Late Friday night, Tennessee House Republican Caucus chair Jeremy Faison posted “President Biden has finally approved [Tennessee governor Bill Lee’s] state of emergency request,” making it sound as if the delay in federal support for the state during the devastation of Hurricane Helene was Biden’s fault.
I often wish that sub stack gave us different or at least multiple options of response. That is, I love that you keep us informed, I hate almost all of what truth demands that you report. The “almost” is highlighting the work of FEMA and other government response teams. Their heroic efforts in dangerous situations cannot be adequately described.
On September 15, 2024, Connie Millard of Missouri died. She had been deployed with MO Taskforce 1, the first FEMA team deployed to the World Trade Center on 9/11. She was a canine specialist in SAR. She and her dog and the rest of their team spent 11 days crawling—literally— through the rubble, seeking survivors at first as the unstable debris trembled and shifted around them, and then later bringing out body parts to help with identification for closure for the victims’ families. Connie and her subsequent dogs (she trained six dogs to live finds and cadaver work at the highest certification in disaster response) went on many more missions, including response to NOLA after hurricane Katrina and CT after hurricane Sandy. There are now only 3 surviving members of the FEMA heroes who were at the WTC.. Take a moment to salute them, please.
RIP, Connie. Thank you for decades of service.
EDIT: Thank you everyone for your support of Connie and through her of all FEMA workers. If you want a larger glimpse of Connie's life and work, go to Facebook and google Missouri Task Force 1, and scroll down to the picture collage. There is one that is just an announcement, but look for the Sept 19th photo collage that starts with noting Connie's name. There are several posts and updates of the current deployment of MOTF-1 to North Carolina in the aftermath of hurricane Helene.
Hey wait a blessed minute; Don’t any of you guys get any sleep? 💤 This was posted at 3:30. Of course if you are on the west coast, it was 12:30.
Brief Observations:
1. When southern white women are interviewed about politics, one can usually predict a MAGA supporter if she is overweight and uses a southern vernacular.
2. Perhaps one of the dirtiest things in the world is a toilet handle especially in public lavatories. I never hand touch them. I wrap toilet paper around them to flush. But what is dirtier than a toilet handle? A MAGA politician especially Don-old slurring-voiced Trump.
3. On a personal level, when men enter a lavatory, to a person, they walk over to the urinals to go pee pee. Their dirty hands then touch what normally would be the most pristine part of their bodies. Not I. I go to the sink and wash my hands first. Think about it. Either way,I would never shake hands with a republican.
Trump pleaded with Russia during the 2016 election to hack the campaign records and emails of Hillary Clinton. On July 27, 2016, he cried:
"Russia, if you're listening, I hope you're able to find the 30,000 missing emails."
On July 15, 2018, the dictator Putin and wannabe dictator Trump sit down for a summit in Helsinki, Finland. No scribes were allowed in the room, but someone has now revealed the conversation.
And so it came to pass that Russia hacked the accounts of Hillary Clinton and democratic operatives. Both Trump and Russia were amply rewarded for this act of treachery. Trump became the first president in history elected by a Russian dictator. And Russia, the longtime enemy of Western democratic tradition, became a new investment partner and mentor to tired old Uncle Sam, who lords over a disquieted tribe of manic-depressive, freedom-loving, patriotic simpletons formerly known as Americans.
Trump: "Vlad, thank you for helping me with the new Trump Moscow Hotel. Everyone thinks that we are exchanging international secrets!"
Putin: "Donald, you dog, you know how to throw them off pony trail. In Moscow, we have Russian mafia to pay off. They demand special favors."
Trump: "It will be a tremendous hotel, unlike anything seen before. Ok Vlad, let's go to the press conference and talk about dismantling NATO. No one will ever guess what this meeting was really about. We're gonna make a lot of money on it."
Trump: “Oh, and Vlad, is that old shower scandal forgotten?”
My daughter worked with predominantly men and picked up real quick that some men NEVER shook hands with many men she worked with. She stopped shaking hands all together
Hahahaha. I get more graphic in my stand-up but won’t express it here. Isn’t that something. I’m the only dude that washes first. Then of course I hold out my hand to simulate a handshake with the implication that I don’t wash after going since I had just touched something pristinely clean.
A gentleman was asked why did he wash his hands before toileting. "Didn't your father ever teach you to wash your hands AFTER toileting?" His response, "My father taught me not to piss on my hands."
Oh, too funny Bill.. but don’t those MAGAs just keep getting worse & worse in the garbage lies they are spewing?! What kind of minds keep thinking up this stuff..
Yes they do. Democracy is a fragile system of government. It’s an open society. History teaches that inevitably any nation/state reverts or moves toward authoritarianism. Observing the Chinese system, maybe they have solutions that we lack. They would never have tolerated jan6. Those protesters would have been executed and rightfully so. I rest.
I read her hour as 3:30 so there is a gap somewhere. And that sounds right. You are on central time. How dare I think that everyone lives on the east side.
Thank you Kem for your report on Connie Millard and her K9 partners. These flash reports of real people doing their duties with dedication and loyalty to the people they serve - such a wonderful antidote to the self-serving lies and spins and equivocations offered by politicians safely holed up with their PR minions.
Thank you Romilly… & for catching my eye & slowing me down enough to read about Connie & her dogs which required me to look back and find more …
I’m still disturbed tonite by the ‘debate’ of which I only saw the final 12 minutes… it was NOT a Debate! It was ‘hosted’…? ‘monitored’…?
NOT held to rules of debating… Vance got more oppty to ‘correct’ his behavior and move on to further attacks … to which Walz had been coached to smooth out Vance’s attacking tone & words….
It was AWFUL.. Ruth .. and others in this thread… I’m SO disheartened because Walz is first rate in true debates… he’s honorable and HONEST. He’s ferocious in an intelligent male way through his tone of voice and facial expression … I was deeply relieved not to see more of this ‘show’ … I’m returning to prayer and post carding and quiet talks w open, interested ( and often confused) youngsters about this process we refer to as an ELECTION CAMPAIGN. Keep on talking , writing, raising your own flags to be seen/heard/ and educating
I did like the way the monitors kept trying to bring them back to topic. It seemed to me they formed the questions in a manner that stated something that which had two answers. Both parties seem to have trouble staying on track. I almost died when Vance gives his bibliography. Notice , he went to college-not Yale -that might turn off some of the trumpers. Obfuscation on whether Vance would certify the election if trump lost. Red Flag.
Thank you KEM for informing us of the sacrifices made by the FEMA team at the World Trade Center. That team as well as those who have responded to other disasters, are unsung heroes.
Mary, yes, isn't it weird that we spend so much time paying attention to Trump's and Vance's lies and rants while letting Republicans denigrate the heroes who make such a difference in our lives even if we don't identify or even thank them. It's their job, after all, right? With that logic, I am wondering if lying, cheating, and denigrating is the Trump-Vance-Republican Party's job. Well, I didn't hire them and do wish I could ditch them, but a lot of folks prefer to believe lies and hatred rather than the faith they claim to hold. That is beyond sad and scary.
Genuine heroes, who labor or sacrifice for the rights and safety of others merit far more attention and celebration in our society, for our own good even more than theirs.
Thank you, KEM for your work in remembering Connie. We had s/heros here in Ohio back then from our Task Force One. Most went on to other work, like Connie, and their daily police and fire, and FEMA jobs. I’m literally crying, because here we are talking about the antithesis of them. The fat, old, big pores clown who dupes and disrespects so many. Let’s all, PLEASE, work to save humankind from these monsters our parents thought they had defeated and banished via WW II.
Write postcards, get going door to door if able. Spread the hope and joy of Kamala Harris, Tim Walz, and our beloved American Democracy. Remember FDR-We have nothing to fear, but fear itself!
Tears and sadness, yes, Paula. I'm a former Ohioan living in NC and am writing postcards for Sherrod Brown (as well as activities and postcards here in NC). Doing something constructive and reading the many comments of such decent, hopeful members of this community help dry my tears. Thank you.
Maureen, my heart goes out to you and other friends in NC. Especially a shout out to a friend in Asheville. So much to do. We just have to keep up the hard work and make sure Harris and Walz win.
Genuine thoughtfulness and prayer in the sense of being honest about one's own heart seem to me a good thing. Dumping the responsibilities that one should reasonably share and actively respond to is not. I am not a church-goer, but recall that the "Great Commandment" of Christians ( the part right wing Christians don't talk about) involves loving ones neighbor; and Jesus made plain that he was not just talking about the people one favors, nor just of "thoughts and prayers" in a insulating, passive way. Samaritans were considered enemies of Jesus's audience; yet who was the identified good neighbor? Not the "pious" passive people who ignored suffering. It was the Samaritan would gave active aid. All that is left of our understanding of Jesus points to that. Jesus preached love, and yet somehow the most media-visible "Christians" advocate greed, hatred and violence. It is just weird and unhelpful to include that in the same breath.
Bill Lee (TN governor) suggested that his people fast and pray. Didn't call for help until much later. Of, course Biden gets blamed for not sending aid sooner.
I believe it was in September that the number of NYFD deaths from post 9/11 syndrome exceeded those who died in the immediate response. I have friends who have trained SAR dogs for years, at least two of their animals perished in the 9/11 aftermath.
Connie was a hero. May her memory be a blessing, and may her work live on long after.
Oh, Kem, thank you for telling us about Connie Millard from Missouri and her very special dogs. I had forgotten about the crawling through rubble part of their heroic work in New York City, in a completely different state. May her family and friends find some comfort during a tender time that I think must be lasting forever for them.
Agree, KEM. Interesting that a longtime acquaintance who was a former police officer recently asked me to find a market for two pieces of stone salvaged from North Tower and South Tower. The pieces were imbedded in a glass casing resembling the towers with data inscribed on the front of each. He has grown old now and wants to sell them before he dies. He asked me for help and my advice is to consigned them to an auction house with part of the proceeds to go to the victims fund. Or donate them to a museum.
I just posted my first comment, and was amazed to see that somebody else named Kem is already posting. Since our's is such an unusual name, I'm wondering who you are. I am Kem Phillips from Cavendish Vermont. Thanks
I completely agree, KEM. When I read one like Heather's email of today, I hesitate to hit the 'like' button. Even though I'm appreciative of the information, I definitely don't like the contents...in fact I'm enraged and anxious. It would be good if there was an "appreciation" option along with the 'like.'
Once again we are faced with the eternal human contradiction - that in the face of natural or and even some manmade catastrophes, we are able to surmount so many of our trivial human squabbles and understand that pulling together does us far more benefit and gives us far more moral power than all the rest of the time we spend tearing ourselves apart.
Truth. Connie was the most extraordinary animal trainer I have ever met, and I am immersed in the world of dog training myself. Not just dogs--See the update I posted above for directions to a photo collage that pictures many of the diverse animals Connie cared for.
As a practicing witch I can tell you that every time a Christian lights a candle that’s witchcraft. Every time a Christian chants a prayer that’s witchcraft. So mote it be.
Rowan, I'm sorry, but you can't just leave your statement at that. Good lord (hah!) woman, WHAT had you been doing, how did the nosy individual get wind of it, and what was the upshot - was there a meeting of the HOA, was some sort of penalty - for you or for the individual reporting your dreadful transgression (imagine, someone practicing their religion! shocking!) contemplated or assessed? And, most importantly, have you dealt with your "neighbor" or the HOA? This really sounds like a tale worth telling!
Asking the Universe to suspend it's rules of operation "just this once" because they're frightened and unhappy sounds more like irrationl superstition on their part.
