Trump is spiraling into insanity. When will that be apparent to the undecided?
The machinations of the Republicans to manipulate vote counting is expected. Gratifying that Georgian Democrats are pushing back. Our freedom depends on the conscience of those who fill the basic clerical requirements of our elections. A test for our Times.
I think Cheetolini’s win in 2016 shook people out of any apathy that may have existed in that election. How many people didn’t bother to vote because they thought Hillary had it in the bag.
Lesson learned. Every vote counts and all efforts by the GOP need to be monitored and litigated if necessary (thank you Marc Elias and team).
I reside in rural NE Georgia. Starting to see trump signs pop up here, in an area that is about an 86% republican stronghold last I looked. I've left messages at the Atlanta Democrat office & couldn't even leave a message at the Gainesville Dem office; that I wanted to purchase a Harris / Walz sign for my front lawn. ( Did when Biden/ Harris ran as well, as my home is right in across from a stop sign, when you enter my subdivision. Visible certainly, and necessary imo, to offset the trump signs in the area & to suggest to those sitting on the fence, yes, there are folks here who won't consider a trump presidency. My sister, the next town over, is afraid to put up in her neighborhood. I say "f" 'em. ( Not meaning to be crude,) but imo, to put up a sign advertising your choice, is part of free speech. Now I am either left to go to Etzy (sp?) Or contact national dem headquarters for my sign. PITA when you contact dem headquarters & can't seem to get a response to obtain a sign, paid or unpaid.
Bonnie - “like” Love your attitude! I went to a craft store and bought a very big poster board/paint and made my own one and then went to a hardware store and got some plexiglass/screws to make it waterproof. I don’t think that it looks too bad and it is definitely bigger than the regular signs. It is in my yard right next door to a trump neighbor (we actually get along most days - go figure). Just a suggestion in case you can’t get an “official” one. My other neighbor down the road actually paid a sign store to make a personalized banner that I think looks pretty sharp (definitely better than my homemade one). His neighbor kept trying to destroy it but finally stopped when he was told that he has been caught on camera. He had a good laugh because the Sheriff is Very republican and had to tell the guy to stop trying to destroy a democrat sign.
I understand your sister's hesitance. Last election I was 63 in a major trump neighborhood and was afraid to advertise myself for Biden/Harris. I had pit a Ruth B sticker on my van and someone tore it off. I took am afraid of those people!
I understand. I do. Perhaps I should be too, especially in this area; but as I've gotten older, I have this attitude of, " I don't give a " flying flip" what someone thinks anymore. People have made assumptions at times, while I've lived in the South, which is more than a few decades now, about what my view points might be. They've occasionally been mistaken & have been advised so. In my heart & mind, if it's wrong, it's wrong AND TRUMP is so very wrong, imo, for this nation. Hell, he's wrong for the running of the inherited trump business & the NY state courts essentially shut them down. Ignorant on many topics, it would appear..not terribly curious or bright & morally challenged in a significant way, imo. I cringe & have to turn to another channel when I see him on tv. I've read plenty of articles on the supposed reasons why some folks voted for him, but I'll never quite understand how people can think he's a terrific human being & businessman. If people only did their research....
I think an American Trifecta is ALMOST inevitable at this point, knowing that nearly half of Bunkerboy's cult is just going to be so SAD that they'll be getting drunk instead of voting.
It's not GOOD, but in this one situation only it kinda' is.
Not to get too far into thr Freudian weeds, but I think they love him BECAUSE they are angry, disappointed, castrati and he acts out their fantasies. Including we with women. I find harder to explain the psyche of a female MAGAt...some sort of S&M dominance kinky thing?
He convinces them that he "loves" them. Like the wealthy widow upon whom he honored with the medal of freedom, because she was so "beautiful" and generous with her millions,, 👗giving more than anyone who showed Valor and courage, but was a loser and disfigured , or even (horrors) dead, because of their bravery in battle to defend our country.
How can this man even be on the ballot? Because the thoroughly corrupted Supreme Court decided to allow him to be. The extreme 6 violated their oaths to the Constitution. They should not be on that bench.
That too Mirian,. Not either or, as regards the women.
Are you familiar with the term camp followers?
Women who perceive themselves the beneficiaries of the status quo, and are threatened by liberated women.
Are you familiar with Phylllis Schafly, who single handedly stopped ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment, basically telling women that the amendment threatened them.
Until hubby dumps them for a new and different model, women perceive themselves, some, maybe most, still do, as beneficiaries of the status quo, where the man has the responsiblity to protect and provide. A lot of women, women that I know, women like you, want your indepdence and careers,but I had two sisters who never worked, both are grandmothers, they happily lived off their husbands, let their husbands deal with the real world, worry and get ulcers, while they stayed home, spent an hour cleaning house, maybe, an hour or so more cooking and baking, a half hour folding clothes a couple times a week, and a couple of hours ironing, maybe, the rest of the time puttering in the garden, having coffee, drinking wine and gossiping with the neighbors.
Feeling sorry for the women who HAD to work.
Even those that worked, knew they had a fall back, their husband.
My wife is the wise one around here (after all, she did marry me) and she's been saying for a long time that the kryptonite that's gonna take down Trump is Women's Reproductive Freedom - that's why he's literally calling himself the "LEADER for women's reproductive freedom".
And those 3 anti-abortion judges you put on SCOTUS? Naw, I never did that. Fake news.
This is the Women's Election, and they're gonna kick Trump's ass!
Not S&M Dominance, though it certainly does have that appearance.
I am taking my cue from the behavior of many species of birds and fish.
The male builds the nest, to attract the female, and guards it and the young
Security and protection. The male provides protection, builds the nest, provides protection for the female and the young, and then provides food., and yes in some species the female also obtains the food, while the man guards the nest.
Nowhere more obvious than with Emperor penguins. except their nest is their feet.
Some species, like Geese, mate for life. Humans do and don't, dependent on capabilities and availability mates of either gender , unless committed "entrapped" by social and financial circumstances, wander to seek other partners, it is genetic., the more diverse the DNA the better chance the survival of the species. Commonly known as the "7 year itch", but more like four years, the period of time it takes for the love hormone oxytocin to leave the system.
Those who have partnered for love, know what I mean.
Producing and rearing healthy offspring is the most valuable contribution a woman can make to her country, JD Vance argues. Yet, as the case of Justice Barrett shows, a woman can be both mother and a leader., something JD Vance and his likes will never be able to be.
I believe its misplaced anger the ones the magas should be truly angry with are tRumps backers since they have been screwing them economically for years, low wages, terrible work conditions, etc and tRump knew exactly how to exploit their anger. Yet he has nothing in common with the maga's.
Miriam Rodin : Also, many of his major boosters are obscenely rich. They have their greedy agenda to get more and more wealth, even if it destroys the 🌎 world. They buy the very health of the entire planet and all forms of life. Even their own. Like depraved junkies. They would end environmental protections that cut into their profits. TRump will gladly end Biden's rules to protect us and our environment for a billion $ for his campaign, that fossil fuel interests will give him for the favor.
Depraved Junkies is correct Laurie, it is an addiction, as bad or worse than gambling.
It is easier to detox from alcohol, nicotine, cocaine, heroin than from gambling.
And the depraved wealthy are like sharks, they have to keep swimming or else they die. If they get out of the game, if they retire they lose everything, they have to stay in the game to protect what they have.
They can't help but know that their activities are self destructive, but they live in the moment.
Standard oil in 1974 (or was it 73) funded a study that predicted the effects of oil consumption, sea level rise, global warming, and the end of mammalian life, but they are invested in today, and the immediate future, they have to know that they are committing specicide, including their own dynasties and legacies, but they can't stop, they (we) live in the moment, while we talk of the future.
Finally as the dystopian and apocalyptic future seems to be at hand, they are finally make a gesture, all to late, at renewable energy. A day late and a dollar short
Elon Musk saw the future and in his pipe dream he is madly funding a project which will take him off the earth to settle on Mars. A forelorn hope, wishful thinking, he is stupid, as are those who believe him.
There is no way that Mars can be terraformed to sustain human life, and if humans are to live there, they must live in an actual bubble, and venture forth in pressure suits with an external air supply, and at .38 earths gravity, each step will have them bounding 14 ft into the air.. And Children born on Mars will have problems, never to return to earth except in space suits withexoskeletons to assist in walking, as there muscles, tendons and bones were developed in agraviational field .38 that of earth, an virtually minus an atmosphere that give us atmospheric pressure, and requires bones, tendons and muscles suffient enough to perambulate.
Humans born on Mars will , if they mature, look like the so called gray aliens.
Reduced gravity doesn't make one grow taller,, or bigger, because there is reduced stress on the bones,and stress is what makes the bones bigger in response to the stress placed on them by muscles and tendons.
That's why astronauts have to exercise on the ISS and why they are carried off their capsules when they return to earth.
If Elon Musk was as smart as he thinks he is, and if NASA was as smart as they are suppose to be, the only living on Mars would stay on the silver screen.
NASA knows I am sure, but if they told all they knew to the public, they would not continue to receive funds.
Fact is that humanity is confined to this third rock from the sun, there is no escape, and if we are to survive, businessmen, billionaires, dictators, politicians, and we the people, regardless of ideology (secular or sectarian) had best come to grips with the dire and immediate possibility, that we, and other mammalian life are an endangered species, and we are doing it to ourselves.
They don’t ‘love’ themselves, because they aren’t capable of love. What is mistaken for love is a clinging to Ego, and the fear of maturing beyond that limited sense of self. Real adult love for self and others, only comes when a person is able to grow up both mentally and emotionally into an adult, not just physically. Many have the mental, sharpness, yet the vital emotional maturity is still missing: The Ability to Know thy Self, and Love and Honor Others as Ones Self, Allows for Genuine Cooperation for Greatest Good for All. Civilization at its Finest.
Yes they do Brooks. They carry their grievances and dysfunction around with them like precious jewels.
People who grow up in dysfunctional cultures, whose values and ethos result in dictatorships, rampant poverty, police states, crime flee to safe havens where they can live a better life, but they carry with them the same cultural attitudes, values and beliefs that made their lives miserable, and demand that the host recognize, accommodate and eventually change
As a current example. The United States was not founded as a Christian Nation, however some came here to practice their religion as they pleased, like the Puritans to New England the Catholics to Maryland and the Huguenots to Virginia and later to Massachusetts.
The Huguenots basically assimilated and went extinct as a religion, but the Puritans and Catholics have steadily worked to transform America into a Christian Theocracy.
Europe is having the same problem with Islam. It just does not have the numbers, muscles, as yet.
