that's moving in--2 blocks away" (3) Are those kids with those "Afros" and African braids going to "take over" our school system? (4) How can we establish a "Charter" school system in our community--and still find a way to get tax relief? HEALTH: (5)Will that fellow who's from India or wherever-- "that ties a 'rag' around his head" going to examine our girls and women? (6) SAFETY: Don't we need more jails? (7) Make sure EVERYONE--girls, women etc. learn to shoot. (8) CULTURE: Well, their music is "fun" and I like to dance to it--but I haven't ever invited them to dinner at my house. And (8)I don't think I'd really be ready to come to their house (apartment?) for dinner....
HOW IT SEEPS IN: Remember the song from Rogers Hammerstein, "YOU HAVE TO BE CAREFULLY TAUGHT"? Believe it or not, one of the first Directors I worked for who was really ad an exceptional intellect--in/intelligence, was designated as the the Secretary General, an African American (really the over-all Head) of a Law school in a developing country). I travelled there to be his "Admin Assistant."(In truth, I was a glorified secretary/schlepper.) His wife and I became very good friends. The Law School was initially funded by a prestigious American Foundation with contributing funds from a multilateral group of international agencies. My boss's wife told me that when they were younger--and he was taking courses in a Midwestern U.S. town--while there, they roomed in the home of a white American couple while he was studying. The white couple initially kept sneaking glances and trying to see the backs of the visiting couple. WHY? The white couple wanted to sneak a peek to see the TAILS of my friends!!! In their white folklore--that white couple had been told that Black people had TAILS!! Yes, TAILS. TRUE STORY!!!.
If you are referring to the civil suit brought and found in favor of E. Jean Carroll, that is not criminal, it is civil. A civil suit is “won” by a preponderance or weight of the evidence, not beyond a reasonable doubt like a criminal case. I agree our former president’s behavior has opened the door for outlandish behavior which can certainly lead to criminal conduct…as he and others are finding out.
I'm rewriting my answer to make it less yucky. The jury ruled Trump guilty of sexual assault. The judge, in response to a question afterwards, agreed one could call it rape. When asked why, judge said that while the jury declined to find guilt on the rape charge, what happened was, to the judge, a distinction without a difference.
Cool it on the ickily graphic, fake outraged comments about sexual assault. We have a LOT of women colleagues in common and women talk to each other, so I’d suggest you delete this conversation and don’t do it again unless you want me to get more detailed. Just cut it out.
Trump has definitely played a big role and he's cunning. But it takes others who respond to him. Much of what we're seeing is coming out of hip shot fear. Some comes from long time religious indoctrination.. But really sad to say, the US public school system lags behind. European education is often longer, more expansive and deeper when it comes to history and classes that teach about other societies and other languages. The school hours tend to be longer. People travel to other countries as the distance is fairly close and the mass transport and trains are good. Many people don't own cars, or if they do, they use them mainly on weekends. America is, geographically big and not everyone can afford to even travel out of their state. Gen Z and millennials are traveling more and they've afforded online jobs which allows them to do so. Traveling abroad gives one a deeper, broader understanding of the US and the world at large. That's not to say the Europe hasn't occasionally had their own 'clowns.' German public school children go to classes 9 hours a day. They study English for at least two hours a day as English tends to be the international trade language. And many speak French as it once was the international language of diplomats. Washington, Jefferson, Ben Franklin all spoke French. Then there are the guns. Italy has more guns per capita and have never once had a mass shooting. Once by an immigrant. Historically, America is a gun culture.
Research indicates that even some under developed European countries score higher than America in student performance.
Yes! Yes! Yes! I spent 10 years in France (earlier traveled fairly extensively in Europe). Began to think of Americans as the spoiled teenagers on the block. Only ignorance allows US to think of ourselves as special.
I agree! Not 100% but overall. I lived in Italy for years and traveled in Europe.. love the trains! Then several years in S. America. Mainly Brazil.. Heart and mind opening!!
My husband loved the trains too, particularly the TGV, which we rode all over France. Before Covid I rode the Polish equivalent between Białystok and Warsaw. But inner city trolleys and buses in Bordeaux and Munich I also remember as outstanding. Hoping we will not go maglev, but TGV when we finally get fast trains, if we ever do. Do you know that in France, with climate change, travelers arriving by plane on Air France must change to trains for in-country travel? That’s impressive. Maybe the French will revive the French Line too. Even steerage was a great trip.
"Italy has more guns per capita and have never once had a mass shooting."
See, that's the thing. America's problem is not "the gun" per se. It's that we have an extraordinarily violent culture. We resemble pre-World Wars Europe, in which rulers and the upper castes used violence--invasion and conquest, slaughter, mass rapes, amassing of all the money, and the Church to back it up--than the kindler and gentler postwar Europe we all admire.
Until we solve our cultural problem--IF we can solve it--we will get dumber and deader. The idea of that appalls me when there are such better options.
“May those who love us, love us. May those who hate us have God turn their souls. If He can’t turn their souls, May he turn their ankles so we can see them coming.”
What you say is true, Christine, but the reason that they support him is that he carries their banner of white Christian nationalism: hate, fear and violence. Trump's supporters are such that they favor authoritarianism built on racism over democracy. It's been that way at least since the Civil War among most of the South and now the Midwest.
The potential for hate is always there. They are ripe for a demagogue like trump or a trump lites who will give them license to voice their hatred. Which we have witnessed. Leaders with integrity and those haters would be kept quiet and under their rocks.
I've just read the excellent piece by Timothy Snyder and the important article that he gives a link to. I hope that Jack Smith has read it too! Professor Richardson's Letter is painful to read but so necessary to be aware of what happened in Kansas just recently as well as the Lovejoy story of 1837. Eric Meyer sounds like a good man, and he has the sudden death of his mother to deal with as well as the restoration of his newspaper. It's heartwarming that so many are wanting to help.
