You and Ben have been good about connecting the dots -- so let's connect some more. Zoom way out on all the "shock and awe" cited below and the Billionaire class envisions American masses (all races) as an enslaved worker bee class, doing menial factory and physical labor jobs, barely getting by, being uneducated to know any better, and religiously towing the line with blind faith. That's the plan. And here's how they did it: Trump's economic policies that have eroded middle class retirement savings, raised prices and the cost of living, made housing unaffordable, decimating the social safety net (Medicare and Social Security), and eliminated high paying jobs. Add to all that, DOGE accessing all of our personal information (which will destroy financial security, allowing the government to financially kill off any enemies or undesired demographics). Musk going on endlessly about the need for more babies, while the GOP takes away women's rights to bodily autonomy, the right to vote, and soon, the right to have credit without a man's permission. Next, there's Vance leading the war on education, wanting to sell off college campuses to private development, dismantling higher learning, closing the Dept. of Education and rewriting of history for K-12 students. Next, you add the erosion of child labor laws, and soon that K-12 will be a K-6 pipeline into factory work. And Trump's base will ensure this will all happen, thinking they will be excluded. It will be too late when they are enslaved too and their votes no longer matter.
Setting aside America's reckoning with its past history, how do you suggest or think America must reckon right now this very moment in time with the actual reality of what is happening?
What is in your mind the pivotal hinge that will allow America to close the door on Trump's fascist take-over of the White House? Which brings me to a pivotal and very important question: Why do you or anyone else think that the 2024 election results for the Presidency was accurate, legitimate, and untainted by hacking? Interference? Manipulation? Etcetera, etcetera, etcetera.
And I must ask , once again, why does anyone actually think that Trump won the 2024 elections in a fair and honest way?
The answer to this question is the key to saving the constitutional makeup of our treasured democracy.
“Democracy does not die when you ask questions about election integrity, it dies when you stop asking questions.” —Dean Obeidallah
I have been thinking just this. We won’t be able to move forward as a mostly-functional democracy if these acts and conspiracies are not brought to light.
All so true Julie. I’m attaching myself to the idea that someday this nightmare will be over and we who believe in our democracy and constitution will be victorious against this tyranny. I’d loose my mind and all hope otherwise. I’m observing who are the cowards and who are the brave in this fight we’re in. The people on the streets with homemade signs demanding justice and saying no to this tyranny are the brave. So is the 80 year old who is home bound but still making calls to lawmakers and sending out postcards. The cowards are the Republican lawmakers who cower in fear and capitulate. Every last one of them are traitors to our country and deserve their place in the book of shame. Their names should forever be associated with their weakness in the hundreds of books that will be written about this terrible period in our history. I’ve made calls to these people and I always end my message with shame on you. It’s too mild a term for what they are doing to our country but words fail me beyond it. Shame, shame, shame on all these people willing to sell their souls to a devil and our country down the river for a seat in Congress.
Part of how we got here is because tRump has flouted accountability time and time and time again…because, well, follow the money! It has been infuriating to watch, especially for those of us who have known him for a long time before he even got into politics!
You are absolutely right. No more shoving things under the rug. Public figures must be made to publicly admit their misdeeds and take responsibility for them. Otherwise it’s like they never happened and people go merrily on their way.
Only thing, I’m not sure the country will return to what we were before. This may be the end of democracy, thanks to apathy, ignorance, and greed.
Here in lies the problem. The premise of " after" trump. He could drop dead tomorrow, and very little would change.
The structure or infrastructure that you are witnessing are the concerted efforts of a movement that began or took form in the early sixties. You could even call it a project.
Similar to the movement that is what people now call the " left" . Think Campus protests and activists similar to Tom Hayden, the Weathermen
I think we could even draw a correlation between the Islamists and what they now call Jihad. The growth of these movements began in our around this time frame.
I understand why Ford pardoned Nixon. As long as Nixon might be prosecuted that was the *only* thing people would be paying attention to, and there were many other important things demanding attention. So he pardoned Nixon so the country could “move on.”
