176 Comments

Democrats need to find a way to amplify, ad nauseam, all the republican hypocrisies. Show clips of Ukraine, then show republicans trying to kill their own democracy. Twitter has many photos of Isis driving their trucks with flags, underneath are the tRump goons driving their trucks with flags…a model of each other. Citizen’s United is an atrocity. Advertise widely how Qpublicans vote AGAINST fair voting practices and access to vote. If the Dems need ideas, peruse Twitter with all the anti-tRump messages. There are many funny ones too. Humiliate the republicans so no one will ever forget Jan 6 2021. Prosecute tRump, family, and every person behind it at the top. Putin is getting his own. Let it be an eye opener for Qpublicans who support Putin and his puppet tRump.

Every Democrat must vote, remove politicians to move forward on getting away from fossil fuels.

Get rid of our oligarchy…money out! Not easy. It WILL require sacrifice but we shouldn’t complain.

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Agree that this is the time to make a clear and powerful push for democracy here in the US -- which includes not only voting rights but holding Trump and his cronies accountable for their attempted coup.

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I have been reading articles that say Merrick Garland is very reluctant to prosecute Trump. IMO not doing so would be disastrous. Do you have any thoughts on this?

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Paula, I believe that Garland is biding his time, leaving no stone unturned and once all of those ducks are in a row he will prosecute the former occupant of the Peoples House. Excuse my clichés - Lucky I didn’t spell “biding” differently!

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I hope you’re right, Anne.

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It requests having complete needs to have proof that can't be asked away. We "believe" it is truth but proof is another problem. The Repubs do everything they can do to support him (shaking my head side to side) as to "why" they can't see his horrid actions, but they believe they can get more voters supporting that horrid person. It HAS to be bullet proof.

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Excellent thoughts. Remind people of Norman Mailer's observation: "The paradox is that no love can prove so intense as the love of two narcissists for each other." [More than two here, though -- Putin-Trump-Kim Jong-un and others] As you state, amplify ad nauseum.

Need to find media (like billboards) where those who normally only read/hear/watch far right media can't avoid the messages.

In areas where there's no possibility that a Democrat can win, support Rational Republicans (there must be some out there somewhere) to seed fence sitting republicans, independents and Evangelicals with examples of courage and common sense.

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Can a Repug be humiliated??? I've not seen any of that so far, thanks to their tv propagandists giving them righteousness as a weapon against civil society.

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True. The delusions run so deep, they think they’re admired. But when they stop getting center-stage attention, that could change.

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Mar 8, 2022·edited Mar 8, 2022

I believe the sanctions are having a unexpected benefit for America. We are getting United again. Of course that does not include the Putin cheerleaders. The republican party is gone. They will be left in the dust or in jail where they actually belong. We need to buckle up if we want sanctions to work. The latest news is we will be hearing from the president and most likely cutting off oil with Russia. Great job Mr. President Do everything possible and completely cut off oil trade. Don’t worry about politics. God has your back. For me expanding and protecting voting rights is number one for me. Make it a national holiday and major celebration. If we still end up with this trash then we get what we deserve. Term limits to avoid doing the same thing expecting different results. INSANITY. Overturn Citizens United. Arrest jail and execute traitors. Make America great again. Make an example of public servants gone bad. Everyone pays their fair share of taxes. This should take place day one. I always like the quote if you speak the truth you don’t have to remember anything. I really have to give the president credit for the coalition he has put together. So much different than going it alone under the Bush administration

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Ed, I'm also impressed with Biden's ability in this crisis -- his capacity to strengthen and unify NATO, his steadiness under pressure, and the carefully calibrated ways he's increased pressure on Putin.

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Biden has had an unbelievable number of things on his plate and he has made progress despite the repulsive and extremely unpatriotic republican behavior! He has tremendous empathy for people and is a true statesman. A 180 from psycho Trump.

