So, we have had two political conventions within the space of two weeks. We have had another shooting by police of a Black man. We have had protests in response and a shooting by an armed vigilante.
The two political conventions presented two distinct visions of what our country is experiencing at this time. In a few months it will be up to the American people to decide which one best presents our reality and how we will proceed in the future.
Until you actually see the problem you won't be able to solve it. Too many people have been looking the other way. We need to look more closely, and start to actually see each other.
210 comments:
1 – 200 of 210 Newer› Newest»Lynnette,
C'mon. Rittenhouse was not an "armed vigilante."
This is a video from that Tuesday night. You can hear directly from the people that are trying to protect local businesses from being burned down. This is the group to which Rittenhouse belonged.
Armed Residents Protect Small Business in Kenosha.
You need to rewrite that phrase "armed vigilante." They are in no way "vigilantes."
I expect better of you, Lynnette.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
They are in no way "vigilantes."
vig·i·lan·te
noun
a member of a self-appointed group of citizens who undertake law enforcement in their community without legal authority, typically because the legal agencies are thought to be inadequate.
Seriously, Jeffrey? I expect better of you.
I'll have to look at your video tomorrow. It's after midnight here and time for me to go to bed.
I put up another video in the other comments section that seems to be clearer than the others. It's actually a compilation of various videos take from different angles of the shootings.
BLM react to American citizens who don't agree with them.
BLM in Washington DC.
Classy. Especially the in-your-face double middle finger to a woman who looks to be a grandmother.
Nice people, those BLM activists.
Is that the America you want, Lynnette?
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Lynnette,
I have no problem with the denotation of the word vigilante. It is with the connotations. Other words are better suited.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
"It is with the connotations."
You go all in with the bogus "child molester" story; you tell us it's "good news" that Ritterhouse killed those two men (and it turns out he called "a friend" to brag about it after he bagged Rosenbaum), and then you claim to have a problem with the "connotations" of the word "vigilante"?
How the hell does that work?
Lee C.,
I would prefer a more neutral "armed citizen" to "armed vigilante."
I'm not sure that charge of child molesting is accurate at all. Later, I heard someone say that the charge against Rosenbaum was from when he was eighteen years and old and may have been because his girlfriend at the time was sixteen or so. Have you seen any facts on this?
Brag? Um, not likely. But it has zing to it. Mischaracterization for fun, we'll call it. Yep, I do it, too.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
The idea that "systematic racism" is the source of problems within the African American community is simply wrong. As I've talked about before, the real issues are within the African American community and can only be remedied by themselves.
If you'd like to hear this view voiced by an African American, click on the link.
EPIC RANT ABOUT JACOB BLAKE
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
"Have you seen any facts on this?"
I've run his name through the sexual offender registry for both Wisconsin and for Arizona, where the 4chan first alleged he was registered as sex offender. Neither registry recognizes the name Joseph Rosenbaum. (The allegation was also given a further early push on Russia Today website. I have been unable to pin down conclusively which posted it first.)
What further "facts" do you want? Why didn't your sources think to do this? Why didn't you think to do it?
Usually in a case like this we have wait a few days to a few weeks, sometimes even longer, for these sorts of bogus stories to bubble up out of the right-winger digital putrefaction factories and into the public eye (this one's still resident almost exclusively in the right-wing extremist digital universe). But, eventually it'll get picked up by FoxNews (Hannity or Tucker Carlson or one of those) or Breitbart or RedState, or somewhere like that, something more public, and then one of the public "fact checkers" will take note of it and shoot it down.
So, you just be patient, and meantime know that I now know the sorts of places where you been hangin' out online and getting your "facts". (Up 'til this I was merely suspicious.)
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
"The idea that 'systematic racism' is the source of problems
within the African American community is simply wrong."
A source--not the source. And no, that idea is not wrong. Saying it's so don't make it so.
"I would prefer a more neutral 'armed citizen' to 'armed
vigilante.'"
He might have been reasonably considered an armed citizen back home in Illinois. But, by the time he'd taken his illegally acquired assault rifle to the troubles in Kenosha, Wisconsin, he pretty much has to be accepted as a full-on vigilante.
Post Script to Marcus:
Ritterhouse was carrying a Remington 223. Makes that a 30 round magazine he had in there (size of the magazine varies according to the size of the ammo.)
