Members of the House of Representatives are back in their districts for August, and on Monday, Republican Mike Flood of Nebraska held a town hall in Lincoln.
We are at war with domestic terrorists claiming to be politicians. They are not. They seek to destroy people's lives and the very fabric of fact-based reality. They are our enemies and should be treated as such. Gloves off. No more following the old rules from when we lived in a world of "political debates". We are no longer having political debates. We are dealing with killers... agents of destruction.
Gloves off, yet we are still tasked with upholding the laws that sustain our republic. The big lie that Republicans have used to bring us to this crisis is a preposterous if adamant claim of moral superiority. Equal protection under law? For Epstein (or his henchwoman)? For people of Color? They are corrupt as hell, with no meaningful equivalence.
Social death and intentional harm. They are diabolically setting the trap for millions to die and ensure the rest of us desperate—and controllable. Such weak, pathetic people.
The FEMA mandate to report to ICE is especially diabolical..
How long was the butchered version of the Constitution up before the “coding error” was fixed.? Was it a test to see if anybody would care, assuming someone did notice?
Asking us to accept it as a coding error is like asking us to accept that two plus two is five. (Maybe just four and a half today, but five next time.)
As I understand it, there was just a photo of the portrait of Washington. I noticed Section 1 was replaced but never checked to see if there was any tampering with the content.
Thankfully, a huge amount of citizens have copies of the Constitution in their homes! And, know what it says. And means. Of course, orange man hasn't read it because he said he is so smart about things like that. He can't read a toilet paper package.
Absolutely, why would you need to change any of the code that displays the Constitution? The Constitution hasn’t changed, if you changed the code and there was an error it would most likely screw up the entire page, not select bits being deliberately violated by Trump.
CLS, they sure as hell weren't 'random' Guess T & his weanies don't remember that all T says & they say is on all forms of social media so we are able to put 2 & 2 together. Even as they think 2+2= 5!
And they hoped we would not notice. Store a copy on your electronic devices and keep a print copy in a safe place. We refuse to be lied to. No coding error; deliberate removal
“The FEMA mandate to report to ICE is especially diabolical.” Agreed: It seems this might start shaking more R voters out of their support for the maga & Project 2025 death cult.
Liked for the term "MAGA death cult." I've thought of MAGA as a cult for a long time, but never before as a death cult. But that's exactly what it has become during Trump 2.0. And it a "Death to America" cult, immeasurably more evil than the original version from 1979.
Exactly right. This is the combined playbook of the Nerd Reich - Yarvin, Thiel, Musk - and the architects of Project 2025. If you are not white, Christian, and straight, you have no place here. The working class is forced to take any job available just to survive. And those who cannot hold jobs are left to die with no assistance.
Yes, Gil wrote the book about these guys and coined the phrase. I heard it from other sources as well and it definitely fits. Any time I refer to those tech billionaires, I use that phrase to remind people they are funding all of this chaos.
This is a good youtube clip of the Dark Enlightenment and Butterfly Revolution crap going down since before Trump met with the Broligarchs at Mar-A-Lago and offered them their dystopian playground in exchange for $$ and manipulation of the 2024 election. It talks about why Greenland and Public Land sales are big aspirations for this elite of the corporate tech-entitled. Good for people who aren't into reading.https://youtu.be/5RpPTRcz1no?feature=shared
Oh come back from the dead, movie director Federico Fellini, we need you now to direct the satirical and absurdist movie of the century. You have perfect content to draw on being played out on a daily bases here in Washington.
The Trump regime is misappropriating funds for purposes not authorized by legislation. Congress does nothing to stop him nor do the courts. And the same is true of tariffs. The Republican majorities have abdicated their clearcut legal responsibilities. How can they still hold office?
David Cay Johnston has written books about Trump. In a recent you tube Johnston said that Trump's primary motivation is wealth. He is doing a good job of it. He has made the presidency into a money machine. All the rest strokes his ego. No morality. No care about the population or the government.
I keep trying to figure out how the states are supposed to take over FEMA's job. Our federal taxes are what have been used to fund general assistance. Guess the shitheads will have to start a different bank account to keep most of the tax money for themselves- esp. some to polish all the gold in the WH & dance hall planned. What a disgusting mess!
States will have do more for education (or not), supplement Medicaid, pay more in disaster prevention and relief. No more free school lunches. It's much more to have a parade and play golf than feed hungry children. Either the states with no income or sales tax stay the same and have a large poverty rate and unrepaired damage OR say hello taxes. Didn't trump say he was going to lower taxes and not create new ones?
As Matt Dowd says- "liberals keep fighting these battles with one hand tied behind their backs, the upper hand." The law keeps being rolled back to accommodate. Like the second amendment, the first party of it is forgotten.
Hochul, Pritzker, Newsome, and a growing list of other powerful Dems have finally had enough. “Institutional Democrats” enabled this coup and need to break ranks. When they go low, we meet them at the sewer hole.
This is also going to give Democrats some vigorous national voices, especially Newsome and Pritzker, which the Democrats have lacked to their detriment.
It may also be the informal beginning of a robust Democrat primary for 2028, which the Democrats did not have in 2024, much to their detriment.
Monroe, because Biden wrongly decided to run for a second term, Ds did not have a meaningful primary. However, now is not the time to blame Ds, but unite to fight the destruction.
Thank you for calling this a coup. This is a government takeover. When someone tells you who they are believe them. ‘A bloodless coup unless the left objects’ is about what they said about project 2025.
Patriots is what I call those who oppose a coup. And unless we do not stop it, most of us will be considered serfs at best.
When I look at what is happening, day after day, I fear we may be inching closer and closer to civil war... or, if we're lucky, a 'two state solution'. Trump has already called Democrats 'vermin' and 'evil'. He hates us. I don't see how the USA can stand as one nation unless the GOP has a sudden change of heart.
It's a long time from now but, I sure am planning on the 2026 elections causing a lot of BAD GOP-ers cleaning out their offices & being escorted off Capital property. Only the GOP folks who get their shit together & have a real come- to- Jesus moment will remain.
I was just reading about trump and his flag pole fixation. The Palm Beach town council fined him for having a flagpole which was too big- it was 80 feet instead of the regulation 42. He also had a HUGE flag, the size varies but the smaller amount was 15'x25'- regulation was 4x6.
The point of this tale is that his defense was the ruling infringed upon his first amendment right of free speech. How ironic when now he is doing everything possible to censor the press and demonstrations. He also said the larger flag expressed the magnitude of patriotism on his part as well as club members.
It’s all gaslighting. The GOP accuses us of what they are actually doing. This will be a difficult war to win precisely because it is being fought with ideas … conspiracy theories … a giant PsyOp designed to turn America into a place in which the truth no longer exists and a confused and demoralized population lets the very wealthy do whatever they want.
But doesn't it depend on which laws and how they are broken? Protest only works on people with some vestige of conscience, but they tend to be many and they matter. Women tried to vote in violation of the law and black people sat at lunch counters. They did not forcefully break into the Capitol building or threaten the life of the VP.
The Constitution is a rule book for peaceful if contentious cooperation. Like other forms of organized crime, nominal "Republicans" regularly practice extortion.
Were we (Democrats) also to disregard the law -eye to tooth- for any broken law a Republican did- goose to gander for any Supreme Court sanctions..stoop to their level -be only fair?
What’s that old saying -alls fair in love and war? If ,in fact, “war” has been declared ..where/how does it stop? The rules of war have been exacted by those of conscience , rarely acknowledged by the aggressor but exacted by the winners…and so ……..
When we win ..and we will win …all complicit shall ,under a blanket edict, be guilty. Their sentences determined after incarceration begins determined by the severity of responsibility…”taking or under orders” not an exclusion of guilt …as therefore their choice to OBEY sealed their guilt.
One can always defect..for as many that will..they clear themselves of any wrong doing.
The bravery of those that have defected en mass already…👏.
Is the last stand , the military including the National Guard ? No dereliction of duty or dishonor would follow them and complete restoration of pay once order has been restored…because there is definitely no order now. All those too “unfortunates” are in fact being subjected to “unfair” .
When principle has been redefined contrary to we.the.people’s.will….an act of war has been declared.
So be it.
Enough banter.
Enough broken law.
Enough bobble heads.
Enough bought off politicians.
Can then all the Democrats or Democratic states in sync declare some sort of 1) Martial Law? 2) Stop all federal funding /be withheld? 3) Commission their own laws of conduct for the duration?
We are talking some sort of unprecedented national succession I presume.
Is this what you -the defined “majority” wanted ….?
Because you ain’t seen nothing yet…is guaranteed.
You either stand out or fall to the autocracy.
For removal , that last entity of forced obedience- as authoritarians count and plan their level of control-
be their last stand.
May my many greats uncle JOSHUA CHAMBERLAIN stand tall again a hero for ‘the hole in the wall ‘ needed to win this war.
Yes JL, we have good laws in place to hold people accountable for their decidedly (im) moral superiority. They keep it up and the roads to hell will be like I5 at rushhour!
This is beyond horrifying. It is an abomination and shameful on the history of the United States. These criminals overlook the fact that the whole world is watching: some in disbelief and some wondering how to profit from the situation.
Many of us are acting. In my neighborhood (Chicago) the Indivisible chapter founded in November 2015, has increased membership exponentially. (We met around a picnic table outside during Covid summers and on Zoom in winter.) At 91, I have written GOTV postcards since 2018, and seen many of those Democrats I wrote for win.
And the astonishing thing is that there are actually so FEW of them! Most wars you are fighting millions of the enemy - with the GOP, it's a thousand, max. I don't count the MAGA voters, as they are followers, not fighters. It's the creeps leading and lying to them. The ones that are enabling trump. If he didn't have that support structure, someone would have carted him off to an old folks home by now.
I read an article today that said before we dropped the bomb on Hiroshima, the Government produced enough Purple Hearts to cover the anticipated casualties of a planned invasion. Because of the bomb, those Hearts weren't needed - and those originals are still being issued today, even after Korea, Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan etc. You think of the numbers of the enemy our men would have had to face - and then compare that figure to the number of people who are destroying America without even firing a shot - or having a shot aimed at them. Doing all that damage from a nice comfy seat - and even getting paid BY THE COUNTRY THEY ARE DESTROYING! I don't recollect America paying the Japanese to use their kamikaze pilots against our ships.
What disturbs me is that those we are taught to believe are heroes, are often completely depraved. Of course, tRump and his cronies are good examples. But please think about this:
The United States detonated a nuclear bomb in space in 1962.
Were any of us informed or warned?
There was a nuclear accident in Los Angeles in 1959 but it was kept secret until recently.
The Firebombing of Tokyo was ordered by Air Force General Curtis LeMay.
Over the course of nearly three hours, an attack by the United States Army Air Forces killed as many as 100,000 people — more than some estimates of the number killed the day of the nuclear bombing of Hiroshima. The United States Strategic Bombing Survey later wrote that “probably more persons lost their lives by fire at Tokyo in a six-hour period than at any time in the history of man.
“Air Force General Curtis LeMay ordered the deaths of more civilians than any other military officer in American history. No one else comes close. “I’ll tell you what war is about. You’ve got to kill people and when you kill enough of them, they stop fighting.”
In an interview with U.S. Air Force historians in 1988, USAF General Curtis LeMay, who was also head of the U.S. Strategic Air Command, commented on efforts to win the war as a whole, including the strategic bombing campaign, saying, “We went over there and fought the war and eventually burned down every town in North Korea anyway, some way or another, and some in South Korea, too......Over a period of three years or so we killed off, what, 20 percent of the population of Korea, as direct casualties of war or from starvation and exposure?”
Pyongyang, which saw 75% of its area destroyed, was so devastated that bombing was halted as there were no longer any worthy targets. By the end of the campaign, US bombers had difficulty in finding targets and were reduced to bombing footbridges or jettisoning their bombs into the sea.”
We can see this mindset now in Gaza. Is that what we are also seeing with ICE?
Because MEN run the world, resulting in an obscenely violent and dangerous world that is never questioned, NEVER even discussed. But I think it is damn well time. The violence, the mass shootings, the senseless cruelty, the murder of women and children, and the rape of women and children. It's MEN!
Sorry but don’t kid yourself. The only reason women haven’t run wildly murderous wars is because they haven’t had a chance. Women can be just as evil as men, and I will point you to Kristy Noem as a modern example (can you imagine her as president?) or Queen Elizabeth I as an less recent one.
Kimberley. The Gnomes of the modern world believe that they are strong women when they do not have a clue what a strong woman is. What they are is obnoxious humans who model the worse human behaviors. You are wrong about Elizabeth I who did everything she could to avoid war partly because they were expensive and the males in charge (examples Robert Dudley and the Earl of Essex) ignored her orders. She was a woman in a man's world (John Knox, First Blast of the Trumpet Against the Monstrous Regiment of Women) who had to figure out how to rule and remain in charge. Also 21st century standards do not apply to what governments could do in the 16th century.
It's obviously not ALL men, but men in general, from just about every culture. The more educated men are, the less violent they tend to be, but plenty of educated men manipulate other men to fight, to kill, and drop bombs to assert power. Violence is cheered in sports. Sadly, we don't question men until they've stepped over some ill-defined line.
Nancy, I *must* push back here. I've gotten a lot of flack over the past several years for saying this, but please don't say it's *all* old white men. Don't paint us all with the same brush. It's as inappropriate as saying "all {fill in the blank} are {fill in the blank}.. Don't paint us all with the same brush. I had no say in when I was born or who my parented me (and I'm grateful to my dear late mother for much of my sensitivity to others.) All I can do is to try not to live up to the stereotype that is often applied to us; I've raised my 2 sons to do the same. Of course there are a lot of white men (of various ages) who can be blamed for some of our problems, but the same can be said of most any other classification of people.
I sincerely apologize for using that statement. I know many white men who are not “old white men” , my husband and my 2 40 something sons to name a few. I won’t try to explain why I use it, I will try to find a different way to say what I mean. Thank you for calling me out on it
My Dad, who is later years, called himself "A feeble old white man" was one of those wo would tear up & be so angry when conflicts arose- lived through WW2 & spent his life spreading his belief in God to as many people as he could & expected people to live like the Bible taught. I loved that old white man, rest his soul.
We're going to have to agree to disagree on that. My partner is an old white man, and a scientist. He's one of the kindest human beings I have ever known.
My partner, while a man and white- he’s not- in my meaning of it, “an old white man”. I agree with you and I apologize if I insulted or offended anyone. I need a better form of words to explain my meaning.
D, as an "old white man" I agree with much of what you say, and I've been saying for *decades* (yes, decades) that women should run the world. That said, it wouldn't bring about an end to all wars, or cruelty, but it would go a ling way toward minimizing them.
I would agree that "men" have done a crappy job running the world. And the current crew at the White House are as deranged as was Hitler.
I'd be OK with women taking over right now. What a better world we would be in today if Hillary had served two terms and Harris as well. Not my most favorite politicians - but competent, thoughtful and sane. And they read.
But with all due respect, your references to WWII and Lemay are taken out of context. The Japanese were not going to stop fighting. Their society had morphed into something bizarre, horrific and unreasonable. Not unlike Germany at the same time. Not unlike Russia today.
The Japanese perpetrated atrocities in the Pacific region that are so awful, so despicable, so "subhuman" that their defeat was absolutely required for the sake of civilization writ large. That fire bombing was not unlike what we did to Dresden. As awful and brutal as it was, when an entire nation makes torture and genocide their stated goal and actually performs it - that entire nation bears the responsibility.
The Korea story is more complex. On the one hand, it was representative of the "red scare" that gave us Vietnam as well. But before we start analyzing the Korean war, we should ask the South Koreans of today how they would feel if Korea was united - with a North Korean government that has the same authoritarian attitude as Stalin did. Of course, none of this has anything to do with "communism" - the red herring. It has to do with dictatorship and the power of a few monstrous MEN.
I am a peacenik by nature. But the Germans and the Japanese violated the basic standards of civilization. They were only defeated by overwhelming force. There was no negotiation that could have stopped their genocides. The same is true in Ukraine. Putin must be stopped by overwhelming opposition. Once he fails and Russian society suffers enough, his oligarchs will manage to get something in his soup. And another asshole man will take over. Where is Catherine the Great when you need her? /s
"But with all due respect, your references to WWII and Lemay are taken out of context. The Japanese were not going to stop fighting. Their society had morphed into something bizarre, horrific and unreasonable. Not unlike Germany at the same time. Not unlike Russia today." Oh, the horror of it all!
Is American Exceptionalism our get-out-of-jail-card for genocide of the first Americans?
My one small amt. of Native American blood Is still horrified by the treatment of our 1st nations. Forced onto rocky lands, denied most fishing rights, refused schooling & medical care. Left with few resources to get through northern New England winters. BUT, we are still here.
No. And "American Exceptionalism" is code for "We know best, we will rewrite history, we will ignore all the successes of other nations and perhaps never learn from the mistakes of others."
I often wonder what we would have looked like as a nation if we had embraced some of the thinking of Indigenous people with respect to the land and nature in general. What if we had acted like grateful immigrants instead of arrogant invaders?
Instead we plunder and extract with no concern for the consequences.
No, we have been "exceptionally" stupid in Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan, Iran, and much of Central and South America. And especially in North America.
Tom, TCinLA, That’s Another Fine Mess on substack just published a series of essays on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. They are excellent. He makes the point that through Potsdam the Japanese had agreed to surrender terms. The sticking point was the emperor retaining his position. Russia was poised to invade. We bombed them, and the emperor retained his position. LeMay couldn’t be stopped.
It's disingenuous to imply that the Japanese "had agreed to surrender terms." Clearly they had not. This was a militaristic society ruled by a emperor in direct contact with the gods wit leaders facing trials for crimes against humanity. .
Many Japanese leaders rejected the idea because knew they would be tried as war criminals and had a unquestionable sense of honor.
Interestingly the term unconditional surrender is a misnomer as it only applied to the military, not the general population. There were protections in the offer for the people of Japan who had been misled into the war through propaganda and lies.
I suggest you read Tom’s essays, though I believe you may have to be a paid subscriber to access. The entire Japanese military were massed on the peninsula where the allies were purported to land, leaving the rest of the country open to being overrun by the Russians, who were staging in Manchuria. Japan did not want to surrender to Stalin.
You know it Bill! It's "mankind"..not "men" or "women"...,it's mankind, gotttdammit! And pussy has played a huge part, and far far from being constrained to some 'bedroom'.
Lest we forget the Imperialist Military regime of Japan started a war in Asia in which they committed atrocities comparable to the Nazis in Europe. Indeed, their actions contributed more to involving the entire world in war than Germany.
Our Eurocentric view seems to blind us to what horrors the Japanese were engaged in.
What do you propose were reasonable alternatives to fighting the Japanese on the 1930s and 1940s?
It's easy to sit here in 2025 and criticize our use of the atomic bomb without contemplating what we were fighting.
Agreed to all great points, folks. But surely everyone can see the through line of violence and repression, especially of the other majority gender on the planet. Women. For us it's one step forward, two steps back. When I was a child, women couldn't obtain mortgages or bank loans in their name. Now we have no bodily rights and are being considered nothing more than breeders and receptacles.
My point is that there is NO discussion about this. About all the young white males who are mass shooters, and violent gang behavior, and rapists and murderers, whose brains aren't fully developed until around age 27 whose behavior is not examined, but we allow them to 'Let Boys Be Boys'. And don't even get me started about all the religions being created and curated by MEN. To the specific diminishment of women.
D..., so let me understand you here. So "women" apparently just accommodated this behavior, under the auspices of (a) god, until they'd had enough (here in the USA, at least)? Seems to me that "women" have taken the road they feel best with, no? We have politics, we have science, we have union-labor, we have airlines, we have military, we have doctors, we have olympics, we have basketball (Fever!), we have the Mormon-wives, we have porn. we have Harvey Whine-steins, we have Gizlane-tothe-Maxwell, we have burkas, religious police! So.., you're telling me women have no voice in all of this? Tell me, please, did "women" stride ahead in this past election to straighten this shit out? Doesn't look like it. And here, right now, we are confronting irrefutable evidence that a rich "man" and a admittedly 'horney' wealthy uper-class(?!) woman collected a good number of (under-aged?) young women using various means of enticement, to entertain the prurient interests of men (mostly) on some island. The silence is just about deafening ladies.
I disagree, I've heard plenty of discussion about this, with a lot of agreement from "old white men". I kind of doubt you came up with this on your own and are the lonely prophet in the desert preaching to the wind.
Just saying.
PS: agreed that a person's brain isn't fully developed until they are in their twenties and the last part to do so is responsible for understanding long term consequences.
Yeah, Gary, your "I kind of doubt you came up with this on your own and are the lonely prophet in the desert preaching to the wind" comment is exactly what I am talking about. You diminish my comment and me, and all the other women who have spent a lifetime being mistreated, diminished, spoken down to, discriminated against, underpaid, sexually assaulted, raped, and beaten. I have 70+ years of experience with all these behaviors and you exactly prove my point.
At 91, a member of a family with 3 immediate relatives in WWII, living on the East Coast, I remember the whole spectrum of fear (neighbors, nearby Air Force base, later D-Day) and the mix of concern and relief when my father, returning us from an afternoon fishing trip, stopped for gas and, while paying for it, learned about the first bomb. We immediately assumed it meant the end of the war which had consumed US since December 7, 1941 (my father since even before September 1, 1939 as he always watched Europe and listened to the world news nightly). The relief exceeded the horror. At college I lived through “Hiroshima, mon amour,” and still live with the mixed feelings, always grateful for the American lives saved.
My father was a Marine who fought on Iwo Jima. He lost many comrades and friends. He was in China training for the invasion of Japan when the war was brought to an end. No bomb, no dad, no me. (?)
The documentary "The Fog of War" won an Oscar. Its subtitle refers to 11 lessons learned by Robert S McNamara. In it, McNamara noted that Curtis LeMay had stated that if the Allies had lost the war, he would have been charged with war crimes.
Welcome to the world of modern technology… in which - if you have the money - you can do a HUGE amount of damage… because we are in a war that is largely information / “fake education” / indoctrination / propaganda based.