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So many ways to support the workers of this country. Lift the SS cap. Start it at $20k on up. But everyone under $20k will receive it. Make corps pay appropriate taxes, severely penalize companies hiding money offshore. Reduce military budget. This wealth could give every single person in the US, free or extremely low health care, pay for or reduce university education to affordability with a part time job. Why should there be multi- billionaires? Wouldn’t 1 billion give these people an extravagant life?

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Couldn't agree more, Ed. It's my wish list, but what do we do with 75 million people, 25% of our population, who think differently? Can't execute all of them.

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We tolerate a lot of lifestyles in this country and as long as you’re not a criminal, in a democracy you’re free to be who you want to be. I think we need to embrace what is unfolding as a massive opportunity to grow spiritually and realize our true potential. Truth justice and the American way. My idea is empathy, forgiveness, sensitivity and love. The human spirit is divine let’s revisit that and become gods children again

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Don;t nee ot execute all of them. Just pass some laws that restrain the ability go grow wealthier than God. Let those who have the most pay to help support those who have the least. Sounds pretty Xtain to me.

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I agree with everything except executions. We won't look a lot different from an autocratic dictatorship then.

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OK, I agree with you on all of that except your promotion of term limits. Legislating and working in Washington DC takes a certain amount of experience and term limits would only make things worse. Or better if you're attempting to overthrow our republic. Check it out.

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Every suggestion provides a solution to combat the tragedy unfolding in Ukraine and around the world. Providing a stipend to Americans under a specific income level would help with the rising cost of fuel. I would rather see that happen then purchase oil from countries who are guilty of crimes against humanity.

Throughout history, the fascist playbook has shown us that once the people lose their right to vote, to participate in free and fair elections, the result is a loss of freedom and democracy. This is how authoritarianism/dictators come to power. We must make sure that doesn’t happen here. I don’t know what we can do to convince Manchin and Sinema to act when they are openly supporting the suppressors. Disgusting.

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Susan, I imagine you’ve heard that Biden, this morning, will announce his intent to ban all Russian oil and gas imports. As for your point regarding free and fair elections, considering Biden’s approval rating has risen 8 points since the State of the Union, perhaps he now has the leverage to call out Manchin’s and Sinema’s mere support, last January, for voter protection legislation as hollow and performative, absent their willingness to support an exceedingly modest Senate rule change that would have been enacted only once to advance the newly combined Freedom to Vote: John R. Lewis Act.

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Susan, great idea. I am with you 100% on your entire post.

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One problem I see is that you appear to believe the govt would supply the "stipend" for fuel costs. The Rethugs would scream bloomin' murder about that one. I can just hear the tantrums about "welfare. " (But not word about the "welfare" the elected powers take advantage of ). Not that i think there's a problem with the billionaires making their fair tax contribution to the funding of this program, but those who could contribute the most would have rethug help in escaping the contributions part of the fix. The plumbers & bank clerks would be left holding up the system.

We need a major overhaul and--short of another civil war--I don't see that happening. We have had war declared on us, now that the elections and civil society rules have been breeched by the wingers. I see it as ending in another Civil War. Declared or not. The wingers already are armed and dangerous. It's only a short step to wingers putting us in a full-blown revolution.

Never have I so wanted to return to the country of my forebears.

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Like the way you think, Ed. However, my gut tells me we need to do more. tRump took a page out of Putin's playbook. Putin's disinformation campaign has worked in Russia, to those of Russian descent in Lithuania, and the other Baltic states and 25% of the American electorate. Organize, mobilize, energize is fine as far as it goes. This is how to put those words into action. I read the article Martha Ture posted in Time.

It gives chapter and verse as to how to form a disinformation resistance campaign. Martha Ture4 hr ago

Here you go: https://www.youtube.com/watchv=A5o5BFYD9Xg&ab_channel=UN5T48L3

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7 hours after your post, i get the "not available " message. Now that rankles.

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Not to worry, not that important.

