And that would be James Carville….the quintessential grumpy old man….you may remember him from his opposition to progressives or his statement that if progressives win he would leave the Democratic Party, among other jewels from this old fart.
I do not agree with him on too many things simply because he is entrenched in the corporate wing of the Party….but I will say that on one point I do agree with him….and that would be his takedown of Jeffries for his meeting with that bastard Kushner….
Here is what he had to sat….
James Carville launched into a passionate and incendiary takedown of Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) Monday after news that the latter met with Jared Kushner recently surfaced.
“Let me try to explain something,” Carville said. And Hakeem, you’re a smart guy … let me explain something here, very, very clear. You have Democrats that have a different position on Medicare for all, whether that’s a good idea. You have Democrats that have different positions on effective policing, and there’s a whole variety of subjects of which there are some disagreements within the Democratic Party.”
But Carville said that doesn’t extend to everything.
“On one thing, on one thing, there is no disagreement,” he said. “There’s unanimity. And it is simply this: in the opinion of every Democrat in the United States, progressive, moderate, middle road, left, f*ck, I don’t know whatever you want, we believe one thing above all. These people are a pack of felons and traitors and you do not meet with them. You do not meet with them!”
A more appropriate response to Kushner, who is President Donald Trump’s son-in-law via Ivanka Trump, would be to “drag his ass before a committee and find about what backdoor-dealing whorehouse sh*t he’s got going on with Steve Witkoff and everybody else,” Carville added.
The Trump administration and assorted family members and cronies “have no idea what they’re doing,” he continued. “They’re making every backdoor bullsh*t deal they can. And we don’t meet with them. Don’t meet with them.”
Carville added, “F*ck these people!”
(mediaite.com)
There is not much that I agree with Carville on but in this case I will have to bow to his words.
He is right….there is no way they can agree on anything unless it is who gets the loin share of the corruption.
Jeffries is a corrupt corporate Dem that is only interested in the cash thrown his way….when I heard about the two meeting I thought it smell like rotten fish….and I have not changed my mind.
From time to time I will re-post something from my other blog. Daily Agitator, for those that have not yet found their way to it with the hope that it will lead to more readership….
The government is watching you from facial recognition to what you do at the supermarket….it is not a new thing but rather a continuation from another era…
It is no secret around here that I dearly hate AIPAC and what it has done to our political system….it has turned our elections into good and bad the good being whatever they tell the recipient of their money and in the meantime the country suffers from their sick influence….
After AIPAC failed to defeat El-Sayed in the Michigan Democratic Senate primary—after spending $32 million—it said that it remains committed to defeating El-Sayed and his “radical, anti-Israel” agenda in the general election. Which means it is poised to sink tens of millions of dollars in supporting Republican Mike Rogers. It also said that Haley Stevens, his opponent, had presented “an authentic Democratic agenda.” Meaning that El-Sayed did not? And they think that Mike Rogers, a MAGA Trump supporter, does compared with El-Sayed?
How can AIPAC say that El-Sayed does not present an authentic Democratic agenda when his socialist stance is much more in line with the principles stated in the Declaration of Independence than most centrist Democrats’? And making it sound like AIPAC cares about an authentic Democratic agenda is deceitful, when in the same breath they make clear that they will support Mike Rogers, a Trump lackey, in the general election.
AIPAC’s one-dimensional perspective is clearer now than ever. They will fight for the unequivocal U.S. support of Israel at any cost, even if it means having the Republicans and Trump remain in power and destroy our nation.
They are like the Evangelicals to whom there was nothing more important than the creation of a conservative judiciary that would reverse Roe v Wade and other liberal policies, such as LGBT rights, even at the cost of supporting perhaps the most Godless, misogynistic President that the United States has ever had and his MAGA allies. In both cases, they have made a bargain with the devil that will ultimately cost them their souls.
These fools will do anything to bolster support for Israel even if it means the destruction of the nation.
One can support Israel that is their prerogative but not at the cost of our country and our way of life. Period!
This institution should be barred from dealing out influence….well not just them….the whole concept of lobbyists needs to be flushed down the crapper. Period.
I have had several conversations here on IST and in my contact with people in my community on what will be needed to fix what is going wrong in our democracy….and of course not all the contact was positive….I do live in Mississippi which is bright Red and MAGA friendly….those interactions lead to a few ugly exchanges.