HCR: 'A woman at Mike Flood's Lincoln Nebraska August Town Hall asked what she called a fiscal question ... the Nebraska crowd cheered wildly'.
That woman was Flood's constituent, ROSINA PAOLINI. ROSINA was interviewed by JEN PSAKI on her show last night. As the entire country knows now, ROSINA is an admissible, political fact-filled Nebraska voter & super sharp.
ROSINA explained to JEN that she could not do what she is doing without love & support of her fellow Nebraska voters. Mike Flood has a new rival for his Congressional seat by the name of ROSINA PAOLINI.
The key difference in Rosina is she is informed. She had the data and used it. This is what we are all called to do. Know the facts, numbers and apply them to your argument. Sure beats the chicken little approach.
You mean the Republican criminal enterprise? Or the White Christian Nationalists? What war?
IMHO, the war hasn't started yet, just a few minor skirmishes. When Dem pols start chaining themselves to buildings to prevent business as usual from happening, then I'll start to believe they're ready to fight a war. When Schumer and Hakeem stop bloviating and take part in a sit in, then I'll believe they're ready to fight a war. And WIN.
The most popular American pol(as Colbert said): BERNIE SANDERS!
Let's not let the 6 utterly corrupt SCOTUS Justices off the hook. And let's recognize the White Christian Nationalists exercising power through their cat's paws and billions. All that g-damn $$$$$ the fascists have to put their plan into effect.
When Americans stop believing that it is up to only the politicians to win this we will have significantly upped our chances of surviving this coup. There are millions and millions more of us than the politicians. What are the voters doing?
This is on us. There are no white knights coming to save us. Do something.
Right you are Barbara. "Support our Politicians" means, You, ME, Everyone.., needs to get out there and stand together on all those things we are asking our 'politicians" to take a stand on. Our Senators and Representatives cannot hammer on things if WE are not standing in the intersections with signs and crowding assembly-halls and gymnasiums making our points known. That's how we "support our troops", not by just sending care packages or emails or $20 checks, or phone calls. Our physical presence is known when it is shown. Not with violence. Presence. Our Country is calling on us - Be there.
Asking leaders to “Pledge…our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor.” is too much? You don't need to wait for them to do that to engage in resistance. Still, they need to do that. Lead, follow, or get out of the way. Right now, they're in the way. My 2¢.
I don't believe they are in the way. We are simply realizing that they can't do it all. I am ready to partner with anyone who is ready to suit up and show up to crush this coup.
I respectfully suggest you read Sarah Kendzior’s two best-selling books (“Hiding In Plain Sight” and “They Knew”) about the deep level of corruption in America. This war (with what is actually a global criminal conspiracy) has been going on for a long time… just not covered in the news.
Not to mention that the US is number 1 in money laundering; and probably will be accused by the world for being the worst environmental polluter and contributor to climate change while many still embrace climate change as a hoax.
What good would that do in this fight? Why is it important to talk about how the boat got the hole in it when the boat is sinking? There won't be anyone more boats if this one sinks.
I am a former civil engineer taught to study why things collapse so a better version of what previously existed is built next time. Learning how to prevent a future collapse is paramount to my way of being. It’s also how progress happens in general… asking the “why?” questions … learn from our mistakes - both big and small - so the future can be better than the past.
I’m sorry if you think everyone should be in the front lines prepared to “die for the cause”. Some of us also need to work on what will be built “after the fall”.
It really is an all hands-on deck moment Steve. I am not apologizing for being strong in my urging people on towards activism. I listen to many great minds in the Country right now. As of last night Dr. Richardson talked about what the resistance is doing and how we are doing standing up.
If people want to talk about conspiracies instead of bailing the boat that is their call. Continuing to deflect the conversation from the crisis at hand is worrisome at best.
Thanks for your suggestions. Yes, I'm aware of her work. The idea that there is a global criminal conspiracy assumes there are laws being broken. But the laws are only for the 99% of us. The 1% don't see it as being "criminal". They see it as their right to do as they please.
Here's another interesting book I recommend: Money, Lies and God.
Steven.., $$$$$.., you know it. And "they$$$" have been working this for at least the past four years with help from (imbedded) agents from abroad within (the RNC) and other seemingly innocuous branches of our government. Yes! Writing and carrying out the moves needed to put project 2025 into action once numb-nuts was again seated. The "works" were in progress so quietly because people were making sure the POS got elected.., the amount of money spent to do this will never be known, but it was spent and those clowns almost lost it. But they prevailed by hook or crook.
The time is now. The line is here. Ours is a job to do. From New York Harbor, we heard the unarmed but alarmed Lady Liberty’s clarion call. I made us 100 protest signs, here. Atop the U.S. Capitol Building Lady Freedom heard her. It is Lady Freedom that holds this Nation’s sword .She pulled it, dismounting to lead us to the streets. They both pointed out clear ways without bloodshed: boycott and gerrymander. Yes, we can, Cesar, Sí se puede. Rise!
I hate that you’re correct. This “war” started when the GOP, specifically the Convicted Felon and Speaker Johnson, called Democrats “the enemy” and treated their Democratic colleagues as such.
I’m genuinely curious about any piece of legislation the GOP has passed since the Realignment that benefited Americans. Civil Rights Act, worker protections, clean water legislations—all were Democratic proposals. Yet somehow GOP politicians get voted into office.
Thank you. I am trying to find a link to Speaker Johnson calling Democrats “the enemy” and cannot find it. Below is the closest I’ve found. Do you have a link to Johnson using the word “enemy”? I know Trump has.
And yes… progress has come mostly from Democrats, although Nixon created the Environmental Protection Administration.
To some - eg. corporations - worker protection and clean air and water seriously affect their bottom line, which republicans protect through deregulation, bribes and contributions. The rest of the population, most influenced by MAGA myths, are led by deception and lies and are unmoved by facts and evidence.
We are in a Fascist coup d'etat against the United States of America. People I trust such as Obama. Biden and others are warning the time to act is right now. This is on all of us. Do something.
Focusing on that final paragraph, Heather: What they’ve shown us is the Constitution as they intend to amend it - and as they perceive it to apply to them NOW. It is, precisely, their current working model of our Constitution. We can expect it to be further slashed and burned, as their headlong gallop into authoritarianism gains momentum as it goes.
Coding error, my ass! Once again, they’re “letting slip” their plans and intentions for American government under Project 2025, with Trump their bulldozer (and Vance just waiting in the wings to take over the driver’s seat).
“Today, reporters noticed that the online United States Constitution, maintained by the Library of Congress, was missing parts of Article I, the part of the Constitution that lays out the rights and duties of Congress. Parts of Section 8 and all of Sections 9 and 10 were gone.
Those include Congress’s control over the District of Columbia, Congress’s power to make the laws, the promise that habeas corpus would not be suspended, the stipulation that no money can be used by the government unless Congress has appropriated it, the requirement that no president can accept gifts from foreign countries, and the specification that only Congress can levy tariffs.
Officials said the deletions were ‘due to a coding error,’ and by the end of today the missing sections were restored.”
One additional “what to do” thought. I’ve commented many times that we need to learn from the Occupy Wall Street movement and create a giant encampment surrounding the White House or maybe even all of Washington DC that has a huge educational component. Occupy Wall Street was a permanent protest not a one day or two day affair. We need something visible every day of the year that grows in size and in the story it is telling… One of the kind of future we can have once hate and division is replaced with love and cooperation (see Buckminster Fuller)
That is the most concrete response I've heard. Even Ruth Ben-Ghiat and Heather continue to propose we write, call, protest - which I believe we are all engaged in. What is the next level??? An encampment around the WH! Sounds daring.
One thing such an encampment would show them is that there are more of us than there are of them! It could be funded by people like Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos ex-wife (whose name is escaping me at the moment). And would push the Trump distractions of the day off the front pages of the newspapers. Everything he said would be responded to by the many people occupying the space around Washington DC. 👊🇺🇸
Those who have been elected by our votes and are paid with tax revenues and given multiple benefits would do well to stand up to those who would destroy our democratic republic. 47 will have no need of them once he's enabled Project 2025 to be put in place.
It’s up to each of us to determine what best fits their situation. I’m not here to say anyone one form of resistance should be what everyone does. I have my plans based on what my own situation makes possible. But I don’t know what options are available to you. Related: In my opinion, this fight must be decentralized, so there is no movement leadership for the GOP to come after.
It’s a massive poisoning – Republicans who hate due process.
Hate free and fair elections. Hate non-whites, non-white supremacists.
How did America get so many so poisoned, so full of hatreds?
First, what’s next on the fascist agenda? Answer: people in power who no longer have to hear questions such as the one I just asked – how did we “get so many so poisoned, so full of hatreds?”
Once people in power can avoid accountability, they’ve solved the problem Donald has been having with people asking what he was doing all those years so happily with underage girl rapists Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell.
Not only does he walk from accountability of Qs there, but also from Qs about his gulag of torture/concentration camps, his ICE terror police, and which subsets of us next get terrorized, locked up.
Phil, how did America "get so many so poisoned, so full of hatreds?" I think it is Fox News. I have watched my family members succumb to the hate filled propaganda since the mid 90s. Yet what I find intriguing and disheartening is "what makes some respond wholeheartedly to the hate and others turn away?" In my own family the one Republican, Fox watching sibling has been filled with bitterness and resentment since childhood in spite of my parents giving him extra support and care. His wife too. Full of resentment, bitterness over small stuff. So few examples of empathy and compassion in our cultural upbringing. Misinformation and disinformation has steered so many towards hatred, cruelty.
Fox News indeed is the great gulf, the divide, the start and end point for so much. This is something that never gets quite enough attention.
Not for nothing did Thomas Jefferson respond, when asked if he had to choose between a free government and a free press, which one would he demand. A free press, he said, for you need the latter to make the former a reality. I realize Fox News is not "state" TV in the sense TV 1 in Russia is indeed state-controlled, but for tens of millions of households in this land, in bars, airports, hospitals, public buildings, you name it, the one channel that blares is Fox.
I've never watched it regularly, but as people in this newsletter and elsewhere so often confirm, there's some great sad moment that managed to turn somebody's grandfather into a conspiratorial wacko. There's one divide that seems to split families right down the line. It's Fox. It's Republican TV, run by people who know how to manipulate, terrify, enthrall, entertain and distort, all at once.
We may yet get rid of this Repulsican majority next year and Trump will soon die, and JD might just melt into a Maybelline puddle somewhere, but we still have tens of millions of rigidly indoctrinated zombies out there dead sure there's an "Epstein File" with Hillary Clinton's name right at the top of it, that Haitians are creating new recipes for cat and dog every day, that millions of little boys with vaginas are pouring across the Rio Grande determined to force kindergarteners to endure lectures on critical race theory, which their savior in the White House stopped just in time (whew). It's one butt-ugly, toxic Christmas present, and we've yet to figure out how even to untie the bow.
Yes, I have family members indoctrinated by Fox News. Even educated family members….sad to say most evangelical, maybe a little racism added to the mix. I think those are the most difficult to “change hearts and minds”
Hello Dick... I was once at a Car Dealership in a Deep-Red State, and was forced to Watch FOX nEWS for 4-Hours.... I felt that I was in the 'Toothpick Scene' in 'A Clockwork Orange'... OBW: Every third Commercial was a Scene of the Israeli Flag waving in the breeze.... I was Aghast... Propaganda, Propaganda, Propaganda...
It's the only time I see Fux News Apache, when I'm someplace that has a TV on to entertain people who have to wait there for some reason or another, the shop that works on my cars is a good example. I have heard that dining halls on our military bases have it playing non-stop. Ever since MSM has started paying more attention to the Epstein cover-up I have heard that Fux News has been talking about Obama and Biden non-stop, last time I looked Biden has been out of office since 20 Jan of this year. They must think the nation is stupid, and actually come to think about it, about half the time they are right. 🤬🤬🤬
Because most of the billionaires love it. Wish that weren't true, but for every George Soros, there are four Murdochs, Kochs and Thiels running around. And of course Murdoch already owns Fox and isn't planning on selling to anyone.
Miriam Adelson, Robin Arkley II (purveyor of hidden, untaxed bribes to Alito), Jeff Bezos, George Birnbaum, Harlan Crow (a Clarence Thomas subsidizer), Larry Ellison, Wayne Huizenga (another Clarence Thomas subsidizer), Charles Koch, Leonard Leo, Bernie Little (another Clarence Thomas subsidizer), Omeed Malik, Timothy Mellon, Rupert Murdoch, Elon Musk, Paul “Tony” Novelly (another Clarence Thomas subsidizer), Dennis Prager, David Rivkin (defender of Alito medieval corruption and his contemporary corruption, too), Pilgrim’s Pride chief executive officer Fabio Sandri (who gave record-setting $5 million to 2025 Trump inaugural, in exchange for Trump loosening of U.S. food poisoning regulations), Steve Schwartzman, Paul Singer, David Sokol (another Clarence Thomas subsidizer), Peter Thiel, Pilgrim’s Pride quality assurance Kendra Waldbusser (who gave record-setting $5 million to 2025 Trump inaugural, in exchange for Trump loosening of U.S. food poisoning regulations), Anthony Welters (another Clarence Thomas subsidizer) Jeffrey Yass, Jeff Zuckerberg and families DeVos, Kushner, Mercer, Sackler, Uihlein.
Yes to the Rush Limbaugh being, at the least, the beginning part of the problem (and a repeal of the Fairness Doctrine). I used to work in social research (in the late 90’s and early 00’s) and I had a coworker that I sometimes had to ride in her car for hours, and she’d listen to RL and tell me how great everything he said was, and I just wanted to jump out of the moving car. 🤮 I never understood her loving his BS, and me thinking it was total BS.
Fox and now two clones, plus wicked and uncensored YouTube “stations”. This followed years of poison radio by Rush and Rush clones. Trump’s main message is hatred.
Yeah, agree. My dad retired in the 90s from a job as country director for an Int’l nonprofit. Too much time on his hands, he jumped down the Rush and Fox rabbit holes. What a change in him! I could begin to see the destruction of the country back then. Hate sells,ya? Murdoch is a billionaire.
But you have to be open to the message. It has to resonate with something in you. Fox isn’t poisoning people. It’s speaking to something that already exists in many, many people. It provides a “safe space” for certain people to indulge their fear, racism, misogyny and nationalism.
I disagree. It has been taught that it wasn't acceptable in our public schools since the 50s and 60s. Its just that many people are threatened by the rise of people of color, people of unspecified gender, people of dissenting politics, etc.
And those who are threatened (whether rationally or not) will defend themselves and sharpen their views. That is what has happened, with a huge supporting encouraging party (the Maga GOP) to cheer them on.
See Don Siegel's 1956 "Invasion of the Body Snatchers," Wendyl.
Also to see, "The Stepford Wives," "The Freedom Writers' Diary," "The Verdict," "Knives Out," "The Big Short," and "Blade Runner."
Read Walker Percy's "The Thanatos Syndrome," Norman Mailer's extended essay, "Superman Comes to the Supermarket," Arlie Russell Hochschild’s “Stolen Pride,” Sarah Smarsh’s “Bone of the Bone,” and Wendell Berry's 1977 "The Unsettling of America."
Many of our best have explored this good Q of yours, Wendyl.
I read a article yesterday (can't locate it now or recall author - could have been on substack, NYT or WaPo) about a study of the personality traits which lean into bitterness, and take a certain pleasure in the suffering or neglect of others, etc. The study found that those with such traits were more likely to be Republican than Democrat. Fox News has done much to promote such traits.
TACO is a malignant narcissi which is defined as a mental imbalance (crazy) who can not be cured and who has no capacity to feel compassion ,,, given power. such a person just keeps getting more extreme as they have no ability to censor themselves.
Laurie, this Scientific American article (2020) is somewhat related to the issue(s) you mention. This article is about Conservative and Liberal brain “functioning” (for lack of a better word) and the perceived differences. I read it when it first came out & bookmarked it. You might find it interesting: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/conservative-and-liberal-brains-might-have-some-real-differences/. I, too, hope you update your post if you are able to locate the article you mention (ha, don’t you just hate that “needle in a haystack” effort of finding something you just read?! Frustrating!).
Lauriemcf, boy would I like to read that article. Will try to Google it. Yes, Murdoch has become a billionaire from creating a feeding frenzy for those with the traits.
Years ago we had as a matter of course many good teachers in every school, with the freedom to assign whole books that they wholly valued -- personally cared about.
This came through in their teaching.
These teachers in the intervening years saw testing squelch them, saw entire curricula turned in slavery to the tests. Worse still, the tests pushed all worst conceits of logic, grouping, categorizing, abstracting, and linearity -- all of that totally void the human in the decent, valuable books teachers and students were formerly free to explore.
So, yes, Fox "News" entered this ensuing wasteland. And predators such as Donald, Jeffrey, Ghislaine, and others as vulgar as they then took advantage of the new god, money, and money tied to spectacle.
Phil, yeah, school experience could be a factor as you say. I graduated high school in 1971 and up until then had great teachers, SRA testing but the testing was a small part of my school experience. I have lived out of the US, in Asia since the mid 80s so I can't say how school has worsened since my 60s education. I live in Indonesia with extended family structure, ritual, focus on community. So different than the nuclear family structure, the me, mine, individual culture. One is brought up with a responsibility towards our neighbors, our community. Not perfect by an y means, but more connected, interwoven lives. We are seeing now a great sickness in the US, loneliness, lack of empathy, them against us struggle to survive. Little feeling of common humanity in a large part of the population.The regime's "christian" nationalist "solution" is not unlike Hitler's. Trump and his regime are the cancer taking advantage of a weakened immune system.
Hello Wendyl... Among the Indigenous.... Children are brought up by their extended families, and Villages... As USA Families have broken down, so has USA Society, and Politics...
Phil, you're a one-man stand for a one-man issue that manages to end up blurring, rather than pinpointing. I don't know what your deal is with "testing" but testing has been around in schools all my life (I'm 70) and I used to be a teacher as well. I don't think my students ended up crippled automatons because of it, and I didn't end up one because I took an SAT test myself way back in the Late Pleistocene. We can certainly have a larger debate over what kind of school system, parents, teachers, students and society works best, but I don't think Heather's newsletter is really the place for it.
I'm 74 and also had the regular annual tests. I think that Phil is referring to the routine testing that caused corresponding shifts in former curricula that included more of the humanities -- the phrase "teach to the test" did not arise until I was out of high school at least. I was lucky enough to have terrific English teachers, and a 2 hour a day French Humanities class. We read classics, Shakespeare, Conrad, Orwell, etc etc. When I've talked to teachers more recently they have complained that no one teaches a full Shakespeare play any more -- just the synopsis or even a movie as a substitute. When teachers have to 'teach to the test' so many opportunities to broaden young minds and encourage critical thinking and discussion are missed.
There continue to be public school teachers who teach critical thinking and humanities, shrugging off the "teach to the test" description. Dont buy into Phil's argument without thinking.
The major difference between the testing I took in school and what they do now is quite different. One was used as primarily diagnostic, then the conservative business legislators decided they should be used as evaluative of the teachers. That is a major swing. I am 69 and a retired public ed professional. Testing became the driving monster that sidetracked the public education system.
But contrary to Phil's principal thesis, that doesn't make TESTING bad, it makes the way testing is used bad. This is what I have complained about with his position for so long. Testing is a process that is itself completely neutral. It doesn't require a point of view. It is the WAY testing is used in modern schools that makes it a potential source of concern for parents (or should). We don't need to eliminate testing, we need to reshape it to be used to help us identify the children who have special needs and need special assistance. If we use testing as a proper tool, there is nothing wrong with it.
Its logical and rational conceits are neutered, neutering, impersonal. They stress ways of seeing "life" apart from the humans who have complex, individual, personal values and inheritances.
I think something sadly lacking—which Phil’s references to testing and lack of a broader education refer to and help create—is critical thinking. Memorization of material long enough to take a test is definitely NOT the same as exposure to reading, comprehension and evaluation of literature, etc. As an English major myself, in looking back I am extremely grateful for my decades-ago education; it has stood me in good stead as I listen to and read arguments and disquisitions and then feel capable to accept or reject them. Also, I love to do research!
I don't think anyone would disagree with that, especially from our generation, but I wouldn't want to impale myself on a sword labeled 'standardized testing' as an explanation for everything bad, either.
Especially as those currently in power came along before standardized testing was a norm. I too think the dearth of humanities in schooling is a mistake. That said, my 30 year old, brought up fully under standardized testing, is a compassionate, curious adult.
I hate to act like a psychoanalyst which I am not trained to be but I expect he has insecurities (like most of us) which strive for simple explanations for complex problems. Kind of the antithesis of being a proponent of humanities (which hopefully teaches us to be critical thinkers). Which is surprising of course as Phil is actively in support of teaching humanities (which I agree with), but has a completely laser-focused antipathy towards testing which I completely disagree with.
Read Diane Ravitch's "The Language Police" (2003), ICTT.
Testing's role (and that of committee-written corporate textbooks) has changed by quantum bounds. Has changed teaching. Its conceits have twisted people's lives -- in about the same way Donald, Jeffrey, and Ghislaine twisted children's lives.
Heather correctly keeps the child rape business in focus along with the fascist rape of America now. Sorry to see you imagine neat, nice division between those sicknesses. But that's the ill that testing does -- and you cannot or will not see, ICTT. Everything gets set in separate groups, divisions, categories -- all very logical, all impersonally "rational." But humanly dead.
See the Wendyl comment directly above here. You may not know it -- and you certainly can't feel it -- but she understands the "great sickness in the US, loneliness, lack of empathy" (again, the normalization of child rapists)
Phil has been making the same argument for years here now. It’s tiresome and I usually just scroll on by. There was a time he complained about not being first to post, and the dearth of “likes”. Fixations come with aging I suppose. My mother’s had to do with the size of peas. ; )
Heather does not "link Jeffrey Epstein with standardized testing." But she does link his form of rape with the forms of thinking by which Vance, Vought, Trump, Miller, Patel, Bondi all want to dehumanize: to package, group, categorize, arrest, imprison, and deport whole sets of people.
Look at testing. Does it stress the logic and rationality of grouping, categorizing, and abstracting -- to the exclusion of the arts for seeing nuance, complications, wider context, and analogies?