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Mar 8, 2022·edited Mar 8, 2022

Professor, I write specifically to amplify your urgent call for viewing “Putin’s war against Ukraine’s democracy” as a reminder “of how fundamental the struggle for democracy is to America’s own purpose and ideals…”.

Frankly, following the Senate’s failure this past January to advance the newly combined Freedom to Vote: John R. Lewis Act, I had expected more of us to be vocally alarmed by the fact that presently no impactful federal legislation exists that would supersede state laws slated increasingly to restrict voting and to nullify votes. I also find it curious, setting aside the disgraceful 2013 Shelby ruling that gutted Section 5 (pre clearance) of the 1965 Voting Rights Act, that no one seems outraged by the 2021 Brnovich ruling that determined DOJ no longer could sue for violating Section 2 of this Act unless DOJ could show “intent” to discriminate.

Though I imagine many take heart in the deluge of citizen activism, in my experience, while getting people registered and turbo-charging our turnout initiatives certainly can help to mitigate voter suppression measures, no amount of organizing is going to get us around the increasing number of election subversion measures advancing through GOP-controlled state legislatures that would change state election rules to change who can be in charge, how votes are counted, and how they’re certified.

Though I could be wrong, my felt sense is that too many of us expect others somehow will resolve this issue, all evidence to the contrary. Accordingly, I would contend, however important other things are, they can’t be as important as focusing our minds on whether states are laying the groundwork for our opponents to return to or to attain power whether or not they win enough votes.

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I am optimistic. Apparently Russia and Ukraine are negotiating and based on my experience look like they are playing the game "of ladders".

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What do you mean by "game of ladders"? Please explain.

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They are hammering out detains step by step, rung by ring. In my experience the negotiators will have to seek authority from the principals to reach a deal. In a democracy, this is slow...not so much when the negotiator has authority to resolve matters.

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Thanks for the explanation!

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Mar 8, 2022·edited Mar 8, 2022

On point #1 —

We can take actions in our own lives, no matter how insignificant they seem i.e. limit outings, carpool, turn off lights, turn up the thermostat… etc. Personally, I don’t think we should gripe at all about gas prices.

And another thing… along with reviving the Child-Tax-Credit how about locking in an increase in Social Security which reflects the increase(s) in the cost of living here in the USA? Our elderly who’ve work hard their entire lives shouldn’t have to scrape by because of inflation and corporate greed/ price gouging.

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Those of us on limited income (SS etc.) can do our part already. We buy less and borrow from friends the little items we'd normally pick up at WM. Saves driving 15 miles to shop for incidentals, too. Not worth it($)--most of the time --to use Amazon.

I try to think about my folks living under the shadows of Nazi bombers. They didn't just pop out to the corner store for every little thing and the whole family survived just fine.

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Hack the Fox. All day, every day.

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You need to include Newsmax, an upcoming cable news channel which is Fox on steroids. It broadcasts every Trump rally!

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Get them all. They have all been damaging and the lies can be verified. It isn’t free speech when it causes danger an security issues.

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Great idea, Tim, can you get with your hackers and organize that?

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I don't know any hackers, but I have complained to Dish Network about their loading up the TV lineup with disinformation news channels. Along with Fox and Newsmax, they also have Real America's Voice, which is even more right wing than Fox and Newsmax, but with a tiny audience (so far). They finally dropped RT, the Russian propaganda network, after viewers like me complained about its pro-Putin cheerleading.

I guess that the people who started Real America's Voice don't consider you and me to be "real americans"!

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That is actually a very good idea. Where’s Anonymous? Flash “These are Putin supported Lies” on the screen. 😀

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Great article. A reason to smile despite what is going on around us. Thank you for the link.

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A very interesting article. Thank you.

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Martha Ture ; Brilliant idea!