Juanita, LOL. This is so irritating to me. "God" does not give a damn about of any sport at any level and doesn't care what school athletes choose when they have a huge NIL which is the reason so many choose Bribery U.
“Pray, v. To ask that the laws of the universe be annulled in behalf of a single petitioner, confessedly unworthy.” — Ambrose Bierce, The Devil’s Dictionary
No , his lack of judgment and foresight for the people's safety should of come first when president Biden offered to help. You can pray and help at the same time. There is no need to procrastinate when the people are in danger.
there was a touch of facetious in my phrase "finally capitulated" but i was asking if his administration delayed in connecting with mutual interstate support. My guess is they were already gearing up. Declaring belatedly was more political optics, but that's all it is. I googled him and found a very interesting political history. Not trying to make any points here. https://www.wikiwand.com/en/articles/Bill_Lee_(Tennessee_politician)
Well, just the same, I wouldn't be surprised if there hasn't been a lot of community support coming from church organizations on a practical basis, and regardless, I'm sure those with chain saws etc are very busy helping clear trees and debris.
The quintessential "American", the most religious among the OECD I would hazard. Nonetheless religious decline broadly continues in the USA, and Lance aced that with his comments how American has been mostly "stolen" by "woke" at al. This seems to have made Evangelicals esp more fervent in their faith than ever, esp now that they've swamped into politics in such a big way.
Andra Watkins: Why Is a White Guy Calling Harris a "Jezebel?"
“To the Christian Nationalist in the video, Kamala Harris is a Jezebel, or wicked woman, BECAUSE she seeks the kind of power and authority he thinks women should not want or have. Calling her Jezebel is their insinuation that a powerful woman will lead good people (read: white men) astray.”
Clearly, "these are the times that try men's souls." - Thomas Paine. How in the hell did we arrive at this juncture? We could blame our schools in failing adequately to teach critical thinking skills and civics. The "Christian crusade" in this country has been going on for at least forty years with the advent of charter schools, designed to separate the races and infuse religion into the curricula. We're paying the price for this neglect.
If witchcraft could restore power, water, and get food and shelter to the 6,000,000+ victims across 5 states due to Hurrican Helene...then I am voting for witchcraft.
It requires a lot of patience and effort and the more people who join in the stronger the intention. Thoughts are things so you must have positive thoughts about them and the recovery process. Thoughts manifest physically when you have put the energy into it.
My adult nephew, who is one of the gentlest, kindest, most loving and compassionate people I've ever known is a Pagan. He's also a devoted father. I smiled when I saw the "so mote it be" as I recognized that.
Valorie, bear with me on this one, but I believe I can use science to confirm your wise intuition.
To everyone:
Looking for a D-supporting and R-crushing October surprise? Want to know something of existential importance about human psychology that literally every expert in the field of psychology has studiously ignored for decades? Read on. Or maybe you have a better idea, and in that case, do tell. I’m all ears.
In this paragraph, I’m describing in lieu of interpreting objective evidence. A stimulus arrives in the unconscious mind. Roughly 300 milliseconds later, the unconscious mind has formed the intent to perform a behavioral response. Roughly 200 milliseconds later, the conscious mind has been made aware of the unconscious mind’s intent. Then, roughly 500 milliseconds, aka one half second, after receiving the stimulus, the unconscious mind informs and triggers the behavioral response while the conscious mind remains a passive observer.
One can say the above description is not true, but they’d be doing so based on zero evidence in the face of overwhelming evidence. The field of psychology has widely acknowledged this scientifically verified “fact” since Benjamin Libet conducted his famous experiment at UCSF back in the 1980s. The question is not whether it’s true. The question is, how and when does the conscious mind become an active participant? The answer to this question is an “interpretation” of objective evidence. What follows is my interpretation.
I’ll pick on J. D. Vance because, why not? Vance is a small-minded person in that his unconscious mind cares about “me, myself, and I.” To Vance, the entire social system is J. D. Vance, and pretty much every other human being, along with almost every concept and fact, is an opportunity to be exploited, a threat to be neutralized, and otherwise utterly irrelevant.
Vance is not stupid. He is an extremely dangerous combination of smart, powerful, and immature. If an individual has an actual circle of influence that extends beyond the individual’s unconscious circle of concern, then the individual is immature.
Kamala Harris is sufficiently mature. Her circle of influence is encompassed within her America-encompassing circle of concern, which is how she knows that every American’s life is relevant.
Vance and Harris are the same in that they both perceive a within-system conflict as a dilemma in need of being resolved. When an individual perceives a within-system conflict, the behavioral response is conscious deliberation, and that’s when the conscious mind becomes an active participant. The difference is that Harris is not a small-minded person.
The cause of what Dr. Bandy X. Lee refers to as “Trump contagion” is a virus, but not a biological virus comprised of genes, and instead a cultural virus comprised of memes. Question: What is the cure? Answer: The cure is a cultural vaccine comprised of memes. Specifically, the cure to Trump contagion began when I looked in the mirror and ask myself if I am sufficiently mature. And now it’s a race that either the vaccine or the virus will win depending on how many people are willing to look in the mirror.
Yes, it's initially hard to understand, so take your time, but when the penny drops, it's actually quite simple. The hard part's not the learning, it's the unlearning.
There were the lies Vance spread about Springfield, Ohio, of course, attacking the legal Haitian immigrants there who have been credited with revitalizing the city. On Friday and Saturday, Trump lied that Vice President Harris had let 13,000 or 14,000 convicted murderers enter the U.S. in the past three years, who “freely and openly roam our country,” a lie that Elon Musk called “true.”
“ On Saturday, Vance spoke at an event hosted by right-wing extremist evangelical leader Lance Wallnau, a member of the New Apostolic Reformation movement that seeks to end the separation of church and state and put the United States under religious rule.”
It feels a lot to me like an American version of the radical Muslim dogma. I think we all know how well that has worked out in the Middle East.
Thank you Heather for continuing to keep your subscribers informed.
Early this morning, at 3:59 AM Eastern, Forbes has reported 30 deaths in North Carolina's Buncombe County ... "where the mountain city of Asheville became isolated after facing historic flooding".
The city of Asheville NC is is a popular retirement area for folks from many states that benefits from a strong community.
We heard from youngest son , wife, and their house in Swannanona , NC and high ground location thankfully …yesterday. Wondering all the while -but listening to the news ‘lack of communication ‘available -that he most probably was out ‘doing something’ to help …kept us patient.
He stated ‘It is bad! But we are OK’ was all , as well as a mouthful for him.
For all the boots on the ground (including his) we give great thanks, have donated to help, and are also praying .
Much younger years ago we have cleaned up torrential debris here too in devastating floods, ran emergency phone lines, coordinating search/rescue/city and state response teams, so…we know. Not to forget our family of nurses/drs. who stood endless shifts during Covid it’s the same , the battlefields have varied places dangerous, exhausting, and it gets done, will again. Unity is necessary, togetherness and nobody’s lying/asking what party you’re from, nationality, or plotting ends for our support systems be they …whatever form.
No, they are there doing ….with a smile, a hug, holding a hand, handing out water/food and coming from wherever they can, they come ,work tirelessly and get systems up running and adequate.
Just what Gov’Coach’ Walz is talking about. They are your neighbors, and it doesn’t matter what they think or who they vote for, none of your damned business, they are our neighbors. We all pull together. To rescue, care for and clean up what ever we have to face together. From a distance we send rescue teams, and money and prayers not to get God to change the universe, to strengthen and sustain people on the ground who are living thru it.
And we all do better when we fight together. They are a great team and at times like these we need Harris and Walz to continue this work.
Yes 🙏. A local ABC affiliate TV station had an aerial photograph of mudslides that apparently will close I 40 & I 26 "for days" but, I suspect [Eisenhower ] I 40, the main regional artery to Virginia & the Shenandoah Valley, to be back open quickly.
I have family history going back to the 1760's on my mother's side in Stanton, VA. Very strong folks.
It will be months. Multiple sections of I-40 eastbound are washed away in the gorge. All the underpinning isgone. Thought will have to be given to make it better or move it because Helene will not be the last catastrophic storm. Climate change is real.
Bryan Sean McKown, I'm keeping everyone in my thoughts. We are infinitely stronger when we pull together. One part of my family is from that area of VA too. They fought in the Revolutionary War. Would be interesting to know how many people descended from VA, but no longer live there.
" . . . an American version of the radical Muslim dogma," Gary?
Aren't you leaving out the 670,000 Israeli far-right settlers busily (and illegally) stealing land in the West Bank, insulting Palestinians, putting up roadblocks to harass them?
Let's remember, Steve, that the U.S. only pushes more arms, more arms.
Nothing in regard to education or schools.
Just equip them (and only one side) with bombs, rockets, gunships, more bombs, other explosives, incendiary devices, jet fighters, tanks, self-propelled howitzers, troop carriers, more bombs, automatic weapons, more bombs, more bombs.
And, again (and again and again) nothing for schools. No programs at all for teaching youth to see others on the other side as individuals. Only keep the schools in all the usual idiot standardized testing mode, which only reinforces all the thinking in categories, feeding more reliance on group think only, on packaging others to their groups and oldest hoariest stereotypes.
Ahhhh, the predictable joys in U.S.-taxpayer paid-for repetitions of expenses-be-damned murder, crippled schools, more murder, more destruction of civilian life, more idiot vulgarity.
Get more about Wallnau from this Wikipedia. Gobsmacking, but if I'd been paying attention.... my mind is usually very much elsewhere trying to maintain a humane secular outlook in my life. https://www.wikiwand.com/en/articles/Lance_Wallnau
The early Christians were an extremist apocalyptic Jewish movement which took their message to the pagans when most Jews turned their back on them. The quote from Timothy was part of a widespread patriarchal view in the ancient world.
I was too, I remember the Billy Graham tours to our local down in the 50s. We were all trundled in buses to the local racing track stands for his hell and brimfire and attacks on the godless atheists. Judgement Day was imminent, more or less lol. Funny how that fever has persisted over the centuries.
Timothy is generally considered pseudepigraphal , written by a follower or sympathizer, to bolster the work's authority. But you're right, Paul did also advise women were not to speak at services, in 1 Corinthians vs 34-5 I believe. Here's a key quote from timothy "A woman[a] should learn in quietness and full submission. 12 I do not permit a woman to teach or to assume authority over a man;[b] she must be quiet. 13 For Adam was formed first, then Eve. 14 And Adam was not the one deceived; it was the woman who was deceived and became a sinner. 15 But women[c] will be saved through childbearing—if they continue in faith, love and holiness with propriety."
I have said to all who would listen, the goal of the far right is to to enact measures not unlike those of the Taliban… the Talibinization of America by Fascist Nazis in the thrall of the ConDon.
We have been warned that the last days of the campaign would be turbulent driven by anger and lies. Trump and Vance are delivering both every day. It’s an extraordinary time in our history that we here hope will end well. The alternative to Harris/Walz is so scary yet still millions of his minions believe everything they say. It’s also extraordinary that these two put so much effort into their disinformation. If this were a movie instead of real life, they’d win an Oscar for sure!!
These Republican Lies should not Surprise Anyone... The GOP now puts Party Loyalty above Country.... Ideology Over Reason... Reminds me of the Russian Bolsheviks of 1917... The Scary Thing is that DJT could Melt-Down into an Orange Puddle, and DJT would still get at least 50,000,000 Votes... JD as President after DJT gets 'Carted-Away'? The Horror has no Description...