The SAT's and other tests have been around for a long time. They are not the problem. SAT's did not kill Viola Liuzzo.
I had a high school teacher who could not understand what all the civil rights fuss was about. "The darkies are happy when they know their place". Today's White Resentment that elected Trump is not a product of testing. It has come about because "the darkies" have become part of the cultural and economic mainstream.
And sometimes those absurd positions taken by some teachers are rooted in unknown and sometimes inexplicable life situations which we will never understand. I had a history teacher in junior high school (circa 1962) who repeatedly gave me poor grades (Cs and an occasional D) which drove me nuts because I always did well in history. Turned out is was because her husband was stationed in Guantanamo at the time (during the Cuban Missile Crisis) and I was a staunch radical like my parents who felt that Cuba was often mistreated by the US. Once my parents learned about this, they stopped badgering me about the Cs ("its just a grade") and in 8th grade, my history teacher was a true liberal and my grades in history "miraculously" returned to A-level overnight. Sometimes you just can't explain why things happen, they just DO.
Thank you for your comments about Fox. I have clearly seen the same thing happen to my daughter & son-in-law, who only watch Fox, NewsMax, & One NewsAmerica. There are so many things that happen, they they never see or hear, d/t the one-sided view of these 3 stations! We watch PBS, CNN, MSNBC,CBS, & occasionally,ABC to attempt a somewhat balanced view. We read many sources, USA, UK, sites, & several newspapers, again to try to learn the real story.
Lately I stick mainly to PBS although of course they are being threatened by the Trump regime. MSNBC for the most part has become just a leftist version of Fox Snooze in my humble opinion. I can not stand to listen to Lawrence O'Donnell rail upon the horrific outrages happening to us because he sounds just as monotone as Tucker Carlson. And I was thrilled when they let Joy Reid go because again, her positions even when nominally good were hard to listen to. Unfortunately they replaced one diatribe with a triple diatribe which hasn't made that slot in MSNBC any better. The only persons on MSNBC I can even stand to listen to are Jen Psaki, Chris Hayes and Stephanie Rule (also loved Alex Wagner until she was removed).
Trump's supporters are the cultural descendants of the people who murdered Emmitt Till. The dismantling of Jim Crow in the 60's created a lot of white resentment, which continued to fester and fester thanks to Reagan and the Republican southern strategy. It was that already existing White Resentment that gave Fox News a market. Fox News did not cause the White Resentment but Fox News fed it and fed it and fed it.
Same. I have one brother left in my entire immediate family. Former proud Army Ranger wears his baseball cap declaring so to the world every day. Full on MAGA man who can’t see any reality. It’s so sad to me. He is not lost in grievances, but he is quite lost in Fox News.
Wendy, I totally agree. Fox is the vessel of hatred, racism and the people that already had this seed let it grow. tRvmp brought it out. I have an educated brother who is the youngest of 7, given the opportunity by our parents to get a degree in civil engineering. He lives in The Villages where like-minded people can spew their hatred. Oh did I mention, he's Hispanic and has a wife from Venezuela.
This shouldn't surprise anyone. The Murdoch takeover at Fox doomed that network to its current situation. Even Roger Ailes wasn't far enough crazy to keep him around. This shouldn't surprise anyone given Murdoch's long infatuation with creepy periodical news slease/mag tabloids like News of the World.
People will likely disagree but I put some of the blame on old TV shows like Dallas and Dynasty. People watched and thought they, themselves, should be rich, and watched people get rewarded for unscrupulous and evil behavior. It was lauded and talked about. Yes, we had similar things for a long time on TV but the demographics that watched those shows were often kids brought up in the 50s, whose parents, deprived through the depression and WW2, gave them lots of things. Times were good for a lot of people and they spent. We had a good post war economy (and higher taxes for the rich who helped fuel a government that could afford to build infrastructure and provide a safety net for the poor). Many other factors contributed, of course, but TV contributed to shaping the mindset and that kind of drama sells.
I think you are so right. LOL, I remember back in the early 1980s (during the rise of Dallas) I took my young son to a high school football game (he wanted to go!) and we were sitting in the stands. Two guys, apparently parents of some of the players, were sitting talking and one of the guys started to tell the other about this great business "coup" he had pulled off, apparently by faking reports that showed his company doing much better than it really was and as a result landed a huge contract from a major business which had been associated with their competition. Both of the guys basically "high-fived" each other over his ability to trick them into doing business. It was a pure "Dallas" move and they simply had lost the ability to recognize the basic "wrongness" of their actions.
Our country lost a lot of its honor and integrity during the Reagan years and what has followed. I'm not saying we were ever truly "pure" (we weren't) but we did better and I think that made us better.
Wendyl, while we can easily identify Fox News and NewsMax and similar outlets, they were simply the first or most obviously successful ones to CAPITALIZE on the now widely recognized human attraction to conflict, anger and hate over more benign topics and approaches. This is what now drives most online algorithms that feed the vast majority of platforms and what makes online presence such a danger to our youth, especially our daughters. These phenomena aren’t invented by tRump and the MAGAts or by Fox News, these entities have simply been the most brazen in deploying and capitalizing on them. It needn’t be true or accurate to get the most views (or ears for that matter)… it is the very nature of a capitalist system, OUR capitalist system unless there is a healthy social check upon it by a government of, by and for THE PEOPLE.
More propaganda (or advertising) of the benefits of universal healthcare, including paid maternity leave for more than 2 weeks, paternity leave, government run prison systems, government provided education for all including the trades (electricians, plumbers, building trades, HVAC, etc) crucial to a high functioning society as well as those capable of proceeding to university. In many ways adopting what seems to work for the Scandinavian countries which annually top rankings of peoples’ happiness; a broadly taken socialism without the government necessarily owning the means of production.
Totally with you on your great vision, John. But now having to recover from reading a brilliant, comprehensive article on Substack on what we are up against: Richard North Patterson August 7th
Reading books will not heal the US population that delights in lack of empathy, cruelty, us and them. There is something much more fundamental in the culture, in US society and way of life/world view that creates and fosters the sickness. Churches can say "love thy neighbor" but there is a total lack of introspection and focus on inner development in the "Christianity" of today that would enable them to love thy neighbor.
But empathy, introspection, and even love can be taught -- can be modeled.
Excellence in teaching comes in those with evident passion for books that really get into nuances, complications, analogies, echoings, contradictions, layerings, and all the other aspects of people's character our best artists know how to reach.
Do not forget Rush Limbaugh. He started this hate industry. Murdoch just jumped in on the money grabbing. With Murdoch’s money the propaganda that keeps losers feeling persecuted and promoting the right wing mantra of “ Me First”, “Me ONLY” they have created a cult of hatred. They fall for right wing religion also because it gives them permission to claim martyrdom and moral superiority.
I don’t believe people have been poisoned: they’ve been unleashed. Most religions preach some form of “love thy neighbor” in an attempt to keep fears, anger, and hatred at bay. Trump releases his followers from the burden of the self-control required to show compassion instead of contempt. Compassion and contempt live within all of us. I am finding it more and more difficult to muster an ounce of compassion for Trump and his followers.
IMHO based on experience, if their donor base switches, some pols may, also. What is good for, say, the local Chamber of Commerce, and the national is merely coincidental.
Yesterday, Trump killed a wind enegy project in Idaho....
Hello Daniel... The Corporations will follow their Customers... That is why sustained Widespread Organized Boycotts Work... The 1st Rule of People is Power is, Stay In Power... DJT is starting to Sweat, that is why he wants to ReDistrict States....
I was born and raised in Omaha and moved to Davis, CA when I was 22 kicking and screaming. My ex-wife begged me to move there when I got a job offer that included a 50% increase in pay. I relented. She hate CA. I loved it, everything about it, well, everything except my boss who was an ex-Marine who had the brains of a root vegetable.
Anyway, I digress. My wife and I moved to Lincoln, in 1990 and lived there for almost 15 years. We lived in Mike Floods district and I met with our Congressman Doug Bereuter about National Security issues. He had multiple degrees from Harvard and he served in Congress for 26 years. He was an old-school Republican meaning he actually cared about his constituents more than getting re-elected. The following would NEVER have happened to Bereuter. I know because I attended several of his town halls and he listened to his constituents.
"Members of the House of Representatives are back in their districts for August, and on Monday, Republican Mike Flood of Nebraska held a town hall in Lincoln. A woman asked what she called a fiscal question. She said: “With 450 million FEMA dollars being reallocated to open Alligator Alcatraz, and 600 million taxpayer FEMA dollars being used to now open more concentration camps, and ICE burning through $8.4 million a day to illegally detain people—How much does it cost for fascism? How much do the taxpayers have to pay for a fascist country?” The crowd cheered wildly. "
Mike Flood is a fascist and doesn't give a damn about the people of Nebraska. But he is brave enough (or stupid enough) to hold town halls which Trump's little Johnson told the Republican's not to. Nebraska's complete Congressional delegation are moronic Fascists that lick Trump's boots every chance they get.
Last week it was reported that Nebraska's 2nd quarter GDP has dropped by 6.8% in the 2nd quarter because of Trump's insane tariffs. I'm sure many other states are in a recession as well, even though overall, the country had a decent 2nd quarter.
Yet one more keen observation about the disappearance of what used to be called the Republican Party into some bizarre cultish maw even THEY don't understand. I don't get it. I never will. My former boss at USAID was a Republican -- and one of the shrewdest people I've ever known, with a wicked sense of humor. She wouldn't recognize what Republicans have become today.
But they’re outnumbered! This band of ‘lowlife thieves in good suits’ are working for the one percent. The 99% are ending up with jack sh*t and they know it. Even the 77 million who got them into power know it - they’re running out of gronks to recruit as ICE agents, no matter how tempting the job perks. That says it all.
Lots of people are blaming Fox (News) Entertainment and its ilk. Not much attention is being focused on social media, which are at least as culpable. Even less attention is given to corporate media, which certainly added their doses of poison. And of course, I wouldn't be living up to my reputation if I didn't blame evangelicals.
But all these outlets of hate are the symptoms, not the source. The absolute fount of this conflict is and always has been global white supremacy.
I have tried to find an accurate, reliable racial breakdown of world population and spent a lot of time coming up empty-handed. Progressive thinkers tell us race is irrelevant, because human mobility has mixed ethnicities so they are not "pure" and we should not talk about race anymore. Tell that to the racists.
After consulting several sources, best I can tell, about 20% of the world's population are considered white. Further, this percentage has remained unchanged for all of recorded history. If my basic math skills haven't failed, that makes white people a distinct minority in the global population. Yet historically, whites have controlled most of the world's commerce and geopolitical power. That is, until recently.
Bottom line: Whites around the world, who have always enjoyed superior status, are feeling that their superiority is being threatened by non-whites everywhere. This undercurrent of fear is precipitating a global trend toward authoritarianism, as whites look to strong men to hold back and beat down "the other."
Plus reality TV took off when there was an actors/ writers strike and people became addicted to shows filled with hate and revenge. They saw themselves as victims and wanted retribution. Unfortunately none of them ever saw that those shows were highly edited and manipulated and not really any real form of reality. We spoke at length with one of the producers one evening and it was very enlightening. In the end I always wonder why people do jobs that cause so much harm to others be it physical or mental.
Sharon, I could write a book about the perfect storm of factors that brought about "reality TV," and on the other side of the coin, the perfect storm of consequences that resulted from the genre.
As you know from your conversation with the producer, the "contestants" are no-talent actors who can't remember lines. "Reality TV" allows them to be celebrities without having the talent or doing the hard work of legitimate actors.
This entertainment fraud feeds into the thought process that "my lack of talent is just as valid as your talent," which leads to "my uninformed opinion is just as valid as your facts."
Thanks, Dale, for going down the rabbit hole to suss out this information. I, too, have been thinking on it lately….the so very shallow (as in skin deep) fixation with pigment and all the strife & inequality caused by approx 1 mm of epidermis!
Please remember, too, Dale, that racism depends on group thinking.
When Powell wrote his memo (Aug. 23, 1971), he and his targeted audience wanted a resurgence of commercialism to rule the U.S. Their first target: schools -- to rid them of humanities, which in books, films, and songs then were increasing the energy for the anti-war movement, civil rights, feminism, La Raza, native rights, and related spirits.
They wanted instead schools to be dutiful assembly lines for commercial packagers.
But it turned out killing off the human also meant prioritizing group think, which then turned out to augment testing -- the perfect vehicle for all the conceits of the impersonal which testing would encapsulate.
Yes, white racism grew -- but could never have done so had schools kept focus on really good books and teachers' freedoms to stress the human, the wide variety of individuals all around us.
I blame social media which I use as much as Fox News ( or Fox Spews as someone in Comments called it) which I never watch. I think some folks posting on Substack recently are truly malignant. So much so that I only read Heather Cox Richardson, Robert Hubbell, Dan Rather, Elliot Richardson and Ann Applebaum and only comment in their space. I understand Free Speech but what some people write would have meant total social ostracism when I was growing up. If people actually thought this reprehensible way they kept it to themselves. We let this cat out of the bag and will have to deal with this misinformation, lies, AI generated filth, misogyny, racism and stupidity as best we can. But I have no idea how to do that successfully.
Only when those items prevent them from gaining their desires, they certainly love to use them for their protection. I.E. the due process applied to the current FLOTUS, and the fact that it is irresponsible free speech they seek to protect.
How is it that our current administration - scrupulously conscious and abhorrent of fraud, waste, and abuse - requires $450 million a year to maintain “Alligator Alcatraz,” where security is performed by swamps and alligators and inmates have no sunlight, no clock (no lunchtime!), inadequate access to showers, and backed-up toilets because there aren't nearly enough for so many people? Any fraud, waste, or abuse going on here? Please note that this is a brand-new Trump facility.
And cages, which don't even have walls you can make marks on to estimate the passage of time. It's unbelievable. And they get away with this? And these are men who have had no due process? This makes America great? again?
Recall that in Trump's first term, his administration argued in Federal Court that imprisoned children ripped from their parent's arms should not be allowed such essentials as soap or blankets.
My old Grannie sent me at least two copies of "The Water Babies" (by Charles Kingsley) because she considered no child's education was complete without it. There were two powerful ladies who used to appear to young Tom when he did something wrong. One was "Mrs DoAsYouWouldBeDoneBy", (she was the kind one), the other was "Mrs BeDoneByAsYouDid". Too late for Trump and his gang to be warned by the first one, but oh boy, do they need attention from Mrs Be Done By As You Did. I would so love to see a picture of Trump, crouched in a cage in his unbuttoned blue suit and dangling red tie, his hair adrift showing his baldness, the makeup melting in the heat, crammed in with all those people who in happier days stood clapping their hands as he "signed" those executive orders and held them up for the camera..
It certainly distinguishes right from wrong. But maybe I was just tough. I also loved "Struwwelpeter", even if it did give me a lifelong fear of longlegged spiders, but my son won't even allow me to give my ancient copy to his young children - says it gave him dreadful nightmares. Well, so did I have a nightmare or two, but it was all par for the course... Interestingly, when they all came to visit me at Christmas (they live 4000 km away on the west coast) the little girls sat one each side of me and I read selected poems from the book. Rosa (8) listened avidly, but Hazel (6) was clearly worried because Daddy didn't want her to listen, and she looked sideways at me with big eyes.
Yes, and we (charities) were not allowed to provide basic basic hygiene necessities because that would be treating them as human beings instead of animals.
And these are people who struggled to come to America for a better life and a future with hope. Dachau. Belsen. Mauthausen. And the rest. There are pictures of them, chained together, bent double, in a way the ICE operatives seem to have been taught.
$450 million a year to maintain a facility that looks more like a massive dog kennel than an actual prison, we are obviously being bilked and money siphoned off as this obscenely corrupt Trump regime always does.
Many inmates have reported that the lights are on continuously, the meals are paltry, even worm ridden, substandard quality and sometimes only eating once a day. Also mention of the very unsanitary conditions(overflowing toilets/raw sewage, no showers, outdoor access) and lacking in adequate medical care, pushing some into a state of extreme distress. The detention site flooded right when it opened and it's a swamp so: mosquitoes, cockroaches, crickets, frogs, even snakes and alligators not far off from the chain link enclosures.
They are deprived of any form of privacy. They haven't been tried and found guilty. Ghislaine Maxwell has, and is serving her sentence, and suddenly finds herself moved to something resembling a summer camp for women. But of the course the President doesn't know, hasn't heard anything about that. He said so. You know, he could make some more money for himself by re-writing "The Art of the Deal", just slightly, and calling it "How to blackmail". His global "negotiations" are all blackmails. Do as I say or your tariffs go to 100%.
It’s amazing to hear him say in answer to a question about some action his admin has taken “I don’t know anything about that”….1) he’s lying, or 2) he’s not making the decisions, or 3) both.
A-L, I forget which renown national newspaper (I think) was keeping track of the count of all his lies….wonder it they’ve just thrown up their hands and no longer attempt to tabulate them…how many lies are in a daily tsunami of lies & how fast can you count???
Yes, the State of Florida is probably profiting by running this facility for ICE, and in turn all the contractors it has hired and handsomely. That Trump has hyped it te else that the appalling conditions are deliberate. Not merely to for e detainees to agree to deportation, they are meant to spread fear of ICE.
I understand the facility is at the site of an airport about halfway between Miami and Tampa. It is not inaccessible. It is off the highway known as Tamiami Trail. And it could be considered conveniently located if the purpose was actually to fly people out of the country to points south, for the airport can handle big commercial jets. But that apparently is not the point. It's a prison, as Trump's name for it makes clear. A prison for those who claim a right to remain in the country or have nowhere else to go. And for others who for some reason ICE can not figure out a way to get rid of. A concentration camp. Not a transit facility. Apparently the airport is not busy flying planeloads of deportees to various places. If it were, you know, the place would probably not be needed.
Which leads to the broader question. If ICE's job is to deport foreigners illegally present in the United States, and it is doing its job well, then why, oh, why, does it need such a massive expansion of its detention facilities ?? Why does it need this place ? Why instead is there no passenger terminal ? No departure lounge ??
The answer is self evident. ICE can't donuts job right. It is not even trying. It has given up. It has turned to building concentration camps. The conditions are deliberately harsh. Worse than the worst prisons. Not for want of resources. Cruel and usually so. They are torture facilities not detention centers. The purpose is twofold. To instill fear of ICE in the general public. And to compell those arrested by ICE to abandon all their rights under duress.
Those may well now include Texas legislators. Because Trump won't send FBI agent to arrest them. It will send ICE officers armed with general arrest powers.
It is understandable that there should be plumbing problems at this facility. It's in the Everglades. It is insanely unsuitable hence cruel. And unusual in the highest degree, since it is punishment for exercising constitutional rights.
Tyler, I assume your questions are rhetorical. The current iteration of ICE is the realization of Stephen Miller's fever dream.
ICE's mission is no longer deportation of undocumented immigrants; ICE is charged with rounding up persons with non-white skin and imprisoning them in concentration camps until they die. Death may come from exposure, disease or starvation.
It is not beyond my imagination to expect that as prisoner populations exceed capacities of the gulag, gases will have to be employed to make space for new prisoners.
Ah, yes. And/or West Nile Virus. Equine Encephalitis. SARS. Avian Influenza. A new COVID variant. Hanta Virus. Or just plain old Dysentery . Cholera. Look at all the vectors. The place is a crossroads for infectious diseases. The odds are good that there will be some sort of infectious disease outbreak occuring at this facility. And it will spread quickly.
Those missing sections of the Constitution were restored? That's good to hear. If they weren't there the President could do some bad shady things, like accepting airplanes from foreign gifters, setting taffiffs willy-nilly, and refusing to spend the money Congress had---uh-oh!!
You gotta wonder -- is everything just a test for them? Throw shit against the walll, see what sticks, what slides off? The parts about the District under Congress suddenly disappearing -- given that 'Big Balls' DOGE boy (now inflicting chaos on the Social Security Administration) was beaten in a group carjacking here in DC early Sunday morning at about 3am. Police have already caught two perpetrators (juveniles) out of about 10 -- a random event, but Trump wasted absolutely no time spouting immediate gibberish about 'seizing control' of the District in order to 'clean up' crime.
As so many keep tirelessly pointing out, crime is everywhere -- even in red states, red cities, red urban areas, and crime in DC is down 20% from what it was just one year ago, and WAY down from what it used to be in the 1980s. Dictators are always looking for the smallest excuses to scream that the sky is falling and only THEY can keep it rip.
When he first rattled that sword in February and there was no money at all for DC in the federal budget back then, Mayor Bowser actually painted over the giant BLACK LIVES MATTER that adorned 16th Street NW lengthwise leading directly into Lafayette Park across from the White House. I'm sure she was hoping to head off his wrath then. The Senate restored funding by voice vote. But a pig has to be a pig, I guess.
WE THE PEOPLE can save us. The question is, will we? I do not believe the majority of Americans are cruel and hateful. I just don't. No matter their Party affiliation, MOST people are decent, law-abiding citizens. Trump is NOT. He's not ANY of those things. So there are a LOT of US out here waiting for strong leadership to guide us all into the battle to stop the lawlessness, lies, lawfare, and worse! We'll fight...to save America, our democracy, each other and us ALL from Trump. He is NOT our friend. He cannot do what he claims. He can only cheat and destroy. He's never been able to successfully build and grow a company over time. Has he EVER? Has he recently? Or has he done the opposite...running up the price of EVERYTHING for Americans, killing actual growth, increasing the National Debt by BILLIONS just to give him and his fellow billionaires another HUGE TAX BREAK at the expense of kid's school lunches, healthcare, Medicare, Medicaid and SS is next, just watch 'em.
Maybe somebody should read those parts of the Constitution to Mr. Trump, really slowly so he could understand it, preferably a judge...Nah, he'd just fall asleep.
Or Donold could even amble on up to the roof of the White House, gesticulating and ranting about nonsense like some neurosyphilitic lunatic while some reporters try to unsuccessfully ask questions as to why he's up there, where are the Epstein files, will there ever be peace in Ukraine or Gaza(specifically, he said he'd end the wars on his first day in office)...