IMHO, the Evangelicals are the ones pushing for the adoption of the idea that they and their multiple religions are supposed to be the "rulers" and the "owners" of the Constitution. They are the ones, although some rabid Catholics are pushers too, that want the divide between religion and the state to be erased.
The rabid Catholics are the rabid 6 on SCOTUS, the Federalist Society, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Leonard Leo, Kevin Roberts, the Heritage Foundation. Not all Catholics of course and not all Evangelicals either, their is reaction among Evangelicals against the right wing theocrats.
Even worse than the Evangeliclas are the Dominionists, (Christian Reconstruction), founded by R J Rushdoony and Ted Cruz's father Rafael
And the New Apostolic Reformation. Neither are evangelical, trying to convert non believers, they are insidious and work both Protestants and Catholics.
I am sure that Catholics like Mike Pence and Protestants like Mike Johnson are Dominionists/NAR
I think Kamala and the DNC very wisely addressed both of those Trump-themes at their convention: we (the Dems) are for you, the struggling working people, the hard-pressed middle class, and we're also reclaiming our patriotism as proud Americans.
Mostly, I think, this will be a Blue Wave election - wave elections are always about "throw the bums out" and right now America is tired of Trump's malignant BS and America is ready to "throw the bums - Trump & MAGA - out" and turn the page to a better America.
A brilliant strategy so far prepared and executed perfectly.
Trump is crashing - today alone he talked all day about Communism vs Freedom (yeah, as if most Americans are worried about communism - that's a throwback tactic from the 1950s); and then he reposted really disgusting "retweets" saying Kamala got where she is by giving "blowjobs" - that's Trump on his Truth Social; and then there's the incident at Arlington where he brought his film crew even though his request had been denied; and then called Kamala a "low intelligence woman" (yeah, that ought to win a lot of suburban housewife votes) and then called himself - wait for it - "the greatest LEADER for women's reproductive freedom"; and the day isn't over yet.
So Trump's trailing in the polls (even his beloved Rasmussen has dropped him from 5% lead to 2% lead), trailing in fund-raising, trailing in "enthusiasm" among supporters, ...
well, you get my point; he's losing and knows it and will get crazier every day and drive away those sane voters in the middle, while Kamala's keeping her cool and even going into deep red districts.
Power that has been taken from them, Trump keeps telling them. It happened in the 1860s, but it still hurts. Harris/Walz must be careful in more ways than one.
I agree, they will make hay out of any faux pas, and already have. It is a chore having to be yourself, , to be totally aware all of the time, as not to commit unforced errors, like saying white boy taco's.. really stupid because the customer is the one who embellishes it with hot sauce. I like habeñero myself. I have six in the freezer, along with cilantro for my ceviche.
And that remark about carrying a rifle in war, although technically correct, is misleading.
Don't people know about google.?
Republicans have no shame, they even tried to make a scene out of Gus Walz.
The lesson that they need to remember is the one Karl Rove invented and it is attack the strengths, like he did Max Clelland.
The campaign staff had better be ready, and not be foolish like Dukakis.
And hopefully, the Republicans, whom trump is counting on, will vote Harris/Walz. He is insane and I believe Republican voters have finally figured that out.
They are a distinct minority. They will only "win" if they cheat. They are doing their damndest now to outrun our somewhat sluggish justice system. We need better than we currently have. This should have been prevented and the perps dealt with years ago. The latest is that Jack Smith is going for the fifth indictment. And Grand jury trial.. Of course , Andrew Weissman tells us that it won't happen before the election, and if tfg gets the White House, it will never happen, or it will be 2026 that the case will be heard.🤔If it is ever heard 🤔. ! Pathetic! No wonder we keep being robbed by the extreme right. It's probably a feeling like what Israelis feel when they can't get a better leader than Netanyahu, who should be in jail. like tfg.
Not sure about that. An awful lot of his followers are pretty nuts too and then there are the horribly uninformed and finally the downright venerable folks as well. We can’t fix a lot of that.
There is also another possible deterrent to certification chicanery besides conscience and a lawsuit. I heard a commentator point out that if an election is not certified, it is not certified for all races on the ballot. You cannot have a ballot that is partly fraudulent. That means that refusing to certify will prevent local elected election officials, state legislators, etc. from taking office. It's not just the presidential race, and local election winners and their constituents may be very unhappy that rogue election boards are preventing them from taking office.
Unfortunately, those who fulfill electoral process roles are human beings and no less susceptible to perfidy as the rest of the population. Right now, populist support for irrationality, aggression, deceit, outlandishly obvious lying and general simplistic, ignorant mob delusion is at levels far beyond what one would expect of responsible, reasonable, caring people in a democracy. Would that it weren't the case.
Trump can blubber,he can slobber, wet his pants and that won't move his Humpers a milimeter, they already celebrate wearing diapers in honor of von Schitzhispantz/
In simpler terms, Trump‘s followers are nothing more than rock band groupies, eager to sacrifice their personal safety and security to their idol. Historically, idol worship never ended well. Trump is a modern day Moloch, a fiery altar with an insatiable appetite for children and adults with arrested development.
True! He's holding not growing. Biden won Georgia last time with the responsible executive action of Raffensberger. This time around it will require full on Stop the Steal precinct level pollwatchers to thwart the rigged election process. Georgians should be encouraged to vote in person...who knows what can happen in an unwatched mail room.
Agreed Daniel, His base is finite, but it is coalesced around one thing, the culture war, owning the libs. The Democratic base is like an accordion it moves in and out, with this or that faction easily schismed , demanding priority and/or recognition.
Why is there a Green party? I remember when it was founded and why. It broke away from the Democratic party
The libertarian party was, in 1980, both Ayn Randian and anti fascist. and attracted Republicans and Democrats, then with increasing financing by the Koch brothers, (David ran for President that year) it abandoned the cultural pull of Libertarianism, for the self interest pull of Rand.
Georgia was originally a buffer zone established as a defensive barrier between Spanish held Florida and the British colonies. Then someone got a great idea, and they decided to grow peaches. Cling or freestone a tree ripened peach is a wonder on to itself, if you have a napkin to catch the juice. Robert quoted a line from the memorable song; "Georgia on my Mind," sung by none other than the late great Louis Armstrong. No one did it better. Now if we can keep that state's bluish tint left over from the last election we will be on the way. Like the man said, "There are two kinds of music, the good and the bad. I play the good." Louis would have voted for Kamala and Tim in a heartbeat, the "Jazz" he loved never associated itself with Politics.
"Insanity" is a funny word for ALZHEIMERS! That shlurring that changesth almost by the second? That extreme paranoia? The low energy? ALL symptoms of the a-brain disease his skinny daddy had.
We’re learning now that the most important freedoms for Republicans are freedom from things. Like freedom from democracy, freedom from justice, freedom from compassion.
Well there is a connection if you consider that most Russian trolls were at one point connected to USSR intel agencies (directly or indirectly). Old Vlad himself was KGB.
Whether fake Karl is intel or a “useful idiot” doesn’t much matter- his mission is to undermine the US and its allies and to support Russian interests.
Giving ''me" compassion? I don't understand that for when I commented it was regarding a comment you had already made.
Perhaps you are suggesting that you were giving Republicans compassion - is that the case? If that is what you were attempting to do, I can assure you that it didn't appear so because you appeared to be feeling "sorry" for Todd Telford, the author of the post on which you commented.
When online, others can only assess your view or intent by reading what you have written so it is important to be very careful about what you say and how you say it. The cursory one-liners that so often appear rarely make sense or if they do, it is often not the sense that was intended.
All dialogue would be better if it were polite, clear and contributed positively to the post, comment and/or topic.
I understand that there are people who, through no fault of their own, may be ignorant, have poor literacy, limited vocabulary, poor comprehension and a general inability to express themselves well. It is why I give them the benefit of the doubt, at least initially.
Sometimes, however, it very quickly becomes clear that I have failed and am unlikely to improve the situation even if I continue. I find that sad. I also, as I suspect do many others, find those with nothing to contribute other than disruption, rudeness or abuse, a major irritation when others have worthwhile views to share.
Karl, you cannot know what Laurie's definition of "trolls" might be. Even if you could or did, it would not be a justification for Laurie to "get off the internet."
Indeed, on the basis of your comments here, I would suggest that if anyone ought to cease posting comments or as you put it, "get off the internet", it is probably you for you have not yet contributed anything of any worth.
Arguing and/or being abusive whilst hiding behind an assumed name is a common trait of the coward. Rarely will such people take the risk of speaking "face to face" in the same manner. Your comment to Laurie is therefore not only abusive but also irrational for it is doubtful that you would have the courage or capacity to face him or her directly.
Incidentally, for someone who writes as you do, to use the pseudonym of 'Karl Marx', is offensive.
When someone is obnoxious, it is evident that they are hostile. And have no intention to be agreeable or civil the offense is the point for them. That's you. You assail those on this thread.
I think we should remember that it is not sufficient for Democrats to win the Presidency. If the House and Senate have Republican majorities under President Harris, she will be as impotent as President Obama was over making any significant changes. Elected MAGAs in Congress will resist everything she proposes by putting party before country as usual.
I'm surprised more effort isn't expended in getting the voting public to consider down ballot races. Historically, Republicans have been better at avoiding what's known as down ballot rolloff - skipping races after the top of the ticket.
The reason we are in such a mess is because historically the Democrats have neglected the down ballot, while the Republicans have concentrated on building a base from dog catcher and school board, to state legislature. That is where real policy is made.
Democrats have forgotten that the United States is made up of 50 Sovereign Countries, bound together by a compact called the Constitution, in which the sovereign countries or states, relinquish certain authorities to a federal government., the rest they keep to themselves, per the binding agreement called the constitution.
Exactly, William! I have said this before, the republicans have been working at this since Reagan and Gingrich days. Slowly they have made sure to get their people in positions of power all through the states. That was part of the plan when they were writing Project 2025.
I am a retired military officer, and the ethos is to accept responsibility for failure, you don't shift the blame, or ignore one's own failures.
The Democratic party, and the Republican party, don't. Politicians don't, they always blame someone else or just ignore the situation and hope that everyone else does as well, or that it will disappear down the memory hole.
I know that the guiding lights of the DNC are intelligent, if it was obvious to a flunkie like me, that they have screwed the goose by not investing in local politics, it should be obvious to them.
So the question then is why have they ignored the race for the city council, the school board.
One answer is motivation. The right wing is visceral, easily threatened and motivated, the press and the pulpit, local businessmen fund local elections
Remember the Trump boat parades. the caravans,? Who do you think has the money for such antics? Car dealerships, real estate brokers, lawyers, insurance brokers Mom and Pop brick and mortar stores.
All politics is personal and people are driven by self interest, not just economic, but cultural and personal.
The Dems have been missing the boat, and have not even tried to build a nationwide movement.
