People expecting a fire and brimstone performance from Trump today at West Point’s graduation got the opposite: a president slurring words, unable to move a water glass to his mouth with his right hand, and apparently unsteady on a gently inclined ramp from the platform to the lawn with a military officer beside him.
The Trump Campaign is setting up their "Oh, but her emails..." one-liner for the fall. Something along the lines of, "The Bidens are crooks and we've got the tapes to prove it."
They may be preaching to the choir, but as Rebecca Solnit in her essay "Preaching to the Choir" once observed, "What matters is that some of us act. In 2006, the political scientist Erica Chenoweth set out to determine whether nonviolence was as effective for regime change as violence. She found, to her surprise, that nonviolent strategies worked better. Organizers were enthralled by her conclusion that only around 3.5 percent of a population was needed to successfully resist or even topple a regime. In other words, to create change, you don’t need everyone to agree with you, you just need some people to agree so passionately that they will donate, campaign, march, risk arrest or injury." Ms. Solnit was speaking to a largely liberal audience and her essay is far more comprehensive than this brief excerpt might imply, but Trump's tactic to reinforce the faith of the faithful and encourage them to spread his message has been effective thus far and may continue to be unless the opposition can deliver an overwhelmingly convincing counter message and back it up in the streets and at the polls.
"In an intellectual exchange, disagreement doesn’t mean tearing down a rival but testing and strengthening the structure of a proposal, an analysis. It is what you do when you agree with people in general but have specifics to work out; and that work can be a joy."
Daniel-- this is such a powerful piece. It helped articulate for me what I believe-- that "organized beliefs" whether they be politics, religion or some other institution's set of rules for thinking -- often undermine our ability to find common ground as humans. I did not grow up in the Episcopal church for example. But I met a rector, Father Chip. when I was in my 60's who inspired me. I went to his services on Sunday, and loved how he spoke to me but when the congregation recited the Nicene creed, I was silent. I could not speak those words, because I don't believe them. I told Father Chip I was not sure I believed in God, but I often believed in what he had to say every week. He encouraged me and engaged me to act on what I believe, whatever the source. Because of that encouragement I am much more open and productive in my conversations with people no matter what choir they sing in. Am passing this around
Ppl in their 70s, like me get these debilitations such as balance problems, (Benign Positional Vertigo) & peripheral neuropathy that limit the most basic abilities making doddering old men of us. I discovered my vertigo in the Italian Alps in 2015, and walking on inclines or stairs without rails is a frightening struggle. I can still hold a vessel in one hand to drink, but many common things once done with my hands are now very difficult.
It is comforting to see that not only we good and decent ppl get these afflictions but disgusting asswipes suffer them as well.
Getting the vote out is key but let's make those votes count too. Gerrymandering can enable us to build up massive majorities in geographically distinct areas but we can still loose the election because of the shape and size of the voting districts. Non-poltical boundary commissions are an essential control on the venality of politicians.
Michigan passed using a citizen commission to draw up districts in 2018. I also like the recommendations in Strategy 1 of Our Common Purpose: Reinventing American Democracy for the 21st Century which includes Citizen commissions. https://www.amacad.org/ourcommonpurpose/report/section/6
Wow Sharon thanks for sharing this - it speaks to so many of my personal ideas of what we need to do in this country to return the power to the people, including gerrymandering, but especially transparency of funding. I realize SuperPACs are used by both sides but they seem to be especially weaponized by the right.
The gerrymandering issue is key for sure. My district in New Jersey is, like almost all the others (NJ has 40! Districts. 40!!!) looks like a strange mish-mash of localities. Every time I talk about it though I’m met with “well the Democrats do it, too”. So, my question is, do they? And if so, to the extent that Republicans do, in such a blatantly unfair way? I guess I need a more basic understanding of how districts are created. And I recall President Obama (and Holder maybe?) promising a fight against partisan gerrymandering post-2016 election. Not sure how that has played out, although I also recall a recently successful initiative in NC?
It is interesting to see the massive increase in the number of voters for the Georgia Senate primary. Perhaps McConnell's performance and constant obstruction are helping the people better understand the workings of the political institutions and of the absolute importance of controlling the Senate.
When I read trumps tweet defending his ramp navigation I felt sorry for him for the first time. Which was frankly, very confusing.
It was suddenly apparent to me that he embodies the consequences of a society that denounces compassion and fearless self-evaluation, diluting the notion character nearly to the point of obsolescence; replacing these with insecurity, warped self-impotence and fear.
