Category: Society

Celebrate 250 Years

The Hill has put together a list of the events that will be celebrating our 250th birthday….I include them here on IST in case anyone wants to join in the celebration….

All this begins tomorrow….

May 7 – Alexander Hamilton Monument Rededication

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will host a rededication ceremony for the Alexander Hamilton Monument, which has undergone a restoration process.

The bronze statue was first dedicated in May 1923 and installed outside of the U.S. Treasury Building, right around the corner from the White House.

“Fittingly, the White House has been loaned a portrait of former Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton and the ‘sea letter’ signed by both George Washington and Thomas Jefferson in honor of America’s 250th birthday,” an event bio on the organizing committee’s website said.

Sea letters were required national identification documents for ships in the 18th and 19th centuries. The 1794 document signed by Washington and Jefferson authorized the travel of a vessel involved in the slave trade from New York to Trinidad, according to the Library of Congress.

May 17 – Rededicate 250  (of course that fake christian had to inject his brand of bullshit into this celebration)

America’s 250th planning committee is hosting a prayer event on the National Mall, featuring a speech from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

Hegseth is outspoken about his Christian faith, and he recently faced controversy after he drew a comparison between the media and a Bible passage.

“Join Americans from every state to give thanks for 250 years, pray for the future, and rededicate our nation as One Nation under God,” the committee said in an event flyer shared on social media.

Other speakers include former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Dr. Ben Carson and President Trump-aligned Catholic Bishop Robert Barron. In addition to these speeches, the event will feature religious songs and storytelling.

(skip this one for it has nothing to do with the establishing of the usa)

May 24 – America 250 Family BBQ and Cookout

The Defense Department is encouraging all overseas installations to host cookout events at the end of May to celebrate America’s 250th anniversary.

The department asked these military bases to invite U.S. expatriates and local communities to engage in the events on May 24.

(This one has all the earmarks of a political rally not something to celebrate the founding principles)

May 25 – Memorial Day National Observance

The planning committee is coordinating a “solemn, reverent and unified” day to commemorate the sacrifices of fallen U.S. soldiers on Memorial Day.

In addition to events taking place across the country on this day of remembrance, a national ceremony will be held at the Arlington National Cemetery’s Memorial Amphitheater at noon May 25.

This will celebrate the fallen not the founding)

there iks much more faux celebrations that will be opportunities to lambast opponents of Donny and his band of idiots.

June 3 – Fish Fry

The Department of Commerce’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) will host its annual Fish Fry.

The event has been held for more than 40 years, typically in June, with hiatuses in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It usually attracts more than 1,000 people and is held at the department’s Herbert C. Hoover Building in Washington, D.C., according to a 2020 press release.

The Fish Fry is reserved for guests of the National Marine Sanctuary Foundation, congressional members and Commerce Department staff. This year’s event will feature Freedom 250 decorations and a “Made in the USA” theme, according to the planning committee’s website.

June 25 – The Great American State Fair

The National Mall will serve as the grounds for the “Great American State Fair” from June 25 to July 10.

Each day of the 16-day event will center around a different theme, like military and veterans’ appreciation and health and well-being. The fair will showcase culture from federal agencies and America’s 56 states and territories.

The planning committee advertised Wyoming dust roping, CHamoru dancing from Guam, and an Arizona desert experience.

Additionally, Education Secretary Linda McMahon issued a call for original art submissions from students across the country for a chance to win a trip to Washington and have their artwork featured at the event.

Students in grades 3-12 are encouraged to share art they created inspired by historical figures featured in the National Garden of American heroes. A winner will be selected from each state, and the deadline to submit artwork is May 1.

July 4 – Independence Day Celebrations

The Department of Interior will host Independence Day celebrations on the National Mall in the nation’s capital, as well as across the U.S. in places like Mount Rushmore, Gateway Arch National Park, Grand Coulee Dam, and Independence Hall in Philadelphia.

Additionally, the grand opening for former President Theodore Roosevelt’s library in Medora, N.D., is set on America’s 250th birthday. The event will feature a drone light performance on the evening of July 4.

The presidential center will pay homage to the 26th commander in chief’s “frontier spirit” and legacy as a conservationist. Tickets for the opening ceremony have sold out, but people interested in visiting the library are encouraged to plan their trips for later this summer.

The world’s largest peacetime armada, featuring tall ships and naval vessels from more than 30 nations, will also sail into New York Harbor on July 4. The event will include a parade, naval review, fireworks and festivals near the statue of Lady Liberty.

August 21 – IndyCar Street Race

The Department of Transportation is coordinating the first-ever street race in the nation’s capital later this summer with IndyCar.