Most thinking agree that something needs to be done by the next government to repair the damage that Donny and the Band of idiots have done to this country….but will that be the will of elected officials?
An article in The Fulcrum takes a gander at the possibilities….an interesting article….
If he leaves, Donald Trump will not leave the Oval Office until January 2029. Seems like a long way off.
But whether it feels near or far, it is time for pro-democracy forces to begin thinking about the work needed to rebuild, revitalize, and improve the infrastructure and architecture of American Democracy. That should not be done as one part of a policy agenda, but as THE priority for a post-MAGA world.
Restoring and/or building a vibrant constitutional democracy will require that singular focus. The damage the Trump Administration has done and will do to the democratic fabric of American life is incalculable.
But if you poke around on the internet, you’ll find several comprehensive projects that place the work of rebuilding democracy side-by-side with an ambitious policy agenda, many of which claim the mantle: Project 2029.
One of them holds itself out to be “a grassroots, citizen-led effort to reclaim our democracy. We are not affiliated with or supported by any political party or political action group (PAC).” But it says very little about how to rebuild democratic institutions and practices.
It offers a vision of government that does many things, like “prioritize(ing) people over profit, embracing policies informed by science, expertise, and empathy. It actively engages citizens as empowered participants in shaping their communities, rather than passive consumers of decisions made behind closed doors.”
In case no one read some of the included articles….this one caught my eye it is from a political abstract…..
When elites agree to compromise during regime transitions, democratization is more likely to succeed. Human agency is therefore central to successful democratization; however, it cannot be divorced from structural factors, such as class or economic interests, which incentivize elites to compromise in the first place.
Leadership plays a key role in guiding transition processes and can even help to break deadlocks between ideological opponents.
When existing patronage networks remain strong, elite defection and, hence, the likelihood of authoritarian breakdown is reduced. Conversely, when authoritarian rulers either face dwindling resources or do not co-opt key political and economic elites with patronage, their incumbency is threatened.
The nature of democratic transitions shapes the subsequent quality of democracy. Transitions that are “pacted” among elites may result in relatively smooth transitions to electoral democracy but they tend to permit political and economic elites to maintain their privileges, leading to less inclusive democracy.
The most vociferous opponents of economic liberalization may not be the marginalized mass publics but rather well-connected elites who benefited under authoritarian rule. Forging a more inclusive political and economic system is challenging, in no small part because it is difficult to dislodge authoritarian coalitions even after democratic transitions have ostensibly occurred.
Some great stuff in there but I disagree with a large part of the abstract….
I do not see any cooperation on major issues…..lobbyists will still own the Congress….oligarchs will still get their way….
That brings me to the newest brain fart by Dems…..Project 2029 (they could not even come up something in an original title….that tells me a lot)
These are the major ideas…my comments will be in the ()…..
01 Reward Hard Work
Our economy should reward hard work and not just huge wealth. We need to rebuild the ladder of opportunity for Americans and for American communities getting left behind. (This is for the billionaires to keep them calm)
02 Give Americans Their Government Back
In today’s Washington, wealthy and well-connected people and interests call the shots and drown out the voice of the people. Government needs to work for everyday Americans – and it just plain needs to work by delivering real progress. (Good idea but I do not think the next Congress will be capable)
03 Restore Law and Order
No one should be above the law – whether they’re on the street corner, in the corner office, or in the Oval Office. It’s time we strengthened our laws and our law enforcement to crack down on dangerous criminals, corporate wrongdoers, and corrupt public officials. (Good one….but what if we get another Donny that just ignores the laws?)
04 Make America Affordable Again
Americans are working harder but still finding it harder to make ends meet. They’re getting crunched by rising costs for housing and health care and squeezed for time as they try to take care of their kids or parents. We need to give them a helping hand and stop corporations from ripping them off. (This one is my favorite….Just how will they go about this?)
05 Jumpstart Economic Growth
America needs to win the global race to make sure the jobs and technologies of the future in areas like AI and clean energy are here at home. New innovations need new rules of the road so that we protect consumers, lower prices, and stop big businesses from stifling entrepreneurs and competition. (Embracing AI will do little to make the workers important again….how will the lobbyists be controlled?)
06 Protect America’s Security and Prosperity
It’s time for a new global agenda to open the doors of global economic opportunity for American workers and business and to ensure America stands on the side of democracies and not dictatorships. (This is a shot for the M-IC to keep them calm)
All in all I think Project 2029 will not be as successful as Project 2025….using name recognition will do nothing to improve our plight.