Lee C.,
A source--not the source. And no, that idea is not wrong. Saying it's so don't make it so.
A very, very small factor, in my estimation and from personal experience in my family.
Is Officer Tatum considered a right-winger?
For me, Kyle Rittenhouse is a citizen on both sides of the state line.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Carryin' that gun he was a felon on both sides of the state line.
Lee C.,
I follow NO MEDIA CHANNELS. Zero. I never watch TV. I didn't in New York and I don't here. There's a flat-screen TV here in my dorm room. I've never turned it on. I effing hate journalists, whether they're on the left or the right. No Fox, no CNN, no nothing.
I have a friend who writes for the NYTimes. I don't read it. Another friend is the editor of the New Republic. I don't read it -- only an article or two dealing with China that he requested I take a look at.
I do like to listen to a podcaster now and then. Always individuals. I still listen to WFAN, the sports radio show out of New York. For example, I'm listening to Richard Neer's Saturday morning show as I type this.
You can follow all of that crap. That's fine. I won't.
I concentrate on teaching English, studying Mandarin, and writing. Yes, every now and then I will take a look at what's going on, but politics and journalism mean very little to me in my life. They're not important to me, never have been.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
"I follow NO MEDIA CHANNELS. Zero. I never watch TV."
Yes, you mentioned that before. 4chan and its spawn are not media channels.
I'm fully aware of what you've denied and what you didn't. Repetition full of ire and pomposity isn't necessary.
Lee C.,
Carryin' that gun he was a felon on both sides of the state line.
Ha. That was a good come-back. Nice one, Lee.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
…and its ilk and their spawn…
Lee C.,
What the hell is "4chan"?
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Yeah, right.
Lee C., Lynnette,and Marcus,
If you're at all interested in what it's like in China, I have a piece at a travel blog that might interest you (it has photos I snapped, too).
Before The Storm: On The Ground In China.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Lee C.
I'm serious. What the hell is it?
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China.
*
"I'm serious."
If by "serious" you mean "sincere" as in suggesting it was an honest question and not merely a gambit to get you an argument going in a different direction, I don't believe that for a minute. You might as well give that one up.
(That's like the White House assistants asking who's QAnon.)
Lee C.
I don't know who or what 4chan or Qanon is supposed to be. I don't follow the news, you fucking idiot.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
And yet you had near immediate assimilation of their fabricated story about Rosenbaum being a child molester. And you think insulting me is somehow gonna make us not notice that?
And now you're seemingly committed to pursuing that with dedication, to the exclusion of "why didn't you think to look it up?"
Nope, ain't buyin' it. Sell it to Marcus.
Viewership of Trump's Thursday night speech was down more than 10% from the numbers who checked in the week before to watch Biden's acceptance speech.
Trump follows those ratings numbers. They're a big deal to him.
(And who and how many were interested enough in what to watch might be an indicator here.)
Oh, you'd prefer something about Thailand?
Can do.
Inside The Happy Buddha Day Scam.
Yep, those are real photos.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
I have time for one comment before I have to go mow the lawn.
Armed Residents Protect Small Business in Kenosha.
Businesses should not be the target of rioting and arson. I agree with that. I also believe that defending businesses is not belittling the fact that Jacob Blake was shot by police in the back. The fellow that was interviewed was right about that. The woman who was shouting at him was simply too angry to listen.
I also note that neither the guy with the gun protecting that business or the woman did anything else but talk. There was no gunfire.
Kyle Rittenhouse should never have been involved in that situation in the first place. He just didn't have the maturity to handle it, even if he knew how to aim his gun and pull the trigger.
I have not had time to try to research what happened before Rittenhouse shot Rosenbaum. Apparently there was some kind of altercation before that. I am sure there are witnesses. That photographer for one.
I will say this though, all of this stems from a real marginalization of some people in this country. Or a perception of marginalization.
We need to start talking, yes, but more importantly we need to start listening to each other. Guns, either held by police officers or civilians, aren't conducive to a constructive conversation.
That is the real subject of my post.
Now, my yard awaits...
The shooting of Huber and Rosenbaum are actually of little direct importance to the country going forward. Rittenhouse wasn't old enough to have that gun. He wasn't old enough to be wandering around loose, and armed, in the middle of a protest turned riotous. Two people are dead; one person is likely maimed. Another is probably going to prison for long enough to ruin his chance at a decent civilian life of his own. Somebody played "straw purchaser" to get that gun for the kid; he's likely in serious trouble as well.