Thanks for this article, Ron. I had been wondering about whether or not Trump would need to be convicted of engaging in insurrection before being disqualified from holding office, and it looks like he would not. It is also encouraging to see that there are at least two Federalist Society law professors who apparently are not selective about applying textualist standards to their work.
NMorgan - "I overlooked it since it had the T word in the headline."
That is the point that I keep making (well, trying to anyway.) Refusing to consider a (any) source because of a personal bias is not very useful. If one is exposed to all sides (opinions), it is easy to come to the correct conclusion. I suppose is an easy cop-out to believe that exposure to a bad idea (opinion) is like a Covid exposure. It is not. The more one is exposed to differing opinions, the easier it is to separate the wheat from the chaff. With that process you can easily discover, within the first couple sentences of any article, it's value and that of the author. (And not, necessarily, of the Media) My triggers are any sentence that includes "those dirty rascals" or words to that effect. I need not read further. YMMV
Another rule I have is the need for a minimum of two independent sources.
As a last resort, I rely on Mediabias[dot]com and adfontesmedia[dot]com. That, for the most part, provides comfort that exposure to all sources is not going to contaminate me.
We must all contact our state secretaries to demand that Donald Trump not be allowed on the ballot to elect the president in 2024. We can do this as citizens. We must do this as citizens. It's our duty.
It would seem tfg’s statement about wanting to abolish the Constitution is all we need to prove his ineligibility. I’m going to write my state’s Secretary of State. This needs to be a National movement.
Go ahead. Write to your State's Sec. of State. It will be ignored. Better to throw the rascals out of the State governments that they have contaminated, when they come up for re-election.
Usually, their staff counts the letters. That is the extent of a good letter-writing campaign to elected officials. They get the numbers, but never see the letters. To bring about change, voters are better targets of letter (or postal card) writing campaigns as offered by Activate America which you can reach at https://www.activateamerica.vote/
Remember when tfg refused to show his financials as a candidate in 2015? Too bad Congress did not pass a law making financial disclosure the law and a prerequisite for ballot inclusion.
I think that refusal is what got him so many fans. He was doing what so many citizens of this country wish to do. The spirit of caring for those unable to care for themselves has all but disappeared here. Ayn Rand's philosophy was embraced by those who do not have the soul to share and care about anybody but themselves. That is the spirit of Trump and Trumpism. It's all about me.
With all due respect, I submit that the more appropriate response is to overwhelmingly reject his candidacy by the ballot box. Otherwise we will truly face a civil war as his supporters in large numbers would insist that they were deprived of their constitutional right to vote!
With all due respect, Ira, why aren't all legitimate efforts to disallow Trump from representing this country by any means worthwhile pursuits by the citizens of the US?
The government is pursuing all legitimate efforts by virtue of Jack Smith’s superb complaints in two major cases and Georgia’s expected action next week. It does not benefit our legitimate reliance on the courts of law to exclude Trump arbitrarily from our democratic system of free and fair judicial process. The alternative of violent civil war is unacceptable! The reasoning of two legal scholars is no substitute for our democracy!
No one has suggested bypassing the courts, DOJ and 'the rule of law', about which there is legitimate fault to find. Citizens contributing their voices by contacting elected officials, the DOJ, etc., is part of our role as citizens of the US.
The name of Jan 6 Defendant 1078 should not appear on any official ballot; his jock straps can write that individual in. No deprivation of civil rights, just adhering to the requirements of Article 14 Clause 3. That individual is ineligible from holding any elected office. And if his followers riot as a consequence? Well, THAT is what the Insurrection Act (colloquially known as the FAFO Act) is for. I don't want to see that, but I didn't want them to riot and try it on Jan 6, either.
In your letter to your secretary of state, point out that the penalty of disqualification from office is not a criminal penalty. It is a deliberately political penalty for a political offense.
Point to the last sentence of Section 3: " But Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability."
The conclusion to be drawn is that responsible political actors are fully empowered to remove the name of a known insurrectionist or rebel from the ballot. Let the offender attempt to recover his claim to hold office in the political arena of the United States Congress.
Your secretary of state is a responsible political actor, no?
Remember, under Section 3, no one goes to prison. There would be no offense against due process. (After all, the due process clause as applied to the states is found in the same Amendment XIV!)
It's really very simple. This is what can happen when someone already indicted, awaiting trial, is allowed to declare ''IF YOU GO AFTER ME, I'M COMING AFTER YOU,' without being remanded to the hands-on custody of the court, where a gag order can be enforced, by incarceration if necessary. Americans cannot be asked to surrender their Constitutional rights because of fear of violent reactions by the supporters of the indicted, defeated, former president, a group not unlike the criminal perpetrators of this present-day tragedy in Marion, Kansas and its historic precedent in Alton, Illinois.
My same sentiments emphasis on the Meyer Family. Peace be with you🙏☮️😔
The overall message is a gathering crowd shouting ...VOTE THEM OUT.
There has been over a very long scheming plan an execution of law and order and little accountability is forecast as one of our own failings too. A child learns by the time they are 3 what they can get away with and how to manipulate. This has been going on a lot longer than that.
This country is still a child. An experiment in the works and critical thinking needs self evident, and an apparent number of voters where the self evidence is colored/covered/criticized and questioned !
We are accordingly all presumed innocent , until proven guilty , but when the system has been rigged , waters muddied, and laws overlooked ...WE’RE IN TROUBLE.
If you’re a felon you can’t vote? ...correct? or maybe just in some states 😏?
But if you’re a felon you can run -or even BE PRESIDENT?
Talk about mixed messages! 😳🤦♀️
It’s the bad parent syndrome ‘ do as I say not as I do’?
Believe me. Trust me. Vote for me. “ I can shoot a person on 5th Avenue and get away with it” ...does this say also - [I] am above ethics, moral accounting, and the law.