The closing of the article says it all….
At the end of the day, the Brennan Center gets it right when it says: “A return to stable democracy requires sustained effort to revitalize democratic institutions to address the underlying weaknesses that made them vulnerable to begin with. While it may be tempting for leaders to simply revert to the status quo that existed before a country started to backslide, trying to do so may actually prolong a country’s period of instability.”
I do not believe the repair work can be finished in anything less than a whole generation for Donny and the Slugs have done damage that runs deep.
This is a re-post from my other blog, Daily Agitator, and I am just trying to expand the readership by re-posting….this is for those that may not know of my other blog.
One of America’s allies (?) has put together what some are calling the Middle East NATO, the Mecca Pact, which is designed to be a mutual defense agreement…sound familiar?
But what is this all about?
Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan have signed the Mecca Joint Defence Pact, a new collective defence arrangement that connects the Middle East with South Asia.
Its central promise is striking: an armed attack against any one of the three countries will be treated as an attack against them all. This language has prompted comparisons with NATO, whose members make a similar commitment under Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty.
By bringing together a major global oil producer (Saudi Arabia), a NATO member with an expanding defence industry (Turkey) and a nuclear-armed state (Pakistan), this agreement has the potential to reshape security dynamics across the Middle East, South Asia and the Indian Ocean.
It signals a significant shift in how regional powers navigate their security, moving toward strategic self-reliance at a time of deep regional instability.
However, the Mecca agreeement is not a new NATO — at least not yet. It’s better understood as a form of strategic insurance for three governments seeking greater protection and political influence beyond traditional American guarantees.
Whether it matures into a credible military alliance or remains a piece of political symbolism will depend entirely on how these nations resolve deep underlying questions regarding their exact obligations and conflicting regional interests.
Okay this is a seriously issue….a reshape of the Middle East?
One more interesting turn…..the members have invited Iran into their midst….
Iran is reviewing an invitation to join the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement signed by Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Turkiye, the head of the Iranian parliament’s official news agency said in an interview with Al Mayadeen on 23 August.
Mehdi Rahimi stated Iran had received an invitation to join the agreement and was currently considering the proposal.
Rahimi praised the “efforts of states in West Asia to create a regional security umbrella,” saying Iran has long advocated for such an initiative.
The recent war with Iran proved to everyone that Washington destabilized West Asia instead of fulfilling its promises to provide its allies in the region with security, he added.
The invitation has not yet been officially confirmed by Iran’s Foreign Ministry or by any of the three members of the Mecca Agreement.
A typical week for our Little Donny….chest thumping, excuses and delusion….and those that worship him.
I do know if this is the biggest story of the last week but it is just another example of the lack of mental processes needed to deal with the international situation….
President Trump on Monday threatened to “bomb the shit” out of Oman over the Gulf state’s talks with Iran on the Strait of Hormuz, despite US officials previously backing Muscat’s efforts to reach a deal with Tehran.
Fox News reporter Trey Yingst said he asked the president about the talks between Oman and Iran, and Trump replied, ” If Oman gets in the way, we’ll bomb the shit out of them.”
Back in May, Trump threatened to “blow up” Oman if the country reached a deal with Iran that would involve joint control with Iran of the Strait of Hormuz, which Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent followed with a threat to “aggressively” target Muscat with sanctions if it was involved in a tolling system for the strait.
(antiwar.com)
What a douche bag.
One of the best pieces of crap is his threat to deport an American citizen….it said because DeNiro called Donny an idiot the boss wants him punished and deportation came to his small insufficient mind.
Donald Trump has threatened to deport one A-list star from the United States after they slammed the President’s administration.
The president has faced criticism from a number of stars during his first and second term in office, and he issued a warning to one particular actor earlier this year.
Earlier this year, actor Robert De Niro, 83, spoke out against the president, branding him “an idiot”.
He said during an appearance on Nicolle Wallace’s The Best People podcast: “We gotta get rid of him. He’s gonna ruin the country. I don’t want everybody going around with their MAGA, the American flags, like they’re the only ones. We are Americans too.”
How do you go about deporting an American citizen?
His claim of vandals at the Pool fell short now he wants vandals again this time it is grass….
