HCR, I love the thesis of this post. The work of government isn’t the one issue that is being directly addressed by the President, but the multitude that allow the Nation (and her interests) to advance. It’s often a dull, backbreaking slog, but it’s important work carried out by civil servants and willing partners who disproportionately are motivated to do good for the country and her citizens. For those who seem to want to only destroy our government, this article is a great reminder of all it does, without fanfare. Thanks again.
"civil servants and willing partners who disproportionately are motivated to do good for the country and her citizens." Nice to know a lot is still working despite the saboteurs.
Sue, I was about to post a similar message. For those who beat the drum constantly regarding Biden's age and "senility," he proves them wrong constantly. Faced with the Republican-manufactured crisis in the current debt ceiling, he managed to arrange for the Quad to meet in Hiroshima, and Antony Blinken went to meet with the Pacific Islands Forum as Biden returned to the US. This is not demonstrative of the "senility" that the radical right claims, but a well-oiled machine that manages the challenges, both real and manufactured, of a seasoned political professional. It is all done without fanfare or drama. I have hope that Biden will weather the storms and deliver us to safety. Thank you, Heather, for pointing out that the country's business is being handled by capable civil servants, in spite of the distractions.
I was thinking the same as I am just up here in Oregon, having coffee, and reading Heather's letter and the various posts. And who stands in the way of all Biden is trying to do....the party of death of course. They have ceased to offer anything worthwhile for quite a long time. Unfortunately, we have a few trolls here with inflated egos, which I always ignore when I see the names of certain people. And thank you for your very clear post.
I watched a little of Tim Scott announcement for president yesterday. I turned him off when he started bashing Biden. I wonder if Crow is backing him financially?
I nearly always mute Rs. Can't stand what they and their party represent. I did catch a little of what Scott said, trying to be conservative and not a wing nut at the same time.
I rather think he will end up being their candidate. Already he's equivocating on his strong anti-abortion stance, while trying to appeal to a stunned Republican base. He is an evangelical Christian and just the person to gain the votes once given to Trump. Onward, Christian Nationalism! It would make sense that the ricos behind the conservative Supremes would also back Scott.
Trump and Bannon call our government "the Deep State." They would replace it with an authoritarian model. " “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it” - George Santayana. We have recent models - Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy, Communist Russia, and also today's Hungary, Turkey and Brazil.
I agree w you completely. Governing as opposed to grandstanding is hard work requiring patience, the ability to compromise, intelligence, and good will. We are going to have to fight for this together.
It isn’t all about the POTUS claiming ‘I alone will fix everything.’; but a set well-curated cabinet directors that can lead independently, with the same directive.
The above is Kevin McCarthy's Washington, DC office. I just called and left a message asking him if he WANTS to go down in history as the man who crashed the world economy.
Might anyone else want to give him a call as well, well, there you go.
Biden and his administration are building things — factories, bridges, and so much more, plus building global relationships that pay countless dividends. Meanwhile, the Republicans only know how to operate a wrecking ball.
I’ll gladly answer that, Ira. And the answer is NO. No attention was paid to any of the nation’s business. Because The Donald didn’t believe that was worthy of his notice. He concerned himself with HIMSELF alone. And whatever trouble he could brew. I want him to be completely GONE. He’s caused enough harm and toxicity to OUR country.
You are absolutely justified in your analysis. And I hold CNN responsible for much of his assent in politics as it promoted his rallies endlessly— and he we are with Licht doing it again but it appears that CNN’s ratings fell into the toilet! Let’s all work daily to pull the plunger!
The actual work of the federal government is at home first.
Lets look at authoritarianism at home. Who wants to censor your speech? Who wanted to
fire you from your job if you didn't comply with COVID demands? Who wants to take away your gun? Who wants to digitize your currency? Who has weaponized the FBI and IRS against political opponents? Who wants to control what you eat, what car you drive, what light bulb you burn in the name of climate? Who wants to displace the role of parents in education children?
Your straw man tries to paint a false picture. First, the suggestion that what is going on in the U.S. is Socialism is simply wrong. Further, authoritarianism is totalitarian. If you want an excellent example of capitalism models, look at Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden, Canada and Singapore. Socialism is a system where the state owns or controls the means of production. We don't have that here and neither do the countries that I just mentioned. It's Trump's and DeSantis' authoritarianism that we need to heed.
You just scratched the surface with this cretin. But thanks for that. I have zero patience with people who use Covid versus freedum. I cannot even begin to describe how bad that is. Good god - Italy was racking and stacking corpses in hospital hallways at one point. NYC had to use freezer trucks to store bodies. And this idiot thinks the USA was authoritarian in our covid policies? No sir - we were not active enough. We lost a million from not being active enough. NZ was, and they kept that horrible disease at bay. Oh, there it is again - "they comin' to take your guns". Need I get into the lunacy of that remark? Weaponization of DOJ, IRS? The irony, and the stoopid - it burns. And obviously, this selfish fool doesn't take climate change seriously, with that comment on what light bulb to burn, what car to drive. This is what we have to contend with in the USA - grand mal idiocy. Too many people living in cowboy land, and they vote.
Richard Ah, this ‘socialism’ shibboleth. The Federal government only created and operated one ‘business’: TVA (Tennessee Valley Administration). In the 1930s private utility companies did not consider it profitable to extend electricity in the poor south eastern United States.
FDR supported the TVA, which expanded electricity to millions of Americans. As a kid, I remember the stories about when electricity came to a family—light bulbs.
Of course Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, et al could be called ‘socialism.’
BUT, WHEN THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT BAILS OUT BANKS THAT SCREW UP, ISN’T THAT ALSO SOCIALISM?
Ayn Rand was a spokeswoman for a fringe group several generations ago. Those who today bloviate about American ‘socialism’ are Rand misanthropes.
Keith fully agree. TVA is really the only Federal government owned "business". Yet even with TVA and that is where I get my power the distribution is by my local customer own local coop. TVA used ALCOA's hydro generation on the Little River in east Tennessee which started in 1910 to produce power for aluminum smelting in the Knoxville area as an engineering model. Key also to TVA is the control of flooding on the whole of the Tennessee River system that extends all the way to the Ohio River. In my opinion this is a long long way from government overreach.
The postal system which we have had since the founding of the country is an important service industry that Trump did his best to destroy and that destruction continues under DeJoy. None of these are "socialism" in the real use of the term because they are NOT ownership of the means of production.
Thanks for putting the 'Agitator ' in his place Richard! He thinks he's being honest but is sadly lacking in the facts and frankly, basic intelligence. Maybe the result of a pompous over esteemed idiot.
Gayle, you replied: "Maybe the result of a pompous over esteemed idiot." Sounds a lot like TFG, doesn't it? But, what does that say for the good folks who voted for him? "On some great and glorious day the plain folks of the land will reach their heart's desire at last, and the White House will be adorned by a downright moron."
Oh damn, it's the question thing again. Please answer your own questions instead of making us guess what you're trying to say. And what's this "control what you eat" stuff, are you making a point of some kind? C'mon, James A, step up! I want to hear what you have to say, but you're being irritatingly coy.
Hell Yes, I want books on sex banned for Kindergartners. They don't need to read about
sodomy, rape, & sexual intercourse.
Of the 175 books removed across the state, 164 (94%) were removed from media centers, and 153 (87%) were identified as pornographic, violent, or inappropriate for their grade level.
Where's your proof that ANY school is teaching kindergartners about sodomy, rape, & intercourse? You have none because it isn't happening.
Would you also support banning education on Stranger Danger? Kids are taught not to talk to strangers or get into cars with people they don't know. Little kids are told "those people could hurt you" but the specific harms are never mentioned. Educators are very conscientious about keeping Information age-appropriate.
Whenever someone who tries to make these highly debatable points is challenged as to their validity, they usually quote sources that inhabit the rightmost wing of the internet. James, please quote your sources. You might start with your idea that socialism is always totalitatarian. I think you just don't like government, preferring a libertarian anarchy.
The areas in your original posting are all debatable, although some with fixed ideas might not recognize that. Start with your 'socialism = totalitarianism.' If you consider that to be dogma, there is no point in talking with you.
Yikes. At its best, which admittedly it isn’t always, the government is the system by which statute and policy is instantiated, systemically, fairly, and transparently. I think you’re saying you prefer a particular policy approach. That’s a different point than I was tying to make. Sorry if I was inarticulate.
You are not inarticulate. Mr. A has a different perspective than you do, one which is heavily influenced by talking points blathered about by those who wish to destroy our country.
Sue, I agree with others. All that you said was clear and sensible. The poster in question regularly drops into HCR's comment section to make unfounded and disproved claims, frantic arguments and does so in adversarial Hannity-fed tones. I generally ignore his repetitive comments and I believe others do too. Reiterating the same disproved and unsubstantiated claims on every one of HCR's thoughtfully curated posts is his practice. So little critical thought is made in the commentary that I'm convinced it's a bot or a GRU troll.
James, why is it that your ilk always skew and twist the meanings of words to discredit the essence of democracy? What comes to mind is the concept of life insurance - developed to share the burden of loss to families. Democracy has been defined as a system “of the people, for the people, by the people” - ALL of the people - not just the rich, selfish, greedy, vile and mean who seem to gravitate to authoritarian totalitarianism.
Democracy? You don't have a clue what democracy is.
First, In case you haven't noticed the demographics of the democrat party its primarily the party of the poor and the uber rich. All the richest ZIP codes in America are overwhelming LEFT. NYC, Boston, DC, LA, Atlanta, San Francisco, et cetera.
Its the middle class, the left hates. Fly over country. People who are church goers, family-oriented, and patriotic. These are the people Hillary Clinton called "deporables" and Obama said "They get bitter, they cling to guns or religion".
Remember this site was found on open debate. It must be difficult to imagine a website that
doesn't have a a leftist censor button or to hear things that offend your Marxist sensibilities.
This isn't kindergarten. However if you want to hear about rape, sexual orientation, pronouns, and drag queens, Kindergarten is the place to be in all leftist run educational systems.
This site including you as a Substack Inc "Author' are under contract with Readers & Substack Inc enforced contractually at JAMS in SF. Take me to JAMS if you disagree.
JAMS has 3 Mediators experienced on platform contractual liabilities. Fair notice: I have had more than 20 matters at JAMS since 1990 both Arbitrations & Mediations. Your choice.
Your personal attacks against ANY Reader will not be tolerated under any circumstances.
Since you are not explicit with any alternative suggestions for any means of collective action for the benefit of the group and, thereby, the individual members as well, I can only speculate as to what would satisfy you. For me, anarchy is a distasteful alternative and so is reverting to living in caves. I cannot understand how you think those are not inherently authoritarian in a society beyond the scope of one individual. Maybe you are confident that you have enough guns and ammo to weather the transition. I suspect that when your neighbors discover you have such a stock in hand, you will become the largest target for miles around.
There goes President Biden again -- getting sh*t done both here and around the globe, while McCarthy and his band of broken toys try to burn it all down.
The work of Government is to secure the safety of our futures
You either support that or you don’t
Those that willingly hold our economy hostage for their own individual gain implicitly fall into the latter category and those that vote for them vote for authoritarian rule
...and when the Authoritarian’s support begins to wane, just start another war and claim patriotism disguised as Nationalism. I think we taught Putin that post 911. He used the same strategy in Chechnya, Georgia, and Ukraine.
Too bad it does not get media hype so that it could be more broadly known. I get furious each time a maga supporter asserts Biden is destroying this country.
Thanks Doug for you down to earth comment, gave me a good chuckle. And don’t we all need more smiles and laughter to calm our nerves over “the band of broken toys trying to burn down the house” ❤️ it!
1. Afghanistan was a pull-out on Trump's treatied timetable (remember DT was going to host the Taliban at Camp David? Over anniversary of 9/11? Logistics were poor, however, and Biden, as CiC, is ultimately responsible for a faulty operation. (See, we Lefties aren't afraid to criticize our guys when warranted.)
2. Ukraine is desperately fighting off Russian aggression, and needs the assistance of US and allies to do so. If DT were in WH, Ukraine would have been annexed in days. It's not a cluster -- and Russia's military capability is severely degraded and shows superiority of Western tech.
3. Single foreign policy win? I'm no political scientist, but restoring status of US in global leadership, nearly erased under TFFG, is huge, and needed against rise of China and Putin, not to mention Finland's entry into NATO to counter latter's aggression.
What so many critics ignore is that the USArmy, not the President, was in charge of daily logistics and operations. They achieved an enormous success by extracting well more than 100,000 Friends and Americans in a very hostile environment. A hidden story that needs to be told is that a soldier who is an expert sniper was stationed to identify and take out a civilian bomber mixed in with the crowd who they expected to cause devastation on the last day. He spotted the bomber and was ready to kill him before he set off the deadly bomb. However, a communications mixup and delay at HQ was not quick enough and we lost 13 brave Americans. Had the sniper been given the OK, there would have been no real criticism of this successful mission. Instead, MSM and Republicans needed to blame Biden and that unfair criticism has stuck! After 20 years of thousands of American troops killed and maimed in that ungovernable mess, Joe Biden deserves credit for his foresight in extracting us from an impossible mission that should have ended years earlier under different leadership.
How can you spin Afghanistan? It was a debacle. The Biden administration was 100% WRONG on the Afghan capability and willingness to fight the Taliban. They left behind
billions of dollars high tech military equipment. It was a cluster fuck.
As for Ukraine, the Biden administration could have stopped the Russian invasion ANYTIME
they wanted. Simple. Park 50,000 troops on the border. END of STORY. Instead they got embarrassed. When you threaten force and then back down you look WEAK. Next they said
sanctions would stop the Russians. No results there, although it did send inflationary shock waves through the American economy.