It’s not too late but accountability’s time is nigh...
The only problem with Snyder's argument is that Trump has yet to be tried. The US Senate had the opportunity to at least prevent him from ever running for office again, twice, but (most) Republican senators failed in their constitutional duty. It is likely that the "January 6th" trial will occur before the 2024 election, but if that jury convicts Trump he will appeal. The fate of our democracy rests on an election that may or may not be free and fair. Frightening.
Points well made, and the chances of a free and fair election don't look good in many cases. In terms of the "January 6" trial, this is a letter of mine that was published in today's edition of The Ledger regarding that prospect: " Jack Smith, the Special Prosecutor, is not stupid. And, for Trump's attorneys to have even a small chance of persuading a jury that Trump didn't know that he had lost the election, they would have to prove that Trump is the most stupid man in America, perhaps the world. But, all of that is not going to be necessary, I think. And here's why.
Jack Smith, when he and his team drafted the indictment, they drew it up in such a way that they knew that they would have to prove to the jury that Trump did what he did knowing that he had lost the election. Why could they be so sure that they could prove this to the jury? I submit that they did this because there are several people extemely close to Trump who are not indicted: Mark Meadows, Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump. Not being indicted means that they are most likely cooperating. And then there are those who are indicted - Rudy Giuliani, for one. Would Rudy sing like a songbird if he could avoid spending the rest of his life in prison? Does the Pope count his beads? The same holds true for the others as well.
The case may not go to trial. When Trump and his attorneys are confronted with the evidence against him, they may cut a deal - Trump to spend the rest of his life confined to Mar-a-Lago.
I live in Los Angeles and went to a spot popular with tourists the other day and saw a man wearing a black tee shirt with large red letters “CNN IS FAKE NEWS”. It astonished me how many in our country have aloud themselves to be brainwashed and aren’t capable of actually thinking things through. If something comes out in the press that Trump doesn’t like, it’s automatically Fake News, without any justification. The irony here is that this man more than likely watches Fox News and it’s been proven that they really are Fake News and they’ve paid dearly with the $787M Dominion settlement. More to come on that front with Smartmatic. We can only hope that when this case is settled, it hurts Fox News dramatically.
I had a vivid dream last night, that might not be all that strange. I dreamed that TFG actually tore in half a pocket size version of the Constitution at one of his rallies, and the crowd (i.e. mob) cheered.
And, Ellen, you would have been right on. Make no mistake about it, they prefer shredding the Constitution and installing a white Christian Nationalist regime.
'Raid of Small Kansas Newspaper Raises Free Press Concerns'
'The search of Marion County Record’s office led to the seizure of computers, servers and cellphones of reporters and editors.' (NYTimes) excerpts
'Raids of news organizations are exceedingly rare in the United States, with its long history of legal protections for journalists. At The Record, a family-owned paper with a circulation of about 4,000, the police seized computers, servers and cellphones of reporters and editors. They also searched the home of the publication’s owner and semiretired editor as well as the home of a city councilwoman.'
'The searches, conducted on Friday, appeared to be linked to an investigation into how a document containing information about a local restaurateur found its way to the local newspaper — and whether the restaurant owner’s privacy was violated in the process. The editor of the newspaper said the raids may have had more to do with tensions between the paper and officials in Marion, a town of about 2,000 north of Wichita, over prior coverage.'
'The raid is one of several recent cases of local authorities taking aggressive actions against news organizations — some of which are part of a dwindling cohort left in their area to hold governments to account. And it fits a pattern of pressure being applied to local newsrooms. One recent example is the 2019 police raid of the home of Bryan Carmody, a freelance journalist in San Francisco, who was reporting on the death of Jeff Adachi, a longtime public defender.'
'In an email, Marion’s chief of police, Gideon Cody, defended the raid, which was earlier reported online by The Marion County Record and by Kansas Reflector, a nonprofit news organization.'
“I believe when the rest of the story is available to the public, the judicial system that is being questioned will be vindicated,” Mr. Cody said. He declined to discuss the investigation in detail.'
'On Sunday, more than 30 news organizations and press freedom advocates, including The New York Times, The Washington Post and Dow Jones, the publisher of The Wall Street Journal, signed a letter from the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press to Mr. Cody condemning the raid.'
'The Marion County Record is uncommonly aggressive for its size. Mr. Meyer said that the newspaper, which has seven employees, has stoked the ire of some local leaders for its vigorous reporting on Marion County officials, including asking questions about Mr. Cody’s employment history.' (NYTimes) See link to full article below. Sorry that I couldn't provide a gifted link.
My condolences to the Meyer family.
As Timothy Snyder wrote today, it's Trump OR the Constitution. If Trump continues to get away with no consequences for breaking the law and violating the Constitution, then it's likely we'll see more of this lawless thuggery.
Let us thank Trump for this disgusting action. It all started when he would whine about the press being mean to him or asking him nasty questions (all in his childish churlish whining voice like a little child). The name calling to erode confidence and instill doubt. He has single handedly created the world we are living in today by using hateful words and actions and making them the norm! He gave the ok and encouragement for hate to come out of the closet!
I am so dismayed by the number of hateful people in this country...it is truly astonishing. There should be absolutely no question that he is not qualified to run for office of any sort! None whatsoever! A convicted criminal is the republicans best choice? Let’s not forget he has been CONVICTED of sexual assault.
What concerns me the most is the enormous amount of hatred in the American closet in the first place. Trump might have released the genie from the bottle but he didn't create the genie.
Like a virus, hatred is contagious. Scholars of history, literature, science and human behavior have warned of this for centuries. Propaganda and fear spreads hate like a wildfire. We reap what we sow. Our brains are amazing because we can also grow love. We can stop the bullies. Putin is the worst of the worst right now, killing and killing to steal land. Biden is the best, encouraging what is best in us, bringing the good in the world together as one to stop the bullies, the hate. We must grow the good to overcome the hate.
