How does one do that when social media is entirely controlled by and concentrated in the hands Trump enablers? People have short memories and have largely lost their critical abilities to look beyond their iPads.
iPads and cell phones. I pulled in to check my mail, and there was a woman in a car in the handicap spot, she was sitting there looking at her cell phone for minutes, finally she got out and went into check her mail. I see that kind of stuff all of the time, in parking lots at stores and the market. WTF is going on. What is so important that they can't take their eyes off the cell phone, and she was an old fart like me, well not so old, probably a boomer
I remember the people who made the first portable devices with hard disks boasted that they could hold the equivalent information held in the Library of Congress. While this was always hyperbole -
one thing one could be sure of is that most people gazing into their phones in their cars, on trains or even, much more annoyingly, while they're walking about were not be looking at anything likely to be found in the Library of Congress.
Back inabout 1997 when I was still using 5 1/2 inch floppies, and also the newest latest wonder 3 inch floppies (I had two drives in my computer),
some dude on a forum, maybe the Skunkworks forum, said that they were developing a hard drive about the size of the thumb, This was when hard drives were door stoppers.
In that vein. I am using a refurbished military laptop (CD read only no microphone) running Windows 7. I have scanners,printers, and an all in one, that won't run on Windows 10 or 11. Best thing is that since my architecture is obsolete, it is not really vulnerable to today's Trojans and malware.
I only use it for writing and spreadsheet (office 2007) and internet. Not a gamer, don't have time for that addictive shit and waste of time.
I wish the tech craze hadn’t been so lucrative for the corporate giants—if only we could still read our hard disks and floppy discs and didn’t have to update our devices every couple of years just to keep using them!
Ditto for electronic car keys. Batteries pollute and perish; plus, they cost more than keys.
I bought a 2001 PT Cruiser, in Dec 2000, I was on the waiting list.
I didn't and don't drive the car much, it only has 22,000 miles on it and is under cover in my barn. About 20,000 miles the key fob stopped working
The problem was the motherboard, the seat belt light comes on,sometimes, while driving and the seat belt is fastened, the clock on the radio, comes on and off. The problem is electronic, and it costs as much as a new iPhone to fix,maybe more,and that is why it is inthe garage,
I paid a premium for it, wife thought it would be a collectors car in 20 years, and there was a problem with the factory installing engines. Car was made in Mexico, shipped to Montreal, trans shipped to my dealer in the states.
It's cute but a piece of shit,all Chrysler products are, Vans, Jeeps, included.
The transmission on the Vans lasts from 13,000 to 60,000 miles.
They are so cheap that they haven't upgraded the antennas for the radio, they still use the technology and equipment from 1990, which is about the same a 1950.
As regards batteries, When they first came out, and where liberal heart throbs, I looked into a Tesla, but did some research and checked out battery life and replacement cost.
What I found dissuaded me, Battery life, 5 years max, often shorter, and costs over $5,000 then. Now I learn that if they get wet they explode, and even if they don't get wet.
I drive an old Lexus (2006) with a tricky fob—it rarely ignites directly and the battery drains in winter. (A new fob costs about $400 and hubby isn’t willing to part with that much.) If I lock it to shop, I have to use the key to reenter. But I don’t drive much and I like its luxury features! I want to become a one car household but hubby thinks the oncoming car shortage will be good for selling the old girl. We’ll see! Good luck with your Cruiser.
It could have been me in the woman's car. One of my family members was in ICU and we were receiving updates on his condition. Or maybe it was the week before that, when my sister died and we were coordinating our travel plans to her funeral.
I am very saddened by your reply. These were possible circumstances which had come to mind. I send deep condolences for the loss of your sister and hope that your family member is in recovery.
Boy are you hostile. Defensive much, did I touch a nerve, are you guilty.? Sounds to me like you are, maybe you were the woman.
My wife and I are disabled, we have a DP license plate, we were going to park in the only DP spot, but she was parked in it, so my wife, who was driving, parked next to her, while she went into to take care of business.
I was in the passenger seat, because I have a broken leg, and my wife was doing the driving.
Are you aware that you are a filthy minded asshole, who jumps to nasty assumptions.
This is not the first, nor the second, nor the third time you have displayed your anger toward me and others. What is it with you? Do you have a problem with civility?
I repay debts with like coin Donna. I give back what I get. Your response to my comment about that woman on her cell phone was hostile and accusatory. So I repaid you with like coin,or do you think that you can say anything you want to anyone and that they are suppose to just sit there and take it. I am not your child and I am not a student in your class.
Social media is an overrated way to spread the word. Talk to everyone you know. Send letters with stamps (you can buy them at the post office, assuming they stay in business). Mail our handwritten post cards. Use the telephone as an actual telephone to speak to people you know. Make signs, and carry one with you wherever you go, especially shopping. Get a few friends together and brainstorm. HAVE FUN!
Have you seen the price of stamps lately, especially first-class?
My gripe with mobile phones is that they don't look or operate as real phones and I'm not dextrous or nimble enough to hold those things without pressing something inadvertently and trying at the same time to text someone on that infuriatingly small keyboard. It appears I'm hardly alone in this -
Yes, postage has gone up, like everything else. But, once you buy the stamps, they are good forever, in that even though the prices continue to go up, you can use a postcard stamp you buy today on a postcard 10 years from now (unless there is no such mail service available by then. That's another thing to consider). Anyway, I have a good supply of stamps on hand, and I do use them.
I agree with you about cell phones. The print is too tiny to read comfortably, and navigating them is a royal pain. I don't even much like using a laptop unless I have a full-size keyboard, which I do. So, I'm a dinosaur, but not dead yet, so I make the best of things and call for tech help when I need it.
I am using a desktop which uses Windows 10 and now Microsoft is telling me that I need an upgrade because they're not going to provide fixes for Windows 10 any more. Could there be a more egregious example of planned obsolescence?
But you're here on social media right now. Right? I love the convenience of having information on my phone. It allows me to leave home and still maintain contact with my family. I'm active in my church and community, and we often receive group messages on our phones.
People knew the price of eggs. Only they thought the president controlled it, like gas, and every other commodity. Now all that ignorance turns on Trump.
Isn't your email considered social media? Just because it isn't on a phone, it doesn't mean it isn't social media. Don't you engage socially with your email??
It doesn't matter if you engage on a home computer or on a phone. It's still social media.
I'm 80, and I can't be the only one my age who appreciates advanced technology, which includes social media. Like anything else, technology isn't inherently bad. It's all in how you use it. Otherwise, we may as well eschew all technology, whether social or not -- navigation apps, streaming music, phone cameras, document sharing, airlines, telephones, cars, electric appliances, water heaters, power tools, ultrasound, robotic surgery, etc etc.
Excellent questions from Professor Reich. A lot rides on the answers, including the future of our democracy. And possibly, our very lives.
But if we keep our eyes on the prize and consistently get our message out there, we can do this.
“Most price hikes and job losses will begin hitting his month.”
“But here’s the question: will consumers and workers realize Trump is the cause? And if they do, will they remember this by the November 2026 midterm elections?”
And will we remember that the midterms can be stolen by MAGA as easily as the 2024 presidential election was, and will we do something to stop that from happening?
Let the democrats be prepared now. Either there won't be midterms due to a fabricated war, or they will be rigged.
They need to prep for rigged with back up systems by state with separate hard drives, receipts,some master system to compare to the results. They can't rest on their laurels with this one.
Michael, and we have to be sure our candidates don't concede until things are properly checked out by nonpartisan checkers. Transition needs to be honest, not done to prove Democrats are better or more fair or something than Republicans are. We know Republicans will cheat because they have a history of it.
Absolutely, Ruth. We have to be very clearly honest while we know they won’t. And no concessions until everything has been checked, yes. And we must insist on recounts on any close elections.
Camille, we need to check all elections presidential or not. I suspect there were some shenanigans in our Attorney General race and senate race last November.
It looks like it will be left to the individual states to monitor elections. The Trump administration is hollowing out the Civil Rights Division at the DoJ (election observers) and emasculating the FEC (campaign finance). Given the recent shenanigans in North Carolina, the validity of the conduct of the midterm elections may ultimately depend on the courts, after the fact so to speak.