The 1.7-mile course released by the motor racing organization last month loops around several historic sites on the mall in Washington, including the National Archives, National Gallery of Art and Smithsonian Air and Space Museum.

Trump, an avid fan of motor racing, announced the race in an executive order earlier this year to “showcase the majesty of our great city as drivers navigate a track around our iconic national monuments in celebration of America’s 250th birthday.”

Fall 2026 – Patriot Games National Competition

The inaugural “Patriot Games” is scheduled to be held some time this fall. The four-day event will feature two high school athletes — one boy and one girl — from each U.S. state and territory.

Trump announced the “unprecedented four-day athletic event” last December.

Social media users and some Democrats have drawn unfavorable comparisons between the event and “The Hunger Games,” a fictional bloody competition from the eponymous dystopian book series.

https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5848096-what-to-know-about-events-marking-americas-250th/

Every one of these has nothing to do with the founding of this wonderful country and everything to do with the shoddy and tacky mind of a deranged psychopath, Donny.

Nothing about the events that brought this country to the forefront of the planet as the ‘beacon of freedom’.

Even the event on the 4th sounds more like a tacky Donny reality show than a celebration.

This is all so much bovine fecal matter.

Enough said!

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Are You a Domestic Terrorist?

The term is batted around these days and refers to anyone who thinks that this idiot in charge is a complete moron…..and that would be ME!

That aside the Donny group that pretends to govern this country (they are actually raping it but that is okay for the dude in charge cares not) has decided what makes one a domestic terrorist….

Donald Trump is asking for more money to hunt so-called “domestic terrorists” on the left—and it seems like they’re talking about you.

Buried in the FBI’s 2027 budget request to Congress was a request for funding efforts to implement the National Security Presidential Memorandum (NSPM-7), a national security strategy targeting supposed anti-American activity on the left that Trump signed in September, independent journalist Ken Klippenstein reported Sunday. The FBI requested funding for the recently created NSPM-7 Joint Mission Center, which brings together personnel from across 10 agencies working “to proactively identify networks and prosecute domestic terrorist and related criminal actors.”

What exactly are they looking for? Well, anything they disagree with.

“Commonly, this violent conduct relates to views associated with anti-Americanism, anti-capitalism, and anti-Christianity; support for the overthrow of the U.S. Government (USG); extremism on migration, race, and gender. And hostility towards those who hold traditional American views on family, religion, and morality,” the budget stated.

According to the FBI, publicly expressing beliefs as banal as a critique of capitalism are now considered precursors for domestic terrorist activity.

Under NSPM-7, the Trump administration aims to target community organizers and protesters on the left. “Domestic terrorists exploit a variety of popular social media platforms, smaller websites with targeted audiences, and encrypted chat applications,” the budget stated. “They use these platforms to recruit new adherents, plan and rally support for in-person actions, and disseminate materials encouraging radicalization and mobilization to violence.”

The FBI requested $166.1 million and 328 positions, including five attorneys and 130 special agents, for its counterterrorism activities in the coming fiscal year, including plans to “implement National Security Presidential Memorandum / NSPM-7 requirements.”

https://newrepublic.com/post/208659/donald-trump-fbi-domestic-terrorism-budget

There you have it sports fans….anyone that uses social media to diss Donny and his crowd are domestic terrorists.

And that would be ME!

I have been a functioning leftist for 7 decades and nothing this addle brain moron you elected has to say means anything to me.

So how do you match up?

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

And So It Begins?

We have had multiple attacks on the wealthy and it appears that the masses have decided they have had enough of the bullshit and want the country back.

When I returned from Vietnam I immersed myself in the antiwar movement and political activism that was in 1971 and I have been disappointed in the last few decades at the way people accept war and all its ugliness.

But recently I have become more optimistic about the role of veterans…..

Capitol Police arrested the protesters, who had gathered in the rotunda holding red tulips and signs reading “End the War on Iran” and “We Can’t Afford Another War.” Many had donned t-shirts with the message “Veterans Against Fascism.”

The action was organized by a coalition of groups, including About Face, Veterans For Peace, Common Defense, the Center on Conscience and War, the Fayetteville Resistance Coalition, Military Families Speak Out, and 50501 Veterans.

Video shared by Reuters showed officers handcuffing the demonstrators and leading them out of the building.

Among those arrested was the Center on Conscience and War’s executive director and Iraq war veteran Mike Prysner.