You're right, Trump didn't create what's been loosed in America. Most of the violence is FEAR based. Poor education.
Sam, I agree with you 150%. I have been on my soapbox for a long time about our lack of critical thinking skills being a part of our education for all our young students all the way up to and though higher education.
The low levels of that kind of teaching and training ( not the teachers- the curricula) has created a population of adults who are unable to discern truth from lies. And so here we are.
A few years back I became involved through my friend, author Chris Phillips..The Soc rates Cafe and other books. He opened a Socrates Group in Montclair New Jersey posting a small ad in the paper about the caFe and invited people to join. COMMUNITY ACTION BY FREE INVITATION.. We needed up with a packed room. People who were from 14 different countries. All walks of life.. professors, business people, students, etc etc. Ages ranged from 10 years old to a man in his 90s. It was SO much fun. A learning experience. Chris was the moderator, opening space for people to speak. The NY Times heard about us and one of their reporters came to witness and write about what we were doing. Front page of the Entertainment section. Chris went to teach in schools. Some elementary school immigrant children. We took 3rd grade school children who were familiar with the Socrates method to a Senior residence where the subject became 'what is home?...Chris Phillips has written other books and continues to hold cafes. He even held one in Saudi Arabia..I urge you and everyone, if you have place where you can create a Socrates Cafe to do so. Invite neighbors, teachers, students.. anyone you thing might enjoy it, Benefit from the connections. on makes...
Thanks Sam. I am going to do some searching about these ideas. I live in a small senior community where intelligent conversation is limited. My one neighbor who I interacted with passed away this year so not many other active brains in here that I have met. I am not an intellectual but I am a thinker so am starved for good conversation most of the time.
You are absolutely correct, Gina. This website https://thinkingispower.com/ is run by Melanie Trecek-King, an associate professor of biology at Massasoit Community College in Massachusetts. She should be at Harvard or MIT.* In my sometimes less than humble opinion, Prof. Trecek-King absolutely "nails" it. Misinformation is a formidable problem today. When I was in Texas at the family reunion a nephew of mine was convinced beyond any doubt that Trump had won the election. What are his sources of misinformation? Fox News, OAN (One American Network) and Newsmax, the latter two being undeniable conspiracy spreading vehicles.
Prof. Trecek-King wrote an article entitled "A Life Preserver for Staying Afloat in a Sea of Misinformation" published in the March/April 2022 edition of Skeptical Inquirer Magazine.
What is happening is appalling! Thank you, Richard! BTW, Gina and Richard.. check out the schwartzreport.net. It runs by donation. He was a medic during Nam, became a special asst to the highest ranking military officer in the nation, Admiral Zumwalt to create a program that opened the way for men and women who weren't wealthy to rise in the ranks to become officers. Before officers were from wealthy families. He went to work for Natl. Geographic and free lanced for The NY Times etc etc. He is a man of principles. For years, he's done experiments on remote viewing. One of his remote viewers, now deceased worked for years for the govt. Yes, it's real and he writes about that for Explore Magazine. Start with his blog! Get on his mailing list. He posts daily!
Thank you Richard. I looked it up and bookmarked it.
And fear of extinction, unadmitted.
...and believing the US could do no wrong.
The hate is in your souls for all the wars and deaths which you forgot to notice.
You are right, the hatred was "in the closet." Two Univ. of Kansas professors, DavId Norman Smith and Eric Hanley, researched the issue and published their findings in the peer-reviewed journal, Critical Sociology, in Feb. 2018 entitled "The Anger Games: Who Voted for Donald Trump in the 2016 Election, and Why?" You can google it. Their conclusion: Trump's support is because he represents their prejudices, and in particular: racism, misogyny and xenophobia, anything that is not native white Protestantism.
John, I agree and merely would add that Trump has shown a nearly unprecedented talent for connecting with others’ grievances as a means for providing cause to galvanize unequivocal support to shore up his own self-serving impulses. Though for entirely different ends, Dems need to cultivate a similar talent.
There were millions of people running around bearing a burden of heavy guilt. They were full of hate with no object to pin it on. Trump showed them all how to expunge that guilt without apology and with great pride and conviction. Trump showed them who to blame and who to hate. They never questioned the validity of that. They never looked back.
Susan, I believe your analysis rightly goes deeper than mine. I merely would note I was searching for text I could extend, particularly to Biden’s inadequacy, in my view, to connect with the 60% of working people living precariously from paycheck to paycheck, wherein family income is sustained only by more people working longer hours, while still weighted down by mortgage debt, credit card debt, and the like.
How can he connect to those people? They are all reading what most of us are reading. The horror stories. Biden’s communication skills so far have been ACTION. In my community there are big orange barriers on most streets and freeways I drive on. My tax dollars at work I’m thinking. Biden, I’m thinking.
And also Barbara, look what happened in Ohio yesterday (day before?).
W O W. ! People are hearing and seeing the truth now, all over.
The conviction in NYC was for slandering E. Jean Carroll, who made credible statements about his having raped her. The statute of limitations expiration prevented trying him for the rape -- hence, the civil suit for slander. She told the truth, which the judge said was entirely credible, and he did not. The $5 million judgement against him was the result of that jury trial's verdict.
However, being the arrogant fool he is, within one day after the judgement, he was bruiting again about what a "liar" Carroll is, and how he didn't know her, never met her, and if he did meet her, never did see her at Bergdorf Goodman, and if he did see her at Bergdorf Goodman, he never went into a dressing room and forced himself on her sexually, and if he did force himself on her sexually, it was mutually enjoyable and "sexy," so she has no right to claim otherwise. In a public forum on CNN, he raged, claiming Carroll was a "whack job," and the whole thing "a hoax."
