Day: July 14, 2025

Bastille Day

Today, 14 July 1789, is known as Bastille Day and the French revolution….this is when the french people had had enough of the suffering that they endured with the monarchy and took to the streets and stormed the prison known as the Bastille.

“Bastille Day is a holiday celebrating the storming of the Bastille—a military fortress and prison—on July 14, 1789, in a violent uprising that helped usher in the French Revolution. Besides holding gunpowder and other supplies valuable to revolutionaries, the Bastille also symbolized the callous tyranny of the French monarchy, especially King Louis XVI and his queen, Marie Antoinette.”

The prominent figure of this time was Maximilien Robespierre who oversaw the ‘Reign of Terror’ that ensued after the fall of the monarchy.

When Robespierre was elected as a deputy for the Third Estate in the Estates General in May, he witnessed the onset of the Revolution that broke the monarchy just two months later. It consumed him.

…

The radical journals and pamphlets together with the lengthy speeches given at the revolutionary clubs paved the way for manipulation of the press and the learning of the methods of mass psychology, indoctrination, and incitement of mob violence.

Jean-Paul Marat took his cue from Robespierre and began “perpetual denunciations of traitors” in his journal, L’Ami du Peuple. He even went so far as to “call openly for violence against fellow Frenchmen.” Another radical journalist, René Hébert, followed suit and used his newspaper, Le Père Duchesne, to arouse and agitate the French populace.

Despite incessant references to the virtue of the people, Robespierre trusted their virtue solely as an abstract concept or when their passions could be mobilized to serve the purposes of the revolution. In his eyes, mob violence was justified if it answered his personal call to carry out political riots or revolutionary insurrections. Robespierre no longer had any further use for the mob, and his references to the people became a total abstraction.

From 1792 to 1794, ‘The Incorruptible’ was instrumental in setting the stage for and presiding over the Reign of Terror. His technique was simple and time-tested–the Machiavellian tactic of “divide and conquer” (divide et impera). He did so with gruesome efficiency eliminating one by one his divided opposition–first the monarchists followed by the Feuillants and the Girondins; next the Hébertists; then the Dantonists; and finally, anyone who stood in his way and the continuation of the Terror. Robespierre succeeded in establishing institutionalized terror as an instrument of state power. He presided over it and used it against his enemies. For him, the end justified the means.

https://www.realclearhistory.com/2025/04/07/maximilien_robespierre_tyrant_1101685.html

I offer up this history lesson because I smell similar situations brewing here in the US….we must tread lightly and avoid any repeat of history.

Class Dismissed!

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

The Fed And The Battle Royale

The big story for awhile now is the struggle Donny is having with the Fed….

There has been a major back and forth between Donny and the chairman of the Fed on interests rates.

The Fed is keeping rates where they are (for now) and Donny the Orange wants the rates to go lower (basically because of his tariffs)….and since the rates will remain Donny has been threatening to fire (get rid of the chairmen basically because he will not do what he is told).

So if SCOTUS has stated that he cannot be fired….

The Supreme Court on Thursday said the relationship between the president and the Federal Reserve is different from that of other independent agencies, signaling that Chair Jerome Powell is legally protected from being removed by President Donald Trump.

“The Federal Reserve is a uniquely structured, quasi-private entity that follows in the distinct historical tradition of the First and Second Banks of the United States,” they added.

Will that put an end to his persecution of the Fed?

But Donny is like a dog with a bone….he will send his minions out to look in every nook and cranny and find something he can use against the chairman….and he may have found something he can use….

President Trump is not a fan of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, but the president insists that he won’t fire him before his term ends next spring. However, a new White House investigation is fueling speculation that he may reconsider, reports Politico. The probe centers on the $2.5 billion renovation of the Fed’s headquarters in DC and suggests the administration is seeking grounds—beyond monetary policy disputes—to remove Powell for alleged mismanagement, per the Wall Street Journal.

The White House has repeatedly criticized Powell for not cutting interest rates, but this latest move pivots to focus on administrative issues, specifically cost overruns on the project and whether Powell misled Congress about it. White House Budget Director Russ Vought says those cost overruns are “horrifying” and are under investigation. Some analysts, including Karen Petrou of Federal Financial Analytics, view the investigation as an attempt to build a case for firing Powell “for cause,” sidestepping legal protections for the Fed’s independence.