All to what end? To back one of most corrupt authoritarian countries in the world. Ukraine has among the worst records in the world on corruption besides the fact the authoritarian
government has jailed political opponents, shut down opposition media, and outlawed religion.
This is the hill to die on? 130 Billion spent on an war with no end in sight? I thought we learned out lesson in VIetnam and Iraq?
Restoring Global leadership? Are you joking? Why do you think Putin invaded? Because
he knew how feckless Biden was. All they how to do was watch how America handled Afghanistan to realize Biden was Jimmy Carter's foreign policy twin.
If Finland entry into NATO is your biggest foreign policy win, you have nothing to brag about.
What's next? How Biden solved the border problem and defeated inflation?
There is a reason Biden's approval rating is at 39% and 60% of democrats don't want him to run again.
GT, James isn’t a troll. I see him as a strong-willed, right-wing opinion that thrives in an environment when his opposition is in political power, allowing him to attack each policy. While He makes some valid points on certain events (like Afghanistan), I don’t remember hearing such concern with previous Republican officials, particularly during the historically corrupt prior administration.
I think he’s more focused on trying to attract readers of ths newsletter over to his own substack newsletter for a more “cogent and well-researched and intellectual” discussion (/s).
Really? Attract readers to what? He hasn’t written a damn thing on his Substack newsletter:
“Welcome to James’s Newsletter by me, James A. Father, musician, businessman, intellectual, and pragmatist
Sign up now so you don’t miss the first issue.”
Did you read that last line? “Sign up now so you don’t miss the first issue”??
You make it sound like he/ it has been writing and you’ve been drawn to his/ it’s discussion(s) you quote as being “cogent and well-researched and intellectual”.
Where you got that quote is anybodies guess. What are you, his/ its PR man?! One thing is clear, the troll, bot or whatever he/ it is hasn’t written a damn thing on his/ its Substack newsletter. He/ It has just posted a bunch of crap here. All of it useless and not worth anybody here wasting their time reading it.
GT, thanks for holding me to account. To be clear, this was my first interchange with James, as I typically avoid the vexations of my spirit oft-created whenever I travel through the comments rabbit hole. Furthermore, the quote was simply mine meant to highlight his bio claim of intellectual and well-researched followed immediately by the ‘/s’ symbol indicating ‘sarcasm’. Please perish the thought of me being his PR man!
I apologize for overlooking his ‘first issue’ invitation. That indeed suggests possible a trolling identity, especially when considering that HCR has now been placed on Russia’s unwelcome list.
No problem Big B. I appreciate your reply. Fwiw I did not know ‘/s’ indicated sarcasm.
We all can (and do) get caught in the comments rabbit hole at times (me included). At this point I have seen enough posts like those of his/ its right wing extremist rantings, both here and on other substack authors pages, to see them for what they are and not get caught in their “troll net”.
As we know comments like these are meant to upset and engage the reader (any reader!) to respond, which then opens the door for the troll to comment yet again. It’s a cycle that can easily repeat itself.
Fwiw Below the name/ title of an article on Substack is a date. You can see it below the Title of HCR’s Letter today (and all her Letters). Based on my observations the date indicates when the Title was created on Substack. Typically the text of the article has been written and gets posted/ published along with the title. The date below our “friend’s” Title for its “first issue” is June 15, 2021. Geez it’s been almost two years since it created the Title and wrote “…..don’t miss the first issue”. Hmmm, it has the time to rant and rave here but none to write on the subject of its own article….. go figure….
James has a contract with Substack Inc and us "Readers" which is enforceable at JAMS in SF. I suggest you read the Colombia Joutnalism report a couple of years back on Substack Inc battles with Authors. Prior "Authors" provided me with a sample Author contract which is enforceable by this Community at JAMS.
"Afghanistan" what happened with tfg's deal with the Taliban at Doha? Kabul was not even present at Doha. Tfg did not "fix it",
If i was trying to mine readers, the last place I would go is to people who have the opposite political view.
What strikes me about modern leftism is how brutally "anti-intellectual" it is.
When a moron's only counter to your argument is to call you a BOT, it shows you how shallow their political ideology.
I would be embarrassed to share a political ideology with a mental Cro-Magnons
The question is why? The answer is sadly that all most leftists care about is virtue signaling. They don't give a damn about arguments. If they did, they could make them.
I took the liberty of reading the whole press conference transcript the Professor cited yesterday, and copying some further comments from the President that reveal the administration's thinking on the debt ceiling standoff.
On the 14th: "I can’t guarantee that they wouldn’t force a default by doing something outrageous. I can’t guarantee that...I’m looking at the 14th Amendment, as to whether or not we have the authority. I think we have the authority. The question is: Could it be done and invoked in time that it could not — would not be appealed and, as a consequence, pass the date in question and still default on the debt. That’s a question that I think is unresolved... We have not come up with a unilateral action that could succeed in a matter of two weeks or three weeks. That’s the issue. So it’s up to lawmakers. But my hope and intention is: When we resolve this problem, I’d find a rationale to take it to the courts to see whether or not the 14th Amendment is, in fact, something that would be able to stop it."
On who gets the blame: "Of course no one would blame me. I know you won’t. You’ll be saying, “Biden did a wonderful job.” (Laughter.)... On the merits based on what I’ve offered, I would be blameless. On the politics of it, no one would be blameless. And, by the way, that’s one of the — that’s one of the things that some are — are contemplating. I actually had — well, I got to be careful here. I think there are some MAGA Republicans in the House who know the damage that it would do to the economy. And because I am President, and presidents are responsible for everything, Biden would take the blame. And that’s the one way to make sure Biden is not reelected."
On what's coming in vs. going out: "[P]art of what I’ve been arguing from the beginning is a need to consider the tax structure as well as — as well as cutting spending. I’m willing to cut spending, and I proposed cuts in spending of over a trillion dollars. But I believe we have to also look at the tax revenues... It’s estimated that if we had the appropriate number of tax personnel, that we would generate somewhere between $200 billion and $400 billion in tax revenue... Anyway, I was able to say too that the 55 corporations in America that made $400 billion[:] “You got to pay a minimum of 15 percent tax.” What a horrible thing. You’re paying more than 15 percent in taxes, every one of you out there. And so, guess what? We not only balanced the budget; we were able to reduce the deficit by $1.7 trillion... So my point is that there’s a lot of things that they refuse to entertain, and they just said revenue is off the table. Well, revenue is not off the table... [W]e continue to have a significant disagreement on, on the revenue side."
On the long game vs. short-term fixes: "Look, here’s the other thing. I’m sure — I’m not sure; my guess is I’ll get a question about, you know, “Well, wait a minute, you know, the American people aren’t satisfied.” Well, guess what? As I told you all before, most of this — what we passed - only kicks in over time. I decided that we were going to be in a position where we were not going to continue to pay the highest drug prices in the world... Well, a lot of this is just kicking in. We’re in a situation where next year, for the drug costs, no senior will have to pay — total cost — total cost of all the drugs, from expensive cancer drugs to whatever drugs they’re taking, will not have to pay more than $3,500 a year... The following year, they won’t have to pay more than $2,000. That saves another $200 billion that we’re paying out. But the other team won’t count this. Even though it’s the law — we passed it — they won’t count that as reducing the debt. So there’s a lot of those kinds of disagreements we have."
Just send McCarthy the reading list you gave me. That’ll keep him busy reading 5 books at once. Might make an American citizen out of him. As soon as I’ve worked my way out out of the hole you’ve dug for me I’ll send heart felt thanks. MYTH AMERICA, THE SOUL OF AMERICA, BRAVE COMPANIONS, MIRACLE AT PHILADELPHIA, and me wife added THE PERFECT HORSE (Lipizzaner story by Elizabeth Letts). All are must reads. Thank you Professor Wheelock.
But….. there is that marvelous photograph of FDR and Eleanor depicting them as the Soul of America, along with Rosa Parks and even an intelligent Republican in Margaret Chase Smith who was opposed to McCarthy because she had a soul. Where is Murrow when you need him.
Pat I believe that Edward R. Murrow would speak out for President Biden, who reflects the soul of a decent America.
i had the privilege of knowing Murrow. With a British mother, as a kid I listened to Murrow’s This is London on Sunday afternoons. Dad knew him during WW II.
I first met him (and the Andrew Sisters) at a war bond fundraiser at Campbell Soup in Camden in, I believe, early 1945. Murrow joined us for a fishing week end. (Dad got him to do a daily news show for Campbells, our family advertising company’s largest account).
At the 1953 coronation, as Edward R. Murrow flew back on a Stratocruiser with coronation films, Janet Murrow accompanied Dad and me to Ascot.
A year later I saw Murrow as I recorded my This I Believe for CBS. I last saw Murrow in October, 1960 when he was keynote speaker at an Eisenhower Fellowships gathering with Ike.
Some years later Casey Murrow (the only Murrow child) and I were the speakers at a dinner with the top folks at National Public Radio.
Yes, I believe that Murrow, in experiencing the current national debt Perils of Pauline, would speak out strongly for President Biden (though Murrow’s advertisers might cavil, as Alcoa did on the Joe McCarthy broadcast),
Keith, you and Pat never cease to amaze me. I admire your histories so much.
I remember watching Murrow on our black & white TV and noticing billowing smoke surrounding him. Cigarette smoking, on air, was acceptable at that time and I suppose it was a prop for him to tell us the news. My dad loved his commentaries as much as he did Walter Cronkite’s. Murrow, Cronkite, Huntley, Brinkley, etc. were such icons to me.
You saw him in 54. That was the year he took on McCarthy. The fishing trip really caught my attention though. In 53-54 cowboys from the ranch were still riding spoonbill catfish at Ft. peck. I was 2-3 intensely interested in fishing. Politics were when the sheriff shot out my grandad’s lung during a poker game. We sure missed the international scene back then tho. Apparently that was when I got to go to Canada on a fishing trip. My mom said the baby sitter was sick. All I remember is that Naomi (my baby sitter) had gone blind and I don’t remember the lost fishing trip. Funny we had such similar experiences.
Surely there lives a journalist today capable of igniting the country against such a piece of human garbage, spewing lies and breeding lice as the modern day wonder, McCarthy. Someone yet to rise to prominence. Could that not be a journalism quest for all institutions of American higher learning. Make it a contest with a full ride to the winner. In memory to Murrow .
Pat James Fallows, who I have followed and greatly admired since his Washington Monthly days, is such a journalist. Check him out on Wikipedia and his James Fallows Substack. He continues to write opinion pieces in various publications.
Funny how the newly minted "deficit hawks" only care about the deficit when they aren't the ones spending. What despicable hypocrites. It's clear as a bell that when the 'Pubbies refuse to consider raising taxes as part of a total package, they are not negotiating in good faith.
“Even though it’s the law — we passed it — they won’t count that as reducing the debt. So there’s a lot of those kinds of disagreements we have." Thank you for details on the continuing conversation and obstruction by repubs on negotiating the debt ceiling. No one should be surprised that we are down to the wire. This is not negotiating, it’s one more way for repubs to bring down the economy and government and blame the Democrats and President Biden.
The Republican Party is destroying itself. They are so devoid of love and respect for the rule of law, they dishonor the great leaders who came before is, they dishonor their elected positions by using their power to disrespect rule "by the people, for the people and of the people." They allow complete liars to be a part of our ruling body with little if any reprimand.
There is so much real work that is needed...good things we could be accomplishing to make our nation and world a better place: care for women and children, education, the environment, encouraging freedom for countries who long to be independent......
Time is valuable! .... our nation and its people and resources are a treasure, a gift, a responsibility in the hands of our elected officials!
You , the Republican Party (in whom I once foolishly supported) in my opinion, as an American citizen has become a gang of thugs and has foolishly lost it's way.
Will, thanks for this. Every day I wake up and am proud of our President and more impressed with what he has managed to accomplish - especially in the face of opposition from a party that just wants the rich to get richer and the "lazy poor others" be damned.
I think the Democratic Party could spend more time explaining just how rich - just a few very rich people - actually are. Spend more time detailing how little in taxes they pay. Spend some follow up time explaining what some more "revenue" could accomplish in terms of helping Americans who are being bled dry by a health care for profit system, by cost prohibitive child care costs, by the price of everything being hiked by the price gouging companies owned by - yeah, guess who.
This is a campaign offense strategy that is left on the table. The GQP is making war on anything not White Supremacist. They are literally attacking the very culture of America.
The Dems need to remove their swords from their scabbards charge with similar vigor. And then when we have swept into office in 2024, we should be going after that revenue big time. I would take it step farther. Heather has on a number of occasions pointed to the wealth transfer to the top 1% of Americans over the last 50 years - $50 trillion? It is time to retrieve that National Treasure and redistribute it and pay down the debt as well.
A few families at the top of the food chain hold $100 trillion. The National Debt is predicted to surpass about $35 trillion (please forgive my round numbers). So...$50 trillion less in the hands of these thieves might mean selling one of their 5 homes or one of their yachts? Sorry.
National Debt could be retired and a whole lot of kids could be fed, given adequate health care and the equal education they are being denied. Social Security could be secured. Medicare for All could be launched - freeing people from jobs where they are abused - but continue in because the startup company they want to join can't afford health insurance.
The GQP demonizes a kid who is having gender identity questions. The GQP is rewrites history to ignore the inherent issues of hundreds of years of the legacy of slavery. The GQP is banning books in schools. Literally attacking our diverse society.
We need to demonize the uber rich and corporations that are the leeches on the body American. We need to get really loud about how the Oil Companies KNEW about the impact of fossil fuels on the Climate - and that they still, to this day, receive billions in tax subsidies!
This is a "Let them eat cake" moment - there is all the money needed to solve our issues of inequity and debt and Climate Catastrophe. It's just in the wrong hands.