But it’s clear now, with benefit of hindsight, that that was a huge mistake. Yes, it would have prolonged a (very) difficult time. But not doing so, not having that reckoning has lead to a growing understanding that powerful people don’t have to face consequences. With Nixon not being fully held to account and all his crimes laid very bare, Republicans continued to view him as a victim instead of as someone not to be associated with.
There is a line from Nixon to Reagan’s lawless administration to Gingrich to Bush’s lying us into war to Trump.
Millions of us knew Gird knew it either the pardon. It destroyed his political career, as it should have. I never forgot or forgave him and it was very nearly as evil as Nixon’s own crimes.
"Millions of us knew Gird knew it either the pardon."
Say what now?
"it was very nearly as evil as Nixon’s own crimes."
How so? Nixon committed numerous crimes that harmed many other people for his own benefit. His actions were purely selfish and self-serving. Ford's motivation for pardoning him was to help the country heal and allow him to focus on other things that would benefit people. His actions were the opposite of self-serving: he knew it would have a significant effect on his political future yet did it anyway.
We can argue whether Ford made the right choice or not (My view on that has certainly changed from crying foul to "Ok, I get it. I might have done the same now that I think about it." to "I still get it, but with hindsight it was a bad move and shouldn't have been done.") but claiming his pardoning Nixon was "as evil as Nixon's own crimes" is unsupportable.
I agree, all the up to the line about how they all need to testify about what they have done and why. They do not need to testify, as they will all have the right to remain silent.
Nah, we need a Truth and Reconciliation Commission about the 4 years a turnip was installed as president with a totally inept VP and how the administration and the media lied their asses off and covered it up as if the public couldn't see it plain as day. And how up until the last minute they were still acting as if they turnip could actually be re-elected and serve for 4 more years. And how when they saw he couldn't, they installed his completely inept VP as the next Democrat savior, despite knowing in their hearts she probably couldn't win.
That's what we need a Truth and Reconciliation court for.
You and Ben have been good about connecting the dots -- so let's connect some more. Zoom way out on all the "shock and awe" cited below and the Billionaire class envisions American masses (all races) as an enslaved worker bee class, doing menial factory and physical labor jobs, barely getting by, being uneducated to know any better, and religiously towing the line with blind faith. That's the plan. And here's how they did it: Trump's economic policies that have eroded middle class retirement savings, raised prices and the cost of living, made housing unaffordable, decimating the social safety net (Medicare and Social Security), and eliminated high paying jobs. Add to all that, DOGE accessing all of our personal information (which will destroy financial security, allowing the government to financially kill off any enemies or undesired demographics). Musk going on endlessly about the need for more babies, while the GOP takes away women's rights to bodily autonomy, the right to vote, and soon, the right to have credit without a man's permission. Next, there's Vance leading the war on education, wanting to sell off college campuses to private development, dismantling higher learning, closing the Dept. of Education and rewriting of history for K-12 students. Next, you add the erosion of child labor laws, and soon that K-12 will be a K-6 pipeline into factory work. And Trump's base will ensure this will all happen, thinking they will be excluded. It will be too late when they are enslaved too and their votes no longer matter.
I think they're in for a shock. There are more firearms in this country than people. It could get really ugly.
Setting aside America's reckoning with its past history, how do you suggest or think America must reckon right now this very moment in time with the actual reality of what is happening?
What is in your mind the pivotal hinge that will allow America to close the door on Trump's fascist take-over of the White House? Which brings me to a pivotal and very important question: Why do you or anyone else think that the 2024 election results for the Presidency was accurate, legitimate, and untainted by hacking? Interference? Manipulation? Etcetera, etcetera, etcetera.
And I must ask , once again, why does anyone actually think that Trump won the 2024 elections in a fair and honest way?
The answer to this question is the key to saving the constitutional makeup of our treasured democracy.
“Democracy does not die when you ask questions about election integrity, it dies when you stop asking questions.” —Dean Obeidallah
I have been thinking just this. We won’t be able to move forward as a mostly-functional democracy if these acts and conspiracies are not brought to light.
