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"And yet, that recent CNN/SSRS poll found that 59% of Republicans and Republican-leaning Independents think believing that Trump won the 2020 election is important to their identity as Republicans." Wow. So most Republicans base their identity on a lie. It has been proven over and over that there was no election fraud. Such a foundation is built of sand and cannot last. At least we hope so. The most challenging problem with gullible Republicans (and all of us, really) is their inability to admit they were suckered. Mark Twain said it best: "It's easier to fool people than to convince them that they have been fooled."

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"California has about half as many registered Republicans as it does registered Democrats..."

So, there are twice as many registered Democrats as registered Republicans, yet Republicans claim, even before election day, Democrats can win only by cheating.

Cognitive dissonance doesn't describe it.

One assumes that Republican/MAGA rank and file are swallowing this malarky whole, and that every Republican hack in the state of California is promoting this "alternative facts" claim.

I hope that Democratic voters in my former home state will get to the polls today in such overwhelming numbers that the results will be difficult to deny.

I know, they'll try anyway.

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If Newsom survives and that voting rights bill is passed, we could sigh with relief. But we should not pause long. We have arrived at this point due to APATHY. California needs to send the clone of "45" packing with a resounding majority. And at least 10 Republican Senators need to stand up for democracy. Is that even feasible?

Will a voting rights bill fail simply because it is being proposed by Democrats? That seems to be the trend. Example: "Warp speed" development of a vaccine was to be a Republican victory - touted by the "dear leader" endlessly. We will be saved. But now that the leader saying nearly the same thing is a Democrat, asking everyone to get the vaccine, the leader is the "enemy of freedom". There is a sick hate embedded here. A self destructive, reflexive, bitter hate. This has always existed to one degree or another. But it has been cultivated by a money grubbing media (owned by a guy from Australia!) and clever political demagogues (using twisted religious rants).

We need to get our messages organized and make them clearer. We need to get louder and make more "good trouble". We need to tackle the real enemy: APATHY.

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For the first time in my life -- I am 70 years old -- I am afraid.

I fear a dangerous outcome for myself, my family and the country.

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"More than 243,000 children tested positive for the virus last week, the second highest number of pediatric cases since the pandemic started. About 2200 are currently hospitalized."

The children, the children! We have a sacred responsibility toward them which must surely weigh more heavily on our consciences that our "rights" and our freedoms, for heaven's sake! The narcissism of some adults and their total disregard for our children and communities are beyond belief. As I read somewhere recently regarding another topic, I would like to say (and I paraphrase): I forgive these individuals, for they know not what they do, but I can't -- because, d*** it, they know exactly what they do and they recognize the consequences of their self-centeredness.

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And the threats against election officials is ramping up in anticipation of midterms. 😩

“DENVER — Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold is no stranger to threats online.

She says since the election in 2020, threats have been a constant. Fueled by lies alleging stolen elections and widespread voter fraud, the attacks against Griswold and her staff have not only sustained, she says they have increased.

The Colorado Secretary of State's Office shared some of those threats with Denver7. The comments were posted to Griswold's personal and public social media accounts and sent in direct messages. The messages make direct and gruesome threats against her life.

"I KNOW WHERE YOU SLEEP, I SEE YOU SLEEPING. BE AFRAID, BE VERY AFRAID. I hope you die," one message said.

"Everyone knows... there are people looking for you," another said.

Thousands more posts and threats, many with unrepeatable vulgarity, have filled her online accounts over the past year. She says the threats come as she works to increase access to voting and election security in Colorado.

The Secretary of State Office says they forward all threats to the Colorado State Patrol for vetting. Police have not made any arrests at this point. As political rhetoric across the nation remains at a fever pitch, Griswold believes so will the threats.

"I believe this is, in a large part, because the lies about the 2020 election are actually growing stronger," she said. "We continue to receive threats. But with that said, we won't be deterred."

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The claims of election fraud in the absence of evidence is, of course, frightening. Unfortunately this fear has become a low-grade hum in my life that I am trying to compartmentalize. It is not going away.

Read Matt Taibbi's book "Hate Inc." If you are seeking confirmation bias and a simple "hate on the right narrative" this book is not for you. If you want an unforgiving and honest appraisal of what ails our country and the complete abdication of "centrist" narratives in our press today, it is a fantastic read. You can buy the book on not-Amazon at bookshop.org - an Amazon look-alike that gives the vast majority of its profits to independent booksellers.

One of the things in today's missive about increasing taxes on individuals over $400k and couples over $450k is that while good in intentions it still misses the mark IMHO. Towards the end we read that the wealth of the top 400 people increased by $1.4 trillion in a couple years. That wealth is NOT coming from income - it is coming from capital appreciation in assets. The appreciation in asset prices is a double-win for the ultra-wealthy who control the vast majority of the nation's capital as they pay no taxes on the increase in wealth unless they sell the assets. Would love to hear people's thoughts on how do we level that playing field without running afoul of US property rights - one of the bedrocks to a functioning Democracy.

Saw an incredible chart about the egregious use of stock compensation (link below). There are now over $700bn in companies that pay themselves ONE THIRD of revenues as stock compensation. Defies belief. You run a company, you are paying yourself in stock so it doesn't show up in the cash flow statement, and you pay yourself 33% of SALES? WHAT? That is part of what is causing the "asset" wealth to spiral higher rather than income based wealth.