To compare Trump and the current crop of MAGAt minions to the Bolsheviks of 1917 is pretty insulting and shows a fair ignorance of history. It is true that the ensuing history of communism in the Soviet Union in the later 20th century didn't go well, but the Bolsheviks of the Revolution were fighting against the czarist tyranny in support of a better Russia. In that respect they were more like those of us who are terrified of a return of Trump to power, a man who loves the idea of dictatorship in the US. Sadly as often happens, men like Stalin later came to power and created their own form of dictatorship which ultimately led to the down fall of the Soviet Union. But to suggest that the Bolsheviks of 1917 were anything like the modern day Trump GOP is a real misrepresentation of what they tried to do in Czarist Russia. My great uncle was part of that Revolution and he said it was the best thing that happened to Russia even if the later rise of tyrannical Soviet rule killed the idealism and hope of the Revolution.
Hold the phone Jon Rosen. I’m well read on the topic and once took a Russian history course taught by a former Hungarian general in the failed revolution of 1957. The Bolsheviks were a smaller tight knit extremist group that overthrew the moderate Mensvicks who had taken power after overthrowing Czarist Russia. Lenin might have guided them better but he soon died and his crazed Stalin took over and sowed the seeds to ruination and many deaths of Russians. To Stalin, human life had no importance not unlike the current prime minister of Israel whose only goal is keeping the wars active in order to remain in power and possibly sentenced to prison. He is a rogue leader and I always believed this when he was ambassador to the UN.
Possibly why they took such care to maintain Lenin for public exhibition - take the attention off Stalin. Reminds me: anyone noticed the change in the Trump iconography? Some stunningly realistic and ugly coloured close-ups appearing now.
What REMINDS me of the GOP, and Bolsheviks was the LUST of 'Power For The Sake of Power'... The Ideology of the Bolsheviks was flexible, and flexible to the seizing of Power...
From I understand their game plan, the target is to stymie state certifications so the president is picked by the house. However, the senate picks the VP. Potentially a Trump/Harris White House. At least she would stand in the path of Mike Johnson!
Well it would be a Trump/Walz executive IF the Senate chose the VP BUT only if the Democrats hold the Senate which is still highly unlikely. Not impossible if Texas and/or Florida revolt against their current GOP domination and beat either Ted Cruz or Rick Scott (or both!). But without at least one of those seats the Gop will hold the majority of the Senate after this election because the Dems will lose both West Virginia (Manchin's seat) and Montana (Tester's seat) and there are no easy pickups from the GOP.
My point about Walz is that the Senate picks the VP from the VP candidates. Harris is not running for VP this election. She is running for President. And that vote takes place in the House by STATE and the GOP holds s 26-23 majority of the House delegations with one state split evenly.
Last polls I saw show Tester behind by 8 pts. That is far outside the margin of error. I don't know what you are using as a reference but my sources tend to be pretty good. But I sure hope you are right because losing the Senate is not good even if Harris wins.
Ah, you are right! So the swearing in of the new crew is the 3d and certification the 6th, if I am not mistaken. In that case, I think we have a better chance of taking the house. It could be visa versa.
But a House Vote for President under the 12th amendment is by STATE delegation (1 vote per state) NOT by individual congresscritters. So even if Dems "take" the House by raw votes, the state delegations will still likely be 26-23 GOP with one state a tie. So Trump would still win in the House.
So the House picks Trump, and the Senate chooses Walz as VP, who goes on to invoke the 25th Amendment against Trump, thus giving himself the Presidency.
President Walz. It has a certain ring to it, doesn't it?
Sharon, I also wonder at “ It’s also extraordinary that these two put so much effort into their disinformation.” It leads me always to want to follow the money to reveal the real story. The Firehose of lies to “flood the zone” is so transparently calculated that it no longer surprises me. “Shame” left the building a long time ago for gop politics. It’s a full-on fascist assault on democracy now. It’s their hail-mary pass in the face of the Dems stronger performance. Even in spite of trump’s calls for violence and bloodbaths, we are stronger because we’ve seen this strategy before. Same old tired playbook. And most importantly: WE are different. So many more are active and understanding what is at stake. Yet, I still know I need to do all I can for these last days before Nov. 5.
MLRGRMI, you’re right—WE are different. We are paying attention to the destruction of norms and no longer look at both parties as essentially equal in their adherence to rules and norms. We are each active according to what we are capable of doing.
I love the idea of Red, Wine and Blue to contact 5 Blue friends to make sure that they are registered and vote. Have each of them contact 5 friends who will contact five friends. The influence will spread exponentially. It’s one of those small things that can have big consequences.
I LOVE your passion and yes we need to do all those things but don't delude yourself. In fact there are only a few swing states that matter and if the y manage to block certification in even a few states, the election week be so close it will go into the House. And Harris will NOT win in the House because the GOP leads delegations 26-23. It's not good news at all.
No way. Trump underperformed in his own primaries. The trends in "reliably" red states like North Carolina and Florida are against him. 81 MAGAT witnesses are ready, willing and able to testify against him in the DC case. His own VP and half his own cabinet will not support him. 2020 election occurred before he visibly decompensated. You have to be nuts to vote for a lunatic. In their guts, even MAGATs know he's nuts.
Some of us also think we will flip veterans, military and military families via "not suckers or losers." Lots of testimonials from vets who voted for Trump x 2. .https://votevets.org/
The lies never stop. The thirst to control and dominate others and persecute those who disagree with them never stops. Their hypocritical claims of providing for constituents when they actually voted against said measures never stops. Trump is sick and sad, but Vance is a true fascist disciple. Please vote.
And while still recovering in Florida from Hurricane Ian (two years ago Saturday), I can only imagine the devastation our brothers and sisters to the north are experiencing. We live in Florida-we know the risks. Those up north would not. For those who can, please contribute to reputable organizations who can support those impacted. Thank goodness for President Biden, for FEMA, for NOAA, and all the other incredible agencies and information services that helped in the immediate aftermath. Please also be aware that Governors like Desantis allow insurance companies to run unchecked, causing additional pain and heartache with their corruption. There needs to be oversight so that needs are met. Only Democrats are willing to do that. We need our VP to lead us into this next chapter. Yes, we KAM!
Insurance is a HUGE problem for Florida residents. Insurance companies simply leave the state because the risks are so great. All my kids and grandkids are in Florida, and we have a place there, so we pay those high rates.
Too many folks can’t afford the rates and too many were cheated by enormous amounts post -Ian. Adjusters recommended work, and desk agents rejected it to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars for many. Salvage companies were also colluding with adjusters so that they could claim higher bills depending upon insurance payouts. The corruption and greed is sickening-but the Governor was accepting bribes, I mean contributions😐, toward his campaign. If I didn’t belong to groups like this, I’d lose my faith in humanity. I hope your family is safe and ok. 💙💙💙💙
Trump is ramping up the crazy because he’s realizing that his old shtick is getting old and wearing thin with his base. And he’s found a compliant sycophant to magnify and amplify his lies.
Now that he’s had four years to plant his foot soldiers, we can expect him to mobilize them and assault the electoral process in a way that will make J6 look like a training exercise.
Trump and Vance have gone beyond just telling tall tales. They now are not only admitting to it, they are bragging about it and justifying them as needed to destroy the old order.
In short, they are revolutionaries calling for an overthrow of the American government! God help us!
Worse, I truly believe Vance & friends are planning to “Amendment 25” thump after the election & intern him in an “Old Folks Home for the Senile” & make Vance president.
Morning, Ally! Remind me again, what language is it we should be learning to conform to an altered nation should the White Christian/Evangelical Project 2025 folks take power? Asking for myself, not so much a friend!
Headline in Traverse City, Michigan last week: "J.D. Vance's Visit Energizes Voters." Not headlined or mentioned was that it was an hour of nasty lies. So heartbreaking here in the city that produced one of Michigan's greatest Republican governors, Bill Milliken, who fought to preserve our beautiful natural environment, and his wife, Helen, who helped establish Planned Parenthood in our state.
If this seems unreal watch The Sixth, a documentary . It is so frightening to see these rabid animals who will stop at nothing at Trumps behest. A few of them are incarcerated,but the vast majority are out there among us ready to raise him to power. It’s the stuff of nightmares.
The Atlantic had a good article (Oct 24 issue-paywall) about some of these people moving into the neighborhood of the journalist.
These people still believe they did nothing wrong. Sadly the ones that were/are in prison were in prison with other Jan 6ers, reinforcing their beliefs.
Thank You, HulitC. Excellent article. I have a neighbor who went to the insurrection on a church bus to "stop Biden from killing babies." Years before he had "gone postal" literally at his Post Office job, and hasn't been allowed guns or ammunition since, both of which he cons people to get for him. Thank God (or at least his church's bus driver) that the congregation was rounded up, put back on the bus, and driven out of D.C. before my neighbor could join the melee. Two nights before I had reported him to the County Sheriiff because he was hollering and swearing at us neighbors that Biden needed to be stopped and. The Sheriff deputies saw no problem with that. I begged then to get his car license numbers (before I learned he went on the church bus), and they said, "Why?" I said, "To give to the State Police to give to the FBI." They thought I was the one who was nuts. And, of course, they all supported Trump.
I’m still completely flabbergasted that these people a) lie so openly, clearly and brazenly, and b) they even get away with iit, legally as well as socially. The media happily copy and paste these lies. Is that then “freedom of speech”?
Do you have a plan that might work? Most of these people live in states where the majority believe this nonsense. So it will be hard if not impossible to "vote them out". I'll help if you actually have a plan and not just a slogan.
Sure. Campaign and all that means. Then vote and early. We won’t get rid of all of them and certainly not all at once but we can win slowly but surely if we work at it.
write "megan.mia.mccall@gmail.com to write post cards to people in those states to get them to register to vote as they do not even know they have been taken off the registrar.
If you listened to Rush Limbaugh, Alex Jones & FOX for several years, it would be the logical explanation.
These people really do live in an alternate universe.
Reed Galen today/yesterday? wrote:
Reading Richard J. Evans’ latest addition to his incredible collection on Nazi Germany, Hitler’s People, I came across the following passage in the Introduction to “The Instruments,” the book’s final section:
Most Germans who belonged to the educated middle classes, the so-called Bildungsburgertum, comprising people with university degrees and professional status, welcomed the coming of the Third Reich and collaborated with the Nazi regime to the end. There were numerous reasons for this. Under the Bismarckian Empire they had enjoyed a secure and respected place in a self-confident and seemingly stable society, a position they had lost with Germany’s defeat in World War I, the revolution of 1918, the creation of the Weimar Republic with its enthronement of democratic rights such as universal and equal suffrage, and the advent of the feared and hated (and largely working class) Social Democrats to power. If relatively few of them were Nazi fanatics, the great majority still openly or tacitly support Hitler because they saw in him the guarantor of social order, national pride, economic stability, and cultural tradition, all of which had been so conspicuously absent, they thought, under the Weimar Republic. Not only medicine, and the law, each of which had their own peculiarities, but also other professions, followed a similar pattern. So too did the world of business, big, medium-sized, and small. Nazism was not the ideology of the un-educated or the unsuccessful.
Totally agree. Last night on Sunday Lester news the anchor took a white board to the street and asked about the economy!!! The person on the street had to write ONLY ONE word! Fortunately one very informed woman wrote complicated! Mostly ‘sucks’ was shown as the response, Duh! What a waste of time asking such a question! Insipid media piece feeding pablum to the uninformed!
At 90 I feel that I am experiencing a nightmare that is a combination of a modern-day George Orwell 1984 and a prelude to Project 2025.
I have never lived in an America in which a president or major presidential candidate has trashed the Constitution and rants in a manner that makes a ‘crazy uncle’ seem moderate by comparison.
Trump already has demonstrated that he refuses to play by the rules of the Constitution and relative decency that reflect the core of our democracy. His blatherings often are incoherent and dangerous to the governance of our country.