“The war I was sent to senselessly claimed the lives of thousands of Americans and a million Iraqis. Like the other veterans here with me today, I have spent the last two decades wishing I could turn back the hands of time and refuse to go,” Prysner said in a statement before his arrest.

“Service members have that chance right now. Conscientious Objection is your legal right, and we have professional counselors who will fight to ensure you are approved and kept from deployment,” he continued.

“I am getting arrested to raise awareness about that option, because now is the time.”

(tag24.com)

Bravo!

Do not let it stop there….keep up the pressure…..we have a nation to win back.

Now the so-called ‘anarchists’ are calling for mass protests as May Day approaches….

Anarchists have issued a global call to take to the streets and protest on May 1 in the name of anti-authoritarian solidarity for their annual May Day event.

They have called on groups and individuals “to reinvigorate May 1st.”

The radical demonstrators say that for the past decade, uncertainty, poverty and police “democracy” are dominating too many peoples’ lives.

“Austerity for all is now simply just the way things are. Ten years of worsening conditions, now it seems that cracks are beginning to form,” the anonymous writers said in their call for action on the open publishing platform autonomies.net.

The unsigned missive described how for many years, the first day of May was an opportunity to show “global revolutionary solidarity” through anarchist actions, parades, parties and global events that would inspire them to “move forward.”

“This moment in time is not sustainable. Brutal war, climate catastrophe and failing austerity economies are shared realities for a vast majority of people,” they said, asserting that people have “lost all faith in the global social and political order. Everyone is waiting and cheering for its end.”

https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2026/apr/20/anarchists-call-fellow-radicals-around-globe-take-streets-may-1st

Anarchist is only a dirt word to those that are not smart enough to grasp what the movement is all about.

 

May Day 2026

Happy May Day!

Today is the first of May and the International Day of the Worker….how many know the history behind May Day?

You know me any chance to drop some history and I am there…..

May Day, also known as International Workers’ Day, is a holiday celebrating workers and the history of labor organizing. Every year on May 1st, working people around the world join together for a day of remembrance and demonstrations. The holiday is a significant display of international solidarity and worker power. In Los Angeles, May Day unites the labor movement with advocates for immigrant rights and other community organizations.

The origins of May Day can be traced back to international labor organizing in the late 19th century. The holiday originated from a movement demanding improved working conditions and greater recognition for workers’ contributions. In 1884, a national federation of unions announced a campaign to establish an eight-hour workday by May 1, 1886. Workers in cities across North America went on strike leading up to that date in one of the era’s largest and most tumultuous periods of worker unrest.

In May 1886, police in Chicago shot striking workers, prompting activists to organize a protest in the city’s Haymarket Square. When a bomb exploded at that protest, killing one police officer and wounding others, police opened fire into the crowd, resulting in the deaths and injuries of both police and protesters. Eight protesters were arrested for inciting violence. The ensuing trial was considered by many to be unfair and resulted in the execution of seven of the eight men (1). This series of events would come to be known as the “Haymarket Incident” or “Haymarket Affair.” The image below is a newspaper clipping reporting on the executions from the Watertown Republican, November 16, 1887. Image courtesy of the Library of Congress’ “Chronicling America” digital project (2).

In the years following 1886, international labor groups and socialist advocates endorsed the commemoration of May 1 as International Workers’ Day or May Day. In some places around the world the “Chicago Martyrs” are still memorialized in May Day activities. But in the U.S., May Day celebrations became less common during the height of the Cold War.

What is May Day?

May Day should always be about the worker and their place in society.

Do not let some pseudo-intellectual tell you any different.

Be Smart!

Learn Stuff!

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Taking It To The Streets

Tomorrow is May Day, the international day of the worker, and there should be protests and marches on a global intensity but for this post I want to talk about here in the US.

On May 1st, workers, students, and families across the United States will refuse business as usual in the next national mobilization planned after No Kings. As many as 3,000 events are anticipated across all 50 states, building on more than 1,300 May Day actions last year.

In Chicago, Illinois, the school district officially made May Day a “civic day of action” with instructional time and field trips to the 1pm rally in that city planned. In Guilford County, North Carolina, the board of education voted to provide teachers the option of attending the May Day rally to pressure legislators for much needed resources for the school district. In Minneapolis, Minnesota, more than 160 actions are planned statewide and the state will launch its Truth Commission aimed at documenting human rights violations by ICE agents. In Detroit, Michigan, the City Council passed a resolution declaring May 1, 2026 as May Day, recognizing it as a day to celebrate the power, dignity, and solidarity of working people. In Durham, North Carolina, the Board of Education voted to make May 1 a teacher workday, enabling teachers to attend the rally. Missourians are coming together across the Show-Me state to: protest corporate-backed lawmakers ignoring the will of voters by gutting paid sick days and passing an Everything Tax on working families, grow the movement of service industry workers’ efforts to unionize, halt AI data center developments, and demand corporations like Amazon and Enterprise, headquartered in St. Louis, cut ties with ICE.