Believe it or not, the Republicans have been building from the bottom up, the Democrats from the top down, and for the first time in my lifetime, with Harris/Walz it looks like they finally got the message and are trying to build from the bottom up. I am waiting to see if it sticks. I hope so. We have to retake the country from the fascist ground swell.
David, I agree with you. I have made it a point when I am out talking to people to also include down ballot races. We have to get all of the right-wing nutters out of Congress so that we can actually get some things done. Vote blue, America!
Maybe some changes in the "Supreme" court will allow the Constitution to be employed to clean the house: to get rid of election deniers and TRUMP sycophants in Congress. We would be better off with judges who respect their oaths as well.
Republican Party so corrupt that I have no faith in the voting process. They will do anything to cheat and say they win.. scary and creepy and desperate.
Don’t give up on Missouri. There is a new energy and enthusiasm in Missouri’s Demographic Party.Lucas Kunce looks like he has a chance to fire Josh Hawley. Missouri labor successfully fought off “right to work.” Missourians finally accepted Medicaid expansion, and abortion rights are on the ballot. Harris/Walz should be a swing state. Maybe there are ways to embarrass Fox (Faux) News.
How members of one party or another are allowed any part in verifying results, is beyond me. Here is the UK the election is run by a Returning officer. He selects public servants to organise the count and is responsible for ensuring that the election is free and fair. That any of Trump's revolting creatures can be allowed anywhere near this fills me with horror. Any Trump verified win should be overseen my neutral observers. I'm not suggesting our political system is a gold standard; far from it. But loophole should be closed by the democrats when they get into office.
100% agree with you, Colin! It is imperative that we straighten out the mess republicans have made of our election system. The orange man made many Americans cast doubt on a free and fair election in 2020 and look what happened. Even though it was free and fair, the bloviating orange buffoon pitched a temper tantrum because he lost. It has been proven to the electorate over and over (60+ times) in court that the election was honest and true. Once we have Kamala Harris and Tim Walz in office and a blue Congress, we will fix all of these loopholes for once and for all! Vote blue, America!
I have read that there are legal challenges being made against the tactics they are proposing on the 'right'. As everyone knows, any justice delayed can become justice denied. Our highest court is severely disabled. A fair election would be justice.
The state of Georgia has its's problems. For any group the elect someone like MTG leaves me questioning their ability to think. Maybe it's the heat or the Republican Kool-Aid but somewhere along the line the voters are the ones who should be "pitied" not the state's fruit crop.
The problem in Georgia is racism. In reviewing the 1850 and 1860 Census and slave schedules. Slaves outnumber whites, and planters in Georgia outnumber planters in other states, until the Creek Indian war,that took place at the same time as the war of 1812. The result was the opening up of Creek Territory, which expanded Georgia's western border (Jasper county was the frontier, but is now the center of the state), but the landless and failed Georgia planters migrated west and found the state of Alabama in 1819,
The whites in Georgia, and indeed through out the south, were terrified of liberated slaves. That terror and their opinion of them as sub human lingers still.
There is an epigentic memory of the various slave rebellions, especially the Nat Turner rebellion of 1831 the result of which was to re enslave, black freedmen even those that were slave owning planters.
All true, William, and I feel that is what is powering this extreme white, Christian nationalist, strong man male movement. These white people are terrified of becoming just a minority group like everyone else! Some women I see on a monthly basis will still call a black person and I quote "an uppity Nword". The South has never completely let go of its racism and I truly do not know if they ever will! Other minority groups are growing in voting strength - Blacks, Hispanic, Muslim, Jews, Latino and LGBQT+. Naturally, they are going to vote for a candidate that will ensure their groups are included, not ostracized. This is what has republicans afraid. All of these groups banding together to vote them out and their fear will have happened. They are no longer the most important people in the room! Vote blue, America!
Yes, excellent summary Peggy. Please use a small c “christian-nationalists” with hyphen between, when referring to warped off-shoot cults from various evangelical denominations, that continue to sprout like poisonous wild mushrooms. Beyond radical, their followers worship Donnie Quack’s utter foolishness nonsense. Mesmerized. Giving him Pied Piper Powers. To the dangerous detriment of all of us.
Thanks, Kali, for the heads up! I am a Christian and always forget to go to lower c when referring to the ridiculous cult! It is true, the orange man is a dangerous detriment to all of us. We must continue to talk to people, send post cards, sign petitions and everything else we can to ensure Kamala Harris and Tim Walz are in the White House after the election! Vote blue, America!
Scapegoating and othering are all too human, they appear to be biologically evolved, because you find them in all races, all ethnicitys, all cultures, as Americans we only see what involves us and is in front of our eyes.
That is because we are weak. We see ourselves as apex predators, but we are prey to each other, and unarmed to lions,tigers,bears,leopards and in the ocean to sharks,
As prey animals we come together for safety and for command of resources. Like meerkat tribes in the Kalihari. and if you aren't in our tribe,then you are a threat.
Bears and lions are solitary animals, but they don't prey on each other, well the males will kill the cubs and kits, to bring the female into estrus, but they don't kill each other for food. Meerkat tribes fight off other tribes for territory, which means access to food.
Native Americans did the same thing, they only fought over territory, and when they raided each other it was for food and women (genetic diversity)
We are still the same. We coalesce into groups (constituencies) ,based on religion, color, language, origin, social and economic status.
The various parties,not just in America, but in Europe as well, engage in what is called market segmentation. They coalesce around certain groups and form a party.
The Republicans have succeeded so far in gathering in fundamentalistic Christians, and fearful and resentful whites, and patriarchal inclined., the ingathering has been financed by the monied class, the ecnomic elite, the economic royalists, who then use them as a tool.
The Democratic party is left trying to scrape together a tentative coalition from the leftovers,and as such is very fragile. The left overs outnumber the coalition, but the left overs are comprised of groups which clamor for primacy and dominance, that their cause is greater than the others and has priority and if not recognized they will punish.
Just like Elizabeth Cady and Susan B Anthony who were working for abolition and suffrage, were told by Frederick Douglass that women's suffrage would have to wait, because it was more important that black males get the vote. It happened, I am not making this up.
Agreed Brooks, but show me an example of coalition where there is no attempt to force,or coerce, others into conformity.
Here is the problem, people don't know how to live and let live, and the outsider, the infidel, the non believer is perceived as a threat, and the coalition either becomes insular, withdraws and isolates, or it becomes evangelical and exerts effort to convert others. Such is the case with ideologies, sectarian and secular for religion is an ideology.
The problem is insecurity. Unless the coalition is formed around universal principles to which all can subscribe,in other words inclusive, then it suffers from insecurity and perceives themselves constantly under threat, and the only way to mitigate the threat is to punish deviants, proselytize, coerce or force others into joining the coalition.
It is a numbers game, safety (and wealth) in numbers.
Democracy has, as it's foundation, the idea of inclusion, and as such is a threat to insecure coalitions. Not to imply that there are coalitions that are secure, there aren't. All coalitions confront or are surrounded by threats, real or perceived.
there are probably more examples than groups like the Mennonites or Amish, who to my knowledge live and let live -it's a big world-but by and large,you're right
United we stand, divided we fall. Lincoln, FDR, Truman, LBJ understood that national security requires racial integration. Confederated did not nor do understand this. White supremacy, at least in the US, is self-defeating.
Exceptions of course. I like Jimmy, his life was saved from cancer, by the same drug, Keytruda, that saved mine.
But I also remember the environment in which Jimmy was selected by the Democratic Party.
They chose him as a JFK surrogate, he had a similar hair style, appearance and his Georgia Drawl has a similarity to the Massachusetts twang, the whole idea was to resurrect Camelot
Carter became President when the U.S.was still reeling from the oil embargo, signed the Panama Canal treaty (which was a good deal, because they unloaded a used "car" in need of costly repairs, maintenance and upgrade,, and was caught up in the Iran hostage situation, which Reagan took advantage of by promising the Ayatollah Khomeini a deal, if he held the hostages until he was elected. Khomeini did, and no sooner than Reagan took his hand off the bible, than Khomeini freed the hostage.
The deal was to supply arms, like the F-14 Tomcat (of Tom Cruise Maverick), to Iran to fight Saddam, whom we were also supporting.
Congress would have none of it, so he used the CIA to smuggle in Cocaine, and thus created the cocaine problem, using the contra's in Nicaragua, and , to import cocaine, to get the money, using Panama as the money launderer, to pay Israel to supply arms to Iran. There was a time that Israel and Iran collaborated.
Reagan single handledly created the drug problem, then set about to solve it with Nancy's Just say no and the newly created DEA.
Interesting in house war between the DEA and the CIA, or was it a war?
Yes, there was a war! In 1987, using Noriega's drug dealings as a pretext, President GH Bush invaded Panama, killed most of its military, and effectively regained control of the canal.
I know, I was 5 years retired, but some of my team mates were still on active duty, and were involved in Operation Eagle claw, I was still on active duty and a couple of my NCO's were tagged for that OP, then the Rucksack war, the "student rescue operation in Grenada" and the Panamama operation.
The real reason Noriega was arrested was that he was a CIA bagman and committed the cardinal sin of dipping into the bag.
I had met Noriega in 1973 when he was then the Director of Transportation,
I used to serve Max Cleland at the Silver Diner in Arlington, VA. He was always kind and jovial, even when he had to endure my questions about surviving the DC establishment.
I can't forget Max Cleland, he lost three limbs in Vietnam, elected as a Senator and because he opposed Bush' elective war with Saddam, Karl Rove authored an attack on him as a coward.
MTG had changed her residency imo, knowing she could potentially win a largely rural, not too educated, grievance filled, part of our state. When she's made ignorant, stupid comments, you'd be amazed at the positive responses, she's received. I, however, having lived in rural NE Georgia for almost 20 years, love the view, but not the politics in this area. Have had some discussions over dinner at our house, with a few neighbors. "Interesting" discourse, but in one instance, I' m pretty certain his wife has NOT been encouraged to " hang" out with lil' Ole me anymore. (We're in our 60's...but when she's come to me with crazed conspiracy theories & I've patiently debunked 'em, I suspect he didn't care for that.) Oh well....my " old" lady response wouldn't suggest any southern, gentile type rejoinder expected in these parts. Our builder already found that out; when he thought it was funny to comment that he'd sold the house next store to a family of Mexicans with 12 kids. He was taken aback about my response that I didn't give a... flip....who lived next to me, long as they were kind & kept up their property reasonably well.
It is worthwhile to remember that, if not for the people of Georgia electing TWO US senators in 2020 -- flipping two seats and moving control of the Senate from Leader McConnell to Leader Schumer -- Biden would have accomplished next to nothing. (Georgians re-elected Senator Warnock in 2022.)