I don't want to demonize the uber-rich, but I do wish they had more genuine noblesse oblige, which should involve both cheerfully paying taxes and partnering with government to the betterment of the whole industry and society, not just individual players. Rich people buy art. They can, if they wish, make the necessary goods and services that enable us all to live. Their money, a "superpower" in our world, can postivitely affect multitudes.
Otherwise, I agree with much that you've said, with the exception that I don't want to actually retire the National Debt, just reduce it. After all, that's the treasury bond market, right? That's why when then-Candidate Trump commented on retiring Puerto Rico's debt, the bond market took a huge hit, and he had no idea what he'd done.
Quite a story of international cooperation, cooperation among states within the US, and involvement of the private sector. A description of the way the world should work and, apparently, does work under Joe Biden's leadership. What a contrast to what the world would have been had 2020 turned out differently.
The plan is for 2024 to accomplish what 2020 didn’t, by any means that they can conjure up. The states are complicit as are many in our government, many “Christian” churches, and many “patriots,” otherwise known as traitors. They are legion…
Beware the leader who bangs the drums of war in order to whip the citizenry into a patriotic fervor, for patriotism is indeed a double-edged sword. It both emboldens the blood, just as it narrows the mind.... And when the drums of war have reached a fever pitch and the blood boils with hate and the mind has closed, the leader will have no need in seizing the rights of the citizenry. Rather, the citizenry, infused with fear and blinded with patriotism, will offer up all of their rights unto the leader, and gladly so. How do I know? For this is what I have done. And I am Caesar.
"If it's not good news for the poor; it's heresy period." Jim Wallis The Republicans have no good news to preach. They are trying to blow up America and the world, so the morbidly rich can buy up everything for pennies on the dollar as a result of a horrible depression.
"And they included key G7 partners Indonesia, Vietnam, and the Republic of Korea."
Having grown up in an era in which we were repeatedly told that North Vietnam was a "puppet" of China, and that SE Asian countries (somehow Australia mentioned in the list) would fall to communism "like dominoes" unless Ho Chi Minh was defeated, it is a bit surprising to see Vietnam on the "partners" list, even though I knew back in the day that the casus belli was BS.
Also wondering if China would be throwing it's weight around quite so much if US corporations and politicians had not been in such a rush to export US manufacturing and manufacturing technology to China in exchange for cheap labor. So often it seems like what very big money gets for cheap winds up costing society, the world, and the planet a bundle, one way or another in the end.
You nailed it, not to mention that our domestic economy, particularly in the Rustbelt, would have not been subjected to the damage inflicted upon it by co-opted members of Congress four decades and more ago. Much of this was laid bare years ago by two intrepid reporters from the Philadelphia Inquirer in a twelve-part series later appearing as a book, America: What Went Wrong? This, and more, is why Republican politicians are so afraid of having History taught properly in our schools and colleges. They can't defend their own pasts, much less our more distant history. The past is indeed prologue, or as William Faulkner put it, "the past is not dead. It's not even past."
That's why I am a Democrat, and a Democratic Socialist. Both government and corporations will use their powers corruptlybif they have too much. That is why both need to be in a balanced tension. Each is needed to prevent the other from gaining too much power.
Interesting that the US has such a strong trading relationship with communist Vietnam, against which we fought a land war, but no relationship with our neighbor communist Cuba.
My husband, a Vietnam vet, has such disdain for the VA and the government. The lies told to them, to us, are now inconceivable. Our history of bombing countries and then assisting in building them back up is like a drunkard who keeps apologizing for his/her behavior.
More than likely, yes. C130s, however, sprayed tons and tons of Agent Orange. Those were flown by the Air Force. It was used to defoliate the forests that the Viet Cong used as their hideouts. It ruined many innocent Vietnamese lives and also our soldiers. It has taken over 40 some years for the DoD to admit their toxic role in this godforsaken war.
Our criteria for whom we will fight and whom we will prosecute is pretty inconsistent, and often smells of ulterior motives. Our involvement in WW II was thrust upon us, even needed before Pearl Harbor. Bombing Iraq for "suspected" but never proven WMDs? I doubt we would have gone there had Iraq's chief export been cabbages.
In my lifetime we've never faced an internal threat as dangerous as Donald Trump. No one else who has the toxic combination of ingredients that exits in this man has risen to be elected President....and then lost re-election, only to not concede...lie about the loss and then attempt to stay in power. He is a totally unique and threatening animal...who is now backed into a corner of his own creation. His old playbook is quickly running out of tricks that worked.
Old line conservatives really do believe in freedom for themselves to choose how to do business, how to pay taxes, what to believe about God and spirit, about how to treat a body....that a two cell organism needs to become a birthed child no matter what the circumstances, or risks, but that everyone should have a pile of guns...with no restrictions...and thoughts and prayers is the best we can do for murdered and maimed people....and though they hate Trump, they empower him...won't destroy him...because he fights for their issues....and "his people" might get pissed if you piss on him too much. They all need each other to beat the liberals, the progressives, the commies & socialists out here....who they do not respect at all.
The folks at the Bradley Prize event last week never once attacked him by name, even though it was pretty obvious there was no deep love for him in the room. They did not praise him either. It's like they are somehow above it all.
Betsey DeVoss was VERY clear that her goal is to defund the Dept of Ed...kill it. She got a crystal lion for that...and applause. Others railed on about free markets...no regulations being the best way forward. That they are victims of religious persecution, because other folks have other belief systems...or even no belief system. They want us to believe in God the way they do.
They don't want Civil War monuments to confederates taken down or moved...they don't want men to become women...and we are all supposed to be ok with what they want, how they want it....and if that means Trump continues to spew his toxic brew...they aren't going to bitch about that....I guess it's not polite...but they will bitch about us...and surround it with a huge American Flag...a choir of white boys from Baltimore singing the words FS Key wrote, about 3 miles from where I type this...where Key took notes and wrote his observations as the World's greatest army & navy attempted to beat us in to submission, to their will...and failed...because the people of this city, black & white, male & female, free & enslaved held their ground...and won a victory...after the folks in DC had fled and allowed the White House to be sacked and burned and the Capitol to be looted...we held on and beat them. As I'm writing this, I'm more proud of Baltimoreans than I have ever been...."Rockets red glare...Flag was still there."
Let's fight the good fight....do not give up the ship.
For more about the Bradley Prizes event...read my most recent Substack piece
"...but they will bitch about us...and surround it with a huge American Flag." Ahh, Mike. It's always a delight to see "it" through your lens. My "people" settled in Baltimore after coming over on "the boat." It was a sizeable family of sons and daughters, two of whom drifted over to D.C. while the rest stayed and thrived near the harbor. Most still live in the suburbs and are content to do so. "By the dawn's early light...'Tis the star-spangled banner! Oh, long may it wave..."
Good morning Lynell. I'm very glad that you're delighted. Much of my family from both sides ended up in Baltimore. My Fathers, mothers people were all on the Eastern Shore going back into the 1700's. My Mothers people were also on the Eastern Shore. They were all English-Irish. My grandparents all migrated to Baltimore in the early 1900's. My Dad's father was the German and his people came directly to Baltimore in the early 1800's. So all of my direct ancestors were here in MD by the time the Britts did their trip up the Bay to attempt to destroy Fells Point and the shipyards that built the Privateers that vexed the Britts so much. Maybe that's why I have such an affinity for the Pride of Baltimore II, which is the floating, touring, go to sea replica of those ships.
My observation of the massive 2012 and 2014 Tall Ship events here was that they felt like the Britts had come here, so FS Key could write our National Anthem....when the real star of the show, is the Privateer ships and their Captains & crews and the resolve of the people of Baltimore...an honest to God, well regulated militia, plus some professional soldiers and a lot of civilians who stopped the Britts dead in their tracks. One side note...a teenage sharpshooter, took out the British commander...and his second wasn't so intent on completing the job.
In 2014 the Maryland Historical Society, under the leadership of Burt Kummerow recreated the original Banner, with the same materials and techniques as the original with a group of volunteers and had it flown at the Fort. We documented that process in a series of You Tube videos. I'll make that a new substack reflection soon.
They really pulled off something special here. The "Baltimore Clipper" ships were unique to the Bay...the fastest, best handling boats around...the British Navy were vexed by them and hated them...and the people here just came together and stood firm against the best the Britts had...sounds like Ukraine, on a smaller scale. As a side note, I believe the bombardment of Ft. McHenry was the largest naval bombardment of a fort to ever happen in the Western Hemisphere.
Your reflections on Baltimore reminded me of one of the more interesting films I've seen: The Rat Film, available on Amazon, that explores the distribution of the rat population in Baltimore and it's implications for public policy. Thanks for your thoughtfulness.
I have not seen that film. Will need to look it up. I have however encountered a few rats while traveling around the city. We just have raccoons, squirrels and foxes in our neighborhood....and mice....which the cats really love.
Excellent rumination there, Mike. Lord Baltimore himself would smile. Speaking of smiles, I do believe one of the best mascots in baseball, the capped Oriole on the O's cap is smiling even more as they are playing well these days⚾️
The announcement that Senator Tim Scott (the first African-American elected by popular vote in the South) is a Republican presidential candidate reminded me of my encounter with Edward Brooke, the first African-American ever elected senator by popular vote (1966, MA)
I was taking a month of home leave on Marthas Vineyard after two years as Foreign Service Officer in Chile. I was flying down to New York City on a commuter flight. My seat mate was Senator Brooke.
He was unusually talkative, especially after hearing that I was strongly opposed to Nixon. He spoke of his ‘delicate’ political situation. He had publicly refused to support Barry Goldwater, the Republican presidential candidate in 1964. In the run up to the 1968 presidential election, he had supported Governor George Romney and Governor Nelson Rockefeller as the Republican presidential candidate. Now Nixon was the candidate.
Senator Brooke explained why he now was politically obliged to meet with Nixon and announce his support of the Nixon candidacy. We shared a cab from the airport and I dropped him at Nixon’s residence.
It was reported that, when Nixon was re-elected in 1972, he offered Senator Brooke a cabinet position or the ambassadorship at the UN, both of which Brooke rejected.
Brooke served two six-year terms as senator. In 1978 he was defeated for re-election, in part because his strong support for abortion lost him a substantial proportion of the Catholic support.
He also had some publicized financial problems. I do not recall whether his affair with newscaster Barbara Walters was public knowledge in 1978.
It is amazing how President Biden can manage to get things accomplished even with this Republican MAGA crisis that’s developed here in the states. They (the MAGA crowd) did manage to keep him from an important portion of this trip so he could return and deal with McFarty, the puppet on strings, and the debt crisis they refuse to understand.
At least Biden sent a representative to take care of business, but it would have been much better if he, himself, could have taken care of it.
Now, it’s my belief (for those if you that require proof if things said), I’ll repeat myself. It’s MY BELIEF the MAGA Republicans (MTG, Jordan, and yes, McFarty) planned this so they could attempt to show that President Biden wasn’t capable of dealing with the crisis, and international affairs.
They failed. And yet, they are still stalling on the debt ceiling crisis, here, in the United States!
They’re demands are ludicrous, and they know it.
How far are they willing to go with this?
Do they realize they are making themselves look like absolute fools?
Do they actually think they are gaining support if the American people?
Those are questions worth pondering!
Do we really want the likes of what’s in leadership currently in the House of Representatives after 2024, and beyond? Truly?
What exactly have they accomplished to help us, the people, since they gained majority of the House?
And don’t let any real girl try to get an abortion, regardless of their financial ability to support another mouth to feed once born or their emotional maturity to raise a child.
**looks the other way while poor mother and unhealthy child are denied Medicaid thanks to Republican “conscientious” budget cuts **
“In the heat I saw you rising from the dirt, drunken tears and tugging at your skirt; if only you could tell then whick part of you got hurt, in the heat I saw you rising from the dirt”
To your last paragraph: MTG and fellow misfits have no intention to help the American people. Rather, their goal is to gain and maintain power so that Dems can't help us, either. That's the difference -- Dems seek power to benefit their constituents; the cultists simply seek power for its own sake. They are bereft of ideas.
I think they have only one idea and are pursuing it relentlessly. Defund the government, so there will be no regulation of wealthy corporate donors and no environmental rules that might reduce profits to wealthy donors. In my mind, anything that benefits the rich should be their policy. that’s it. End of story.
The representative he sent to replace him was doing the job for which he was so wisely appointed. A good manager trusts his people to perform. Without hesitating, President Biden made his decision, advised his international colleagues, and did what he had to do. No theatrics.
Thanks, Daniel. By my reading, while Biden canceled the portion of his trip to Australia, according to Heather, it seems they met instead at the G7. "He had to cancel because of the debt ceiling crisis, so the group met in Japan at the G7." So it turns out they met in Japan, not Australia. So cool!
You might as well be asking these questions of chump. Is there any woke person alive who thinks that there is a bottom to their depravity. They (and chump) have reveled in the destruction they have and can bring down on us all.
Ally you are the professional law enforcement entity that I know aside from several such family members. The guns are out there. Widespread everywhere. Almost all of them are in what we would consider normal law abiding hands. Even so I have witnessed almost criminal abuse of firearms on public lands as entertainment. As a State engine boss, and a USFS engine boss and as a private engine boss one of my patrol objectives was to clean up spent brass on public lands. As far back as 1969. Most illicit shooting ranges of that era yielded brass from typical .30 caliber hunting rounds. As we approached the 2000 timeline there was a marked increase in brass where a days cleanup yielded upwards of 3 (5gal.) buckets of mostly .223 and ak-47 and semi auto pistol rounds. This was in western Mt. 2007 was the last season I did those patrols. By 2007 we didn’t have enough spare room on a type 6 engine to carry the spent rounds of auto and semi auto casings we found. The callous disregard for the out of doors was bad enough but the fire arms abuses themselves indicated a public devoid of reason. I believe the army was right in putting its weapons safely in the armory. Even in war torn Viet Nam companies behind the green line locked up their weapons, except for 24 hr on call combatants like my crew that had 5 minutes response time and had to clean weapons each night. The point being that all weapons were secure until needed. Recon was always armed as was search and destroy. Standard Combat assault groups were armed from the armory mission specific. We had exacting gun control. Article 15’s both verbal and written were issued to abusers. We had abusers as race riots broke out daily. Shots were fired, but usually not ending in deaths. The gun control regimen held.