Across the country, more than a dozen cities have announced plans for “No Work, No School, No Shopping” modeled off of Minnesota’s day of truth and freedom organized this past January.

May Day Strong is an effort anchored by 500 labor and community organizations making three demands:

  • Tax the Rich: so our families, not their fortunes, come first
  • No ICE, No War: no private armies to serve authoritarian power
  • Expand democracy, not corporate rule

Those demands are backed by the Real Affordability Agenda, a concrete policy blueprint covering housing, wages, health care, education, and worker power with over 100 bills to tax the ultra-rich to fund schools and critical services being presented in state houses across the country.

https://znetwork.org/znetarticle/as-many-as-3000-events-anticipated-for-national-may-day-mobilization-as-workers-educators-and-communities-demand-workers-over-billionaires/

There is a massive plan for the May Day celebration…..preparations are being made….

May Day is not just a show of force. It is a test of everything we have been building. May Day is how we build the muscle to keep fighting from May 2 onward.

Workers and communities moving together is the only thing that has ever shifted power away from those who hoard it. That is what May Day is for.

To those defeatists out there they will say this is a waste of time….to them I say….’nothing ventured, nothing gained’….at least people are starting to realize that they need to be heard….to them I say keep shouting.

If the halls of government will not listen then take it to the streets and be heard.

If you are interested in the day then I can help….May Day Strong’s website has a searchable map to help people find May Day actions and sign up to host their own. Signing the May Day pledge is another way to get connected and receive more information about events.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Have They Had Enough?

Almost daily I see where some are predicting that the MAGA movement is losing its luster….most of them I ignore but I did read one that I just have to share with my fellow bloggers….

For those that are abandoning the MAGA there is a new support group….

Donald Trump’s promise of a new MAGA golden age for America is cracking from within. A decade into his rise to power, a growing number of his coalition’s supporters are not just tired — they are walking away.

Rich Logis, founder and CEO of Leaving MAGA, is a former MAGA podcaster and fundraiser, and the author of “One Betrayal Too Many: Why I Left MAGA.” In a speech at the 2024 Democratic National Convention supporting Vice President Kamala Harris, he reflected on his experience with MAGA and why he finally left. Now he is going a step further. To encourage defectors from Trump’s coalition, his organization is paying for billboards with messages such as “You are not alone,” “Welcome home” and “Find your new community.” The campaign, which is estimated to cost $20,000, launched April 15 in Texas, and will soon expand to Florida, Pennsylvania and Iowa.

Leaving MAGA, Logis told Raw Story, is experiencing “record-high” fundraising and more MAGA followers are reaching out to the organization “than ever before.” But what is driving them out? His answer is direct and clear: the president’s lies, which Logis described as “Trump’s toxic superpower.”

Other reasons are also piling up. The president’s tariffs, which have in part led to spiraling prices for food, housing, gas and other essentials. His broken promise to end “stupid foreign wars” — followed by a war of choice against Iran. The cruelty of Trump’s mass deportations, which are ensnaring and killing Americans. The Epstein files. Greed and blatant corruption. An image of the president as Jesus Christ, which he proudly shared on April 12 and, after widespread criticism, including from evangelicals, he deleted the following day.

https://www.salon.com/2026/04/28/they-voted-for-maga-now-they-want-out/

Some of the reasons that I read all the time are Donny’s tariffs, prices and unwanted wars…..those would be good reasons for leaving the movement but they were told beforehand what his plans were  for the country and the world….so I guess they thought he was just ‘goofing’ them….like I said they are not the sharpest pencils in the box.

While I was putting this post together I came across another MAGA story….

In an article published on April 28, Salon’s Chauncey DeVega takes a look at MAGA voters who are feeling increasingly frustrated with Trump but psychologically, are having a hard time “leaving” him even though the reasons for doing so are “piling up.”

“Donald Trump’s promise of a new MAGA golden age for America is cracking from within,” DeVega argues. “A decade into his rise to power, a growing number of his coalition’s supporters are not just tired — they are walking away…. The president’s tariffs, which have in part led to spiraling prices for food, housing, gas and other essentials. His broken promise to end ‘stupid foreign wars’ — followed by a war of choice against Iran. The cruelty of Trump’s mass deportations, which are ensnaring and killing Americans. The Epstein files. Greed and blatant corruption. An image of the president as Jesus Christ, which he proudly shared on April 12 and, after widespread criticism, including from evangelicals, he deleted the following day.”

