Honestly, I wish that Democratic advocates would stop using this word. It is too forgiving of the brutal intentions behind most of the examples you cite; it approaches being a way of « sane-washing » the mean spirited rhetoric and fascist agenda of the MAGA leadership and acolytes. We’re not evaluating a fictional « Twilight Zone » here. For the MAGA crowd it’s an existential combat. It should be for you and for all of us who wish to see democracy preserved.
Agree. Weird is a good word - it's clearly getting under Trump's skin - but it should not be overused. In terms of brain function, intermittent stimulation leads to an increasing response, frequent stimulation leads to a fatiguing response.
For example, Harris could use it in a speech two weeks from now, e.g.,:
Is it weird to cut taxes on billionaires and corporations?
Is it weird to talk about Hannibal Lecter?
Is it weird to talk about being eaten by a shark?
Is it weird to tell women what to do with their own bodies?
Michael, yes all of the things you cite are weird. It is true that weird could be overused, however it has been only in real circulation for a couple of months or so. If used sparingly and in the right situations it can continue to be a reminder of just how really weird the Republican Party is now. Then add a few more words like cruel, inhumane, uncaring, lying, unamerican, cheating, fraudsters. Mixing weird in with those can be pretty good.
Trumpet 🎺 is playing the long game His goal is to be considered “ eccentric” (rich people are eccentric poor people are crazy-demented etc…).
Trumpet 🎺 is not going to win
re-election his goal are to suck in as many supporters as possible fleece them with trumpet bibles , golden sneaker 👟, and now $100,000 autographed gold watch’s; his overarching goal is to avoid jail and accountability for his attempted overthrow of our Democratic Government…
Attack Attack Attack, Admit Nothing , Declare Victory no matter the outcome was… Avoid Jail Avoid Jail Avoid Jsil…
Weird, because it’s not “the left” saying you can’t trust scientists, doctors, journalists, the FBI, the DOJ, judges and juries…it’s MAGA that says that!
Trump and his MAGA cult Christian nationalist are the biggest danger to our country, our democracy and our constitution. Trump can never be allowed back into the White House again! And saying that Trump is a threat to democracy is not an incitement to violence. Don’t let anyone tell you different!
How about wearing these t-shirts in front of your MAGA neighbor 👇 🤣
It has come across the 'Wires' that Netanyahu is Escalating Israel's Scorched Earth Campaigns against it's Arab/Persian Neighbors in order to influence the American Campaign as well as his Political Survival... He may trying to portray Biden, and Harris as Incompetent... Unfortunately, Biden is playing into this, and Kamala is being dragged along... An Arms Embargo in April 2024 after the Destruction of Northern Gaza would have been timely... It may be the USA's best interest to re-examine the Israeli Alliance which seems to be very one-way... Helping put DJT/JD back in power is not in the Best Interest Of The USA... With the USA Guaranteeing the Survival of Netanyahu, Netanyahu is Un-Restrained....
You say Persia and Arab but that's not exactly true. Iran and it's totally owned and operated subsidiaries Hamas, Hezbollah and Houthi are engaged in a brutal war with each other with Arabs as principal victims. Iran will fight to the last Arab standing. Nota bene: Has Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Iragmq, Jordan, the UAE, Kuwait...or further field non-Arab but Muslim Turkey had much to say in public? Absolutely not. They will keep their mouths shut while letting Israel and the US solve their Iran problem for them. Even if it takes every last Palestinian life. Read the Book of Esther. There are no good guys here. But smear the blame equitably. Israel cannot lose or they/we will cease to exist. Weep for Palestinians who are being sacrificed in the cause of a foreign Sharia war.
The bloody, cruel chaos of the Middle East is a grim example of what happens when you inject tribalism and religion into politics. Yet this is what Republicans are doing right here in the US. That's beyond weird. It's idiotic.
Iran is not Arab, and in fact Iranians detest Arabs. Saddam used that fact in his war with Iran, because both are Shia Islam (Saddam was Sunni)
There was a 10th Century Persian poet, Ferdowsi, who is revered among educated Iranians, he wrote in the Shameneh (Book of Kings)
From feeding on desert lizars and camel'ls milk.
So have the affairs of the Arabs propered.
That they long for the empire of Khorosan.
Same on thee, O circling, Heaven, shame.
Neither can most Iranians forgive the Arabs. Almost any educated Iranian can passionately quote Ferdowsi's lament, uttered by a Persian general facing the Arab army.
Damn on on this World, Damn on this Time,Damn on Fate.
That uncivilized Arabs have come to force me to be Muslim.
In 1987 Khomeini sent a suicide squad of Iranians, during the annual haj, who attacked Mecca and tried to capture it, hundreds died.
There is a 1400 year old conflict between Shia and Sunni Islam,not over doctrine, on that they agree, but over who is the rightful successor of Muhammad, The Shia (followers of Ali ibn abi Talib, the first convert and cousin of Muhammad),or the Sunni, who were not related to Muhammad nor his first students (Ali ibn abi Talib translates as Exalted son of the father of the Student, that student being Muhammad's cousin . Talib means student.
There is one thing that unites Shia and Sunni, temporarily, and that is the hated Jew, and infidels squatting on sacred Arab soil.
The dominate Ethnic group in Iran are the Persians... The Iranians that I know here on the West Coast consider themselves Persian... They speak Farsi... Iran itself, has many minority groups such as the Assyrians, who are Coptic Christians... I have talked to them too... I have talked to Persian Jews as well... As been noted, a lot of the current instability in the Middle-East stems from Western Meddling following the retreat of the Turks from Empire after their defeat in WW1... Michael Indyk who was a American Ambassador to several Middle Eastern Countries, stated once that one of the problems with the Middle-East, is that these are old struggles that go back hundreds of Years... These Struggles do not fit into neat little boxes... It seems that the most unstable nations such as Libya, and Iraq are Western Creations... Israel is a Fortress in a Arab Sea... It could have used the past 60 years making Peace with the Palestinians instead of terrorizing them like they are now doing in Gaza, Lebanon, and the West Bank... My Rule Of Thumb, Is That There Are No Good Guys In The Middle East...
I would offer the Middle East wars have gone on for thousands of years and the hatred passed along from generation to generation. It will take more than the US to stop this madness. And the saddest part are the innocent who just want to live their lives, love their family and friends, but are unable to change this course of hatred.
Well Apache, tell me what should the Jews do? March into the sea. Surrender and hope that they survive the forthcoming holocaust? Board airplanes and boats and flee to Europe and America?
You see, that is the only thing that is going to satisfy Iran, and the Arabs. The only thing. Absent that, there will always be conflict, violence, terrorism in that wretched land.
The whole thing is a religious war, and the Jews are squatting, per Islamic ideology,on sacred Muslim soil,especially the third most sacred site of Haram al Sharif and al Aqsa Mosque.
All land over which the flag of Muhammad has flown, is forever Muslim.
Thank you William for pointing out the Muslim idea that the Jews are squatting on Muslim soil according to them! I'm not taking sides here as I personally think organized religion of any kind is crazy. But... Abraham founded the Hebrew/Jewish religion about 4,000 years ago and the Muslim religion was founded by Muhammad about 1,400 years ago.. So, by doing simple math, the Jews were there about 2,600 years before the Muslim religion was even founded. Seems to me it's the Muslims who are squatting, not the Jews! Any how, as always it is the innocent folks on both sides of any war that suffer for the misguided egos of their leaders. Final thought. I would like to see a pole of the Iranian people on if they were better off under the Shah or the current Supreme Leader. Cheers... GH
I don't believe there was a prophet named Abraham or that he was going to sacrifice his son Isaac to appease an all too human god named Yah (or Ia), the Jews claim that they descend from his grandson Judah, the northern Arabs claim that they descend from his son Ishmael. Its bullshit, all religions are bullshit. Created y men as a tool to control other men. Man creats his god(s) in his own image, know the god, know the man, and vice versa.
That said, the time before Muhammad, Muslims call the
jāhiliyyah, theArabs were polytheistic and worshiped the moon al Lihah, Allah is a contraction of al Lihah, the also worshiped the planets as goddesses, daughters of al Lihah,Venus was the most powerful (al Uzza) and you can see al Lihah and al Uzza on the flag of many countries like Turkey, and of course the Allah is represented by the crescent (new moon) on the top of many mosques.
Shahs secret people, the Savak, didn't pester the people, only the Islamists, and when they toppled the Shah they took terrible revenge, worse than the Savak, and it continues today, with haning teenage girls that reject wearing the hajib, it is the hajib when they are young, and the chador (the bee keeper suit the Arabs call the abaya) when theymarry.
Indications are, that, with the exception of the Mullahs, the Ayatollahs, the Republican guard and the religious fanatics, they would welcome the Pahlavi's.
Here is what I piece together, Mossadegh was overthrown by a coup potted and financed by MI6, and the CIA, the plan was to have British Petroleum and Standard oil, to monopolize the oil production and export.
France was left out of the deal. Khomeini, whose mother by the way was a Brit, fled to France and was given safe harbor in France. The French CIA/MI6, Directorate-General for External Security (DGSE), , used their diplomatic pouches to smuggle in Khomeini's cassette tapes, which sparked the 1979 revolution., didn't do them any good though, Total SA, the French government oil company, got nothing for it.