North Carolina currently has a democratic governor, so hopefully if he's still in office then, he'll take steps to ensure fair voting. Your right, it is up to the states now and only 23 have democratic governors. So races in Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico,New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Washington,and Wisconsin, may be the only honest ones.
Is anyone working on this? The only group I know of doing anything in this arena is www.electiontruthalliance.org. From what I can gather, they are mostly looking at statistical, um, anomalies in 2024. Not sure how much prevention work they’re doing.
Tracey, you have really good questions here. There needs to be an independent board in every state that will audit every single election, perhaps randomly to see that the tallies match with the actual votes. These computer guys know how to cheat, not at all how to do anything positive to help anyone but themselves and those who have employed them.
I’m trying to raise awareness and find an organization or organizations working to protect the midterms from hacking. If anyone knows of any such projects, please post their names here. Thanks in advance!
I hope his base realizes that it is all Trump. Sick of him laying the blame on Biden when it was a great economy under his administration and only started to tank when this idiot took over.
Agree, all of this optimism about 2026, a year from Nov? We are 5 mos in. I am betting all the gutless, amoral Reps have been promised there won’t be (fair) elections or they might care about their constituents to save their political careers. It’s not just fear.
I think there are a bunch of folks, Michael, that see the dropping gas prices. For the politically apathetic, and certainly for the MAGAs, this may be enough for them to be happy with Trump. Gas prices are loudly displayed everywhere. It's why I'm currently willing to take one for the team and see those prices go up to $6/gallon. Wish..wish. I'll happily pay more if it makes folks angry with Trump.
However, the Federal Reserve is still maintaining interest rates on the basis that the longer Trump holds to his tariffs policy the more likely it is that inflation and unemployment will rise and growth will be depressed.
There were rumours that Trump would be ready to sign a handful of inconsequential trade deals with preferred states in the next few weeks. If so, he could brag about these as evidence that his tariffs policy had worked and that he could now remove or reduce them. I think that's probably the most he could hope for in the circumstances but it could work to persuade some people to vote for Republicans again at the midterms. The polls indicate that his base still have no regrets about voting for him.
On the other hand, if you're currently struggling to put food on the table now it's unlikely that will ease substantially by the time the midterms come along. The issue is then whether such hard-pressed families will bother to turn up and vote at all, especially when some Republican legislatures are deliberately making it harder for people to vote.
History suggests sweeping gains for the Democrats, but history (at least in your country) hasn't seen anything remotely like the Trump 2.0.
When you're entitled and you get perks from the orange turd, you don't feel anything. They are all robbing us. Stealing looting and ruining everything.
Once a company uses an excuse to raise prices, they rarely lower them to the original price for any reason. Instead the executives choose to hold as much profit as possible, buy back stocks, then begin layoffs using lower profits as an excuse. Seen it done this way over and over, particularly with publicly traded corporations. Politicians are really good at saying “it wasn’t my fault” and convincing the electorate they will do better if re-elected. So, the cycle continues.
our best recourse might be to purchase little, if possible. Used baby / child items (I'm told I was dressed in hand me down through grammar school!) , hang onto that car or phone a couple years longer, do you really need to remodel that kitchen? And expose the huge salaries and perks of the CEOs, though maybe I'm naive that shame would do any good......
Young parents are really embracing this sharing clothes and equipment/furniture, toys- my daughter sources/donates so much from our BuyNothing group. She and her friends pass clothes around. I made a pledge to myself not to buy any clothes this year- there’s enough in the closet to skip a year. Americans are so resilient- we’ll figure it out while bearing the pain
Elizabeth,you're observation of what "Public cos" do is 100%. I have advocated boycotting these companies,but have received little response. We Dems are too lazy to boycott.The Republicans boycotted Target because of DEI and the stock tanked significantly. The French,Germans,Australians,even the English do boycotts,we Americans faced with companies that support Trump,refuse to even consider boycotts against companies that advertize on Fox and CNBC. When Dems get some balls,decide to really get engaged,maybe the tide will turn,right now Trump is having his way with crypto,lying to 60 minutes,etc.
Why on earth 🌏 🌍 🌏 did people think🧐 💭 Drumpf would make a good president ⁉️…couldn’t they read the writing ✍🏻 on the wall? He has NEVER, cared anything about normal citizens, like the middle class or people who are truly scraping by😢😭
Camille,thinking is not in vogue any more in the US. Just did a little research,it took Viktor Orban almost 12 yrs to make Hungary into a Fascist country. It has taken just shy of 4 months to make the US into a Fascist or Nazi state. How,one only needs to look@ who is complicit. Musk,Bezos,Zuckerberg,white nationalist evangleicals( waiting for the rapture,Trump has promised to deliver)the Catholic church who has been mute and the synogogues who love a Nazi,why?. Let us not forget Wall Street,who adores Trump for his tax reduction promise.If any of you think for one nano-second that the Wall Steet titans would not easily give up Democracy for Tax breaks,,you are not really paying attention. These people have zero concern for any Democratic principles,fair play,equal rights,hunger in Africa,housing prices that shut out young families.There are more,but its been a long day.
Camille, sadly, you are right they didn't think; they responded based on their knee-jerk racism, misogyny, xenophobia, homo/transphobia, and other similar factors. Trump and his goons know exactly which buttons to push. Democrats proved that racism and misogyny are working on them too by not voting at all, allowing Trump and his cheating lying friends to take over. A woman of color couldn't promise every little thing they wanted, so they just couldn't vote for her. That was the excuse, but racism and misogyny and other isms are powerful in our nation and we haven't effectively positively dealt with them.
Whether he would make a good president was not and is not on the mind of the Trump humping MAGAts. He was their icon, their avatar, their fears, anger, angst, hatred in the flesh
The constant drumbeat of Fox and it's ilk, and right wing hate radio has convinced them that the only evil, the threat to their natural superiority is liberals and their woke, DEI agenda.
Do they really care about the price of eggs? Maybe some, but not really, More important was shoving to the libs, they are willing to take it in the shorts just to own the libs, and scuttle woke and DEI.
Think not, Look again at the priority of the Trump regime, from law firms to universities, from USAID to Medicaid and SNAP, even in the Department of Defense it is all about eradicating any vestiges of recognition of blacks, Hispanics, women, gays and especially trans folk. And there is the primary threat to god fearing Christians and western civilization. a handful of transgendered folk. my god it is the ruin of the patriarchy
William, you have this right. Trumpers and Trumpettes care nothing for the evils this regime is bringing about, even if their family members are fired for no reason and prices and supports for them and their families are withdrawn. They will still blame Biden or Obama or Clinton or someone because if they have to face the fact that their Baby Donnie and his toddler pool are evil, they might have to acknowledge the evil streak within themselves, and they just can't do that. Their evangelical churches tell them that they are always right unless they are having sex out of marriage or choosing abortion. That must mean hating just the right people is a virtue. They don't even have to see it in scripture, they just KNOW they are right and everyone else who is different from them is wrong and hated by god. Truly sad, even depressing. I honestly don't know how to reach these folks. Harris-Walz tried by proposing important changes to help working families, but they just couldn't hear it because their hates were just too powerful and cherished.
Ruth - correct, except that your sentence should read "they are always right unless women are having sex out of marriage or choosing abortion". it's always ok for the men to have sex outside of marriage, or any other proscribed sexual activity.
In a nutshell Ruth. IMO, when you scratch away all of the bullshit, religion, excuses, rationalizations the driving force behind this reaction is men, not all men, but the macho acting males, who are actually insecure,who can't get it up without Viagra or Cialis, the younger breed are Incels, that can't get laid and believe that because they have pecker they are entitled to sex.
The pro life movement was never about life. Pro life was Orwellian new speak, to camouflage the real motivation.
Family Values, the same shit, nothing to do with family or values. More to do with August Caesars law of Pater Familia, which gave the father life and death control over wife and children. It is all about male sexual needs and insecurity.