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All great stuff. Stuff that with or without the advent of putin's inhumane butchery needs to be implemented ! With the exception of any cow towing to the likes of Saudi Arabia . Which I feel exists as THE HEIGHT of antiquated social strata, inhumanity and cold blooded authoritarianism . To attempt to live by a higher set of morals and standards one does not befriend Satan himself . Channel surfing last evening some corporate puppet of a polluted fourh estate riddled with mis and dis information made a slur that frump would be tougher on putin than Biden . I cannot get the photo out of my mind of lil donnie sitting next to his pal vlad with his hands between his legs staring and smiling like a lil kid looking up to an NFL quarter back ! Repulsive ! !

I wouldn't be surprised if the entire Ukranian nightmare was orchestrated by lil donnie and his pal vlad as an attempt to further engratiate lil donnie to his dwindling base of duped, bs'd and simple supporters .

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As shall; the USA become, if we keep letting the christianists run everything the way thEY think their god wishes (which is really them using their god to back up what they themselves really want--to be in charge of everybody else).

If only they were more educated about the world, history, etc.But education has not helped muslims, indians of all stripes, and all the other ppl who let the rigidness of their past history run their minds.

The USA founding documents are NOT religious, b/c the founders' historical roots in Europe taught them that religion causes ppl to go to war and they wanted us to be a united nation.

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Well the separation of church and state IS one of the basic tenets of the forefathers . Difficult to implement as it is . And let me reiterate, the churches are empty these days, yet the banks are full . THE ALMIGHTY DOLLAR has replaced GOD ALMIGHTY. Hence, the need once again for the separation of church and state to be revisited. Be it a deity or a piece of perceived mammon. Any object of worship which draws the attention of our elected officials away from the work and needs OF THE PEOPLE needs to be dealt with swiftly and effectively. So saith the lord .

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To continue, this concept marches hand in hand with the ABSOLUTE need to recind corporate citizenship. To outlaw access to our elected officials from corporate influence and persuasion . As uncomfortable, I'd imagine for a Bible thumping Christian to be standing next to a congressman as a Muslim would view it . And visa versa . WAKE UP , ours is a corptocracy which differs little from a theocracy. Except for the belief that a theocracy would adhere to some sort of humanistic purpose, to which a corptocracy has no such allegiance.

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In my rural area, the small local churches are full. (Many w/o masks.) Maybe the cities are losing adherents, but not in the countryside.

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I was thinking that too. I wouldn’t be surprised if the two of them were conspiring to take over the world.

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How is this war unique? This war is happening at a time when people everywhere on earth can participate with our cell phones and keyboards. We can video events with our phone cameras. We can transmit our war footage around the world in a second. We can hack and jam at our keyboards. We can join hackers' groups. Mainstream media are posting links to hackers' groups we can join and provide secure computers to participate in mass denial of service attacks on Russian government websites. We teach one another how to jam their drones. We post videos of volunteers from South Carolina, from Ireland, from UK, going to Ukraine to fight. We can and we are doing so. This is a global grassroots war against evil. Everybody's fighting. When it's over, we look around and see - hey. Look what we can do,. See those American oligarchs ripping off the public? See those senators and congressmembers blocking voting rights? Target. Lock on. Task and purpose, you all. Task and purpose.

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Martha, do you actually need to be a hacker to be effective?

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Thanks for this. I actually meant can you hack without being a hacker.

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Paula, you don't need to be a hacker. Hacking groups can use your computer, only with your permission, to contribute to a denial of service attack. I DO NOT RECOMMEND THIS if you are not a hacker. You'd expose your computer to serious trouble. And you.

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Ah, okay, got it. Thank you. Pipe dream then. 😀

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Martha, you are the real deal. You see the real enemies and lock on target like sharpshooter. TKU

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Thank you kindly. Ruin and I are old friends.

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Why are most of the oil and natural resources of the world so concentrated in totalitarian, fascist authoritarian governments, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Iran and Venezuela to mention a few?

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Because the dinosaurs had a sense of humor?

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A physicist *would* say something like that...

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founding

The United States is a major oil producer. Our output would be larger if we didn't care about rule of law, protection of the environment, rights of citizens regarding their property, and the contribution to bad air and global climate change that comes from drilling, pumping, refining and using petroleum products. Authoritarian regimes dispense with these human concerns in their never-ending efforts to rape their own countries for their own bank accounts...