After the revolution Iran contracted out the oil fields and pipelines, but has since taken over and The National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC; Persian: شرکت ملّی نفت ایران, romanized: Sherkat-e Melli-ye Naft-e Irān) is a government-owned national oil and natural gas producer and distributor under the direction of the Ministry of Petroleum of Iran.
Iran would be better off it just concentrated on what it has, but it needs an external enemy to keep the populace under control, and that enemy is of course the Jews and great Satan.
The Jews, and Palestinians are descendants of the Indigenous Canaanites... The Descendants of the Canaanites are still there known as the Palestinians... That is why Arabic, and Hebrew are so similar... This goes On-And-On, Back-And-Forth... With the destruction of the 2nd Temple, the Jews were exiled by the Romans... That is why Israel had be re-established, and Hebrew revived from a 'Dead Language'...
Make Peace like they have with Egypt, Jordan, and attempting to with the Emirates & Saudi Arabia ( the Custodian of Mecca )... The Ultra-Zionist War Cabinet that Netanayahu has assembled for Netanyahu's Political Survival, sees the current war's as an opportunity for a Land-Grab among other things... What is forgotten, is that, pre-Modern Israel, there were significant Jewish Populations in all Arab Nations, even in Iran... The 1947 Nakba triggered the current Hostilities... I've known Iranian Jews who migrated pre-Downfall-Of-The-Shah... Bear in mind, the MSM likes Propaganda...
The pre modern Jews in Arab countries, after the 1948 war found themselves unwelcome and discriminated against, even more than usual, most fled to Israel, the constitute 45% of the Jewish population and are known as mizrahi.
The US bought off Egypt with an annual subsidy, bought off Jordan by supporting the Hashemites, and Saudi Arabia because it was not only a makert for their oil, but also supplied (supplies) the technicians and engineers that the Kingdom needed and needs. The Shiites that live in the East of the Country, are to the kingdom what Mexican workers were (are) our farmers and growers.
The problem lies with Iran though, it can't be bought off. Wasn't it Nixon that said something to the effect that what will unite the world is a threat from space.
Well what unites Iran is Israel. And since Iran does not share a border with Israel, and frankly is too big and well armed to engage in battle with not only Israel but any invading force. it will continue to play the spoiler by subsidizing, training and assisting Hezbollah, which is a well armed and organized Shia militia and the de facto government of Lebanon,
Iran used, with the willing help and compliance of, HAMAS, which is Sunnni, a tool by which to put Israel on the back foot.
The continued existence and thus threat to Islamic hegemony, of the Jewish state, is absolutely necessary for the coherent survival of the Islamic Republic of Iran and it's mullahcracy.
Ideologically, Iran denies Israel's right to exist, regardless of boundaries and actual politics. Its policy reflected a deep sense of religious mission,
That it identifies with the Palestinians is subterfuge, because the Palestinians, like the hate Saudi's, are Sunni
Prior to November 1948, when an Arab alliance attacked the new Jewish State (May 1948). Jews lived in Muslim lands and were allowed to practice their faith, as second class citizens (dhimmis), these were not democracies. They were, and most still are, Kingdoms and Sheikdoms/Emirates.
With the victory of Israel, anger at the Jews turned inward, and most (all in some cases) fled to Israel, these are the mizrahi, those who know what it is like to live under Muslim rule..
Prior to 1948 there were 130,000 Jews in Iran, after the 1948 war 122,000 migrated to Israel, and after the Islamic revolution, there was a mass migration and today there are about 6,500 Jews in Iran,mostly old folk.
Other Islamic ethnostates, there are 57 of them, either have no Jews,100 to 500 Jews, and that includes Malaysia and Indonesia.
That is True... Globally, the Turning Point was the Nakba... The Turning point in Iran, was the 1979 Fall-Of-The-Shah, and the Rise of the Ayatollahs... The Shah was Western-Looking, the Ayatollahs are Medieval.... There was some Kissinger Blowback involved... The Shah was the only Moslem State willing to sell Oil to Israel... Currently, I don't think that the Iranian Ayatollahs are popular with the General Populace... Yes, the USA subsidies the Egyptian, and Jordanian Peace Treaties... Still much cheaper than War... I'm not a Fan of the Ayatollahs... I would definitely be considered a Infidel... I'm only concerned with USA Blood & Treasure...
I am at a loss to understand the administrations actions which have been counter to US national interests. There must be a number of people at the state department who have gone bald the last year. Time for Harris to say she has a secret plan to end all this. Whatever works.
Thanks Katrina... I believe that last night that the actual Longshoreman's Strike has been adverted to January 2025 for a substantial immediate raise... That is good news...
I’d say « enabling, » but here I was addressing a way of characterising the MAGA agenda, not the complex strategic and political calculus of funding the Israeli Defence Forces.
No matter how you slice or dice it, when the ends justify the means it’s a recipe for disaster. And disaster is what we’re party to in the Middle East.
There was a interesting discussion on NPR today with Viewpoints from all the Belligerents.... This goes back a long ways... An 'Eye-For-An-Eye, and a 'Tooth-For-A-Tooth' leads to a Toothless, Blind Village...
Yes, he did. Can you blame him? Vance was using the debate to spew out lies. The moderators should have stopped him at the first lie. Rules are rules, and if we don't follow them we get chaos, which is what Republicans want, of course. Like the Nazis of the 1930s they are taking advantage of freedom to promote their totalitarian ideology. Not stopping them is beyond weird.
Oh please. You really buy that? Now Israel is bombing and killing civilians in Lebanon...they wait till midnight . Maximum killing saying Hezbollah has tunnels and is hiding in the population. Sound familiar? Since when dies a country have the right to assassinate, bomb, and invade other countries at will? Oh yeah, since tgey have American weaponry and unlimited taxpayer money from the USA.
❤Reich❤:"What makes MAGA Republican leaders weird isn’t just that they’re awkward, unfunny, and unpleasant. It’s that they want to impose their weird ideas on everyone else."
Up to 60% of anxious people are cured by placebo.... aka 60% of Americans believe BS. Is that BS innocuous or insidious? Unfortunately innocuous can MUTATE into insidious.
Think of Reich's list of weird beliefs as insidious placebos. But placebos can be anything. In case you didn't notice, Trump can get away with ANYTHING.... so Trump has NOTHING TO LOSE by being weird in ways that are validating potential followers' WEIRD PLACEBO. The next step is from Dr Festinger's cult science book:"When Prophecy Fails." Insecure Placeboees want to CONTROL OTHER PEOPLE... thus I invented the word MILITANT PLACEBOEE😁😁😁😁😁
❤Reich❤:"What makes MAGA Republican leaders weird isn’t just that they’re awkward, unfunny, and unpleasant. It’s that they want to impose their weird ideas on everyone else."
MAGA Republicans are leading a Movement of MILITANT PLACEBOEES who want to force their placebo on everyone😁😁😁
We all need the therapy that makes us secure enough to LAUGH AT SYSTEMIC HUMAN FLAWS....
First Do No Harm: Stop the Lying... "Don't Sweat It" Is a lie: Exercise and Exposure both cause sweat and both are Mandatory.😁😁😁
99.9% of the US refuses the inoculation recommended by the White House: "Do one thing every day that scares you."--Eleanor Roosevelt...
....instead, Americans were tricked by " Our pills aren't addictive " Purdue Pharma:"You don't have to face your fears anymore, just keep popping our pills!"
During the last 35 years new technology has distributed almost every aspect of people’s lives. The pace of that change is increasing. Change causes anxiety. Things feel out of control. Jobs are different, relationships are different, communication is different. People want to go back to when they thought they understood how things happened. Trump told people he would do that for them. He focused on the superficial social issues of race, sex, and religion, and class, while he and his cronies wanted the power. They are offering security to the people who need to be told how to cope. The security includes being exploited, but many people don’t seem to care.
No question that technology, and it's acceleration, have been a major factor maybe even THE factor, in bringing about our current crisis.
But regulating technology has a timelag. If there were even a mindset for that. We're more like- "throw it out there, it's innovation" That's neither wholly good nor wholly bad. But it's been feeling more bad the last 20 years.
The 'weird' thing should have lasted a week or two but Democrats have no ear and no political killer instinct and are hobbled by having consciences and caring about people. Running a country isn't easy even if you are capable and care. Vandalism, theft and sabotage are relatively easy, so Republicans have us there. They have a number of structural advantages, one of which is their boundless willingness to lie in a system that assumes insiders that actually accept the system and aren't trying to destroy it.
I can't believe there's no way for someone to take out a warrant and arrest and hold them all, when you look at the things you can get arrested for. Black people can still get shot with impunity most of the time which gives us an idea how the deck is stacked. But I think what Robert does here is fine, anyway, since he's playing off the meme. He's such a dose of sanity at a time when Republicans are ramping up the hate to extraordinary levels. If we had a Geiger counter for lies and bullshit and hate and affrontery it would be exploding.
They're going nucular, as their model president and paradigm of destructive capability might say. It's the talent they admire above all others.
Can you imagine that ? Our nation's founders actually thought most people in Congress by far would accept the system and not try to undermine and destroy it for their selfish ends. What were they thinking ?
I am in agreement. The GOP is far beyond weird or strange. They are dangerous liars who have seriously thought out plans to run our lives. Let’s hammer on how frightening the retribution and mass deportations will be for all of Americans when millions will be rounded up. Let’s hammer on the frightening future if Ukraine and NATO are abandoned by the USA and Putin has a go ahead agreement. And where will this put Taiwan and our allies in the pacific.