Except for liberal, lefty males. Apparently they are more secure in their identity.
William, I have been lucky in my life to know mostly men who are not insecure and who don't need to put anyone down to boost their own self-importance. That is probably because I was interested in people's rights from a very early age, studied education, worked in the disability community for years, had a government job, then became a UCC minister and a teacher. Men in those realms often don't need to be seen as superior. I am glad the majority of men are not the snivling whiny toddlers that make up the toxic malepresence that is manifest in the Republican party, the current DC Toddler Pool, and well, among some libertarians and Evangelicals too.
The short answer to your question is - No! The MAGAts are utterly and totally propagandized by Faux Snooze and being intellectually lazy, would never fact check what they are fed daily. They are not just low-information voters. They like what they are told and are deeply invested in what Faux and their other handlers are selling them.
I discovered just that when talking to my sister. When an issue comes up to discuss, she just repeats that she doesn't know about that and she doesn't have time to research it but it's on Fox News and her late husband told her that it's the only honest news. So there are many people who are in that ignorant boat and other family members of mine are floating on Fox News propaganda as well.
Stephen, and they are snug wrapped up in their racism, misogyny (yep women in that crowd are misogynists too), xenophobia, and their hypocrisy, and they don't want to be moved.
Most of the people who voted for him wanted this chaos. Their hatred of minorities/immigrants fueled their anger. Hopefully, those who voted because of their perceived "bad economy" will have opened their eyes, but I'm not counting on it.
There are some who are pushing the biblical end of times...because they want Jesus to come back and save the world and all souls who accept him as their Lord and savior. Those people won't be turned. trump is sent by Jesus to fulfill that prophesy. I'm not one of those.
Being a nonreligious person, this just flabbergasts me. You would think that with some of the horrible periods in history, if Jesus were to come and save anyone, it would have happened already, a few times! I swear, religion is the bane of society.
I do not mean to discredit those who are believers, but it sure doesn't make sense to me.
Well Tina I know just how you feel. All the wars in history involve religion, I believe. Some may involve land or oil but religion is always involved. Seems like everyone is so very concerned about the here-after and pleasing God, who promises streets of gold with mansions or virgins.
I believe that if we paid more attention to the here-and-now the here-after will take care of itself. We are stewards of the earth and it doesn't make sense to blow up people, animals and things. We are a violent, primitive species. Not all of us, but enough for this planet to be an unpleasant place to land if you are from outer space. You would either be captured and killed or locked up and probed for knowledge & belongings or indoctrinated into some religion that would promise to save you. We aren't ready to fly into space and inhabit other worlds when we can't manage or get along on this one. We have a long way to go if you ask me.
You didn’t even touch on the tens of thousands that are unemployed now as a result of the DOGE layoffs. The VA just announced 80,000 jobs that are being eliminated.
Ramona - If people would have paid attention prior to the election, or got their news from a reputable source, they would have known that this was going to happen. However, a lot of people thought that they were “safe” and that it would happen to someone else. Didn’t work out so well for them and now we are stuck with this crappy administration for longer than seems tolerable.
"You can fool all of the people some of the time and some of the people all of the time." Let's hope and pray that the second category includes no more than the 35% of voters who comprise Trump's MAGA base. I'll take 65% in the midterms.
Wikipedia states about Russel Vought, the main author of Project 2025, that Vought...seeks to infuse the government and society with elements of Christianity, saying he has "a commitment to an institutional separation between church and state, but not the separation of Christianity from its influence on government and society."
Now Wikipedia is not always correct, but if it is correct in this case, then Vought is an idiot.
"But you cannot fool all of the people all of the time". I've been waiting for someone to repeat that quote. Ascribed to Honest Abe Lincoln. I also hope it's true!
Ok. I am going to be totally negative and say NO. Those who can be classified as low/no information citizens will forget because they have the brain of a flea. I rest my case because felon 47 got into office after the Jan 6 insurrection which was the most horrific act by American citizens, desecrating our Capitol and killing police officers.
Mainstream media can’t seem to make economic sense of the tariff policy.
That’s because it’s meant to be both economically destructive and socially disruptive. Tariffs are a “go to“ chapter in the playbook of authoritarian despots.
Along the way money is being made by insider shorting of the market and specific companies.
Quid pro tariff exemption transactions will put the Trump Regime in a kingmaker position and provide more insider market opportunities to ‘go long.’
The resulting emaciation of small business (who do not have White House access)and withering of the American economy is not a concern. It is a goal which leads to social disruption.
The Trump machine attack on due process, the rule of law, the courts media, and all the other pillars of democracy cannot have its full and intended effect until martial law is declared under the Insurrection Act.
Preparations are underway now by eliminating layers of potential resistance within the military structure while fomenting the seeds of rebellion.
At some point in the not too distant future when fear, rage and desperation reach a tipping point … there will be violence.
That’s when the Trump regime will strike.
When military strength is used to quell, incarcerate and murder our own people… the coup will be complete.
Kirk - What gets me is that they are denying due process rights to other people but are demanding to have their due process rights in every single court case that they are arguing. So far their delay and deny tactics are working. WTF!?
Lying, denying, cheating, duplicitous hypocrisy is their ‘dark side’ code. Its intended effect is to ‘win’ through attrition - to gradually erode our outrage into acquiescence.
I just listened to a hearing with the Treasury Secretary and he, as all of the cabinet members, just evaded the question concerning products for babies. It was disgusting to see and hear him try to not talk about the tariffs. Just disgusting!
"But here’s the question: will consumers and workers realize Trump is the cause? And if they do, will they remember this by the November 2026 midterm elections?" If the last election is any indicator, the general electorate has the memory of a gnat. So NO, they will not remember.
As usual, all depends on perception and messaging.
Will the same old Democrats be running the show? Will they be able to separate from their corporate masters and pick a candidate for the people? Or will they simply reshuffle those same milk toast Democrats who have held offices for years?
Most people want an "economy that works for everyone" universal health care, freedom from want and equal justice. Republicans won't deliver that, but do Democrats have the courage to stand for that?
Thank you for this warning, Robert. I'll just add the nuance that I don’t think we have until the midterms. We barely have until September. That’s when the regime is poised to cement - through backdoor legal maneuvers and budget control - the “gray zone” authoritarianism we’re currently witnessing into law.
This isn’t politics as usual. It’s mafia-state level consolidation. We won’t vote our way out of it, not unless we disrupt it first.
Mass public resistance is the only thing that’s ever stopped coups of this nature. That means: Labor strikes, Student walkouts, General strike, Coordinated strategic boycotts of key corporations backing the regime, with focus on BigTech.
Alongside that, we need institutional courage: state attorneys general, universities, agency insiders. Together, these forces have overturned authoritarian grabs before — and they can again. Trusted media needs to bring this to light of awareness.
A growing movement is already taking shape. Its demand is clear: This fascist administration must go. Now.
On June 14th, No Kings Day, the call becomes public. A coordinated push across sectors, with targeted economic action against Big Tech: Meta, X, Google, Amazon, and Apple. These are the pillars of both surveillance and profit — and the weak point in the alliance between Wall Street and the regime.
If we bring Wall Street to its knees before September, the administration falls before the budget locks in.
If we don’t? They’ll finalize the surveillance infrastructure. They’ll rewrite the rules. There won’t be a free 2026 election.
This is completely peaceful. A call for refusal. We log off. We don’t show up. We peacefully stop fueling the machine. We still have time. But not much.
I got an email asking me to sign a letter of thanks to Amazon for wanting to post the cost of tariffs onto the item. I think your suggestions should be activated. Commenters on Joyce Vance's post were debating the use of the term "General Strike" because they fear its impllcations and spent much back and forth trying to find another word. People can't imagine stopping work because they need their wages now . People can't imagine not buying stuff because they need it now. People don't want to crash Wall Street because they want their pensions now. Mostly they can't imagine bringing immediate pain onto themselves, not realizing that once the Regime is in place the pain will be as well and permanent. I have been saying for weeks that I'm not confident there will be Midterms. I get a brush off. Everyone I speak to wants to see a strategy that Dems can implement. I think the call for a huge economic action, including walkouts is the beginning of such a strategy. How to get this across???