President Trump on Sunday said vandals are to blame for large swaths of dead grass on the National Mall near the World War II Memorial—in the same spot where Trump had a stage built and hosted crowds for his July 4 celebration, the AP reports. Trump made the accusation in a social media post without saying why he believes it’s the work of vandals instead of trampled turf from the Independence Day festivities. He posted a photo showing a once-grassy area by the World War II Memorial, now patchy and brown across much of the sprawling turf.
“Look what VANDALS did to the grass connecting the vandalized World War II Monument and the vandalized Reflecting Pool, which will be opened again, and better than ever, shortly,” Trump said on his Truth Social platform. “Anybody who thinks the Reflecting Pool wasn’t vandalized should go back to Law School!” he added.
Authorities on Friday announced an arrest in connection with vandalism at the World War II Memorial, after the words “Clean hands dirty $” were found painted on the monument and bubbles filled a fountain. US Attorney Jeanine Pirro said felony charges are being brought against Melissa L. Farris. Charging documents in that case make no mention of the grassy area Trump is highlighting in his new claims. Authorities said Farris had previously been arrested for camping on federal property a few blocks from the World War II Memorial, but not the area cited by Trump.
That stretch of lawn is instead where a large stage was built and crowds gathered to hear from Trump and watch fireworks at a July 4 event celebrating the nation’s 250th anniversary. Trump claimed without providing evidence that more than 400,000 people attended the event before a storm hit the area and delayed his remarks. Photos from the time, taken by a streaming webcam atop the Washington Monument, show a large bandstand and seating areas covering nearly the entire lawn Trump now says has been vandalized. Associated Press photos from the days that followed showed workers removing the structures, revealing brown, damaged grass underneath.
What? No accusations against antifa? He must be slipping.
The report that is getting a lot of legs is that of the USS Lincoln…..all the negative reports and Donny says everything is fine….
President Trump said Monday that, despite claims by families of crew members and other reporting to the contrary, he’s been assured by a retired admiral he wouldn’t name that all is well on the USS Abraham Lincoln. Although the aircraft carrier has set the record for uninterrupted time at sea with more than 240 days, per the AP, Trump said his confidant told him he had been deployed on ships “much longer than that.” He added that the admiral said, “And I know people on the Lincoln, they say it’s beautifully maintained and beautifully taken care of.” The president also told reporters in the Oval Office that “other people went out and they found out that to be true,” the Guardian reports.
The problem isn’t the conditions on the Lincoln or the length of its deployment, Trump said: “It was fake news reporting from CNN.” He emphasized the point by repeatedly insisting that a CNN reporter trying to ask questions “be quiet.”
In case you have not been following this story these are a few of the alleged problems….There have been widespread reports of shortages of basic supplies, water contamination, plumbing issues, deteriorating mental health, deck safety concerns, and disruptions in the mail system….
Remember that gaudy ballroom? The courts have told him , for now, to cease operations……(a little late the damage was already done)….but true to Donny’s character the work goes on…..
President Trump is pushing for construction of a White House ballroom to go so fast that his lawyers is moving so fast that his own team is telling the Supreme Court it’s essentially past the point of no return. The administration said in a court filing that 250 workers are on the site 20 hours a day, seven days a week, in an effort to complete construction, the New York Times reports. The National Trust for Historic Preservation, which maintains the project can’t be built without congressional approval, criticized that strategy in a filing of its own on Tuesday, per the Washington Post, saying that, “Rather than obtain permission from Congress, Petitioners have instead decided to try to outrun judicial review.”
That pace is central to the legal fight. Trump’s lawyers counter that the ballroom is inseparable from a hardened, top-secret security facility beneath it and therefore falls under his national security authority. The Supreme Court, which has both backed and checked Trump in past power struggles, is expected to act before a lower-court order halting aboveground work is due to kick in on Friday.
When the war with Iran is over (if ever) Donny has a map to share….
President Trump isn’t easing off his annexation talk. The Hill reports that early Tuesday he posted an image on Truth Social showing a map of a portion of the Middle East with a large circle around the Strait of Hormuz; the map’s header reads “New U.S. Territory.” ABC News notes the map was “presented without additional comment.” The former president voiced the idea on Friday, saying, “After we finish defeating Iran … I’ll be declaring the Hormuz strait a territory of the United States.” Reporters who questioned him about it on Monday got this answer: “We control it with the blockade, and I like the idea of declaring it a territory.” Iran has dismissed Trump’s comments as “fanciful delusions.”
If that is the case is America empire building?