Bad for them (various degrees of bad for them here--being dead seems the most advanced stage of bad); bad for their friends and families as well.
For the rest of us, it's troubling, but we'll all get mostly over it, and in fairly short order.
Meantime we still got cops thinking they can get away with shooting unarmed black men in the back for no good reason.
We need to solve that problem. That one's gonna be bad for all of us if we don't solve it.
And we got militias eagerly arming up and going eager vigilante, crossing political boundaries to bring their "rights" into somebody else's troubled town, way too happy for the opportunity to grab cameras and attention for the enforcement of their version of their own "rights", dropping their road show down on top of other people's problems. (They were, after all, "protecting" a building that had already been burned out, and without the owner's permission so far as anybody seems to know.)
We need to solve that problem as well. That one's also gonna be trouble down the line if we don't get a fix in on it.
I kinda like this guy. Sure he’s rambling but it’s not like he has a script, but the main message is one I totally agree with:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D462wr1f9ls
Jeffrey, 4chan is a message board on the Internet. Kinda like a chat-room on the Internet where the chats are public and remain. They have all manner of different threads for different debates but have become notorious for the threads that are either Nazi, right wing or pro Trump. It’s the place where many memes originate as posters one-ups each other in creating funny or clever memes to support their cause. If you see a pro Trump meme in any social media chances are high it originated at 4chan.
Myself I don’t ever go there. But we have a Swedish version that’s been around for far longer called Flashback that I do visit, it’s lighter on memes as you can only post text there. But that forum too have all manner of political thought and also completely non political stuff on it.
Jeffrey, Unlike Lee I can totally believe you insulate yourself from media and had no idea what 4chan was. I can also believe your just trolling when you say that. I don’t know. But I myself deliberately also stay away from some recent information technology. As an example I am not on Facebook, Instagram or any such “social network” and I never will be. So I gave you the benefit of a doubt to try and explain what 4chan is.
Jeffrey,
Loved both your story from China but especially the one from Thailand. On my FIRST day in Bangkok in January 2003 I was set up for the gem scam in almost exactly the same way as you describe. It was “lucky Bhudda day” and on that day only precious stones were exempt from tax. I was also riled into it by an insanely cheap TukTuk ride. As I saw the scam from miles away, since the other operators were slick but my TukTuk driver was an imbecile who gave the game away, I was never scammed and actually ended up having a great time for very little money.
Lee,
If you were to get a snub nosed revolver for self defense purposes, which caliber would you get and do you have a gun brand or a specific gun you’d recommend. .38, .38 special, 357... etc? Or is a pistol like the Glock19 always a better choice.
The scenario is for self defense at close range, less than 10 meters say, against a single or maybe a few assailants. Against a would be robber or some crazy that maybe pulled a gun on you first, that sort of thing. Accuracy beyond 10 meters is not an issue. And I have big hands and can prolly handle a bit of recoil.
Btw: the question is theoretical as I can’t buy a gun wo a permit, and I have no permit, and I do not plan to get a permit, and even if I had a permit I could not legally carry the weapon on my person in everyday life anyway, and I have no intention of breaking the law.
Marcus,
I really don't follow the daily news. Here and there, on blogs or podcasts and a YouTube video, I'll see people refer to news items, but I never read daily news article or watch any TV news. Zero. Now, somewhere I did mention of the Rittenhouse case and it interested me, so I decided to take a closer look. As Lynnette said above, I think it will turn out to a case worth following.
Thanks for explaining what 4chan is. So Lee C. thinks I'm hanging around that kind of place? Weird. Lee C. also mentioned Qanon. Is that a person or an organization? Again, I have no idea.
Like you, I don't have a Facebook account or any other social media connection. But blogs I still like.
Hey, thanks for reading the two pieces over at Vagabond Journey. I'll probably do a few more.
That is so funny that you had the same Lucky Buddha Day experience as I had. Man, that's quite an operation -- well, except for your imbecile tuk-tuk driver.
I know you travel to Thailand regularly. I wonder when it will open up for travel again. Any word?
Dang. Late here again in China. Time for bed.