Exactly! I think part of it is that if people don't fully understand what's at stake and how soon we might be experiencing the consequences. If they did, they'd be much more apt to make sacrifices now. I understand many are busy, raising kids. But the amount of cuts to social support systems, including FEMA, have real impacts, and with climate weather events happening more and more. This is economic eugenics. Middle class is disappearing.
I've been trying to reach out to organizations like Indivisible, 50501, MayDayStrong. General Strike US, to see if we can unite around a shared date to start real sustained economic resistance. I'm also advocating for a digital exodus to reduce the monopoly power of the tech companies funding this (Meta, X, Google, Amazon) - it's something that people who can't afford to leave their jobs can do, and in numbers it could have a real impact that cause Wall Street to flinch.
Great. I will contact Focus 4 Democracy, the group I referenced that is trying to get liberal ideas out onto the media landscape by trying to increase the number of platforms. I see that as slow going -- and your point about how fast things are moving to make this regime permanent needs to be taken into account; and also it soaks up money from donors who could by supporting more activist causes. Have to think about that more. I like the term "digital exodus." It's shameful and totally crazy capitalist to have one man own Facebook and Instagram. Never challenged as a concept. I think Wall Street must crash and stay down, even if our pensions are threatened. Can I use your opening post, and add this latest material?
With regards to where to focus funding, my sense is that resistance-based efforts now represent the greatest leverage point we have.
I keep seeing donation requests for saving PBS and National Parks - the list is endless of the things that have come under attack - and they are all near and dear to my heart. But at this point, the rules have changed. None of these programs - even possibly our right to protest openly - will survive, if we don't stop what is functionally an authoritarian consolidation of power.
So I believe donor attention needs to shift, at least temporarily, towards a consolidated effort towards a mass civil resistance. Below are some key areas, and I'd love to hear your thoughts. Thanks again for the collaboration.
- Coordinated economic resistance (boycotts, digital exit, labor action, political action groups)
- Cross-movement strategy alignment (especially between groups already organizing: 50501, Indivisible, MayDayStrong, etc.)
- Emergency public education campaigns (art, videos, articles) that cut through algorithmic suppression and disinformation
- Digital and legal safety infrastructure for dissenters and movement builders
- Narrative reframing to name what’s happening in terms clear enough to move people toward action—not just awareness
Thanks, you are very foresighted and that is important. Can you get RR to focus on this Resistance? If people have to be mobiliized -- and Americans don't really have the history of resistance, certainly not of organized resistance -- I suspect clarifcation and simplification are in order. I've been saying that all the different areas requesting money, but especially the politicians who are trying to collect for the midterms, need a charismatic leader who is smart and agile enough to take on Trump, energize and lead big. I don't see anyone, certainly not Newsom (obviously an idiot if he married Guilfoyle). Without a strong anti-Trump person, the most important is to get all the small resistance groups together, focussed on stopping the machine: that's your "Cross-movment strategy alignment." I fear egos will get in the way. Do you have any way of contacting people individually? Ben Wikler would be important to look at the tactics and strategy. So would Mr. Ego Carville. RR is obvious. Next is how to get public education campaigns sarted? And clarify please, and define the safety infrastructure. And yes, everyone, even on RR's thread, is describing and complaining and getting off on tangeants like the Pope, and not being foreced to face the fact that action is imperative.
Finally, I don't know how to use this substack thread easily. I would like to send you the part of your original piece that I edited. If you are open to it, email me at my personal email: MargoKasdan@aol.com and I'll send it to you. P.S. Don't you think the elections of liberals in Canada, Australia and even the Pope (because some were hoping for another Benedict or even John Paul) are in reaction to DJT?
Re: safety infrastructure and public education. II can share more with you. I’m keeping the strategy in a PDF and I'm just about finished with the next iteration. I can share more in email.
You mentioned RR, Wikler, Carville - these are good suggestions. I’ve been doing individual outreach to thought leaders, journalists, artists, and organizers. I'll reach out to RR. He seems responsive. If you or others can help open doors or amplify this effort, that would make a huge difference.
I truly believe we can win this, but only if we align, simplify the message, and stay focused on strategic pressure, not just description. I’d love to read your edits and hear more of your ideas.
Thank you for this thoughtful response. That's a great point. Americans don't have a strong culture of organized civic resistance, and clarity and coordination are everything right now. That’s exactly why I’ve been working on uniting the “micro-resistances” into one macro-movement: a peaceful, nonpartisan economic resistance with one clear message:
“This Unlawful Regime Must Go—Now.”
I think part of the reason people aren't acting is because the regime has flooded us with so many things at once, it's overwhelming and hard to piece the big picture together. But once you see it - you can't do anything but act. Getting the message out, connecting the dots about what's at stake and the time line we are on without freaking people out is key. Most of my momentum has been on Linkedin so far, and starting to gather a small group of people interested in helping coordinate the cross sector movement.
I agree that waiting for a charismatic savior is risky and I don’t think our power lies in a single figurehead. What we need is what you’re pointing toward: cross-movement strategy alignment, collective focus, and simple, repeatable actions that people across ideologies can rally behind. This is how coups are stopped historically - by the people - a mass public awakening and collective refusal to buy into the system.
It's our job to make sure they DO remember why prices are up and jobs are gone!
Good reason for some protest signs on the Indivisible " NO KING" nationwide protests on June 14 to address the price hikes and unemployment...
you think magas read?
How does one do that when social media is entirely controlled by and concentrated in the hands Trump enablers? People have short memories and have largely lost their critical abilities to look beyond their iPads.
iPads and cell phones. I pulled in to check my mail, and there was a woman in a car in the handicap spot, she was sitting there looking at her cell phone for minutes, finally she got out and went into check her mail. I see that kind of stuff all of the time, in parking lots at stores and the market. WTF is going on. What is so important that they can't take their eyes off the cell phone, and she was an old fart like me, well not so old, probably a boomer
I remember the people who made the first portable devices with hard disks boasted that they could hold the equivalent information held in the Library of Congress. While this was always hyperbole -
https://blogs.loc.gov/loc/2009/02/how-big-is-the-library-of-congress/
one thing one could be sure of is that most people gazing into their phones in their cars, on trains or even, much more annoyingly, while they're walking about were not be looking at anything likely to be found in the Library of Congress.
Laughs out loud.
Back inabout 1997 when I was still using 5 1/2 inch floppies, and also the newest latest wonder 3 inch floppies (I had two drives in my computer),
some dude on a forum, maybe the Skunkworks forum, said that they were developing a hard drive about the size of the thumb, This was when hard drives were door stoppers.
Everyone laughed.called them nuts, frauds.
The US nuclear command and control system only transitioned away from floppy disks in 2019. But they had the distinct advantage of not being hackable.
https://slate.com/technology/2014/04/huge-floppy-disks-and-other-old-tech-is-common-at-air-force-nuclear-missile-silos.html
In that vein. I am using a refurbished military laptop (CD read only no microphone) running Windows 7. I have scanners,printers, and an all in one, that won't run on Windows 10 or 11. Best thing is that since my architecture is obsolete, it is not really vulnerable to today's Trojans and malware.
I only use it for writing and spreadsheet (office 2007) and internet. Not a gamer, don't have time for that addictive shit and waste of time.
I wish the tech craze hadn’t been so lucrative for the corporate giants—if only we could still read our hard disks and floppy discs and didn’t have to update our devices every couple of years just to keep using them!
Ditto for electronic car keys. Batteries pollute and perish; plus, they cost more than keys.
I bought a 2001 PT Cruiser, in Dec 2000, I was on the waiting list.
I didn't and don't drive the car much, it only has 22,000 miles on it and is under cover in my barn. About 20,000 miles the key fob stopped working
The problem was the motherboard, the seat belt light comes on,sometimes, while driving and the seat belt is fastened, the clock on the radio, comes on and off. The problem is electronic, and it costs as much as a new iPhone to fix,maybe more,and that is why it is inthe garage,
I paid a premium for it, wife thought it would be a collectors car in 20 years, and there was a problem with the factory installing engines. Car was made in Mexico, shipped to Montreal, trans shipped to my dealer in the states.