Let’s hammer on the dangerous lives of our sisters, daughters, grandchildren and friends and every man when the right to reproductive choices are taken away. Let’s hammer at the income inequality that the GOP promises and an economic policy of tariffs.
What’s weird is calling a party that is marching towards the Hitler, Stalin, Pol pot, Mao destiny for America “weird” like we can’t get our minds around the reality of the precipice we’re about to be pushed over.
Perhaps Homo sapiens is a misnomer. Perhaps Homo lupus would be more accurate. Man is wolf to man, the old Romans used to say. Yet we can be very loving and generous to each during natural disaster (Rebecca Solnit wrote a fine piece about this). Perhaps the recent NC catastrophe will wake us up as to where the real danger lies.
I agree. I think “weird” is way too generous of a descriptor of MAGA beliefs and politics which represent an existential threat to democracy, basic human rights, science-based decisions & actions, and freedom.
True, but it is weird. It is also redundant. The MAGA crowd are proving once again that when people give in to fear they lose the capacity to reason. They should have headed FDR's advice: fear not but fear itself.
Mr Howard, by describing them as fascists, racists,misogynistic, xenophobes, they and their MAGAt followers, wear those labels like American flag pins in the lapel, but the only word so far that has evoked a defensive reaction is "weird". Racism, misogyny, etc has been normalized, but weird means they aren't normal and thus they get defensive.
Part of the issue here is what one is trying to accomplish in the choice of language. Is it simply name-calling in an effort to get under somebody's skin or to put them on the defensive? Given the closeness of the election, I think it makes sense to be mindful of the traditional purpose of rhetoric, which is to persuade. Accusing somebody or their ideas of not being normal is not likely to be persuasive with those whose vote could still be influenced. I would the rhetoric focus on what is a stake, and what concretely will impact everyone, should a cabal of oligarchs and opportunists such as stand behind the R candidate secure absolute political power in the US.
John, you assume a rational audience. Anyone who has entrusted his destiny to Trump is irrational. These individuals are in complete denial of reality, and the only speech they listen to is the one that confirms their biases. Consider their behavior during the pandemic. It was weird and tragic, as many needlessly died.
I do understand you, and you are intellectually correct. But the mentality of that 48% that votes for Trump is not intellectual, it is totally emotional, and identity based.
Do you honestly think that they are persuadable, misguided souls that can be redirected? That hasn't worked for the "lost cause" believers.
I even doubt that there is a persuadable 7 or 8%, just people who tell pollsters that they haven't made up their minds, because they have no desire to tell strangers what they really think.
There is a lot of effort in shoving down the play of identity politics, and accusing the Democrats of playing identity politics.
But identity politics is as old as the foundation of this country, and older.
The basis of the culture war, which is driving identity politics, is not liberals objecting to bigotry and oppression, but white, Christian men, threatened by the equality of non whites, women, non Christians and gay. In fact there was even a spurt of bigotry against Irish, who weren't considered white, until they lost their brogue.
Where semantics is concerned, use of the word ‘weird’ invites a mere satirical sneer. A better four-letter word is EVIL, which strikes fear in the hearts of people of all religious stripes.
Trumpet 🎺 is playing the long game His goal is to be considered “ eccentric” (rich people are eccentric poor people are crazy-demented etc…).
Trumpet 🎺 is not going to win
re-election his goal are to suck in as many supporters as possible fleece them with trumpet bibles , golden sneaker 👟, and now $100,000 autographed gold watch’s; his overarching goal is to avoid jail and accountability for his attempted overthrow of our Democratic Government…
Attack Attack Attack, Admit Nothing , Declare Victory no matter the outcome was… Avoid Jail Avoid Jail Avoid Jail…
I’m not criticizing you, in the spirit of someone like Howard Zinn, I’m trying to get people like Robert Reich to have a little bit of self reflection.
In my view, Robert Reich c.s. do have selfreflection, and people like the Don and Vance don't, or if they do, they don't have a conscience. They're always talking and acting for the sake of their own interests only, and if that means you deny today what you did and said yesterday, that's what they will do. Vance: Jan, 6 was a "peaceful
Kevin: Netanyahu recently visited Trump at Maralago. What do you think they talked about? Do you think perhaps they made a deal that if Trump gets AIPAC support and wins the election, Trump will help him rid all humans from Gaza and that Trump's son-in-law will build the first, biggest, most beautiful resort in the world on the beach in Gaza that the world has ever seen?
Gloria Maloney, I have no patience anymore for people who bash the only democratic candidate in the running. If they want to vote for the anti-democratic candidate, then
they should go do it, but they would rather play Putin-like games instead. And if there really is anyone sincere who is still bashing the only democratic candidate, then they are unable to see clearly that they are sabotaging their own mission, by turning people away from voting for only the candidate who doesn't want more violence. Not only wholly unstrategic and counter-productive, but their bashing actions are increasing the chances of the death of our democracy, of our America as we know it,, and the countless deaths, torture, and other cruelties to our fellow people on this land.
Could you tell me if you're talking about me or Kevin? I know that Biden and Harris want an immediate cease-fire and care about the vulnerable citizens involved in the conflict and how the situation affects the U.S. The issues are complicated, and we don't have all the facts they have. I suggest to Kevin that Trump and others like him are only concerned with themselves. Netanyahu and Trump desparately want to stay in power to stay out of prison. Everyone will be worse off if Trump wins the election. Like Robert Reich said today, all Republicans aren't weird. Let's try to have a conversation until it is not beneficial.
Gloria J. Maloney, I was talking about Kevin. I liked your factual response to Kevin about B.N. meeting with tfg and was supporting your query to Kevin.
I'm very skeptical about Melania's sudden revealation regarding her support of abortion rights a little over a month before election day; her timing seems weird.
If I would have voted in the US, I would have preferred Bernie Sanders for president. But undoubtedly, even his decisions were not always to the benefit of all of his constituents.
Social media is likely a big influence on this election. Everyone is welcome to re-post the following or add or subtract from it and post:
Democracy is on the Line
Democracy is on the line here and worldwide. At the heart of a democracy is having fair and free elections in which the citizens of voting age determine the leaders. If trying to overthrow an election is allowed, there are no other laws that are safe from being disregarded or misused. Once the rule of law has broken down it’s very hard to get back. Free elections are hard to get back once a dictatorship is established.
Some people may think the dictator is on their side. No, the dictator is for the dictator. As the saying goes, absolute power corrupts absolutely. Trump wants to be a dictator and he has the media, the Supreme Court and many big money donors supporting him. He openly admires dictators like Hungarian Viktor Orban and called Putin’s invasion genus. Trump has the will and the skill to become a dictator.
Trump is saying he won’t supply Ukraine against Putin’s invasion. With a Trump win, Russia could defeat Ukraine. This might encourage more land grabs, more wars and more dictators. If the leader of the free world, the USA, becomes a dictatorship what will the world become and what will the USA become?
Let’s vote in Harris and retain our democracy. We can supply Ukraine, maybe they can push Russia out or if Ukraine wants to negotiate with Russia, they would be doing so from a stronger position. In a nuclear world, the stakes are high. But the stakes are higher with more dictatorships and higher still without a free USA. Democracy here and democracies worldwide are on the line, please vote for Harris.
I would add that besides his affinities to become a dictator Trump is confronted with the very "hot" risk of getting jailed if he doesn't win ... which I think is the most incentive argument that is driving him to keep going
Their rallies look like a cross between a big tent evangelical revival and a WWF wrestling event so yeah, kinda weird, but don’t underestimate their capacity to be violent.
1000 years ago the Golden Age of Islam brought an era of learning, peace and prosperity to the territories of the former Roman Empire. Jewish and Muslim scholars wrote books and studied medicine.
The Reconquista, the Black Plague and resurgence of the papal state in Rome led to the Crusades, war between Islam and Christianity and a search for someone else to blame it on.
Antisemitism, meaning hatred of Israel/Jews, was invented during the Crusades and has served European Christian authoritarianism ever since.
Palestinians are the other Semites, among many, the descendents of Abraham and Esau whose diaspora is much more recent as fallout from post WWII European decolonization.
But how to stop the violence. How far are we yet from chimpanzees?
What about the violence you choose not to mention: 1200 Israeli civilians dead, 200 hostages taken. Hamas started it up again. But please, stick your head your ass and pretend it was not so.
There is no justfication for the terror of Hamas. Most of us who champion human rights for Palestinians (and other people) agree on that. There's no pretending whatsoever that Oct 7, 2023 didn't happen.
I have not one Republican friend. The Maga republicans are not weird. They are evil and un American. Mostly fascist and mentally unstable. I think the Longshoremen are going back to work. Who knew I would ever like Liz Chaney? A pretty good omen on Rosh Hashona. The scary thing is not letting people vote and that Trump is not locked up and the corrupt Supreme Court.
Keep in mind Trump's mishandling of the pandemic. 400,000 Americans died from Covid-19 in Trump's final year. 400,000 is the number of Americans killed in action in four years of World War II. And Trump gave himself an A+
I am thankful that posters are using the word "evil" to describe the cult of Trump. "Weird" describes an accusation that certain legal migrants are eating other peoples' pets. But it crosses over into evil when the false accusation results in threats of violence.