The renovation reportedly grew more expensive due to design changes, asbestos removal, and inflation—the same inflation Powell cites for keeping rates higher. Critics note that cost overruns are typical for renovations of historic buildings and argue that tying Powell’s fate to the project’s expenses could be seen as a pretext for installing a more compliant Fed chairman.

Fascinating!

He will use this as a weapon but condemns those that use the extravagant birthday parade because of the costs….just one example.

How will this sage end?

Will Powell get the ax?

If he does who will Donny put in charge….maybe that idiot Laffer….you know him as the mastermind behind the GOP’s greatest scam….the ‘trickle Down Theory”.

The most incompetent people are in charge throughout the government and Laffer would be perfect fit for the Trump kakistocracy…

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Did Hell Freeze Over?

I am not a fan of any GOPer that has stupidity and is proud of that…..but on occasion I have heard one of these dullards say something that makes sense, at least to me…..

As ignorant as I believe MTG is she recently called for something that I could agree with and of necessary support….

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) has said she will be introducing an amendment to remove $500 million in military aid for “nuclear-armed Israel” from the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), marking a rare acknowledgement of Israel’s nuclear weapons from a member of Congress.

The US has a policy of ambiguity toward Israel’s nuclear weapons program and does not acknowledge its existence or pressure Israel to sign the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). It’s estimated that Israel has somewhere between 90 and 300 nuclear weapons.

“I’m entering amendments to strike $500 million more for nuclear-armed Israel. And it’s important to say nuclear-armed Israel, because they do have nuclear weapons,” Greene told Steve Bannon on his “War Room” podcast.

“And we already give them $3.4 billion every single year in the state, from the State Department. $3.4 billion every single year. They don’t need another $500 million in our defense budget. That’s for the American people’s defense,” Greene added.

The US provides Israel with $3.8 billion in military aid each year under a memorandum of understanding signed between Israel and the Obama administration. Of that amount, $3.3 billion is provided through the State Department’s Foreign Military Financing program, and $500 billion goes toward missile defense through the Pentagon.

The US has also provided billions of dollars in additional military aid after October 7, 2023. According to Israeli media, the US has financed roughly 70% of Israel’s war-related military spending since then.

Greene went on to stress the importance of acknowledging Israel’s nuclear weapons. “And Israel, you can—nuclear-armed Israel, I think it’s really important to phrase it that way. Nuclear-armed Israel doesn’t need $500 million more from the American people. Our government just bombed Iran on their behalf and destroyed their nuclear,” she said.

(antiwar.com)

I agree…..stop enabling these thugs of the Middle East….for without the US they are nothing….and without the control they have on the media then the whole damn world would know just how brutal and barbarous they truly are…the media is their best tool in their struggle to prevent their atrocities coming to light.

I wish MTG gets signers for her amendment and maybe then the Israelis will be brought into the light and held responsible for the evil ways.

We can only hope.

Then another Right winger has made a statement that I have previously stated…..for those that hold dual citizenship and join the IDF without ever serving the US military should lose their citizenship….once they serve they have shown that Israel is their primary concern and not the US……and a person that I seldom agree with has made a similar statement….

Tucker Carlson, the former Fox News host and a leader in the Republican Party’s isolationist wing, said that Americans who previously served in the Israeli Defense Forces should have their U.S. citizenship revoked over concerns of dual loyalty. At the same time, he also criticized the Trump administration for trying to deport pro-Palestinian students who engaged in anti-Israel activity on campus.

“There are a lot of Americans who’ve served in the IDF — they should lose their citizenship,” Carlson said in a 45-minute speech on Saturday at the Turning Point USA Student Action Summit in Tampa, Florida. “You can’t fight for another country and remain an American, period.”

In a Q&A session after his remarks, Carlson also appeared to agree with an audience member that the Trump administration’s crackdown and deportation of pro-Palestinian students who engaged in anti-Israel activity is “totally outrageous.”

(forward.com)

These two ideas ought to get the naysayers up on their high horse.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”