Did you see the meme where they show Trump wandering around the roof of the WH and the caption is - "Jump, jump, jump?" I could stop laughing. If only.....
We have a global corporatist fascist takeover happening every day since Jan. 20, 2025. They are dismantling our federal government but for the military. They are prepping to allow a takeover of the States by megarich international corporations. It has been happening to so-called "red states" for a awhile. That is why they are attacking our entire education system from Head Start to Harvard, etc. They seek to sell our public schools to corporations and issue vouchers to parents to buy a seat at so-called "schools" which will teach kids to do whatever a boss tells them to do and keep their mouth shut; aka, "right to work" states. Thus undereducated, low payed, non-union labor employed by a union of rich global investors; corporate share holders who live in multiple mansions all around the world. IOW, the end of the "New Deal" and a return to the same old crap of squalid living conditions for working men, women and children working the line as well. As Biden warned us, this is not the Republican party of your father. He should have called them out for who and what they are; Damn Nazis!
I am not sure they are exactly Nazi's at this point, and yet like Nazi's they promote big lies, are cruel, authoritarian, violent, and greedy, and thoroughly racist.
Please JL, they’re absolutely Nazis. There’s no neo that should be put in front of the word. They breathe the putrid air that their ancestors breathed. Their ancestors were on d driven under a rock but when Donny emerged with his obnoxious speeches, they dug themselves out of their caves and reentered the modern world.
IMO, they have been the Deep State since Nixon. Now Trump is clearing out all Federal employees who do not pledge loyalty to him. Thus he is creating a cesspool in every Fed office.
JL, I’m genuinely curious, so I’m asking. I fail to see any sunlight between Nazis and the current maga/techno fascists in power. Can you please explain to me the differences that you see? I’d be grateful. I live in Florida and we deal with both Desantis and felon47’s regime, so perhaps my opinion is skewed by this immersion in their hatred. My daughter had an Irish friend put into ICE detention in Miami. He was held for close to three months with starvation on the daily menu. He finally got out with huge pressure from a legal team, and he is back home in Ireland and remains in the ICU due to the starvation and deprivation. This is our reality here. To me, Nazis are anyone who is currently in charge or silently complicit with this treatment of humans.
Functionally I don't think there is a lot of difference, and Trump's admiration of Hitler has been reported by those who have known him. The sociopathic authoritarian impulse is the same, as it is for all vicious tyrants, nominally left, right, and/or theocratic. There are differences of specific history and culture, but the addiction to violence and absolute power unties them.
Go you! We need to name the evil for what it is instead of trying to explain it away or making allowances. They are Nazis, pure and simple. I hate that this is real but it is!
I wouldn't exclude the military from the dismantling process. Women and men of color in leadership positions have been fired. No more trans or gay people allowed either.
Yet they will keep enough men as a standing army to control the streets of America as they did in Los Angeles and to also takeover the country under martial law following Trump's coming staged reality TV style "attack" on is government.
They don't say much about the many others choosing to leave the military units and the difficulty in recruiting the numbers they fantasized about willingly signing up.
Telling FEMA workers they have to report to ICE should be interesting.
Perhaps they will have to (if they aren't already), take in domestic criminals and foreigners as the French Foreign Legion did. Get new identities and a chance to become a new citizen without a traceable past, if they survive (and follow orders long enough).
Knowing their apparent models, though, I'd suspect they might do as Nazis and others did in forcing young men from conquered areas (Poland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Ukraine) into service for them. From what I've heard from people like my Polish Mentor (captured at Corregidor), and read, part of the reason we were successful at Normandy was Polish conscript defenders who were more willing to surrender to us if and when they could.
I don’t know, Albert, the US is a huge territory and population to control. And our military has not been groomed to police anybody, let alone their own people. Even the brief attempt in LA resulted in terrible morale and dissatisfaction among the troops deployed.
Just because the regime aspires to a police state doesn’t mean they can achieve it. Especially if we are doggedly determined to thwart them. Never give up!
Trump seems to be working hard to create the kind of economy where he will find new recruits, especially in red States. Part of our job is to "organize," as Saul Alinsky warn us to do in the late 60's, in the south. He knew of the large mass of people growing angry. Now thay will be very hungry and will have seen that voting for single issues (hate, pro-life, anti-gay, etc.) is not the way to feed a family.
I use to install air conditioning in existing homes. One of those homes the owner was a WWII hero. He had photos of himself with his fellow G.I.s taken overseas on several walls in his home. He also had several metals on the wall in his bed room. I thanked him for his service. I dared to ask him what it was like for him and all those others in his division and how did they build so much bravery at that age? He looked me in the eye and said with a matter of fact and firm tone in his voice, "We had a job to do."
Another WWII hero, John F. Kennedy, in his "Inaugural Address" on Jan 20, 1961 said,
"We dare not forget today that we are the heirs of that first revolution. Let the word go forth from this time and place, to friend and foe alike, that the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans — born in this century, tempered by war, disciplined by a hard and bitter peace, proud of our ancient heritage — and unwilling to witness or permit the slow undoing of those human rights to which this nation has always been committed, and to which we are committed today at home and around the world."
Thanks for the reminder of Kennedy's Inaugural Address. Let's compare it to Trump's (if it hasn't one of the transcripts he has or intends to remove).
In 2009 I lost a friend who was once an active College or Young Republican (I can't remember which), whom I respected for active (and rational) political discussions. I especially liked his participation in protests against the John Birch Society (which still had/has supporters I met in the Loma Linda area). He and even the JBS followers in the area were polite and could converse on many issues that had mutual benefits we could agree on, but there were some hard lines bot sides kept their distance on. I still appreciate all the things we could agree on or respectfully disagree on.
Though many others were too much under the spell of those who were extremely opposed to Obama, he hadn't said much, so I had some hope that I could point out some poorly recognized bias among about a dozen coworkers. To do so, about 3 months after Obama was inaugurated, I passed out copies of an inaugural address and asked him in particular (as the most reasonable), to read it and see where he and the others might praise or criticize it.
He took at least 15 minutes to read it before offering bitter criticism of almost everything in it. I kept looking puzzled until he finally asked why I was puzzled.
I took the copy of the transcript titled '&9 Inaugural Speech and feigned surprise that there was a typo, "&9" should have been "'09," what they assumed was Obama's Inaugural Address, was in fact, Nixon's.
I will not do that again, but I won't rule out having transcripts with no date or other clue as to who said it, and asking people to express what they think of policy details regardless of who the author was.
“Mark my word, if and when these preachers get control of the [Republican] party, and they're sure trying to do so, it's going to be a terrible damn problem. Frankly, these people frighten me. Politics and governing demand compromise. But these Christians believe they are acting in the name of God, so they can't and won't compromise. I know, I've tried to deal with them.”
Ike was well aware of the possibility of this coming. In his farewell address on January 17, 1961 he warned the nation to guard against the potential control of the “military–industrial complex.” Maybe he should have added “oil” to that title. Lincoln... Good God.
Dwight D. Eisenhower's farewell address was delivered in a television broadcast on January 17, 1961. The speech expressed concerns about planning for the future and the dangers of massive spending, especially deficit spending, the prospect of the domination of science through federal funding and, conversely, the domination of science-based public policy by what he called a "scientific-technological elite".
“In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military-industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist. We must never let the weight of this combination endanger our liberties or democratic processes. We should take nothing for granted. Only an alert and knowledgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of the huge industrial and military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods and goals, so that security and liberty may prosper together.”
The speech was "a solemn moment in a decidedly unsolemn time", warning a nation "giddy with prosperity, infatuated with youth and glamour, and aiming increasingly for the easy life."
“As we peer into society's future, we – you and I, and our government – must avoid the impulse to live only for today, plundering for our own ease and convenience the precious resources of tomorrow. We cannot mortgage the material assets of our grandchildren without risking the loss also of their political and spiritual heritage. We want democracy to survive for all generations to come, not to become the insolvent phantom of tomorrow.”
Despite his military background and being the only general to be elected president in the 20th century, he warned the nation with regard to the corrupting influence of what he describes as the "military-industrial complex".
I never thought of more closely connecting Eisenhower's farewell address and Kennedy's Inaugural until now. What I do remember, though was (to me) Kennedy inspiring people to think for themselves, get close to the people and problems too few ever knew of. He didn't direct blindly from the top, but inspired people to see and start finding solutions for all sorts of problems that led to far more people being able to make their own lives better, more secure in food, water, health, education, and cooperation that promised better futures for all (a little outside help to make much greater self-help possible).
St. Ronnie pulled off the national shift of opinion toward defaming the whole concept of government of, by and for the people, and promoting domination by the richest. He thus set the ball rolling on a path toward Trump.
I dunno, J L ... I'm not convinced we can believe Reagan really had many thoughts of his own. He was an actor, trained to remember his lines and speak them on command. Indeed, he was a racist and a homophobe, but those traits just made him compatible with his puppeteers.
My recollection is the American people were profoundly naive about the U.S. presidency and the occupants of the office. People thought their presidents were extraordinary individuals, charting their courses for the nation, with the help of many "advisors."
It may have been as late as the Bush 2.0 administration when people began to realize that the president is just the "face" of a large cadre of administrators who make the decisions and tell the president "what he decided."
This schema is, of course, pronounced with Republicans who have a penchant for choosing leaders with meager intellects and/or dementia. This is likely intentional, as a mental midget makes a better hand puppet.
While, certainly in my lifetime, there were more background constraints and pressures on the president than we are trained to think, but I think some presidents were more "hands on than others" and yes, Reagan seemed pretty naive and out of it. He was the featured game-show host of a plutocratic operation. Repeatedly hailed by the MSM as "The Great Communicator" (compared to whom?) his rhetoric was mostly cheesy sales pitch. Some of his interviews suggest to me that he was simple-minded enough to suppose that what he was doing actually would help the country as a whole. I don't think Trump and his cronies have any such illusion. They are aiming for total, self-serving, domination.
To be clear I'm no fan of Reagan. He was the the beginning of the trope, "The government is the problem" attitude of the GOP. That said, the GOP today is so far right that even some of his policies would earn him the RINO moniker.
I'm pretty sure Section 3 of the 14th Amendment is missing as well. It should have been depicted on all four walls of former AG Merrick Garland's office.
"No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and Vice-President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States, or under any State, who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any State legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any State, to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. But Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability."
I had to scroll a long way through comments to find a reference to the "missing" parts of the Constitution! As a former middle-school social studies teacher, I consider this a "High Crime" and worthy of investigation!! Coding error, my arse!
It is so clear -- as clear as the fact that almost no Dem in America could read it.
(More important things to do: fund-raising, courting celebrities, more fund-raising, soliciting money by e-mail to any and all who ever contacted that congressional office, appearing at corporate events to entice money donations there.)
I hope the rise in resistance from Dem lawmakers will grow and encourage more resistance from state and federal employees and lawmakers around the country.
Yesterday, Miles Taylor wrote that the one thing that terrifies Trump's vicious little satraps and wormtongues everywhere isn't lawsuits, isn't even Democrats fighting back -- it's US. It's you and me. Denounce them at restaurants and bars when you see them, recognize them, call them out, point them out. They like to destroy things, then eat out at nice restaurants in blue cities like DC and New York. Don't let them have a nice meal at our expense.
I don't know if this qualifies as a 'mass' protest or not, but it's useful information from someone who got threatened many times as an anonymous denouncer of You Know Who from the inside during the first time around. For what it's worth....
Yesterday I had a late lunch with my husband at a neighborhood bar/restaurant in a heavily red area. Everyone was watching the Little League World Series. I told them about TACO canceling the visas for the Venezuelan kids, who were entitled to play as the Latin American champions. Those watching were shocked. This stuff doesn’t get to their newsfeeds.
And I hope that ICE and the military continue to struggle with hiring.
Trump 1.0 promised to add 15,000 border patrol and ICE agents. When he left office, there was a net increase of about 300. It turns out most Americans don't want to be Fascist thugs. I can't wait for the new ICE agents to quit and Miller, Homan, Noem, Patel, etc. try to get their $45K - $50K back. Of course, it's likely to be a fool's errand, but it should be interesting.
Copies of the Constitution are available for as little as $1.99 and it can be read free on line. I gave a copy to each of my grandchildren. It is a very short, very easy read. My new copy contains the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation, as well as the Constitution and it is still only 99 pages long. It's good to have your own copy so you can mark it up and highlight passages you wish for reference. If you know the most important of your own laws, you will be less willing to listen to untruths.
The 77 million Americans who put Trump in the White House knew they were voting for a man who bragged, repeatedly during his first term that cruelty is the point. Trump voters knew what kind of man Trump was. That’s why they voted for him. We won’t find out until November, 2026 how many, if any, have changed their minds. Between now and then, our job is to do all we can to get D-leaning voters to cast ballots in 2026. Complaining about fascists is cathartic but won’t get the job done. Focus on the task at hand. Get our people to the polls.
Heather, I want to hear the story behind who found the missing sections and how they got them restored so fast! Great work! A hero! They thought we wouldn’t notice!
‘Governor Abbott, Bless Your Heart, That’s Not How Quorums Work’
CLOSER TO THE EDGE
AUG 4 2025 | SUBSTACK
…”Meanwhile, folks are still cleaning up from the floods from early July. Families lost their houses, people lost their lives, and you’re in Austin fiddling with congressional maps like you’re drawing plays for a football team that never wins. That’s not leadership, Greg — that’s skipping out on actual governance so you can sit in the air‑conditioning and Sharpie new boundaries for Donald Trump.”
Thank you for sharing- great piece of writing! I’m from Mississippi, not Texas, but every reference reminded me that there are some things about the South that you just don’t find anywhere else.
Mike Flood of Nebraska is getting a Democratic opponent, announced today. It hasn't been a good week after he heard from his constituents and has been roundly ridiculed. He was so arrogant because he's in a safe, red district (even with only three districts, Nebraska is gerrymandered). But Lincoln hates him and his turn from moderate to MAGA. We're not going to make it easy for him and the fascists.
Literally messing with the Constitution until they were caught. Epstein is dead and his victims are now grandmother age but possibly paying off his confederate to lie for Trump is the big story. While RFK Jr puts vaccine development back to the 18th century and wipes out possible cancer prevention and epidemic response. Millions of sufferers and years of research lost are going to count most in the long run.
Check this map for the districts Texas Republicans are trying to gerrymander - and all the Republican districts in Blue States including CA, NY, IL, MI...
We are at war with domestic terrorists claiming to be politicians. They are not. They seek to destroy people's lives and the very fabric of fact-based reality. They are our enemies and should be treated as such. Gloves off. No more following the old rules from when we lived in a world of "political debates". We are no longer having political debates. We are dealing with killers... agents of destruction.
Gloves off, yet we are still tasked with upholding the laws that sustain our republic. The big lie that Republicans have used to bring us to this crisis is a preposterous if adamant claim of moral superiority. Equal protection under law? For Epstein (or his henchwoman)? For people of Color? They are corrupt as hell, with no meaningful equivalence.
Social death and intentional harm. They are diabolically setting the trap for millions to die and ensure the rest of us desperate—and controllable. Such weak, pathetic people.
The FEMA mandate to report to ICE is especially diabolical..
Coding error my ass. They are trying to rewrite the Constitution.
No kidding. The omission of parts of Article I of the Constitution of a governmental online site is the most frightening thing I've ever read....
How long was the butchered version of the Constitution up before the “coding error” was fixed.? Was it a test to see if anybody would care, assuming someone did notice?
Asking us to accept it as a coding error is like asking us to accept that two plus two is five. (Maybe just four and a half today, but five next time.)
Add the Constitution to our daily "must reads."
Carol, sick isn't it? "If you repeat something often & long enough, it will be believed as fact."
As I understand it, there was just a photo of the portrait of Washington. I noticed Section 1 was replaced but never checked to see if there was any tampering with the content.
Thankfully, a huge amount of citizens have copies of the Constitution in their homes! And, know what it says. And means. Of course, orange man hasn't read it because he said he is so smart about things like that. He can't read a toilet paper package.
Except that people who go onto the website want to find out or be reminded what is included in Article 1....
Absolutely, why would you need to change any of the code that displays the Constitution? The Constitution hasn’t changed, if you changed the code and there was an error it would most likely screw up the entire page, not select bits being deliberately violated by Trump.
Agreed..... the missing sections did not seem at all random.
CLS, they sure as hell weren't 'random' Guess T & his weanies don't remember that all T says & they say is on all forms of social media so we are able to put 2 & 2 together. Even as they think 2+2= 5!
Came here to say those very words. Also, the dog ate my homework.
And they hoped we would not notice. Store a copy on your electronic devices and keep a print copy in a safe place. We refuse to be lied to. No coding error; deliberate removal
Especially suspicious that it was THAT section.
Freedom
Of speech - SCOTUS needs no help inverting every single one they’ve touched
“The FEMA mandate to report to ICE is especially diabolical.” Agreed: It seems this might start shaking more R voters out of their support for the maga & Project 2025 death cult.
And, what exactly is Noem going to do to the FEMA people who just walk away & won't report to ICE. Oh wait! there will be a prison camp just for them.
Cindi Galley zëaPlease share: What is your impression of what K Noem is capable of at least attempting to do on this she has found herself on
Liked for the term "MAGA death cult." I've thought of MAGA as a cult for a long time, but never before as a death cult. But that's exactly what it has become during Trump 2.0. And it a "Death to America" cult, immeasurably more evil than the original version from 1979.
Exactly right. This is the combined playbook of the Nerd Reich - Yarvin, Thiel, Musk - and the architects of Project 2025. If you are not white, Christian, and straight, you have no place here. The working class is forced to take any job available just to survive. And those who cannot hold jobs are left to die with no assistance.
"The Nerd Reich"? Slogan of the day, seriously.
And I thought it's the Turd Reich--making America septic.
JK! I love it. Should have a sign for the next march that says that! As an old nurse, that phrase really struck my funny bone.
The Nerd Reich is Gil Duran. Heather had a conversation with him a bit back. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FWjR6_qYJAw
Yes, Gil wrote the book about these guys and coined the phrase. I heard it from other sources as well and it definitely fits. Any time I refer to those tech billionaires, I use that phrase to remind people they are funding all of this chaos.
I'd rather call it the Turd Reich...
If you have access to HBOMax, watch the satirical film MOUNTAINHEAD. You'll get to see the Nerd Reich in action.
Mobiguy, Agree that Ellen has coined the slogan of the day.
love it! Nerd Reich! I don't know many people that can meet Project 2025 criteria.
The "Nerd Reich" are definitely not Christian. Quite the opposite.
This is a good youtube clip of the Dark Enlightenment and Butterfly Revolution crap going down since before Trump met with the Broligarchs at Mar-A-Lago and offered them their dystopian playground in exchange for $$ and manipulation of the 2024 election. It talks about why Greenland and Public Land sales are big aspirations for this elite of the corporate tech-entitled. Good for people who aren't into reading.https://youtu.be/5RpPTRcz1no?feature=shared
Oh come back from the dead, movie director Federico Fellini, we need you now to direct the satirical and absurdist movie of the century. You have perfect content to draw on being played out on a daily bases here in Washington.
The Trump regime is misappropriating funds for purposes not authorized by legislation. Congress does nothing to stop him nor do the courts. And the same is true of tariffs. The Republican majorities have abdicated their clearcut legal responsibilities. How can they still hold office?
What was the book named that has 1 man trying to not become controllable? He ended up being one of the controlled. Darn memory!
David Cay Johnston has written books about Trump. In a recent you tube Johnston said that Trump's primary motivation is wealth. He is doing a good job of it. He has made the presidency into a money machine. All the rest strokes his ego. No morality. No care about the population or the government.
No care for the future of humanity; posterity.
We need to support the probationary FEMA folks!
Keep the "Issue" alive for one thing. So many injustices get lost in a crapstorm of corruption.
I keep trying to figure out how the states are supposed to take over FEMA's job. Our federal taxes are what have been used to fund general assistance. Guess the shitheads will have to start a different bank account to keep most of the tax money for themselves- esp. some to polish all the gold in the WH & dance hall planned. What a disgusting mess!
States will have do more for education (or not), supplement Medicaid, pay more in disaster prevention and relief. No more free school lunches. It's much more to have a parade and play golf than feed hungry children. Either the states with no income or sales tax stay the same and have a large poverty rate and unrepaired damage OR say hello taxes. Didn't trump say he was going to lower taxes and not create new ones?
As Matt Dowd says- "liberals keep fighting these battles with one hand tied behind their backs, the upper hand." The law keeps being rolled back to accommodate. Like the second amendment, the first party of it is forgotten.
Hochul, Pritzker, Newsome, and a growing list of other powerful Dems have finally had enough. “Institutional Democrats” enabled this coup and need to break ranks. When they go low, we meet them at the sewer hole.
This is also going to give Democrats some vigorous national voices, especially Newsome and Pritzker, which the Democrats have lacked to their detriment.
It may also be the informal beginning of a robust Democrat primary for 2028, which the Democrats did not have in 2024, much to their detriment.
Monroe, because Biden wrongly decided to run for a second term, Ds did not have a meaningful primary. However, now is not the time to blame Ds, but unite to fight the destruction.
If a couple of national leaders can emerge, that will help the Democrats organize and focus.
trump's primary was a farce. He didn't even show up to debate he was so arrogant.
Thank you for calling this a coup. This is a government takeover. When someone tells you who they are believe them. ‘A bloodless coup unless the left objects’ is about what they said about project 2025.
Patriots is what I call those who oppose a coup. And unless we do not stop it, most of us will be considered serfs at best.
When I look at what is happening, day after day, I fear we may be inching closer and closer to civil war... or, if we're lucky, a 'two state solution'. Trump has already called Democrats 'vermin' and 'evil'. He hates us. I don't see how the USA can stand as one nation unless the GOP has a sudden change of heart.
It's a long time from now but, I sure am planning on the 2026 elections causing a lot of BAD GOP-ers cleaning out their offices & being escorted off Capital property. Only the GOP folks who get their shit together & have a real come- to- Jesus moment will remain.
You do mean " Well regulated militia " of course! And Liberals have a First Ammendment right to free speech and assembly.