A businessman in Springfield went on a TV station and sang nothing but praises for the small number of Haitians working for his company. Afterwards, he immediately started to receive death threats. This is not weird; it is evil.
Carl Jung understood the Nazis well. He asserted how important it is to call out evil when we witness it. Otherwise, it starts to take over -- as it certainly has in our country. The Trump cult are not capable of making moral judgments -- they have no moral compass -- and it's very fortunate when you find one who can be reasoned with.
In their perverted, degenerate minds, it is those NOT in the cult who are evil -- and they will not hesitate to use violence. Cheered on by their cult leader, as he did on January 6. Told his vice president had to be moved because he was in great danger,. Trump replied "So what?"
"Tina Peters was just sentenced to 9 years of incarceration after compromising her own voting equipment trying to prove Trump’s Big Lie. Colorado will not allow anyone to threaten our elections."
Jena Griswold, Colorado Secretary of State, Oct. 3, 2024
Yes, Thomas, but let's use the word "evil" as an adjective, not a noun. Actions are evil when they harm. Vance's lies are evil because they are intended to harm people for the benefit of a few.
Well, I agree with the weird part. But I think that evil also needs to be added to that. The Magats that I know wallow in their Magatness and that is when you can see the evil.
One of the better definitions of evil was explained by M. Scott Peck when he described evil as the process a narcissist uses to project their insecurity onto others and twist it in a process called scapegoating. As M. Scott Peck’s young son pointed out Evil is Live spelled backwards.
Love, as defined by M. Scott Peck, on the other hand, is the process of acting on behalf of someone else to advance their well being.
We as a species should be actively trying to do away with evil and instead we should be promoting what generally constitutes as love.
Kevin Flynn, love also allows you to think logically. Something you are not doing by bashing Harris. Why are you being unstrategic and counterproductive? Or is it, you just want to vote for the anti-American, anti-democratic, pro-violence candidate? If so, then go do it. Either way, I have a hard time taking you seriously when your bashing actions improve the likelihood of guaranteed widespread cruelty, death, violence, and torture in America. Where is your outrage for that?
Unfortunately I have to agree with you. Donald Trump is horrendously horrific. He’s the worst person of the 8 billion people on the planet for the job of president.
As hard as it might be for someone like you to believe Kamala Harris is in some ways worse than Trump. She and Biden are hurtling us toward world war 3 in Eastern Europe and the Middle East.
I hope I’m wrong, but as John Mearsheimer says “there are dark clouds in the horizon”.
The other thing I’d like to be clear about is that I want to see America be a force for good in the world and with the right kind of leadership it’s definitely possible. The trouble is that we’ve lost our way.
Kevin Flynn, the people far more likely to get us into war are those with rampant egos. Their egos need to create conflict and violence to maintain their beliefs in superority and separateness from others. Their craving of power over others, of dominating others is enormous. Throw into the mix, a couple of them can outrun the law only if they regain or retain the highest political power. Not to mention, rampant egos are wholly transactional not patriotic. They will partner with any and all for power or profit. Biden and Harris have not ever exhibited rampant egos. There have no thirst for war.
Humans as a species lost their way thousands and thousands of years ago. The best way to change the world is to change ourselves. Decondition ourselves from all the nonsense we were conditioned with. Lessen our egos. And this helps us be more strategic in our actions to bring about positive, sustainable change.
Yes, Mearsheimer is a good apologist for Putin's actions. Not that he doesn't make a number of fair points. The West coulda done more. But hardly an excuse for Putin's repeated warmongering.
Kevin, clouds have silver linings. We still have our Constitution. We still are ruled by reason. We can still resolve difference by compromise. Let's not descend into despair and give up what we have by default. That would be beyond weird.
You may be critical of someone without calling that 'bashing'. Unless you're a Drumpfian of course, then you will immediately fire such a critical person lfor disloyalty.
MAGA have been abused for forty years by the GOP, to be filled with outrageous hatred for liberals, and the daily hatred has damaged their minds. Angry Weird Frustrated Mentally Abused. And easy to control
In the documentary, Bad Faith, they outline how this group of weirdos is descended from Paul Weyrich's vision & manifestation of the moral majority. Their focus on these 'cultural' issues, as both he & Nixon called them, was intended (as we all know) to split blue collar workers and reclaim the labor movement for the GOP. What's interesting is that abortion, and by extension IVF, was not a focus of the Pentecostal preachers until Weyrich & Reagan told them to focus on it. Prior to this push from the politician's, they were focused almost exclusively on race as their wedge issue.
Weyrich & Reagan pushed them to replace 'race' with 'abortion' because it was more acceptable politically. But all of this is really just code word for racism. The beating heart of the MAGA movement, which derives from the Pentecostal preachers in the late 60s and early 70s, is hatred based on race, pure & simple. Abortion, LGBTQ issues, etc. are all just code words for racism.
Trump and Vance are not qualified to lead this country, and I suspect they know it, so they are going to con their way in, gish galloping like it's never been done before. I hope voters wake up. Liz Cheney and Kamala Harris are giving wonderful speeches emphasizing country over party. I hope they can continue this - it needs to be heard again and again. The alternative to gish gallop.
"Weird" just doesn't cut it, Dr. Reich. Why do you keep using it? It's a very weak and lazy word to describe what the Repugs are doing and what they've been doing for years now! Your use of it makes you look like you lack imagination and intelligence! Republicans are insane, diabolical, murderous, genocidal, hateful, crazier than shit, spreaders of the Opioid crisis, thieves, accessories to crimes, plotters of crimes, insurrectionists, terrorists, traitors, aiders and abettors to a DANGEROUS, SOCIOPATHIC, MALIGNANTLY NARCISSISTIC PSYCHOPATH, and outright accomplices to the downfall of our government. PLEASE CALL IT OUT FOR WHAT IT IS! "Weird" is lame, weak, timid, and makes you sound really inept for not choosing to DESCRIBE WHAT IS with a far better label from the VAST CHOICE OF WORDS AVAILABLE IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE! Your use of that word makes me want to unsubscribe from your substack.
I personally think that "weird" is a word that actually gets under republicans' skin just because of the "insignificance" and the meaning that represents.
If you would actually call them all the words you have used here it will end up giving them more significance and make them feel more powerful than they actually are.
Weird sums up the "scam size" of the nuisance they are perceived by
Klare, condemning someone on moral grounds when that person uses a different morality is pointless and can be counterproductive. When rational dialogue is impossible, ridicule might be more effective.
Honestly, I wish that Democratic advocates would stop using this word. It is too forgiving of the brutal intentions behind most of the examples you cite; it approaches being a way of « sane-washing » the mean spirited rhetoric and fascist agenda of the MAGA leadership and acolytes. We’re not evaluating a fictional « Twilight Zone » here. For the MAGA crowd it’s an existential combat. It should be for you and for all of us who wish to see democracy preserved.
Agree. Weird is a good word - it's clearly getting under Trump's skin - but it should not be overused. In terms of brain function, intermittent stimulation leads to an increasing response, frequent stimulation leads to a fatiguing response.
For example, Harris could use it in a speech two weeks from now, e.g.,:
Is it weird to cut taxes on billionaires and corporations?
Is it weird to talk about Hannibal Lecter?
Is it weird to talk about being eaten by a shark?
Is it weird to tell women what to do with their own bodies?
etc., etc.
Michael, yes all of the things you cite are weird. It is true that weird could be overused, however it has been only in real circulation for a couple of months or so. If used sparingly and in the right situations it can continue to be a reminder of just how really weird the Republican Party is now. Then add a few more words like cruel, inhumane, uncaring, lying, unamerican, cheating, fraudsters. Mixing weird in with those can be pretty good.
Michael Hutchinson, that's interesting that intermittent is more strategic.
Trumpet 🎺 is playing the long game His goal is to be considered “ eccentric” (rich people are eccentric poor people are crazy-demented etc…).
Trumpet 🎺 is not going to win
re-election his goal are to suck in as many supporters as possible fleece them with trumpet bibles , golden sneaker 👟, and now $100,000 autographed gold watch’s; his overarching goal is to avoid jail and accountability for his attempted overthrow of our Democratic Government…
Attack Attack Attack, Admit Nothing , Declare Victory no matter the outcome was… Avoid Jail Avoid Jail Avoid Jsil…
Weird, because it’s not “the left” saying you can’t trust scientists, doctors, journalists, the FBI, the DOJ, judges and juries…it’s MAGA that says that!
Trump and his MAGA cult Christian nationalist are the biggest danger to our country, our democracy and our constitution. Trump can never be allowed back into the White House again! And saying that Trump is a threat to democracy is not an incitement to violence. Don’t let anyone tell you different!
How about wearing these t-shirts in front of your MAGA neighbor 👇 🤣
teespring.com/stores/libtees-2
Stop w your hawking of t-shirts! Yeah capitalism at its best during an existential crisis. You’re just like the orange blob.
So true, but what can one say about someone who’s supporting the brutalization of children in Gaza?