…

DeVega continues, ” Leaving is not easy. For the most committed MAGA members, the movement is all-encompassing. It is their identity, social world and way of life. For many true believers, it means alienating friends, family, neighbors, and leaving the right-wing echo chamber of conspiracism, lies and ‘mass radicalization.'”

According to DeVega, “leaving” Trump and MAGA “will demand rebuilding civic trust between people who have been on the opposite side of a deep moral and political chasm.”

https://www.alternet.org/maga-voters-trump-salon/

Yo Bubba….if you cannot leave then you are in a CULT!  PERIOD!

This article just proves, to me, what worthless sheep the MAGA morons truly are….if they cannot just walk away from a useless POS like Donny then they are truly sheep to the slaughter and they deserve everything that comes their way.

Does any of this bode bad for the movement as a whole?

So is Donny losing his grip on the MAGA morons?

I say no it does not all will be forgiven in time for the next general election….for hate does not just disappear or become replaced with logical thinking.

Sorry just had to let you know what I was thinking as I read that pile of streaming manure.

Whatcha think?

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Bi-Partisan Investigation

Just days ago there was another ‘attempt’ on poor Donny’s life and as usual he and his demented minions ran to the cameras to make some wild statement….playing Donny as a victim they have started blaming….

As if right on key….that blonde bimbo Leavitt did what they always do…..blame the Dems….

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt applauded President Donald Trump’s “calm in the face of chaos” after a suspected shooter attempted to take his life for the third time at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, using the moment not only to condemn political violence but also to press an urgent case for strengthening national security funding.

“President Trump is fearless because he loves this country, and he is willing to put his own life on the line to deliver on the promises that he made to the American public,” Leavitt told reporters, emphasizing that while political disagreements are inevitable, “those disagreements must remain peaceful.”

Her remarks came as she returned to the podium despite plans for maternity leave, saying the seriousness of the “attempted assassination” against the president and other administration officials required immediate public communication about the administration’s response.

Leavitt sharply criticized what she described as the long-running “demonization” of Trump by Democrats, media figures and what she called a “left-wing cult of hatred,” arguing that years of rhetoric labeling Trump a “fascist” or “threat to democracy” have contributed to a climate that enables violence. She claimed the suspected shooter’s manifesto was “indistinguishable” from language commonly seen on social media and in public discourse.

https://abc3340.com/news/nation-world/white-house-press-secretary-karoline-leavitt-blames-democrats-rhetoric-for-inciting-political-violence-after-president-donald-trump-assassination-attempt-correspondents-dinner-ballroom-shooting-suspect-cole-tomas-allen-manifesto-kimmel-first-lady-melania

Then there is the reaction from Congress after the growing incidents of political violence…..

“We need a bipartisan national commission for political violence in this country. I heard Sen. Tillis speak,” he added. “We should look at social media. We should look at mental health issues. We should look at language. But we need to do something to bring the temperature down.”

Moments before Khanna’s appearance, Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) spoke to Welker about the need for an end to political violence, describing social media as an “amplifier” and “instigator” that targets “vulnerable people.”

“In many cases, we’re seeing people who are committing these horrible acts have behavioral health and other challenges, stability issues in their lives,” Tillis said, adding that what “American people need to do is take a breath, confirm their facts, talk to their elected officials, think a bit before they judge people.”

Tillis continued, “They all have a role to play. And we in elected office do as well. Our words matter. The weight of our words matter, and we need to be very measured in the way that we use them.”

https://thehill.com/homenews/house/5850124-bipartisan-commission-political-violence-khanna/

Let me save them some time…..this is happening because of the spread of racism, loss of rights and the raping of this country by a megalomaniac and his buddies…..the people are tired of this assault on them and their country.

This is hilarious on the face of it…..this commission will be a toothless tiger it will ramble on with whitewashed bullshit and try to find a scapegoat.

They know what is happening and they are running scared…..as they should.

Bi-partisanship….the great lie of American politics.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

The Least Intelligent Among Us

Every day there is some new conspiracy coming out of social media….from eating babies to flat earth to voter fraud to alien half breeds….it seems the least capable of critical thinking are the ones holding the day.

Why is this?

New research published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology: Applied suggests that people often overestimate their understanding of political facts. This tendency to be overconfident appears most common among individuals who actually know the least about politics and those who lean conservative. The findings provide evidence that psychological traits, like a desire for quick and definitive answers, help explain why some voters struggle to accurately judge their own political knowledge.