E. Jean Carroll and her lawyer weren't having it -- they filed an amendment to a pending suit against him, and the judge agreed -- the compensatory damages now an additional $10 million. And that doesn't include the punitive damages, which could soar to as much as $100 million before it's over.
Bullies and rapists who double-down on lies have to bear the consequences when the law steps in.
SHIRLEY ELIZABETH BARNES: TOTALLY AGREE. And, in thinking about what's happening in America today--There are among us, those who still cannot believe or refuse to accept that someone like a Barack Obama was elected President of the United States. And they are consciously or unconsciously determined to see this doesn't happen again--in any way, shape, or form. Therefore--they are willing to put up with dRUMPf or dRUMPf-like alternatives that espouse or thinly veil the rhetoric. Sadly, this message is reinforced and/or incited by certain echo chamber TV chains and Local radio stations. Unfortunately, this mood and direction of those kind of people, could over-shadow and erase the laudable ideals of America.
Ms Barnes:
Unfortunately, most of those "local" radio stations are not local at all. The AM band and much of the FM band has been occupied for years now by neofascist voices. They are in many places in rural America the only voices.
Yes. But trace back the FUNDAMENTALS on as to HOW this happened? And WHY did people ALLOW this to happen? What were the messages of Fear that caused those who could have done something to avoid the present situation--decide not to speak out against it? There is an element/fear factor that manifests in questions like: And local TV/Radio stations are the carriers of the Fundament Message. Lots of issues impress Voting--but sub-texts include issues like:-EDUCATION: Questions like: (1)Are my kids going to be "bussed" to a school with lots of "minorities"--or will lots of "minorities" start overtaking our public schools? Or, ZONING: (2) WHO is that family that's moving in--2 blocks away" (3) Are those kids with those "Afros" and African braids going to "take over" our school system? (4) How can we establish a "Charter" school system in our community--and still find a way to get tax relief? HEALTH: (5)Will that fellow who's from India or wherever-- "that ties a 'rag' around his head" going to examine our girls and women? (6) SAFETY: Don't we need more jails? (7) Make sure EVERYONE--girls, women etc. learn to shoot. (8) CULTURE: Well, their music is "fun" and I like to dance to it--but I haven't ever invited them to dinner at my house. And (8)I don't think I'd really be ready to come to their house (apartment?) for dinner....
HOW IT SEEPS IN: Remember the song from Rogers Hammerstein, "YOU HAVE TO BE CAREFULLY TAUGHT"? Believe it or not, one of the first Directors I worked for who was really ad an exceptional intellect--in/intelligence, was designated as the the Secretary General, an African American (really the over-all Head) of a Law school in a developing country). I travelled there to be his "Admin Assistant."(In truth, I was a glorified secretary/schlepper.) His wife and I became very good friends. The Law School was initially funded by a prestigious American Foundation with contributing funds from a multilateral group of international agencies. My boss's wife told me that when they were younger--and he was taking courses in a Midwestern U.S. town--while there, they roomed in the home of a white American couple while he was studying. The white couple initially kept sneaking glances and trying to see the backs of the visiting couple. WHY? The white couple wanted to sneak a peek to see the TAILS of my friends!!! In their white folklore--that white couple had been told that Black people had TAILS!! Yes, TAILS. TRUE STORY!!!.
I was about to say the same.
If you are referring to the civil suit brought and found in favor of E. Jean Carroll, that is not criminal, it is civil. A civil suit is “won” by a preponderance or weight of the evidence, not beyond a reasonable doubt like a criminal case. I agree our former president’s behavior has opened the door for outlandish behavior which can certainly lead to criminal conduct…as he and others are finding out.
I believe the assault was called RAPE by the jury.
I'm rewriting my answer to make it less yucky. The jury ruled Trump guilty of sexual assault. The judge, in response to a question afterwards, agreed one could call it rape. When asked why, judge said that while the jury declined to find guilt on the rape charge, what happened was, to the judge, a distinction without a difference.
I get that Shane. I think he may be the Beast.
Oh, yeah, no doubt in my mind. He's 666 on two legs.
People in glass houses, Shane.
Not sure of your meaning. Please clarify.
Cool it on the ickily graphic, fake outraged comments about sexual assault. We have a LOT of women colleagues in common and women talk to each other, so I’d suggest you delete this conversation and don’t do it again unless you want me to get more detailed. Just cut it out.
Because you are a decent person offended by Trump's filth.
Thanks, Richard, appreciate that.
Trump has definitely played a big role and he's cunning. But it takes others who respond to him. Much of what we're seeing is coming out of hip shot fear. Some comes from long time religious indoctrination.. But really sad to say, the US public school system lags behind. European education is often longer, more expansive and deeper when it comes to history and classes that teach about other societies and other languages. The school hours tend to be longer. People travel to other countries as the distance is fairly close and the mass transport and trains are good. Many people don't own cars, or if they do, they use them mainly on weekends. America is, geographically big and not everyone can afford to even travel out of their state. Gen Z and millennials are traveling more and they've afforded online jobs which allows them to do so. Traveling abroad gives one a deeper, broader understanding of the US and the world at large. That's not to say the Europe hasn't occasionally had their own 'clowns.' German public school children go to classes 9 hours a day. They study English for at least two hours a day as English tends to be the international trade language. And many speak French as it once was the international language of diplomats. Washington, Jefferson, Ben Franklin all spoke French. Then there are the guns. Italy has more guns per capita and have never once had a mass shooting. Once by an immigrant. Historically, America is a gun culture.
Research indicates that even some under developed European countries score higher than America in student performance.
Yes! Yes! Yes! I spent 10 years in France (earlier traveled fairly extensively in Europe). Began to think of Americans as the spoiled teenagers on the block. Only ignorance allows US to think of ourselves as special.
I agree! Not 100% but overall. I lived in Italy for years and traveled in Europe.. love the trains! Then several years in S. America. Mainly Brazil.. Heart and mind opening!!