It has come across the 'Wires' that Netanyahu is Escalating Israel's Scorched Earth Campaigns against it's Arab/Persian Neighbors in order to influence the American Campaign as well as his Political Survival... He may trying to portray Biden, and Harris as Incompetent... Unfortunately, Biden is playing into this, and Kamala is being dragged along... An Arms Embargo in April 2024 after the Destruction of Northern Gaza would have been timely... It may be the USA's best interest to re-examine the Israeli Alliance which seems to be very one-way... Helping put DJT/JD back in power is not in the Best Interest Of The USA... With the USA Guaranteeing the Survival of Netanyahu, Netanyahu is Un-Restrained....
You say Persia and Arab but that's not exactly true. Iran and it's totally owned and operated subsidiaries Hamas, Hezbollah and Houthi are engaged in a brutal war with each other with Arabs as principal victims. Iran will fight to the last Arab standing. Nota bene: Has Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Iragmq, Jordan, the UAE, Kuwait...or further field non-Arab but Muslim Turkey had much to say in public? Absolutely not. They will keep their mouths shut while letting Israel and the US solve their Iran problem for them. Even if it takes every last Palestinian life. Read the Book of Esther. There are no good guys here. But smear the blame equitably. Israel cannot lose or they/we will cease to exist. Weep for Palestinians who are being sacrificed in the cause of a foreign Sharia war.
The bloody, cruel chaos of the Middle East is a grim example of what happens when you inject tribalism and religion into politics. Yet this is what Republicans are doing right here in the US. That's beyond weird. It's idiotic.
Iran is not Arab, and in fact Iranians detest Arabs. Saddam used that fact in his war with Iran, because both are Shia Islam (Saddam was Sunni)
There was a 10th Century Persian poet, Ferdowsi, who is revered among educated Iranians, he wrote in the Shameneh (Book of Kings)
From feeding on desert lizars and camel'ls milk.
So have the affairs of the Arabs propered.
That they long for the empire of Khorosan.
Same on thee, O circling, Heaven, shame.
Neither can most Iranians forgive the Arabs. Almost any educated Iranian can passionately quote Ferdowsi's lament, uttered by a Persian general facing the Arab army.
Damn on on this World, Damn on this Time,Damn on Fate.
That uncivilized Arabs have come to force me to be Muslim.
In 1987 Khomeini sent a suicide squad of Iranians, during the annual haj, who attacked Mecca and tried to capture it, hundreds died.
There is a 1400 year old conflict between Shia and Sunni Islam,not over doctrine, on that they agree, but over who is the rightful successor of Muhammad, The Shia (followers of Ali ibn abi Talib, the first convert and cousin of Muhammad),or the Sunni, who were not related to Muhammad nor his first students (Ali ibn abi Talib translates as Exalted son of the father of the Student, that student being Muhammad's cousin . Talib means student.
There is one thing that unites Shia and Sunni, temporarily, and that is the hated Jew, and infidels squatting on sacred Arab soil.
William, this is a neat and fairly accurate summary. Claiming that God/Allah/Yahweh is on your side gives you license to kill.
The dominate Ethnic group in Iran are the Persians... The Iranians that I know here on the West Coast consider themselves Persian... They speak Farsi... Iran itself, has many minority groups such as the Assyrians, who are Coptic Christians... I have talked to them too... I have talked to Persian Jews as well... As been noted, a lot of the current instability in the Middle-East stems from Western Meddling following the retreat of the Turks from Empire after their defeat in WW1... Michael Indyk who was a American Ambassador to several Middle Eastern Countries, stated once that one of the problems with the Middle-East, is that these are old struggles that go back hundreds of Years... These Struggles do not fit into neat little boxes... It seems that the most unstable nations such as Libya, and Iraq are Western Creations... Israel is a Fortress in a Arab Sea... It could have used the past 60 years making Peace with the Palestinians instead of terrorizing them like they are now doing in Gaza, Lebanon, and the West Bank... My Rule Of Thumb, Is That There Are No Good Guys In The Middle East...
I would offer the Middle East wars have gone on for thousands of years and the hatred passed along from generation to generation. It will take more than the US to stop this madness. And the saddest part are the innocent who just want to live their lives, love their family and friends, but are unable to change this course of hatred.
Well Apache, tell me what should the Jews do? March into the sea. Surrender and hope that they survive the forthcoming holocaust? Board airplanes and boats and flee to Europe and America?
You see, that is the only thing that is going to satisfy Iran, and the Arabs. The only thing. Absent that, there will always be conflict, violence, terrorism in that wretched land.
The whole thing is a religious war, and the Jews are squatting, per Islamic ideology,on sacred Muslim soil,especially the third most sacred site of Haram al Sharif and al Aqsa Mosque.
All land over which the flag of Muhammad has flown, is forever Muslim.
Thank you William for pointing out the Muslim idea that the Jews are squatting on Muslim soil according to them! I'm not taking sides here as I personally think organized religion of any kind is crazy. But... Abraham founded the Hebrew/Jewish religion about 4,000 years ago and the Muslim religion was founded by Muhammad about 1,400 years ago.. So, by doing simple math, the Jews were there about 2,600 years before the Muslim religion was even founded. Seems to me it's the Muslims who are squatting, not the Jews! Any how, as always it is the innocent folks on both sides of any war that suffer for the misguided egos of their leaders. Final thought. I would like to see a pole of the Iranian people on if they were better off under the Shah or the current Supreme Leader. Cheers... GH
I don't believe there was a prophet named Abraham or that he was going to sacrifice his son Isaac to appease an all too human god named Yah (or Ia), the Jews claim that they descend from his grandson Judah, the northern Arabs claim that they descend from his son Ishmael. Its bullshit, all religions are bullshit. Created y men as a tool to control other men. Man creats his god(s) in his own image, know the god, know the man, and vice versa.
That said, the time before Muhammad, Muslims call the
jāhiliyyah, theArabs were polytheistic and worshiped the moon al Lihah, Allah is a contraction of al Lihah, the also worshiped the planets as goddesses, daughters of al Lihah,Venus was the most powerful (al Uzza) and you can see al Lihah and al Uzza on the flag of many countries like Turkey, and of course the Allah is represented by the crescent (new moon) on the top of many mosques.
Shahs secret people, the Savak, didn't pester the people, only the Islamists, and when they toppled the Shah they took terrible revenge, worse than the Savak, and it continues today, with haning teenage girls that reject wearing the hajib, it is the hajib when they are young, and the chador (the bee keeper suit the Arabs call the abaya) when theymarry.
Indications are, that, with the exception of the Mullahs, the Ayatollahs, the Republican guard and the religious fanatics, they would welcome the Pahlavi's.
Here is what I piece together, Mossadegh was overthrown by a coup potted and financed by MI6, and the CIA, the plan was to have British Petroleum and Standard oil, to monopolize the oil production and export.
France was left out of the deal. Khomeini, whose mother by the way was a Brit, fled to France and was given safe harbor in France. The French CIA/MI6, Directorate-General for External Security (DGSE), , used their diplomatic pouches to smuggle in Khomeini's cassette tapes, which sparked the 1979 revolution., didn't do them any good though, Total SA, the French government oil company, got nothing for it.
After the revolution Iran contracted out the oil fields and pipelines, but has since taken over and The National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC; Persian: شرکت ملّی نفت ایران, romanized: Sherkat-e Melli-ye Naft-e Irān) is a government-owned national oil and natural gas producer and distributor under the direction of the Ministry of Petroleum of Iran.
Iran would be better off it just concentrated on what it has, but it needs an external enemy to keep the populace under control, and that enemy is of course the Jews and great Satan.
The Jews, and Palestinians are descendants of the Indigenous Canaanites... The Descendants of the Canaanites are still there known as the Palestinians... That is why Arabic, and Hebrew are so similar... This goes On-And-On, Back-And-Forth... With the destruction of the 2nd Temple, the Jews were exiled by the Romans... That is why Israel had be re-established, and Hebrew revived from a 'Dead Language'...
Make Peace like they have with Egypt, Jordan, and attempting to with the Emirates & Saudi Arabia ( the Custodian of Mecca )... The Ultra-Zionist War Cabinet that Netanayahu has assembled for Netanyahu's Political Survival, sees the current war's as an opportunity for a Land-Grab among other things... What is forgotten, is that, pre-Modern Israel, there were significant Jewish Populations in all Arab Nations, even in Iran... The 1947 Nakba triggered the current Hostilities... I've known Iranian Jews who migrated pre-Downfall-Of-The-Shah... Bear in mind, the MSM likes Propaganda...
The pre modern Jews in Arab countries, after the 1948 war found themselves unwelcome and discriminated against, even more than usual, most fled to Israel, the constitute 45% of the Jewish population and are known as mizrahi.
The US bought off Egypt with an annual subsidy, bought off Jordan by supporting the Hashemites, and Saudi Arabia because it was not only a makert for their oil, but also supplied (supplies) the technicians and engineers that the Kingdom needed and needs. The Shiites that live in the East of the Country, are to the kingdom what Mexican workers were (are) our farmers and growers.
The problem lies with Iran though, it can't be bought off. Wasn't it Nixon that said something to the effect that what will unite the world is a threat from space.
Well what unites Iran is Israel. And since Iran does not share a border with Israel, and frankly is too big and well armed to engage in battle with not only Israel but any invading force. it will continue to play the spoiler by subsidizing, training and assisting Hezbollah, which is a well armed and organized Shia militia and the de facto government of Lebanon,
Iran used, with the willing help and compliance of, HAMAS, which is Sunnni, a tool by which to put Israel on the back foot.