I was just reading about trump and his flag pole fixation. The Palm Beach town council fined him for having a flagpole which was too big- it was 80 feet instead of the regulation 42. He also had a HUGE flag, the size varies but the smaller amount was 15'x25'- regulation was 4x6.
The point of this tale is that his defense was the ruling infringed upon his first amendment right of free speech. How ironic when now he is doing everything possible to censor the press and demonstrations. He also said the larger flag expressed the magnitude of patriotism on his part as well as club members.
It’s all gaslighting. The GOP accuses us of what they are actually doing. This will be a difficult war to win precisely because it is being fought with ideas … conspiracy theories … a giant PsyOp designed to turn America into a place in which the truth no longer exists and a confused and demoralized population lets the very wealthy do whatever they want.
"we are still tasked with upholding the laws"
If memory serves, in the 50's and 60's we broke laws, and we had a better country for it.
But doesn't it depend on which laws and how they are broken? Protest only works on people with some vestige of conscience, but they tend to be many and they matter. Women tried to vote in violation of the law and black people sat at lunch counters. They did not forcefully break into the Capitol building or threaten the life of the VP.
Paying for this corruption makes me ill.
The Constitution is a rule book for peaceful if contentious cooperation. Like other forms of organized crime, nominal "Republicans" regularly practice extortion.
Were we (Democrats) also to disregard the law -eye to tooth- for any broken law a Republican did- goose to gander for any Supreme Court sanctions..stoop to their level -be only fair?
What’s that old saying -alls fair in love and war? If ,in fact, “war” has been declared ..where/how does it stop? The rules of war have been exacted by those of conscience , rarely acknowledged by the aggressor but exacted by the winners…and so ……..
When we win ..and we will win …all complicit shall ,under a blanket edict, be guilty. Their sentences determined after incarceration begins determined by the severity of responsibility…”taking or under orders” not an exclusion of guilt …as therefore their choice to OBEY sealed their guilt.
One can always defect..for as many that will..they clear themselves of any wrong doing.
The bravery of those that have defected en mass already…👏.
Is the last stand , the military including the National Guard ? No dereliction of duty or dishonor would follow them and complete restoration of pay once order has been restored…because there is definitely no order now. All those too “unfortunates” are in fact being subjected to “unfair” .
When principle has been redefined contrary to we.the.people’s.will….an act of war has been declared.
So be it.
Enough banter.
Enough broken law.
Enough bobble heads.
Enough bought off politicians.
Can then all the Democrats or Democratic states in sync declare some sort of 1) Martial Law? 2) Stop all federal funding /be withheld? 3) Commission their own laws of conduct for the duration?
We are talking some sort of unprecedented national succession I presume.
Is this what you -the defined “majority” wanted ….?
Because you ain’t seen nothing yet…is guaranteed.
You either stand out or fall to the autocracy.
For removal , that last entity of forced obedience- as authoritarians count and plan their level of control-
be their last stand.
May my many greats uncle JOSHUA CHAMBERLAIN stand tall again a hero for ‘the hole in the wall ‘ needed to win this war.
P.S. Add tRUMP and every person he appointed to be his henchmen/women.
Yes JL, we have good laws in place to hold people accountable for their decidedly (im) moral superiority. They keep it up and the roads to hell will be like I5 at rushhour!
This is beyond horrifying. It is an abomination and shameful on the history of the United States. These criminals overlook the fact that the whole world is watching: some in disbelief and some wondering how to profit from the situation.
Veronica von Bernath Morra,,
Our enemies are working quickly to impose as much damage as possible. We must wake up and ACT!
Many of us are acting. In my neighborhood (Chicago) the Indivisible chapter founded in November 2015, has increased membership exponentially. (We met around a picnic table outside during Covid summers and on Zoom in winter.) At 91, I have written GOTV postcards since 2018, and seen many of those Democrats I wrote for win.
We are in the throes of fascism and Project 2025 is its playbook.
And get what they can steal quickly!
And the astonishing thing is that there are actually so FEW of them! Most wars you are fighting millions of the enemy - with the GOP, it's a thousand, max. I don't count the MAGA voters, as they are followers, not fighters. It's the creeps leading and lying to them. The ones that are enabling trump. If he didn't have that support structure, someone would have carted him off to an old folks home by now.
I read an article today that said before we dropped the bomb on Hiroshima, the Government produced enough Purple Hearts to cover the anticipated casualties of a planned invasion. Because of the bomb, those Hearts weren't needed - and those originals are still being issued today, even after Korea, Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan etc. You think of the numbers of the enemy our men would have had to face - and then compare that figure to the number of people who are destroying America without even firing a shot - or having a shot aimed at them. Doing all that damage from a nice comfy seat - and even getting paid BY THE COUNTRY THEY ARE DESTROYING! I don't recollect America paying the Japanese to use their kamikaze pilots against our ships.
What disturbs me is that those we are taught to believe are heroes, are often completely depraved. Of course, tRump and his cronies are good examples. But please think about this:
The United States detonated a nuclear bomb in space in 1962.
Were any of us informed or warned?
There was a nuclear accident in Los Angeles in 1959 but it was kept secret until recently.
The Firebombing of Tokyo was ordered by Air Force General Curtis LeMay.
Over the course of nearly three hours, an attack by the United States Army Air Forces killed as many as 100,000 people — more than some estimates of the number killed the day of the nuclear bombing of Hiroshima. The United States Strategic Bombing Survey later wrote that “probably more persons lost their lives by fire at Tokyo in a six-hour period than at any time in the history of man.
“Air Force General Curtis LeMay ordered the deaths of more civilians than any other military officer in American history. No one else comes close. “I’ll tell you what war is about. You’ve got to kill people and when you kill enough of them, they stop fighting.”
In an interview with U.S. Air Force historians in 1988, USAF General Curtis LeMay, who was also head of the U.S. Strategic Air Command, commented on efforts to win the war as a whole, including the strategic bombing campaign, saying, “We went over there and fought the war and eventually burned down every town in North Korea anyway, some way or another, and some in South Korea, too......Over a period of three years or so we killed off, what, 20 percent of the population of Korea, as direct casualties of war or from starvation and exposure?”
Pyongyang, which saw 75% of its area destroyed, was so devastated that bombing was halted as there were no longer any worthy targets. By the end of the campaign, US bombers had difficulty in finding targets and were reduced to bombing footbridges or jettisoning their bombs into the sea.”
We can see this mindset now in Gaza. Is that what we are also seeing with ICE?
How do these deranged men become our leaders?
Because MEN run the world, resulting in an obscenely violent and dangerous world that is never questioned, NEVER even discussed. But I think it is damn well time. The violence, the mass shootings, the senseless cruelty, the murder of women and children, and the rape of women and children. It's MEN!
Sorry but don’t kid yourself. The only reason women haven’t run wildly murderous wars is because they haven’t had a chance. Women can be just as evil as men, and I will point you to Kristy Noem as a modern example (can you imagine her as president?) or Queen Elizabeth I as an less recent one.
Kimberley. The Gnomes of the modern world believe that they are strong women when they do not have a clue what a strong woman is. What they are is obnoxious humans who model the worse human behaviors. You are wrong about Elizabeth I who did everything she could to avoid war partly because they were expensive and the males in charge (examples Robert Dudley and the Earl of Essex) ignored her orders. She was a woman in a man's world (John Knox, First Blast of the Trumpet Against the Monstrous Regiment of Women) who had to figure out how to rule and remain in charge. Also 21st century standards do not apply to what governments could do in the 16th century.
Thank you for the history lesson; I hope you didn’t miss my point which was that women aren’t inherently more moral as leaders.
Or Margaret Thatcher...
It's obviously not ALL men, but men in general, from just about every culture. The more educated men are, the less violent they tend to be, but plenty of educated men manipulate other men to fight, to kill, and drop bombs to assert power. Violence is cheered in sports. Sadly, we don't question men until they've stepped over some ill-defined line.
Not just a men, but all old white men. Amen
Nancy, I *must* push back here. I've gotten a lot of flack over the past several years for saying this, but please don't say it's *all* old white men. Don't paint us all with the same brush. It's as inappropriate as saying "all {fill in the blank} are {fill in the blank}.. Don't paint us all with the same brush. I had no say in when I was born or who my parented me (and I'm grateful to my dear late mother for much of my sensitivity to others.) All I can do is to try not to live up to the stereotype that is often applied to us; I've raised my 2 sons to do the same. Of course there are a lot of white men (of various ages) who can be blamed for some of our problems, but the same can be said of most any other classification of people.
Doug, I agree about painting all of a group with the same brush. It is easy to do.
I sincerely apologize for using that statement. I know many white men who are not “old white men” , my husband and my 2 40 something sons to name a few. I won’t try to explain why I use it, I will try to find a different way to say what I mean. Thank you for calling me out on it
My Dad, who is later years, called himself "A feeble old white man" was one of those wo would tear up & be so angry when conflicts arose- lived through WW2 & spent his life spreading his belief in God to as many people as he could & expected people to live like the Bible taught. I loved that old white man, rest his soul.
We're going to have to agree to disagree on that. My partner is an old white man, and a scientist. He's one of the kindest human beings I have ever known.
My partner, while a man and white- he’s not- in my meaning of it, “an old white man”. I agree with you and I apologize if I insulted or offended anyone. I need a better form of words to explain my meaning.
Old white men didn't slaughter men, women, children in Israel on October 7.
No, but a male dominated culture did. And a male dominated culture with plenty of hubris was not paying attention.
Good point Gary P.
D, as an "old white man" I agree with much of what you say, and I've been saying for *decades* (yes, decades) that women should run the world. That said, it wouldn't bring about an end to all wars, or cruelty, but it would go a ling way toward minimizing them.
I would agree that "men" have done a crappy job running the world. And the current crew at the White House are as deranged as was Hitler.
I'd be OK with women taking over right now. What a better world we would be in today if Hillary had served two terms and Harris as well. Not my most favorite politicians - but competent, thoughtful and sane. And they read.
But with all due respect, your references to WWII and Lemay are taken out of context. The Japanese were not going to stop fighting. Their society had morphed into something bizarre, horrific and unreasonable. Not unlike Germany at the same time. Not unlike Russia today.
The Japanese perpetrated atrocities in the Pacific region that are so awful, so despicable, so "subhuman" that their defeat was absolutely required for the sake of civilization writ large. That fire bombing was not unlike what we did to Dresden. As awful and brutal as it was, when an entire nation makes torture and genocide their stated goal and actually performs it - that entire nation bears the responsibility.
The Korea story is more complex. On the one hand, it was representative of the "red scare" that gave us Vietnam as well. But before we start analyzing the Korean war, we should ask the South Koreans of today how they would feel if Korea was united - with a North Korean government that has the same authoritarian attitude as Stalin did. Of course, none of this has anything to do with "communism" - the red herring. It has to do with dictatorship and the power of a few monstrous MEN.
I am a peacenik by nature. But the Germans and the Japanese violated the basic standards of civilization. They were only defeated by overwhelming force. There was no negotiation that could have stopped their genocides. The same is true in Ukraine. Putin must be stopped by overwhelming opposition. Once he fails and Russian society suffers enough, his oligarchs will manage to get something in his soup. And another asshole man will take over. Where is Catherine the Great when you need her? /s
Thank you, Bill, for these details. However, I am not sure Catherine the Great is someone to call on.
/s :)
Yes, I know it is snark
LOL. Indeed she did.
"But with all due respect, your references to WWII and Lemay are taken out of context. The Japanese were not going to stop fighting. Their society had morphed into something bizarre, horrific and unreasonable. Not unlike Germany at the same time. Not unlike Russia today." Oh, the horror of it all!
Is American Exceptionalism our get-out-of-jail-card for genocide of the first Americans?
My one small amt. of Native American blood Is still horrified by the treatment of our 1st nations. Forced onto rocky lands, denied most fishing rights, refused schooling & medical care. Left with few resources to get through northern New England winters. BUT, we are still here.
No. And "American Exceptionalism" is code for "We know best, we will rewrite history, we will ignore all the successes of other nations and perhaps never learn from the mistakes of others."
I often wonder what we would have looked like as a nation if we had embraced some of the thinking of Indigenous people with respect to the land and nature in general. What if we had acted like grateful immigrants instead of arrogant invaders?
Instead we plunder and extract with no concern for the consequences.
No, we have been "exceptionally" stupid in Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan, Iran, and much of Central and South America. And especially in North America.
Tom, TCinLA, That’s Another Fine Mess on substack just published a series of essays on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. They are excellent. He makes the point that through Potsdam the Japanese had agreed to surrender terms. The sticking point was the emperor retaining his position. Russia was poised to invade. We bombed them, and the emperor retained his position. LeMay couldn’t be stopped.
It's disingenuous to imply that the Japanese "had agreed to surrender terms." Clearly they had not. This was a militaristic society ruled by a emperor in direct contact with the gods wit leaders facing trials for crimes against humanity. .
Many Japanese leaders rejected the idea because knew they would be tried as war criminals and had a unquestionable sense of honor.
Interestingly the term unconditional surrender is a misnomer as it only applied to the military, not the general population. There were protections in the offer for the people of Japan who had been misled into the war through propaganda and lies.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potsdam_Declaration
Just imagine what it must be like to live in a nation with a state religion where adherents believe their leader is on a mission from god. /s
I suggest you read Tom’s essays, though I believe you may have to be a paid subscriber to access. The entire Japanese military were massed on the peninsula where the allies were purported to land, leaving the rest of the country open to being overrun by the Russians, who were staging in Manchuria. Japan did not want to surrender to Stalin.
You know it Bill! It's "mankind"..not "men" or "women"...,it's mankind, gotttdammit! And pussy has played a huge part, and far far from being constrained to some 'bedroom'.
Lest we forget the Imperialist Military regime of Japan started a war in Asia in which they committed atrocities comparable to the Nazis in Europe. Indeed, their actions contributed more to involving the entire world in war than Germany.
Our Eurocentric view seems to blind us to what horrors the Japanese were engaged in.
What do you propose were reasonable alternatives to fighting the Japanese on the 1930s and 1940s?
It's easy to sit here in 2025 and criticize our use of the atomic bomb without contemplating what we were fighting.
Agreed to all great points, folks. But surely everyone can see the through line of violence and repression, especially of the other majority gender on the planet. Women. For us it's one step forward, two steps back. When I was a child, women couldn't obtain mortgages or bank loans in their name. Now we have no bodily rights and are being considered nothing more than breeders and receptacles.
My point is that there is NO discussion about this. About all the young white males who are mass shooters, and violent gang behavior, and rapists and murderers, whose brains aren't fully developed until around age 27 whose behavior is not examined, but we allow them to 'Let Boys Be Boys'. And don't even get me started about all the religions being created and curated by MEN. To the specific diminishment of women.
D..., so let me understand you here. So "women" apparently just accommodated this behavior, under the auspices of (a) god, until they'd had enough (here in the USA, at least)? Seems to me that "women" have taken the road they feel best with, no? We have politics, we have science, we have union-labor, we have airlines, we have military, we have doctors, we have olympics, we have basketball (Fever!), we have the Mormon-wives, we have porn. we have Harvey Whine-steins, we have Gizlane-tothe-Maxwell, we have burkas, religious police! So.., you're telling me women have no voice in all of this? Tell me, please, did "women" stride ahead in this past election to straighten this shit out? Doesn't look like it. And here, right now, we are confronting irrefutable evidence that a rich "man" and a admittedly 'horney' wealthy uper-class(?!) woman collected a good number of (under-aged?) young women using various means of enticement, to entertain the prurient interests of men (mostly) on some island. The silence is just about deafening ladies.
D, there's "no discussion about this"?
None?
I disagree, I've heard plenty of discussion about this, with a lot of agreement from "old white men". I kind of doubt you came up with this on your own and are the lonely prophet in the desert preaching to the wind.
Just saying.
PS: agreed that a person's brain isn't fully developed until they are in their twenties and the last part to do so is responsible for understanding long term consequences.
So why do we let 18 year olds vote?
Yeah, Gary, your "I kind of doubt you came up with this on your own and are the lonely prophet in the desert preaching to the wind" comment is exactly what I am talking about. You diminish my comment and me, and all the other women who have spent a lifetime being mistreated, diminished, spoken down to, discriminated against, underpaid, sexually assaulted, raped, and beaten. I have 70+ years of experience with all these behaviors and you exactly prove my point.
Because they were being sent to die in Vietnam and had no say in the matter
Why do we send them to war?
At 91, a member of a family with 3 immediate relatives in WWII, living on the East Coast, I remember the whole spectrum of fear (neighbors, nearby Air Force base, later D-Day) and the mix of concern and relief when my father, returning us from an afternoon fishing trip, stopped for gas and, while paying for it, learned about the first bomb. We immediately assumed it meant the end of the war which had consumed US since December 7, 1941 (my father since even before September 1, 1939 as he always watched Europe and listened to the world news nightly). The relief exceeded the horror. At college I lived through “Hiroshima, mon amour,” and still live with the mixed feelings, always grateful for the American lives saved.
My father was a Marine who fought on Iwo Jima. He lost many comrades and friends. He was in China training for the invasion of Japan when the war was brought to an end. No bomb, no dad, no me. (?)
The documentary "The Fog of War" won an Oscar. Its subtitle refers to 11 lessons learned by Robert S McNamara. In it, McNamara noted that Curtis LeMay had stated that if the Allies had lost the war, he would have been charged with war crimes.
I read somewhere that LeMay has said that if Japan had won the war, he would have been tried as a war criminal.
So would have FDR and Eisenhower.
Your point?
Welcome to the world of modern technology… in which - if you have the money - you can do a HUGE amount of damage… because we are in a war that is largely information / “fake education” / indoctrination / propaganda based.
Great food for thought.
HCR: 'A woman at Mike Flood's Lincoln Nebraska August Town Hall asked what she called a fiscal question ... the Nebraska crowd cheered wildly'.
That woman was Flood's constituent, ROSINA PAOLINI. ROSINA was interviewed by JEN PSAKI on her show last night. As the entire country knows now, ROSINA is an admissible, political fact-filled Nebraska voter & super sharp.
ROSINA explained to JEN that she could not do what she is doing without love & support of her fellow Nebraska voters. Mike Flood has a new rival for his Congressional seat by the name of ROSINA PAOLINI.
You go Rosina!
The key difference in Rosina is she is informed. She had the data and used it. This is what we are all called to do. Know the facts, numbers and apply them to your argument. Sure beats the chicken little approach.
This is so inspiring. If only I werec20 years younger, I would follow in her footsteps.....
I hear ya, Veronica. I did reactivate my CA State Bar License on 3/25/25.
You mean the Republican criminal enterprise? Or the White Christian Nationalists? What war?
IMHO, the war hasn't started yet, just a few minor skirmishes. When Dem pols start chaining themselves to buildings to prevent business as usual from happening, then I'll start to believe they're ready to fight a war. When Schumer and Hakeem stop bloviating and take part in a sit in, then I'll believe they're ready to fight a war. And WIN.
The most popular American pol(as Colbert said): BERNIE SANDERS!
Let's not let the 6 utterly corrupt SCOTUS Justices off the hook. And let's recognize the White Christian Nationalists exercising power through their cat's paws and billions. All that g-damn $$$$$ the fascists have to put their plan into effect.
When Americans stop believing that it is up to only the politicians to win this we will have significantly upped our chances of surviving this coup. There are millions and millions more of us than the politicians. What are the voters doing?
This is on us. There are no white knights coming to save us. Do something.
Right you are Barbara. "Support our Politicians" means, You, ME, Everyone.., needs to get out there and stand together on all those things we are asking our 'politicians" to take a stand on. Our Senators and Representatives cannot hammer on things if WE are not standing in the intersections with signs and crowding assembly-halls and gymnasiums making our points known. That's how we "support our troops", not by just sending care packages or emails or $20 checks, or phone calls. Our physical presence is known when it is shown. Not with violence. Presence. Our Country is calling on us - Be there.
Thanks! Really well said.
Asking leaders to “Pledge…our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor.” is too much? You don't need to wait for them to do that to engage in resistance. Still, they need to do that. Lead, follow, or get out of the way. Right now, they're in the way. My 2¢.
I don't believe they are in the way. We are simply realizing that they can't do it all. I am ready to partner with anyone who is ready to suit up and show up to crush this coup.
I respectfully suggest you read Sarah Kendzior’s two best-selling books (“Hiding In Plain Sight” and “They Knew”) about the deep level of corruption in America. This war (with what is actually a global criminal conspiracy) has been going on for a long time… just not covered in the news.
www.sarahkendzior.com
Not to mention that the US is number 1 in money laundering; and probably will be accused by the world for being the worst environmental polluter and contributor to climate change while many still embrace climate change as a hoax.
What good would that do in this fight? Why is it important to talk about how the boat got the hole in it when the boat is sinking? There won't be anyone more boats if this one sinks.
what activism tools are you using right now?
I am a former civil engineer taught to study why things collapse so a better version of what previously existed is built next time. Learning how to prevent a future collapse is paramount to my way of being. It’s also how progress happens in general… asking the “why?” questions … learn from our mistakes - both big and small - so the future can be better than the past.
I’m sorry if you think everyone should be in the front lines prepared to “die for the cause”. Some of us also need to work on what will be built “after the fall”.
I hope this helps.
It really is an all hands-on deck moment Steve. I am not apologizing for being strong in my urging people on towards activism. I listen to many great minds in the Country right now. As of last night Dr. Richardson talked about what the resistance is doing and how we are doing standing up.
If people want to talk about conspiracies instead of bailing the boat that is their call. Continuing to deflect the conversation from the crisis at hand is worrisome at best.
Thanks for your suggestions. Yes, I'm aware of her work. The idea that there is a global criminal conspiracy assumes there are laws being broken. But the laws are only for the 99% of us. The 1% don't see it as being "criminal". They see it as their right to do as they please.
Here's another interesting book I recommend: Money, Lies and God.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Money%2C_Lies%2C_and_God
How does this help us now? How does stirring up conspiracies and blame stop this coup? No Country has been, is or ever will be perfect.
Just curious. What tools do you use for your activism in fighting this coup? Protesting, donating...or what?
well said.