Erika K. Fulton, an associate professor of psychology at Idaho State University and head of the META Lab, led a team of scientists to investigate how well people gauge their own grasp of political information. The research team noticed a gap in the existing scientific literature regarding this specific type of self-evaluation. Most prior studies on political knowledge were conducted by political scientists, who often use different analytical methods than cognitive psychologists.

The scientists wanted to apply the strict measurement standards of cognitive psychology to political knowledge. As the researchers explained, “Metacognition is broadly defined as thinking about one’s own cognition. The type we studied is called metacognitive monitoring accuracy, or the degree to which judgments of what one knows matches what one actually knows.”

In simpler terms, this concept refers to a person’s ability to accurately recognize when they are right and when they are wrong. “People tend to be overconfident regarding what they think they know, and this has serious consequences in the political realm, such as when people vote on candidates and issues that they don’t understand as well as they think they do,” the researchers stated.

“We couldn’t find any political metacognition studies conducted by cognitive psychologists, specifically metacognition researchers, only by political scientists,” the researchers told PsyPost. “Experimental psychology has very specific measurement criteria that guide our study designs, and we wanted to employ those for a fuller, more nuanced understanding of political metacognition.”

https://www.psypost.org/people-with-the-least-political-knowledge-tend-to-be-the-most-overconfident-in-their-grasp-of-facts/

Fascinating!  Social media is driving this erroneous thinking.

The reason social media is so influential is a person’s attention span….

In 2004, researchers at the University of California, Irvine, found that the average attention span on any screen was about two and a half minutes, Houlihan explained in the clip. By 2012, it had shrunk to 75 seconds.

In the last 10 years or so, the average attention span has plummeted to an abysmal 47 seconds, with the median being roughly 40 seconds.

What better place to tap into the short attention span to influence people than social media.

There is the problem that needs repair…..but sadly in a world that demands instant gratification we will not find the repairs we need.

The turmoil we face today will be with us for a very long time no matter the damage it does to the people….

And that is the name of that tune…..

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

It Could Be 1892

I know when I go off on one of my historic perspectives there are a bunch of eye rollings and altogether indifference…..but you could learn something and why is that a bad thing?

You read that right….1892….that was when the Populist Party came into national view…..and the preamble says it all…..in that year and as well as our year….

The conditions which surround us best justify our co-operation; we meet in the midst of a nation brought to the verge of moral, political, and material ruin. Corruption dominates the ballot-box, the Legislatures, the Congress, and touches even the ermine of the bench. The people are demoralized; most of the States have been compelled to isolate the voters at the polling places to prevent universal intimidation and bribery. The newspapers are largely subsidized or muzzled, public opinion silenced, business prostrated, homes covered with mortgages, labor impoverished, and the land concentrating in the hands of capitalists. The urban workmen are denied the right to organize for self-protection; imported pauperized labor beats down their wages, a hireling standing army, unrecognized by our laws, is established to shoot them down, and they are rapidly degenerating into European conditions. The fruits of the toil of millions are boldly stolen to build up colossal fortunes for a few, unprecedented in the history of mankind; and the possessors of these, in turn despise the Republic and endanger liberty. From the same prolific womb of governmental injustice we breed the two great classes—tramps and millionaires.

…

We have witnessed for more than a quarter of a century the struggles of the two great political parties for power and plunder, while grievous wrongs have been inflicted upon the suffering people. We charge that the controlling influence dominating both these parties have permitted the existing dreadful conditions to develop without serious effort to prevent or restrain them. Neither do they now promise us any substantial reform. They have agreed together to ignore, in the coming campaign, every issue but one. They propose to drown the outcries of a plundered people with the uproar of a sham battle over the tariff, so that capitalists, corporations, national banks, rings, trusts, watered stock, the demonetization of silver and the oppressions of the usurers may all be lost sight of. They propose to sacrifice our homes, lives, and children on the altar of mammon; to destroy the multitude in order to secure corruption funds from the millionaires.

https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/populist-party-platform-1892

Tell me we are not reliving those dark days yet again.

Those words written over a hundred years ago could have been written yesterday.

If you want a closer look at what these people were proposing…..then look no further…..

https://teachingamericanhistory.org/document/the-populist-party-platform/

Be Smart!

Learn Stuff!

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Is This A Coming Trend?

“When dictatorship is a fact, revolution becomes a right.”  Victor Hugo

A couple of years ago some guy pooped a CEO of a health corporation…..and he has become some what of a cult hero.  I have heard people whine about his wife and kids but no one whines about the wife and kids of those denied healthcare by his organization.