It's cute but a piece of shit,all Chrysler products are, Vans, Jeeps, included.
The transmission on the Vans lasts from 13,000 to 60,000 miles.
They are so cheap that they haven't upgraded the antennas for the radio, they still use the technology and equipment from 1990, which is about the same a 1950.
As regards batteries, When they first came out, and where liberal heart throbs, I looked into a Tesla, but did some research and checked out battery life and replacement cost.
What I found dissuaded me, Battery life, 5 years max, often shorter, and costs over $5,000 then. Now I learn that if they get wet they explode, and even if they don't get wet.
I drive an old Lexus (2006) with a tricky fob—it rarely ignites directly and the battery drains in winter. (A new fob costs about $400 and hubby isn’t willing to part with that much.) If I lock it to shop, I have to use the key to reenter. But I don’t drive much and I like its luxury features! I want to become a one car household but hubby thinks the oncoming car shortage will be good for selling the old girl. We’ll see! Good luck with your Cruiser.
And yet...here we are!
It could have been me in the woman's car. One of my family members was in ICU and we were receiving updates on his condition. Or maybe it was the week before that, when my sister died and we were coordinating our travel plans to her funeral.
I am very saddened by your reply. These were possible circumstances which had come to mind. I send deep condolences for the loss of your sister and hope that your family member is in recovery.
Kind regards
Florence
Dear Donna My reply was meant to be sent to yourself.
Please see message above.
Boy are you hostile. Defensive much, did I touch a nerve, are you guilty.? Sounds to me like you are, maybe you were the woman.
My wife and I are disabled, we have a DP license plate, we were going to park in the only DP spot, but she was parked in it, so my wife, who was driving, parked next to her, while she went into to take care of business.
I was in the passenger seat, because I have a broken leg, and my wife was doing the driving.
Are you aware that you are a filthy minded asshole, who jumps to nasty assumptions.
This is not the first, nor the second, nor the third time you have displayed your anger toward me and others. What is it with you? Do you have a problem with civility?
I repay debts with like coin Donna. I give back what I get. Your response to my comment about that woman on her cell phone was hostile and accusatory. So I repaid you with like coin,or do you think that you can say anything you want to anyone and that they are suppose to just sit there and take it. I am not your child and I am not a student in your class.
Social media is an overrated way to spread the word. Talk to everyone you know. Send letters with stamps (you can buy them at the post office, assuming they stay in business). Mail our handwritten post cards. Use the telephone as an actual telephone to speak to people you know. Make signs, and carry one with you wherever you go, especially shopping. Get a few friends together and brainstorm. HAVE FUN!
Have you seen the price of stamps lately, especially first-class?
My gripe with mobile phones is that they don't look or operate as real phones and I'm not dextrous or nimble enough to hold those things without pressing something inadvertently and trying at the same time to text someone on that infuriatingly small keyboard. It appears I'm hardly alone in this -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kNl-JDex_jQ
Yes, postage has gone up, like everything else. But, once you buy the stamps, they are good forever, in that even though the prices continue to go up, you can use a postcard stamp you buy today on a postcard 10 years from now (unless there is no such mail service available by then. That's another thing to consider). Anyway, I have a good supply of stamps on hand, and I do use them.
I agree with you about cell phones. The print is too tiny to read comfortably, and navigating them is a royal pain. I don't even much like using a laptop unless I have a full-size keyboard, which I do. So, I'm a dinosaur, but not dead yet, so I make the best of things and call for tech help when I need it.
I am using a desktop which uses Windows 10 and now Microsoft is telling me that I need an upgrade because they're not going to provide fixes for Windows 10 any more. Could there be a more egregious example of planned obsolescence?
I even lost a Kindle to that scam. Also, upgraded to Windows 11.
In person ...the old fashion way ... Think back to long ago before cell phones even!! Get out there. Wear blue and yellow for Ukraine. Be obnoxious!!!
But you're here on social media right now. Right? I love the convenience of having information on my phone. It allows me to leave home and still maintain contact with my family. I'm active in my church and community, and we often receive group messages on our phones.
Substack, youtube
People knew the price of eggs. Only they thought the president controlled it, like gas, and every other commodity. Now all that ignorance turns on Trump.
No. On my email. I have no social media account and never shall. I mostly read books, the ones published on paper.
Isn't your email considered social media? Just because it isn't on a phone, it doesn't mean it isn't social media. Don't you engage socially with your email??
Nope--email on my home computer
Nope. I'm on my desktop computer. Although, I guess Reddit is social media no matter where it is I read it. I don't like reading on my phone.
It doesn't matter if you engage on a home computer or on a phone. It's still social media.
I'm 80, and I can't be the only one my age who appreciates advanced technology, which includes social media. Like anything else, technology isn't inherently bad. It's all in how you use it. Otherwise, we may as well eschew all technology, whether social or not -- navigation apps, streaming music, phone cameras, document sharing, airlines, telephones, cars, electric appliances, water heaters, power tools, ultrasound, robotic surgery, etc etc.
Yeah but I wear what I believe! I say what I think and I never back down!
Right: "They're eating your jobs. They're eating your toys."
Oohhh, may I copy for my sign??
Of course, I'm flattered!
Prices are skyrocking on goods and products made in USA.
Right you are, Lark
Absolutely! We have to let them know over and over again!
how?
My signs will be saying just that very clearly.
Excellent questions from Professor Reich. A lot rides on the answers, including the future of our democracy. And possibly, our very lives.
But if we keep our eyes on the prize and consistently get our message out there, we can do this.
“Most price hikes and job losses will begin hitting his month.”
“But here’s the question: will consumers and workers realize Trump is the cause? And if they do, will they remember this by the November 2026 midterm elections?”
And will we remember that the midterms can be stolen by MAGA as easily as the 2024 presidential election was, and will we do something to stop that from happening?
Let the democrats be prepared now. Either there won't be midterms due to a fabricated war, or they will be rigged.
They need to prep for rigged with back up systems by state with separate hard drives, receipts,some master system to compare to the results. They can't rest on their laurels with this one.
Exactly, Camille. None of us can rest easy. We have to monitor everything that goes on, leading up to the elections, during and then after.
Michael, and we have to be sure our candidates don't concede until things are properly checked out by nonpartisan checkers. Transition needs to be honest, not done to prove Democrats are better or more fair or something than Republicans are. We know Republicans will cheat because they have a history of it.
Absolutely, Ruth. We have to be very clearly honest while we know they won’t. And no concessions until everything has been checked, yes. And we must insist on recounts on any close elections.
it's the only way they can win. they have no platform except cut taxes for the rich.
We have 23 states with democratic governors. They need to be contacted to ensure their states have backup protections in place.
If anyone lives in those states and they hold their positions,it wouldn't hurt to write to them about prepping for the future.
Camille, we need to check all elections presidential or not. I suspect there were some shenanigans in our Attorney General race and senate race last November.
It looks like it will be left to the individual states to monitor elections. The Trump administration is hollowing out the Civil Rights Division at the DoJ (election observers) and emasculating the FEC (campaign finance). Given the recent shenanigans in North Carolina, the validity of the conduct of the midterm elections may ultimately depend on the courts, after the fact so to speak.
North Carolina currently has a democratic governor, so hopefully if he's still in office then, he'll take steps to ensure fair voting. Your right, it is up to the states now and only 23 have democratic governors. So races in Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico,New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Washington,and Wisconsin, may be the only honest ones.
And that's not the only problem you face.
https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/dark-money-hit-record-high-19-billion-2024-federal-races
Is anyone working on this? The only group I know of doing anything in this arena is www.electiontruthalliance.org. From what I can gather, they are mostly looking at statistical, um, anomalies in 2024. Not sure how much prevention work they’re doing.
Tracey, you have really good questions here. There needs to be an independent board in every state that will audit every single election, perhaps randomly to see that the tallies match with the actual votes. These computer guys know how to cheat, not at all how to do anything positive to help anyone but themselves and those who have employed them.