He is broken and will destroy everything and everyone he can to justify his own brokenness. What a torturous existence.
The conundrum my initial response was directly related to the idea of compassion - it was uncomfortable to feel bad for him, to have even a sliver of compassion for him, yet that very compassion on a societal level may be the antidote for the disease. To dig that out from under a mountain of anger and frustration will require a back hoe of epic proportions.
All indications are that tRump is a sociopath. He would feel nothing for you or your angst at guiltily feeling sorry for him. Of course he would appreciate your concern. It's all about him.
If his displayed symptoms are actually indicative that he suffers the same old-age maladies that afflict me, feel free to empathize with me and just think to hell with him. :)
One who is desperate to be seen as young and strong - and is happy to unleash military force against peaceful protesters to hide his own weakness. There is only so much I can feel sorry for him.
Wow, fascinating piece. Having a family member who suffers from mental illness, I have always cringed at public judgements of whether or not an individual suffers from it. But I don’t think any reasonable observer needs a degree in psychology to come to the conclusion that there is a deranged individual at the helm here. What scares me most is that it gets whitewashed and becomes normalized. This quote summed it up for me:
“”As Robert Jay Lifton writes in the foreword to Lee’s book, “Our Witness to Malignant Normality,” in which he channels Fromm, “A dangerous president becomes normalized, and malignant normality comes to dominate our governing (or, one could say, our antigoverning) dynamic.” “”
Heather, would you please comment/discuss voting as a form of speech? It seems to me that in a public canvas, such that one audibly or by sign indicates preference is a “vote.” Should not expressing preference by secret ballot in our elections also be “speech?” Then, should not suppression of voting also be suppression of guaranteed free speech. Comment from others welcome.
I am heartened to see high-profile black athletes and celebrities taking initiative to encourage and educate voters. There is a story circulating (please let it be true, because it is powerful and moving) about Dave Chappelle being heckled by a young white woman when he was given the subject of racism to talk about. She said "Life is hard, sorry 'bout that." He then proceeded to give her an education on police brutality and the racism rampant in our country. Long story short, after the show she apologized and thanked him for educating her. He thanked her for hearing him and listening. "Know better, do better." "...you're no longer part of the problem, you're part of the solution. "
Well, I watched Trump's unintelligible speech to the cadets in C Span. Lots of words, zero substance. Thank God it was short. (By trump standards)
Many thanks, too, for including the Harper's article. Though I was aware of the Diebold issues I was not aware of the tangled fraternity of players within the industry or the fact that felons lead the automated voting industry. It would be interesting to have an update to the article. I'm sure things haven't really improved.
Our local paper devoted a medium-length article to Trump's West Point speech. The article described the speech and summarized some of his main points and talked about the recent fractures in his relationships with military leaders, but it mentioned nothing whatsoever about his slurring words and fumbling manners.
Voter suppression legislation pending in Iowa right now. County auditors across the state are opposed to the language in the proposed legislation which, in part, prohibits then from sending absentee ballot requests without a written voter request. This after Iowa saw record voter turnout for the June 2 primary for which every registered voter was sent an absentee ballot request form and the early voting period for mailed ballots was extended. Clearly a Republican effort to suppress votes.
That's for sure! I lived in NW Iowa for years and only just recently left so I know the politics there quite well. It is clearly a red area, especially Sioux County from whence came Steve King. Lots of Dutch Reformed churches. The main issues are abortion and gun control - hard to have a conversation about either of those issues as there isn't much room for compromise among the staunch conservatives.
27 long years for me. I was north of Sheldon in Osceola County. Where did you live? It is a very Aryan society. Land bound. It was amazing the amount of people that never traveled further than Sioux City or Sioux Falls in their whole lives.
I grew up on a farm just outside Merrill and Hinton, 2 tiny towns on Highway 75. I went to school in Le Mars, the "Ice Cream Capitol of the World," Wells Dairy. We played Sheldon in basketball. Yes, a very white area. There were NO people of color in my high school back in the early 70's. A few more now, particularly Latinx people who work in the dairy industry. Sioux City is the largest metro area near where I lived and it has a strong, vocal Dem population. Still very few POC but an active NAACP and there have been Black women and men in elected positions locally like school board. Sioux City (and the tri-state area there) has a growing population of East Africans, particularly from Somalia, Eritrea, Ethiopia - many of whom work in the meat packing plants. This population has been ravaged by Covid19 and CovidKim (governor Reynolds) and her regressive policies.