JD Vance is a chameleon companion of Trump who I find frightening in his blatant lies and his absence of core principles.
I fear for our country. We have more than a month of this internecine political fight before November 5th.
I hope that the character of Kamala/Coach and their programs and policies will result in a solid victory on November 5th.
I realize that, whatever the result, Trump and his co-conspirators will engage in anti-constitutional swamp fighting reflective of what they initiated after the 2020 elections.
My gut tells me that good will prevail. It also tells me that our country is in a fight for its life over the coming weeks.
I recall personally some of the dark months of the Cold War. Ultimately we triumphed and the authoritarianism and economic nonsense of the communist world oozed into oblivion from its stark internal contradictions.
My hope is such will again occur, as the falseness of Trump’s MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN withers against reality.
Good to hear you weigh in, Keith! Been thinking about you & missing your wise comments. These you write here today are both scary (I, too, tho a couple of decades younger, have never been as scared for our country as I am now) AND that you are hopeful/optimistic that truth & good & shared community will prevail. 🤞Live long and prosper ye wise one ☮️!
Thank you, Keith. I do so hope that character wins out over corruption. I hope that we have enough people in the important strategic positions to combat the resistance that I anticipate occurring when the Democrats win the election. I agree that there is a battle for the soul of this country, and I hope that those who would turn us into a Christian Nationalist country are soundly and robustly defeated.
I'm determined to get the word out about Project 2025. With my election action group in Seattle I've put together a collection of concept maps (with page #s!) to help people understand the magnitude of damage MAGA wants to do and be able to bring the receipts in their discussions with other voters. I'd like this to get in front of as many people as possible. Please share the web link with everyone in your network and ask them to share with everyone in their network. Here's my post: https://substack.com/home/post/p-149586096?r=11kr2&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web and here's the link directly to the web page: https://fidlnfree.com/rwb.html. Thanks!
Thanks Heather, we have a cold morning here and your collection of hypocrisy by the Republicans has set my blood to boiling. (Other side effects: nausea and tears.)
I have been communicating with Andra Watkins about Christian Nationalism, since she explains the implications in Project 2025 of Christian Nationalism to some extent. I am in a Democrats Abroad book club that is reading and discussing Project 2025, and I gave a speech on it last Sunday in Hamburg, Germany at a Defend Democracy rally for Americans Abroad. When one understands the End of Days beliefs of Christian Nationalists, which is who wrote Project 2025, one sees why the Department of Education would go. If you believe that the End of days is really near and when it comes, you and yours will be taken to Heaven to live with God, and will leave all worldly problems behind. It is also important to understand that the Charismatic CNs who are in the New Apostolic Reformation branch, believe that End of Days will only happen when everyone on earth is living Godly lives as they define it, and it is the job of members of NAR to use whatever means necessary to force people to follow these rules.
That includes coercion, and we don't know what else, because they act in some ways like a secretive cult. That along with planning on massive deportation and putting in camps of immigrants, in numbers greater than the undocumented population of the USA, is very concerning. As for education, why should you teach your child history, science or math if you believe your child is not long for this world. Reading would be useful to read scriptures, but otherwise, what else are they using? The Handmaids Tale should appear on reading lists this year, and Project 2025, at least some parts of it should be studied in high schools and universities as a document of a plan for government and what it means. The goal is to turn the USA into a Racist, Christian Nationalist Theocracy, making us akin to Iran, a country that CNs feel is a sworn enemy, but has a lot in common in terms of their beliefs for their people. This is why it is important to get the vote out now. We have gotten our ballots abroad and filled them out and are mailing them today.
This whole letter is mind-blowing! Trump, Vance, and many other MAGA extremists shamelessly pouring out lies, blaming Biden for things that are their fault while taking credit for everything good that’s actually provided by Biden/Harris. And much, much more.
They are blatantly inundating the consciousness of millions of people with totally incorrect info on all important issues across the board. Can Dems surmount this disaster????
Hopefully, the debate tomorrow between JD Vance and Tim Walz will convince many undecideds to vote for Harris if only to prevent any chance of Vance becoming President.
btw, my paid subscription was set to expire tomorrow but i just renewed it.
I usually pull part of the Letter when I share it to FB. Today was just “read it all”. Here in Virginia Tim Kaine’s opponent, Hung Cao, (!) is also warning of witchcraft.
I seldom listen to anything DonOLD or Juicy Dingleberry say. Seeing the report of all these lies, serious boldface, ridiculous lies….I despair.
Two things recently:
1. I live in a blue town in a blue state. The is a social media platform called “NextDoor” where neighbors can post things like lost pets or recommendations for repair places, or traffic issues, etc. Today I saw a comment from someone whose political sign and its replacement were stolen. Though the person who posted specifically did not say whom he was supporting with the sign, 80 plus comments later the conversation had devolved as would be expected. What caught my eye was a woman who posted about “her candidate” (obviously trump) who someone had said was a liar and a fake. Then she responded to another comment about Project 2025 and that it had nothing to do with her candidate. “There is no connection. It has been debunked many times.” I deleted and blocked the conversation, lest I say something I would later regret. I did however have to point out that P2025 is real, is the Republican playbook. And has not, in fact, been “debunked”.
2. A friend was talking with her brother and his 20 something niece. Both strongly support Don the Con because, “Kamala is incompetent”. When pressed for evidence of incompetence the reply was, “everyone knows that she is incompetent and the only reason she is VP is because she slept her way to the top”.
I do not know how to combat the lies that pour out from many republicans day in day out, all day long. Even after all this time, I feel like I am living in an alternative universe. And Corporate Media (formerly known as Mainstream Media, but no more) are MIA.
Sky, what you have written here mimics my experience in trying to deal with MAGAts. They do not accept that fpotus has any connection to Project 2025, even when I point out that the things he has said he will do upon election are verbatim from that document. They are also invested in the "slept her way to the top" position.
The lies never stop, like a never-ending avalanche. Letters to the editor in Dallas are insistent that chump is in no way connected to P2025. I’m sure Fox says that ad nauseam.
Your report is depressing. I hear a lot of the same idiocy.
But the MSM outlet called the NY Times has finally said it like it is. Doesn't excuse their months and months of sane washing Trump. But let's enjoy the hits when we hear them:
Yes, it's worth noting that they've finally come around a bit. I recommend Thomas Edsall's September 25 analysis of Trump's base in which he points out that a lot of it was spawned by the huge base for wrestling on TV which hosted the exprez as a celebrity for years. This crowd, Edsall noted, was out of range of traditional Republicans and Democrats, but loves a fight even when they know it's a con.
I've put together a collection of concept maps (with page #s!) to help people understand the magnitude of damage MAGA wants to do and be able to bring the receipts in their discussions with other voters. I'd like this to get in front of as many people as possible. Please share the web link with everyone in your network and ask them to share with everyone in their network. Here's my post: https://substack.com/home/post/p-149586096?r=11kr2&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web and here's the link directly to the web page: https://fidlnfree.com/rwb.html. Thanks!
I often wish that sub stack gave us different or at least multiple options of response. That is, I love that you keep us informed, I hate almost all of what truth demands that you report. The “almost” is highlighting the work of FEMA and other government response teams. Their heroic efforts in dangerous situations cannot be adequately described.
On September 15, 2024, Connie Millard of Missouri died. She had been deployed with MO Taskforce 1, the first FEMA team deployed to the World Trade Center on 9/11. She was a canine specialist in SAR. She and her dog and the rest of their team spent 11 days crawling—literally— through the rubble, seeking survivors at first as the unstable debris trembled and shifted around them, and then later bringing out body parts to help with identification for closure for the victims’ families. Connie and her subsequent dogs (she trained six dogs to live finds and cadaver work at the highest certification in disaster response) went on many more missions, including response to NOLA after hurricane Katrina and CT after hurricane Sandy. There are now only 3 surviving members of the FEMA heroes who were at the WTC.. Take a moment to salute them, please.
RIP, Connie. Thank you for decades of service.
EDIT: Thank you everyone for your support of Connie and through her of all FEMA workers. If you want a larger glimpse of Connie's life and work, go to Facebook and google Missouri Task Force 1, and scroll down to the picture collage. There is one that is just an announcement, but look for the Sept 19th photo collage that starts with noting Connie's name. There are several posts and updates of the current deployment of MOTF-1 to North Carolina in the aftermath of hurricane Helene.
And thank you KEM for highlighting the efforts of an unsung hero and her canine assistants.
Hey wait a blessed minute; Don’t any of you guys get any sleep? 💤 This was posted at 3:30. Of course if you are on the west coast, it was 12:30.
Brief Observations:
1. When southern white women are interviewed about politics, one can usually predict a MAGA supporter if she is overweight and uses a southern vernacular.
2. Perhaps one of the dirtiest things in the world is a toilet handle especially in public lavatories. I never hand touch them. I wrap toilet paper around them to flush. But what is dirtier than a toilet handle? A MAGA politician especially Don-old slurring-voiced Trump.
3. On a personal level, when men enter a lavatory, to a person, they walk over to the urinals to go pee pee. Their dirty hands then touch what normally would be the most pristine part of their bodies. Not I. I go to the sink and wash my hands first. Think about it. Either way,I would never shake hands with a republican.
(From 'Donald's Vanity Tantrums)
Trump is Clean as a Toilet Handle
Trump pleaded with Russia during the 2016 election to hack the campaign records and emails of Hillary Clinton. On July 27, 2016, he cried:
"Russia, if you're listening, I hope you're able to find the 30,000 missing emails."
On July 15, 2018, the dictator Putin and wannabe dictator Trump sit down for a summit in Helsinki, Finland. No scribes were allowed in the room, but someone has now revealed the conversation.
And so it came to pass that Russia hacked the accounts of Hillary Clinton and democratic operatives. Both Trump and Russia were amply rewarded for this act of treachery. Trump became the first president in history elected by a Russian dictator. And Russia, the longtime enemy of Western democratic tradition, became a new investment partner and mentor to tired old Uncle Sam, who lords over a disquieted tribe of manic-depressive, freedom-loving, patriotic simpletons formerly known as Americans.
Trump: "Vlad, thank you for helping me with the new Trump Moscow Hotel. Everyone thinks that we are exchanging international secrets!"
Putin: "Donald, you dog, you know how to throw them off pony trail. In Moscow, we have Russian mafia to pay off. They demand special favors."
Trump: "It will be a tremendous hotel, unlike anything seen before. Ok Vlad, let's go to the press conference and talk about dismantling NATO. No one will ever guess what this meeting was really about. We're gonna make a lot of money on it."
Trump: “Oh, and Vlad, is that old shower scandal forgotten?”
Putin: “Da.”
Trump: “Good, it was pissing me off.”
Toilet handles are cleaner. Toilet brush comes to mind, but maybe that's not woke.
I stand corrected.
Who spilled the beans about Helsinki?
I’m sworn to secrecy. And I carry lot secrets. Or they wouldn’t be secret.
Nobody told
Ha!
My daughter worked with predominantly men and picked up real quick that some men NEVER shook hands with many men she worked with. She stopped shaking hands all together
Hahahaha. I get more graphic in my stand-up but won’t express it here. Isn’t that something. I’m the only dude that washes first. Then of course I hold out my hand to simulate a handshake with the implication that I don’t wash after going since I had just touched something pristinely clean.
A gentleman was asked why did he wash his hands before toileting. "Didn't your father ever teach you to wash your hands AFTER toileting?" His response, "My father taught me not to piss on my hands."
Oh, too funny Bill.. but don’t those MAGAs just keep getting worse & worse in the garbage lies they are spewing?! What kind of minds keep thinking up this stuff..