To that, we hard-working Democrats in Georgia say... "You're welcome."
It is also worthwhile to remember that Georgia's 14th House district -- which Greene was first elected to represent in 2020 -- has been gerrymanded to be so red that for many election cycles Democrats never even ran a candidate. The year Green was first elected, a Democrat did file to run, but withdrew long before election day.
In 2022, there was a pretty good Democrat - but an unknown -- opposing Greene -- but lost 75-25. Insulting people isn't a good way of trying to persuade them.
Women on the Georgia Coast are working hard for Harris.We're writing postcards, holding voter registration drives and knocking on doors. There are Trump signs everywhere but we are not discouraged. Even in rural areas where Trump won the last election our efforts gave enough votes when combined with the cities to help Biden win. We are determined!!
Stay the course, Laura! We're all rooting for you! I believe women in every single state are working like you to get a win for Kamala! There are so many volunteers giving so much of their time and energy! It's a beautiful thing to see! Keep going, girls! Let's give Kamala a huge boost that will create so many votes for Harris/Walz there will be no need to question who we want!! Vote blue, America!
Since most of Georgia's coast is in the 1st congressional district -- where Earl "Buddy" Carter usually wins by 20 point margins -- do you see Patti Hewett decreasing that margin at all?
Sadly Buddy Carter has a huge treasure chest of money and has been constantly in the newspaper working at food banks and supporting local charities. He has a huge following and has recently moved from Pooler to a huge multi-million dollar house on St. Simons. The only thing that can hurt him is his lack of support to save the Okefenokee Swamp from an Alabama mining company. His most recent attack ads were paid for by the Chemical Alliance, so now we know why he hasn't gotten behind our support for the swamp. It's always about the money!
It's terrific that trump chose vance because both of them are complete idiots and mirror each other's depravity. At least the obvious has become a reality and is in everyone's face. Perhaps some of the longtime sycophants will experience an awakening. Trump's descent into mental decline is genetic, father, mother & sister. Fred Jr. an alcoholic. His recent little rampage in Arlington Cemetery showed us all what a monster he truly is and how brainwashed idiot partner is by blaming Kamala for the deaths in Afghanistan. Maybe now RFK Jr. will wake up with regrets and sorrow because his father and 2 uncles are buried there and one uncle has a memorial marker as well. We can only hope.
Thank you for all the knowledge and wisdom you impart to us.
You are correct Susan, the old guard in the Republican party are tearing their hair out over Trump's choice of Vance. That is the old guard that remains and has not fled to the Democratic party. We welcome them until Nov 5th, but if they stay they will remake the Democratic party into the Republican party - fully
Sadly, RFK Jr,is as damaged, wounded, a lost soul, warped by the Trauma in his family as Donnie QuackQuack has been by his. Both have been off the DeepEnd, unable to heal, Dragging followers to the Edges of Cliffs; Trails of Destruction…2 of them = recipes for Disaster x2. Those who truly care, in Despair.
I wonder what the Secret Service that protects Trump did at Arlington when Trump was blocked by the overseer at the cemetery. I feel sorry for them. It must be a frustrating job.
Funny how elections have always been seen to be free of interference through most of our history until trump comes along. Now every election is rigged and trump is the common denominator.
Go back in history. Elections were so bad during the Jim Crow era in the Southern states, that black people were seldom allowed to vote at all. The Confederate states used poll taxes, bogus tests and other methods to prevent black citizens from registering to vote. After signing the civil rights act into law, they continued to use devious tactics to disenfranchise black voters and the Voting Rights Act put many Southern states under federal monitoring of elections. When that act ran its course, just as when the ban on automatic weapons did, Southern states blocked an effort to renew it. That is when the Southern states reverted to its “natural” tendency of finding new ways of disenfranchising voters of color.
"So why are Harris and Walz spending time in rural southeast Georgia? Because they need rural voters — especially Black voters who comprise about a quarter of the state’s rural population, to offset Trump’s potential win of white rural voters."
They spent time yesterday in Liberty County, near Savannah. The county is about 42% Black / 37% White / 12% Hispanic and the rest "other/mixed."
From what I can tell, people are really taking to Coach Walz too. Football is king in Georgia, and Walz can talk with a lot of credibility to any farmer.
We have a terrific live political radio show on our NPR station -- WABE -- at 10 AM ET every weekday morning. "Politically Georgia." They have a person riding the Harris-Walz bus, and they'll be reporting firsthand this morning.
They were not in rural Georgia yesterday. They are in coastal Georgia. It’s a big difference. There are no farmers here, unless today they actually travel to rural Georgia.
Yesterday, on "Politically Georgia" (on Atlanta's NPR station WABE), one of the guests was the representative of our state's 97th house district -- Ruwa Romman -- a Palestinian-American. She told the story of how she was contacted to possibly speak at the DNC last week.
How she spoke radiated respect, intelligence, kindness, and of course some disappointment.
She spoke against any Palestinian or Arab American sitting out this election, and is solidly behind Kamala Harris.
She emphasized again and again the we in the US should be following OUR OWN LAWS with regards to arms transfers to any country involved in human rights violations..
Worth bringing up to the Arab American voters in our party is this:
1 - Trump is actively engaged in counter-diplomacy with Netanyahu to not only reject the cease fire, but to widen the conflict. The worse it becomes, the better for Trump it is and he is and has been campaigning on it.
2 - Putin is pressuring the other side through Iran as well and more than likely convinced Hamas to start the suicidal effort (likely with promises of support that then failed to materialize). Russia got what it wanted, higher oil prices and another way to attack Biden. Hamas got annihilated.
3 - if it weren’t for the constant pressure from the GOP using this conflict against Democrats, Biden would have had the leverage to force Israel to negotiate. As soon as the election is over- if we win - that will happen. If it we don’t win, Trump has probably already given Bibi a promise to support the removal or annihilation of all remaining Palestinians from Israel.
The stakes for this election are particularly high for anyone who actually cares about what happens to the Palestinians.
Agree and how sad a Palestinian American can’t speak at the DNC but all those loser Republicans who once supported Trump and loved him got to speak. I’m talking about the likes of Olivia Troye, not Adam Kinzinger.
This is how you run a campaign, go to the rural communities and make your case. Also, file a legal challenge to the Election Board's attempt to stall certification. This will be the disgraced ex president's play, if he can't win fairly he will try to cheat. I am betting it won't work this time; I am seeing more and more evidence that most Americans are tired of him and want the change, the policies, and the hope that the Harris/Walz ticket brings.
Robert Reich ; Thank you for this information about Georgia's changes in some election rules, and how the Democrats are challenging some attempts to interfere with the election results with Republican delays. It is sickening to see how much they are trying to tamper with "free and fair elections". "pit bulls" are not needed here.
William--I'm confused, look at every interest group Trump needs support from in order to get elected. The idiot has insulted almost every one of them. He admitted forcing the overturning of Roe-vs-Wade, which negated the women's vote. He ridiculed service members who gave their lives to protect the very freedom he uses to belittle others. This should have all but cancelled the vote from the military. The man is a racist and when he speaks to people of color, he embarrasses himself, and the jerk just doesn't realize it. Then there are the crazies. They don't care what the man says. The hook they swallowed is firmly snagged in their gut.
Thanks for the update.
Trump is spiraling into insanity. When will that be apparent to the undecided?
The machinations of the Republicans to manipulate vote counting is expected. Gratifying that Georgian Democrats are pushing back. Our freedom depends on the conscience of those who fill the basic clerical requirements of our elections. A test for our Times.
Republicans -- in their guts they know Trump is nuts.
The Republicans Fear The Will of The People ; Trumpet 🎺 was a Fluke The First Time He Got Elected President.
Now He Is A Rat Fighting for his Life THERE CAN Be NO Letup in this fight until we have achieved Victory in the Voting Booth…
First We win the Election,
The Price of Liberty Is
Eternal Vigilance .
Absolutely.
I think Cheetolini’s win in 2016 shook people out of any apathy that may have existed in that election. How many people didn’t bother to vote because they thought Hillary had it in the bag.
Lesson learned. Every vote counts and all efforts by the GOP need to be monitored and litigated if necessary (thank you Marc Elias and team).
I reside in rural NE Georgia. Starting to see trump signs pop up here, in an area that is about an 86% republican stronghold last I looked. I've left messages at the Atlanta Democrat office & couldn't even leave a message at the Gainesville Dem office; that I wanted to purchase a Harris / Walz sign for my front lawn. ( Did when Biden/ Harris ran as well, as my home is right in across from a stop sign, when you enter my subdivision. Visible certainly, and necessary imo, to offset the trump signs in the area & to suggest to those sitting on the fence, yes, there are folks here who won't consider a trump presidency. My sister, the next town over, is afraid to put up in her neighborhood. I say "f" 'em. ( Not meaning to be crude,) but imo, to put up a sign advertising your choice, is part of free speech. Now I am either left to go to Etzy (sp?) Or contact national dem headquarters for my sign. PITA when you contact dem headquarters & can't seem to get a response to obtain a sign, paid or unpaid.
Bonnie - “like” Love your attitude! I went to a craft store and bought a very big poster board/paint and made my own one and then went to a hardware store and got some plexiglass/screws to make it waterproof. I don’t think that it looks too bad and it is definitely bigger than the regular signs. It is in my yard right next door to a trump neighbor (we actually get along most days - go figure). Just a suggestion in case you can’t get an “official” one. My other neighbor down the road actually paid a sign store to make a personalized banner that I think looks pretty sharp (definitely better than my homemade one). His neighbor kept trying to destroy it but finally stopped when he was told that he has been caught on camera. He had a good laugh because the Sheriff is Very republican and had to tell the guy to stop trying to destroy a democrat sign.
If your neighbors put up Trump signs you can put a sign saying,"I vote my conscience." They will get the message.
Well said! Agreed!
I understand your sister's hesitance. Last election I was 63 in a major trump neighborhood and was afraid to advertise myself for Biden/Harris. I had pit a Ruth B sticker on my van and someone tore it off. I took am afraid of those people!
I understand. I do. Perhaps I should be too, especially in this area; but as I've gotten older, I have this attitude of, " I don't give a " flying flip" what someone thinks anymore. People have made assumptions at times, while I've lived in the South, which is more than a few decades now, about what my view points might be. They've occasionally been mistaken & have been advised so. In my heart & mind, if it's wrong, it's wrong AND TRUMP is so very wrong, imo, for this nation. Hell, he's wrong for the running of the inherited trump business & the NY state courts essentially shut them down. Ignorant on many topics, it would appear..not terribly curious or bright & morally challenged in a significant way, imo. I cringe & have to turn to another channel when I see him on tv. I've read plenty of articles on the supposed reasons why some folks voted for him, but I'll never quite understand how people can think he's a terrific human being & businessman. If people only did their research....