My ex husband graduated from Hinton. My son is in the Air Guard in Sioux City. He commented about the Somalians. My ex also drove truck for a company that fixed meat processing equipment. I've been in the processing plants. They pack the workers in just like the do in China. No surprise there, since they are Chinese owned. Add to it the conditions are wet all the time. It's no wonder they got hit hard.
Funny how we can find connections with so many people with just a little conversation! Interesting. I'm related to the Spies family which was a big name in Hinton. Hope you are living in a more liberal area now. We moved to Oregon last summer. It's a blue state but mostly because of the population in Portland. Our small town is definitely red so there's lots of work to be done! Take care and stay safe and healthy.
That's part of what makes the Republican anti-mail-ballot push so weird. If anything, mail-in ballots favor Republicans. And they are pushing against it even in states that they should win easily in November.
'According to the Daily News, the drinking issue could be a sign of a more significant medical problem. . . . "This is a persistent neurological sign that, combined with others, would be concerning enough to require a brain scan," psychiatrist Dr. Bandy Lee from Yale wrote on social media.'
Since his second debate with Clinton I've wondered if tRump has neurosyphilis.
One of the personnel who worked on DTs reality shows has claimed that DT is dependent on a combination of Adderalll and barbiturates, stating further that upon DT’s election, special agents raided the offices of DT’s doctor and took all of his medical records.
The Trump Campaign is setting up their "Oh, but her emails..." one-liner for the fall. Something along the lines of, "The Bidens are crooks and we've got the tapes to prove it."
They may be preaching to the choir, but as Rebecca Solnit in her essay "Preaching to the Choir" once observed, "What matters is that some of us act. In 2006, the political scientist Erica Chenoweth set out to determine whether nonviolence was as effective for regime change as violence. She found, to her surprise, that nonviolent strategies worked better. Organizers were enthralled by her conclusion that only around 3.5 percent of a population was needed to successfully resist or even topple a regime. In other words, to create change, you don’t need everyone to agree with you, you just need some people to agree so passionately that they will donate, campaign, march, risk arrest or injury." Ms. Solnit was speaking to a largely liberal audience and her essay is far more comprehensive than this brief excerpt might imply, but Trump's tactic to reinforce the faith of the faithful and encourage them to spread his message has been effective thus far and may continue to be unless the opposition can deliver an overwhelmingly convincing counter message and back it up in the streets and at the polls.
Here's the essay --
https://harpers.org/archive/2017/11/preaching-to-the-choir/
"In an intellectual exchange, disagreement doesn’t mean tearing down a rival but testing and strengthening the structure of a proposal, an analysis. It is what you do when you agree with people in general but have specifics to work out; and that work can be a joy."
Thanks for the link.
Daniel-- this is such a powerful piece. It helped articulate for me what I believe-- that "organized beliefs" whether they be politics, religion or some other institution's set of rules for thinking -- often undermine our ability to find common ground as humans. I did not grow up in the Episcopal church for example. But I met a rector, Father Chip. when I was in my 60's who inspired me. I went to his services on Sunday, and loved how he spoke to me but when the congregation recited the Nicene creed, I was silent. I could not speak those words, because I don't believe them. I told Father Chip I was not sure I believed in God, but I often believed in what he had to say every week. He encouraged me and engaged me to act on what I believe, whatever the source. Because of that encouragement I am much more open and productive in my conversations with people no matter what choir they sing in. Am passing this around
Great piece! I enjoyed reading it.
Ppl in their 70s, like me get these debilitations such as balance problems, (Benign Positional Vertigo) & peripheral neuropathy that limit the most basic abilities making doddering old men of us. I discovered my vertigo in the Italian Alps in 2015, and walking on inclines or stairs without rails is a frightening struggle. I can still hold a vessel in one hand to drink, but many common things once done with my hands are now very difficult.
It is comforting to see that not only we good and decent ppl get these afflictions but disgusting asswipes suffer them as well.
Getting the vote out is key but let's make those votes count too. Gerrymandering can enable us to build up massive majorities in geographically distinct areas but we can still loose the election because of the shape and size of the voting districts. Non-poltical boundary commissions are an essential control on the venality of politicians.
