62 Comments

I'm not a religious man, but if I were I would be up all night praying. And NOT for the religious Right's favourite serial adulterer.

I'm also a Brit, which some may feel means it's not my business. But as J K Rowling said in response to just such a comment, the question of who gets their hands on the nuclear codes is EVERYONE's business!

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Not your business? I would never say that. We share this earth. We all have a right to opinions and I appreciate hearing what other parts of the world think. The world is very interconnected whether the MAGAs want to recognize it or not. Thanks for your comment.

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Nuke warfare is overly dramatically portrayed . If a bomb 💣 of any kind from a hand grenade to. Nuke kills you you don’t get any deader from one kind of violence than the other.

War of any kind is a long drawn out process where one side and the other side reacts ( both defensively and offensively) . I do not welcome nuke warfare but getting overly concerned do not help the situation. It’s only a matter until some true believers detonate another nuke weapon.

Think of it as retroactive abortion on a large scale…

The countdown to the next nuke war started in 1945 and that clock is still ticking…

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With due respect Citizen J, in an era of satellite communications, and intercontinental ballistic missiles or intermediate range ballistic missiles launched from orbiting satellites, supersonic aircraft and/or nuclear submarines, your "long drawn out process" goes to Hell in pico seconds and occurs within short minutes or hours - a few days at the optimistic VERY MOST!

Relating such varieties of armageddon to "retroactive abortion: is not worthy of even being considered a bad joke!

PPS - and Yes, I am very well aware of the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists and its Doomsday Clock!

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War is long drawn out process. Death by war is usually fast . You died just as fast in WW 1 as you will as the result of a nuke weapon. The differences are rate of communication . Not the condition of war which is a political act that is slow and drawn out until one side gives up.

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Well, we're nit doing a good job of sharing.

Hopefully this election will go BLUE, and we can effectively attack the urgent deathly problem of global warming.

FIELD NOTES from a CATASTROPHE (Elizabeth Kolbert, video)

https://youtu.be/O2VyJ02RFK0?feature=shared

6th Extinction - an unnatural history (Video, 40 min) https://youtu.be/x00LP0QfRTk?feature=shared

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Me too, and I'm a Republican - but not voting for the top of the ticket this year!

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What commandment is adultery prohibited I forgot.

What commandant hasn’t been violated by trumpet 🎺 “the wanker “ ???

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The order of the “Big 10” commandments varies in different versions of the Bible.

I say “Big 10” because as a [non-observant] Jew I recall from my religious school classes that The Old Testament in fact contains 613 Commandments - 248

“You shall” and 365 “You shall not.”

You are correct that The Orange Beast has scored a perfect Ten.

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So well said, Robert. I am Australian (living in the United States for many years). My sister in Melbourne and all her friends are far more knowledgable about American politics and economics than any American I know. Not just the nuclear codes, but protection. The Australian armed services couldn't hope to save the country from the Chinese.

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Thank you.

I hereby nominate Liz Cheney to replace Merrick Garland as Attorney General.

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While I appreciate the sentiment, I’d rather see Sen. Whitehouse or Sen. Raskin as AG. Or someone that those two would suggest.

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If Kamala wins, she should definately be offered a cabinet position.

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Thomas, although honorable, she is still conservative-minded, so that's a big thumbs down for me.

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Any one

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I was able to VOTE early. Kamala will be a terrific POTUS.

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Donald Hodgins <silencenotbad@gmail.com>

9:14 AM (3 minutes ago)

to reaction

Something is wrong with the people who compose the minorities in this country. We exist in a democracy and being an integral component of that entity our population as a whole understands the rules by which we live. Objectively speaking the "Majority rules." Whenever we hold an election, it is inevitable that there will be a winner and there will be losers. The winners rejoice at their victory and the losers must understand their position will have another chance in the next election. That is how it has been since our conception. What has changed is the perception held by the losers that they were cheated and that is the reasoning behind their poor showing in the election. Lies and false accusations are all they have to go on but nonetheless they persist. The Republicans have fractured our political system due to their own ignorance. Trump is a disease and Kamala is the cure.

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Unfortunately, there are instances where the majority does not rule. I’m speaking of the times that it takes 60% of the votes in the senate. I never understood that.

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I just heard about all the billions spent on this election. It’s crazy. Maybe it’s time to start taxing PACs with that tax dedicated to reducing the deficit or something.

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Excellent idea! 50% tax — if they can’t be banned altogether. Pack the court! Reverse Citizens United.

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I would put my money on a bet that most goes to campaigning the battleground states. If we got rid of the Electoral College that would help tremendously. One person, one vote. The winner of the popular vote wins.

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Midwest, or outlaw them. They're just dark money caves.

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Not sure if I'll be up at midnight. Lol. Thanks for all of your commentary these past few years. It's helped me stay sane despite all of the GOPee craziness and nonsense.

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Winning elections is a Kinetic energy act.

We must Get The Voters Out to the Polling places to vote.

First we win then we celebrate.

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Melania's wishes her orange husband would lose the election so she can begin to file for divorce.