You have heard the Repubs always going on about ‘fake news’ right? Then you will like this one…..
Ever heard of the Peach State Post? No? What about the Alaska Navigator? Not even The Ohio Pulse, Ohio’s “number one news source”?
You’d be forgiven, because all these outlets are as phony as a three-dollar bill. Why do they exist? To sway votes in key swing states, of course!
Despite Tr*mp’s constant categorization of anything he doesn’t like as “fake news,” Republicans sure are committed to pumping out the stuff if it can help stop the inevitable midterm bloodletting. Thankfully, an explosive report from Judd Legum may have just dashed those hopes for good.
Looking into a network of seemingly independent news sources in key battleground states, Legum uncovered a common thread: sites like Iowa Voice and Maine Policy Updates might seem like places you can turn to for, you know, actual policy updates. But when you start reading some of the (almost certainly AI-generated) articles, something doesn’t quite add up. Especially when you scroll to the bottom of the Peach State Post and read the fine print: “a sample publication for demonstration purposes.”
Like I say if they accuse others of something it usually means they are actually doing it.
This is from our new AG….and he is an idiot….
Newly sworn-in Attorney General Todd Blanche has launched a new initiative to give convicted felons back their right to own guns.
The Department of Justice announced Monday that people whose felony convictions automatically barred them from owning weapons can now apply to have their right to bear arms reinstated. The DOJ predicted that 330,000 felons will apply.
In a statement, Blanche said, “the Second Amendment is not a second-class right, and the federal government should not permanently deprive Americans of a constitutional right without regard to whether they pose a danger to public safety.”
Discussions looking beyond Trump are also coming at a time when even MAGA evangelicals are starting to lose faith in their president. The far-right political group believes the next GOP pick must be part of an effort to end growing anti-Israel and antisemitic elements in MAGA.
Another week and more heat for the Deep South and then there is the unusual news that some how was not that damn important.
Local–Damn uneventful week….I liked that….
Personal–An easy week for me…no doctor’s appointments just suffering from the heat and humidity…..damn I love A/C….
I will begin with a couple from the ‘can’t fix stupid’ file….
First and idiot posting on social media….
In late July, a video posted across various platforms showed a disturbing confrontation between an 18-year-old man and a sea lion at La Jolla Cove in Southern California. The area, next to Ellen Browning Scripps Park, is known for its rocky shores where marine mammals regularly haul themselves out of the water to rest. Tyler Muehl, 18, apparently decided that one of those resting sea lions needed a fight.
Rather than keeping his distance, Muehl began acting aggressively toward the animal. According to federal prosecutors, he took a fighting stance and squared up to the sea lion as if he was preparing to box it. Court documents also reveal that Muehl compared himself to professional UFC featherweight fighter Max Holloway during the confrontation.
Things then escalated. Muehl allegedly kicked the sea lion four times. When the animal tried to get away from the barrier, Muehl chased after it along the wall. Someone recorded the entire confrontation on a mobile phone and uploaded it to social media, where the video quickly sparked outrage.
Next some adventurists take to a French Mountain…..
Thirty-two climbers who pushed up Mont Blanc despite safety warnings got a firm “non” when they later asked for a taxpayer-funded helicopter ride down. Authorities in Saint-Gervais had just shut the Gouter and Tête Rousse refuges because rockfall risk in the Grand Couloir—worsened by heat and drought—made the classic French route too dangerous, reports Explorersweb.
he group crossed the couloir anyway to reach the Gouter hut, then the next morning requested free aerial evacuation rather than descending on foot. Mayor Jean-Marc Peillex refused, saying there was no medical emergency. “The group knowingly climbed the Goûter Couloir, fully aware that they would have to cross it again to get down,” Peillex wrote, per SnowBrains. Those who wanted a ride down had to pay for a private helicopter flight; other climbers walked down without incident. Peillex is now urging changes to France’s mountain-rescue rules so public funds cover only true emergencies.
Idiots that do not think signs are meant for them….make them pay through the nose….arrogant twats.
On to my usual cancer articles as an FYI….
The researchers found that fructose serves as one of the chemical messages released by these treatment-surviving cells. The discovery reveals a previously unknown way that cancer cells left behind after therapy may contribute to metastasis.