Steven.., $$$$$.., you know it. And "they$$$" have been working this for at least the past four years with help from (imbedded) agents from abroad within (the RNC) and other seemingly innocuous branches of our government. Yes! Writing and carrying out the moves needed to put project 2025 into action once numb-nuts was again seated. The "works" were in progress so quietly because people were making sure the POS got elected.., the amount of money spent to do this will never be known, but it was spent and those clowns almost lost it. But they prevailed by hook or crook.
You are on point.
The time is now. The line is here. Ours is a job to do. From New York Harbor, we heard the unarmed but alarmed Lady Liberty’s clarion call. I made us 100 protest signs, here. Atop the U.S. Capitol Building Lady Freedom heard her. It is Lady Freedom that holds this Nation’s sword .She pulled it, dismounting to lead us to the streets. They both pointed out clear ways without bloodshed: boycott and gerrymander. Yes, we can, Cesar, Sí se puede. Rise!
https://hotbuttons.substack.com/p/tone-telling-terror?r=3m1bs
I hate that you’re correct. This “war” started when the GOP, specifically the Convicted Felon and Speaker Johnson, called Democrats “the enemy” and treated their Democratic colleagues as such.
I’m genuinely curious about any piece of legislation the GOP has passed since the Realignment that benefited Americans. Civil Rights Act, worker protections, clean water legislations—all were Democratic proposals. Yet somehow GOP politicians get voted into office.
Thank you. I am trying to find a link to Speaker Johnson calling Democrats “the enemy” and cannot find it. Below is the closest I’ve found. Do you have a link to Johnson using the word “enemy”? I know Trump has.
And yes… progress has come mostly from Democrats, although Nixon created the Environmental Protection Administration.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H0PGM9GaCu8
To some - eg. corporations - worker protection and clean air and water seriously affect their bottom line, which republicans protect through deregulation, bribes and contributions. The rest of the population, most influenced by MAGA myths, are led by deception and lies and are unmoved by facts and evidence.
Yes. Well stated.
Totally agree!!
We are in a Fascist coup d'etat against the United States of America. People I trust such as Obama. Biden and others are warning the time to act is right now. This is on all of us. Do something.
You are correct and more need your understanding.
Focusing on that final paragraph, Heather: What they’ve shown us is the Constitution as they intend to amend it - and as they perceive it to apply to them NOW. It is, precisely, their current working model of our Constitution. We can expect it to be further slashed and burned, as their headlong gallop into authoritarianism gains momentum as it goes.
Coding error, my ass! Once again, they’re “letting slip” their plans and intentions for American government under Project 2025, with Trump their bulldozer (and Vance just waiting in the wings to take over the driver’s seat).
“Today, reporters noticed that the online United States Constitution, maintained by the Library of Congress, was missing parts of Article I, the part of the Constitution that lays out the rights and duties of Congress. Parts of Section 8 and all of Sections 9 and 10 were gone.
Those include Congress’s control over the District of Columbia, Congress’s power to make the laws, the promise that habeas corpus would not be suspended, the stipulation that no money can be used by the government unless Congress has appropriated it, the requirement that no president can accept gifts from foreign countries, and the specification that only Congress can levy tariffs.
Officials said the deletions were ‘due to a coding error,’ and by the end of today the missing sections were restored.”
Exactly!
right. no more strongly worded letters. We need to pub out bodies where our mouths are.
The Trojan Horses sit on the throne. Invited in and have marched triumphantly to power, laughing all the way, especially the SC evil six and Mitch.
How do you propose we go forward? Put some teeth into your statement.
One additional “what to do” thought. I’ve commented many times that we need to learn from the Occupy Wall Street movement and create a giant encampment surrounding the White House or maybe even all of Washington DC that has a huge educational component. Occupy Wall Street was a permanent protest not a one day or two day affair. We need something visible every day of the year that grows in size and in the story it is telling… One of the kind of future we can have once hate and division is replaced with love and cooperation (see Buckminster Fuller)
That is the most concrete response I've heard. Even Ruth Ben-Ghiat and Heather continue to propose we write, call, protest - which I believe we are all engaged in. What is the next level??? An encampment around the WH! Sounds daring.
Thank you!
One thing such an encampment would show them is that there are more of us than there are of them! It could be funded by people like Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos ex-wife (whose name is escaping me at the moment). And would push the Trump distractions of the day off the front pages of the newspapers. Everything he said would be responded to by the many people occupying the space around Washington DC. 👊🇺🇸
He did, He spoke of Dems chaining themselves to buildings and to stop talking in front of the cameras and start a war.
Those who have been elected by our votes and are paid with tax revenues and given multiple benefits would do well to stand up to those who would destroy our democratic republic. 47 will have no need of them once he's enabled Project 2025 to be put in place.
It’s up to each of us to determine what best fits their situation. I’m not here to say anyone one form of resistance should be what everyone does. I have my plans based on what my own situation makes possible. But I don’t know what options are available to you. Related: In my opinion, this fight must be decentralized, so there is no movement leadership for the GOP to come after.
It’s a massive poisoning – Republicans who hate due process.
Hate free and fair elections. Hate non-whites, non-white supremacists.
How did America get so many so poisoned, so full of hatreds?
First, what’s next on the fascist agenda? Answer: people in power who no longer have to hear questions such as the one I just asked – how did we “get so many so poisoned, so full of hatreds?”
Once people in power can avoid accountability, they’ve solved the problem Donald has been having with people asking what he was doing all those years so happily with underage girl rapists Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell.
Not only does he walk from accountability of Qs there, but also from Qs about his gulag of torture/concentration camps, his ICE terror police, and which subsets of us next get terrorized, locked up.
Phil, how did America "get so many so poisoned, so full of hatreds?" I think it is Fox News. I have watched my family members succumb to the hate filled propaganda since the mid 90s. Yet what I find intriguing and disheartening is "what makes some respond wholeheartedly to the hate and others turn away?" In my own family the one Republican, Fox watching sibling has been filled with bitterness and resentment since childhood in spite of my parents giving him extra support and care. His wife too. Full of resentment, bitterness over small stuff. So few examples of empathy and compassion in our cultural upbringing. Misinformation and disinformation has steered so many towards hatred, cruelty.
Fox News indeed is the great gulf, the divide, the start and end point for so much. This is something that never gets quite enough attention.
Not for nothing did Thomas Jefferson respond, when asked if he had to choose between a free government and a free press, which one would he demand. A free press, he said, for you need the latter to make the former a reality. I realize Fox News is not "state" TV in the sense TV 1 in Russia is indeed state-controlled, but for tens of millions of households in this land, in bars, airports, hospitals, public buildings, you name it, the one channel that blares is Fox.
I've never watched it regularly, but as people in this newsletter and elsewhere so often confirm, there's some great sad moment that managed to turn somebody's grandfather into a conspiratorial wacko. There's one divide that seems to split families right down the line. It's Fox. It's Republican TV, run by people who know how to manipulate, terrify, enthrall, entertain and distort, all at once.
We may yet get rid of this Repulsican majority next year and Trump will soon die, and JD might just melt into a Maybelline puddle somewhere, but we still have tens of millions of rigidly indoctrinated zombies out there dead sure there's an "Epstein File" with Hillary Clinton's name right at the top of it, that Haitians are creating new recipes for cat and dog every day, that millions of little boys with vaginas are pouring across the Rio Grande determined to force kindergarteners to endure lectures on critical race theory, which their savior in the White House stopped just in time (whew). It's one butt-ugly, toxic Christmas present, and we've yet to figure out how even to untie the bow.
Yes, I have family members indoctrinated by Fox News. Even educated family members….sad to say most evangelical, maybe a little racism added to the mix. I think those are the most difficult to “change hearts and minds”
The one thing I would add is that Fux News is being played on TV’s at the VA and military bases everywhere, not good 🤬🤬🤬
Hello Dick... I was once at a Car Dealership in a Deep-Red State, and was forced to Watch FOX nEWS for 4-Hours.... I felt that I was in the 'Toothpick Scene' in 'A Clockwork Orange'... OBW: Every third Commercial was a Scene of the Israeli Flag waving in the breeze.... I was Aghast... Propaganda, Propaganda, Propaganda...
It's the only time I see Fux News Apache, when I'm someplace that has a TV on to entertain people who have to wait there for some reason or another, the shop that works on my cars is a good example. I have heard that dining halls on our military bases have it playing non-stop. Ever since MSM has started paying more attention to the Epstein cover-up I have heard that Fux News has been talking about Obama and Biden non-stop, last time I looked Biden has been out of office since 20 Jan of this year. They must think the nation is stupid, and actually come to think about it, about half the time they are right. 🤬🤬🤬
This is not a small deal -- thanks for bringing it up.
I saw it being on at BFF’s house 24/7 from 1996 till we parted company years later. Devoted MAGAts and smart. Still baffles me.
Take over Fox and shut it down.
I have been asking -- why don't some of the billionaires get together and buy it and shut it down??
Because most of the billionaires love it. Wish that weren't true, but for every George Soros, there are four Murdochs, Kochs and Thiels running around. And of course Murdoch already owns Fox and isn't planning on selling to anyone.
". . . for every George Soros there are"
Miriam Adelson, Robin Arkley II (purveyor of hidden, untaxed bribes to Alito), Jeff Bezos, George Birnbaum, Harlan Crow (a Clarence Thomas subsidizer), Larry Ellison, Wayne Huizenga (another Clarence Thomas subsidizer), Charles Koch, Leonard Leo, Bernie Little (another Clarence Thomas subsidizer), Omeed Malik, Timothy Mellon, Rupert Murdoch, Elon Musk, Paul “Tony” Novelly (another Clarence Thomas subsidizer), Dennis Prager, David Rivkin (defender of Alito medieval corruption and his contemporary corruption, too), Pilgrim’s Pride chief executive officer Fabio Sandri (who gave record-setting $5 million to 2025 Trump inaugural, in exchange for Trump loosening of U.S. food poisoning regulations), Steve Schwartzman, Paul Singer, David Sokol (another Clarence Thomas subsidizer), Peter Thiel, Pilgrim’s Pride quality assurance Kendra Waldbusser (who gave record-setting $5 million to 2025 Trump inaugural, in exchange for Trump loosening of U.S. food poisoning regulations), Anthony Welters (another Clarence Thomas subsidizer) Jeffrey Yass, Jeff Zuckerberg and families DeVos, Kushner, Mercer, Sackler, Uihlein.
But still, there are enough with good values that could team up and buy it. Mark Cuban was talking about it at one time.
You can be sure that "Some" of the billionaires are paying those in charge in the military bases to run Fox non stop. And, other places.
..." Every third Commercial was a Scene of the Israeli Flag waving in the breeze"
Follow the money!
The Epstein issue is way more than about the girls.
Did you mean to say the Epstein issue is way more THAN about the girls?.
Then we would be just like them. That is no solution. Sigh...
I call it the Propaganda Channel, or Fox Spews.
Yes to the Rush Limbaugh being, at the least, the beginning part of the problem (and a repeal of the Fairness Doctrine). I used to work in social research (in the late 90’s and early 00’s) and I had a coworker that I sometimes had to ride in her car for hours, and she’d listen to RL and tell me how great everything he said was, and I just wanted to jump out of the moving car. 🤮 I never understood her loving his BS, and me thinking it was total BS.
Fox and now two clones, plus wicked and uncensored YouTube “stations”. This followed years of poison radio by Rush and Rush clones. Trump’s main message is hatred.
Yeah, agree. My dad retired in the 90s from a job as country director for an Int’l nonprofit. Too much time on his hands, he jumped down the Rush and Fox rabbit holes. What a change in him! I could begin to see the destruction of the country back then. Hate sells,ya? Murdoch is a billionaire.
But you have to be open to the message. It has to resonate with something in you. Fox isn’t poisoning people. It’s speaking to something that already exists in many, many people. It provides a “safe space” for certain people to indulge their fear, racism, misogyny and nationalism.
I totally agree. But what made such a large portion of the US population so sick? I think we can't heal until we can identify the roots.
The roots are racism which has been allowed, even encouraged, to flourish. It has never been vehemently stamped out, taught that it wasn't acceptable.
I disagree. It has been taught that it wasn't acceptable in our public schools since the 50s and 60s. Its just that many people are threatened by the rise of people of color, people of unspecified gender, people of dissenting politics, etc.
And those who are threatened (whether rationally or not) will defend themselves and sharpen their views. That is what has happened, with a huge supporting encouraging party (the Maga GOP) to cheer them on.
See Don Siegel's 1956 "Invasion of the Body Snatchers," Wendyl.
Also to see, "The Stepford Wives," "The Freedom Writers' Diary," "The Verdict," "Knives Out," "The Big Short," and "Blade Runner."
Read Walker Percy's "The Thanatos Syndrome," Norman Mailer's extended essay, "Superman Comes to the Supermarket," Arlie Russell Hochschild’s “Stolen Pride,” Sarah Smarsh’s “Bone of the Bone,” and Wendell Berry's 1977 "The Unsettling of America."
Many of our best have explored this good Q of yours, Wendyl.
Also, Jane, the anti-elite messaging has huge audience.
Starting with the corporate execs, bankers, and related ilk who offshored the millions of working-class jobs.
Continuing to the standardized testers and corporate textbook packagers. Nothing human about any of them or any of their instruments.
I read a article yesterday (can't locate it now or recall author - could have been on substack, NYT or WaPo) about a study of the personality traits which lean into bitterness, and take a certain pleasure in the suffering or neglect of others, etc. The study found that those with such traits were more likely to be Republican than Democrat. Fox News has done much to promote such traits.
TACO is a malignant narcissi which is defined as a mental imbalance (crazy) who can not be cured and who has no capacity to feel compassion ,,, given power. such a person just keeps getting more extreme as they have no ability to censor themselves.
Laurie, this Scientific American article (2020) is somewhat related to the issue(s) you mention. This article is about Conservative and Liberal brain “functioning” (for lack of a better word) and the perceived differences. I read it when it first came out & bookmarked it. You might find it interesting: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/conservative-and-liberal-brains-might-have-some-real-differences/. I, too, hope you update your post if you are able to locate the article you mention (ha, don’t you just hate that “needle in a haystack” effort of finding something you just read?! Frustrating!).
Thank you Barbara. Important article for the times we are in.
Yeah, Wendyl, a whole other facet to the nature/nurture theories!
Barbara, with big amygdalas in mind, read the Substack article below cited by Gail Adams. Holy cow!
I think you're referring to psychopaths and sociopaths...yes most fall into retrumpian and fascist camps...
Lauriemcf, boy would I like to read that article. Will try to Google it. Yes, Murdoch has become a billionaire from creating a feeding frenzy for those with the traits.
I would really like to read that article lauriemcf. Please let us know when you recall where you read it- thanks
Richard North Patterson has been publishing a great series of essays on substack, and they’re free to read. He explores the MAGA movement . Here’s today’s. https://open.substack.com/pub/richardnorthpatterson/p/america-on-the-precipice-by-richard-322?r=6ptqj&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email
Gail, thank you for this article. Brilliant, comprehensive and puts our current crisis in perspective. Yikes!
What's the competition, Wendyl?
Years ago we had as a matter of course many good teachers in every school, with the freedom to assign whole books that they wholly valued -- personally cared about.
This came through in their teaching.
These teachers in the intervening years saw testing squelch them, saw entire curricula turned in slavery to the tests. Worse still, the tests pushed all worst conceits of logic, grouping, categorizing, abstracting, and linearity -- all of that totally void the human in the decent, valuable books teachers and students were formerly free to explore.
So, yes, Fox "News" entered this ensuing wasteland. And predators such as Donald, Jeffrey, Ghislaine, and others as vulgar as they then took advantage of the new god, money, and money tied to spectacle.
Phil, yeah, school experience could be a factor as you say. I graduated high school in 1971 and up until then had great teachers, SRA testing but the testing was a small part of my school experience. I have lived out of the US, in Asia since the mid 80s so I can't say how school has worsened since my 60s education. I live in Indonesia with extended family structure, ritual, focus on community. So different than the nuclear family structure, the me, mine, individual culture. One is brought up with a responsibility towards our neighbors, our community. Not perfect by an y means, but more connected, interwoven lives. We are seeing now a great sickness in the US, loneliness, lack of empathy, them against us struggle to survive. Little feeling of common humanity in a large part of the population.The regime's "christian" nationalist "solution" is not unlike Hitler's. Trump and his regime are the cancer taking advantage of a weakened immune system.
Hello Wendyl... Among the Indigenous.... Children are brought up by their extended families, and Villages... As USA Families have broken down, so has USA Society, and Politics...
Phil, you're a one-man stand for a one-man issue that manages to end up blurring, rather than pinpointing. I don't know what your deal is with "testing" but testing has been around in schools all my life (I'm 70) and I used to be a teacher as well. I don't think my students ended up crippled automatons because of it, and I didn't end up one because I took an SAT test myself way back in the Late Pleistocene. We can certainly have a larger debate over what kind of school system, parents, teachers, students and society works best, but I don't think Heather's newsletter is really the place for it.
I'm 74 and also had the regular annual tests. I think that Phil is referring to the routine testing that caused corresponding shifts in former curricula that included more of the humanities -- the phrase "teach to the test" did not arise until I was out of high school at least. I was lucky enough to have terrific English teachers, and a 2 hour a day French Humanities class. We read classics, Shakespeare, Conrad, Orwell, etc etc. When I've talked to teachers more recently they have complained that no one teaches a full Shakespeare play any more -- just the synopsis or even a movie as a substitute. When teachers have to 'teach to the test' so many opportunities to broaden young minds and encourage critical thinking and discussion are missed.
There continue to be public school teachers who teach critical thinking and humanities, shrugging off the "teach to the test" description. Dont buy into Phil's argument without thinking.
You need stats, Kathy.
Go to the appendices in Diane Ravitch's "The Language Police."
The major difference between the testing I took in school and what they do now is quite different. One was used as primarily diagnostic, then the conservative business legislators decided they should be used as evaluative of the teachers. That is a major swing. I am 69 and a retired public ed professional. Testing became the driving monster that sidetracked the public education system.
But contrary to Phil's principal thesis, that doesn't make TESTING bad, it makes the way testing is used bad. This is what I have complained about with his position for so long. Testing is a process that is itself completely neutral. It doesn't require a point of view. It is the WAY testing is used in modern schools that makes it a potential source of concern for parents (or should). We don't need to eliminate testing, we need to reshape it to be used to help us identify the children who have special needs and need special assistance. If we use testing as a proper tool, there is nothing wrong with it.
No, Jon. It's not "completely neutral."
Its logical and rational conceits are neutered, neutering, impersonal. They stress ways of seeing "life" apart from the humans who have complex, individual, personal values and inheritances.
I think something sadly lacking—which Phil’s references to testing and lack of a broader education refer to and help create—is critical thinking. Memorization of material long enough to take a test is definitely NOT the same as exposure to reading, comprehension and evaluation of literature, etc. As an English major myself, in looking back I am extremely grateful for my decades-ago education; it has stood me in good stead as I listen to and read arguments and disquisitions and then feel capable to accept or reject them. Also, I love to do research!
I don't think anyone would disagree with that, especially from our generation, but I wouldn't want to impale myself on a sword labeled 'standardized testing' as an explanation for everything bad, either.
Especially as those currently in power came along before standardized testing was a norm. I too think the dearth of humanities in schooling is a mistake. That said, my 30 year old, brought up fully under standardized testing, is a compassionate, curious adult.
I've never cited testing "as an explanation for everything bad," ICTT.
Please think critically about Phil's continued bashing of public education. Why is he doing this?
Private schools rely on testing, too, Kathy -- around the world now.
I hate to act like a psychoanalyst which I am not trained to be but I expect he has insecurities (like most of us) which strive for simple explanations for complex problems. Kind of the antithesis of being a proponent of humanities (which hopefully teaches us to be critical thinkers). Which is surprising of course as Phil is actively in support of teaching humanities (which I agree with), but has a completely laser-focused antipathy towards testing which I completely disagree with.
Read Diane Ravitch's "The Language Police" (2003), ICTT.
Testing's role (and that of committee-written corporate textbooks) has changed by quantum bounds. Has changed teaching. Its conceits have twisted people's lives -- in about the same way Donald, Jeffrey, and Ghislaine twisted children's lives.
Heather correctly keeps the child rape business in focus along with the fascist rape of America now. Sorry to see you imagine neat, nice division between those sicknesses. But that's the ill that testing does -- and you cannot or will not see, ICTT. Everything gets set in separate groups, divisions, categories -- all very logical, all impersonally "rational." But humanly dead.
See the Wendyl comment directly above here. You may not know it -- and you certainly can't feel it -- but she understands the "great sickness in the US, loneliness, lack of empathy" (again, the normalization of child rapists)
It's a really bizarre stretch to link Jeffrey Epstein with standardized testing, but have a nice day, Phil...
Phil has been making the same argument for years here now. It’s tiresome and I usually just scroll on by. There was a time he complained about not being first to post, and the dearth of “likes”. Fixations come with aging I suppose. My mother’s had to do with the size of peas. ; )
You're being cute, ICTT.
Heather does not "link Jeffrey Epstein with standardized testing." But she does link his form of rape with the forms of thinking by which Vance, Vought, Trump, Miller, Patel, Bondi all want to dehumanize: to package, group, categorize, arrest, imprison, and deport whole sets of people.
Look at testing. Does it stress the logic and rationality of grouping, categorizing, and abstracting -- to the exclusion of the arts for seeing nuance, complications, wider context, and analogies?
Sigh... :-)
Phil continues to do this. It is tiring. There are many great teachers continuing to do demanding jobs well. I honor those.
The SAT's and other tests have been around for a long time. They are not the problem. SAT's did not kill Viola Liuzzo.
I had a high school teacher who could not understand what all the civil rights fuss was about. "The darkies are happy when they know their place". Today's White Resentment that elected Trump is not a product of testing. It has come about because "the darkies" have become part of the cultural and economic mainstream.