Yes they do. Democracy is a fragile system of government. It’s an open society. History teaches that inevitably any nation/state reverts or moves toward authoritarianism. Observing the Chinese system, maybe they have solutions that we lack. They would never have tolerated jan6. Those protesters would have been executed and rightfully so. I rest.
Scarey ones.
I’m in the Colorado mountains. It was only 1:30 here when I read Heather’s latest letter.
I read her hour as 3:30 so there is a gap somewhere. And that sounds right. You are on central time. How dare I think that everyone lives on the east side.
Hey Bill……Colorado Mountains are in the mountain time zone, not central! Cheers.
Hilarious…..
Why thank you.
LOL
There is a cute baby Yoda meme. Yoda is making an awful, disgusted face. Me when I hear the toilet flush and don't hear any water running.
Thank you Kem for your report on Connie Millard and her K9 partners. These flash reports of real people doing their duties with dedication and loyalty to the people they serve - such a wonderful antidote to the self-serving lies and spins and equivocations offered by politicians safely holed up with their PR minions.
Thank you Romilly… & for catching my eye & slowing me down enough to read about Connie & her dogs which required me to look back and find more …
I’m still disturbed tonite by the ‘debate’ of which I only saw the final 12 minutes… it was NOT a Debate! It was ‘hosted’…? ‘monitored’…?
NOT held to rules of debating… Vance got more oppty to ‘correct’ his behavior and move on to further attacks … to which Walz had been coached to smooth out Vance’s attacking tone & words….
It was AWFUL.. Ruth .. and others in this thread… I’m SO disheartened because Walz is first rate in true debates… he’s honorable and HONEST. He’s ferocious in an intelligent male way through his tone of voice and facial expression … I was deeply relieved not to see more of this ‘show’ … I’m returning to prayer and post carding and quiet talks w open, interested ( and often confused) youngsters about this process we refer to as an ELECTION CAMPAIGN. Keep on talking , writing, raising your own flags to be seen/heard/ and educating
I did like the way the monitors kept trying to bring them back to topic. It seemed to me they formed the questions in a manner that stated something that which had two answers. Both parties seem to have trouble staying on track. I almost died when Vance gives his bibliography. Notice , he went to college-not Yale -that might turn off some of the trumpers. Obfuscation on whether Vance would certify the election if trump lost. Red Flag.
Thank you KEM for informing us of the sacrifices made by the FEMA team at the World Trade Center. That team as well as those who have responded to other disasters, are unsung heroes.
True heroes generally are unsung because they don't seek praise.
Fake heroes seek nothing else.
Mary, yes, isn't it weird that we spend so much time paying attention to Trump's and Vance's lies and rants while letting Republicans denigrate the heroes who make such a difference in our lives even if we don't identify or even thank them. It's their job, after all, right? With that logic, I am wondering if lying, cheating, and denigrating is the Trump-Vance-Republican Party's job. Well, I didn't hire them and do wish I could ditch them, but a lot of folks prefer to believe lies and hatred rather than the faith they claim to hold. That is beyond sad and scary.
Genuine heroes, who labor or sacrifice for the rights and safety of others merit far more attention and celebration in our society, for our own good even more than theirs.
We wring our hands while their lies hit home in the places that count in our ridiculous election system
Thank you, KEM for your work in remembering Connie. We had s/heros here in Ohio back then from our Task Force One. Most went on to other work, like Connie, and their daily police and fire, and FEMA jobs. I’m literally crying, because here we are talking about the antithesis of them. The fat, old, big pores clown who dupes and disrespects so many. Let’s all, PLEASE, work to save humankind from these monsters our parents thought they had defeated and banished via WW II.
Write postcards, get going door to door if able. Spread the hope and joy of Kamala Harris, Tim Walz, and our beloved American Democracy. Remember FDR-We have nothing to fear, but fear itself!
Tears and sadness, yes, Paula. I'm a former Ohioan living in NC and am writing postcards for Sherrod Brown (as well as activities and postcards here in NC). Doing something constructive and reading the many comments of such decent, hopeful members of this community help dry my tears. Thank you.
Maureen, my heart goes out to you and other friends in NC. Especially a shout out to a friend in Asheville. So much to do. We just have to keep up the hard work and make sure Harris and Walz win.
Contrast that career of hard work and service to "thoughts and prayers" and there you have it.
Genuine thoughtfulness and prayer in the sense of being honest about one's own heart seem to me a good thing. Dumping the responsibilities that one should reasonably share and actively respond to is not. I am not a church-goer, but recall that the "Great Commandment" of Christians ( the part right wing Christians don't talk about) involves loving ones neighbor; and Jesus made plain that he was not just talking about the people one favors, nor just of "thoughts and prayers" in a insulating, passive way. Samaritans were considered enemies of Jesus's audience; yet who was the identified good neighbor? Not the "pious" passive people who ignored suffering. It was the Samaritan would gave active aid. All that is left of our understanding of Jesus points to that. Jesus preached love, and yet somehow the most media-visible "Christians" advocate greed, hatred and violence. It is just weird and unhelpful to include that in the same breath.
Bill Lee (TN governor) suggested that his people fast and pray. Didn't call for help until much later. Of, course Biden gets blamed for not sending aid sooner.
I believe it was in September that the number of NYFD deaths from post 9/11 syndrome exceeded those who died in the immediate response. I have friends who have trained SAR dogs for years, at least two of their animals perished in the 9/11 aftermath.
Connie was a hero. May her memory be a blessing, and may her work live on long after.
You tell Connie's story quite well KEM. A hero's story never grows old! Thank you!
Oh, Kem, thank you for telling us about Connie Millard from Missouri and her very special dogs. I had forgotten about the crawling through rubble part of their heroic work in New York City, in a completely different state. May her family and friends find some comfort during a tender time that I think must be lasting forever for them.
Dedicated and people don't always understand what it takes out of you to work in intense work areas like this. May she RIP
Agree, KEM. Interesting that a longtime acquaintance who was a former police officer recently asked me to find a market for two pieces of stone salvaged from North Tower and South Tower. The pieces were imbedded in a glass casing resembling the towers with data inscribed on the front of each. He has grown old now and wants to sell them before he dies. He asked me for help and my advice is to consigned them to an auction house with part of the proceeds to go to the victims fund. Or donate them to a museum.
I just posted my first comment, and was amazed to see that somebody else named Kem is already posting. Since our's is such an unusual name, I'm wondering who you are. I am Kem Phillips from Cavendish Vermont. Thanks
KEM (all caps) are initials--your name is still unique!
I completely agree, KEM. When I read one like Heather's email of today, I hesitate to hit the 'like' button. Even though I'm appreciative of the information, I definitely don't like the contents...in fact I'm enraged and anxious. It would be good if there was an "appreciation" option along with the 'like.'
Once again we are faced with the eternal human contradiction - that in the face of natural or and even some manmade catastrophes, we are able to surmount so many of our trivial human squabbles and understand that pulling together does us far more benefit and gives us far more moral power than all the rest of the time we spend tearing ourselves apart.
Thank you for posting this KEM!
Extraordinary skills required, to train a canine for that work. And so much mutual trust.
Truth. Connie was the most extraordinary animal trainer I have ever met, and I am immersed in the world of dog training myself. Not just dogs--See the update I posted above for directions to a photo collage that pictures many of the diverse animals Connie cared for.
Thank you for sharing Connie's story. Her heroism won't be forgotten.
As a practicing witch I can tell you that every time a Christian lights a candle that’s witchcraft. Every time a Christian chants a prayer that’s witchcraft. So mote it be.
Right? I was accused of witch craft recently, (to the HOA) and I’m like so? Freedom of religion.
Rowan, I'm sorry, but you can't just leave your statement at that. Good lord (hah!) woman, WHAT had you been doing, how did the nosy individual get wind of it, and what was the upshot - was there a meeting of the HOA, was some sort of penalty - for you or for the individual reporting your dreadful transgression (imagine, someone practicing their religion! shocking!) contemplated or assessed? And, most importantly, have you dealt with your "neighbor" or the HOA? This really sounds like a tale worth telling!
The HOA?
Mark, that is the question. I know HOAs are controlling, but gosh, accused of witchcraft.
Home owners association
OMG! Film at 11?
Ugh, HOA's! They are their own unique hellscape.
Rowan TwoSisters -- What is HOA?
Home Owners Association
Definitely toil & trouble & gross HOA violations of founding documents & state law
What’s an HOA? (HOA’s can be pretty nutty/ off the wall).
Watch this:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=qrizmAo17Os
That was a good show as his always are!
Well said.
Asking the Universe to suspend it's rules of operation "just this once" because they're frightened and unhappy sounds more like irrationl superstition on their part.
Besides, I think "God" is too busy with high school football games to be able to attend to people facing hurricanes...
Juanita, LOL. This is so irritating to me. "God" does not give a damn about of any sport at any level and doesn't care what school athletes choose when they have a huge NIL which is the reason so many choose Bribery U.
Thanks for my chuckle. Football games and math tests...
“Pray, v. To ask that the laws of the universe be annulled in behalf of a single petitioner, confessedly unworthy.” — Ambrose Bierce, The Devil’s Dictionary
How I made prayer work for me... I only pray for things that are statistically in my favor.
Yes, well governor capitulated finally, did they also delay in getting into the mutual support disaster network states use all the time?
No , his lack of judgment and foresight for the people's safety should of come first when president Biden offered to help. You can pray and help at the same time. There is no need to procrastinate when the people are in danger.
there was a touch of facetious in my phrase "finally capitulated" but i was asking if his administration delayed in connecting with mutual interstate support. My guess is they were already gearing up. Declaring belatedly was more political optics, but that's all it is. I googled him and found a very interesting political history. Not trying to make any points here. https://www.wikiwand.com/en/articles/Bill_Lee_(Tennessee_politician)
Frank, he discovered that praying and fasting didn't cut it.
Fasting and prayer is more like a consequence of being flooded out.
It's pretty arrogant of the governor to act like it was his idea while he drags his heels on arranging help and rescue efforts.
That is exactly what it is.
Religious people exhaust me with their "thoughts and prayers".
Especially since those people do not put any hands and feet to those prayers when they could act to help improve the lives of others.
Well, just the same, I wouldn't be surprised if there hasn't been a lot of community support coming from church organizations on a practical basis, and regardless, I'm sure those with chain saws etc are very busy helping clear trees and debris.
Frank, there are many that do help. Not all of them.
The quintessential "American", the most religious among the OECD I would hazard. Nonetheless religious decline broadly continues in the USA, and Lance aced that with his comments how American has been mostly "stolen" by "woke" at al. This seems to have made Evangelicals esp more fervent in their faith than ever, esp now that they've swamped into politics in such a big way.
If it starts to appear as "T&P" (same length as "RIP") we'll know that they too are getting exhausted.
While they accuse liberals of virtue signalling...
Andra Watkins: Why Is a White Guy Calling Harris a "Jezebel?"
“To the Christian Nationalist in the video, Kamala Harris is a Jezebel, or wicked woman, BECAUSE she seeks the kind of power and authority he thinks women should not want or have. Calling her Jezebel is their insinuation that a powerful woman will lead good people (read: white men) astray.”
https://open.substack.com/pub/project2025istheocracy/p/why-is-a-white-guy-calling-harris?r=fqsxl&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
Oh, for unlawful fornication's sake.
Ok, THAT was a "burst out laughing and spit tea on my keyboard" moment. Thanks, Ally!