Give them a reason to fear you !!!
Being too nice can get you hurt…
And thanks to the DNC.
linda - “like”
I think an American Trifecta is ALMOST inevitable at this point, knowing that nearly half of Bunkerboy's cult is just going to be so SAD that they'll be getting drunk instead of voting.
It's not GOOD, but in this one situation only it kinda' is.
"Bunkerboy": Is he any relation to Tangerine Palpatine? ;-)
Yes!
Well said!
Yep Dan, and they don't care, the love him anyway, cause they love themselves.
They look at Trump and they see themselves,but only with power that they don't have.
Not to get too far into thr Freudian weeds, but I think they love him BECAUSE they are angry, disappointed, castrati and he acts out their fantasies. Including we with women. I find harder to explain the psyche of a female MAGAt...some sort of S&M dominance kinky thing?
He convinces them that he "loves" them. Like the wealthy widow upon whom he honored with the medal of freedom, because she was so "beautiful" and generous with her millions,, 👗giving more than anyone who showed Valor and courage, but was a loser and disfigured , or even (horrors) dead, because of their bravery in battle to defend our country.
Laurie - “Like” How many times does the Hatch Act have to be violated before someone does something? His views on the military makes my blood boil.
How can this man even be on the ballot? Because the thoroughly corrupted Supreme Court decided to allow him to be. The extreme 6 violated their oaths to the Constitution. They should not be on that bench.
Trump is the sickest phoniest piece of poo in American history.
And when he goes down in November, so goes the Republican Party that hitched their wagon to the malignant narcissist.
just sayin'
Abraham Washington ; That would be truly Great!
That too Mirian,. Not either or, as regards the women.
Are you familiar with the term camp followers?
Women who perceive themselves the beneficiaries of the status quo, and are threatened by liberated women.
Are you familiar with Phylllis Schafly, who single handedly stopped ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment, basically telling women that the amendment threatened them.
Until hubby dumps them for a new and different model, women perceive themselves, some, maybe most, still do, as beneficiaries of the status quo, where the man has the responsiblity to protect and provide. A lot of women, women that I know, women like you, want your indepdence and careers,but I had two sisters who never worked, both are grandmothers, they happily lived off their husbands, let their husbands deal with the real world, worry and get ulcers, while they stayed home, spent an hour cleaning house, maybe, an hour or so more cooking and baking, a half hour folding clothes a couple times a week, and a couple of hours ironing, maybe, the rest of the time puttering in the garden, having coffee, drinking wine and gossiping with the neighbors.
Feeling sorry for the women who HAD to work.
Even those that worked, knew they had a fall back, their husband.
I try to share all my ulcers with my wife.
LOL, Lots of luck
Stomach ulcers can affect anyone but are more common in people aged 60 or over. Men are more affected than women.
My wife is the wise one around here (after all, she did marry me) and she's been saying for a long time that the kryptonite that's gonna take down Trump is Women's Reproductive Freedom - that's why he's literally calling himself the "LEADER for women's reproductive freedom".
And those 3 anti-abortion judges you put on SCOTUS? Naw, I never did that. Fake news.
This is the Women's Election, and they're gonna kick Trump's ass!
Not S&M Dominance, though it certainly does have that appearance.
I am taking my cue from the behavior of many species of birds and fish.
The male builds the nest, to attract the female, and guards it and the young
Security and protection. The male provides protection, builds the nest, provides protection for the female and the young, and then provides food., and yes in some species the female also obtains the food, while the man guards the nest.
Nowhere more obvious than with Emperor penguins. except their nest is their feet.
Some species, like Geese, mate for life. Humans do and don't, dependent on capabilities and availability mates of either gender , unless committed "entrapped" by social and financial circumstances, wander to seek other partners, it is genetic., the more diverse the DNA the better chance the survival of the species. Commonly known as the "7 year itch", but more like four years, the period of time it takes for the love hormone oxytocin to leave the system.
Those who have partnered for love, know what I mean.
Producing and rearing healthy offspring is the most valuable contribution a woman can make to her country, JD Vance argues. Yet, as the case of Justice Barrett shows, a woman can be both mother and a leader., something JD Vance and his likes will never be able to be.
Female leaders are a threat to men like Vance. Men like Vance need Viagra.
I believe its misplaced anger the ones the magas should be truly angry with are tRumps backers since they have been screwing them economically for years, low wages, terrible work conditions, etc and tRump knew exactly how to exploit their anger. Yet he has nothing in common with the maga's.
Miriam Rodin : Also, many of his major boosters are obscenely rich. They have their greedy agenda to get more and more wealth, even if it destroys the 🌎 world. They buy the very health of the entire planet and all forms of life. Even their own. Like depraved junkies. They would end environmental protections that cut into their profits. TRump will gladly end Biden's rules to protect us and our environment for a billion $ for his campaign, that fossil fuel interests will give him for the favor.
Depraved Junkies is correct Laurie, it is an addiction, as bad or worse than gambling.
It is easier to detox from alcohol, nicotine, cocaine, heroin than from gambling.
And the depraved wealthy are like sharks, they have to keep swimming or else they die. If they get out of the game, if they retire they lose everything, they have to stay in the game to protect what they have.
They can't help but know that their activities are self destructive, but they live in the moment.
Standard oil in 1974 (or was it 73) funded a study that predicted the effects of oil consumption, sea level rise, global warming, and the end of mammalian life, but they are invested in today, and the immediate future, they have to know that they are committing specicide, including their own dynasties and legacies, but they can't stop, they (we) live in the moment, while we talk of the future.
Finally as the dystopian and apocalyptic future seems to be at hand, they are finally make a gesture, all to late, at renewable energy. A day late and a dollar short
Elon Musk saw the future and in his pipe dream he is madly funding a project which will take him off the earth to settle on Mars. A forelorn hope, wishful thinking, he is stupid, as are those who believe him.
There is no way that Mars can be terraformed to sustain human life, and if humans are to live there, they must live in an actual bubble, and venture forth in pressure suits with an external air supply, and at .38 earths gravity, each step will have them bounding 14 ft into the air.. And Children born on Mars will have problems, never to return to earth except in space suits withexoskeletons to assist in walking, as there muscles, tendons and bones were developed in agraviational field .38 that of earth, an virtually minus an atmosphere that give us atmospheric pressure, and requires bones, tendons and muscles suffient enough to perambulate.
Humans born on Mars will , if they mature, look like the so called gray aliens.
Reduced gravity doesn't make one grow taller,, or bigger, because there is reduced stress on the bones,and stress is what makes the bones bigger in response to the stress placed on them by muscles and tendons.
That's why astronauts have to exercise on the ISS and why they are carried off their capsules when they return to earth.
William Farrar ; Not very livable.
If Elon Musk was as smart as he thinks he is, and if NASA was as smart as they are suppose to be, the only living on Mars would stay on the silver screen.
NASA knows I am sure, but if they told all they knew to the public, they would not continue to receive funds.
Fact is that humanity is confined to this third rock from the sun, there is no escape, and if we are to survive, businessmen, billionaires, dictators, politicians, and we the people, regardless of ideology (secular or sectarian) had best come to grips with the dire and immediate possibility, that we, and other mammalian life are an endangered species, and we are doing it to ourselves.
Trump and his Republican supporters are worse than fentanyl dealers.
They don’t ‘love’ themselves, because they aren’t capable of love. What is mistaken for love is a clinging to Ego, and the fear of maturing beyond that limited sense of self. Real adult love for self and others, only comes when a person is able to grow up both mentally and emotionally into an adult, not just physically. Many have the mental, sharpness, yet the vital emotional maturity is still missing: The Ability to Know thy Self, and Love and Honor Others as Ones Self, Allows for Genuine Cooperation for Greatest Good for All. Civilization at its Finest.
William - “like” He sees props and not people. Shame that the people don’t see themselves as props.
some people cherish their grievances
Yes they do Brooks. They carry their grievances and dysfunction around with them like precious jewels.
People who grow up in dysfunctional cultures, whose values and ethos result in dictatorships, rampant poverty, police states, crime flee to safe havens where they can live a better life, but they carry with them the same cultural attitudes, values and beliefs that made their lives miserable, and demand that the host recognize, accommodate and eventually change
As a current example. The United States was not founded as a Christian Nation, however some came here to practice their religion as they pleased, like the Puritans to New England the Catholics to Maryland and the Huguenots to Virginia and later to Massachusetts.
The Huguenots basically assimilated and went extinct as a religion, but the Puritans and Catholics have steadily worked to transform America into a Christian Theocracy.
Europe is having the same problem with Islam. It just does not have the numbers, muscles, as yet.
IMHO, the Evangelicals are the ones pushing for the adoption of the idea that they and their multiple religions are supposed to be the "rulers" and the "owners" of the Constitution. They are the ones, although some rabid Catholics are pushers too, that want the divide between religion and the state to be erased.
The rabid Catholics are the rabid 6 on SCOTUS, the Federalist Society, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Leonard Leo, Kevin Roberts, the Heritage Foundation. Not all Catholics of course and not all Evangelicals either, their is reaction among Evangelicals against the right wing theocrats.
Even worse than the Evangeliclas are the Dominionists, (Christian Reconstruction), founded by R J Rushdoony and Ted Cruz's father Rafael
https://www.sullivan-county.com/nf0/fundienazis/royal_race.htm, they front themselves as the benign Chalcedon Foundation, they are in reality Christian NAZI's, that make the Taliban look liberal.
And the New Apostolic Reformation. Neither are evangelical, trying to convert non believers, they are insidious and work both Protestants and Catholics.
I am sure that Catholics like Mike Pence and Protestants like Mike Johnson are Dominionists/NAR
well said, especially when their Supreme Leader gives them someone to blame for their unsatisfactory situation.
It's not your fault you're a loser, it's because of the ... muslims, jews, immigrants, elites, media, globalists, climate loonies, ...
Elect me and I'll kick the all out and your life will be great. Again.
This is my second (of 50) articles, and I stand by it.
https://kamala4prez.substack.com/p/four-faces-of-neo-fascism
yes, that is part of Trump's appeal, the so-called Big Successful Guy that powerless people can identify with (see Eric From's "Escape From Freedom")
https://kamala4prez.substack.com/p/erich-fromms-escape-from-freedom
but Trump wisely added a thick dressing of flag-waving "Americanism"
(se Eric Hofstadter's "Paranoid Style of American Politics")
https://kamala4prez.substack.com/p/the-paranoid-style-in-american-politics
I think Kamala and the DNC very wisely addressed both of those Trump-themes at their convention: we (the Dems) are for you, the struggling working people, the hard-pressed middle class, and we're also reclaiming our patriotism as proud Americans.