Another very good question, Tracey.
I’m trying to raise awareness and find an organization or organizations working to protect the midterms from hacking. If anyone knows of any such projects, please post their names here. Thanks in advance!
So far, the only group I know of is www.electiontruthalliance.org
I hope so, or they will steal it!
I hope his base realizes that it is all Trump. Sick of him laying the blame on Biden when it was a great economy under his administration and only started to tank when this idiot took over.
Agree, all of this optimism about 2026, a year from Nov? We are 5 mos in. I am betting all the gutless, amoral Reps have been promised there won’t be (fair) elections or they might care about their constituents to save their political careers. It’s not just fear.
I think there are a bunch of folks, Michael, that see the dropping gas prices. For the politically apathetic, and certainly for the MAGAs, this may be enough for them to be happy with Trump. Gas prices are loudly displayed everywhere. It's why I'm currently willing to take one for the team and see those prices go up to $6/gallon. Wish..wish. I'll happily pay more if it makes folks angry with Trump.
And not just gas prices.
https://abcnews.go.com/Business/trump-claims-grocery-gas-prices-falling-experts-misleading/story?id=121410734#:~:text=While%20food%20prices%20are%20rising%20overall%2C%20costs%20for,they%20had%20a%20year%20prior%2C%20BLS%20data%20showed.
However, the Federal Reserve is still maintaining interest rates on the basis that the longer Trump holds to his tariffs policy the more likely it is that inflation and unemployment will rise and growth will be depressed.
There were rumours that Trump would be ready to sign a handful of inconsequential trade deals with preferred states in the next few weeks. If so, he could brag about these as evidence that his tariffs policy had worked and that he could now remove or reduce them. I think that's probably the most he could hope for in the circumstances but it could work to persuade some people to vote for Republicans again at the midterms. The polls indicate that his base still have no regrets about voting for him.
On the other hand, if you're currently struggling to put food on the table now it's unlikely that will ease substantially by the time the midterms come along. The issue is then whether such hard-pressed families will bother to turn up and vote at all, especially when some Republican legislatures are deliberately making it harder for people to vote.
History suggests sweeping gains for the Democrats, but history (at least in your country) hasn't seen anything remotely like the Trump 2.0.
That’s an interesting point, W.J., that hadn’t occurred to me.
Probably not. Trump told them Biden is to blame. Supporters are gullible.
Your opening brought back distant but pertinent memories, from Buffalo Springfield:
Paranoia strikes deep
Into your life it will creep
It starts when you're always afraid
Step out of line, the men come and take you away.
We better stop
Hey, what's that sound?
Everybody look, what's going down?
Very apropos, Michael.
The preternatural ability of the MAGAts to ignore what will affect everyone is remarkable.
When you're entitled and you get perks from the orange turd, you don't feel anything. They are all robbing us. Stealing looting and ruining everything.
Once a company uses an excuse to raise prices, they rarely lower them to the original price for any reason. Instead the executives choose to hold as much profit as possible, buy back stocks, then begin layoffs using lower profits as an excuse. Seen it done this way over and over, particularly with publicly traded corporations. Politicians are really good at saying “it wasn’t my fault” and convincing the electorate they will do better if re-elected. So, the cycle continues.
our best recourse might be to purchase little, if possible. Used baby / child items (I'm told I was dressed in hand me down through grammar school!) , hang onto that car or phone a couple years longer, do you really need to remodel that kitchen? And expose the huge salaries and perks of the CEOs, though maybe I'm naive that shame would do any good......
Young parents are really embracing this sharing clothes and equipment/furniture, toys- my daughter sources/donates so much from our BuyNothing group. She and her friends pass clothes around. I made a pledge to myself not to buy any clothes this year- there’s enough in the closet to skip a year. Americans are so resilient- we’ll figure it out while bearing the pain
Elizabeth,you're observation of what "Public cos" do is 100%. I have advocated boycotting these companies,but have received little response. We Dems are too lazy to boycott.The Republicans boycotted Target because of DEI and the stock tanked significantly. The French,Germans,Australians,even the English do boycotts,we Americans faced with companies that support Trump,refuse to even consider boycotts against companies that advertize on Fox and CNBC. When Dems get some balls,decide to really get engaged,maybe the tide will turn,right now Trump is having his way with crypto,lying to 60 minutes,etc.
So true, Elizabeth.
That's right, Elizabeth! Seen it over and over as well.
Why on earth 🌏 🌍 🌏 did people think🧐 💭 Drumpf would make a good president ⁉️…couldn’t they read the writing ✍🏻 on the wall? He has NEVER, cared anything about normal citizens, like the middle class or people who are truly scraping by😢😭
The answer lies in your first sentence..."why on earth did people think"...
They didn't think.
Camille,thinking is not in vogue any more in the US. Just did a little research,it took Viktor Orban almost 12 yrs to make Hungary into a Fascist country. It has taken just shy of 4 months to make the US into a Fascist or Nazi state. How,one only needs to look@ who is complicit. Musk,Bezos,Zuckerberg,white nationalist evangleicals( waiting for the rapture,Trump has promised to deliver)the Catholic church who has been mute and the synogogues who love a Nazi,why?. Let us not forget Wall Street,who adores Trump for his tax reduction promise.If any of you think for one nano-second that the Wall Steet titans would not easily give up Democracy for Tax breaks,,you are not really paying attention. These people have zero concern for any Democratic principles,fair play,equal rights,hunger in Africa,housing prices that shut out young families.There are more,but its been a long day.
Camille, sadly, you are right they didn't think; they responded based on their knee-jerk racism, misogyny, xenophobia, homo/transphobia, and other similar factors. Trump and his goons know exactly which buttons to push. Democrats proved that racism and misogyny are working on them too by not voting at all, allowing Trump and his cheating lying friends to take over. A woman of color couldn't promise every little thing they wanted, so they just couldn't vote for her. That was the excuse, but racism and misogyny and other isms are powerful in our nation and we haven't effectively positively dealt with them.
Whether he would make a good president was not and is not on the mind of the Trump humping MAGAts. He was their icon, their avatar, their fears, anger, angst, hatred in the flesh
The constant drumbeat of Fox and it's ilk, and right wing hate radio has convinced them that the only evil, the threat to their natural superiority is liberals and their woke, DEI agenda.
Do they really care about the price of eggs? Maybe some, but not really, More important was shoving to the libs, they are willing to take it in the shorts just to own the libs, and scuttle woke and DEI.
Think not, Look again at the priority of the Trump regime, from law firms to universities, from USAID to Medicaid and SNAP, even in the Department of Defense it is all about eradicating any vestiges of recognition of blacks, Hispanics, women, gays and especially trans folk. And there is the primary threat to god fearing Christians and western civilization. a handful of transgendered folk. my god it is the ruin of the patriarchy
William, you have this right. Trumpers and Trumpettes care nothing for the evils this regime is bringing about, even if their family members are fired for no reason and prices and supports for them and their families are withdrawn. They will still blame Biden or Obama or Clinton or someone because if they have to face the fact that their Baby Donnie and his toddler pool are evil, they might have to acknowledge the evil streak within themselves, and they just can't do that. Their evangelical churches tell them that they are always right unless they are having sex out of marriage or choosing abortion. That must mean hating just the right people is a virtue. They don't even have to see it in scripture, they just KNOW they are right and everyone else who is different from them is wrong and hated by god. Truly sad, even depressing. I honestly don't know how to reach these folks. Harris-Walz tried by proposing important changes to help working families, but they just couldn't hear it because their hates were just too powerful and cherished.
Ruth - correct, except that your sentence should read "they are always right unless women are having sex out of marriage or choosing abortion". it's always ok for the men to have sex outside of marriage, or any other proscribed sexual activity.
Is there a word with the same social opprobrium as whore, for men? No
How about effeminate and emasculate for women? No.
Butch and dyke are not insults not to butch dykes, they are a badge of h onor (Dykes on bikes)
The meaning of effeminate and emasculate are , that a personis less than a man, more like a woman.