Chat later.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Jeffrey,
First of all QAnon. I am myself not certain where it originated and I haven’t been following it but as far as I know: on 4chan a poster emerged under the moniker QAnon who claimed to be some sort of insider in the US security services and who started posting a series of conspiracies allegedly orchestrated by Hillary, the Hillary campaign and the “deep state”. It’s a quite obvious troll but a very successful one as it gathered a fairly large following. ( there are also more insane claims by this group about peadofile networks in high power protecting each other and peado dens under Washington and such). It’s bullshit but with just enough truth to keep believers believing would be my summation.
“I know you travel to Thailand regularly. I wonder when it will open up for travel again. Any word?”
Been there and in surrounding countries every winter since that first trip in 2003. This year I didn’t go and that wasn’t for Corona but that I wanted something new. I had actually planned to go on a 3 week trip to Louisiana in may. But THAT got shot down by Corona.
I wanted to go have bourbon and listen to jazz (I don’t really like either) in Bourbon Street New Orleans, I wanted to go out by boat into that part of the delta where you can go by boat among the trees, I wanted to go to Lafayette, I was planning to rent a car to go around, I wanted to eat creole, Cajun, I wanted to get drunk at a bar in the country side. But fucking Corona put paid to all of that.
Thailand seems very skitterish about opening up. One of my best friends runs a hotel there and they are really suffering. They will have tens of thousands of small businesses go bankrupt for sure. There’s very little federal aid for businesses either. Those that were stable and had cash at hand might survive. Those that really needed to have their cash flow going are dead. I hear in November Swedes might be able to fly to Thailand, and that’s prolly since that’s when 5heir tourism high season begins . But it remains to be seen.
"If you were to get a snub nosed revolver for self defense
purposes, which caliber would you get and do you have a gun brand
or a specific gun you’d recommend. .38, .38 special, 357... etc?"
357 magnum in stainless steel. It'll sit in desk drawer for years on end without being moved or dusted off and it'll still fire when you pick it up and point it. They just don't jam. (Ammo will eventually get "stale" and be unreliable, but we're talking years for that to happen, and even if one round doesn't fire you don't have to clear the shell, just pull the trigger again and it'll move on to the next chamber automatically.)
357 magnum is about all the stopping power you'll ever need at short range, or, it'll shoot lower power .38 special ammo interchangeably. Load three of each if you want--no problem, no jamming. You can experiment with different ammunition, different loads and see what you'd like to shoot and not have to change a thing once you decide on your ammo. Get a couple of "reloader" strips or "speed circles" if you expect to want more than six shots (unlikely to be necessary if you're using it as a self-defense at home) and set them down in the drawer right next to the gun.
Smith and Wesson makes solid, reliable stainless steel revolvers at a competitive price. But any name brand gun maker can make a reliable revolver. Put one in your hands and see what "feels right" in your hand, just right off the bat, 'cause you're probably not expecting to stay in practice with it.
Post Script: "Feels right" also encompasses "Does it hit where you point without you bothering to aim." May want to change grips around to experiment. You can put a laser sight on one just to check--pick the gun up and point. Does the red dot fall close enough to what you thought you were pointing at? Then you don't really have to buy the laser sight as well, just decide, "Nah, I'll just take the gun."
Jeffrey,
Thanks for the links to your posts. Interesting pictures.
China and Japan were talking about easing travel restrictions back at the end of July. I don't know if that actually happened?
Have you looked into that possibility?
I kinda like this guy. Sure he’s rambling but it’s not like he has a script, but the main message is one I totally agree with:
While he sprinkled his rhetoric with classic right wing denigration of the left and the victims in Kenosha, and seemed to like to throw in military jargon, even though he was never in combat as he points out multiple times, he was absolutely right about Kyle Rittenhouse. He never should have been in Kenosha.
(And who and how many were interested enough in what to watch might be an indicator here.)
I know people who didn't watch either convention, who will not be voting for Trump. I think it was the die hard political watchers and the curiosity seekers who watched. I would fall into that last category for those nights I tuned in.
"I know people who didn't watch either convention…"
Most people did not watch either convention. Viewership on both was down in the 20-30% of households range. Most people already know who they're going to vote for.
It may be that the "undecided" were more inclined to watch the acceptance speeches by each candidate, which is why I chose those numbers to look at.