<curtsies>
🤣
🤣
Clearly, "these are the times that try men's souls." - Thomas Paine. How in the hell did we arrive at this juncture? We could blame our schools in failing adequately to teach critical thinking skills and civics. The "Christian crusade" in this country has been going on for at least forty years with the advent of charter schools, designed to separate the races and infuse religion into the curricula. We're paying the price for this neglect.
Decades of anti-intellectualism. I don’t have a lot of hope for the future.
lol that's too good. This apply to birthday candle wishes? I guess so! The good Christians want to reserve "witchcraft" all to themselves i see.
So mote it be.
I think they are the Christian Taliban.
I’m with you sister!
If witchcraft could restore power, water, and get food and shelter to the 6,000,000+ victims across 5 states due to Hurrican Helene...then I am voting for witchcraft.
It requires a lot of patience and effort and the more people who join in the stronger the intention. Thoughts are things so you must have positive thoughts about them and the recovery process. Thoughts manifest physically when you have put the energy into it.
My adult nephew, who is one of the gentlest, kindest, most loving and compassionate people I've ever known is a Pagan. He's also a devoted father. I smiled when I saw the "so mote it be" as I recognized that.
What does - 'so mote it be' mean? Love the sound of it and would like to use it correctly. Thanks.
As it shall be
Valorie, bear with me on this one, but I believe I can use science to confirm your wise intuition.
To everyone:
Looking for a D-supporting and R-crushing October surprise? Want to know something of existential importance about human psychology that literally every expert in the field of psychology has studiously ignored for decades? Read on. Or maybe you have a better idea, and in that case, do tell. I’m all ears.
In this paragraph, I’m describing in lieu of interpreting objective evidence. A stimulus arrives in the unconscious mind. Roughly 300 milliseconds later, the unconscious mind has formed the intent to perform a behavioral response. Roughly 200 milliseconds later, the conscious mind has been made aware of the unconscious mind’s intent. Then, roughly 500 milliseconds, aka one half second, after receiving the stimulus, the unconscious mind informs and triggers the behavioral response while the conscious mind remains a passive observer.
One can say the above description is not true, but they’d be doing so based on zero evidence in the face of overwhelming evidence. The field of psychology has widely acknowledged this scientifically verified “fact” since Benjamin Libet conducted his famous experiment at UCSF back in the 1980s. The question is not whether it’s true. The question is, how and when does the conscious mind become an active participant? The answer to this question is an “interpretation” of objective evidence. What follows is my interpretation.
I’ll pick on J. D. Vance because, why not? Vance is a small-minded person in that his unconscious mind cares about “me, myself, and I.” To Vance, the entire social system is J. D. Vance, and pretty much every other human being, along with almost every concept and fact, is an opportunity to be exploited, a threat to be neutralized, and otherwise utterly irrelevant.
Vance is not stupid. He is an extremely dangerous combination of smart, powerful, and immature. If an individual has an actual circle of influence that extends beyond the individual’s unconscious circle of concern, then the individual is immature.
Kamala Harris is sufficiently mature. Her circle of influence is encompassed within her America-encompassing circle of concern, which is how she knows that every American’s life is relevant.
Vance and Harris are the same in that they both perceive a within-system conflict as a dilemma in need of being resolved. When an individual perceives a within-system conflict, the behavioral response is conscious deliberation, and that’s when the conscious mind becomes an active participant. The difference is that Harris is not a small-minded person.
The cause of what Dr. Bandy X. Lee refers to as “Trump contagion” is a virus, but not a biological virus comprised of genes, and instead a cultural virus comprised of memes. Question: What is the cure? Answer: The cure is a cultural vaccine comprised of memes. Specifically, the cure to Trump contagion began when I looked in the mirror and ask myself if I am sufficiently mature. And now it’s a race that either the vaccine or the virus will win depending on how many people are willing to look in the mirror.
I’d be happy to answer any questions.
Ref: https://wisdomtheo.com/resources/
Mind warp, will take more brain juice than I have at the moment
Yes, it's initially hard to understand, so take your time, but when the penny drops, it's actually quite simple. The hard part's not the learning, it's the unlearning.
Unlearning is always the bitch. If not, cults would finally wake up
Harris practicing witchcraft????!!!! She has certainly put “a spell on me”!
Christopher L Groesbeck, you win -- greatest comeback!
- Pulled Quote -
Right out of the fascist playbook:
There were the lies Vance spread about Springfield, Ohio, of course, attacking the legal Haitian immigrants there who have been credited with revitalizing the city. On Friday and Saturday, Trump lied that Vice President Harris had let 13,000 or 14,000 convicted murderers enter the U.S. in the past three years, who “freely and openly roam our country,” a lie that Elon Musk called “true.”
Vote.
Then there is this (another pulled quote):
“ On Saturday, Vance spoke at an event hosted by right-wing extremist evangelical leader Lance Wallnau, a member of the New Apostolic Reformation movement that seeks to end the separation of church and state and put the United States under religious rule.”
It feels a lot to me like an American version of the radical Muslim dogma. I think we all know how well that has worked out in the Middle East.
Thank you Heather for continuing to keep your subscribers informed.
Early this morning, at 3:59 AM Eastern, Forbes has reported 30 deaths in North Carolina's Buncombe County ... "where the mountain city of Asheville became isolated after facing historic flooding".
The city of Asheville NC is is a popular retirement area for folks from many states that benefits from a strong community.
We heard from youngest son , wife, and their house in Swannanona , NC and high ground location thankfully …yesterday. Wondering all the while -but listening to the news ‘lack of communication ‘available -that he most probably was out ‘doing something’ to help …kept us patient.
He stated ‘It is bad! But we are OK’ was all , as well as a mouthful for him.
For all the boots on the ground (including his) we give great thanks, have donated to help, and are also praying .
Much younger years ago we have cleaned up torrential debris here too in devastating floods, ran emergency phone lines, coordinating search/rescue/city and state response teams, so…we know. Not to forget our family of nurses/drs. who stood endless shifts during Covid it’s the same , the battlefields have varied places dangerous, exhausting, and it gets done, will again. Unity is necessary, togetherness and nobody’s lying/asking what party you’re from, nationality, or plotting ends for our support systems be they …whatever form.
No, they are there doing ….with a smile, a hug, holding a hand, handing out water/food and coming from wherever they can, they come ,work tirelessly and get systems up running and adequate.
Thank you.
I’ll be voting blue….💙🇺🇸👍🫶
Just what Gov’Coach’ Walz is talking about. They are your neighbors, and it doesn’t matter what they think or who they vote for, none of your damned business, they are our neighbors. We all pull together. To rescue, care for and clean up what ever we have to face together. From a distance we send rescue teams, and money and prayers not to get God to change the universe, to strengthen and sustain people on the ground who are living thru it.
And we all do better when we fight together. They are a great team and at times like these we need Harris and Walz to continue this work.
Bryan Sean McKown, very sad.
Yes 🙏. A local ABC affiliate TV station had an aerial photograph of mudslides that apparently will close I 40 & I 26 "for days" but, I suspect [Eisenhower ] I 40, the main regional artery to Virginia & the Shenandoah Valley, to be back open quickly.
I have family history going back to the 1760's on my mother's side in Stanton, VA. Very strong folks.
It will be months. Multiple sections of I-40 eastbound are washed away in the gorge. All the underpinning isgone. Thought will have to be given to make it better or move it because Helene will not be the last catastrophic storm. Climate change is real.
Eastern Tennessee hit as well.
Bryan Sean McKown, I'm keeping everyone in my thoughts. We are infinitely stronger when we pull together. One part of my family is from that area of VA too. They fought in the Revolutionary War. Would be interesting to know how many people descended from VA, but no longer live there.
A local librarian in Stanton VA had Family Trees written in cursive. Fascinating.
Home to the Biltmore, largest private residence in US!
I've had the pleasure of visiting Asheville twice, and I've toured the Biltmore. Very, very sad to see the destruction.
Send not to know for whom the bell tolls.
" . . . an American version of the radical Muslim dogma," Gary?
Aren't you leaving out the 670,000 Israeli far-right settlers busily (and illegally) stealing land in the West Bank, insulting Palestinians, putting up roadblocks to harass them?
It's not working out so well for the Israelis, either.
Let's remember, Steve, that the U.S. only pushes more arms, more arms.
Nothing in regard to education or schools.
Just equip them (and only one side) with bombs, rockets, gunships, more bombs, other explosives, incendiary devices, jet fighters, tanks, self-propelled howitzers, troop carriers, more bombs, automatic weapons, more bombs, more bombs.
And, again (and again and again) nothing for schools. No programs at all for teaching youth to see others on the other side as individuals. Only keep the schools in all the usual idiot standardized testing mode, which only reinforces all the thinking in categories, feeding more reliance on group think only, on packaging others to their groups and oldest hoariest stereotypes.
Ahhhh, the predictable joys in U.S.-taxpayer paid-for repetitions of expenses-be-damned murder, crippled schools, more murder, more destruction of civilian life, more idiot vulgarity.
And killing them.
Oh yes, the "promised land" ...
Get more about Wallnau from this Wikipedia. Gobsmacking, but if I'd been paying attention.... my mind is usually very much elsewhere trying to maintain a humane secular outlook in my life. https://www.wikiwand.com/en/articles/Lance_Wallnau
Then there is this from 1 Timothy 2:12 in the Bible:
“ I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man; rather, she is to remain quiet.”
Clearly, those of us who are appreciative of the HCR intellect and capacity to teach, are in violation of scripture.
The early Christians were an extremist apocalyptic Jewish movement which took their message to the pagans when most Jews turned their back on them. The quote from Timothy was part of a widespread patriarchal view in the ancient world.
Having been raised in a fundamentalist Christian family, I’m (sadly) more aware of that reality than I would like.
Thanks Gary, and Frank. I knew these nuts were out there but I’d no idea of the scope of their beliefs.
Me too. For six years. From age 14. It was what convinced me that I had no faith, nor ever would.
I was too, I remember the Billy Graham tours to our local down in the 50s. We were all trundled in buses to the local racing track stands for his hell and brimfire and attacks on the godless atheists. Judgement Day was imminent, more or less lol. Funny how that fever has persisted over the centuries.
Taught by Paul.
Timothy is generally considered pseudepigraphal , written by a follower or sympathizer, to bolster the work's authority. But you're right, Paul did also advise women were not to speak at services, in 1 Corinthians vs 34-5 I believe. Here's a key quote from timothy "A woman[a] should learn in quietness and full submission. 12 I do not permit a woman to teach or to assume authority over a man;[b] she must be quiet. 13 For Adam was formed first, then Eve. 14 And Adam was not the one deceived; it was the woman who was deceived and became a sinner. 15 But women[c] will be saved through childbearing—if they continue in faith, love and holiness with propriety."
I feel the misogynistic vibe gaining ground. Especially with Hispanic men. Hope im Wrong
I haven’t listened yet, but the descriptions of this organization are scary enough:
Charismatic Revival Fury: Christian Extremism Podcast - ICJS:
https://icjs.org/charismatic-revival-fury/
Wow. This is nuts.
Thanks, emailed myself the link.
I have said to all who would listen, the goal of the far right is to to enact measures not unlike those of the Taliban… the Talibinization of America by Fascist Nazis in the thrall of the ConDon.
We have been warned that the last days of the campaign would be turbulent driven by anger and lies. Trump and Vance are delivering both every day. It’s an extraordinary time in our history that we here hope will end well. The alternative to Harris/Walz is so scary yet still millions of his minions believe everything they say. It’s also extraordinary that these two put so much effort into their disinformation. If this were a movie instead of real life, they’d win an Oscar for sure!!