With this monumental increase in weapons abuse and the corresponding lack of judgement by firearms users we have really entered into a time of urgency for all Americans to enter the dialogue of controversial gun control. That we have given the Republican factor Cart Blanche in dodging the issue will only continue to exacerbate the gun control issue. This is currently a Democratic problem. Not a REPUBLICAN problem! When they have to tackle this issue it will become a shared problem. I’m going to say it one more time. We as Democrats must give the problem over to the Republicans to solve. Mark my words. They will not do it. They will not do it. But neither will they be able to to tell the populace that the Democrats are coming for their guns! This is the spearhead that will break the impass. Only together will we an answer. Back off gun control make it a Republican issue.
My question to you is how do we do that? The people in my circle (mostly LEO/LEO friendly) are 100% opposed to any restriction at all.
My thoughts are that we need to utilze motor vehicle codes (licensing/insurance/liability/training) as well as the behavior codes (break something/litter/hurt someone/kill someone) along with the varying degrees of intent (negligent, reckless, intentional. knowing) to determine the severity of the crime. I have suggested this (to my mind) reasonable proposition to these folks with the commentary that "if we don't do something that we can live with (like, demonstrate responsible gun ownership) this will get done for us and we won't like what we get from "them". Falls on deaf ears every time.
Once I had a stubborn mare that couldn’t be enticed. I found out through my daughter she had a weakness for apple pellets(guns). Once I plied her with those pellets allowing her all she wanted she became an energetic participant and is as fine a saddle horse as you could ever want. When I whistle she will come on the fly from more than a mile, whinnying eagerly the whole way. Remember the hunter safety wars? Oh Gawd what the hell else will they do to us! Now a days it is, ‘when is the next class?’ Open a rifle range and sponsor contest from black powder to modern weapons demonstrations of extreme firepower. Erect wall tents and form an historic encampment. Bring on the military tuba band. Become renowned in your community. Have you been through Ally’s Camp? You know the one that teaches gun stewardship. If all else fails hike a segment of wilderness trail coming full circle back to Ally Land. Tie guns to an ethical romance. The kids will come.
Really I guess I answered a question you didn’t ask. The answer to your question is simply to stop advocating gun control. Quit being the bad guys. Come out in favor of the right to keep and bear arms. Steal their thunder. Mimic their answers of prayers and condolences. It is hard to shoot a pheasant in the cattails when it won’t flush. They won’t budge. We will have to erode them. The only prop they have left is the gun control issue. We can make that go away. It is both in our power and in our our interest to do so. I don’t see a way around the long game but our playing to their power is ludicrous. Their house of cards will tumble as it is built on untruths. We will eventually turn half of their disillusioned voters. Their slicky boy politicians don’t have right stuff to keep reublican stalwarts enthralled.
Abraham Lincoln, may he rest in peace, would roll over in his grave if he knew what the Republican has morphed into. Like Trump sort of implied “White nationalists can also be good people.”
They don't resemble, they are. I've said from January 2021 this will be a do nothing Congress. Unfortunately I was correct, the magats are incapable of legislating, but unfortunately they outnumber the real legislators.
Wasn’t it Sam Rayburn who said that any jackass can kick down a barn, but it takes a carpenter to build one. The eternal battle between the jackass(s) and the carpenter…. The Republican destruction derby will stop at nothing
The current executive branch, the Democratic side of the legislative branch, and the rational minority of the judicial branch of the federal government continue to operate under traditional political norms. But we are becoming painfully aware that our Constitution and the rule of law are all too vulnerable to cooption by forces hostile to a democratic system -- forces that are not bound by such conventions.
Historians Heather Cox Richardson and Jared Yates Sexton (standing on the shoulders of predecessors such as Richard Hofstadter) teach us that our democratic experiment has been under similar attack before. Sadly, these attacks result not from external forces or tiny terror cells, but from the actions of a large portion of the citizenry -- but not a majority.
My contention is that these attacks are primarily driven by economic interests of the very wealthy. They are adept at manipulating fringe ideological factions to join their crusades -- that is why we see evangelicals, white supremacists, anti-abortion, and anti-immigration elements often unite under one political banner. The leadership of these factions are often also the very wealthy -- their sincerity regarding their ideologies is questionable -- but their minions are often 'true believers.' Sadly, the 'true believers' are often the end result of campaigns of weaponized lies -- most 'true believers' lack the critical reasoning skills to evaluate these lies as such.
Our battle must be waged on two fronts -- 1) fight the ignorance that enables voters to be easily swayed by weaponized lies -- and 2), fight the wealthy in court to make them pay for economic crimes and prevent them from carrying out election fraud and voter suppression. As the E. Jean Carroll case shows, there can be overlap.
The first front requires powerful and charismatic voices of reason that can pierce the veil of ignorance and paranoia relied on by demagogues to convince the impressionable to vote against their own interests. The second requires lawyers and resources.
These voices of reason must be distinct from the political realm and free to speak truth to power. I believe we have in the good professor Richardson a protype for such a voice.
In which each of us must take up "arms" to the best of our abilities.
That said, one of my favorite snarks is "You cannot have a battle of wits with an unarmed person". In this call to "arms", we have to realize that their sky is a different color and that up is down. Persist, with resolve.
Even though this won’t come as new news to many of you, the following is still a clarifying prism. A negotiation is usually two sides haggling to get things they want. Leverage is often unequal. Sometimes one side isn’t “getting” anything but rather just trying to give up as little as possible. But in this negotiation, Republicans are getting various policy priorities and Democrats are “getting” Republican agreement not to create a global financial crisis. That’s extortion, not negotiation. A government can’t operate in any consistent or sustainable way when policy deliverables go to the party willing to credibly threaten the most damage to the country itself. #word
My vote would be the same. I recall getting a phone call (before caller ID) where a very sweet female voice wanted me to listen to "an important message from Speaker Gingrich". I told her I would rather listen to a pig snort than anything Speaker Gingrich had to say. Never got another such phone call
I admit that I'm terrible at writing letters to my representatives, never able to escape a sense of the futility of the exercise. But I did get worked up enough once to write a letter to then-Rep. Gingrich, long ago when I lived in Cobb County, Georgia. His office sent me a lengthy reply, which I read in depth, thinking that he had given me something valuable.
But after I crossed out all the buzz words and contradictions contained in his statement, it boiled down to only one thing, "You didn't vote for me so I don't give a damn about you." 'Taught me something about his views on representative democracy, that's for sure...
That's the thing. There is such a thing as a tyranny of the majority (ask several minorities) and so we attempt to protect individual human rights in the Constitution.
But that's not enough. We need to actively promote solidarity (which, unlike conformity, can be forged amidst diversity, aka "freedom". "Screw everyone who didn't vote for me" is itself a form of tyranny that rejects solidarity. Lincoln's cautionary "Accustomed to trample on the rights of those around you, you have lost the genius of your own independence, and become the fit subjects of the first cunning tyrant who rises." is another way of warning "And then they came for me..." We are stuck with a nation that verges on half-delusional, and we cannot afford to allow tyranny and corruption to grow, and yet only awareness and solidarity can repair the rift. That and limiting the "love" and power of money. Some things should never be for sale.
I just sent this out to seven family members and close friends, as follows, along with the essay of course: "This is a good column from a very reputable source on the role intelligent diplomacy can play in advancing national interests and promoting a more peaceful world for our children and grandchildren everywhere. This hard, productive work is a welcome departure from inflammatory rhetoric and impromptu tweets over morning Big Macs. So is the work of Heather Cox Richardson, who is one of America's finest historians." Cheers,
Biden needs to do a ‘fireside chat’ speech on TV and radio, clearly explaining the difference between a government ‘shut down’ and not raising the debt ceiling: the difference in process between raising the debt ceiling and budget negotiations. Also he should explain how much of that debt was GOP and Trump gifts to the wealthy. He needs to highlight the stark priorities of each party. It needs to go on major networks and be concise and simple enough with a graph or two and scripting, that the dolts who are listening to the FOX and OneAmerica nonsense might hear something ‘new’ and factual for a few minutes.
McCarthy and his minions - or he, as the minion of those standing behind him - continue to try to recast Biden's international work and successes as unimportant, recommending that the President should be taking care of America first. They continue to diminish Biden's successes. What continues to rankle me is that news coverage is about brief soundbites. Even PBS fails to report fully to show the significance of Biden's international work for AMERICAN security, as Heather has done here. The strength if democratic international order is crucial to world peace and prosperity. I believe too few fully understand how effective Biden's international work has been for the security of American citizens. McCarthy sure doesn't get it.
The people behind McCarthy, who want to destroy the government, establish a theocratic authoritarian oligarchy, and set the world on a course that will maximize profits for fossil fuel producers and defense contractors, are appalled at the success Biden is having.
Dave, you give him more credit than I do. Still, you're right that it goes against his ambitions, so he goes on to burning it all down to rule over the ashes.
HCR, I love the thesis of this post. The work of government isn’t the one issue that is being directly addressed by the President, but the multitude that allow the Nation (and her interests) to advance. It’s often a dull, backbreaking slog, but it’s important work carried out by civil servants and willing partners who disproportionately are motivated to do good for the country and her citizens. For those who seem to want to only destroy our government, this article is a great reminder of all it does, without fanfare. Thanks again.
"civil servants and willing partners who disproportionately are motivated to do good for the country and her citizens." Nice to know a lot is still working despite the saboteurs.
Sue, I was about to post a similar message. For those who beat the drum constantly regarding Biden's age and "senility," he proves them wrong constantly. Faced with the Republican-manufactured crisis in the current debt ceiling, he managed to arrange for the Quad to meet in Hiroshima, and Antony Blinken went to meet with the Pacific Islands Forum as Biden returned to the US. This is not demonstrative of the "senility" that the radical right claims, but a well-oiled machine that manages the challenges, both real and manufactured, of a seasoned political professional. It is all done without fanfare or drama. I have hope that Biden will weather the storms and deliver us to safety. Thank you, Heather, for pointing out that the country's business is being handled by capable civil servants, in spite of the distractions.
I was thinking the same as I am just up here in Oregon, having coffee, and reading Heather's letter and the various posts. And who stands in the way of all Biden is trying to do....the party of death of course. They have ceased to offer anything worthwhile for quite a long time. Unfortunately, we have a few trolls here with inflated egos, which I always ignore when I see the names of certain people. And thank you for your very clear post.
I watched a little of Tim Scott announcement for president yesterday. I turned him off when he started bashing Biden. I wonder if Crow is backing him financially?
I nearly always mute Rs. Can't stand what they and their party represent. I did catch a little of what Scott said, trying to be conservative and not a wing nut at the same time.
I am wondering whyScott has such a huge war chest already. Thinking your Crow idea might explain it.
I rather think he will end up being their candidate. Already he's equivocating on his strong anti-abortion stance, while trying to appeal to a stunned Republican base. He is an evangelical Christian and just the person to gain the votes once given to Trump. Onward, Christian Nationalism! It would make sense that the ricos behind the conservative Supremes would also back Scott.
Trump and Bannon call our government "the Deep State." They would replace it with an authoritarian model. " “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it” - George Santayana. We have recent models - Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy, Communist Russia, and also today's Hungary, Turkey and Brazil.
Brazil voted in a course correction; full steam ahead Lula, muito bien.
I agree w you completely. Governing as opposed to grandstanding is hard work requiring patience, the ability to compromise, intelligence, and good will. We are going to have to fight for this together.
It isn’t all about the POTUS claiming ‘I alone will fix everything.’; but a set well-curated cabinet directors that can lead independently, with the same directive.
Amen!
Phone: (202) 225-2915
The above is Kevin McCarthy's Washington, DC office. I just called and left a message asking him if he WANTS to go down in history as the man who crashed the world economy.
Might anyone else want to give him a call as well, well, there you go.
Biden and his administration are building things — factories, bridges, and so much more, plus building global relationships that pay countless dividends. Meanwhile, the Republicans only know how to operate a wrecking ball.
HCR: how did these orgs work during Trump years? Did he pay any serious attention to any of them?
I’ll gladly answer that, Ira. And the answer is NO. No attention was paid to any of the nation’s business. Because The Donald didn’t believe that was worthy of his notice. He concerned himself with HIMSELF alone. And whatever trouble he could brew. I want him to be completely GONE. He’s caused enough harm and toxicity to OUR country.
You are absolutely justified in your analysis. And I hold CNN responsible for much of his assent in politics as it promoted his rallies endlessly— and he we are with Licht doing it again but it appears that CNN’s ratings fell into the toilet! Let’s all work daily to pull the plunger!
The actual work of the federal government is at home first.
Lets look at authoritarianism at home. Who wants to censor your speech? Who wanted to
fire you from your job if you didn't comply with COVID demands? Who wants to take away your gun? Who wants to digitize your currency? Who has weaponized the FBI and IRS against political opponents? Who wants to control what you eat, what car you drive, what light bulb you burn in the name of climate? Who wants to displace the role of parents in education children?
Socialism is always totalitarian.