And sometimes those absurd positions taken by some teachers are rooted in unknown and sometimes inexplicable life situations which we will never understand. I had a history teacher in junior high school (circa 1962) who repeatedly gave me poor grades (Cs and an occasional D) which drove me nuts because I always did well in history. Turned out is was because her husband was stationed in Guantanamo at the time (during the Cuban Missile Crisis) and I was a staunch radical like my parents who felt that Cuba was often mistreated by the US. Once my parents learned about this, they stopped badgering me about the Cs ("its just a grade") and in 8th grade, my history teacher was a true liberal and my grades in history "miraculously" returned to A-level overnight. Sometimes you just can't explain why things happen, they just DO.
Yes, "Misinformation and disinformation has steered so many towards hatred, cruelty."
Thank you for your comments about Fox. I have clearly seen the same thing happen to my daughter & son-in-law, who only watch Fox, NewsMax, & One NewsAmerica. There are so many things that happen, they they never see or hear, d/t the one-sided view of these 3 stations! We watch PBS, CNN, MSNBC,CBS, & occasionally,ABC to attempt a somewhat balanced view. We read many sources, USA, UK, sites, & several newspapers, again to try to learn the real story.
Lately I stick mainly to PBS although of course they are being threatened by the Trump regime. MSNBC for the most part has become just a leftist version of Fox Snooze in my humble opinion. I can not stand to listen to Lawrence O'Donnell rail upon the horrific outrages happening to us because he sounds just as monotone as Tucker Carlson. And I was thrilled when they let Joy Reid go because again, her positions even when nominally good were hard to listen to. Unfortunately they replaced one diatribe with a triple diatribe which hasn't made that slot in MSNBC any better. The only persons on MSNBC I can even stand to listen to are Jen Psaki, Chris Hayes and Stephanie Rule (also loved Alex Wagner until she was removed).
Trump's supporters are the cultural descendants of the people who murdered Emmitt Till. The dismantling of Jim Crow in the 60's created a lot of white resentment, which continued to fester and fester thanks to Reagan and the Republican southern strategy. It was that already existing White Resentment that gave Fox News a market. Fox News did not cause the White Resentment but Fox News fed it and fed it and fed it.
Same. I have one brother left in my entire immediate family. Former proud Army Ranger wears his baseball cap declaring so to the world every day. Full on MAGA man who can’t see any reality. It’s so sad to me. He is not lost in grievances, but he is quite lost in Fox News.
Wendy, I totally agree. Fox is the vessel of hatred, racism and the people that already had this seed let it grow. tRvmp brought it out. I have an educated brother who is the youngest of 7, given the opportunity by our parents to get a degree in civil engineering. He lives in The Villages where like-minded people can spew their hatred. Oh did I mention, he's Hispanic and has a wife from Venezuela.
This shouldn't surprise anyone. The Murdoch takeover at Fox doomed that network to its current situation. Even Roger Ailes wasn't far enough crazy to keep him around. This shouldn't surprise anyone given Murdoch's long infatuation with creepy periodical news slease/mag tabloids like News of the World.
Vivian! My brother is a metallurgical engineer and and lives part of the year in The Villages.
People will likely disagree but I put some of the blame on old TV shows like Dallas and Dynasty. People watched and thought they, themselves, should be rich, and watched people get rewarded for unscrupulous and evil behavior. It was lauded and talked about. Yes, we had similar things for a long time on TV but the demographics that watched those shows were often kids brought up in the 50s, whose parents, deprived through the depression and WW2, gave them lots of things. Times were good for a lot of people and they spent. We had a good post war economy (and higher taxes for the rich who helped fuel a government that could afford to build infrastructure and provide a safety net for the poor). Many other factors contributed, of course, but TV contributed to shaping the mindset and that kind of drama sells.
I think you are so right. LOL, I remember back in the early 1980s (during the rise of Dallas) I took my young son to a high school football game (he wanted to go!) and we were sitting in the stands. Two guys, apparently parents of some of the players, were sitting talking and one of the guys started to tell the other about this great business "coup" he had pulled off, apparently by faking reports that showed his company doing much better than it really was and as a result landed a huge contract from a major business which had been associated with their competition. Both of the guys basically "high-fived" each other over his ability to trick them into doing business. It was a pure "Dallas" move and they simply had lost the ability to recognize the basic "wrongness" of their actions.
Our country lost a lot of its honor and integrity during the Reagan years and what has followed. I'm not saying we were ever truly "pure" (we weren't) but we did better and I think that made us better.
No longer true.
Wendyl, while we can easily identify Fox News and NewsMax and similar outlets, they were simply the first or most obviously successful ones to CAPITALIZE on the now widely recognized human attraction to conflict, anger and hate over more benign topics and approaches. This is what now drives most online algorithms that feed the vast majority of platforms and what makes online presence such a danger to our youth, especially our daughters. These phenomena aren’t invented by tRump and the MAGAts or by Fox News, these entities have simply been the most brazen in deploying and capitalizing on them. It needn’t be true or accurate to get the most views (or ears for that matter)… it is the very nature of a capitalist system, OUR capitalist system unless there is a healthy social check upon it by a government of, by and for THE PEOPLE.
John, agreed. And what does the “healthy social check” look like? In a society that craves propaganda? What can heal it?
More propaganda (or advertising) of the benefits of universal healthcare, including paid maternity leave for more than 2 weeks, paternity leave, government run prison systems, government provided education for all including the trades (electricians, plumbers, building trades, HVAC, etc) crucial to a high functioning society as well as those capable of proceeding to university. In many ways adopting what seems to work for the Scandinavian countries which annually top rankings of peoples’ happiness; a broadly taken socialism without the government necessarily owning the means of production.
Totally with you on your great vision, John. But now having to recover from reading a brilliant, comprehensive article on Substack on what we are up against: Richard North Patterson August 7th
Good books, Wendyl -- and teachers free to stress the human, the personal.
Reading books will not heal the US population that delights in lack of empathy, cruelty, us and them. There is something much more fundamental in the culture, in US society and way of life/world view that creates and fosters the sickness. Churches can say "love thy neighbor" but there is a total lack of introspection and focus on inner development in the "Christianity" of today that would enable them to love thy neighbor.
Agreed, Wendyl, as to how dire the situation is.
But empathy, introspection, and even love can be taught -- can be modeled.
Excellence in teaching comes in those with evident passion for books that really get into nuances, complications, analogies, echoings, contradictions, layerings, and all the other aspects of people's character our best artists know how to reach.
Foxaganda is a deadly drug.
I watched the same, fear and envy maybe
Do not forget Rush Limbaugh. He started this hate industry. Murdoch just jumped in on the money grabbing. With Murdoch’s money the propaganda that keeps losers feeling persecuted and promoting the right wing mantra of “ Me First”, “Me ONLY” they have created a cult of hatred. They fall for right wing religion also because it gives them permission to claim martyrdom and moral superiority.
I don’t believe people have been poisoned: they’ve been unleashed. Most religions preach some form of “love thy neighbor” in an attempt to keep fears, anger, and hatred at bay. Trump releases his followers from the burden of the self-control required to show compassion instead of contempt. Compassion and contempt live within all of us. I am finding it more and more difficult to muster an ounce of compassion for Trump and his followers.
Follow the money.
This, always this.
Hello Phil... We'll See how many of the GOP Jump Ship as The Bitch Goddess Karma approaches in 2026....
IMHO based on experience, if their donor base switches, some pols may, also. What is good for, say, the local Chamber of Commerce, and the national is merely coincidental.
Yesterday, Trump killed a wind enegy project in Idaho....
Hello Daniel... The Corporations will follow their Customers... That is why sustained Widespread Organized Boycotts Work... The 1st Rule of People is Power is, Stay In Power... DJT is starting to Sweat, that is why he wants to ReDistrict States....
I was born and raised in Omaha and moved to Davis, CA when I was 22 kicking and screaming. My ex-wife begged me to move there when I got a job offer that included a 50% increase in pay. I relented. She hate CA. I loved it, everything about it, well, everything except my boss who was an ex-Marine who had the brains of a root vegetable.
Anyway, I digress. My wife and I moved to Lincoln, in 1990 and lived there for almost 15 years. We lived in Mike Floods district and I met with our Congressman Doug Bereuter about National Security issues. He had multiple degrees from Harvard and he served in Congress for 26 years. He was an old-school Republican meaning he actually cared about his constituents more than getting re-elected. The following would NEVER have happened to Bereuter. I know because I attended several of his town halls and he listened to his constituents.
"Members of the House of Representatives are back in their districts for August, and on Monday, Republican Mike Flood of Nebraska held a town hall in Lincoln. A woman asked what she called a fiscal question. She said: “With 450 million FEMA dollars being reallocated to open Alligator Alcatraz, and 600 million taxpayer FEMA dollars being used to now open more concentration camps, and ICE burning through $8.4 million a day to illegally detain people—How much does it cost for fascism? How much do the taxpayers have to pay for a fascist country?” The crowd cheered wildly. "
Mike Flood is a fascist and doesn't give a damn about the people of Nebraska. But he is brave enough (or stupid enough) to hold town halls which Trump's little Johnson told the Republican's not to. Nebraska's complete Congressional delegation are moronic Fascists that lick Trump's boots every chance they get.
Last week it was reported that Nebraska's 2nd quarter GDP has dropped by 6.8% in the 2nd quarter because of Trump's insane tariffs. I'm sure many other states are in a recession as well, even though overall, the country had a decent 2nd quarter.
Yet one more keen observation about the disappearance of what used to be called the Republican Party into some bizarre cultish maw even THEY don't understand. I don't get it. I never will. My former boss at USAID was a Republican -- and one of the shrewdest people I've ever known, with a wicked sense of humor. She wouldn't recognize what Republicans have become today.
But they’re outnumbered! This band of ‘lowlife thieves in good suits’ are working for the one percent. The 99% are ending up with jack sh*t and they know it. Even the 77 million who got them into power know it - they’re running out of gronks to recruit as ICE agents, no matter how tempting the job perks. That says it all.
Lots of people are blaming Fox (News) Entertainment and its ilk. Not much attention is being focused on social media, which are at least as culpable. Even less attention is given to corporate media, which certainly added their doses of poison. And of course, I wouldn't be living up to my reputation if I didn't blame evangelicals.
But all these outlets of hate are the symptoms, not the source. The absolute fount of this conflict is and always has been global white supremacy.
I have tried to find an accurate, reliable racial breakdown of world population and spent a lot of time coming up empty-handed. Progressive thinkers tell us race is irrelevant, because human mobility has mixed ethnicities so they are not "pure" and we should not talk about race anymore. Tell that to the racists.
After consulting several sources, best I can tell, about 20% of the world's population are considered white. Further, this percentage has remained unchanged for all of recorded history. If my basic math skills haven't failed, that makes white people a distinct minority in the global population. Yet historically, whites have controlled most of the world's commerce and geopolitical power. That is, until recently.
Bottom line: Whites around the world, who have always enjoyed superior status, are feeling that their superiority is being threatened by non-whites everywhere. This undercurrent of fear is precipitating a global trend toward authoritarianism, as whites look to strong men to hold back and beat down "the other."
Plus reality TV took off when there was an actors/ writers strike and people became addicted to shows filled with hate and revenge. They saw themselves as victims and wanted retribution. Unfortunately none of them ever saw that those shows were highly edited and manipulated and not really any real form of reality. We spoke at length with one of the producers one evening and it was very enlightening. In the end I always wonder why people do jobs that cause so much harm to others be it physical or mental.
Sharon, I could write a book about the perfect storm of factors that brought about "reality TV," and on the other side of the coin, the perfect storm of consequences that resulted from the genre.
As you know from your conversation with the producer, the "contestants" are no-talent actors who can't remember lines. "Reality TV" allows them to be celebrities without having the talent or doing the hard work of legitimate actors.
This entertainment fraud feeds into the thought process that "my lack of talent is just as valid as your talent," which leads to "my uninformed opinion is just as valid as your facts."
This is so true.
Thanks, Dale, for going down the rabbit hole to suss out this information. I, too, have been thinking on it lately….the so very shallow (as in skin deep) fixation with pigment and all the strife & inequality caused by approx 1 mm of epidermis!
Please remember, too, Dale, that racism depends on group thinking.
When Powell wrote his memo (Aug. 23, 1971), he and his targeted audience wanted a resurgence of commercialism to rule the U.S. Their first target: schools -- to rid them of humanities, which in books, films, and songs then were increasing the energy for the anti-war movement, civil rights, feminism, La Raza, native rights, and related spirits.
They wanted instead schools to be dutiful assembly lines for commercial packagers.
But it turned out killing off the human also meant prioritizing group think, which then turned out to augment testing -- the perfect vehicle for all the conceits of the impersonal which testing would encapsulate.
Yes, white racism grew -- but could never have done so had schools kept focus on really good books and teachers' freedoms to stress the human, the wide variety of individuals all around us.
I blame social media which I use as much as Fox News ( or Fox Spews as someone in Comments called it) which I never watch. I think some folks posting on Substack recently are truly malignant. So much so that I only read Heather Cox Richardson, Robert Hubbell, Dan Rather, Elliot Richardson and Ann Applebaum and only comment in their space. I understand Free Speech but what some people write would have meant total social ostracism when I was growing up. If people actually thought this reprehensible way they kept it to themselves. We let this cat out of the bag and will have to deal with this misinformation, lies, AI generated filth, misogyny, racism and stupidity as best we can. But I have no idea how to do that successfully.
There are at least two trolls who often bombard Heather's site, Joan.
I won't mention either of their names, as each thrives on any pretext to jump in and mouth their AI-generated nonsense ad infinitum.
Not gonna end well, just a hunch
Why he wanted to be prez again. He makes the rules.
Only when those items prevent them from gaining their desires, they certainly love to use them for their protection. I.E. the due process applied to the current FLOTUS, and the fact that it is irresponsible free speech they seek to protect.
Rickey, I stumbled on your use of FLOTUS. Almost everyone understands that acronym to stand for First Lady Of The United States.
I think you had "him" in mind, but I can't guess what words you were thinking of to build your unique acronym.
Maybe he means Fotus which is an acronym used a lot lately which I interpret to mean Felon of the United States. ?
Yes, Wendyl, I'm familiar with that one. I was mainly curious to know what string of words Rickey had in mind. Insulting acronyms can be fun!
How is it that our current administration - scrupulously conscious and abhorrent of fraud, waste, and abuse - requires $450 million a year to maintain “Alligator Alcatraz,” where security is performed by swamps and alligators and inmates have no sunlight, no clock (no lunchtime!), inadequate access to showers, and backed-up toilets because there aren't nearly enough for so many people? Any fraud, waste, or abuse going on here? Please note that this is a brand-new Trump facility.
And cages, which don't even have walls you can make marks on to estimate the passage of time. It's unbelievable. And they get away with this? And these are men who have had no due process? This makes America great? again?
Recall that in Trump's first term, his administration argued in Federal Court that imprisoned children ripped from their parent's arms should not be allowed such essentials as soap or blankets.
And just what is it that makes evil evil ????
It reminds me of the person who makes hell so scary that people will behave nicely in order to avoid being sent there.
My old Grannie sent me at least two copies of "The Water Babies" (by Charles Kingsley) because she considered no child's education was complete without it. There were two powerful ladies who used to appear to young Tom when he did something wrong. One was "Mrs DoAsYouWouldBeDoneBy", (she was the kind one), the other was "Mrs BeDoneByAsYouDid". Too late for Trump and his gang to be warned by the first one, but oh boy, do they need attention from Mrs Be Done By As You Did. I would so love to see a picture of Trump, crouched in a cage in his unbuttoned blue suit and dangling red tie, his hair adrift showing his baldness, the makeup melting in the heat, crammed in with all those people who in happier days stood clapping their hands as he "signed" those executive orders and held them up for the camera..
I think the access to overflowing toilets might cause him a few more problems than his melting makeup. . .
(Laughter) All that "glisters" is not gold.
His belly no longer girdled resting on the ground.
That rounds the grisly picture out.
I read "The Water Babies" (by Charles Kingsley) as a child, thinking the title sounded nice, but it was really scary. It affected me in many ways.
It certainly distinguishes right from wrong. But maybe I was just tough. I also loved "Struwwelpeter", even if it did give me a lifelong fear of longlegged spiders, but my son won't even allow me to give my ancient copy to his young children - says it gave him dreadful nightmares. Well, so did I have a nightmare or two, but it was all par for the course... Interestingly, when they all came to visit me at Christmas (they live 4000 km away on the west coast) the little girls sat one each side of me and I read selected poems from the book. Rosa (8) listened avidly, but Hazel (6) was clearly worried because Daddy didn't want her to listen, and she looked sideways at me with big eyes.
Yes, and we (charities) were not allowed to provide basic basic hygiene necessities because that would be treating them as human beings instead of animals.
And these are people who struggled to come to America for a better life and a future with hope. Dachau. Belsen. Mauthausen. And the rest. There are pictures of them, chained together, bent double, in a way the ICE operatives seem to have been taught.
$450 million a year to maintain a facility that looks more like a massive dog kennel than an actual prison, we are obviously being bilked and money siphoned off as this obscenely corrupt Trump regime always does.
Many inmates have reported that the lights are on continuously, the meals are paltry, even worm ridden, substandard quality and sometimes only eating once a day. Also mention of the very unsanitary conditions(overflowing toilets/raw sewage, no showers, outdoor access) and lacking in adequate medical care, pushing some into a state of extreme distress. The detention site flooded right when it opened and it's a swamp so: mosquitoes, cockroaches, crickets, frogs, even snakes and alligators not far off from the chain link enclosures.
They are deprived of any form of privacy. They haven't been tried and found guilty. Ghislaine Maxwell has, and is serving her sentence, and suddenly finds herself moved to something resembling a summer camp for women. But of the course the President doesn't know, hasn't heard anything about that. He said so. You know, he could make some more money for himself by re-writing "The Art of the Deal", just slightly, and calling it "How to blackmail". His global "negotiations" are all blackmails. Do as I say or your tariffs go to 100%.
It’s amazing to hear him say in answer to a question about some action his admin has taken “I don’t know anything about that”….1) he’s lying, or 2) he’s not making the decisions, or 3) both.
Probably (3). When in doubt, lie anyway.
A-L, I forget which renown national newspaper (I think) was keeping track of the count of all his lies….wonder it they’ve just thrown up their hands and no longer attempt to tabulate them…how many lies are in a daily tsunami of lies & how fast can you count???
Barbara,that was the WAPO when it had a little bit of decency left.
I vote for possibility #3. Definitely.
Yeah, me too! It would be almost funny if it weren’t so damn scary, impactful and consequential….. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ZV3kGRY1j0
(only we have to resist and persist so that we can foil the attempts!)
And you Anne-Louise should write a book titled "Tha art of describing everything in a nutshell " 😎
Thanks, Ricardo. First smile of the day.
Then, I should reply to your comments often. 🫡
Privatization ALWAYS equals the consumer/client gets bilked. No exceptions.
Carla, that’s just Capitalism, and the Republican theme, at work for (?!!) you!
Trump and the GOP are creating hell on earth and deriving great joy from people’s suffering. Are they demons?
Unpunished miscreants is what they are.
And an environmental disaster. One of many
Yes, the State of Florida is probably profiting by running this facility for ICE, and in turn all the contractors it has hired and handsomely. That Trump has hyped it te else that the appalling conditions are deliberate. Not merely to for e detainees to agree to deportation, they are meant to spread fear of ICE.
I understand the facility is at the site of an airport about halfway between Miami and Tampa. It is not inaccessible. It is off the highway known as Tamiami Trail. And it could be considered conveniently located if the purpose was actually to fly people out of the country to points south, for the airport can handle big commercial jets. But that apparently is not the point. It's a prison, as Trump's name for it makes clear. A prison for those who claim a right to remain in the country or have nowhere else to go. And for others who for some reason ICE can not figure out a way to get rid of. A concentration camp. Not a transit facility. Apparently the airport is not busy flying planeloads of deportees to various places. If it were, you know, the place would probably not be needed.
Which leads to the broader question. If ICE's job is to deport foreigners illegally present in the United States, and it is doing its job well, then why, oh, why, does it need such a massive expansion of its detention facilities ?? Why does it need this place ? Why instead is there no passenger terminal ? No departure lounge ??
The answer is self evident. ICE can't donuts job right. It is not even trying. It has given up. It has turned to building concentration camps. The conditions are deliberately harsh. Worse than the worst prisons. Not for want of resources. Cruel and usually so. They are torture facilities not detention centers. The purpose is twofold. To instill fear of ICE in the general public. And to compell those arrested by ICE to abandon all their rights under duress.
Those may well now include Texas legislators. Because Trump won't send FBI agent to arrest them. It will send ICE officers armed with general arrest powers.
It is understandable that there should be plumbing problems at this facility. It's in the Everglades. It is insanely unsuitable hence cruel. And unusual in the highest degree, since it is punishment for exercising constitutional rights.
Tyler, I assume your questions are rhetorical. The current iteration of ICE is the realization of Stephen Miller's fever dream.
ICE's mission is no longer deportation of undocumented immigrants; ICE is charged with rounding up persons with non-white skin and imprisoning them in concentration camps until they die. Death may come from exposure, disease or starvation.
It is not beyond my imagination to expect that as prisoner populations exceed capacities of the gulag, gases will have to be employed to make space for new prisoners.
And mosquitoes
Malaria?
Ah, yes. And/or West Nile Virus. Equine Encephalitis. SARS. Avian Influenza. A new COVID variant. Hanta Virus. Or just plain old Dysentery . Cholera. Look at all the vectors. The place is a crossroads for infectious diseases. The odds are good that there will be some sort of infectious disease outbreak occuring at this facility. And it will spread quickly.
I wonder if "Dr" Kennedy has thought about that? No, I'm sure he hasn't.
Those missing sections of the Constitution were restored? That's good to hear. If they weren't there the President could do some bad shady things, like accepting airplanes from foreign gifters, setting taffiffs willy-nilly, and refusing to spend the money Congress had---uh-oh!!
$COTUS has determined that upholding the Constitution is optional for Republicans.
You gotta wonder -- is everything just a test for them? Throw shit against the walll, see what sticks, what slides off? The parts about the District under Congress suddenly disappearing -- given that 'Big Balls' DOGE boy (now inflicting chaos on the Social Security Administration) was beaten in a group carjacking here in DC early Sunday morning at about 3am. Police have already caught two perpetrators (juveniles) out of about 10 -- a random event, but Trump wasted absolutely no time spouting immediate gibberish about 'seizing control' of the District in order to 'clean up' crime.