The continued existence and thus threat to Islamic hegemony, of the Jewish state, is absolutely necessary for the coherent survival of the Islamic Republic of Iran and it's mullahcracy.
Ideologically, Iran denies Israel's right to exist, regardless of boundaries and actual politics. Its policy reflected a deep sense of religious mission,
That it identifies with the Palestinians is subterfuge, because the Palestinians, like the hate Saudi's, are Sunni
Prior to November 1948, when an Arab alliance attacked the new Jewish State (May 1948). Jews lived in Muslim lands and were allowed to practice their faith, as second class citizens (dhimmis), these were not democracies. They were, and most still are, Kingdoms and Sheikdoms/Emirates.
With the victory of Israel, anger at the Jews turned inward, and most (all in some cases) fled to Israel, these are the mizrahi, those who know what it is like to live under Muslim rule..
Prior to 1948 there were 130,000 Jews in Iran, after the 1948 war 122,000 migrated to Israel, and after the Islamic revolution, there was a mass migration and today there are about 6,500 Jews in Iran,mostly old folk.
Other Islamic ethnostates, there are 57 of them, either have no Jews,100 to 500 Jews, and that includes Malaysia and Indonesia.
That is True... Globally, the Turning Point was the Nakba... The Turning point in Iran, was the 1979 Fall-Of-The-Shah, and the Rise of the Ayatollahs... The Shah was Western-Looking, the Ayatollahs are Medieval.... There was some Kissinger Blowback involved... The Shah was the only Moslem State willing to sell Oil to Israel... Currently, I don't think that the Iranian Ayatollahs are popular with the General Populace... Yes, the USA subsidies the Egyptian, and Jordanian Peace Treaties... Still much cheaper than War... I'm not a Fan of the Ayatollahs... I would definitely be considered a Infidel... I'm only concerned with USA Blood & Treasure...
I am at a loss to understand the administrations actions which have been counter to US national interests. There must be a number of people at the state department who have gone bald the last year. Time for Harris to say she has a secret plan to end all this. Whatever works.
"The president of the striking Longshoremen is Trump's FRIEND.
Netanyahu who is expanding the war in the Middle East is Trump's FRIEND.
Putin who keeps attacking Ukraine is Trump's FRIEND.
Republicans who killed the border deal are Trump's CRONIES.
They're ALL trying to help Trump win!"
Thanks Katrina... I believe that last night that the actual Longshoreman's Strike has been adverted to January 2025 for a substantial immediate raise... That is good news...
I’d say « enabling, » but here I was addressing a way of characterising the MAGA agenda, not the complex strategic and political calculus of funding the Israeli Defence Forces.
No matter how you slice or dice it, when the ends justify the means it’s a recipe for disaster. And disaster is what we’re party to in the Middle East.
The ends don't even justify the means here. That's what is so terrible.
But we have an election to win. First priority.
There was a interesting discussion on NPR today with Viewpoints from all the Belligerents.... This goes back a long ways... An 'Eye-For-An-Eye, and a 'Tooth-For-A-Tooth' leads to a Toothless, Blind Village...
Hmm, I thought Walz looked weird and crazy-eyed.
Compared to Trump - Walz looked and sounded like a HERO
Yes, he did. Can you blame him? Vance was using the debate to spew out lies. The moderators should have stopped him at the first lie. Rules are rules, and if we don't follow them we get chaos, which is what Republicans want, of course. Like the Nazis of the 1930s they are taking advantage of freedom to promote their totalitarian ideology. Not stopping them is beyond weird.
You're right! Hamas needs to stop hiding behind Palestinian non-combatants, release the hostages they captured, and face their punishment like men.
Oh please. You really buy that? Now Israel is bombing and killing civilians in Lebanon...they wait till midnight . Maximum killing saying Hezbollah has tunnels and is hiding in the population. Sound familiar? Since when dies a country have the right to assassinate, bomb, and invade other countries at will? Oh yeah, since tgey have American weaponry and unlimited taxpayer money from the USA.
"Since when does a country have the right to assassinate, bomb, and invade other countries at will?"
Sept. 11, 2001 -- Never forget.
Try to multiply that 1000 fold...
They would have no idea what you are talking about. There are no Boy Scouts in Sharia lae.
Face punishment: same for Drumpf, Putin, Netanyahu ...
"The president of the striking Longshoremen is Trump's FRIEND.
Netanyahu who is expanding the war in the Middle East is Trump's FRIEND.
Putin who keeps attacking Ukraine is Trump's FRIEND.
Republicans who killed the border deal are Trump's CRONIES.
They're ALL trying to help Trump win!"
❤Reich❤:"What makes MAGA Republican leaders weird isn’t just that they’re awkward, unfunny, and unpleasant. It’s that they want to impose their weird ideas on everyone else."
Up to 60% of anxious people are cured by placebo.... aka 60% of Americans believe BS. Is that BS innocuous or insidious? Unfortunately innocuous can MUTATE into insidious.
Think of Reich's list of weird beliefs as insidious placebos. But placebos can be anything. In case you didn't notice, Trump can get away with ANYTHING.... so Trump has NOTHING TO LOSE by being weird in ways that are validating potential followers' WEIRD PLACEBO. The next step is from Dr Festinger's cult science book:"When Prophecy Fails." Insecure Placeboees want to CONTROL OTHER PEOPLE... thus I invented the word MILITANT PLACEBOEE😁😁😁😁😁
❤Reich❤:"What makes MAGA Republican leaders weird isn’t just that they’re awkward, unfunny, and unpleasant. It’s that they want to impose their weird ideas on everyone else."
MAGA Republicans are leading a Movement of MILITANT PLACEBOEES who want to force their placebo on everyone😁😁😁
❤
We all need the therapy that makes us secure enough to LAUGH AT SYSTEMIC HUMAN FLAWS....
First Do No Harm: Stop the Lying... "Don't Sweat It" Is a lie: Exercise and Exposure both cause sweat and both are Mandatory.😁😁😁
99.9% of the US refuses the inoculation recommended by the White House: "Do one thing every day that scares you."--Eleanor Roosevelt...
....instead, Americans were tricked by " Our pills aren't addictive " Purdue Pharma:"You don't have to face your fears anymore, just keep popping our pills!"
❤
During the last 35 years new technology has distributed almost every aspect of people’s lives. The pace of that change is increasing. Change causes anxiety. Things feel out of control. Jobs are different, relationships are different, communication is different. People want to go back to when they thought they understood how things happened. Trump told people he would do that for them. He focused on the superficial social issues of race, sex, and religion, and class, while he and his cronies wanted the power. They are offering security to the people who need to be told how to cope. The security includes being exploited, but many people don’t seem to care.
No question that technology, and it's acceleration, have been a major factor maybe even THE factor, in bringing about our current crisis.
But regulating technology has a timelag. If there were even a mindset for that. We're more like- "throw it out there, it's innovation" That's neither wholly good nor wholly bad. But it's been feeling more bad the last 20 years.
With the smartphones - we are all doomed - it makes us distrustful scared paranoid and most of all lazy
The smartphone puts AI right in your hand and in your face 24x7-
There’s no escape or going back
❤😁😉🤔😷😱💓
Note: GULLIBILITY is illegal in 19 countries:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legality_of_Holocaust_denial#By_country
Uncured anxiety prevents voting, anxiety cured by a MAGA placebo causes votes for our opponent... THE ONLY THING THAT'S LEFT IS SCIENCE😁😁😁😁
❤
how bout "weirdly dangerous"?
I'm good with the use of "weird" but you are right. It needs to compete with other descriptions that are far more serious.
The 'weird' thing should have lasted a week or two but Democrats have no ear and no political killer instinct and are hobbled by having consciences and caring about people. Running a country isn't easy even if you are capable and care. Vandalism, theft and sabotage are relatively easy, so Republicans have us there. They have a number of structural advantages, one of which is their boundless willingness to lie in a system that assumes insiders that actually accept the system and aren't trying to destroy it.
I can't believe there's no way for someone to take out a warrant and arrest and hold them all, when you look at the things you can get arrested for. Black people can still get shot with impunity most of the time which gives us an idea how the deck is stacked. But I think what Robert does here is fine, anyway, since he's playing off the meme. He's such a dose of sanity at a time when Republicans are ramping up the hate to extraordinary levels. If we had a Geiger counter for lies and bullshit and hate and affrontery it would be exploding.
They're going nucular, as their model president and paradigm of destructive capability might say. It's the talent they admire above all others.
Can you imagine that ? Our nation's founders actually thought most people in Congress by far would accept the system and not try to undermine and destroy it for their selfish ends. What were they thinking ?
"A republic madam if you can keep it"
John C. Calhoun+Josef Goebbels+Trump+Vance.
You're right - a better description is "highly abnormal and dangerously unfit to serve."
social misfits
I am in agreement. The GOP is far beyond weird or strange. They are dangerous liars who have seriously thought out plans to run our lives. Let’s hammer on how frightening the retribution and mass deportations will be for all of Americans when millions will be rounded up. Let’s hammer on the frightening future if Ukraine and NATO are abandoned by the USA and Putin has a go ahead agreement. And where will this put Taiwan and our allies in the pacific.
Let’s hammer on the dangerous lives of our sisters, daughters, grandchildren and friends and every man when the right to reproductive choices are taken away. Let’s hammer at the income inequality that the GOP promises and an economic policy of tariffs.