Your straw man tries to paint a false picture. First, the suggestion that what is going on in the U.S. is Socialism is simply wrong. Further, authoritarianism is totalitarian. If you want an excellent example of capitalism models, look at Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden, Canada and Singapore. Socialism is a system where the state owns or controls the means of production. We don't have that here and neither do the countries that I just mentioned. It's Trump's and DeSantis' authoritarianism that we need to heed.
You just scratched the surface with this cretin. But thanks for that. I have zero patience with people who use Covid versus freedum. I cannot even begin to describe how bad that is. Good god - Italy was racking and stacking corpses in hospital hallways at one point. NYC had to use freezer trucks to store bodies. And this idiot thinks the USA was authoritarian in our covid policies? No sir - we were not active enough. We lost a million from not being active enough. NZ was, and they kept that horrible disease at bay. Oh, there it is again - "they comin' to take your guns". Need I get into the lunacy of that remark? Weaponization of DOJ, IRS? The irony, and the stoopid - it burns. And obviously, this selfish fool doesn't take climate change seriously, with that comment on what light bulb to burn, what car to drive. This is what we have to contend with in the USA - grand mal idiocy. Too many people living in cowboy land, and they vote.
Richard Ah, this ‘socialism’ shibboleth. The Federal government only created and operated one ‘business’: TVA (Tennessee Valley Administration). In the 1930s private utility companies did not consider it profitable to extend electricity in the poor south eastern United States.
FDR supported the TVA, which expanded electricity to millions of Americans. As a kid, I remember the stories about when electricity came to a family—light bulbs.
Of course Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, et al could be called ‘socialism.’
BUT, WHEN THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT BAILS OUT BANKS THAT SCREW UP, ISN’T THAT ALSO SOCIALISM?
Ayn Rand was a spokeswoman for a fringe group several generations ago. Those who today bloviate about American ‘socialism’ are Rand misanthropes.
Keith fully agree. TVA is really the only Federal government owned "business". Yet even with TVA and that is where I get my power the distribution is by my local customer own local coop. TVA used ALCOA's hydro generation on the Little River in east Tennessee which started in 1910 to produce power for aluminum smelting in the Knoxville area as an engineering model. Key also to TVA is the control of flooding on the whole of the Tennessee River system that extends all the way to the Ohio River. In my opinion this is a long long way from government overreach.
The postal system which we have had since the founding of the country is an important service industry that Trump did his best to destroy and that destruction continues under DeJoy. None of these are "socialism" in the real use of the term because they are NOT ownership of the means of production.
Keith, I have reported "James" to Substack Inc ; I got this.
Update: 15 minutes ago I requested Meediation at JAMS with "James" per the "Author" contract with Substack Inc.
Thanks for putting the 'Agitator ' in his place Richard! He thinks he's being honest but is sadly lacking in the facts and frankly, basic intelligence. Maybe the result of a pompous over esteemed idiot.
Gayle, you replied: "Maybe the result of a pompous over esteemed idiot." Sounds a lot like TFG, doesn't it? But, what does that say for the good folks who voted for him? "On some great and glorious day the plain folks of the land will reach their heart's desire at last, and the White House will be adorned by a downright moron."
H. L. Mencken
Thank you for this. It needed saying with clarity.
Oh damn, it's the question thing again. Please answer your own questions instead of making us guess what you're trying to say. And what's this "control what you eat" stuff, are you making a point of some kind? C'mon, James A, step up! I want to hear what you have to say, but you're being irritatingly coy.
Dude - you are giving him too much credit. There is no brain there.
And just who is banning books in Florida.
Hell Yes, I want books on sex banned for Kindergartners. They don't need to read about
sodomy, rape, & sexual intercourse.
Of the 175 books removed across the state, 164 (94%) were removed from media centers, and 153 (87%) were identified as pornographic, violent, or inappropriate for their grade level.
Where's your proof that ANY school is teaching kindergartners about sodomy, rape, & intercourse? You have none because it isn't happening.
Would you also support banning education on Stranger Danger? Kids are taught not to talk to strangers or get into cars with people they don't know. Little kids are told "those people could hurt you" but the specific harms are never mentioned. Educators are very conscientious about keeping Information age-appropriate.
You could move to a well run utopia like Sudan.
What a sad, sour person you must be.
(BTW, "intellectual" is generally a label others assign to a person, not one they give to themselves. Perhaps this is where your issues lie. )
Whenever someone who tries to make these highly debatable points is challenged as to their validity, they usually quote sources that inhabit the rightmost wing of the internet. James, please quote your sources. You might start with your idea that socialism is always totalitatarian. I think you just don't like government, preferring a libertarian anarchy.
What point is highly debatable? I can't see the thread you are refering to?
The areas in your original posting are all debatable, although some with fixed ideas might not recognize that. Start with your 'socialism = totalitarianism.' If you consider that to be dogma, there is no point in talking with you.
Yikes. At its best, which admittedly it isn’t always, the government is the system by which statute and policy is instantiated, systemically, fairly, and transparently. I think you’re saying you prefer a particular policy approach. That’s a different point than I was tying to make. Sorry if I was inarticulate.
You are not inarticulate. Mr. A has a different perspective than you do, one which is heavily influenced by talking points blathered about by those who wish to destroy our country.
you were NOT inarticulate.
you are clear and clearly your post is appreciated by many.
thank you!!!
Sue, I agree with others. All that you said was clear and sensible. The poster in question regularly drops into HCR's comment section to make unfounded and disproved claims, frantic arguments and does so in adversarial Hannity-fed tones. I generally ignore his repetitive comments and I believe others do too. Reiterating the same disproved and unsubstantiated claims on every one of HCR's thoughtfully curated posts is his practice. So little critical thought is made in the commentary that I'm convinced it's a bot or a GRU troll.
James, why is it that your ilk always skew and twist the meanings of words to discredit the essence of democracy? What comes to mind is the concept of life insurance - developed to share the burden of loss to families. Democracy has been defined as a system “of the people, for the people, by the people” - ALL of the people - not just the rich, selfish, greedy, vile and mean who seem to gravitate to authoritarian totalitarianism.
You are fool.
Democracy? You don't have a clue what democracy is.
First, In case you haven't noticed the demographics of the democrat party its primarily the party of the poor and the uber rich. All the richest ZIP codes in America are overwhelming LEFT. NYC, Boston, DC, LA, Atlanta, San Francisco, et cetera.
Its the middle class, the left hates. Fly over country. People who are church goers, family-oriented, and patriotic. These are the people Hillary Clinton called "deporables" and Obama said "They get bitter, they cling to guns or religion".
The left hates democracy.
Personal attacks are not permitted per your 'Author' contracr with Substack Inc. Cease & Desist now.
Calling out stupidity is a factual truth.
Remember this site was found on open debate. It must be difficult to imagine a website that
doesn't have a a leftist censor button or to hear things that offend your Marxist sensibilities.
This isn't kindergarten. However if you want to hear about rape, sexual orientation, pronouns, and drag queens, Kindergarten is the place to be in all leftist run educational systems.
"Found" (sic) or founded?
This site including you as a Substack Inc "Author' are under contract with Readers & Substack Inc enforced contractually at JAMS in SF. Take me to JAMS if you disagree.
JAMS has 3 Mediators experienced on platform contractual liabilities. Fair notice: I have had more than 20 matters at JAMS since 1990 both Arbitrations & Mediations. Your choice.
Your personal attacks against ANY Reader will not be tolerated under any circumstances.
https://simonwdc.substack.com/p/its-time-for-a-big-rethink-on-how?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
Since you are not explicit with any alternative suggestions for any means of collective action for the benefit of the group and, thereby, the individual members as well, I can only speculate as to what would satisfy you. For me, anarchy is a distasteful alternative and so is reverting to living in caves. I cannot understand how you think those are not inherently authoritarian in a society beyond the scope of one individual. Maybe you are confident that you have enough guns and ammo to weather the transition. I suspect that when your neighbors discover you have such a stock in hand, you will become the largest target for miles around.
LORD ! ....Have MERCY ! !!! on Your SOUL !
There goes President Biden again -- getting sh*t done both here and around the globe, while McCarthy and his band of broken toys try to burn it all down.
The work of Government is to secure the safety of our futures
You either support that or you don’t
Those that willingly hold our economy hostage for their own individual gain implicitly fall into the latter category and those that vote for them vote for authoritarian rule
Just so we’re clear on that, right?
...and when the Authoritarian’s support begins to wane, just start another war and claim patriotism disguised as Nationalism. I think we taught Putin that post 911. He used the same strategy in Chechnya, Georgia, and Ukraine.
"Zelensky’s presence, Sunak said, 'demonstrates that brute force and oppression will not triumph over freedom and sovereignty.' "
It does seem that the contest between brute force and "freedom and sovereignty" has gone on about as long as we've been a species.
This is exactly what MSM and social media need to stress over and over and over again ad nauseam.
Too bad it does not get media hype so that it could be more broadly known. I get furious each time a maga supporter asserts Biden is destroying this country.
Thanks Doug for you down to earth comment, gave me a good chuckle. And don’t we all need more smiles and laughter to calm our nerves over “the band of broken toys trying to burn down the house” ❤️ it!
No shit, brother! My respect for the man swells daily.
Getting shit done around the globe? Are you kidding?
Afghanistan was a total disaster. Ukraine has been a cluster fuck.
Blowing up the Nordstream pipeline? Driving Russia into China's arms?
Can you name a single foreign policy win?
Maybe he can send out that foreign policy giant Kamala Harris next time?
The more he stays at home the better off we are.
1. Afghanistan was a pull-out on Trump's treatied timetable (remember DT was going to host the Taliban at Camp David? Over anniversary of 9/11? Logistics were poor, however, and Biden, as CiC, is ultimately responsible for a faulty operation. (See, we Lefties aren't afraid to criticize our guys when warranted.)
2. Ukraine is desperately fighting off Russian aggression, and needs the assistance of US and allies to do so. If DT were in WH, Ukraine would have been annexed in days. It's not a cluster -- and Russia's military capability is severely degraded and shows superiority of Western tech.
3. Single foreign policy win? I'm no political scientist, but restoring status of US in global leadership, nearly erased under TFFG, is huge, and needed against rise of China and Putin, not to mention Finland's entry into NATO to counter latter's aggression.
That's all.
What so many critics ignore is that the USArmy, not the President, was in charge of daily logistics and operations. They achieved an enormous success by extracting well more than 100,000 Friends and Americans in a very hostile environment. A hidden story that needs to be told is that a soldier who is an expert sniper was stationed to identify and take out a civilian bomber mixed in with the crowd who they expected to cause devastation on the last day. He spotted the bomber and was ready to kill him before he set off the deadly bomb. However, a communications mixup and delay at HQ was not quick enough and we lost 13 brave Americans. Had the sniper been given the OK, there would have been no real criticism of this successful mission. Instead, MSM and Republicans needed to blame Biden and that unfair criticism has stuck! After 20 years of thousands of American troops killed and maimed in that ungovernable mess, Joe Biden deserves credit for his foresight in extracting us from an impossible mission that should have ended years earlier under different leadership.
How can you spin Afghanistan? It was a debacle. The Biden administration was 100% WRONG on the Afghan capability and willingness to fight the Taliban. They left behind
billions of dollars high tech military equipment. It was a cluster fuck.
As for Ukraine, the Biden administration could have stopped the Russian invasion ANYTIME
they wanted. Simple. Park 50,000 troops on the border. END of STORY. Instead they got embarrassed. When you threaten force and then back down you look WEAK. Next they said
sanctions would stop the Russians. No results there, although it did send inflationary shock waves through the American economy.
All to what end? To back one of most corrupt authoritarian countries in the world. Ukraine has among the worst records in the world on corruption besides the fact the authoritarian
government has jailed political opponents, shut down opposition media, and outlawed religion.
This is the hill to die on? 130 Billion spent on an war with no end in sight? I thought we learned out lesson in VIetnam and Iraq?
Restoring Global leadership? Are you joking? Why do you think Putin invaded? Because
he knew how feckless Biden was. All they how to do was watch how America handled Afghanistan to realize Biden was Jimmy Carter's foreign policy twin.
If Finland entry into NATO is your biggest foreign policy win, you have nothing to brag about.
What's next? How Biden solved the border problem and defeated inflation?
There is a reason Biden's approval rating is at 39% and 60% of democrats don't want him to run again.
He’s a troll and/ or it’s a Russian bot. Simply ignore him and/ or it.
The Clinton's were the Russian bots. It was a plan hatched by the Clinton campaign
In case you forgot, leftists love Socialism. They loved Stalin, Khrushchev, Castro, Mao and all the worst Communist murders.
You can stop with the phony lying. Leftist have everything in common with Socialism and authoritarianism.
Ugh.
I don’t like your tone.
I got this Susan.
More trolls and/ or Russian bots. Simply ignore them.
GT, James isn’t a troll. I see him as a strong-willed, right-wing opinion that thrives in an environment when his opposition is in political power, allowing him to attack each policy. While He makes some valid points on certain events (like Afghanistan), I don’t remember hearing such concern with previous Republican officials, particularly during the historically corrupt prior administration.
I think he’s more focused on trying to attract readers of ths newsletter over to his own substack newsletter for a more “cogent and well-researched and intellectual” discussion (/s).
Really? Attract readers to what? He hasn’t written a damn thing on his Substack newsletter:
“Welcome to James’s Newsletter by me, James A. Father, musician, businessman, intellectual, and pragmatist
Sign up now so you don’t miss the first issue.”
Did you read that last line? “Sign up now so you don’t miss the first issue”??
You make it sound like he/ it has been writing and you’ve been drawn to his/ it’s discussion(s) you quote as being “cogent and well-researched and intellectual”.