“Some cancer cells that survive chemotherapy aren’t dividing anymore, but they’re still biologically active,” said Aidan Cole, Ph.D., a postdoctoral fellow in the lab of Katherine Aird, Ph.D., at The Wistar Institute and first author on the study. “Instead, they continue to release molecules that send signals to nearby cells. Our study is among the first to show that a nutrient — in this case, fructose — can act as one of those signals.”
I just hope all the new found revelations does some good in the treatment of cancer.
This is for all my coffee drinkers….
A morning habit shared by billions of people may be tied to men’s hormone levels in a way nobody fully expected. A large study published in European Journal of Nutrition found that men who drank more coffee daily had significantly higher testosterone than men who drank little or none, even after accounting for weight, smoking, activity, and alcohol. Because the study only captured one snapshot in time, it can’t say coffee itself is raising testosterone rather than something else explaining both.
Researchers analyzed data from more than 2,200 middle-aged adults in Finland, the world’s highest coffee-consuming country, as part of the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1966 study, which has tracked participants since before they were born. All were around 46 years old.
Beyond testosterone, coffee showed up tied to a wider set of body changes too. Both men and women who drank more coffee had lower blood levels of certain amino acids tied to insulin resistance and diabetes risk. Together, the findings suggest regular coffee drinking is tied to a broader hormonal and metabolic pattern scientists are only beginning to map.
An 8-year-old angler in Pennsylvania hooked a fish more at home in the Amazon River basin than a Philly-area lake. Seamus Coffey was out bass fishing with his dad when he reeled in a hefty red-bellied piranha, reports the Guardian. Dad Michael Coffey tells ABC News that he was initially baffled at what type of fish it might be, but then Seamus recognized it from YouTube videos he had seen.
State officials later confirmed it was indeed a piranha and suspect it was dumped by someone who had kept it as an exotic pet. A spokesperson for the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission warned that releasing such animals can disrupt local ecosystems and is “probably the worst thing you can do” for a former pet. The Coffeys chose not to return the fish to the water and say they disposed of it humanely.
Oh great an invasive fish….just what we need.
When I was younger I was always going to concerts but in those days they were a lot cheaper but that aside we had fun and enjoyed the music but something went horribly wrong…..
So much so that there’s even a Wikipedia page dedicated to the decade’s uptick in terrible concert behavior.
Pooping in the stands. Throwing phones. Loud talking during performances. When — and why — did we start acting like undersocialized animals just because we bought tickets to the Eras Tour?
This is a sign of the times.
Finally….to boldly ‘GO’ ……
There is a problem in space…….
Astronauts’ stubborn bowels are finally getting a scientific explanation—and it’s about more than bathroom inconvenience. In a NASA-funded study of more than 400 blood samples from 52 astronauts who spent at least two months on the International Space Station, researchers found that life in microgravity appears to slow the movement of food through the intestines, reports Live Science. That gives gut bacteria extra time to chew through fiber and then switch to digesting protein instead—a shift known as protein fermentation. The process, which kicked in within weeks of arriving in orbit and often lasted until astronauts were back on Earth, helps explain why constipation is so common in space, per CNET.
But the study, published in Nature Communications, flags a longer-term concern: Protein fermentation produces compounds such as ammonia and hydrogen sulfide that, in high amounts and over long durations, have been linked to kidney problems, inflammation, and possible effects on mood and concentration. That could pose a risk on future Mars-length missions. Potential fixes under discussion: more dietary fiber, probiotics, and ways to stimulate peristalsis—the gut’s muscular conveyor belt—through drugs or even massage.
Massage? What exactly would be massaged?
I am glad they cleared all that up for me for I have been worried about the astronauts bowel movements….how about you?
That is all I have on this Saturday….I hope everyone has a good Saturday and as always….Be Well and Be Safe….
In my younger years, after Vietnam, I was an anti-war protester and as such I was a target of the government’s program, COINETPRO….a program that targeted protesters….I wrote about the program many years ago….
Thanks to this government program once I finished college I could get a good job….I settled for shoe store clerk then a bookkeeper the went to work for the state but thanks to the government that did not last long….then there was a string of similar jobs….all because the government used my anti-war stance against me then I got a good job as the manager of a pub that lasted 11 years but all that time I continued my protests against the government on many issues.
Sadly in today’s world the government has many ways of spying on protesters….from social media to phone conversations to face recognition….which makes their job so much easier than in the 70s.