My husband loved the trains too, particularly the TGV, which we rode all over France. Before Covid I rode the Polish equivalent between Białystok and Warsaw. But inner city trolleys and buses in Bordeaux and Munich I also remember as outstanding. Hoping we will not go maglev, but TGV when we finally get fast trains, if we ever do. Do you know that in France, with climate change, travelers arriving by plane on Air France must change to trains for in-country travel? That’s impressive. Maybe the French will revive the French Line too. Even steerage was a great trip.
that's great!
"Italy has more guns per capita and have never once had a mass shooting."
See, that's the thing. America's problem is not "the gun" per se. It's that we have an extraordinarily violent culture. We resemble pre-World Wars Europe, in which rulers and the upper castes used violence--invasion and conquest, slaughter, mass rapes, amassing of all the money, and the Church to back it up--than the kindler and gentler postwar Europe we all admire.
Until we solve our cultural problem--IF we can solve it--we will get dumber and deader. The idea of that appalls me when there are such better options.
“I am so dismayed by the number of hateful people in this country.” Yes, me too, but at least it’s easy to identify them now.
“May those who love us, love us. May those who hate us have God turn their souls. If He can’t turn their souls, May he turn their ankles so we can see them coming.”
One of the lesser known Irish sayings
Does that mean God is responsible for their wearing those red ballcaps?
Good one.
I thought that too.
What you say is true, Christine, but the reason that they support him is that he carries their banner of white Christian nationalism: hate, fear and violence. Trump's supporters are such that they favor authoritarianism built on racism over democracy. It's been that way at least since the Civil War among most of the South and now the Midwest.
The potential for hate is always there. They are ripe for a demagogue like trump or a trump lites who will give them license to voice their hatred. Which we have witnessed. Leaders with integrity and those haters would be kept quiet and under their rocks.
I've just read the excellent piece by Timothy Snyder and the important article that he gives a link to. I hope that Jack Smith has read it too! Professor Richardson's Letter is painful to read but so necessary to be aware of what happened in Kansas just recently as well as the Lovejoy story of 1837. Eric Meyer sounds like a good man, and he has the sudden death of his mother to deal with as well as the restoration of his newspaper. It's heartwarming that so many are wanting to help.
Sally Jenks Roth (VT) - "I've just read the excellent piece by Timothy Snyder and the important article that he gives a link to."
Yesterday's NYT, also, had a thorough Opinion piece on the paper:
[Gift Link]
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/10/us/trump-jan-6-insurrection-conservatives.html?unlocked_article_code=tvCQIxJDckEGtxyDnJMHTNQ_uaO4ydxhV3b1JsdT3Pme55BSKS3PMhQziCoSJIMAKLUvfNWhNjjEKOu6KRnGZmS2jvKF9Yk8pd4zBV67dmb40hMh1V1HHupNkpqCqQBJQFVERPCrJyjSKuTaW59oetZa52fyJGKyrx51LncezVgvNwfrkFCji8pbry0empHptZ6tpzi2-68ZHvlVlzMIJV9EKmi_uL6fz2dI6wCcwctUB0TjkVjctqAWAjvEA1RVMeMuOC2nINNYlFy28dCZV5lHVtgEuBsEZSGDS0dl91HQ-dIJMJS6peMe4TzNUa0skQMtp7gt_NcsLgnh6DTP0t6nWVscRjkHlSlT&smid=url-share
Thank you for gifting this article!
Thanks for this article, Ron. I had been wondering about whether or not Trump would need to be convicted of engaging in insurrection before being disqualified from holding office, and it looks like he would not. It is also encouraging to see that there are at least two Federalist Society law professors who apparently are not selective about applying textualist standards to their work.
Ron, thank you for the link, have read it and passed it along.
Great article, especially considering the source. I overlooked it since it had the T word in the headline. Thanks for bringing it to our attention.
NMorgan - "I overlooked it since it had the T word in the headline."
That is the point that I keep making (well, trying to anyway.) Refusing to consider a (any) source because of a personal bias is not very useful. If one is exposed to all sides (opinions), it is easy to come to the correct conclusion. I suppose is an easy cop-out to believe that exposure to a bad idea (opinion) is like a Covid exposure. It is not. The more one is exposed to differing opinions, the easier it is to separate the wheat from the chaff. With that process you can easily discover, within the first couple sentences of any article, it's value and that of the author. (And not, necessarily, of the Media) My triggers are any sentence that includes "those dirty rascals" or words to that effect. I need not read further. YMMV
Another rule I have is the need for a minimum of two independent sources.
As a last resort, I rely on Mediabias[dot]com and adfontesmedia[dot]com. That, for the most part, provides comfort that exposure to all sources is not going to contaminate me.
FWIW, this is the Ad Fontes Media process:
𝘌𝘢𝘤𝘩 𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘭𝘦 𝘰𝘳 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘪𝘴 𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘺 𝘢𝘵 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘺𝘴𝘵𝘴–𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘭𝘦𝘧𝘵-, 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳-, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵-𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘱𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺. 𝘈𝘭𝘭 𝘰𝘧 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘔𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘢 𝘈𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘺𝘴𝘵𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘦𝘵𝘦 𝘢 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘰𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘭𝘶𝘥𝘦𝘴 𝘢 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘰𝘥𝘶𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘥𝘰𝘭𝘰𝘨𝘺, 𝘢𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘢𝘴 𝘱𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘭𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘯𝘦𝘸𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵. 𝘞𝘦 𝘱𝘶𝘳𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘦𝘧𝘶𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘢𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘨𝘯 𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘩 𝘢𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘺𝘴𝘵 𝘢 𝘣𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘵𝘩 𝘰𝘧 𝘤𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘴 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘴 𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘦𝘯𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘩 𝘢𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘺𝘴𝘵’𝘴 𝘧𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘤𝘳𝘰𝘴𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘮.