Mostly, I think, this will be a Blue Wave election - wave elections are always about "throw the bums out" and right now America is tired of Trump's malignant BS and America is ready to "throw the bums - Trump & MAGA - out" and turn the page to a better America.
A brilliant strategy so far prepared and executed perfectly.
Trump is crashing - today alone he talked all day about Communism vs Freedom (yeah, as if most Americans are worried about communism - that's a throwback tactic from the 1950s); and then he reposted really disgusting "retweets" saying Kamala got where she is by giving "blowjobs" - that's Trump on his Truth Social; and then there's the incident at Arlington where he brought his film crew even though his request had been denied; and then called Kamala a "low intelligence woman" (yeah, that ought to win a lot of suburban housewife votes) and then called himself - wait for it - "the greatest LEADER for women's reproductive freedom"; and the day isn't over yet.
So Trump's trailing in the polls (even his beloved Rasmussen has dropped him from 5% lead to 2% lead), trailing in fund-raising, trailing in "enthusiasm" among supporters, ...
well, you get my point; he's losing and knows it and will get crazier every day and drive away those sane voters in the middle, while Kamala's keeping her cool and even going into deep red districts.
So, that's my Blue Wave Forming rant for today.
Fingers crossed.
Power that has been taken from them, Trump keeps telling them. It happened in the 1860s, but it still hurts. Harris/Walz must be careful in more ways than one.
I agree, they will make hay out of any faux pas, and already have. It is a chore having to be yourself, , to be totally aware all of the time, as not to commit unforced errors, like saying white boy taco's.. really stupid because the customer is the one who embellishes it with hot sauce. I like habeñero myself. I have six in the freezer, along with cilantro for my ceviche.
And that remark about carrying a rifle in war, although technically correct, is misleading.
Don't people know about google.?
Republicans have no shame, they even tried to make a scene out of Gus Walz.
The lesson that they need to remember is the one Karl Rove invented and it is attack the strengths, like he did Max Clelland.
The campaign staff had better be ready, and not be foolish like Dukakis.
And hopefully, the Republicans, whom trump is counting on, will vote Harris/Walz. He is insane and I believe Republican voters have finally figured that out.
I didn't say that. Many are co-dependents.
I realize that, just added my 2 cents
What is so frustrating is that they do know it. Trump is easily manipulated and it’s that access to power they want.
What’s that old saying about absolute power corrupting absolutely. Ladies & Gentlemen, today’s Republican Party.
it does not matter- millions will still vote for him and do his bidding
They are a distinct minority. They will only "win" if they cheat. They are doing their damndest now to outrun our somewhat sluggish justice system. We need better than we currently have. This should have been prevented and the perps dealt with years ago. The latest is that Jack Smith is going for the fifth indictment. And Grand jury trial.. Of course , Andrew Weissman tells us that it won't happen before the election, and if tfg gets the White House, it will never happen, or it will be 2026 that the case will be heard.🤔If it is ever heard 🤔. ! Pathetic! No wonder we keep being robbed by the extreme right. It's probably a feeling like what Israelis feel when they can't get a better leader than Netanyahu, who should be in jail. like tfg.
Not as many this time. https://rvat.org/
https://www.haleyvotersforharris.org/
Mweiner: Until they hurt badly enough, and if he gains power, they will hurt, eventually.
Not sure about that. An awful lot of his followers are pretty nuts too and then there are the horribly uninformed and finally the downright venerable folks as well. We can’t fix a lot of that.
In their butts they know he's nuts!
Daniel - “like” Isn’t that the scary part?
There is also another possible deterrent to certification chicanery besides conscience and a lawsuit. I heard a commentator point out that if an election is not certified, it is not certified for all races on the ballot. You cannot have a ballot that is partly fraudulent. That means that refusing to certify will prevent local elected election officials, state legislators, etc. from taking office. It's not just the presidential race, and local election winners and their constituents may be very unhappy that rogue election boards are preventing them from taking office.
Unfortunately, those who fulfill electoral process roles are human beings and no less susceptible to perfidy as the rest of the population. Right now, populist support for irrationality, aggression, deceit, outlandishly obvious lying and general simplistic, ignorant mob delusion is at levels far beyond what one would expect of responsible, reasonable, caring people in a democracy. Would that it weren't the case.
Trump can blubber,he can slobber, wet his pants and that won't move his Humpers a milimeter, they already celebrate wearing diapers in honor of von Schitzhispantz/
In simpler terms, Trump‘s followers are nothing more than rock band groupies, eager to sacrifice their personal safety and security to their idol. Historically, idol worship never ended well. Trump is a modern day Moloch, a fiery altar with an insatiable appetite for children and adults with arrested development.
Trump base is finite at best.
True! He's holding not growing. Biden won Georgia last time with the responsible executive action of Raffensberger. This time around it will require full on Stop the Steal precinct level pollwatchers to thwart the rigged election process. Georgians should be encouraged to vote in person...who knows what can happen in an unwatched mail room.
The United Nations sometimes keeps watch over elections. Wouldn’t it be great if our November election were to be overseen by the UN?
I think we should demand it!
Agreed Daniel, His base is finite, but it is coalesced around one thing, the culture war, owning the libs. The Democratic base is like an accordion it moves in and out, with this or that faction easily schismed , demanding priority and/or recognition.
Why is there a Green party? I remember when it was founded and why. It broke away from the Democratic party
The libertarian party was, in 1980, both Ayn Randian and anti fascist. and attracted Republicans and Democrats, then with increasing financing by the Koch brothers, (David ran for President that year) it abandoned the cultural pull of Libertarianism, for the self interest pull of Rand.
Donald Hodgins
Donald’s Substack
1 hr ago
Georgia was originally a buffer zone established as a defensive barrier between Spanish held Florida and the British colonies. Then someone got a great idea, and they decided to grow peaches. Cling or freestone a tree ripened peach is a wonder on to itself, if you have a napkin to catch the juice. Robert quoted a line from the memorable song; "Georgia on my Mind," sung by none other than the late great Louis Armstrong. No one did it better. Now if we can keep that state's bluish tint left over from the last election we will be on the way. Like the man said, "There are two kinds of music, the good and the bad. I play the good." Louis would have voted for Kamala and Tim in a heartbeat, the "Jazz" he loved never associated itself with Politics.
Our support of the DNC helps to fund the legal challenges.
If I was a Republican I would be too ashamed to vote for Trump.
"Insanity" is a funny word for ALZHEIMERS! That shlurring that changesth almost by the second? That extreme paranoia? The low energy? ALL symptoms of the a-brain disease his skinny daddy had.
I think they plan to have Trump win and immediately replace him with Vance, who is to be tasked with implementing Project 25.
They. Don’t. Care.
robert - “like”
We’re learning now that the most important freedoms for Republicans are freedom from things. Like freedom from democracy, freedom from justice, freedom from compassion.
Freedom from decency too. They are the dregs of your political system.
Mostly freedom from duty and responsibility.
I feel sorry for you.
Your comment seems almost completely contradictory to your pen name.
What do you mean by "almost"?
It's just a lousy troll. Just ignore it and it'll leave.
Well there is a connection if you consider that most Russian trolls were at one point connected to USSR intel agencies (directly or indirectly). Old Vlad himself was KGB.
Whether fake Karl is intel or a “useful idiot” doesn’t much matter- his mission is to undermine the US and its allies and to support Russian interests.
It’s definitely not John McCain’s GOP anymore.
I’m was giving you compassion.
Nay Karl, thou are indeed pathetic.
Thank you.
You are most welcome Karl, I am so glad that you agree.
Giving ''me" compassion? I don't understand that for when I commented it was regarding a comment you had already made.
Perhaps you are suggesting that you were giving Republicans compassion - is that the case? If that is what you were attempting to do, I can assure you that it didn't appear so because you appeared to be feeling "sorry" for Todd Telford, the author of the post on which you commented.
When online, others can only assess your view or intent by reading what you have written so it is important to be very careful about what you say and how you say it. The cursory one-liners that so often appear rarely make sense or if they do, it is often not the sense that was intended.
Hey, Karl, you old sourpuss, we met years ago at Bellevue. Do you remember me? I went by “Queen Victoria” in those days.
You should be feeling sorry for your boss Karl. Ukraine opened another front in Russia this week.
The house of cards is coming down dude…
Sez pure pathos.
I hope you have a nice day.
It would be better without trolls.
All dialogue would be better if it were polite, clear and contributed positively to the post, comment and/or topic.
I understand that there are people who, through no fault of their own, may be ignorant, have poor literacy, limited vocabulary, poor comprehension and a general inability to express themselves well. It is why I give them the benefit of the doubt, at least initially.
Sometimes, however, it very quickly becomes clear that I have failed and am unlikely to improve the situation even if I continue. I find that sad. I also, as I suspect do many others, find those with nothing to contribute other than disruption, rudeness or abuse, a major irritation when others have worthwhile views to share.
Take care. Stay safe all. ☮️
Nicely put, non sibi cunctis!
Thank you, non sibi cunctis, for your caring and efforts. Let's all stay safe.
Your definition of a troll is anyone who disagrees with you. You need to get off the internet and talk people face to face.
Karl, you cannot know what Laurie's definition of "trolls" might be. Even if you could or did, it would not be a justification for Laurie to "get off the internet."
Indeed, on the basis of your comments here, I would suggest that if anyone ought to cease posting comments or as you put it, "get off the internet", it is probably you for you have not yet contributed anything of any worth.
Arguing and/or being abusive whilst hiding behind an assumed name is a common trait of the coward. Rarely will such people take the risk of speaking "face to face" in the same manner. Your comment to Laurie is therefore not only abusive but also irrational for it is doubtful that you would have the courage or capacity to face him or her directly.
Incidentally, for someone who writes as you do, to use the pseudonym of 'Karl Marx', is offensive.
When someone is obnoxious, it is evident that they are hostile. And have no intention to be agreeable or civil the offense is the point for them. That's you. You assail those on this thread.
I actually talk face to face every day: with some who have different beliefs than I do. Civility and good will help.
I will, so much better knowing that you are in my life. Tom does enjoy toying with Jerry.
LOL..you can’t carry on a real discussion. You’re not used to doing so.
What discussion asshole. You don't discuss, you troll.
I think we should remember that it is not sufficient for Democrats to win the Presidency. If the House and Senate have Republican majorities under President Harris, she will be as impotent as President Obama was over making any significant changes. Elected MAGAs in Congress will resist everything she proposes by putting party before country as usual.