NBCNews: The Kenosha Police have arrested "food distribution volunteers" from the State of Washington for "disorderly conduct" at a gas station where they were filling up their vehicles after getting into town (basically for planning to distribute food and water to the BLM protesters instead of serving only the armed right-wing militia whom the Kenosha Police favor).
NewYorkTimes: The Director of National Intelligence (the overlord and coördinator of all the national security agencies, CIA, NSA, etc.) has announced that the Trump administration will quit briefing the Congressional oversight committees (Senate and House) about Russia's ongoing election interference efforts at least until after Trump is reëlected, and then, of course, maybe never again.
Marco Rubio, Republican head of the Senate Intelligence Committee, has praised the Trump administration's decision. Rubio said "some" members of the committee would be willing to release such evidence of election interference to the general public. (And, of course, the Trump administration wants to keep that hidden pending Trump's reëlection.) Democrats on the two committees are noticeably less pleased with this turn of events, but there's not a lot they can do about it in the two months that're left before the elections. Trying to enforce congressional subpoena will take longer than the remaining two months, as the Trump administration is well aware.
(This is the fairly predictable result of the Senate Republicans' previous whitewashing of Trump's impeachable offenses against the upcoming elections.)
Lee C.,
That was very detailed advice you gave to Marcus about handguns. How do you know so much? Were you in the military? Or maybe you grew up in the countryside and started hunting at a young age?
In the small town where I grew up, my high school was half town kids and half farm kids. Although all of us grew up with BB-guns and pellet guns and shotguns, the farm kids were generally more advanced than the town kids. At school, they would bring in catalogs for all kinds of weapons. I remember at some point a lot of them started hunting deer with bows.
I think I was around fourteen when I got my first shotgun -- a .410 gauge. I never got past rabbit hunting. Soon I was playing guitar in a rock band and the .410 stayed in the closet.
So what's your story?
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
I grew up in a rural environment. The other two already know. Otherwise I'd just ignore your question. I am not the subject of conversation here, and I don't seek to be.
Marcus,
Thanks for the explanation of QAnon. So it's a guy -- or person -- who is still anonymous, right? Kind of like Deep Throat, I guess. Has some insider info, as you say.
New Orleans and environs is worth the trip. One thing, though. New Orleans is a very small city. i lived there for a short time, in the Uptown district. You could walk from one end of the city to the other pretty quickly. It's definitely got its charms.
Thailand seems very skitterish about opening up. One of my best friends runs a hotel there and they are really suffering. They will have tens of thousands of small businesses go bankrupt for sure. There’s very little federal aid for businesses either. Those that were stable and had cash at hand might survive. Those that really needed to have their cash flow going are dead. I hear in November Swedes might be able to fly to Thailand, and that’s prolly since that’s when 5heir tourism high season begins . But it remains to be seen.
Man, that's tough. Here in China, too. When I ride my bike around Ningbo, I can clearly see those businesses that had enough cash to tide them over and those that didn't.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Lee C.,
I am not the subject of conversation here, and I don't seek to be.
I'm here to help you, Lee. One step a time. No matter how many sessions it takes.
I thought we'd start with your fascination with guns and then work back toward the relationship with your parents.
C'mon, Lee. You're around friends. We all know that you're holding a lot of pain inside. Let it out, Lee, let it out.
Dr. Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Next time you're tempted to entertain the notion that it's impolite for me to ignore you, remember this time.
Lee C.,
Okay, that's a good start. Baby steps, my friend.
Dr. Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Lynnette,
I thought countries would open up much faster, but nope. Still just a handful of countries that allow foreigners to enter, one of them being Turkey. I bought a ticket to Istanbul, but it was cancelled the next day! Dang.
A lot of countries have bans until August 31. Most will probably just extend the bans, but a few may lift them.
We'll see.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Lee,
Thanks for the informative reply. I have been doing google searches and watched a couple of YouTube clips regarding small self defense weapons and what you wrote basically added to what I already thought.
I am not an experienced gun handler so a revolver seemed a safer bet as it’s so easy and can hardly ever malfunction. Basically an idiot can use one. 357 Magnum also seems ideal as we’re talking about stopping power. I bet even if an assailant carries a bulletproof vest you could still knock the wind outta him w a 357 shot to the chest, no?
"…you could still knock the wind outta him w a 357
shot to the chest, no?"
10 yards or less, at least that. Probably put him flat on his back, and gasping for air as well.