What’s weird is calling a party that is marching towards the Hitler, Stalin, Pol pot, Mao destiny for America “weird” like we can’t get our minds around the reality of the precipice we’re about to be pushed over.
Perhaps Homo sapiens is a misnomer. Perhaps Homo lupus would be more accurate. Man is wolf to man, the old Romans used to say. Yet we can be very loving and generous to each during natural disaster (Rebecca Solnit wrote a fine piece about this). Perhaps the recent NC catastrophe will wake us up as to where the real danger lies.
I agree. Weird does not fit the horror they attach it to.
Excellent points. Bravo! Thank you for seeing this clearly.
I agree. I think “weird” is way too generous of a descriptor of MAGA beliefs and politics which represent an existential threat to democracy, basic human rights, science-based decisions & actions, and freedom.
True, but it is weird. It is also redundant. The MAGA crowd are proving once again that when people give in to fear they lose the capacity to reason. They should have headed FDR's advice: fear not but fear itself.
I agree. I think we need to start using the word cruel instead.
Mr Howard, by describing them as fascists, racists,misogynistic, xenophobes, they and their MAGAt followers, wear those labels like American flag pins in the lapel, but the only word so far that has evoked a defensive reaction is "weird". Racism, misogyny, etc has been normalized, but weird means they aren't normal and thus they get defensive.
Part of the issue here is what one is trying to accomplish in the choice of language. Is it simply name-calling in an effort to get under somebody's skin or to put them on the defensive? Given the closeness of the election, I think it makes sense to be mindful of the traditional purpose of rhetoric, which is to persuade. Accusing somebody or their ideas of not being normal is not likely to be persuasive with those whose vote could still be influenced. I would the rhetoric focus on what is a stake, and what concretely will impact everyone, should a cabal of oligarchs and opportunists such as stand behind the R candidate secure absolute political power in the US.
John, you assume a rational audience. Anyone who has entrusted his destiny to Trump is irrational. These individuals are in complete denial of reality, and the only speech they listen to is the one that confirms their biases. Consider their behavior during the pandemic. It was weird and tragic, as many needlessly died.
I do understand you, and you are intellectually correct. But the mentality of that 48% that votes for Trump is not intellectual, it is totally emotional, and identity based.
Do you honestly think that they are persuadable, misguided souls that can be redirected? That hasn't worked for the "lost cause" believers.
I even doubt that there is a persuadable 7 or 8%, just people who tell pollsters that they haven't made up their minds, because they have no desire to tell strangers what they really think.
There is a lot of effort in shoving down the play of identity politics, and accusing the Democrats of playing identity politics.
But identity politics is as old as the foundation of this country, and older.
The basis of the culture war, which is driving identity politics, is not liberals objecting to bigotry and oppression, but white, Christian men, threatened by the equality of non whites, women, non Christians and gay. In fact there was even a spurt of bigotry against Irish, who weren't considered white, until they lost their brogue.
John, maybe we could say, "brutally weird." I don't know another term that hits the lack of normality of this Republican party better.
Where semantics is concerned, use of the word ‘weird’ invites a mere satirical sneer. A better four-letter word is EVIL, which strikes fear in the hearts of people of all religious stripes.
Unfortunately, MAGA (better: MAFIA, Make America Fake It Again) ideas are highly popular among many voters. Which is weird.
Trumpet 🎺 is playing the long game His goal is to be considered “ eccentric” (rich people are eccentric poor people are crazy-demented etc…).
Trumpet 🎺 is not going to win
re-election his goal are to suck in as many supporters as possible fleece them with trumpet bibles , golden sneaker 👟, and now $100,000 autographed gold watch’s; his overarching goal is to avoid jail and accountability for his attempted overthrow of our Democratic Government…
Attack Attack Attack, Admit Nothing , Declare Victory no matter the outcome was… Avoid Jail Avoid Jail Avoid Jail…
Thinking of it ... avoiding jail matters to
him, off course, but a main reason for him to keep campaigning may also be that it is the most lucrative business he's ever been in.
I’m not criticizing you, in the spirit of someone like Howard Zinn, I’m trying to get people like Robert Reich to have a little bit of self reflection.
In my view, Robert Reich c.s. do have selfreflection, and people like the Don and Vance don't, or if they do, they don't have a conscience. They're always talking and acting for the sake of their own interests only, and if that means you deny today what you did and said yesterday, that's what they will do. Vance: Jan, 6 was a "peaceful
transfer of power. "
Yup - and genocide seems to be OK?
Kevin: Netanyahu recently visited Trump at Maralago. What do you think they talked about? Do you think perhaps they made a deal that if Trump gets AIPAC support and wins the election, Trump will help him rid all humans from Gaza and that Trump's son-in-law will build the first, biggest, most beautiful resort in the world on the beach in Gaza that the world has ever seen?
Gloria Maloney, I have no patience anymore for people who bash the only democratic candidate in the running. If they want to vote for the anti-democratic candidate, then
they should go do it, but they would rather play Putin-like games instead. And if there really is anyone sincere who is still bashing the only democratic candidate, then they are unable to see clearly that they are sabotaging their own mission, by turning people away from voting for only the candidate who doesn't want more violence. Not only wholly unstrategic and counter-productive, but their bashing actions are increasing the chances of the death of our democracy, of our America as we know it,, and the countless deaths, torture, and other cruelties to our fellow people on this land.
Could you tell me if you're talking about me or Kevin? I know that Biden and Harris want an immediate cease-fire and care about the vulnerable citizens involved in the conflict and how the situation affects the U.S. The issues are complicated, and we don't have all the facts they have. I suggest to Kevin that Trump and others like him are only concerned with themselves. Netanyahu and Trump desparately want to stay in power to stay out of prison. Everyone will be worse off if Trump wins the election. Like Robert Reich said today, all Republicans aren't weird. Let's try to have a conversation until it is not beneficial.
Gloria J. Maloney, I was talking about Kevin. I liked your factual response to Kevin about B.N. meeting with tfg and was supporting your query to Kevin.
Then, never mind, M. Lol.
It’s called the “Art of the Deal”…
I don't see your point. I've said nothing about that. I'm against genocide, btw.
Just when you think you have seen it all they continue to amaze! How these weirdo’s got into leadership positions is in itself Weird!
How about "Melania Trump, in rare break with husband, voices support for abortion rights!"
How about: "Why Rudy Giuliani's daughter says she's voting for Kamala Harris." https://www.cnn.com/2024/10/02/politics/video/caroline-giuliani-kamala-harris-endorsement-sot-ebof-digvid
I'm very skeptical about Melania's sudden revealation regarding her support of abortion rights a little over a month before election day; her timing seems weird.
IMHO was planned. She's making the rounds -- for a fee. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VFhxYeNLNpg
Material girl in a material world. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AM-b8P1yj9w
I wish Melania had said that her son was the product of immaculate conception. Oh well.
How about the media stating that Vance's behavior during the debate was disgraceful.
The same can be said of all of them.
Every politician will get his/her hands dirty, sooner or later, regretfully.
I’m of the opinion that it doesn’t have to be that way…
If I would have voted in the US, I would have preferred Bernie Sanders for president. But undoubtedly, even his decisions were not always to the benefit of all of his constituents.
Those deals with Beelzebub are real full of legalese.
Social media is likely a big influence on this election. Everyone is welcome to re-post the following or add or subtract from it and post:
Democracy is on the Line
Democracy is on the line here and worldwide. At the heart of a democracy is having fair and free elections in which the citizens of voting age determine the leaders. If trying to overthrow an election is allowed, there are no other laws that are safe from being disregarded or misused. Once the rule of law has broken down it’s very hard to get back. Free elections are hard to get back once a dictatorship is established.
Some people may think the dictator is on their side. No, the dictator is for the dictator. As the saying goes, absolute power corrupts absolutely. Trump wants to be a dictator and he has the media, the Supreme Court and many big money donors supporting him. He openly admires dictators like Hungarian Viktor Orban and called Putin’s invasion genus. Trump has the will and the skill to become a dictator.
Trump is saying he won’t supply Ukraine against Putin’s invasion. With a Trump win, Russia could defeat Ukraine. This might encourage more land grabs, more wars and more dictators. If the leader of the free world, the USA, becomes a dictatorship what will the world become and what will the USA become?
Let’s vote in Harris and retain our democracy. We can supply Ukraine, maybe they can push Russia out or if Ukraine wants to negotiate with Russia, they would be doing so from a stronger position. In a nuclear world, the stakes are high. But the stakes are higher with more dictatorships and higher still without a free USA. Democracy here and democracies worldwide are on the line, please vote for Harris.
I would add that besides his affinities to become a dictator Trump is confronted with the very "hot" risk of getting jailed if he doesn't win ... which I think is the most incentive argument that is driving him to keep going
Their rallies look like a cross between a big tent evangelical revival and a WWF wrestling event so yeah, kinda weird, but don’t underestimate their capacity to be violent.
So true - But what about the violence Kamala Harris is supporting in the Middle East?
We're trying to win an election here Kevin.
We can all reflect some more after that.
Many of us in Europe are of the opinion that Biden-Harris should put more pressure on Israel and Netanyahu.
1000 years ago the Golden Age of Islam brought an era of learning, peace and prosperity to the territories of the former Roman Empire. Jewish and Muslim scholars wrote books and studied medicine.