All so true Julie. I’m attaching myself to the idea that someday this nightmare will be over and we who believe in our democracy and constitution will be victorious against this tyranny. I’d loose my mind and all hope otherwise. I’m observing who are the cowards and who are the brave in this fight we’re in. The people on the streets with homemade signs demanding justice and saying no to this tyranny are the brave. So is the 80 year old who is home bound but still making calls to lawmakers and sending out postcards. The cowards are the Republican lawmakers who cower in fear and capitulate. Every last one of them are traitors to our country and deserve their place in the book of shame. Their names should forever be associated with their weakness in the hundreds of books that will be written about this terrible period in our history. I’ve made calls to these people and I always end my message with shame on you. It’s too mild a term for what they are doing to our country but words fail me beyond it. Shame, shame, shame on all these people willing to sell their souls to a devil and our country down the river for a seat in Congress.
Part of how we got here is because tRump has flouted accountability time and time and time again…because, well, follow the money! It has been infuriating to watch, especially for those of us who have known him for a long time before he even got into politics!
You are absolutely right. No more shoving things under the rug. Public figures must be made to publicly admit their misdeeds and take responsibility for them. Otherwise it’s like they never happened and people go merrily on their way.
Only thing, I’m not sure the country will return to what we were before. This may be the end of democracy, thanks to apathy, ignorance, and greed.
Good read but do you really believe there will be an "After Trump"? IMHO, it's a longshot.
Armageddon
Yes, but it must be able to hold ALL to account for their crimes against our democracy. It’s going to be a long list of people.
Here in lies the problem. The premise of " after" trump. He could drop dead tomorrow, and very little would change.
The structure or infrastructure that you are witnessing are the concerted efforts of a movement that began or took form in the early sixties. You could even call it a project.
Similar to the movement that is what people now call the " left" . Think Campus protests and activists similar to Tom Hayden, the Weathermen
I think we could even draw a correlation between the Islamists and what they now call Jihad. The growth of these movements began in our around this time frame.
I understand why Ford pardoned Nixon. As long as Nixon might be prosecuted that was the *only* thing people would be paying attention to, and there were many other important things demanding attention. So he pardoned Nixon so the country could “move on.”
But it’s clear now, with benefit of hindsight, that that was a huge mistake. Yes, it would have prolonged a (very) difficult time. But not doing so, not having that reckoning has lead to a growing understanding that powerful people don’t have to face consequences. With Nixon not being fully held to account and all his crimes laid very bare, Republicans continued to view him as a victim instead of as someone not to be associated with.
There is a line from Nixon to Reagan’s lawless administration to Gingrich to Bush’s lying us into war to Trump.
Millions of us knew Gird knew it either the pardon. It destroyed his political career, as it should have. I never forgot or forgave him and it was very nearly as evil as Nixon’s own crimes.
"Millions of us knew Gird knew it either the pardon."
Say what now?
"it was very nearly as evil as Nixon’s own crimes."
How so? Nixon committed numerous crimes that harmed many other people for his own benefit. His actions were purely selfish and self-serving. Ford's motivation for pardoning him was to help the country heal and allow him to focus on other things that would benefit people. His actions were the opposite of self-serving: he knew it would have a significant effect on his political future yet did it anyway.
We can argue whether Ford made the right choice or not (My view on that has certainly changed from crying foul to "Ok, I get it. I might have done the same now that I think about it." to "I still get it, but with hindsight it was a bad move and shouldn't have been done.") but claiming his pardoning Nixon was "as evil as Nixon's own crimes" is unsupportable.
I agree, all the up to the line about how they all need to testify about what they have done and why. They do not need to testify, as they will all have the right to remain silent.
Nah, we need a Truth and Reconciliation Commission about the 4 years a turnip was installed as president with a totally inept VP and how the administration and the media lied their asses off and covered it up as if the public couldn't see it plain as day. And how up until the last minute they were still acting as if they turnip could actually be re-elected and serve for 4 more years. And how when they saw he couldn't, they installed his completely inept VP as the next Democrat savior, despite knowing in their hearts she probably couldn't win.
That's what we need a Truth and Reconciliation court for.