Where you got that quote is anybodies guess. What are you, his/ its PR man?! One thing is clear, the troll, bot or whatever he/ it is hasn’t written a damn thing on his/ its Substack newsletter. He/ It has just posted a bunch of crap here. All of it useless and not worth anybody here wasting their time reading it.
GT, thanks for holding me to account. To be clear, this was my first interchange with James, as I typically avoid the vexations of my spirit oft-created whenever I travel through the comments rabbit hole. Furthermore, the quote was simply mine meant to highlight his bio claim of intellectual and well-researched followed immediately by the ‘/s’ symbol indicating ‘sarcasm’. Please perish the thought of me being his PR man!
I apologize for overlooking his ‘first issue’ invitation. That indeed suggests possible a trolling identity, especially when considering that HCR has now been placed on Russia’s unwelcome list.
No problem Big B. I appreciate your reply. Fwiw I did not know ‘/s’ indicated sarcasm.
We all can (and do) get caught in the comments rabbit hole at times (me included). At this point I have seen enough posts like those of his/ its right wing extremist rantings, both here and on other substack authors pages, to see them for what they are and not get caught in their “troll net”.
As we know comments like these are meant to upset and engage the reader (any reader!) to respond, which then opens the door for the troll to comment yet again. It’s a cycle that can easily repeat itself.
Fwiw Below the name/ title of an article on Substack is a date. You can see it below the Title of HCR’s Letter today (and all her Letters). Based on my observations the date indicates when the Title was created on Substack. Typically the text of the article has been written and gets posted/ published along with the title. The date below our “friend’s” Title for its “first issue” is June 15, 2021. Geez it’s been almost two years since it created the Title and wrote “…..don’t miss the first issue”. Hmmm, it has the time to rant and rave here but none to write on the subject of its own article….. go figure….
James has a contract with Substack Inc and us "Readers" which is enforceable at JAMS in SF. I suggest you read the Colombia Joutnalism report a couple of years back on Substack Inc battles with Authors. Prior "Authors" provided me with a sample Author contract which is enforceable by this Community at JAMS.
"Afghanistan" what happened with tfg's deal with the Taliban at Doha? Kabul was not even present at Doha. Tfg did not "fix it",
No, I care about the truth.
If i was trying to mine readers, the last place I would go is to people who have the opposite political view.
What strikes me about modern leftism is how brutally "anti-intellectual" it is.
When a moron's only counter to your argument is to call you a BOT, it shows you how shallow their political ideology.
I would be embarrassed to share a political ideology with a mental Cro-Magnons
The question is why? The answer is sadly that all most leftists care about is virtue signaling. They don't give a damn about arguments. If they did, they could make them.
I took the liberty of reading the whole press conference transcript the Professor cited yesterday, and copying some further comments from the President that reveal the administration's thinking on the debt ceiling standoff.
On the 14th: "I can’t guarantee that they wouldn’t force a default by doing something outrageous. I can’t guarantee that...I’m looking at the 14th Amendment, as to whether or not we have the authority. I think we have the authority. The question is: Could it be done and invoked in time that it could not — would not be appealed and, as a consequence, pass the date in question and still default on the debt. That’s a question that I think is unresolved... We have not come up with a unilateral action that could succeed in a matter of two weeks or three weeks. That’s the issue. So it’s up to lawmakers. But my hope and intention is: When we resolve this problem, I’d find a rationale to take it to the courts to see whether or not the 14th Amendment is, in fact, something that would be able to stop it."
On who gets the blame: "Of course no one would blame me. I know you won’t. You’ll be saying, “Biden did a wonderful job.” (Laughter.)... On the merits based on what I’ve offered, I would be blameless. On the politics of it, no one would be blameless. And, by the way, that’s one of the — that’s one of the things that some are — are contemplating. I actually had — well, I got to be careful here. I think there are some MAGA Republicans in the House who know the damage that it would do to the economy. And because I am President, and presidents are responsible for everything, Biden would take the blame. And that’s the one way to make sure Biden is not reelected."
On what's coming in vs. going out: "[P]art of what I’ve been arguing from the beginning is a need to consider the tax structure as well as — as well as cutting spending. I’m willing to cut spending, and I proposed cuts in spending of over a trillion dollars. But I believe we have to also look at the tax revenues... It’s estimated that if we had the appropriate number of tax personnel, that we would generate somewhere between $200 billion and $400 billion in tax revenue... Anyway, I was able to say too that the 55 corporations in America that made $400 billion[:] “You got to pay a minimum of 15 percent tax.” What a horrible thing. You’re paying more than 15 percent in taxes, every one of you out there. And so, guess what? We not only balanced the budget; we were able to reduce the deficit by $1.7 trillion... So my point is that there’s a lot of things that they refuse to entertain, and they just said revenue is off the table. Well, revenue is not off the table... [W]e continue to have a significant disagreement on, on the revenue side."
On the long game vs. short-term fixes: "Look, here’s the other thing. I’m sure — I’m not sure; my guess is I’ll get a question about, you know, “Well, wait a minute, you know, the American people aren’t satisfied.” Well, guess what? As I told you all before, most of this — what we passed - only kicks in over time. I decided that we were going to be in a position where we were not going to continue to pay the highest drug prices in the world... Well, a lot of this is just kicking in. We’re in a situation where next year, for the drug costs, no senior will have to pay — total cost — total cost of all the drugs, from expensive cancer drugs to whatever drugs they’re taking, will not have to pay more than $3,500 a year... The following year, they won’t have to pay more than $2,000. That saves another $200 billion that we’re paying out. But the other team won’t count this. Even though it’s the law — we passed it — they won’t count that as reducing the debt. So there’s a lot of those kinds of disagreements we have."
Will It sounds like President Biden is preparing for a ‘Gunfight at the OK Corral’ with a mismatched McCarthy. I’m betting on Cool Hand Joe.
Cool Hand Joe. I like it.
Just send McCarthy the reading list you gave me. That’ll keep him busy reading 5 books at once. Might make an American citizen out of him. As soon as I’ve worked my way out out of the hole you’ve dug for me I’ll send heart felt thanks. MYTH AMERICA, THE SOUL OF AMERICA, BRAVE COMPANIONS, MIRACLE AT PHILADELPHIA, and me wife added THE PERFECT HORSE (Lipizzaner story by Elizabeth Letts). All are must reads. Thank you Professor Wheelock.
Pat Wouldn’t work with McCarthy. They aren’t picture books.
But….. there is that marvelous photograph of FDR and Eleanor depicting them as the Soul of America, along with Rosa Parks and even an intelligent Republican in Margaret Chase Smith who was opposed to McCarthy because she had a soul. Where is Murrow when you need him.
Pat I believe that Edward R. Murrow would speak out for President Biden, who reflects the soul of a decent America.
i had the privilege of knowing Murrow. With a British mother, as a kid I listened to Murrow’s This is London on Sunday afternoons. Dad knew him during WW II.
I first met him (and the Andrew Sisters) at a war bond fundraiser at Campbell Soup in Camden in, I believe, early 1945. Murrow joined us for a fishing week end. (Dad got him to do a daily news show for Campbells, our family advertising company’s largest account).
At the 1953 coronation, as Edward R. Murrow flew back on a Stratocruiser with coronation films, Janet Murrow accompanied Dad and me to Ascot.
A year later I saw Murrow as I recorded my This I Believe for CBS. I last saw Murrow in October, 1960 when he was keynote speaker at an Eisenhower Fellowships gathering with Ike.
Some years later Casey Murrow (the only Murrow child) and I were the speakers at a dinner with the top folks at National Public Radio.
Yes, I believe that Murrow, in experiencing the current national debt Perils of Pauline, would speak out strongly for President Biden (though Murrow’s advertisers might cavil, as Alcoa did on the Joe McCarthy broadcast),
Keith, you and Pat never cease to amaze me. I admire your histories so much.
I remember watching Murrow on our black & white TV and noticing billowing smoke surrounding him. Cigarette smoking, on air, was acceptable at that time and I suppose it was a prop for him to tell us the news. My dad loved his commentaries as much as he did Walter Cronkite’s. Murrow, Cronkite, Huntley, Brinkley, etc. were such icons to me.
You saw him in 54. That was the year he took on McCarthy. The fishing trip really caught my attention though. In 53-54 cowboys from the ranch were still riding spoonbill catfish at Ft. peck. I was 2-3 intensely interested in fishing. Politics were when the sheriff shot out my grandad’s lung during a poker game. We sure missed the international scene back then tho. Apparently that was when I got to go to Canada on a fishing trip. My mom said the baby sitter was sick. All I remember is that Naomi (my baby sitter) had gone blind and I don’t remember the lost fishing trip. Funny we had such similar experiences.
Surely there lives a journalist today capable of igniting the country against such a piece of human garbage, spewing lies and breeding lice as the modern day wonder, McCarthy. Someone yet to rise to prominence. Could that not be a journalism quest for all institutions of American higher learning. Make it a contest with a full ride to the winner. In memory to Murrow .
Pat James Fallows, who I have followed and greatly admired since his Washington Monthly days, is such a journalist. Check him out on Wikipedia and his James Fallows Substack. He continues to write opinion pieces in various publications.
😂😂 Precisely!
Wheelock, add Homegrown and The Undertow to your list.
Can McCarthy read?
Anyone else reading this in his voice? 😄
Haha - yes!
😅
Funny how the newly minted "deficit hawks" only care about the deficit when they aren't the ones spending. What despicable hypocrites. It's clear as a bell that when the 'Pubbies refuse to consider raising taxes as part of a total package, they are not negotiating in good faith.
Tl Mills, you said “pubbies”👏😂😂
Thanks for posting this, Will.
“Even though it’s the law — we passed it — they won’t count that as reducing the debt. So there’s a lot of those kinds of disagreements we have." Thank you for details on the continuing conversation and obstruction by repubs on negotiating the debt ceiling. No one should be surprised that we are down to the wire. This is not negotiating, it’s one more way for repubs to bring down the economy and government and blame the Democrats and President Biden.
The Republican Party is destroying itself. They are so devoid of love and respect for the rule of law, they dishonor the great leaders who came before is, they dishonor their elected positions by using their power to disrespect rule "by the people, for the people and of the people." They allow complete liars to be a part of our ruling body with little if any reprimand.
There is so much real work that is needed...good things we could be accomplishing to make our nation and world a better place: care for women and children, education, the environment, encouraging freedom for countries who long to be independent......
Time is valuable! .... our nation and its people and resources are a treasure, a gift, a responsibility in the hands of our elected officials!
You , the Republican Party (in whom I once foolishly supported) in my opinion, as an American citizen has become a gang of thugs and has foolishly lost it's way.
Will, thanks for this. Every day I wake up and am proud of our President and more impressed with what he has managed to accomplish - especially in the face of opposition from a party that just wants the rich to get richer and the "lazy poor others" be damned.
I think the Democratic Party could spend more time explaining just how rich - just a few very rich people - actually are. Spend more time detailing how little in taxes they pay. Spend some follow up time explaining what some more "revenue" could accomplish in terms of helping Americans who are being bled dry by a health care for profit system, by cost prohibitive child care costs, by the price of everything being hiked by the price gouging companies owned by - yeah, guess who.
This is a campaign offense strategy that is left on the table. The GQP is making war on anything not White Supremacist. They are literally attacking the very culture of America.
The Dems need to remove their swords from their scabbards charge with similar vigor. And then when we have swept into office in 2024, we should be going after that revenue big time. I would take it step farther. Heather has on a number of occasions pointed to the wealth transfer to the top 1% of Americans over the last 50 years - $50 trillion? It is time to retrieve that National Treasure and redistribute it and pay down the debt as well.
A few families at the top of the food chain hold $100 trillion. The National Debt is predicted to surpass about $35 trillion (please forgive my round numbers). So...$50 trillion less in the hands of these thieves might mean selling one of their 5 homes or one of their yachts? Sorry.
National Debt could be retired and a whole lot of kids could be fed, given adequate health care and the equal education they are being denied. Social Security could be secured. Medicare for All could be launched - freeing people from jobs where they are abused - but continue in because the startup company they want to join can't afford health insurance.
The GQP demonizes a kid who is having gender identity questions. The GQP is rewrites history to ignore the inherent issues of hundreds of years of the legacy of slavery. The GQP is banning books in schools. Literally attacking our diverse society.
We need to demonize the uber rich and corporations that are the leeches on the body American. We need to get really loud about how the Oil Companies KNEW about the impact of fossil fuels on the Climate - and that they still, to this day, receive billions in tax subsidies!
This is a "Let them eat cake" moment - there is all the money needed to solve our issues of inequity and debt and Climate Catastrophe. It's just in the wrong hands.
I don't want to demonize the uber-rich, but I do wish they had more genuine noblesse oblige, which should involve both cheerfully paying taxes and partnering with government to the betterment of the whole industry and society, not just individual players. Rich people buy art. They can, if they wish, make the necessary goods and services that enable us all to live. Their money, a "superpower" in our world, can postivitely affect multitudes.
Otherwise, I agree with much that you've said, with the exception that I don't want to actually retire the National Debt, just reduce it. After all, that's the treasury bond market, right? That's why when then-Candidate Trump commented on retiring Puerto Rico's debt, the bond market took a huge hit, and he had no idea what he'd done.
Thank you. I concur. You are a wise person.
Maybe Jeff Bezos could kick in a little more? He
can afford a 417 foot sailing yacht and a 250 ft support boat to hold all the toys.
Thanks, Will.
Will, you are a absolute treasure!
Will, from Cal -- I listened to the press conference. Many thanks for these selected highlighted quotes.
Thank you for this addition, very helpful. Regards, Michael Wade, Boone, NC
Michael, I was born and raised in Lenoir!
Thanks Will for posting this.