I'm surprised more effort isn't expended in getting the voting public to consider down ballot races. Historically, Republicans have been better at avoiding what's known as down ballot rolloff - skipping races after the top of the ticket.
https://sisterdistrict.com/rolloff/
The reason we are in such a mess is because historically the Democrats have neglected the down ballot, while the Republicans have concentrated on building a base from dog catcher and school board, to state legislature. That is where real policy is made.
Democrats have forgotten that the United States is made up of 50 Sovereign Countries, bound together by a compact called the Constitution, in which the sovereign countries or states, relinquish certain authorities to a federal government., the rest they keep to themselves, per the binding agreement called the constitution.
Exactly, William! I have said this before, the republicans have been working at this since Reagan and Gingrich days. Slowly they have made sure to get their people in positions of power all through the states. That was part of the plan when they were writing Project 2025.
I am a retired military officer, and the ethos is to accept responsibility for failure, you don't shift the blame, or ignore one's own failures.
The Democratic party, and the Republican party, don't. Politicians don't, they always blame someone else or just ignore the situation and hope that everyone else does as well, or that it will disappear down the memory hole.
I know that the guiding lights of the DNC are intelligent, if it was obvious to a flunkie like me, that they have screwed the goose by not investing in local politics, it should be obvious to them.
So the question then is why have they ignored the race for the city council, the school board.
One answer is motivation. The right wing is visceral, easily threatened and motivated, the press and the pulpit, local businessmen fund local elections
Remember the Trump boat parades. the caravans,? Who do you think has the money for such antics? Car dealerships, real estate brokers, lawyers, insurance brokers Mom and Pop brick and mortar stores.
All politics is personal and people are driven by self interest, not just economic, but cultural and personal.
The Dems have been missing the boat, and have not even tried to build a nationwide movement.
Believe it or not, the Republicans have been building from the bottom up, the Democrats from the top down, and for the first time in my lifetime, with Harris/Walz it looks like they finally got the message and are trying to build from the bottom up. I am waiting to see if it sticks. I hope so. We have to retake the country from the fascist ground swell.
Well said, William!
William - “like” Agree
David, I agree with you. I have made it a point when I am out talking to people to also include down ballot races. We have to get all of the right-wing nutters out of Congress so that we can actually get some things done. Vote blue, America!
Peggy - “like” Exhausting but necessary.
1. Every state blue. https://everystateblue.org/
2. Forgotten Democrats. https://forgottendemocrats.org/
I think, for the first time, Americans ARE working to get a trifecta again! We can't rest, but it shouldn't be too hard given the
(That was on purpose by the way to highlight Bunkerboy's Alzheimers.)
Yes, such an important point and one rarely raised and, I think, often forgotten.
Maybe some changes in the "Supreme" court will allow the Constitution to be employed to clean the house: to get rid of election deniers and TRUMP sycophants in Congress. We would be better off with judges who respect their oaths as well.
Colin - “like”
Republican Party so corrupt that I have no faith in the voting process. They will do anything to cheat and say they win.. scary and creepy and desperate.
Ergo, crush them. Blue tsunami. Phone banks today.
https://www.mobilize.us/ft6/?q=phone%20banks&tag_ids=20038
Elena - “like”
Don’t give up on Missouri. There is a new energy and enthusiasm in Missouri’s Demographic Party.Lucas Kunce looks like he has a chance to fire Josh Hawley. Missouri labor successfully fought off “right to work.” Missourians finally accepted Medicaid expansion, and abortion rights are on the ballot. Harris/Walz should be a swing state. Maybe there are ways to embarrass Fox (Faux) News.
However, I wouldn't give up on them completely, and I can give you 11,780 reasons why.
How members of one party or another are allowed any part in verifying results, is beyond me. Here is the UK the election is run by a Returning officer. He selects public servants to organise the count and is responsible for ensuring that the election is free and fair. That any of Trump's revolting creatures can be allowed anywhere near this fills me with horror. Any Trump verified win should be overseen my neutral observers. I'm not suggesting our political system is a gold standard; far from it. But loophole should be closed by the democrats when they get into office.
100% agree with you, Colin! It is imperative that we straighten out the mess republicans have made of our election system. The orange man made many Americans cast doubt on a free and fair election in 2020 and look what happened. Even though it was free and fair, the bloviating orange buffoon pitched a temper tantrum because he lost. It has been proven to the electorate over and over (60+ times) in court that the election was honest and true. Once we have Kamala Harris and Tim Walz in office and a blue Congress, we will fix all of these loopholes for once and for all! Vote blue, America!
I'm really hoping this is what happens!
I have read that there are legal challenges being made against the tactics they are proposing on the 'right'. As everyone knows, any justice delayed can become justice denied. Our highest court is severely disabled. A fair election would be justice.
The state of Georgia has its's problems. For any group the elect someone like MTG leaves me questioning their ability to think. Maybe it's the heat or the Republican Kool-Aid but somewhere along the line the voters are the ones who should be "pitied" not the state's fruit crop.
The problem in Georgia is racism. In reviewing the 1850 and 1860 Census and slave schedules. Slaves outnumber whites, and planters in Georgia outnumber planters in other states, until the Creek Indian war,that took place at the same time as the war of 1812. The result was the opening up of Creek Territory, which expanded Georgia's western border (Jasper county was the frontier, but is now the center of the state), but the landless and failed Georgia planters migrated west and found the state of Alabama in 1819,
The whites in Georgia, and indeed through out the south, were terrified of liberated slaves. That terror and their opinion of them as sub human lingers still.
There is an epigentic memory of the various slave rebellions, especially the Nat Turner rebellion of 1831 the result of which was to re enslave, black freedmen even those that were slave owning planters.
All true, William, and I feel that is what is powering this extreme white, Christian nationalist, strong man male movement. These white people are terrified of becoming just a minority group like everyone else! Some women I see on a monthly basis will still call a black person and I quote "an uppity Nword". The South has never completely let go of its racism and I truly do not know if they ever will! Other minority groups are growing in voting strength - Blacks, Hispanic, Muslim, Jews, Latino and LGBQT+. Naturally, they are going to vote for a candidate that will ensure their groups are included, not ostracized. This is what has republicans afraid. All of these groups banding together to vote them out and their fear will have happened. They are no longer the most important people in the room! Vote blue, America!
Yes, excellent summary Peggy. Please use a small c “christian-nationalists” with hyphen between, when referring to warped off-shoot cults from various evangelical denominations, that continue to sprout like poisonous wild mushrooms. Beyond radical, their followers worship Donnie Quack’s utter foolishness nonsense. Mesmerized. Giving him Pied Piper Powers. To the dangerous detriment of all of us.
Thanks, Kali, for the heads up! I am a Christian and always forget to go to lower c when referring to the ridiculous cult! It is true, the orange man is a dangerous detriment to all of us. We must continue to talk to people, send post cards, sign petitions and everything else we can to ensure Kamala Harris and Tim Walz are in the White House after the election! Vote blue, America!
Scapegoating and othering are all too human, they appear to be biologically evolved, because you find them in all races, all ethnicitys, all cultures, as Americans we only see what involves us and is in front of our eyes.
That is because we are weak. We see ourselves as apex predators, but we are prey to each other, and unarmed to lions,tigers,bears,leopards and in the ocean to sharks,
As prey animals we come together for safety and for command of resources. Like meerkat tribes in the Kalihari. and if you aren't in our tribe,then you are a threat.
Bears and lions are solitary animals, but they don't prey on each other, well the males will kill the cubs and kits, to bring the female into estrus, but they don't kill each other for food. Meerkat tribes fight off other tribes for territory, which means access to food.
Native Americans did the same thing, they only fought over territory, and when they raided each other it was for food and women (genetic diversity)
We are still the same. We coalesce into groups (constituencies) ,based on religion, color, language, origin, social and economic status.
The various parties,not just in America, but in Europe as well, engage in what is called market segmentation. They coalesce around certain groups and form a party.
The Republicans have succeeded so far in gathering in fundamentalistic Christians, and fearful and resentful whites, and patriarchal inclined., the ingathering has been financed by the monied class, the ecnomic elite, the economic royalists, who then use them as a tool.
The Democratic party is left trying to scrape together a tentative coalition from the leftovers,and as such is very fragile. The left overs outnumber the coalition, but the left overs are comprised of groups which clamor for primacy and dominance, that their cause is greater than the others and has priority and if not recognized they will punish.
Just like Elizabeth Cady and Susan B Anthony who were working for abolition and suffrage, were told by Frederick Douglass that women's suffrage would have to wait, because it was more important that black males get the vote. It happened, I am not making this up.
coalescing into groups based on shared values is not bad-it's the attempt to force others to live by those values that's the problem
Agreed Brooks, but show me an example of coalition where there is no attempt to force,or coerce, others into conformity.
Here is the problem, people don't know how to live and let live, and the outsider, the infidel, the non believer is perceived as a threat, and the coalition either becomes insular, withdraws and isolates, or it becomes evangelical and exerts effort to convert others. Such is the case with ideologies, sectarian and secular for religion is an ideology.
The problem is insecurity. Unless the coalition is formed around universal principles to which all can subscribe,in other words inclusive, then it suffers from insecurity and perceives themselves constantly under threat, and the only way to mitigate the threat is to punish deviants, proselytize, coerce or force others into joining the coalition.
It is a numbers game, safety (and wealth) in numbers.
Democracy has, as it's foundation, the idea of inclusion, and as such is a threat to insecure coalitions. Not to imply that there are coalitions that are secure, there aren't. All coalitions confront or are surrounded by threats, real or perceived.
there are probably more examples than groups like the Mennonites or Amish, who to my knowledge live and let live -it's a big world-but by and large,you're right
Quite interesting, William!
Brava! Perfectly stated.
Systemic racism is built into the very DNA of America.
Racism, systemic and otherwise, is widespread throughout the world. The US civil war made it especially noxious.
So true, Linda! I don't know if it will ever be exterminated because kids that grow up in families that are racist will be racist as well.
United we stand, divided we fall. Lincoln, FDR, Truman, LBJ understood that national security requires racial integration. Confederated did not nor do understand this. White supremacy, at least in the US, is self-defeating.
All true. However, think Jimmy Carter.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cu8xQ8o7uIY
Exceptions of course. I like Jimmy, his life was saved from cancer, by the same drug, Keytruda, that saved mine.
But I also remember the environment in which Jimmy was selected by the Democratic Party.
They chose him as a JFK surrogate, he had a similar hair style, appearance and his Georgia Drawl has a similarity to the Massachusetts twang, the whole idea was to resurrect Camelot
Carter became President when the U.S.was still reeling from the oil embargo, signed the Panama Canal treaty (which was a good deal, because they unloaded a used "car" in need of costly repairs, maintenance and upgrade,, and was caught up in the Iran hostage situation, which Reagan took advantage of by promising the Ayatollah Khomeini a deal, if he held the hostages until he was elected. Khomeini did, and no sooner than Reagan took his hand off the bible, than Khomeini freed the hostage.