And that mentality and attitude are telling,it tells one what is thought of women, and explains homophobia an even transphobia.
In a nutshell Ruth. IMO, when you scratch away all of the bullshit, religion, excuses, rationalizations the driving force behind this reaction is men, not all men, but the macho acting males, who are actually insecure,who can't get it up without Viagra or Cialis, the younger breed are Incels, that can't get laid and believe that because they have pecker they are entitled to sex.
The pro life movement was never about life. Pro life was Orwellian new speak, to camouflage the real motivation.
Family Values, the same shit, nothing to do with family or values. More to do with August Caesars law of Pater Familia, which gave the father life and death control over wife and children. It is all about male sexual needs and insecurity.
Except for liberal, lefty males. Apparently they are more secure in their identity.
William, I have been lucky in my life to know mostly men who are not insecure and who don't need to put anyone down to boost their own self-importance. That is probably because I was interested in people's rights from a very early age, studied education, worked in the disability community for years, had a government job, then became a UCC minister and a teacher. Men in those realms often don't need to be seen as superior. I am glad the majority of men are not the snivling whiny toddlers that make up the toxic malepresence that is manifest in the Republican party, the current DC Toddler Pool, and well, among some libertarians and Evangelicals too.
Today I saw a bumper sticker, "Joe Biden owes me money for gas".
Since no president controls gas prices...I remain flummoxed.
The short answer to your question is - No! The MAGAts are utterly and totally propagandized by Faux Snooze and being intellectually lazy, would never fact check what they are fed daily. They are not just low-information voters. They like what they are told and are deeply invested in what Faux and their other handlers are selling them.
I discovered just that when talking to my sister. When an issue comes up to discuss, she just repeats that she doesn't know about that and she doesn't have time to research it but it's on Fox News and her late husband told her that it's the only honest news. So there are many people who are in that ignorant boat and other family members of mine are floating on Fox News propaganda as well.
Dee, can you send your sister a subscription to a news magazine? Something middle of the road?
Thanks for that suggestion.
Stephen, and they are snug wrapped up in their racism, misogyny (yep women in that crowd are misogynists too), xenophobia, and their hypocrisy, and they don't want to be moved.
Selection bias - they only consume the media which makes them more comfortable in their odious beliefs.
It was no one being loud enough, direct enough or fight dirty enough to counteract the lies and the stupid.
Most of the people who voted for him wanted this chaos. Their hatred of minorities/immigrants fueled their anger. Hopefully, those who voted because of their perceived "bad economy" will have opened their eyes, but I'm not counting on it.
There are some who are pushing the biblical end of times...because they want Jesus to come back and save the world and all souls who accept him as their Lord and savior. Those people won't be turned. trump is sent by Jesus to fulfill that prophesy. I'm not one of those.
Being a nonreligious person, this just flabbergasts me. You would think that with some of the horrible periods in history, if Jesus were to come and save anyone, it would have happened already, a few times! I swear, religion is the bane of society.
I do not mean to discredit those who are believers, but it sure doesn't make sense to me.
Well Tina I know just how you feel. All the wars in history involve religion, I believe. Some may involve land or oil but religion is always involved. Seems like everyone is so very concerned about the here-after and pleasing God, who promises streets of gold with mansions or virgins.
I believe that if we paid more attention to the here-and-now the here-after will take care of itself. We are stewards of the earth and it doesn't make sense to blow up people, animals and things. We are a violent, primitive species. Not all of us, but enough for this planet to be an unpleasant place to land if you are from outer space. You would either be captured and killed or locked up and probed for knowledge & belongings or indoctrinated into some religion that would promise to save you. We aren't ready to fly into space and inhabit other worlds when we can't manage or get along on this one. We have a long way to go if you ask me.
I can’t even….. Religion to some is the hereafter, to me it’s complete nonsense. I believe in morality, truth, and love.
I believe you meant to write ✍🏻 their “real name’s”…Elon Muck 🦠, Jeff Bozo 🤡 & Zuckerturd 💩 🤨😜😱
You didn’t even touch on the tens of thousands that are unemployed now as a result of the DOGE layoffs. The VA just announced 80,000 jobs that are being eliminated.
Ramona - If people would have paid attention prior to the election, or got their news from a reputable source, they would have known that this was going to happen. However, a lot of people thought that they were “safe” and that it would happen to someone else. Didn’t work out so well for them and now we are stuck with this crappy administration for longer than seems tolerable.
"You can fool all of the people some of the time and some of the people all of the time." Let's hope and pray that the second category includes no more than the 35% of voters who comprise Trump's MAGA base. I'll take 65% in the midterms.
The authors of Project 2025 have stated that they will carryout their revolution no matter what--"peacefully if we allow them."
Wikipedia states about Russel Vought, the main author of Project 2025, that Vought...seeks to infuse the government and society with elements of Christianity, saying he has "a commitment to an institutional separation between church and state, but not the separation of Christianity from its influence on government and society."
Now Wikipedia is not always correct, but if it is correct in this case, then Vought is an idiot.
We can defeat idiocy.
We're stronger than they are.
OH I can hope that's true as I keep on fighting with letters and holding signs.
We need to be reminded of the threat from Kevin Roberts, that the right wing revolution will be bloodless if the left allows.
This 100 days feels like 100 years but there are over a thousand to go, and they are just getting started and SCROTUM is backing them up.
What we have seen so far is only the fat lady gargling, warming up.
Careful, William. Anarchy is the handmaiden of totalitarianism.
Victor, the republican party is a terrorist organization that promotes violence, extortion, and bribery to resolve political differences.
"But you cannot fool all of the people all of the time". I've been waiting for someone to repeat that quote. Ascribed to Honest Abe Lincoln. I also hope it's true!
In your electoral system (as in ours in the UK) it's perfectly possible to fool enough of the people all of the time.
Ok. I am going to be totally negative and say NO. Those who can be classified as low/no information citizens will forget because they have the brain of a flea. I rest my case because felon 47 got into office after the Jan 6 insurrection which was the most horrific act by American citizens, desecrating our Capitol and killing police officers.
I agree
Trump tariffs and violence
Mainstream media can’t seem to make economic sense of the tariff policy.
That’s because it’s meant to be both economically destructive and socially disruptive. Tariffs are a “go to“ chapter in the playbook of authoritarian despots.
Along the way money is being made by insider shorting of the market and specific companies.
Quid pro tariff exemption transactions will put the Trump Regime in a kingmaker position and provide more insider market opportunities to ‘go long.’
The resulting emaciation of small business (who do not have White House access)and withering of the American economy is not a concern. It is a goal which leads to social disruption.
The Trump machine attack on due process, the rule of law, the courts media, and all the other pillars of democracy cannot have its full and intended effect until martial law is declared under the Insurrection Act.
Preparations are underway now by eliminating layers of potential resistance within the military structure while fomenting the seeds of rebellion.
At some point in the not too distant future when fear, rage and desperation reach a tipping point … there will be violence.
That’s when the Trump regime will strike.
When military strength is used to quell, incarcerate and murder our own people… the coup will be complete.
Kirk - What gets me is that they are denying due process rights to other people but are demanding to have their due process rights in every single court case that they are arguing. So far their delay and deny tactics are working. WTF!?
Lying, denying, cheating, duplicitous hypocrisy is their ‘dark side’ code. Its intended effect is to ‘win’ through attrition - to gradually erode our outrage into acquiescence.
I just listened to a hearing with the Treasury Secretary and he, as all of the cabinet members, just evaded the question concerning products for babies. It was disgusting to see and hear him try to not talk about the tariffs. Just disgusting!
Robert - It’s because they want the power to tell you when/how to have babies but they don’t want to take care of them once they’re born.
"But here’s the question: will consumers and workers realize Trump is the cause? And if they do, will they remember this by the November 2026 midterm elections?" If the last election is any indicator, the general electorate has the memory of a gnat. So NO, they will not remember.
https://www.gelliottmorris.com/p/what-do-disengaged-voters-think-about
Worth a read to see what some voters remember between elections.