As so many keep tirelessly pointing out, crime is everywhere -- even in red states, red cities, red urban areas, and crime in DC is down 20% from what it was just one year ago, and WAY down from what it used to be in the 1980s. Dictators are always looking for the smallest excuses to scream that the sky is falling and only THEY can keep it rip.
When he first rattled that sword in February and there was no money at all for DC in the federal budget back then, Mayor Bowser actually painted over the giant BLACK LIVES MATTER that adorned 16th Street NW lengthwise leading directly into Lafayette Park across from the White House. I'm sure she was hoping to head off his wrath then. The Senate restored funding by voice vote. But a pig has to be a pig, I guess.
It's all in Project 2025, well, except the part where Trump goes loony tunes.
No he couldn’t. Deleting them off the site doesn’t change the constitution.
Trump couldn’t? Oh, but he IS doing those unconstitutional things now! Right before our eyes! And nothing is happening to him. Why?!!!!
The courts aren’t going to save us. The Supreme Court is part of the problem.
WE THE PEOPLE can save us. The question is, will we? I do not believe the majority of Americans are cruel and hateful. I just don't. No matter their Party affiliation, MOST people are decent, law-abiding citizens. Trump is NOT. He's not ANY of those things. So there are a LOT of US out here waiting for strong leadership to guide us all into the battle to stop the lawlessness, lies, lawfare, and worse! We'll fight...to save America, our democracy, each other and us ALL from Trump. He is NOT our friend. He cannot do what he claims. He can only cheat and destroy. He's never been able to successfully build and grow a company over time. Has he EVER? Has he recently? Or has he done the opposite...running up the price of EVERYTHING for Americans, killing actual growth, increasing the National Debt by BILLIONS just to give him and his fellow billionaires another HUGE TAX BREAK at the expense of kid's school lunches, healthcare, Medicare, Medicaid and SS is next, just watch 'em.
$COTUS merged with Trump Inc.
Trump’s lawyers and pastors approve of his works.
Because Republicans in Congress have abdicated all their power to him. We should just stop paying them and shut down Congress.
Maybe somebody should read those parts of the Constitution to Mr. Trump, really slowly so he could understand it, preferably a judge...Nah, he'd just fall asleep.
Someone needs to put them on TV so that he can watch them. That seems to be the only way he gets his information.
Ah yes, "Sleepy Don".
Yes! And add some nonsensical hand gestures which he seems to understand.
I just checked: those sections are still in the written copy I have.
Not yet, anyway.
I suspect Musk installed software to purge favorable mentions of people of color, or rule of law. Or any restraints affecting a Republican president.
And then you can just call it a "coding error."
Ya, a coding error. Like anyone believes THAT!
They don't care what anyone except for MAGA believes. They certainly don't care about facts or the truth.
Probably not Musk or DOGE but maybe Peter Thiel.
That was the idea all along.
He probably saw them and said "Fake news!" - so they took them down. Like the job figures, if you can't see them, they don't exist. . .
Or Donold could even amble on up to the roof of the White House, gesticulating and ranting about nonsense like some neurosyphilitic lunatic while some reporters try to unsuccessfully ask questions as to why he's up there, where are the Epstein files, will there ever be peace in Ukraine or Gaza(specifically, he said he'd end the wars on his first day in office)...
Did you see the meme where they show Trump wandering around the roof of the WH and the caption is - "Jump, jump, jump?" I could stop laughing. If only.....
The president can do bad shady things regardless of the Constitution and boy, he is not wasting any time.....
It's almost as if it doesn't matter whether they are there or not.
Sections ignored anyway
We have a global corporatist fascist takeover happening every day since Jan. 20, 2025. They are dismantling our federal government but for the military. They are prepping to allow a takeover of the States by megarich international corporations. It has been happening to so-called "red states" for a awhile. That is why they are attacking our entire education system from Head Start to Harvard, etc. They seek to sell our public schools to corporations and issue vouchers to parents to buy a seat at so-called "schools" which will teach kids to do whatever a boss tells them to do and keep their mouth shut; aka, "right to work" states. Thus undereducated, low payed, non-union labor employed by a union of rich global investors; corporate share holders who live in multiple mansions all around the world. IOW, the end of the "New Deal" and a return to the same old crap of squalid living conditions for working men, women and children working the line as well. As Biden warned us, this is not the Republican party of your father. He should have called them out for who and what they are; Damn Nazis!
Absolutely! Naming them for what they are, Nazis, is a powerful reflection on their evil intent. Naming the evil matters. Thank you.
I am not sure they are exactly Nazi's at this point, and yet like Nazi's they promote big lies, are cruel, authoritarian, violent, and greedy, and thoroughly racist.
Please JL, they’re absolutely Nazis. There’s no neo that should be put in front of the word. They breathe the putrid air that their ancestors breathed. Their ancestors were on d driven under a rock but when Donny emerged with his obnoxious speeches, they dug themselves out of their caves and reentered the modern world.
IMO, they have been the Deep State since Nixon. Now Trump is clearing out all Federal employees who do not pledge loyalty to him. Thus he is creating a cesspool in every Fed office.
". . . since Nixon," well, yes, sort of, Albert.
Certainly since the Powell memo of Aug. 23, 1971 (for which Nixon gave Powell nomination for seat on Supreme Court).
Carrying Nazi flags, salutes, using similar tactics, etc, are clues I can't easily dismiss.
JL, I’m genuinely curious, so I’m asking. I fail to see any sunlight between Nazis and the current maga/techno fascists in power. Can you please explain to me the differences that you see? I’d be grateful. I live in Florida and we deal with both Desantis and felon47’s regime, so perhaps my opinion is skewed by this immersion in their hatred. My daughter had an Irish friend put into ICE detention in Miami. He was held for close to three months with starvation on the daily menu. He finally got out with huge pressure from a legal team, and he is back home in Ireland and remains in the ICU due to the starvation and deprivation. This is our reality here. To me, Nazis are anyone who is currently in charge or silently complicit with this treatment of humans.
Functionally I don't think there is a lot of difference, and Trump's admiration of Hitler has been reported by those who have known him. The sociopathic authoritarian impulse is the same, as it is for all vicious tyrants, nominally left, right, and/or theocratic. There are differences of specific history and culture, but the addiction to violence and absolute power unties them.
Thank you, JL. I really appreciate your response!
I got banned from FB and T for that in 2020
Go you! We need to name the evil for what it is instead of trying to explain it away or making allowances. They are Nazis, pure and simple. I hate that this is real but it is!
right on Albert.
https://youtu.be/VQbDgOaOh4c?si=paDXXAJN2vg4gDlG
Maddow: U.S. profoundly changed by authoritarian leader; 'We're beyond waiting and seeing now'.
I wouldn't exclude the military from the dismantling process. Women and men of color in leadership positions have been fired. No more trans or gay people allowed either.
Yet they will keep enough men as a standing army to control the streets of America as they did in Los Angeles and to also takeover the country under martial law following Trump's coming staged reality TV style "attack" on is government.
They don't say much about the many others choosing to leave the military units and the difficulty in recruiting the numbers they fantasized about willingly signing up.
Telling FEMA workers they have to report to ICE should be interesting.
Perhaps they will have to (if they aren't already), take in domestic criminals and foreigners as the French Foreign Legion did. Get new identities and a chance to become a new citizen without a traceable past, if they survive (and follow orders long enough).
Knowing their apparent models, though, I'd suspect they might do as Nazis and others did in forcing young men from conquered areas (Poland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Ukraine) into service for them. From what I've heard from people like my Polish Mentor (captured at Corregidor), and read, part of the reason we were successful at Normandy was Polish conscript defenders who were more willing to surrender to us if and when they could.
ICE apparently is offering a $50,000 bonus to new recruits with many of the usual qualifications reduced or eliminated..
"Obey Dear Leader" their only unbreakable command.
Sad but true. (not the kind of comment I want to "like"...)
I don’t know, Albert, the US is a huge territory and population to control. And our military has not been groomed to police anybody, let alone their own people. Even the brief attempt in LA resulted in terrible morale and dissatisfaction among the troops deployed.
Just because the regime aspires to a police state doesn’t mean they can achieve it. Especially if we are doggedly determined to thwart them. Never give up!
Trump seems to be working hard to create the kind of economy where he will find new recruits, especially in red States. Part of our job is to "organize," as Saul Alinsky warn us to do in the late 60's, in the south. He knew of the large mass of people growing angry. Now thay will be very hungry and will have seen that voting for single issues (hate, pro-life, anti-gay, etc.) is not the way to feed a family.
I can't believe Albert, how well your description fits the situation our country is going through. It's a real nightmare.
I use to install air conditioning in existing homes. One of those homes the owner was a WWII hero. He had photos of himself with his fellow G.I.s taken overseas on several walls in his home. He also had several metals on the wall in his bed room. I thanked him for his service. I dared to ask him what it was like for him and all those others in his division and how did they build so much bravery at that age? He looked me in the eye and said with a matter of fact and firm tone in his voice, "We had a job to do."
Another WWII hero, John F. Kennedy, in his "Inaugural Address" on Jan 20, 1961 said,
"We dare not forget today that we are the heirs of that first revolution. Let the word go forth from this time and place, to friend and foe alike, that the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans — born in this century, tempered by war, disciplined by a hard and bitter peace, proud of our ancient heritage — and unwilling to witness or permit the slow undoing of those human rights to which this nation has always been committed, and to which we are committed today at home and around the world."
We the People have a job to do.
John F. Kennedy, "Inaugural Address"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PEC1C4p0k3E
Our job is not in our comfort zone, nor was theirs.
Thanks for the reminder of Kennedy's Inaugural Address. Let's compare it to Trump's (if it hasn't one of the transcripts he has or intends to remove).
In 2009 I lost a friend who was once an active College or Young Republican (I can't remember which), whom I respected for active (and rational) political discussions. I especially liked his participation in protests against the John Birch Society (which still had/has supporters I met in the Loma Linda area). He and even the JBS followers in the area were polite and could converse on many issues that had mutual benefits we could agree on, but there were some hard lines bot sides kept their distance on. I still appreciate all the things we could agree on or respectfully disagree on.
Though many others were too much under the spell of those who were extremely opposed to Obama, he hadn't said much, so I had some hope that I could point out some poorly recognized bias among about a dozen coworkers. To do so, about 3 months after Obama was inaugurated, I passed out copies of an inaugural address and asked him in particular (as the most reasonable), to read it and see where he and the others might praise or criticize it.
He took at least 15 minutes to read it before offering bitter criticism of almost everything in it. I kept looking puzzled until he finally asked why I was puzzled.
I took the copy of the transcript titled '&9 Inaugural Speech and feigned surprise that there was a typo, "&9" should have been "'09," what they assumed was Obama's Inaugural Address, was in fact, Nixon's.
I will not do that again, but I won't rule out having transcripts with no date or other clue as to who said it, and asking people to express what they think of policy details regardless of who the author was.
Reminds me of NPR provoking a hostile tweetstorm when they tweeted out the Declaration of Independence on July 4.
Here is one I have used.
“Mark my word, if and when these preachers get control of the [Republican] party, and they're sure trying to do so, it's going to be a terrible damn problem. Frankly, these people frighten me. Politics and governing demand compromise. But these Christians believe they are acting in the name of God, so they can't and won't compromise. I know, I've tried to deal with them.”
― Barry Goldwater
Apart from his encounters with Joe McCarthy, Ike would not recognize the "Republican" Party, nor would Lincoln.
Ike was well aware of the possibility of this coming. In his farewell address on January 17, 1961 he warned the nation to guard against the potential control of the “military–industrial complex.” Maybe he should have added “oil” to that title. Lincoln... Good God.
Dwight D. Eisenhower's farewell address -
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dwight_D._Eisenhower%27s_farewell_address
Dwight D. Eisenhower's farewell address was delivered in a television broadcast on January 17, 1961. The speech expressed concerns about planning for the future and the dangers of massive spending, especially deficit spending, the prospect of the domination of science through federal funding and, conversely, the domination of science-based public policy by what he called a "scientific-technological elite".
“In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military-industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist. We must never let the weight of this combination endanger our liberties or democratic processes. We should take nothing for granted. Only an alert and knowledgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of the huge industrial and military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods and goals, so that security and liberty may prosper together.”
The speech was "a solemn moment in a decidedly unsolemn time", warning a nation "giddy with prosperity, infatuated with youth and glamour, and aiming increasingly for the easy life."
“As we peer into society's future, we – you and I, and our government – must avoid the impulse to live only for today, plundering for our own ease and convenience the precious resources of tomorrow. We cannot mortgage the material assets of our grandchildren without risking the loss also of their political and spiritual heritage. We want democracy to survive for all generations to come, not to become the insolvent phantom of tomorrow.”
Despite his military background and being the only general to be elected president in the 20th century, he warned the nation with regard to the corrupting influence of what he describes as the "military-industrial complex".
I never thought of more closely connecting Eisenhower's farewell address and Kennedy's Inaugural until now. What I do remember, though was (to me) Kennedy inspiring people to think for themselves, get close to the people and problems too few ever knew of. He didn't direct blindly from the top, but inspired people to see and start finding solutions for all sorts of problems that led to far more people being able to make their own lives better, more secure in food, water, health, education, and cooperation that promised better futures for all (a little outside help to make much greater self-help possible).
Funny thing is neither would Ronald Reagan, who gave amnesty to illegal immigrants and supported an assault weapons ban.
I think Saint Ronnie would have been fine with high-power, high-capacity firearms on the streets if he hadn't been shot.
Republicans are only bothered when something affects them personally.
St. Ronnie pulled off the national shift of opinion toward defaming the whole concept of government of, by and for the people, and promoting domination by the richest. He thus set the ball rolling on a path toward Trump.
That said, I think he believed, or at some level wanted to believe, some of his own nonsense; and of course he schemed and lied as well. He was certainly a thorough racist. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/jul/31/ronald-reagan-racist-recordings-nixon
I dunno, J L ... I'm not convinced we can believe Reagan really had many thoughts of his own. He was an actor, trained to remember his lines and speak them on command. Indeed, he was a racist and a homophobe, but those traits just made him compatible with his puppeteers.
My recollection is the American people were profoundly naive about the U.S. presidency and the occupants of the office. People thought their presidents were extraordinary individuals, charting their courses for the nation, with the help of many "advisors."
It may have been as late as the Bush 2.0 administration when people began to realize that the president is just the "face" of a large cadre of administrators who make the decisions and tell the president "what he decided."
This schema is, of course, pronounced with Republicans who have a penchant for choosing leaders with meager intellects and/or dementia. This is likely intentional, as a mental midget makes a better hand puppet.
While, certainly in my lifetime, there were more background constraints and pressures on the president than we are trained to think, but I think some presidents were more "hands on than others" and yes, Reagan seemed pretty naive and out of it. He was the featured game-show host of a plutocratic operation. Repeatedly hailed by the MSM as "The Great Communicator" (compared to whom?) his rhetoric was mostly cheesy sales pitch. Some of his interviews suggest to me that he was simple-minded enough to suppose that what he was doing actually would help the country as a whole. I don't think Trump and his cronies have any such illusion. They are aiming for total, self-serving, domination.
Too many do not agree that he was a damn racist.
To be clear I'm no fan of Reagan. He was the the beginning of the trope, "The government is the problem" attitude of the GOP. That said, the GOP today is so far right that even some of his policies would earn him the RINO moniker.
Don’t forget the Republican goal of selling the USA government to the wealthy, so they can get richer.
Thank you Professor Richardson.
I'm pretty sure Section 3 of the 14th Amendment is missing as well. It should have been depicted on all four walls of former AG Merrick Garland's office.
"No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and Vice-President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States, or under any State, who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any State legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any State, to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. But Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability."
I had to scroll a long way through comments to find a reference to the "missing" parts of the Constitution! As a former middle-school social studies teacher, I consider this a "High Crime" and worthy of investigation!! Coding error, my arse!
Thank you Eileen.
It is so clear -- as clear as the fact that almost no Dem in America could read it.
(More important things to do: fund-raising, courting celebrities, more fund-raising, soliciting money by e-mail to any and all who ever contacted that congressional office, appearing at corporate events to entice money donations there.)
I hope the rise in resistance from Dem lawmakers will grow and encourage more resistance from state and federal employees and lawmakers around the country.
Yesterday, Miles Taylor wrote that the one thing that terrifies Trump's vicious little satraps and wormtongues everywhere isn't lawsuits, isn't even Democrats fighting back -- it's US. It's you and me. Denounce them at restaurants and bars when you see them, recognize them, call them out, point them out. They like to destroy things, then eat out at nice restaurants in blue cities like DC and New York. Don't let them have a nice meal at our expense.
I don't know if this qualifies as a 'mass' protest or not, but it's useful information from someone who got threatened many times as an anonymous denouncer of You Know Who from the inside during the first time around. For what it's worth....
Yesterday I had a late lunch with my husband at a neighborhood bar/restaurant in a heavily red area. Everyone was watching the Little League World Series. I told them about TACO canceling the visas for the Venezuelan kids, who were entitled to play as the Latin American champions. Those watching were shocked. This stuff doesn’t get to their newsfeeds.
Of course it doesn’t. And what does hit their “newsfeed” is either propaganda or outright lies.
And I hope that ICE and the military continue to struggle with hiring.
Trump 1.0 promised to add 15,000 border patrol and ICE agents. When he left office, there was a net increase of about 300. It turns out most Americans don't want to be Fascist thugs. I can't wait for the new ICE agents to quit and Miller, Homan, Noem, Patel, etc. try to get their $45K - $50K back. Of course, it's likely to be a fool's errand, but it should be interesting.
Copies of the Constitution are available for as little as $1.99 and it can be read free on line. I gave a copy to each of my grandchildren. It is a very short, very easy read. My new copy contains the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation, as well as the Constitution and it is still only 99 pages long. It's good to have your own copy so you can mark it up and highlight passages you wish for reference. If you know the most important of your own laws, you will be less willing to listen to untruths.
I have a copy in pamphlet form that I got from my doctor's office. Sadly, it contains mistakes.
The 77 million Americans who put Trump in the White House knew they were voting for a man who bragged, repeatedly during his first term that cruelty is the point. Trump voters knew what kind of man Trump was. That’s why they voted for him. We won’t find out until November, 2026 how many, if any, have changed their minds. Between now and then, our job is to do all we can to get D-leaning voters to cast ballots in 2026. Complaining about fascists is cathartic but won’t get the job done. Focus on the task at hand. Get our people to the polls.
If there are polls open.
Heather, I want to hear the story behind who found the missing sections and how they got them restored so fast! Great work! A hero! They thought we wouldn’t notice!
It was the Library of Congress whose website was (hacked) temporarily incorrect. Don't mess with Librarians!
A coding error.....yeah right!
Quite likely they accessed a previous version of the web posting and restored that.
Easily done.
https://open.substack.com/pub/closertotheedge/p/governor-abbott?r=kxzps&utm_medium=ios
‘Governor Abbott, Bless Your Heart, That’s Not How Quorums Work’
CLOSER TO THE EDGE
AUG 4 2025 | SUBSTACK
…”Meanwhile, folks are still cleaning up from the floods from early July. Families lost their houses, people lost their lives, and you’re in Austin fiddling with congressional maps like you’re drawing plays for a football team that never wins. That’s not leadership, Greg — that’s skipping out on actual governance so you can sit in the air‑conditioning and Sharpie new boundaries for Donald Trump.”
Thank you for sharing- great piece of writing! I’m from Mississippi, not Texas, but every reference reminded me that there are some things about the South that you just don’t find anywhere else.
They believe their own bullschittery.
Painting with a broad brush, JD ☹️
Follow the money behind GEO Group, political donations and the companies exploiting prison labor
https://thedemlabs.org/2025/05/10/new-jersey-mayor-arrested-geogroup-private-prison-follow-the-money/
Meet some of the young victims of the Jeffrey Epstein — Ghislaine Maxwell pedophile ring
https://thedemlabs.org/2025/07/30/jeffrey-epstein-ghislaine-maxwell-pedophile-scheme-victims-map/
Mike Flood of Nebraska is getting a Democratic opponent, announced today. It hasn't been a good week after he heard from his constituents and has been roundly ridiculed. He was so arrogant because he's in a safe, red district (even with only three districts, Nebraska is gerrymandered). But Lincoln hates him and his turn from moderate to MAGA. We're not going to make it easy for him and the fascists.
Literally messing with the Constitution until they were caught. Epstein is dead and his victims are now grandmother age but possibly paying off his confederate to lie for Trump is the big story. While RFK Jr puts vaccine development back to the 18th century and wipes out possible cancer prevention and epidemic response. Millions of sufferers and years of research lost are going to count most in the long run.
Four infographics to illustrate Heather's post.
RFK Jr. cancels vaccine research after 1,300,000 Americans die from COVID: Mapping the deaths
https://thedemlabs.org/2025/08/06/rfk-jr-cancels-vaccine-research-after-1300000-american-covid-deaths/
Share questions to ask Republicans at Town Hall with this free teleprompter app.
https://thedemlabs.org/2024/06/09/amplify-your-message-with-a-shared-set-of-talking-points-using-thebigstage-teleprompter/
10 ways Texas Republican scheme to rig redistricting costs you: Check this map
https://thedemlabs.org/2025/08/04/texas-republican-redistricting-10-ways-gerrymandering-hurts-you/
Check this map for the districts Texas Republicans are trying to gerrymander - and all the Republican districts in Blue States including CA, NY, IL, MI...
Fight fire with fire: Gerrymander!
https://thedemlabs.org/2025/07/30/fight-fire-with-fire-gerrymander/
Share questions to ask Republicans at Town Hall with this free teleprompter app.
https://thedemlabs.org/2024/06/09/amplify-your-message-with-a-shared-set-of-talking-points-using-thebigstage-teleprompter/
I noted that Trump trusted state of the are medical care when HE contracted COVID.
Only after he tried to give it to Biden, of course.
So even the written version of the constitutional guarantees are subject to DOGE/Palantir/MAGA anti DEI scrutiny/’’layoffs’.