Was this the start of a budding revolution?

Luigi Mangione, the man awaiting trial in the December 2024 killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, is fast becoming a symbol of a new wave of ideologically-motivated violence, argues the Washington Post‘s editorial board. Investigators say his case inspired last year’s deadly shooting at the Manhattan skyscraper home to the NFL headquarters. The editorial board highlights other cases—including a California warehouse arson that caused an estimated $500 million in damage and a firebomb attempt at OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s Texas home—in which suspects allegedly referenced Mangione.

The Post notes the 27-year-old, who has pleaded not guilty in Thompson’s murder and awaits a trial this fall, has taken on “folk hero” status among some on the radical left, with a legal defense fund pulling in $1.46 million from more than 40,000 donors. Federal prosecutors say his supporters increasingly see violence as a substitute for political or ideological argument, supercharged by online anonymity and social media. The editorial insists there’s no justification for such attacks—against tech leaders, health executives, or anyone else.

For the full argument and examples, read the editorial here.

Full disclosure–I do not rust the WaPo to be forthcoming with the news…..but I include it for the sake of my readers….

That aside it seems the recently violent acts are seemingly accelerating….recently, last week, a disgruntle employee of a paper company set fire to a warehouse…..

A California warehouse worker accused of torching his workplace allegedly cast himself as a kind of anti-corporate avenger, prosecutors say. Authorities say 29-year-old Chamel Abdulkarim set multiple fires early Tuesday inside a 1.2-million-square-foot Ontario warehouse packed with Kimberly-Clark paper products while about 20 others were on site, then posted video online that appears to show a hand igniting stacks of paper as a voice complains about worker pay, the Los Angeles Times reports. In texts afterward, he allegedly compared himself to Luigi Mangione—the man charged with killing UnitedHealthcare’s CEO in New York—and wrote, “I just cost these [expletive] billions.”

Federal prosecutors say Abdulkarim also posted videos arguing workers aren’t paid enough to live and texted complaints about the “1%” and corporate shareholders. The blaze destroyed roughly $500 million in goods and the $150 million building, per local officials, and grew so fast firefighters had to withdraw and fight it defensively; about 175 responded before the six-alarm fire collapsed the roof. No one was injured, KTLA reports. Abdulkarim, an employee of third-party distribution company NFI Industries, was arrested later that morning. He faces one count of aggravated arson and six counts of arson of a structure in state court, with a potential sentence of 10 years to life, ABC 7 reports. He is also expected to face federal charges.

I believe some of his words were….this did not have to happen if you paid a livable wage”…

Not to fear the culprit has been arrested…

Next came a fire bomb of AI guru Altman’s house…..

The man accused of throwing a Molotov cocktail at OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s home in San Francisco has been charged with attempting to kill Altman and a security guard at the residence, San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins said Monday. Daniel Moreno-Gama, who also faces multiple federal charges, faces two counts of attempted murder and attempted arson in California state court, the Washington Post reports.

  • Authorities allege the 20-year-old threw the incendiary device about 4am Friday, setting an exterior gate at Altman’s home alight before fleeing on foot, police said. Less than an hour later, Moreno-Gama allegedly went to OpenAI’s headquarters and reportedly threatened to burn down the building. Moreno-Gama was opposed to artificial intelligence, writing about AI’s purported risk to humanity and “our impending extinction,” according to court documents.
  • This was not spontaneous. This was planned, targeted and extremely serious,” said FBI San Francisco Acting Special Agent in Charge Matt Cobo during a press conference. On Monday morning, FBI agents went to Moreno-Gama’s home in Spring, Texas, a suburb of Houston, where they spent several hours before leaving. He has been charged by federal prosecutors with possession of an unregistered firearm and damage and destruction of property by means of explosives. The criminal complaint does not name Altman or OpenAI but both have confirmed they were the targets of the attack. No injuries were reported.When Moreno-Gama was arrested Friday, officials found a document on him in which he “identified views opposed to Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the executives of various AI companies,” court documents say. The document discussed AI’s purported risk to humanity and “our impending extinction,” according to the criminal complaint. Authorities allege Moreno-Gama traveled from his home in Texas to San Francisco and visited Altman’s home early Friday morning.”
  • “We are only at the beginning of this investigation, but if the evidence shows that Mr. Moreno-Gama executed these attacks to change public policy or to coerce government and other officials, we will treat this as an act of domestic terrorism and together with our law enforcement partners prosecute him to the fullest extent allowed by law,” US Attorney Craig Missakian said in a statement, per Reuters.
  • The document in which Moreno-Gama discussed his opposition to AI also made threats against Altman, officials said. “Also if I am going to advocate for others to kill and commit crimes, then I must lead by example and show that I am fully sincere in my message,” Moreno-Gama is alleged by authorities to have written in the document.
  • Advocacy groups that have issued grave warnings about AI’s risks to society condemned the violence. PauseAI said in a statement that the suspect had no role in the group but joined its forum on the social media platform Discord about two years ago and posted about 34 messages there, none containing explicit calls to violence but one that was flagged as “ambiguous.” Discord said Monday that it has banned Moreno-Gama for “off-platform behavior.”