These Republican Lies should not Surprise Anyone... The GOP now puts Party Loyalty above Country.... Ideology Over Reason... Reminds me of the Russian Bolsheviks of 1917... The Scary Thing is that DJT could Melt-Down into an Orange Puddle, and DJT would still get at least 50,000,000 Votes... JD as President after DJT gets 'Carted-Away'? The Horror has no Description...
To compare Trump and the current crop of MAGAt minions to the Bolsheviks of 1917 is pretty insulting and shows a fair ignorance of history. It is true that the ensuing history of communism in the Soviet Union in the later 20th century didn't go well, but the Bolsheviks of the Revolution were fighting against the czarist tyranny in support of a better Russia. In that respect they were more like those of us who are terrified of a return of Trump to power, a man who loves the idea of dictatorship in the US. Sadly as often happens, men like Stalin later came to power and created their own form of dictatorship which ultimately led to the down fall of the Soviet Union. But to suggest that the Bolsheviks of 1917 were anything like the modern day Trump GOP is a real misrepresentation of what they tried to do in Czarist Russia. My great uncle was part of that Revolution and he said it was the best thing that happened to Russia even if the later rise of tyrannical Soviet rule killed the idealism and hope of the Revolution.
Hold the phone Jon Rosen. I’m well read on the topic and once took a Russian history course taught by a former Hungarian general in the failed revolution of 1957. The Bolsheviks were a smaller tight knit extremist group that overthrew the moderate Mensvicks who had taken power after overthrowing Czarist Russia. Lenin might have guided them better but he soon died and his crazed Stalin took over and sowed the seeds to ruination and many deaths of Russians. To Stalin, human life had no importance not unlike the current prime minister of Israel whose only goal is keeping the wars active in order to remain in power and possibly sentenced to prison. He is a rogue leader and I always believed this when he was ambassador to the UN.
Bravo Jon!
Thank you, thank you, I'm here all month or at least until Trump comes looking for me LOL!
Hey Jon, I had a great uncle who was part of the Revolution, too. 😲 Probably not the same guy...
Possibly why they took such care to maintain Lenin for public exhibition - take the attention off Stalin. Reminds me: anyone noticed the change in the Trump iconography? Some stunningly realistic and ugly coloured close-ups appearing now.
What REMINDS me of the GOP, and Bolsheviks was the LUST of 'Power For The Sake of Power'... The Ideology of the Bolsheviks was flexible, and flexible to the seizing of Power...
From I understand their game plan, the target is to stymie state certifications so the president is picked by the house. However, the senate picks the VP. Potentially a Trump/Harris White House. At least she would stand in the path of Mike Johnson!
Well it would be a Trump/Walz executive IF the Senate chose the VP BUT only if the Democrats hold the Senate which is still highly unlikely. Not impossible if Texas and/or Florida revolt against their current GOP domination and beat either Ted Cruz or Rick Scott (or both!). But without at least one of those seats the Gop will hold the majority of the Senate after this election because the Dems will lose both West Virginia (Manchin's seat) and Montana (Tester's seat) and there are no easy pickups from the GOP.
My point about Walz is that the Senate picks the VP from the VP candidates. Harris is not running for VP this election. She is running for President. And that vote takes place in the House by STATE and the GOP holds s 26-23 majority of the House delegations with one state split evenly.
No need to be so pessimistic about Tester and Senate. Tester is still 50-50.
Last polls I saw show Tester behind by 8 pts. That is far outside the margin of error. I don't know what you are using as a reference but my sources tend to be pretty good. But I sure hope you are right because losing the Senate is not good even if Harris wins.
I'm sticking with Heather's advice to take all candidate polls with a huge grain of salt - or ignore them.
There are a lot of polls and some are Republican funded and intended only to push a narrative. I’m told that Montana senate remains very close. .
Ah, you are right! So the swearing in of the new crew is the 3d and certification the 6th, if I am not mistaken. In that case, I think we have a better chance of taking the house. It could be visa versa.
But a House Vote for President under the 12th amendment is by STATE delegation (1 vote per state) NOT by individual congresscritters. So even if Dems "take" the House by raw votes, the state delegations will still likely be 26-23 GOP with one state a tie. So Trump would still win in the House.
Just didn’t think that one through. My bad.
So the House picks Trump, and the Senate chooses Walz as VP, who goes on to invoke the 25th Amendment against Trump, thus giving himself the Presidency.
President Walz. It has a certain ring to it, doesn't it?
https://youtu.be/c87p3udiytc
Sharon, I also wonder at “ It’s also extraordinary that these two put so much effort into their disinformation.” It leads me always to want to follow the money to reveal the real story. The Firehose of lies to “flood the zone” is so transparently calculated that it no longer surprises me. “Shame” left the building a long time ago for gop politics. It’s a full-on fascist assault on democracy now. It’s their hail-mary pass in the face of the Dems stronger performance. Even in spite of trump’s calls for violence and bloodbaths, we are stronger because we’ve seen this strategy before. Same old tired playbook. And most importantly: WE are different. So many more are active and understanding what is at stake. Yet, I still know I need to do all I can for these last days before Nov. 5.
MLRGRMI, you’re right—WE are different. We are paying attention to the destruction of norms and no longer look at both parties as essentially equal in their adherence to rules and norms. We are each active according to what we are capable of doing.
I love the idea of Red, Wine and Blue to contact 5 Blue friends to make sure that they are registered and vote. Have each of them contact 5 friends who will contact five friends. The influence will spread exponentially. It’s one of those small things that can have big consequences.
I LOVE your passion and yes we need to do all those things but don't delude yourself. In fact there are only a few swing states that matter and if the y manage to block certification in even a few states, the election week be so close it will go into the House. And Harris will NOT win in the House because the GOP leads delegations 26-23. It's not good news at all.
You physician can prescribe lithium carbonate.
Will it cure mansplaining scold?
🤔
I do wonder if all the machinations, extremists in the House, stacking the Supreme Court etc. have in fact been planned for that very thing.
Yes.
I misread the word "minions" as "morons" because I haven't put on my readers yet. But, in the case of most Trump voters it seems apt.
But the minions are cute.
Yes. For scariest horror movie.
@ Sharon. They want to scare you.
No way. Trump underperformed in his own primaries. The trends in "reliably" red states like North Carolina and Florida are against him. 81 MAGAT witnesses are ready, willing and able to testify against him in the DC case. His own VP and half his own cabinet will not support him. 2020 election occurred before he visibly decompensated. You have to be nuts to vote for a lunatic. In their guts, even MAGATs know he's nuts.
Some of us also think we will flip veterans, military and military families via "not suckers or losers." Lots of testimonials from vets who voted for Trump x 2. .https://votevets.org/
Similarly the DNC has outreach to Polish Americans, Ukrainians, etc. https://keystonenewsroom.com/2024/09/23/kamala-harris-pa-polish-outreach/ It started in Pittsburgh and went all the way.... https://actionnetwork.org/forms/sign-up-to-join-polish-americans-for-harris?source=twitter& You asked for it.
Who will support someone who hates dogs? https://rvat.org/
The lies never stop. The thirst to control and dominate others and persecute those who disagree with them never stops. Their hypocritical claims of providing for constituents when they actually voted against said measures never stops. Trump is sick and sad, but Vance is a true fascist disciple. Please vote.
And while still recovering in Florida from Hurricane Ian (two years ago Saturday), I can only imagine the devastation our brothers and sisters to the north are experiencing. We live in Florida-we know the risks. Those up north would not. For those who can, please contribute to reputable organizations who can support those impacted. Thank goodness for President Biden, for FEMA, for NOAA, and all the other incredible agencies and information services that helped in the immediate aftermath. Please also be aware that Governors like Desantis allow insurance companies to run unchecked, causing additional pain and heartache with their corruption. There needs to be oversight so that needs are met. Only Democrats are willing to do that. We need our VP to lead us into this next chapter. Yes, we KAM!
Insurance is a HUGE problem for Florida residents. Insurance companies simply leave the state because the risks are so great. All my kids and grandkids are in Florida, and we have a place there, so we pay those high rates.
Too many folks can’t afford the rates and too many were cheated by enormous amounts post -Ian. Adjusters recommended work, and desk agents rejected it to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars for many. Salvage companies were also colluding with adjusters so that they could claim higher bills depending upon insurance payouts. The corruption and greed is sickening-but the Governor was accepting bribes, I mean contributions😐, toward his campaign. If I didn’t belong to groups like this, I’d lose my faith in humanity. I hope your family is safe and ok. 💙💙💙💙
60 Minutes had a segment on this last night.
Oooh-I’ll look for that, Kathleen. Thank you!
My home in Florida is a second home. Looks like Citizens can raise me 47% for 2025.
INSANITY! GREED! and Desantis does nothing, just like he did nothing during Covid.
He was okay April- October 2020 when he deemed being prudent politically imprudent. Then all bets were off. Employees were scared to death.
Can't like this highway robbery.
Trump is ramping up the crazy because he’s realizing that his old shtick is getting old and wearing thin with his base. And he’s found a compliant sycophant to magnify and amplify his lies.
Now that he’s had four years to plant his foot soldiers, we can expect him to mobilize them and assault the electoral process in a way that will make J6 look like a training exercise.
Trump and Vance have gone beyond just telling tall tales. They now are not only admitting to it, they are bragging about it and justifying them as needed to destroy the old order.
In short, they are revolutionaries calling for an overthrow of the American government! God help us!
Worse, I truly believe Vance & friends are planning to “Amendment 25” thump after the election & intern him in an “Old Folks Home for the Senile” & make Vance president.
Talk about scary!
Yep, been thinking the same, based on the evidence.
Agree, HulitC.
Morning, Lynell. That is indeed their strategy.
Morning, Ally! Remind me again, what language is it we should be learning to conform to an altered nation should the White Christian/Evangelical Project 2025 folks take power? Asking for myself, not so much a friend!
Headline in Traverse City, Michigan last week: "J.D. Vance's Visit Energizes Voters." Not headlined or mentioned was that it was an hour of nasty lies. So heartbreaking here in the city that produced one of Michigan's greatest Republican governors, Bill Milliken, who fought to preserve our beautiful natural environment, and his wife, Helen, who helped establish Planned Parenthood in our state.
Maybe he energized voters to vote for Kamala/Tim? That'd be great, MaryPat!
Wish I knew...
If this seems unreal watch The Sixth, a documentary . It is so frightening to see these rabid animals who will stop at nothing at Trumps behest. A few of them are incarcerated,but the vast majority are out there among us ready to raise him to power. It’s the stuff of nightmares.
The Atlantic had a good article (Oct 24 issue-paywall) about some of these people moving into the neighborhood of the journalist.
These people still believe they did nothing wrong. Sadly the ones that were/are in prison were in prison with other Jan 6ers, reinforcing their beliefs.
https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2024/10/jan-6-capitol-attack-ashli-babbitt-dc-residents/679563/
Thank You, HulitC. Excellent article. I have a neighbor who went to the insurrection on a church bus to "stop Biden from killing babies." Years before he had "gone postal" literally at his Post Office job, and hasn't been allowed guns or ammunition since, both of which he cons people to get for him. Thank God (or at least his church's bus driver) that the congregation was rounded up, put back on the bus, and driven out of D.C. before my neighbor could join the melee. Two nights before I had reported him to the County Sheriiff because he was hollering and swearing at us neighbors that Biden needed to be stopped and. The Sheriff deputies saw no problem with that. I begged then to get his car license numbers (before I learned he went on the church bus), and they said, "Why?" I said, "To give to the State Police to give to the FBI." They thought I was the one who was nuts. And, of course, they all supported Trump.
SO frustrating.
If witchcraft worked men like trump would have been turned into frogs decades ago.
Bridget Collins, haha, oh to dream.