Michigan passed using a citizen commission to draw up districts in 2018. I also like the recommendations in Strategy 1 of Our Common Purpose: Reinventing American Democracy for the 21st Century which includes Citizen commissions. https://www.amacad.org/ourcommonpurpose/report/section/6
Wow Sharon thanks for sharing this - it speaks to so many of my personal ideas of what we need to do in this country to return the power to the people, including gerrymandering, but especially transparency of funding. I realize SuperPACs are used by both sides but they seem to be especially weaponized by the right.
Someone in this group shared it the other day. I have been trying to make my way through it. Lots of great ideas.
The gerrymandering issue is key for sure. My district in New Jersey is, like almost all the others (NJ has 40! Districts. 40!!!) looks like a strange mish-mash of localities. Every time I talk about it though I’m met with “well the Democrats do it, too”. So, my question is, do they? And if so, to the extent that Republicans do, in such a blatantly unfair way? I guess I need a more basic understanding of how districts are created. And I recall President Obama (and Holder maybe?) promising a fight against partisan gerrymandering post-2016 election. Not sure how that has played out, although I also recall a recently successful initiative in NC?
Both parties do it And hence the reluctance to deal with the issue. The result has been a big increase in non-competitive seats
It reminds me of the "rotten borough" system in pre-electoral reform england. Seats in parliament were "in the gift of" big local landowners.
It is interesting to see the massive increase in the number of voters for the Georgia Senate primary. Perhaps McConnell's performance and constant obstruction are helping the people better understand the workings of the political institutions and of the absolute importance of controlling the Senate.
I sure hope they are paying attention in Kentucky.
When I read trumps tweet defending his ramp navigation I felt sorry for him for the first time. Which was frankly, very confusing.
It was suddenly apparent to me that he embodies the consequences of a society that denounces compassion and fearless self-evaluation, diluting the notion character nearly to the point of obsolescence; replacing these with insecurity, warped self-impotence and fear.
He is broken and will destroy everything and everyone he can to justify his own brokenness. What a torturous existence.
The conundrum my initial response was directly related to the idea of compassion - it was uncomfortable to feel bad for him, to have even a sliver of compassion for him, yet that very compassion on a societal level may be the antidote for the disease. To dig that out from under a mountain of anger and frustration will require a back hoe of epic proportions.
It makes my brain hurt!
All indications are that tRump is a sociopath. He would feel nothing for you or your angst at guiltily feeling sorry for him. Of course he would appreciate your concern. It's all about him.
If his displayed symptoms are actually indicative that he suffers the same old-age maladies that afflict me, feel free to empathize with me and just think to hell with him. :)
Yes, I thought the same thing. It was a stark reminder to all of us, that he is after all, human. We are seeing a broken, elderly man.
One who is desperate to be seen as young and strong - and is happy to unleash military force against peaceful protesters to hide his own weakness. There is only so much I can feel sorry for him.
https://twitter.com/BandyXLee1
Stifled because of the Goldwater Rule.
https://www.madinamerica.com/2020/04/muzzled-psychiatry-time-crisis/
Wow, fascinating piece. Having a family member who suffers from mental illness, I have always cringed at public judgements of whether or not an individual suffers from it. But I don’t think any reasonable observer needs a degree in psychology to come to the conclusion that there is a deranged individual at the helm here. What scares me most is that it gets whitewashed and becomes normalized. This quote summed it up for me:
“”As Robert Jay Lifton writes in the foreword to Lee’s book, “Our Witness to Malignant Normality,” in which he channels Fromm, “A dangerous president becomes normalized, and malignant normality comes to dominate our governing (or, one could say, our antigoverning) dynamic.” “”
Heather, would you please comment/discuss voting as a form of speech? It seems to me that in a public canvas, such that one audibly or by sign indicates preference is a “vote.” Should not expressing preference by secret ballot in our elections also be “speech?” Then, should not suppression of voting also be suppression of guaranteed free speech. Comment from others welcome.
I am heartened to see high-profile black athletes and celebrities taking initiative to encourage and educate voters. There is a story circulating (please let it be true, because it is powerful and moving) about Dave Chappelle being heckled by a young white woman when he was given the subject of racism to talk about. She said "Life is hard, sorry 'bout that." He then proceeded to give her an education on police brutality and the racism rampant in our country. Long story short, after the show she apologized and thanked him for educating her. He thanked her for hearing him and listening. "Know better, do better." "...you're no longer part of the problem, you're part of the solution. "
https://www.boredpanda.com/dave-chappelle-teaches-heckler-a-lesson/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=organic
I keep praying he'll stroke out in his massive fatal myocardial infarction mid-screech in front of the audience of droolers at one of his hatealongs.