That program never really went away they just used other terms to describe it and now with all the protests that is across the country the government is at it in a big way again…
Newly disclosed records reveal the US government extensively spied on prominent leftwing organizations and on protesters as part of a vast operation into groups opposing the immigration crackdown in Minnesota earlier this year.
Internal investigative reports show the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) sent undercover agents to community meetings in the Twin Cities and New York City, infiltrated Signal chats and obtained financial records of mainstream unions and left-leaning non-profit groups.
Nearly 30 internal law enforcement reports were released on Thursday as part of a criminal case the Department of Justice has filed against 15 Minneapolis protesters. The defendants are accused of a “conspiracy” to “impede” US immigration officers during the Trump administration’s surge in the region.
The DHS investigative reports were disclosed by the government and submitted to the court by an attorney for one of the defendants. The records show that in January, DHS launched an inquiry called “Operation Puppet Master” to identify a “network of conspirators” organizing against US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The operation came as community organizing against ICE was swelling in the region in response to the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti.
Us so called ‘pinkos’ may not be the only targets of our government….you could be ….
The rapid spread of public surveillance cameras represents something far more consequential than a new piece of police technology. It represents a fundamental change in the relationship between the individual and the state.
These cameras allow government agents to record, identify, catalog and retroactively track the movements of people who have committed no crime, are suspected of no wrongdoing and have done nothing to invite government scrutiny. That’s not public safety. It’s an assault upon individual privacy.
Privacy is not a privilege granted by government. It is an aspect of personal liberty that the government exists to protect. It is a natural human right protected from the government in the Bill of Rights. The fact that a person leaves his home and travels upon a public road does not mean that he has surrendered that right.
There is an enormous moral and constitutional difference between a police officer who happens to observe a person in public and government surveillance that automatically and systematically records that person’s vehicle, location and movements; and stores that information for future use.
A free society doesn’t just protect people from crime; it protects them from arbitrary government. The presumption is liberty. Government is the negation of liberty. A person should not have to establish his innocence before the government leaves him alone. The burden always belongs to the government to justify all intrusions into personal liberty. Police cameras reverse that principle. They collect information about everyone the camera views and leave it to individuals to challenge the collections afterward.
The news has come up that the deficit has risen to $40 trillion….up from about $29 trillion….what the Hell happened?
Of course the Repubs will blame policies and somewhere it will be Biden and the Dems to blame….after all there is an election coming and what better time to try and sway the more economically ignorant?
But economists and policy analysts say Republican policy decisions—from massive tax cuts for the rich to disastrous wars of choice in the Middle East—are primarily responsible for the explosion of the national debt over the past quarter-century. President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly promised to eliminate the national debt, has so far overseen an $11.6 trillion debt surge across his two White House terms.
“I have never been a deficit hawk, and I’m not about to change my religious affiliation now,” Dean Baker, senior economist at the Center for Economic and Policy Research, wrote Thursday. “But whatever we think of debt and deficits, there is one point that should be very clear: It has been run up almost entirely due to Republican tax cuts and their inept management of the economy.”
Economist Paul Krugman similarly wrote that while the $40 trillion figure “has no special significance,” it underscores “the incredible irresponsibility of the Trump administration, with its unfunded tax cuts that overwhelmingly benefit the wealthy, billions in wasteful military spending—redesigning aircraft carriers because Trump doesn’t like the way they look!—and more.”
“As Jared Bernstein and Bobby Kogan have shown, our deficit would be far more manageable if first [George W.] Bush, then Trump, hadn’t rammed through tax cuts that hugely favored high-income Americans,” Krugman added.
Kogan, senior director of federal budget policy at the Center for American Progress, estimated in 2023 that tax cuts enacted during the Bush administration and Trump’s first term were “responsible for 57% of the increase in the debt ratio since 2001, and more than 90% of the increase in the debt ratio if the one-time costs of bills responding to Covid-19 and the Great Recession are excluded.”
All this deficit some of it can be blamed on our forever wars….I am not talking just about Repubs….Dems are just as damn guilty.
Another chunk of the deficit can be blamed on the constant passing of tax cuts over the years and yes the Dems are just as damn guilty here as well.
Maybe it is time for the American people to wake up to the lies and the reasons for this deficit….if we are to cut this deficit then revenues must be improved and a cessation of these lame ass wars.
And no tariffs will not change anything regardless of what the pseudo genius from Wharton tells you.
The rich have had a free ride for decades time for them to become contributing members of society (other than buying the Congress)….