Quite a story of international cooperation, cooperation among states within the US, and involvement of the private sector. A description of the way the world should work and, apparently, does work under Joe Biden's leadership. What a contrast to what the world would have been had 2020 turned out differently.
The plan is for 2024 to accomplish what 2020 didn’t, by any means that they can conjure up. The states are complicit as are many in our government, many “Christian” churches, and many “patriots,” otherwise known as traitors. They are legion…
Patriotism?
Beware the leader who bangs the drums of war in order to whip the citizenry into a patriotic fervor, for patriotism is indeed a double-edged sword. It both emboldens the blood, just as it narrows the mind.... And when the drums of war have reached a fever pitch and the blood boils with hate and the mind has closed, the leader will have no need in seizing the rights of the citizenry. Rather, the citizenry, infused with fear and blinded with patriotism, will offer up all of their rights unto the leader, and gladly so. How do I know? For this is what I have done. And I am Caesar.
(William Shakespeare)
"If it's not good news for the poor; it's heresy period." Jim Wallis The Republicans have no good news to preach. They are trying to blow up America and the world, so the morbidly rich can buy up everything for pennies on the dollar as a result of a horrible depression.
I shudder to think, but the battle continues.
It continues, and it must be won. The alternative is unthinkable.
"And they included key G7 partners Indonesia, Vietnam, and the Republic of Korea."
Having grown up in an era in which we were repeatedly told that North Vietnam was a "puppet" of China, and that SE Asian countries (somehow Australia mentioned in the list) would fall to communism "like dominoes" unless Ho Chi Minh was defeated, it is a bit surprising to see Vietnam on the "partners" list, even though I knew back in the day that the casus belli was BS.
Also wondering if China would be throwing it's weight around quite so much if US corporations and politicians had not been in such a rush to export US manufacturing and manufacturing technology to China in exchange for cheap labor. So often it seems like what very big money gets for cheap winds up costing society, the world, and the planet a bundle, one way or another in the end.
You nailed it, not to mention that our domestic economy, particularly in the Rustbelt, would have not been subjected to the damage inflicted upon it by co-opted members of Congress four decades and more ago. Much of this was laid bare years ago by two intrepid reporters from the Philadelphia Inquirer in a twelve-part series later appearing as a book, America: What Went Wrong? This, and more, is why Republican politicians are so afraid of having History taught properly in our schools and colleges. They can't defend their own pasts, much less our more distant history. The past is indeed prologue, or as William Faulkner put it, "the past is not dead. It's not even past."
I try to see time metaphorically as a spacial dimension. NASA did a good job of this in this brief animation. The time as a "whole thing" comes at the end. https://climate.nasa.gov/climate_resources/300/video-climate-spiral-1880-2022/ Every thing we "know" is drawn from memory.
That's why I am a Democrat, and a Democratic Socialist. Both government and corporations will use their powers corruptlybif they have too much. That is why both need to be in a balanced tension. Each is needed to prevent the other from gaining too much power.
JL, your assessment is spot on. Outsourcing our manufacturing in pursuit of obscene profits has led us to this point.
Ain't that the truth!
Interesting that the US has such a strong trading relationship with communist Vietnam, against which we fought a land war, but no relationship with our neighbor communist Cuba.
My husband, a Vietnam vet, has such disdain for the VA and the government. The lies told to them, to us, are now inconceivable. Our history of bombing countries and then assisting in building them back up is like a drunkard who keeps apologizing for his/her behavior.
Was it the B52 hits on villages that leveled so many?
More than likely, yes. C130s, however, sprayed tons and tons of Agent Orange. Those were flown by the Air Force. It was used to defoliate the forests that the Viet Cong used as their hideouts. It ruined many innocent Vietnamese lives and also our soldiers. It has taken over 40 some years for the DoD to admit their toxic role in this godforsaken war.
Our criteria for whom we will fight and whom we will prosecute is pretty inconsistent, and often smells of ulterior motives. Our involvement in WW II was thrust upon us, even needed before Pearl Harbor. Bombing Iraq for "suspected" but never proven WMDs? I doubt we would have gone there had Iraq's chief export been cabbages.
In my lifetime we've never faced an internal threat as dangerous as Donald Trump. No one else who has the toxic combination of ingredients that exits in this man has risen to be elected President....and then lost re-election, only to not concede...lie about the loss and then attempt to stay in power. He is a totally unique and threatening animal...who is now backed into a corner of his own creation. His old playbook is quickly running out of tricks that worked.
Old line conservatives really do believe in freedom for themselves to choose how to do business, how to pay taxes, what to believe about God and spirit, about how to treat a body....that a two cell organism needs to become a birthed child no matter what the circumstances, or risks, but that everyone should have a pile of guns...with no restrictions...and thoughts and prayers is the best we can do for murdered and maimed people....and though they hate Trump, they empower him...won't destroy him...because he fights for their issues....and "his people" might get pissed if you piss on him too much. They all need each other to beat the liberals, the progressives, the commies & socialists out here....who they do not respect at all.
The folks at the Bradley Prize event last week never once attacked him by name, even though it was pretty obvious there was no deep love for him in the room. They did not praise him either. It's like they are somehow above it all.
Betsey DeVoss was VERY clear that her goal is to defund the Dept of Ed...kill it. She got a crystal lion for that...and applause. Others railed on about free markets...no regulations being the best way forward. That they are victims of religious persecution, because other folks have other belief systems...or even no belief system. They want us to believe in God the way they do.
They don't want Civil War monuments to confederates taken down or moved...they don't want men to become women...and we are all supposed to be ok with what they want, how they want it....and if that means Trump continues to spew his toxic brew...they aren't going to bitch about that....I guess it's not polite...but they will bitch about us...and surround it with a huge American Flag...a choir of white boys from Baltimore singing the words FS Key wrote, about 3 miles from where I type this...where Key took notes and wrote his observations as the World's greatest army & navy attempted to beat us in to submission, to their will...and failed...because the people of this city, black & white, male & female, free & enslaved held their ground...and won a victory...after the folks in DC had fled and allowed the White House to be sacked and burned and the Capitol to be looted...we held on and beat them. As I'm writing this, I'm more proud of Baltimoreans than I have ever been...."Rockets red glare...Flag was still there."
Let's fight the good fight....do not give up the ship.
For more about the Bradley Prizes event...read my most recent Substack piece
PEACE to all....and go Orioles
"...but they will bitch about us...and surround it with a huge American Flag." Ahh, Mike. It's always a delight to see "it" through your lens. My "people" settled in Baltimore after coming over on "the boat." It was a sizeable family of sons and daughters, two of whom drifted over to D.C. while the rest stayed and thrived near the harbor. Most still live in the suburbs and are content to do so. "By the dawn's early light...'Tis the star-spangled banner! Oh, long may it wave..."
Good morning Lynell. I'm very glad that you're delighted. Much of my family from both sides ended up in Baltimore. My Fathers, mothers people were all on the Eastern Shore going back into the 1700's. My Mothers people were also on the Eastern Shore. They were all English-Irish. My grandparents all migrated to Baltimore in the early 1900's. My Dad's father was the German and his people came directly to Baltimore in the early 1800's. So all of my direct ancestors were here in MD by the time the Britts did their trip up the Bay to attempt to destroy Fells Point and the shipyards that built the Privateers that vexed the Britts so much. Maybe that's why I have such an affinity for the Pride of Baltimore II, which is the floating, touring, go to sea replica of those ships.
My observation of the massive 2012 and 2014 Tall Ship events here was that they felt like the Britts had come here, so FS Key could write our National Anthem....when the real star of the show, is the Privateer ships and their Captains & crews and the resolve of the people of Baltimore...an honest to God, well regulated militia, plus some professional soldiers and a lot of civilians who stopped the Britts dead in their tracks. One side note...a teenage sharpshooter, took out the British commander...and his second wasn't so intent on completing the job.
In 2014 the Maryland Historical Society, under the leadership of Burt Kummerow recreated the original Banner, with the same materials and techniques as the original with a group of volunteers and had it flown at the Fort. We documented that process in a series of You Tube videos. I'll make that a new substack reflection soon.
Your pride shines through in this telling of Baltimore history, Mike. Grateful for the read.
They really pulled off something special here. The "Baltimore Clipper" ships were unique to the Bay...the fastest, best handling boats around...the British Navy were vexed by them and hated them...and the people here just came together and stood firm against the best the Britts had...sounds like Ukraine, on a smaller scale. As a side note, I believe the bombardment of Ft. McHenry was the largest naval bombardment of a fort to ever happen in the Western Hemisphere.
Your reflections on Baltimore reminded me of one of the more interesting films I've seen: The Rat Film, available on Amazon, that explores the distribution of the rat population in Baltimore and it's implications for public policy. Thanks for your thoughtfulness.
I have not seen that film. Will need to look it up. I have however encountered a few rats while traveling around the city. We just have raccoons, squirrels and foxes in our neighborhood....and mice....which the cats really love.
Excellent rumination there, Mike. Lord Baltimore himself would smile. Speaking of smiles, I do believe one of the best mascots in baseball, the capped Oriole on the O's cap is smiling even more as they are playing well these days⚾️
The announcement that Senator Tim Scott (the first African-American elected by popular vote in the South) is a Republican presidential candidate reminded me of my encounter with Edward Brooke, the first African-American ever elected senator by popular vote (1966, MA)
I was taking a month of home leave on Marthas Vineyard after two years as Foreign Service Officer in Chile. I was flying down to New York City on a commuter flight. My seat mate was Senator Brooke.
He was unusually talkative, especially after hearing that I was strongly opposed to Nixon. He spoke of his ‘delicate’ political situation. He had publicly refused to support Barry Goldwater, the Republican presidential candidate in 1964. In the run up to the 1968 presidential election, he had supported Governor George Romney and Governor Nelson Rockefeller as the Republican presidential candidate. Now Nixon was the candidate.
Senator Brooke explained why he now was politically obliged to meet with Nixon and announce his support of the Nixon candidacy. We shared a cab from the airport and I dropped him at Nixon’s residence.
It was reported that, when Nixon was re-elected in 1972, he offered Senator Brooke a cabinet position or the ambassadorship at the UN, both of which Brooke rejected.
Brooke served two six-year terms as senator. In 1978 he was defeated for re-election, in part because his strong support for abortion lost him a substantial proportion of the Catholic support.
He also had some publicized financial problems. I do not recall whether his affair with newscaster Barbara Walters was public knowledge in 1978.
Thank you, Keith. You relay much history I did not know.
Very cool, Keith. Of course Senator Scott is not in former Senator Brooke's class intellectually. Scott is basically a black version of Parson Pence
I don't know much about Scott except what appears in headlines, but he might be faking it to get the votes of the willfully ignorant.
It was not.
Wow. Thanks Keith!
It is amazing how President Biden can manage to get things accomplished even with this Republican MAGA crisis that’s developed here in the states. They (the MAGA crowd) did manage to keep him from an important portion of this trip so he could return and deal with McFarty, the puppet on strings, and the debt crisis they refuse to understand.
At least Biden sent a representative to take care of business, but it would have been much better if he, himself, could have taken care of it.
Now, it’s my belief (for those if you that require proof if things said), I’ll repeat myself. It’s MY BELIEF the MAGA Republicans (MTG, Jordan, and yes, McFarty) planned this so they could attempt to show that President Biden wasn’t capable of dealing with the crisis, and international affairs.
They failed. And yet, they are still stalling on the debt ceiling crisis, here, in the United States!
They’re demands are ludicrous, and they know it.
How far are they willing to go with this?
Do they realize they are making themselves look like absolute fools?
Do they actually think they are gaining support if the American people?
Those are questions worth pondering!
Do we really want the likes of what’s in leadership currently in the House of Representatives after 2024, and beyond? Truly?
What exactly have they accomplished to help us, the people, since they gained majority of the House?
"Yes, I know we might lose our jobs and savings... But as long as only REAL girls are allowed to wear skirts, I just know it will work itself out."
**clutches pearls with one hand, wipes tears with the other**
And don’t let any real girl try to get an abortion, regardless of their financial ability to support another mouth to feed once born or their emotional maturity to raise a child.
**looks the other way while poor mother and unhealthy child are denied Medicaid thanks to Republican “conscientious” budget cuts **
“In the heat I saw you rising from the dirt, drunken tears and tugging at your skirt; if only you could tell then whick part of you got hurt, in the heat I saw you rising from the dirt”
Flying Over Water”. Jason Isbell
https://youtu.be/hsa_Fwn2xJA
You have no idea how much I love Jason Isbell, and for how long it has annoyed me that he is not famous. His wife's a gem, too.
Saw them live in January Front row at a 2000 seat Vaudeville Theater. Stunning
https://youtu.be/hsa_Fwn2xJA
From the sky we look so organized and brave
Walls that make up barricades and graves
Daddy's little empire built by hands and built by slaves
From the sky we look so organized and brave
In the heat I saw you rising from the dirt
Drunk, in tears and tugging at your skirt
If only you could tell me then what part of you got hurt
In the heat I saw you rising from the dirt
Take my hand, baby, we're over land
I know flying over water makes you cry
Where's that liquor cart?
Maybe we shouldn't start
But I can't for the life of me say why
From the sky, the highway's straight as it could be
A string pulled tight from home to Tennessee
And still somehow those ditches took the better part of me
From the sky, the highway's straight as it could be
Take my hand, baby, we're over land
I know flying over water makes you cry
Been in the sky so long, seems like the long way home
But I can't for the life of me say why
Did we leave our love behind?
Would we leave our love behind?
Did we leave our love behind?
Would we leave our love behind?
Take my hand, baby, we're over land
I know flying over water makes you cry
Been in the sky so long, seems like the long way home
But I can't for the life of me say why
Did we leave our love behind?