𝘈𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘺𝘴𝘵𝘴 𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘴𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘭𝘦𝘴 𝘴𝘪𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘺 𝘧𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘺𝘴𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘳𝘦𝘨𝘢𝘳𝘥𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘱𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘯; 𝘩𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳, 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘪𝘨𝘯𝘪𝘧𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘥𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘤𝘤𝘶𝘳, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘱 𝘦𝘯𝘨𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘢 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘥𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘢𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘺𝘴𝘵𝘴 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘴𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘴.
𝘞𝘦 𝘥𝘰 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘱𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴. 𝘙𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳, 𝘸𝘦 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘵 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘤𝘳𝘪𝘱𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘱𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘜𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘴. 𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘣𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺, 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘤𝘶𝘴𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘤𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘧𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘢 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘶𝘶𝘮 𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘭𝘶𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘢𝘤𝘵, 𝘢𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘺𝘴𝘪𝘴, 𝘰𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘰𝘯, 𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘦𝘵𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺, 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘱𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘢, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘢𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯.
𝘈𝘭𝘭 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘮𝘪𝘻𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘢𝘤𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘺𝘴𝘵 𝘣𝘪𝘢𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘣𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘤𝘦 𝘣𝘪𝘢𝘴 𝘴𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘐𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘢 𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘧 𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘥𝘶𝘢𝘭𝘴, 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘤𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘱𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘪𝘯 𝘯𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘨𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰𝘥𝘢𝘺’𝘴 𝘯𝘦𝘸𝘴 𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘴𝘺𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘮.
𝘔𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘺𝘴𝘵𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘭𝘺 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵-𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘶𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘦. 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘪𝘴 𝘢 𝘱𝘢𝘪𝘥 𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘵 $20/𝘩𝘳., 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘺𝘴𝘵𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬 𝘢 𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘮𝘶𝘮 𝘰𝘧 9 𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴 𝘱𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘬.
In this day and age, how can anyone be "center" politically?
Thank you for mentioning this article by Timothy Snyder! https://snyder.substack.com/p/we-can-have-the-constitution
We must all contact our state secretaries to demand that Donald Trump not be allowed on the ballot to elect the president in 2024. We can do this as citizens. We must do this as citizens. It's our duty.
It would seem tfg’s statement about wanting to abolish the Constitution is all we need to prove his ineligibility. I’m going to write my state’s Secretary of State. This needs to be a National movement.
Go ahead. Write to your State's Sec. of State. It will be ignored. Better to throw the rascals out of the State governments that they have contaminated, when they come up for re-election.
Not all secretaries of state will ignore such letters. By all means, work hard to remove the insurrectionists and fascists among our leaders.
But do not discount the value of a good letter-writing campaign.
Usually, their staff counts the letters. That is the extent of a good letter-writing campaign to elected officials. They get the numbers, but never see the letters. To bring about change, voters are better targets of letter (or postal card) writing campaigns as offered by Activate America which you can reach at https://www.activateamerica.vote/
Remember when tfg refused to show his financials as a candidate in 2015? Too bad Congress did not pass a law making financial disclosure the law and a prerequisite for ballot inclusion.
I think that refusal is what got him so many fans. He was doing what so many citizens of this country wish to do. The spirit of caring for those unable to care for themselves has all but disappeared here. Ayn Rand's philosophy was embraced by those who do not have the soul to share and care about anybody but themselves. That is the spirit of Trump and Trumpism. It's all about me.
With all due respect, I submit that the more appropriate response is to overwhelmingly reject his candidacy by the ballot box. Otherwise we will truly face a civil war as his supporters in large numbers would insist that they were deprived of their constitutional right to vote!
I personally think it is disgusting that he is even on the ballot. It makes us the laughing stock of the world.
With all due respect, Ira, why aren't all legitimate efforts to disallow Trump from representing this country by any means worthwhile pursuits by the citizens of the US?
The government is pursuing all legitimate efforts by virtue of Jack Smith’s superb complaints in two major cases and Georgia’s expected action next week. It does not benefit our legitimate reliance on the courts of law to exclude Trump arbitrarily from our democratic system of free and fair judicial process. The alternative of violent civil war is unacceptable! The reasoning of two legal scholars is no substitute for our democracy!
No one has suggested bypassing the courts, DOJ and 'the rule of law', about which there is legitimate fault to find. Citizens contributing their voices by contacting elected officials, the DOJ, etc., is part of our role as citizens of the US.
Or makes us look like the dumbest country on Earth.
The name of Jan 6 Defendant 1078 should not appear on any official ballot; his jock straps can write that individual in. No deprivation of civil rights, just adhering to the requirements of Article 14 Clause 3. That individual is ineligible from holding any elected office. And if his followers riot as a consequence? Well, THAT is what the Insurrection Act (colloquially known as the FAFO Act) is for. I don't want to see that, but I didn't want them to riot and try it on Jan 6, either.
Thank you
In your letter to your secretary of state, point out that the penalty of disqualification from office is not a criminal penalty. It is a deliberately political penalty for a political offense.
Point to the last sentence of Section 3: " But Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability."
The conclusion to be drawn is that responsible political actors are fully empowered to remove the name of a known insurrectionist or rebel from the ballot. Let the offender attempt to recover his claim to hold office in the political arena of the United States Congress.
Your secretary of state is a responsible political actor, no?
Remember, under Section 3, no one goes to prison. There would be no offense against due process. (After all, the due process clause as applied to the states is found in the same Amendment XIV!)
It's really very simple. This is what can happen when someone already indicted, awaiting trial, is allowed to declare ''IF YOU GO AFTER ME, I'M COMING AFTER YOU,' without being remanded to the hands-on custody of the court, where a gag order can be enforced, by incarceration if necessary. Americans cannot be asked to surrender their Constitutional rights because of fear of violent reactions by the supporters of the indicted, defeated, former president, a group not unlike the criminal perpetrators of this present-day tragedy in Marion, Kansas and its historic precedent in Alton, Illinois.