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My question to the Republicans, who are hell bent upon interrupting the election process the best they can. How can we ever hold a fair and secure election if the members of their party won't allow our efforts to be realized. All the election disturbances are being conducted by the Republicans. The lack of election protocol by Trump's mob is indicative of what we would get if Donnie Boy was allowed to reenter the White House. There is a brand of golf ball which has the word "Chaos" printed boldly upon its surface. It's the ball Trump cheats with.

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I have a suggestion to combat the “red mirage”. Do not allow any ballot count information out until all ballots are counted. I realize that the media loves the attention, but we would get used to it. The information should be kept quiet until all ballots are counted and a final tally given.

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Terrific, thank You, for being available to Us on such a Historic Election night,Mr.Reich🙏 and who ever President Harris picks as AG, they'll will be poised to Lay Down the Law and take no prisoners. Good article this morning ☕ and will reStack ASAP💯👍🇺🇲💙🌊

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Serenity prayer. It’s out of my control. Won’t be watching any of it.

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Pennsylvania is crucial, but they don't count mail in votes until in person votes have all been counted. And of course Trump cult members will be spreading lies like wildfire.

I suspect we won't know the winner for a few days, maybe not even until Saturday, when Pennsylvania finally announces their totals and/or if the Trump cult implodes.

I plan to go to bed at my usual time, having memories of trying to stay up "late enough" to learn who won Bush v. Gore.

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FB will NOT let me share this post, with this notice: "It looks like you tried to get likes, follows, shares or video views in a misleading way.

You shared this on your profile

This goes against our Community Standards on spam.

What gives. I've tried sharing other posts from you and they have been removed!!! :(

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Hey, why don't the two of you run? There's a ticket I can get behind!

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Reich/Lofthouse? Or Lofthouse/Reich? Either way, they’d have my vote!

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So it's done - Trump has won the Presidency fair and square with a 5.2 million majority vote so far, and 267 seats, soon to be over the 270 he needs. Done and dusted, and without violence, without polling interference and recounts, and without going to the Supreme Court. Which is better than many of us expected.

What next? In America you have two months to decide what you can and will do about it, if anything. Doing nothing is, of course, a choice too, and obviously may be a dangerous personal or family choice if you may be a target for Trump and Vance's Project 25. That may include active Democratic politicians and campaigners (including Robert Reich and many of his friends and colleagues), and Dem university, college and school lecturers and teachers, and people involved in climate change campaigning, or antitrust, enforcement, and........ well, you can work it all out for yourself. If you are on that list, you'll already know it.

So what alternative lives are available to you?

Generally speaking, other countries will welcome you if you can support yourself financially, pay for your own medical care (usually insurance), do not have a criminal record and are seen as a benefit to the recipient country (or at least not a liability). If you have transferable skills, or are bringing your own business with you, and are demonstrably solvent, then the transition can be reasonably straightforward.

If you only speak English, then Britain or Ireland will be high on your list, especially if you have family history or even current family or business links. Like most countries, Britain makes lots of noise about 'no immigration' but in reality accepts tens of thousands of 'good' migrants every year. Whilst it has its problems, particularly political and economic, it is still far more civilised than America in many ways, and most Americans seem to settle just fine. Compared to the imminent Trump and then Vance/Musk fascist dictatorship it will seem like an escape to heaven!

The European Union follows similar rules in each country, but you either need some language skills, or budget for a crash intensive language course to pick up the basics. Many Americans speak Spanish, and so Spain and Portugal are possibilities. In Spain the cool place is still Barcelona with its international cultural scene, solid economy and proximity to France. Portugal has been on the ascendant since joining the EU back in 1986, and is now the 'cool' destination. One of my favourite places.

If you like the idea of some Italian culture, then you are in luck; many parts of southern and central Italy have seen an exodus of young people to the northern cities, so properties are very cheap, with renovation houses even free in some towns and villages to pull people into revitalise communities. Whilst Italy has been in political chaos all my long life, the strange thing is that Italians actually have a similar standard of living to Brits, and the country is an export powerhouse, particularly to China and Asia. So don't be put off by the big political stuff, most Italians just ignore all that stuff and get on with their 'dolce vita' lives.

Obviously there are many, many more choices for an escape. If you are unprepared and in a hurry, I would suggest a 3 month tourist visa to get you there, then talk to the American embassy in that country to extend it. You can also find dozens of people or companies to help you do the paperwork (for a price, of course).

If you can't afford all that, there is another option - go buy a boat! You can buy a sailboat in America and live aboard in considerably more safety than in a house or apartment, and you will quickly make friends in the port or marina. If you wish, you can move between ports in America, or even into Canada or Mexico, and if you do the right things you'll barely be noticed by the authorities.

Or be more adventurous and head to the Caribbean or even Europe. Living on a boat makes the paperwork much easier as many sailing families come and go through Europe all the time.

The other option is to fly to Europe and buy a boat here, already European registered. You will still need your own visas, but the boat itself will already be registered so avoids and longer term tax or import issues if you live here.

In short, what I'm trying to say as you wake up to a new, horrible reality this morning, is that it is time to seriously consider options. As the title says, 'ALTERNATIVE LIVES ARE AVAILABLE!'

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