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Authoritarian regimes do not have a monopoly on greed. Greed is quite strong within democratic countries. Let's be honest, this greed has resulted in resistant to change. Change that will eventually come. I just hope that it comes in a timely manner. Our very survival depends on an environment that is not damaged too much.

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Because we need to remove the state immunity shield and to allow the international oil cartel, OPEC, and its national oil companies to be sued under U.S. antitrust law for anti-competitive attempts to limit the world's supply.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No_Oil_Producing_and_Exporting_Cartels_Act

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founding

The existence and advancement of renewable forms of energy depend on high energy prices. This is one area where the greed of the oil producing exporting countries aligns with slightly more responsible use of petroleum. Without the higher prices from OPEC, which rose incrementally over time, many, most or all alternative energy sources would have been uneconomic. What makes this worse is that it is sudden, throwing a shock into the world economy. Long term, higher prices and lower production are good for the planet, therefor good for people, including Western democracies.

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False assumption. In 1979 President Carter had the right idea. In 1981 Reagan pulled the solar panels from the White House, closed down coal degasification plants, repealed energy consumption initiatives. The Oil lobby and foreign governments made solar/thermal seem expensive. Thermal energy (hot water from a plate of glass with black backing) for example, has always been the cheapest form of energy.

https://ensia.com/features/solar-water-heaters-israel-renewable-energy-thermal-photovoltaic/

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In times like these, a gallon of oil equals a gallon of Ukrainian blood.

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Imagine those no longer immune and what they would sue the US for.

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Mar 8, 2022·edited Mar 8, 2022

Maybe b/c this country is so young, that,--aside from genocide of the original local property owners--we have not had the extensive history of internecine conflict (mutually destructive) as most other cultures on other continents have experienced.

And the culture of those countries is full of beauty, goodness, AND intrigue and mutually destructive customs.

My hypothesis is that, for example, in Italy's past history, the private armies were active, but no one group or family usually had enough of what it took to take over the whole shebang and turncoat everybody.

There is also the question of how the prevailing clericals worked their way into positions of power and had a captive audience who thought the church would help them live forever and provide a shot at getting God to do for them what MDs and NIHsdo for us today. Not to mention the church hierarchy, with its internal scheming, which was able to command its own armies when they wanted to exercise real pressure. With the power to enlist believers as troops, imagine the power those guys had. And in oil countries, the power structure put a few powerful connected families/houses in control of government, law & order, and religion.

Also, vengeance is a big feature of some of these cultural groups. Much like in the Hispanic countries of today. In the USA vengeance is there, but gloved and hidden behind a red, white, and blue necktie. Seems to me, it gets more use than it ought to in government--.

I'm sure someone more knowledgeble than I will have some corrections here. My knowledge is from 3/4 of a century (literally) of reading, a BA in anthropology, and a fascination with how ancients live/die/write poetry/paint/handled their human refuse products safely.

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Oh my goodness, Italian history is full of people scheming and killing each other. It’s quite shocking. And there were families behind it all. Despite Michelangelo, Da Vinci, Galileo, and the rest, I would not have wanted to live there before unification. I did consider moving there in the seventies though and kind of wish I had.

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Same here, Paula. As late as last year I wished i had. But too late now.

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Possiamo sognare.

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I believe that by far greatest lesson to take away from this catastrophe is the urgent necessity to dismantle all nuclear weapons worldwide and to shut down all nuclear power plants, which we have now seen will become targets during warfare. Nuclear power plants also support the nuclear weapons industry in many ways.