Agree. So much damage already done out of fear of his base.
https://open.substack.com/pub/snyder/p/we-can-have-the-constitution?r=sqcz0&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
My same sentiments emphasis on the Meyer Family. Peace be with you🙏☮️😔
The overall message is a gathering crowd shouting ...VOTE THEM OUT.
There has been over a very long scheming plan an execution of law and order and little accountability is forecast as one of our own failings too. A child learns by the time they are 3 what they can get away with and how to manipulate. This has been going on a lot longer than that.
This country is still a child. An experiment in the works and critical thinking needs self evident, and an apparent number of voters where the self evidence is colored/covered/criticized and questioned !
We are accordingly all presumed innocent , until proven guilty , but when the system has been rigged , waters muddied, and laws overlooked ...WE’RE IN TROUBLE.
If you’re a felon you can’t vote? ...correct? or maybe just in some states 😏?
But if you’re a felon you can run -or even BE PRESIDENT?
Talk about mixed messages! 😳🤦♀️
It’s the bad parent syndrome ‘ do as I say not as I do’?
Believe me. Trust me. Vote for me. “ I can shoot a person on 5th Avenue and get away with it” ...does this say also - [I] am above ethics, moral accounting, and the law.
It’s not too late but accountability’s time is nigh...
and everyone is on trial....
💙💙VOTE💙💙
The only problem with Snyder's argument is that Trump has yet to be tried. The US Senate had the opportunity to at least prevent him from ever running for office again, twice, but (most) Republican senators failed in their constitutional duty. It is likely that the "January 6th" trial will occur before the 2024 election, but if that jury convicts Trump he will appeal. The fate of our democracy rests on an election that may or may not be free and fair. Frightening.
Points well made, and the chances of a free and fair election don't look good in many cases. In terms of the "January 6" trial, this is a letter of mine that was published in today's edition of The Ledger regarding that prospect: " Jack Smith, the Special Prosecutor, is not stupid. And, for Trump's attorneys to have even a small chance of persuading a jury that Trump didn't know that he had lost the election, they would have to prove that Trump is the most stupid man in America, perhaps the world. But, all of that is not going to be necessary, I think. And here's why.
Jack Smith, when he and his team drafted the indictment, they drew it up in such a way that they knew that they would have to prove to the jury that Trump did what he did knowing that he had lost the election. Why could they be so sure that they could prove this to the jury? I submit that they did this because there are several people extemely close to Trump who are not indicted: Mark Meadows, Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump. Not being indicted means that they are most likely cooperating. And then there are those who are indicted - Rudy Giuliani, for one. Would Rudy sing like a songbird if he could avoid spending the rest of his life in prison? Does the Pope count his beads? The same holds true for the others as well.
The case may not go to trial. When Trump and his attorneys are confronted with the evidence against him, they may cut a deal - Trump to spend the rest of his life confined to Mar-a-Lago.
I live in Los Angeles and went to a spot popular with tourists the other day and saw a man wearing a black tee shirt with large red letters “CNN IS FAKE NEWS”. It astonished me how many in our country have aloud themselves to be brainwashed and aren’t capable of actually thinking things through. If something comes out in the press that Trump doesn’t like, it’s automatically Fake News, without any justification. The irony here is that this man more than likely watches Fox News and it’s been proven that they really are Fake News and they’ve paid dearly with the $787M Dominion settlement. More to come on that front with Smartmatic. We can only hope that when this case is settled, it hurts Fox News dramatically.
That may have been my nephew. I didn't realize that he ever got more than 30 miles from home.
I had a vivid dream last night, that might not be all that strange. I dreamed that TFG actually tore in half a pocket size version of the Constitution at one of his rallies, and the crowd (i.e. mob) cheered.
And, Ellen, you would have been right on. Make no mistake about it, they prefer shredding the Constitution and installing a white Christian Nationalist regime.
'Raid of Small Kansas Newspaper Raises Free Press Concerns'
'The search of Marion County Record’s office led to the seizure of computers, servers and cellphones of reporters and editors.' (NYTimes) excerpts
'Raids of news organizations are exceedingly rare in the United States, with its long history of legal protections for journalists. At The Record, a family-owned paper with a circulation of about 4,000, the police seized computers, servers and cellphones of reporters and editors. They also searched the home of the publication’s owner and semiretired editor as well as the home of a city councilwoman.'
'The searches, conducted on Friday, appeared to be linked to an investigation into how a document containing information about a local restaurateur found its way to the local newspaper — and whether the restaurant owner’s privacy was violated in the process. The editor of the newspaper said the raids may have had more to do with tensions between the paper and officials in Marion, a town of about 2,000 north of Wichita, over prior coverage.'
'The raid is one of several recent cases of local authorities taking aggressive actions against news organizations — some of which are part of a dwindling cohort left in their area to hold governments to account. And it fits a pattern of pressure being applied to local newsrooms. One recent example is the 2019 police raid of the home of Bryan Carmody, a freelance journalist in San Francisco, who was reporting on the death of Jeff Adachi, a longtime public defender.'
'In an email, Marion’s chief of police, Gideon Cody, defended the raid, which was earlier reported online by The Marion County Record and by Kansas Reflector, a nonprofit news organization.'
“I believe when the rest of the story is available to the public, the judicial system that is being questioned will be vindicated,” Mr. Cody said. He declined to discuss the investigation in detail.'
'On Sunday, more than 30 news organizations and press freedom advocates, including The New York Times, The Washington Post and Dow Jones, the publisher of The Wall Street Journal, signed a letter from the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press to Mr. Cody condemning the raid.'
'The Marion County Record is uncommonly aggressive for its size. Mr. Meyer said that the newspaper, which has seven employees, has stoked the ire of some local leaders for its vigorous reporting on Marion County officials, including asking questions about Mr. Cody’s employment history.' (NYTimes) See link to full article below. Sorry that I couldn't provide a gifted link.
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/13/business/media/kansas-marion-newspaper-police-raid.html