Interesting, eh?

But not to worry the pampered billionaire is safe….

The man accused of throwing a Molotov cocktail at OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s home in San Francisco has been charged with attempting to kill Altman and a security guard at the residence, San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins said Monday. Daniel Moreno-Gama, who also faces multiple federal charges, faces two counts of attempted murder and attempted arson in California state court, the Washington Post reports.

  • Authorities allege the 20-year-old threw the incendiary device about 4am Friday, setting an exterior gate at Altman’s home alight before fleeing on foot, police said. Less than an hour later, Moreno-Gama allegedly went to OpenAI’s headquarters and reportedly threatened to burn down the building. Moreno-Gama was opposed to artificial intelligence, writing about AI’s purported risk to humanity and “our impending extinction,” according to court documents.
  • This was not spontaneous. This was planned, targeted and extremely serious,” said FBI San Francisco Acting Special Agent in Charge Matt Cobo during a press conference. On Monday morning, FBI agents went to Moreno-Gama’s home in Spring, Texas, a suburb of Houston, where they spent several hours before leaving. He has been charged by federal prosecutors with possession of an unregistered firearm and damage and destruction of property by means of explosives. The criminal complaint does not name Altman or OpenAI but both have confirmed they were the targets of the attack. No injuries were reported.
    • When Moreno-Gama was arrested Friday, officials found a document on him in which he “identified views opposed to Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the executives of various AI companies,” court documents say. The document discussed AI’s purported risk to humanity and “our impending extinction,” according to the criminal complaint. Authorities allege Moreno-Gama traveled from his home in Texas to San Francisco and visited Altman’s home early Friday morning.

Then a couple of days later Altman’s house once again a target….

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s San Francisco home may have been targeted by two alleged attacks in a span of three days, with police announcing a pair of arrests in the latest incident, the San Francisco Standard reports. Around 1:40am Sunday, a Honda sedan allegedly drove past Altman’s property in Russian Hill, then stopped; the passenger extended a hand out the window and appeared to fire a shot toward the Lombard Street side of the estate, according to a police report citing security staff and surveillance video. No injuries were reported. The Standard frames the alleged shooting as an attack on Altman’s home, but the San Francisco Chronicle notes that has not yet been confirmed by police.

Police say a license plate captured on camera led them to a residence on Taylor Street, where officers detained Amanda Tom, 25, and Muhamad Tarik Hussein, 23, without incident and recovered three firearms. Both were booked on suspicion of negligent discharge of a firearm. The alleged shooting followed a Friday morning episode in which a 20-year-old Texas man, Daniel Alejandro Moreno-Gama, is accused of hurling a Molotov cocktail at Altman’s gate from Chestnut Street; security extinguished the flames, and the suspect was later arrested after making threats at OpenAI’s Mission Bay headquarters, authorities say. The suspect has been linked to a Discord server called PauseAI, which is against the development of frontier AI models; the group quickly disavowed the alleged attack, Business Insider reports.

After the first incident, Altman wrote a lengthy blog post reflecting on it. “There was an incendiary article about me a few days ago. Someone said to me yesterday they thought it was coming at a time of great anxiety about AI and that it made things more dangerous for me. I brushed it aside,” he wrote. “Now I am awake in the middle of the night and pissed, and thinking that I have underestimated the power of words and narratives.”

While I was writing news came across of more warehouse fires….

there are now reports of six different Warehouse or storefront fires that have happened across the United States in the last three days five of which are in different states. currently there have been two in California one in Queens New York another in Ohio at an Amazon location another in Pennsylvania and a final one in New Jersey. They’re pretty hard to look up, I’m suspecting to keep the trend from catching on.

Fascinating.

Is this the beginning of a revolt against technology or against the insanely rich?

Sorry but I cannot work up much sympathy.

“A revolution is a struggle to the death between the future and the past.”

I have been waiting a long time for this….Let it begin!

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”