Well, I watched Trump's unintelligible speech to the cadets in C Span. Lots of words, zero substance. Thank God it was short. (By trump standards)
Many thanks, too, for including the Harper's article. Though I was aware of the Diebold issues I was not aware of the tangled fraternity of players within the industry or the fact that felons lead the automated voting industry. It would be interesting to have an update to the article. I'm sure things haven't really improved.
Our local paper devoted a medium-length article to Trump's West Point speech. The article described the speech and summarized some of his main points and talked about the recent fractures in his relationships with military leaders, but it mentioned nothing whatsoever about his slurring words and fumbling manners.
Watch the speech on cspan. It's inordinately short (for him)
Voter suppression legislation pending in Iowa right now. County auditors across the state are opposed to the language in the proposed legislation which, in part, prohibits then from sending absentee ballot requests without a written voter request. This after Iowa saw record voter turnout for the June 2 primary for which every registered voter was sent an absentee ballot request form and the early voting period for mailed ballots was extended. Clearly a Republican effort to suppress votes.
Most NW Iowans are firmly entrenched. The dems out that way are hoeing a tough row.
That's for sure! I lived in NW Iowa for years and only just recently left so I know the politics there quite well. It is clearly a red area, especially Sioux County from whence came Steve King. Lots of Dutch Reformed churches. The main issues are abortion and gun control - hard to have a conversation about either of those issues as there isn't much room for compromise among the staunch conservatives.
27 long years for me. I was north of Sheldon in Osceola County. Where did you live? It is a very Aryan society. Land bound. It was amazing the amount of people that never traveled further than Sioux City or Sioux Falls in their whole lives.
I grew up on a farm just outside Merrill and Hinton, 2 tiny towns on Highway 75. I went to school in Le Mars, the "Ice Cream Capitol of the World," Wells Dairy. We played Sheldon in basketball. Yes, a very white area. There were NO people of color in my high school back in the early 70's. A few more now, particularly Latinx people who work in the dairy industry. Sioux City is the largest metro area near where I lived and it has a strong, vocal Dem population. Still very few POC but an active NAACP and there have been Black women and men in elected positions locally like school board. Sioux City (and the tri-state area there) has a growing population of East Africans, particularly from Somalia, Eritrea, Ethiopia - many of whom work in the meat packing plants. This population has been ravaged by Covid19 and CovidKim (governor Reynolds) and her regressive policies.
My ex husband graduated from Hinton. My son is in the Air Guard in Sioux City. He commented about the Somalians. My ex also drove truck for a company that fixed meat processing equipment. I've been in the processing plants. They pack the workers in just like the do in China. No surprise there, since they are Chinese owned. Add to it the conditions are wet all the time. It's no wonder they got hit hard.
Funny how we can find connections with so many people with just a little conversation! Interesting. I'm related to the Spies family which was a big name in Hinton. Hope you are living in a more liberal area now. We moved to Oregon last summer. It's a blue state but mostly because of the population in Portland. Our small town is definitely red so there's lots of work to be done! Take care and stay safe and healthy.
That's part of what makes the Republican anti-mail-ballot push so weird. If anything, mail-in ballots favor Republicans. And they are pushing against it even in states that they should win easily in November.
For anyone who would like to watch a truly inspiring speech delivered at West Point in 2017 by Ta-Nehisis Coates -- the hour is well worth it.
https://ta-nehisicoates.com/speaking/
Zengerle Lecture to the Corp of Cadets at West Point
Robinson Auditorium | April 12, 2017
I downloaded two of his books on my Kindle, We Were Eight Years In Power and Between The World And Me. I have started the former😊
Thanks for sharing! I watched it and agree it was very inspiring
'According to the Daily News, the drinking issue could be a sign of a more significant medical problem. . . . "This is a persistent neurological sign that, combined with others, would be concerning enough to require a brain scan," psychiatrist Dr. Bandy Lee from Yale wrote on social media.'
Since his second debate with Clinton I've wondered if tRump has neurosyphilis.
One of the personnel who worked on DTs reality shows has claimed that DT is dependent on a combination of Adderalll and barbiturates, stating further that upon DT’s election, special agents raided the offices of DT’s doctor and took all of his medical records.