Lastly - if you haven't seen the Netflix documentary "American Factory" I cannot recommend it strongly enough. To me, it effectively explained the MAGA phenomenon. The brutal complexity of navigating a global order are on powerful display. When watching it my feelings about what was "right" and "wrong" bounced all over the place. Simple in presentation and powerful in effect, the film compressed the brutal economic disenfranchisement underway across America in a way that makes it hard to point the finger at one simple cause. What feels horrible here in America is an aspirational dream for people in other countries.

As always - grateful for the thoughtful dialogue here. I make no claims to having the answers, refuse to engage in anger and hope we can all take a breath and realize we have more in common than the media would have us believe.

https://bookshop.org/books/hate-inc-why-today-s-media-makes-us-despise-one-another/9781682194072

https://kailashconcepts.com/the-steep-cost-of-stock-compensation/

https://www.netflix.com/title/81090071

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As ignorant, malicious, malevolent and downright stupid as you know Republicans are, today was one of those days where they show the ignorance, maliciousness, malevolence and stupidity are bottomless.

I don't know what it's going to take for the rest of us to realize these people have declared war on us. Elder's website talks about "boxes," - the soapbox, the ballot box and includes "the ammo box" as its final choice. These people really are hellbent on starting a civil war.

And this time, we don't let them have their horses for the spring planting. We plant them.

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"If losers in a democracy refuse to accept the legitimacy of elections, the system falls apart." I wonder if Republicans and other right-wingers have ever considered that if the system falls apart, all bets are off. There's no guarantee that they will hold the levers of power in whatever system emerges. In fact, they could rue the day they embarked on rampant voter suppression and peddling ludicrous conspiracy theories about election fraud.

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Morning, all!! Morning, Dr. R!! So by all means, invoke the name of The Loser when it comes to the Recall and NJ and VA voting this November: "...early indications in California suggest that Democratic ambivalence that sparked party worries weeks ago has dissipated at least in part as Newsom has nationalized the race: By Friday morning, registered Democrats had returned more than 4 million mail ballots, more than twice as many as were sent in by registered Republicans."

(A gifted WaPo article link below: "Democrats wanted Trump gone. Now they want him on the ballot.")

https://wapo.st/395RqK0

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"If losers in a democracy refuse to accept the legitimacy of elections, the system falls apart."

Unfortunately, Republicans can only take over the government through Fraud (Gerrymandering) and lying (claiming fraud).

They cannot win votes because even Republicans are starting to get tired of the constant, shrill, whining and crying from Republicans.

In my entire life I have never heard so much whimpering, whining and crying from a bunch of grown adults as I have heard from Republicans in the last 6 months.

A bunch of babies. Waaahaaahaaaa ....all day long. Actually, babies cry less. Much less.

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Please. They are NOT "moderates." They are corporation-backed and beholden, power-hungry obstructionists. They are NOT moderate in any way.

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Evidently, the love, care and concern for America's children and grandchildren, even the unborn, has dwindled down to nothing in the hearts and minds of a significant segment of the population. The lack of empathy and compassion is shocking, but sadly, not surprising.

In March of 2020, not even a month into the Covid Pandemic, the Lt. Governor of Texas, Dan Patrick, offered to sacrifice himself and others to save America for its children and grandchildren. What he was actually referring to was the economy. Over this past weekend, a hospital in upstate NY announced that it would be pausing maternity services later this month due to staff resigning rather than take the jab.

The simple steps to curtail a preventable disease and possible death have become such a ferocious battlefield. The overall lack of compassion, empathy, care and concern displayed by millions of Americans towards other Americans, young and old, is very sad, but perhaps predictable, as we have become a nation awash in Me-ism rather than a people inspired by The Golden Rule.

"No one reached out to me and said, 'As a senior citizen, are you willing to take a chance on your survival in exchange for keeping the America that America loves for its children and grandchildren?' And if that is the exchange, I'm all in." - Dan Patrick

"Lewis County General Hospital in Lowville, N.Y., announced Friday that it is pausing maternity services later this month because dozens of staff members quit rather than get COVID-19 vaccines.

The hospital will be "unable to safely staff" its maternity department and newborn nursery as of Sept. 25, according to Lewis County Health System CEO Gerald Cayer. He added that other departments in the hospital are at risk as well if workers don't get vaccinated."

"As of Friday, 30 employees had resigned from Lewis County General Hospital."

https://www.star-telegram.com/news/coronavirus/article241456281.html

https://www.npr.org/2021/09/13/1036521499/covid-workers-resign-new-york-hospital-stops-baby-delivery

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And of course there is election fraud, only if they lose the election. If they win, it’s a “perfect” election. I keep wondering what it is like to hold that kind of world view.

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I grew up with kids in my class with polio. We were desperate to get the Salk vaccine. Also, measles, mumps, and small pox vaccines were imperative. I even got a legally required Black Plague shot before going to Egypt in 1953. (Scary, but turned out to be no big deal). My heroes Batman and the Lone Ranger wore masks, and we sought to emulate them

I have no patience with folks who refuse to be vaccinated or wear masks. In my day, such folks would have been quarantined. (Big yellow health officer sign on the front door) While DeSantis, Abbott, and other Republicans seek to make political capital our of their ‘individual freedom’ stance, I consider them culpable for avoidable deaths and serious illness.

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The $3.5 trillion investment over the next ten years as 1.2% of GDP over the same period needs to be headlined and shown as a graph for people to grasp.

The $1 trillion just begins to pay for twenty plus years of deferred maintenance on bridges, roads, ports, etc. That too could be shown graphically.

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