As usual, all depends on perception and messaging.
Will the same old Democrats be running the show? Will they be able to separate from their corporate masters and pick a candidate for the people? Or will they simply reshuffle those same milk toast Democrats who have held offices for years?
Most people want an "economy that works for everyone" universal health care, freedom from want and equal justice. Republicans won't deliver that, but do Democrats have the courage to stand for that?
Thank you for this warning, Robert. I'll just add the nuance that I don’t think we have until the midterms. We barely have until September. That’s when the regime is poised to cement - through backdoor legal maneuvers and budget control - the “gray zone” authoritarianism we’re currently witnessing into law.
This isn’t politics as usual. It’s mafia-state level consolidation. We won’t vote our way out of it, not unless we disrupt it first.
Mass public resistance is the only thing that’s ever stopped coups of this nature. That means: Labor strikes, Student walkouts, General strike, Coordinated strategic boycotts of key corporations backing the regime, with focus on BigTech.
Alongside that, we need institutional courage: state attorneys general, universities, agency insiders. Together, these forces have overturned authoritarian grabs before — and they can again. Trusted media needs to bring this to light of awareness.
A growing movement is already taking shape. Its demand is clear: This fascist administration must go. Now.
On June 14th, No Kings Day, the call becomes public. A coordinated push across sectors, with targeted economic action against Big Tech: Meta, X, Google, Amazon, and Apple. These are the pillars of both surveillance and profit — and the weak point in the alliance between Wall Street and the regime.
If we bring Wall Street to its knees before September, the administration falls before the budget locks in.
If we don’t? They’ll finalize the surveillance infrastructure. They’ll rewrite the rules. There won’t be a free 2026 election.
This is completely peaceful. A call for refusal. We log off. We don’t show up. We peacefully stop fueling the machine. We still have time. But not much.
I got an email asking me to sign a letter of thanks to Amazon for wanting to post the cost of tariffs onto the item. I think your suggestions should be activated. Commenters on Joyce Vance's post were debating the use of the term "General Strike" because they fear its impllcations and spent much back and forth trying to find another word. People can't imagine stopping work because they need their wages now . People can't imagine not buying stuff because they need it now. People don't want to crash Wall Street because they want their pensions now. Mostly they can't imagine bringing immediate pain onto themselves, not realizing that once the Regime is in place the pain will be as well and permanent. I have been saying for weeks that I'm not confident there will be Midterms. I get a brush off. Everyone I speak to wants to see a strategy that Dems can implement. I think the call for a huge economic action, including walkouts is the beginning of such a strategy. How to get this across???
Exactly! I think part of it is that if people don't fully understand what's at stake and how soon we might be experiencing the consequences. If they did, they'd be much more apt to make sacrifices now. I understand many are busy, raising kids. But the amount of cuts to social support systems, including FEMA, have real impacts, and with climate weather events happening more and more. This is economic eugenics. Middle class is disappearing.
I've been trying to reach out to organizations like Indivisible, 50501, MayDayStrong. General Strike US, to see if we can unite around a shared date to start real sustained economic resistance. I'm also advocating for a digital exodus to reduce the monopoly power of the tech companies funding this (Meta, X, Google, Amazon) - it's something that people who can't afford to leave their jobs can do, and in numbers it could have a real impact that cause Wall Street to flinch.
Great. I will contact Focus 4 Democracy, the group I referenced that is trying to get liberal ideas out onto the media landscape by trying to increase the number of platforms. I see that as slow going -- and your point about how fast things are moving to make this regime permanent needs to be taken into account; and also it soaks up money from donors who could by supporting more activist causes. Have to think about that more. I like the term "digital exodus." It's shameful and totally crazy capitalist to have one man own Facebook and Instagram. Never challenged as a concept. I think Wall Street must crash and stay down, even if our pensions are threatened. Can I use your opening post, and add this latest material?
With regards to where to focus funding, my sense is that resistance-based efforts now represent the greatest leverage point we have.
I keep seeing donation requests for saving PBS and National Parks - the list is endless of the things that have come under attack - and they are all near and dear to my heart. But at this point, the rules have changed. None of these programs - even possibly our right to protest openly - will survive, if we don't stop what is functionally an authoritarian consolidation of power.
So I believe donor attention needs to shift, at least temporarily, towards a consolidated effort towards a mass civil resistance. Below are some key areas, and I'd love to hear your thoughts. Thanks again for the collaboration.
- Coordinated economic resistance (boycotts, digital exit, labor action, political action groups)
- Cross-movement strategy alignment (especially between groups already organizing: 50501, Indivisible, MayDayStrong, etc.)
- Emergency public education campaigns (art, videos, articles) that cut through algorithmic suppression and disinformation
- Digital and legal safety infrastructure for dissenters and movement builders
- Narrative reframing to name what’s happening in terms clear enough to move people toward action—not just awareness
Yes, take my text/post - edit as needed. I'm also open to help polish it up with you. Thanks so much for being so energized. I feel less alone!
Thanks, you are very foresighted and that is important. Can you get RR to focus on this Resistance? If people have to be mobiliized -- and Americans don't really have the history of resistance, certainly not of organized resistance -- I suspect clarifcation and simplification are in order. I've been saying that all the different areas requesting money, but especially the politicians who are trying to collect for the midterms, need a charismatic leader who is smart and agile enough to take on Trump, energize and lead big. I don't see anyone, certainly not Newsom (obviously an idiot if he married Guilfoyle). Without a strong anti-Trump person, the most important is to get all the small resistance groups together, focussed on stopping the machine: that's your "Cross-movment strategy alignment." I fear egos will get in the way. Do you have any way of contacting people individually? Ben Wikler would be important to look at the tactics and strategy. So would Mr. Ego Carville. RR is obvious. Next is how to get public education campaigns sarted? And clarify please, and define the safety infrastructure. And yes, everyone, even on RR's thread, is describing and complaining and getting off on tangeants like the Pope, and not being foreced to face the fact that action is imperative.
Finally, I don't know how to use this substack thread easily. I would like to send you the part of your original piece that I edited. If you are open to it, email me at my personal email: MargoKasdan@aol.com and I'll send it to you. P.S. Don't you think the elections of liberals in Canada, Australia and even the Pope (because some were hoping for another Benedict or even John Paul) are in reaction to DJT?
Re: safety infrastructure and public education. II can share more with you. I’m keeping the strategy in a PDF and I'm just about finished with the next iteration. I can share more in email.
You mentioned RR, Wikler, Carville - these are good suggestions. I’ve been doing individual outreach to thought leaders, journalists, artists, and organizers. I'll reach out to RR. He seems responsive. If you or others can help open doors or amplify this effort, that would make a huge difference.
I truly believe we can win this, but only if we align, simplify the message, and stay focused on strategic pressure, not just description. I’d love to read your edits and hear more of your ideas.
Just emailed you
Thank you for this thoughtful response. That's a great point. Americans don't have a strong culture of organized civic resistance, and clarity and coordination are everything right now. That’s exactly why I’ve been working on uniting the “micro-resistances” into one macro-movement: a peaceful, nonpartisan economic resistance with one clear message:
“This Unlawful Regime Must Go—Now.”
I think part of the reason people aren't acting is because the regime has flooded us with so many things at once, it's overwhelming and hard to piece the big picture together. But once you see it - you can't do anything but act. Getting the message out, connecting the dots about what's at stake and the time line we are on without freaking people out is key. Most of my momentum has been on Linkedin so far, and starting to gather a small group of people interested in helping coordinate the cross sector movement.
I agree that waiting for a charismatic savior is risky and I don’t think our power lies in a single figurehead. What we need is what you’re pointing toward: cross-movement strategy alignment, collective focus, and simple, repeatable actions that people across ideologies can rally behind. This is how coups are stopped historically - by the people - a mass public awakening and collective refusal to buy into the system.
Those of us who are paying attention will get it. Those who worship the ground Felon47 spits on will look for someone else to blame.
Will voters remember in 2026? In 2026 we will be in the midst of a recession from all indicators I see even if TrumPutin pulls the plug on tariffs!