I’m still completely flabbergasted that these people a) lie so openly, clearly and brazenly, and b) they even get away with iit, legally as well as socially. The media happily copy and paste these lies. Is that then “freedom of speech”?
My question exactly. Can a democracy persist when lying becomes part of the public discourse with no consequences or accountability.
Shut down right wing fake news sites including FOX & Newsmax.
Nationalize Xitter & Facebook.
Make right wing “mega churches” rename themselves as not churches but community organizers - make them pay taxes & publish their agenda.
Get rid of PACs
There’s lots “we” could do, but won’t.
Get rid of lying PACs. Much good has come from honest ones.
Vote them out.
Do you have a plan that might work? Most of these people live in states where the majority believe this nonsense. So it will be hard if not impossible to "vote them out". I'll help if you actually have a plan and not just a slogan.
Sure. Campaign and all that means. Then vote and early. We won’t get rid of all of them and certainly not all at once but we can win slowly but surely if we work at it.
write "megan.mia.mccall@gmail.com to write post cards to people in those states to get them to register to vote as they do not even know they have been taken off the registrar.
Hannah Arendt needs to be mentioned somewhere in today's commentary.
My Q also.
Well stated. Read Sarah kenzdior book They Knew
We can only wonder!
How, why have we reached this place?
If you listened to Rush Limbaugh, Alex Jones & FOX for several years, it would be the logical explanation.
These people really do live in an alternate universe.
Reed Galen today/yesterday? wrote:
Reading Richard J. Evans’ latest addition to his incredible collection on Nazi Germany, Hitler’s People, I came across the following passage in the Introduction to “The Instruments,” the book’s final section:
Most Germans who belonged to the educated middle classes, the so-called Bildungsburgertum, comprising people with university degrees and professional status, welcomed the coming of the Third Reich and collaborated with the Nazi regime to the end. There were numerous reasons for this. Under the Bismarckian Empire they had enjoyed a secure and respected place in a self-confident and seemingly stable society, a position they had lost with Germany’s defeat in World War I, the revolution of 1918, the creation of the Weimar Republic with its enthronement of democratic rights such as universal and equal suffrage, and the advent of the feared and hated (and largely working class) Social Democrats to power. If relatively few of them were Nazi fanatics, the great majority still openly or tacitly support Hitler because they saw in him the guarantor of social order, national pride, economic stability, and cultural tradition, all of which had been so conspicuously absent, they thought, under the Weimar Republic. Not only medicine, and the law, each of which had their own peculiarities, but also other professions, followed a similar pattern. So too did the world of business, big, medium-sized, and small. Nazism was not the ideology of the un-educated or the unsuccessful.
The frog was boiled gradually.
Totally agree. Last night on Sunday Lester news the anchor took a white board to the street and asked about the economy!!! The person on the street had to write ONLY ONE word! Fortunately one very informed woman wrote complicated! Mostly ‘sucks’ was shown as the response, Duh! What a waste of time asking such a question! Insipid media piece feeding pablum to the uninformed!
At 90 I feel that I am experiencing a nightmare that is a combination of a modern-day George Orwell 1984 and a prelude to Project 2025.
I have never lived in an America in which a president or major presidential candidate has trashed the Constitution and rants in a manner that makes a ‘crazy uncle’ seem moderate by comparison.
Trump already has demonstrated that he refuses to play by the rules of the Constitution and relative decency that reflect the core of our democracy. His blatherings often are incoherent and dangerous to the governance of our country.
JD Vance is a chameleon companion of Trump who I find frightening in his blatant lies and his absence of core principles.
I fear for our country. We have more than a month of this internecine political fight before November 5th.
I hope that the character of Kamala/Coach and their programs and policies will result in a solid victory on November 5th.
I realize that, whatever the result, Trump and his co-conspirators will engage in anti-constitutional swamp fighting reflective of what they initiated after the 2020 elections.
My gut tells me that good will prevail. It also tells me that our country is in a fight for its life over the coming weeks.
I recall personally some of the dark months of the Cold War. Ultimately we triumphed and the authoritarianism and economic nonsense of the communist world oozed into oblivion from its stark internal contradictions.
My hope is such will again occur, as the falseness of Trump’s MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN withers against reality.
Good to hear you weigh in, Keith! Been thinking about you & missing your wise comments. These you write here today are both scary (I, too, tho a couple of decades younger, have never been as scared for our country as I am now) AND that you are hopeful/optimistic that truth & good & shared community will prevail. 🤞Live long and prosper ye wise one ☮️!
Thank you, Keith. I do so hope that character wins out over corruption. I hope that we have enough people in the important strategic positions to combat the resistance that I anticipate occurring when the Democrats win the election. I agree that there is a battle for the soul of this country, and I hope that those who would turn us into a Christian Nationalist country are soundly and robustly defeated.
I hope your gut is prescient.
My hope also, but evil never takes a break
JD Evil Knievel is a rare exception. The opposite to evil is LIVE!
Millions of uteri will be voting for Kamala.
I'm determined to get the word out about Project 2025. With my election action group in Seattle I've put together a collection of concept maps (with page #s!) to help people understand the magnitude of damage MAGA wants to do and be able to bring the receipts in their discussions with other voters. I'd like this to get in front of as many people as possible. Please share the web link with everyone in your network and ask them to share with everyone in their network. Here's my post: https://substack.com/home/post/p-149586096?r=11kr2&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web and here's the link directly to the web page: https://fidlnfree.com/rwb.html. Thanks!
As Harry Truman observed back in 1948, "The only 'good Republicans' are pushing up daisies."
The Tennessee House Republican Caucus is a minstrel show. They still think it’s funny.
Thanks Heather, we have a cold morning here and your collection of hypocrisy by the Republicans has set my blood to boiling. (Other side effects: nausea and tears.)
Thanks for the chuckle!
I have been communicating with Andra Watkins about Christian Nationalism, since she explains the implications in Project 2025 of Christian Nationalism to some extent. I am in a Democrats Abroad book club that is reading and discussing Project 2025, and I gave a speech on it last Sunday in Hamburg, Germany at a Defend Democracy rally for Americans Abroad. When one understands the End of Days beliefs of Christian Nationalists, which is who wrote Project 2025, one sees why the Department of Education would go. If you believe that the End of days is really near and when it comes, you and yours will be taken to Heaven to live with God, and will leave all worldly problems behind. It is also important to understand that the Charismatic CNs who are in the New Apostolic Reformation branch, believe that End of Days will only happen when everyone on earth is living Godly lives as they define it, and it is the job of members of NAR to use whatever means necessary to force people to follow these rules.
https://project2025istheocracy.substack.com/p/what-is-the-new-apostolic-reformation
That includes coercion, and we don't know what else, because they act in some ways like a secretive cult. That along with planning on massive deportation and putting in camps of immigrants, in numbers greater than the undocumented population of the USA, is very concerning. As for education, why should you teach your child history, science or math if you believe your child is not long for this world. Reading would be useful to read scriptures, but otherwise, what else are they using? The Handmaids Tale should appear on reading lists this year, and Project 2025, at least some parts of it should be studied in high schools and universities as a document of a plan for government and what it means. The goal is to turn the USA into a Racist, Christian Nationalist Theocracy, making us akin to Iran, a country that CNs feel is a sworn enemy, but has a lot in common in terms of their beliefs for their people. This is why it is important to get the vote out now. We have gotten our ballots abroad and filled them out and are mailing them today.
Thank you for your work with Democrats Abroad.
Thanks for the info on CN and for your hard work with Democrats Abroad!
This whole letter is mind-blowing! Trump, Vance, and many other MAGA extremists shamelessly pouring out lies, blaming Biden for things that are their fault while taking credit for everything good that’s actually provided by Biden/Harris. And much, much more.
They are blatantly inundating the consciousness of millions of people with totally incorrect info on all important issues across the board. Can Dems surmount this disaster????
Hopefully, the debate tomorrow between JD Vance and Tim Walz will convince many undecideds to vote for Harris if only to prevent any chance of Vance becoming President.
btw, my paid subscription was set to expire tomorrow but i just renewed it.
Yeah, Ellen, I’m trying to collect scattered pieces of my brain from where they landed in my living room as I read this LFAA…..🤯
I usually pull part of the Letter when I share it to FB. Today was just “read it all”. Here in Virginia Tim Kaine’s opponent, Hung Cao, (!) is also warning of witchcraft.
Oh, good grief.
Me, too. Read it ALL.
I seldom listen to anything DonOLD or Juicy Dingleberry say. Seeing the report of all these lies, serious boldface, ridiculous lies….I despair.
Two things recently:
1. I live in a blue town in a blue state. The is a social media platform called “NextDoor” where neighbors can post things like lost pets or recommendations for repair places, or traffic issues, etc. Today I saw a comment from someone whose political sign and its replacement were stolen. Though the person who posted specifically did not say whom he was supporting with the sign, 80 plus comments later the conversation had devolved as would be expected. What caught my eye was a woman who posted about “her candidate” (obviously trump) who someone had said was a liar and a fake. Then she responded to another comment about Project 2025 and that it had nothing to do with her candidate. “There is no connection. It has been debunked many times.” I deleted and blocked the conversation, lest I say something I would later regret. I did however have to point out that P2025 is real, is the Republican playbook. And has not, in fact, been “debunked”.
2. A friend was talking with her brother and his 20 something niece. Both strongly support Don the Con because, “Kamala is incompetent”. When pressed for evidence of incompetence the reply was, “everyone knows that she is incompetent and the only reason she is VP is because she slept her way to the top”.
I do not know how to combat the lies that pour out from many republicans day in day out, all day long. Even after all this time, I feel like I am living in an alternative universe. And Corporate Media (formerly known as Mainstream Media, but no more) are MIA.
🤦🏻♀️
Sky, what you have written here mimics my experience in trying to deal with MAGAts. They do not accept that fpotus has any connection to Project 2025, even when I point out that the things he has said he will do upon election are verbatim from that document. They are also invested in the "slept her way to the top" position.
My junior high brain LOVES "Juicy Dingleberry"!!!
The lies never stop, like a never-ending avalanche. Letters to the editor in Dallas are insistent that chump is in no way connected to P2025. I’m sure Fox says that ad nauseam.
Your report is depressing. I hear a lot of the same idiocy.
But the MSM outlet called the NY Times has finally said it like it is. Doesn't excuse their months and months of sane washing Trump. But let's enjoy the hits when we hear them:
gifted:
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/09/30/opinion/editorials/kamala-harris-2024.html?unlocked_article_code=1.Ok4.Qr-0.EhF7ui-f1YeS&smid=url-share
Yes, it's worth noting that they've finally come around a bit. I recommend Thomas Edsall's September 25 analysis of Trump's base in which he points out that a lot of it was spawned by the huge base for wrestling on TV which hosted the exprez as a celebrity for years. This crowd, Edsall noted, was out of range of traditional Republicans and Democrats, but loves a fight even when they know it's a con.
I've put together a collection of concept maps (with page #s!) to help people understand the magnitude of damage MAGA wants to do and be able to bring the receipts in their discussions with other voters. I'd like this to get in front of as many people as possible. Please share the web link with everyone in your network and ask them to share with everyone in their network. Here's my post: https://substack.com/home/post/p-149586096?r=11kr2&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web and here's the link directly to the web page: https://fidlnfree.com/rwb.html. Thanks!
From here to eternity... involuntary prayer and fasting...
That... and sixty lies a minute. Amen.
Behold the Promise MAGA holds in store for America... a masochist's heaven!
Heaven for the select in gated communities guarded by Blackrock thugs. Hell for the rest, particularly for those living near water ways and forests.