The Reconquista, the Black Plague and resurgence of the papal state in Rome led to the Crusades, war between Islam and Christianity and a search for someone else to blame it on.
Antisemitism, meaning hatred of Israel/Jews, was invented during the Crusades and has served European Christian authoritarianism ever since.
Palestinians are the other Semites, among many, the descendents of Abraham and Esau whose diaspora is much more recent as fallout from post WWII European decolonization.
But how to stop the violence. How far are we yet from chimpanzees?
What about the violence you choose not to mention: 1200 Israeli civilians dead, 200 hostages taken. Hamas started it up again. But please, stick your head your ass and pretend it was not so.
There is no justfication for the terror of Hamas. Most of us who champion human rights for Palestinians (and other people) agree on that. There's no pretending whatsoever that Oct 7, 2023 didn't happen.
I have not one Republican friend. The Maga republicans are not weird. They are evil and un American. Mostly fascist and mentally unstable. I think the Longshoremen are going back to work. Who knew I would ever like Liz Chaney? A pretty good omen on Rosh Hashona. The scary thing is not letting people vote and that Trump is not locked up and the corrupt Supreme Court.
Indeed... evil and capable of GREAT harm.
Keep in mind Trump's mishandling of the pandemic. 400,000 Americans died from Covid-19 in Trump's final year. 400,000 is the number of Americans killed in action in four years of World War II. And Trump gave himself an A+
I am thankful that posters are using the word "evil" to describe the cult of Trump. "Weird" describes an accusation that certain legal migrants are eating other peoples' pets. But it crosses over into evil when the false accusation results in threats of violence.
A businessman in Springfield went on a TV station and sang nothing but praises for the small number of Haitians working for his company. Afterwards, he immediately started to receive death threats. This is not weird; it is evil.
Carl Jung understood the Nazis well. He asserted how important it is to call out evil when we witness it. Otherwise, it starts to take over -- as it certainly has in our country. The Trump cult are not capable of making moral judgments -- they have no moral compass -- and it's very fortunate when you find one who can be reasoned with.
In their perverted, degenerate minds, it is those NOT in the cult who are evil -- and they will not hesitate to use violence. Cheered on by their cult leader, as he did on January 6. Told his vice president had to be moved because he was in great danger,. Trump replied "So what?"
Justice served:
"Tina Peters was just sentenced to 9 years of incarceration after compromising her own voting equipment trying to prove Trump’s Big Lie. Colorado will not allow anyone to threaten our elections."
Jena Griswold, Colorado Secretary of State, Oct. 3, 2024
Yes, call evil out. My representative Ann Wagner MO 2 CD reminds me of the banality of evil.
But I disagree. MAGA leadership has a moral compass. Power and money is their lodestar.
Yes, Thomas, but let's use the word "evil" as an adjective, not a noun. Actions are evil when they harm. Vance's lies are evil because they are intended to harm people for the benefit of a few.
Missed the one where republicans beg for federal money after natural disasters while actively voting against funding these same programs…
Well, I agree with the weird part. But I think that evil also needs to be added to that. The Magats that I know wallow in their Magatness and that is when you can see the evil.
One of the better definitions of evil was explained by M. Scott Peck when he described evil as the process a narcissist uses to project their insecurity onto others and twist it in a process called scapegoating. As M. Scott Peck’s young son pointed out Evil is Live spelled backwards.
Love, as defined by M. Scott Peck, on the other hand, is the process of acting on behalf of someone else to advance their well being.
We as a species should be actively trying to do away with evil and instead we should be promoting what generally constitutes as love.
Kevin Flynn, love also allows you to think logically. Something you are not doing by bashing Harris. Why are you being unstrategic and counterproductive? Or is it, you just want to vote for the anti-American, anti-democratic, pro-violence candidate? If so, then go do it. Either way, I have a hard time taking you seriously when your bashing actions improve the likelihood of guaranteed widespread cruelty, death, violence, and torture in America. Where is your outrage for that?
Unfortunately I have to agree with you. Donald Trump is horrendously horrific. He’s the worst person of the 8 billion people on the planet for the job of president.
As hard as it might be for someone like you to believe Kamala Harris is in some ways worse than Trump. She and Biden are hurtling us toward world war 3 in Eastern Europe and the Middle East.
I hope I’m wrong, but as John Mearsheimer says “there are dark clouds in the horizon”.
The other thing I’d like to be clear about is that I want to see America be a force for good in the world and with the right kind of leadership it’s definitely possible. The trouble is that we’ve lost our way.
Kevin Flynn, the people far more likely to get us into war are those with rampant egos. Their egos need to create conflict and violence to maintain their beliefs in superority and separateness from others. Their craving of power over others, of dominating others is enormous. Throw into the mix, a couple of them can outrun the law only if they regain or retain the highest political power. Not to mention, rampant egos are wholly transactional not patriotic. They will partner with any and all for power or profit. Biden and Harris have not ever exhibited rampant egos. There have no thirst for war.
Humans as a species lost their way thousands and thousands of years ago. The best way to change the world is to change ourselves. Decondition ourselves from all the nonsense we were conditioned with. Lessen our egos. And this helps us be more strategic in our actions to bring about positive, sustainable change.
John Mearsheimer is a Putin lover. Ergo Kevin is a Putin lover.
Yes, Mearsheimer is a good apologist for Putin's actions. Not that he doesn't make a number of fair points. The West coulda done more. But hardly an excuse for Putin's repeated warmongering.
Daniel Solomon, thanks for the heads up.
Kevin, clouds have silver linings. We still have our Constitution. We still are ruled by reason. We can still resolve difference by compromise. Let's not descend into despair and give up what we have by default. That would be beyond weird.
Kevin Flynn, PS, Your first statement indicated that I said someone was h. h. I did not say that. Those are not my words.
You may be critical of someone without calling that 'bashing'. Unless you're a Drumpfian of course, then you will immediately fire such a critical person lfor disloyalty.
Ted Gaalen van, I'm aware of the definition of bashing. He was bashing.
EVOL-ution
The "weird " label has stuck and has definitely gotten under the disgraced ex-president's skin.
Yes, they are absolutely WEIRD but worse and more FRIGHTFUL than that is that they are SO CRUEL AND NASTY/MEAN.
that's what we need, we cant have a country where other country's think we are pussys and cant fend for ourselves
MAGA have been abused for forty years by the GOP, to be filled with outrageous hatred for liberals, and the daily hatred has damaged their minds. Angry Weird Frustrated Mentally Abused. And easy to control
In the documentary, Bad Faith, they outline how this group of weirdos is descended from Paul Weyrich's vision & manifestation of the moral majority. Their focus on these 'cultural' issues, as both he & Nixon called them, was intended (as we all know) to split blue collar workers and reclaim the labor movement for the GOP. What's interesting is that abortion, and by extension IVF, was not a focus of the Pentecostal preachers until Weyrich & Reagan told them to focus on it. Prior to this push from the politician's, they were focused almost exclusively on race as their wedge issue.
Weyrich & Reagan pushed them to replace 'race' with 'abortion' because it was more acceptable politically. But all of this is really just code word for racism. The beating heart of the MAGA movement, which derives from the Pentecostal preachers in the late 60s and early 70s, is hatred based on race, pure & simple. Abortion, LGBTQ issues, etc. are all just code words for racism.
It would be a very serious mistake to dismiss abortion as merely a code word. It is a very real issue for millions of voters.
DUMP TRAITOR RTRUMP. THIS DEPLORABLE CON CALLED VETERANS SUCKERS AND LOSERS, DUMP ALL REPUBLICONS WHO HAVE ENABLED THIS SCUM BAG
Trump and Vance are not qualified to lead this country, and I suspect they know it, so they are going to con their way in, gish galloping like it's never been done before. I hope voters wake up. Liz Cheney and Kamala Harris are giving wonderful speeches emphasizing country over party. I hope they can continue this - it needs to be heard again and again. The alternative to gish gallop.
"Weird" just doesn't cut it, Dr. Reich. Why do you keep using it? It's a very weak and lazy word to describe what the Repugs are doing and what they've been doing for years now! Your use of it makes you look like you lack imagination and intelligence! Republicans are insane, diabolical, murderous, genocidal, hateful, crazier than shit, spreaders of the Opioid crisis, thieves, accessories to crimes, plotters of crimes, insurrectionists, terrorists, traitors, aiders and abettors to a DANGEROUS, SOCIOPATHIC, MALIGNANTLY NARCISSISTIC PSYCHOPATH, and outright accomplices to the downfall of our government. PLEASE CALL IT OUT FOR WHAT IT IS! "Weird" is lame, weak, timid, and makes you sound really inept for not choosing to DESCRIBE WHAT IS with a far better label from the VAST CHOICE OF WORDS AVAILABLE IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE! Your use of that word makes me want to unsubscribe from your substack.
I personally think that "weird" is a word that actually gets under republicans' skin just because of the "insignificance" and the meaning that represents.
If you would actually call them all the words you have used here it will end up giving them more significance and make them feel more powerful than they actually are.
Weird sums up the "scam size" of the nuisance they are perceived by
Just an opinion
Personally, I would go for 'nasty'. But you are right, in fact it is far worse than that.
Klare, condemning someone on moral grounds when that person uses a different morality is pointless and can be counterproductive. When rational dialogue is impossible, ridicule might be more effective.