Did we leave our love behind?
Source: Musixmatch
Songwriters: Michael Isbell
Thank you, Dave. I love Jason Isbell.
To your last paragraph: MTG and fellow misfits have no intention to help the American people. Rather, their goal is to gain and maintain power so that Dems can't help us, either. That's the difference -- Dems seek power to benefit their constituents; the cultists simply seek power for its own sake. They are bereft of ideas.
I think they have only one idea and are pursuing it relentlessly. Defund the government, so there will be no regulation of wealthy corporate donors and no environmental rules that might reduce profits to wealthy donors. In my mind, anything that benefits the rich should be their policy. that’s it. End of story.
The representative he sent to replace him was doing the job for which he was so wisely appointed. A good manager trusts his people to perform. Without hesitating, President Biden made his decision, advised his international colleagues, and did what he had to do. No theatrics.
Thanks, Daniel. By my reading, while Biden canceled the portion of his trip to Australia, according to Heather, it seems they met instead at the G7. "He had to cancel because of the debt ceiling crisis, so the group met in Japan at the G7." So it turns out they met in Japan, not Australia. So cool!
Morning, Lynell!!
Morning, Ally! Still hanging in there!
Me, too. We had our Spring Concert on Sunday, and it was a smashing success. Thank you again for your support of my passion.
🎼🎶🌞
You might as well be asking these questions of chump. Is there any woke person alive who thinks that there is a bottom to their depravity. They (and chump) have reveled in the destruction they have and can bring down on us all.
No bottom. None.
Ally you are the professional law enforcement entity that I know aside from several such family members. The guns are out there. Widespread everywhere. Almost all of them are in what we would consider normal law abiding hands. Even so I have witnessed almost criminal abuse of firearms on public lands as entertainment. As a State engine boss, and a USFS engine boss and as a private engine boss one of my patrol objectives was to clean up spent brass on public lands. As far back as 1969. Most illicit shooting ranges of that era yielded brass from typical .30 caliber hunting rounds. As we approached the 2000 timeline there was a marked increase in brass where a days cleanup yielded upwards of 3 (5gal.) buckets of mostly .223 and ak-47 and semi auto pistol rounds. This was in western Mt. 2007 was the last season I did those patrols. By 2007 we didn’t have enough spare room on a type 6 engine to carry the spent rounds of auto and semi auto casings we found. The callous disregard for the out of doors was bad enough but the fire arms abuses themselves indicated a public devoid of reason. I believe the army was right in putting its weapons safely in the armory. Even in war torn Viet Nam companies behind the green line locked up their weapons, except for 24 hr on call combatants like my crew that had 5 minutes response time and had to clean weapons each night. The point being that all weapons were secure until needed. Recon was always armed as was search and destroy. Standard Combat assault groups were armed from the armory mission specific. We had exacting gun control. Article 15’s both verbal and written were issued to abusers. We had abusers as race riots broke out daily. Shots were fired, but usually not ending in deaths. The gun control regimen held.
With this monumental increase in weapons abuse and the corresponding lack of judgement by firearms users we have really entered into a time of urgency for all Americans to enter the dialogue of controversial gun control. That we have given the Republican factor Cart Blanche in dodging the issue will only continue to exacerbate the gun control issue. This is currently a Democratic problem. Not a REPUBLICAN problem! When they have to tackle this issue it will become a shared problem. I’m going to say it one more time. We as Democrats must give the problem over to the Republicans to solve. Mark my words. They will not do it. They will not do it. But neither will they be able to to tell the populace that the Democrats are coming for their guns! This is the spearhead that will break the impass. Only together will we an answer. Back off gun control make it a Republican issue.
My question to you is how do we do that? The people in my circle (mostly LEO/LEO friendly) are 100% opposed to any restriction at all.
My thoughts are that we need to utilze motor vehicle codes (licensing/insurance/liability/training) as well as the behavior codes (break something/litter/hurt someone/kill someone) along with the varying degrees of intent (negligent, reckless, intentional. knowing) to determine the severity of the crime. I have suggested this (to my mind) reasonable proposition to these folks with the commentary that "if we don't do something that we can live with (like, demonstrate responsible gun ownership) this will get done for us and we won't like what we get from "them". Falls on deaf ears every time.
Once I had a stubborn mare that couldn’t be enticed. I found out through my daughter she had a weakness for apple pellets(guns). Once I plied her with those pellets allowing her all she wanted she became an energetic participant and is as fine a saddle horse as you could ever want. When I whistle she will come on the fly from more than a mile, whinnying eagerly the whole way. Remember the hunter safety wars? Oh Gawd what the hell else will they do to us! Now a days it is, ‘when is the next class?’ Open a rifle range and sponsor contest from black powder to modern weapons demonstrations of extreme firepower. Erect wall tents and form an historic encampment. Bring on the military tuba band. Become renowned in your community. Have you been through Ally’s Camp? You know the one that teaches gun stewardship. If all else fails hike a segment of wilderness trail coming full circle back to Ally Land. Tie guns to an ethical romance. The kids will come.
Really I guess I answered a question you didn’t ask. The answer to your question is simply to stop advocating gun control. Quit being the bad guys. Come out in favor of the right to keep and bear arms. Steal their thunder. Mimic their answers of prayers and condolences. It is hard to shoot a pheasant in the cattails when it won’t flush. They won’t budge. We will have to erode them. The only prop they have left is the gun control issue. We can make that go away. It is both in our power and in our our interest to do so. I don’t see a way around the long game but our playing to their power is ludicrous. Their house of cards will tumble as it is built on untruths. We will eventually turn half of their disillusioned voters. Their slicky boy politicians don’t have right stuff to keep reublican stalwarts enthralled.
The Republican Party begins to resemble the Know Nothings and ought to be banished to the wilderness of retirement in the next election.
Hey, there is no shame in knowing nothing! We all start life out that way, naturally.
It's just that some of us find virtue in learning and adapting, while others never stop crying for the doc to put back their umbilical cord.
Babies innately know quite a bit. We socialize them into adults.
Infants are freshly born of the Universe and they know everything.
Alan The Know Nothings (American Party) morphed into the new Republican Party in the 1850s. Now they seem to be going back to their roots.
Abraham Lincoln, may he rest in peace, would roll over in his grave if he knew what the Republican has morphed into. Like Trump sort of implied “White nationalists can also be good people.”
Can we just build a nice hole for them to slink into the ground that binds them?
I think, and I am hoping, they build their own hole in the ground, but we may need to get them a shovel.
Glad to assist with that!
They don't resemble, they are. I've said from January 2021 this will be a do nothing Congress. Unfortunately I was correct, the magats are incapable of legislating, but unfortunately they outnumber the real legislators.
A party that must live in infamy.
Infancy?
Emotionally.
Wasn’t it Sam Rayburn who said that any jackass can kick down a barn, but it takes a carpenter to build one. The eternal battle between the jackass(s) and the carpenter…. The Republican destruction derby will stop at nothing
And they will insist that their act of kicking down the barn was an act of great patriotism.
We Need Voices.
The current executive branch, the Democratic side of the legislative branch, and the rational minority of the judicial branch of the federal government continue to operate under traditional political norms. But we are becoming painfully aware that our Constitution and the rule of law are all too vulnerable to cooption by forces hostile to a democratic system -- forces that are not bound by such conventions.
Historians Heather Cox Richardson and Jared Yates Sexton (standing on the shoulders of predecessors such as Richard Hofstadter) teach us that our democratic experiment has been under similar attack before. Sadly, these attacks result not from external forces or tiny terror cells, but from the actions of a large portion of the citizenry -- but not a majority.
My contention is that these attacks are primarily driven by economic interests of the very wealthy. They are adept at manipulating fringe ideological factions to join their crusades -- that is why we see evangelicals, white supremacists, anti-abortion, and anti-immigration elements often unite under one political banner. The leadership of these factions are often also the very wealthy -- their sincerity regarding their ideologies is questionable -- but their minions are often 'true believers.' Sadly, the 'true believers' are often the end result of campaigns of weaponized lies -- most 'true believers' lack the critical reasoning skills to evaluate these lies as such.
Our battle must be waged on two fronts -- 1) fight the ignorance that enables voters to be easily swayed by weaponized lies -- and 2), fight the wealthy in court to make them pay for economic crimes and prevent them from carrying out election fraud and voter suppression. As the E. Jean Carroll case shows, there can be overlap.
The first front requires powerful and charismatic voices of reason that can pierce the veil of ignorance and paranoia relied on by demagogues to convince the impressionable to vote against their own interests. The second requires lawyers and resources.
These voices of reason must be distinct from the political realm and free to speak truth to power. I believe we have in the good professor Richardson a protype for such a voice.
Fighting cult insanity is a battle for every non-cult citizen.
In which each of us must take up "arms" to the best of our abilities.
That said, one of my favorite snarks is "You cannot have a battle of wits with an unarmed person". In this call to "arms", we have to realize that their sky is a different color and that up is down. Persist, with resolve.
Yeah, no kidding!
Agree!
Perspective
by Josh Marshall
Even though this won’t come as new news to many of you, the following is still a clarifying prism. A negotiation is usually two sides haggling to get things they want. Leverage is often unequal. Sometimes one side isn’t “getting” anything but rather just trying to give up as little as possible. But in this negotiation, Republicans are getting various policy priorities and Democrats are “getting” Republican agreement not to create a global financial crisis. That’s extortion, not negotiation. A government can’t operate in any consistent or sustainable way when policy deliverables go to the party willing to credibly threaten the most damage to the country itself. #word
https://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/perspective-6
Putin's blacklist of 500 signals desperation and slaps down his last, appropriately named, card.
Now for the Kremlin Capo's ultimate weapon, in the hands of his underling and mobsters, the debt ceiling.
Paging RICO.
RICO? Please. Too much of a big production, and unnecessary to boot. Everyone knows best defense against Boris and Natasha is Moose and Squirrel.
Let's all dial the Wayback Machine so we can vote against Newt Gingrich!
My vote would be the same. I recall getting a phone call (before caller ID) where a very sweet female voice wanted me to listen to "an important message from Speaker Gingrich". I told her I would rather listen to a pig snort than anything Speaker Gingrich had to say. Never got another such phone call
I admit that I'm terrible at writing letters to my representatives, never able to escape a sense of the futility of the exercise. But I did get worked up enough once to write a letter to then-Rep. Gingrich, long ago when I lived in Cobb County, Georgia. His office sent me a lengthy reply, which I read in depth, thinking that he had given me something valuable.
But after I crossed out all the buzz words and contradictions contained in his statement, it boiled down to only one thing, "You didn't vote for me so I don't give a damn about you." 'Taught me something about his views on representative democracy, that's for sure...
That's the thing. There is such a thing as a tyranny of the majority (ask several minorities) and so we attempt to protect individual human rights in the Constitution.
But that's not enough. We need to actively promote solidarity (which, unlike conformity, can be forged amidst diversity, aka "freedom". "Screw everyone who didn't vote for me" is itself a form of tyranny that rejects solidarity. Lincoln's cautionary "Accustomed to trample on the rights of those around you, you have lost the genius of your own independence, and become the fit subjects of the first cunning tyrant who rises." is another way of warning "And then they came for me..." We are stuck with a nation that verges on half-delusional, and we cannot afford to allow tyranny and corruption to grow, and yet only awareness and solidarity can repair the rift. That and limiting the "love" and power of money. Some things should never be for sale.
👏🏼👏🏼😂😂
He’s still alive and has appointed himself as an “advisor” to the Repubs. Ugh
🤣
Moose and Squirrel retired some time ago, but you can still get lots of Fractured Fairy Tales from the RNC (they're really sick ones though).
Also, I think Boris disguised himself as a mop and moved to the UK.
I just sent this out to seven family members and close friends, as follows, along with the essay of course: "This is a good column from a very reputable source on the role intelligent diplomacy can play in advancing national interests and promoting a more peaceful world for our children and grandchildren everywhere. This hard, productive work is a welcome departure from inflammatory rhetoric and impromptu tweets over morning Big Macs. So is the work of Heather Cox Richardson, who is one of America's finest historians." Cheers,
Biden needs to do a ‘fireside chat’ speech on TV and radio, clearly explaining the difference between a government ‘shut down’ and not raising the debt ceiling: the difference in process between raising the debt ceiling and budget negotiations. Also he should explain how much of that debt was GOP and Trump gifts to the wealthy. He needs to highlight the stark priorities of each party. It needs to go on major networks and be concise and simple enough with a graph or two and scripting, that the dolts who are listening to the FOX and OneAmerica nonsense might hear something ‘new’ and factual for a few minutes.
I'd like to see Katie Porter and her white board take it on.
Yes, Miselle!
Sadly, they won't hear it as "factual". It will be "lies" in their view.
Faux wouldn't even air it. Or CNN. Or...
McCarthy and his minions - or he, as the minion of those standing behind him - continue to try to recast Biden's international work and successes as unimportant, recommending that the President should be taking care of America first. They continue to diminish Biden's successes. What continues to rankle me is that news coverage is about brief soundbites. Even PBS fails to report fully to show the significance of Biden's international work for AMERICAN security, as Heather has done here. The strength if democratic international order is crucial to world peace and prosperity. I believe too few fully understand how effective Biden's international work has been for the security of American citizens. McCarthy sure doesn't get it.
The people behind McCarthy, who want to destroy the government, establish a theocratic authoritarian oligarchy, and set the world on a course that will maximize profits for fossil fuel producers and defense contractors, are appalled at the success Biden is having.
McCathy “gets it”, its just that “getting it” goes against his ambitions. Its his constituency that doesn’t “get it”
Dave, you give him more credit than I do. Still, you're right that it goes against his ambitions, so he goes on to burning it all down to rule over the ashes.