The deal was to supply arms, like the F-14 Tomcat (of Tom Cruise Maverick), to Iran to fight Saddam, whom we were also supporting.
Congress would have none of it, so he used the CIA to smuggle in Cocaine, and thus created the cocaine problem, using the contra's in Nicaragua, and , to import cocaine, to get the money, using Panama as the money launderer, to pay Israel to supply arms to Iran. There was a time that Israel and Iran collaborated.
Reagan single handledly created the drug problem, then set about to solve it with Nancy's Just say no and the newly created DEA.
Interesting in house war between the DEA and the CIA, or was it a war?
Yes, there was a war! In 1987, using Noriega's drug dealings as a pretext, President GH Bush invaded Panama, killed most of its military, and effectively regained control of the canal.
I know, I was 5 years retired, but some of my team mates were still on active duty, and were involved in Operation Eagle claw, I was still on active duty and a couple of my NCO's were tagged for that OP, then the Rucksack war, the "student rescue operation in Grenada" and the Panamama operation.
The real reason Noriega was arrested was that he was a CIA bagman and committed the cardinal sin of dipping into the bag.
I had met Noriega in 1973 when he was then the Director of Transportation,
I have some irrelevant gossip there.
Remember Max Cleland, Sam Nunn, et al.
I used to serve Max Cleland at the Silver Diner in Arlington, VA. He was always kind and jovial, even when he had to endure my questions about surviving the DC establishment.
I can't forget Max Cleland, he lost three limbs in Vietnam, elected as a Senator and because he opposed Bush' elective war with Saddam, Karl Rove authored an attack on him as a coward.
MTG had changed her residency imo, knowing she could potentially win a largely rural, not too educated, grievance filled, part of our state. When she's made ignorant, stupid comments, you'd be amazed at the positive responses, she's received. I, however, having lived in rural NE Georgia for almost 20 years, love the view, but not the politics in this area. Have had some discussions over dinner at our house, with a few neighbors. "Interesting" discourse, but in one instance, I' m pretty certain his wife has NOT been encouraged to " hang" out with lil' Ole me anymore. (We're in our 60's...but when she's come to me with crazed conspiracy theories & I've patiently debunked 'em, I suspect he didn't care for that.) Oh well....my " old" lady response wouldn't suggest any southern, gentile type rejoinder expected in these parts. Our builder already found that out; when he thought it was funny to comment that he'd sold the house next store to a family of Mexicans with 12 kids. He was taken aback about my response that I didn't give a... flip....who lived next to me, long as they were kind & kept up their property reasonably well.
It is worthwhile to remember that, if not for the people of Georgia electing TWO US senators in 2020 -- flipping two seats and moving control of the Senate from Leader McConnell to Leader Schumer -- Biden would have accomplished next to nothing. (Georgians re-elected Senator Warnock in 2022.)
To that, we hard-working Democrats in Georgia say... "You're welcome."
It is also worthwhile to remember that Georgia's 14th House district -- which Greene was first elected to represent in 2020 -- has been gerrymanded to be so red that for many election cycles Democrats never even ran a candidate. The year Green was first elected, a Democrat did file to run, but withdrew long before election day.
In 2022, there was a pretty good Democrat - but an unknown -- opposing Greene -- but lost 75-25. Insulting people isn't a good way of trying to persuade them.
Thomas, thank you for pointing this out.
Women on the Georgia Coast are working hard for Harris.We're writing postcards, holding voter registration drives and knocking on doors. There are Trump signs everywhere but we are not discouraged. Even in rural areas where Trump won the last election our efforts gave enough votes when combined with the cities to help Biden win. We are determined!!
Stay the course, Laura! We're all rooting for you! I believe women in every single state are working like you to get a win for Kamala! There are so many volunteers giving so much of their time and energy! It's a beautiful thing to see! Keep going, girls! Let's give Kamala a huge boost that will create so many votes for Harris/Walz there will be no need to question who we want!! Vote blue, America!
yes the me and the other republicans we stand by our beliefs but we are open to the democrat beliefs as well
Since most of Georgia's coast is in the 1st congressional district -- where Earl "Buddy" Carter usually wins by 20 point margins -- do you see Patti Hewett decreasing that margin at all?
(Buddy Carter is no relation to Jimmy.)
Sadly Buddy Carter has a huge treasure chest of money and has been constantly in the newspaper working at food banks and supporting local charities. He has a huge following and has recently moved from Pooler to a huge multi-million dollar house on St. Simons. The only thing that can hurt him is his lack of support to save the Okefenokee Swamp from an Alabama mining company. His most recent attack ads were paid for by the Chemical Alliance, so now we know why he hasn't gotten behind our support for the swamp. It's always about the money!
The only way the 1st district will get rid of Buddy is if he decides to run for a higher office,, Senate or Governor in 2026. We can only hope.
It's terrific that trump chose vance because both of them are complete idiots and mirror each other's depravity. At least the obvious has become a reality and is in everyone's face. Perhaps some of the longtime sycophants will experience an awakening. Trump's descent into mental decline is genetic, father, mother & sister. Fred Jr. an alcoholic. His recent little rampage in Arlington Cemetery showed us all what a monster he truly is and how brainwashed idiot partner is by blaming Kamala for the deaths in Afghanistan. Maybe now RFK Jr. will wake up with regrets and sorrow because his father and 2 uncles are buried there and one uncle has a memorial marker as well. We can only hope.
Thank you for all the knowledge and wisdom you impart to us.
You are correct Susan, the old guard in the Republican party are tearing their hair out over Trump's choice of Vance. That is the old guard that remains and has not fled to the Democratic party. We welcome them until Nov 5th, but if they stay they will remake the Democratic party into the Republican party - fully
Sadly, RFK Jr,is as damaged, wounded, a lost soul, warped by the Trauma in his family as Donnie QuackQuack has been by his. Both have been off the DeepEnd, unable to heal, Dragging followers to the Edges of Cliffs; Trails of Destruction…2 of them = recipes for Disaster x2. Those who truly care, in Despair.
I wonder what the Secret Service that protects Trump did at Arlington when Trump was blocked by the overseer at the cemetery. I feel sorry for them. It must be a frustrating job.
Don't feel for the SS Gloria, the Secret Service are Trump humpers. I worry about Biden and Harris.
Biden's dog Major, knows, and bit a couple of them. Instead of firing the Secret Service, Joe fired Major.
Funny how elections have always been seen to be free of interference through most of our history until trump comes along. Now every election is rigged and trump is the common denominator.
Go back in history. Elections were so bad during the Jim Crow era in the Southern states, that black people were seldom allowed to vote at all. The Confederate states used poll taxes, bogus tests and other methods to prevent black citizens from registering to vote. After signing the civil rights act into law, they continued to use devious tactics to disenfranchise black voters and the Voting Rights Act put many Southern states under federal monitoring of elections. When that act ran its course, just as when the ban on automatic weapons did, Southern states blocked an effort to renew it. That is when the Southern states reverted to its “natural” tendency of finding new ways of disenfranchising voters of color.
"So why are Harris and Walz spending time in rural southeast Georgia? Because they need rural voters — especially Black voters who comprise about a quarter of the state’s rural population, to offset Trump’s potential win of white rural voters."
They spent time yesterday in Liberty County, near Savannah. The county is about 42% Black / 37% White / 12% Hispanic and the rest "other/mixed."
From what I can tell, people are really taking to Coach Walz too. Football is king in Georgia, and Walz can talk with a lot of credibility to any farmer.
We have a terrific live political radio show on our NPR station -- WABE -- at 10 AM ET every weekday morning. "Politically Georgia." They have a person riding the Harris-Walz bus, and they'll be reporting firsthand this morning.
They were not in rural Georgia yesterday. They are in coastal Georgia. It’s a big difference. There are no farmers here, unless today they actually travel to rural Georgia.
Yesterday, on "Politically Georgia" (on Atlanta's NPR station WABE), one of the guests was the representative of our state's 97th house district -- Ruwa Romman -- a Palestinian-American. She told the story of how she was contacted to possibly speak at the DNC last week.
How she spoke radiated respect, intelligence, kindness, and of course some disappointment.
She spoke against any Palestinian or Arab American sitting out this election, and is solidly behind Kamala Harris.
She emphasized again and again the we in the US should be following OUR OWN LAWS with regards to arms transfers to any country involved in human rights violations..
Worth bringing up to the Arab American voters in our party is this:
1 - Trump is actively engaged in counter-diplomacy with Netanyahu to not only reject the cease fire, but to widen the conflict. The worse it becomes, the better for Trump it is and he is and has been campaigning on it.
2 - Putin is pressuring the other side through Iran as well and more than likely convinced Hamas to start the suicidal effort (likely with promises of support that then failed to materialize). Russia got what it wanted, higher oil prices and another way to attack Biden. Hamas got annihilated.
3 - if it weren’t for the constant pressure from the GOP using this conflict against Democrats, Biden would have had the leverage to force Israel to negotiate. As soon as the election is over- if we win - that will happen. If it we don’t win, Trump has probably already given Bibi a promise to support the removal or annihilation of all remaining Palestinians from Israel.
The stakes for this election are particularly high for anyone who actually cares about what happens to the Palestinians.
All citizens, regardless of ethnicity, have a duty to vote, and the upcoming elections will determine the future of the world..
Agree and how sad a Palestinian American can’t speak at the DNC but all those loser Republicans who once supported Trump and loved him got to speak. I’m talking about the likes of Olivia Troye, not Adam Kinzinger.
This is how you run a campaign, go to the rural communities and make your case. Also, file a legal challenge to the Election Board's attempt to stall certification. This will be the disgraced ex president's play, if he can't win fairly he will try to cheat. I am betting it won't work this time; I am seeing more and more evidence that most Americans are tired of him and want the change, the policies, and the hope that the Harris/Walz ticket brings.
Hope you're right!
Robert Reich ; Thank you for this information about Georgia's changes in some election rules, and how the Democrats are challenging some attempts to interfere with the election results with Republican delays. It is sickening to see how much they are trying to tamper with "free and fair elections". "pit bulls" are not needed here.
William--I'm confused, look at every interest group Trump needs support from in order to get elected. The idiot has insulted almost every one of them. He admitted forcing the overturning of Roe-vs-Wade, which negated the women's vote. He ridiculed service members who gave their lives to protect the very freedom he uses to belittle others. This should have all but cancelled the vote from the military. The man is a racist and when he speaks to people of color, he embarrasses himself, and the jerk just doesn't realize it. Then there are the crazies. They don't care what the man says. The hook they swallowed is firmly snagged in their gut.