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I agree with all five points. Specifically, when it comes to the energy crisis, there are several measures that a patriotic congress should be able to pass without difficulty. Namely, reenact the child tax credit that would proportionally target help to poor and working class families; enact a windfall profits tax on energy companies, and remove their subsidies; enact more and stronger subsidies for renewable energy sources such as geothermal heating and electric heating pumps. And, if we have to utilize fracked gas as a bridge fuel, enact enforceable rules that protect the environment, such as capture of the methane that is a major contributor to climate change. All of this should come easily to a congress interested in the future of a democratic U.S. However, one of the major political parties in this country is at war with that democratic future, and so little or none of these patriotic measures will be enacted.

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Exactly. Rethuglicans are not our friends. And their misled target audience is always ready to do the bidding of the people pulling the strings. These days, after the Capitol, they are getting minor sentences for their revolt against the govt. Next year, they will be awarded medals Just watch......

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It’s funny (in the ironic way) how shortages and crises in certain industries generally end up causing corporate profits shoot through the roof. I can tolerate higher gas prices if it helps end the war, but I damn well expect a windfall profits tax when the above inevitably occurs.

However, I have little expectation that this will happen, as today’s branches of government seem to be largely owned subsidiaries of corporate wealth and power interests.

My one-note solution to most socioeconomic and political problems: tax away destructively excessive corporate and private wealth. Until we achieve that enlightened, utopian society, take away the incentive to lie, cheat, and steal.

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My "windfall" profit occurs when my few shares of stock rise in price/dividends. I do, however, endorse the tax heavily, even if not quite destructively, since "those people" have heat weapons and the internet will tell them where I am and how much they can skin me for prior to the final showdown.

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Robert,

YOU are the only one I know...that has Pres. Biden's ear...YOU can talk to him, he takes YOUR calls... So, your ideas listed here, as always, make sense and are right on point...

NOW, get Biden to step into the 21st century and take the truth and fight directly to the American people with a weekly PODCAST... maybe you should write the scripts...

This is how FDR got his agenda passed against all odds, with his weekly Fireside chats on radio...THE media of that time... He must address, by name, those rich tax dodgers, corrupt and hypocritical bankers, and UnAmerican corporations using their HUGE profits to buy congress to do their bidding, obstruct progress for 98% of AMERICANS, and protect themselves from paying their fair share of taxes, selling out OUR COUNTRY....

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I'll second that.

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Hooray for all your suggested remedies! One additional, please: Humanely reform laws about migrants and refugees. By coincidence, the European nations show how our country could act toward those at our borders.

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Aye right ! To remove the most basic aspects of humanity from desperate people seeking a better life or fleeing oppression is nothing less than inhumane. AND to separate children from their parents ? "GIVE US YOUR HUNGRY, YOUR TIRED AND POOR, YOUR HUDDLED MASSES YEARNING TO BREATH THE AIR OF FREEOM." Tall words. But if you're gonna have them on your welcome mat, anything less is hypocrisy.

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There are nuclear power plants, nuclear weapons abound. We are at one minute to midnight to extinction. Its only a matter of time. Russia is blackmailing America and NATO. Soon, China will go after Taiwan. Is our democracy any better? Really. We are starting to burn books, restrict voting, are more devided as ever, experiencing more White Supremacy violence, restricting women's rights, LGBTQ rights etc, etc. Defend those rights, the words "natzi: and "communist" are used to define you. Social programs have been enacted throughout the years offending the rich. Yoi are a socialist if you defend human rights. Fillerbustering is a way of life to politicians to prevent any progress that doesn't directly benefit the one percent. The news broadcast announced some time ago, there are 1,500 lobbiests to a single issue. Sure, we haves democracy. A little bit skewed. It takes only one crazy president to end it all. We came close to that already. In this super dangerous world, do you really think nuclear extinction is on our doorstep? If so, we might as well test the resolve. How much genocide must we see before we say enoigh

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Thanks for writing. I didn’t see if we talk about the “panda” in the room.

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They’re observing how Putin is being treated by the rest of the world.

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Great Krugman opinion Why China Can’t Bail Out Putin’s Economy. "China’s economy, which was roughly the same size as Russia’s 30 years ago, is now 10 times as large."

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/07/opinion/china-russia-sanctions-economy.html

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