Jeffrey:
“ Thanks for the explanation of QAnon. So it's a guy -- or person -- who is still anonymous, right? Kind of like Deep Throat, I guess. Has some insider info, as you say. ”
As I said I haven’t really been following it, but my impression is it started out as one anonymous poster and basically grew into some sort of movement wiith others just tagging along. But yeah, it was originally ONE individual who claimed to be an insider in the “deep state” and who came up with all these often quite cryptic conspiracies. (And I’m not sayin conspiracy theories, as QAnon posted them as true conspiracies, but of course all of the QAnon materiel is conspiracy theories)
Jeffrey,
“ Has some insider info, as you say.” (QAnon)
Not so sure he actually does. Maybe. But afaik most of the stuff is just guesswork. Idk but my instincts tell me it’s just a very intelligent and highly successful troll. It’s not every troll that can create a solid following and even having crowds of people showing up at political rallies w signs sprouting your online moniker, so we have to give it to QAnon he’s an excellent troll - on who the hell knows, maybe he’s for real?
Lee,
“ 10 yards or less, at least that. Probably put him flat on his back, and gasping for air as well.”
Just what I’m looking for, to potentially get at some point in the future.
I figure five yards will probably hit anywhere in the room in most rooms in most residences.
Yup 10 yards was my outlier. In reality I expect more like 2-5 yards. I’m just looking for a future way to seriously put down a robber w a knife, a robber w a gun or a home invader w either.
"He never should have been in Kenosha."
He should not have had an assault rifle with a 30 round magazine. Absent that he could have wandered around Kenosha to his heart's content, and he'd still be a free man, and his victims would still be alive.
For fucks sake. Here we have a fellow with a restraining order bc he was a rapist breaking That order and when cops came he just would not listen to any of their demands. Hw was told time over to stop and lay down. He didn’t listen. Instead he went into his car and reached for...Li somethng.
Wtf are the responding officer to do?
Lee
“ He should not have had an assault rifle with a 30 round magazine. Absent that he could have wandered around Kenosha to his heart's content, and he'd still be a free man, and his victims would still be alive.”
And he’d be dead instead, for sporting a MAGA hat or some such.
I thought countries would open up much faster, but nope.
I suspect other people did as well. It was just some of the epidemiologists who may have suspected differently. I remember listening to one who basically said that for some time to come we will see countries gradually reopening and then shutting down again as the virus spikes. Maybe not totally but we will not be seeing "normal" for a while.
He should not have had an assault rifle with a 30 round magazine.
Yes, indeed. I have to wonder where he got it? Does anyone know?
"Does anyone know?"
By now the feds have got a damn good idea. But, I'm wondering if they'll wait until after the election to consider bringing charges against the adult who stood in as a straw purchaser. Trump might think it bad for his campaign to allow his administration be seen enforcing federal gun laws against the dedicated Trumpkins and MAGA hats.
NewYorkTimes: It looks like the Mueller investigation was secretly circumscribed by Rod Rosenstein, the Department of Justice Deputy Attorney General in charge of appointing and overseeing the Mueller investigation.
And apparently Mueller performed as a loyal soldier and curbed his investigation and kept that secret.
This would explain what I've previously described as an obvious timidity by Mueller (although I tended towards using more colloquial language at the time).
Quaere here folks; something to ponder…
Premise: Trump is gonna benefit if he can keep the current street violence going until November.
Problem: It's not likely that public anger over the shooting of Jacob Blake will support continued street violence in Kenosha for that long, even with right-winger armed militia brought in from out-of-state to keep things fired up.¹
Quaere then: How does Trump solve his problem and keep the violence going?
‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾
¹ This is a "problem" only for Trump, not for the rest of us.
¹ This is a "problem" only for Trump, not for the rest of us.
He is planning to visit Kenosha. Nothing like stirring the pot personally.
Word has it that Trump did not get the nice post convention bounce in the polls. I wonder, was it the "Trump" sign in fireworks that was the turn off for some? Or maybe there are other people out there who are offended by his use of the White House as a political prop.
Any thoughts on this?
They made that announcement last week, Wednesday I think it was. They got a stock market bounce almost immediately, which appears to me to be the real point of the thing.
I'm not really certain that it's gonna make much difference in the real economy (as opposed to the boost to the stock markets, which are no longer tethered to the underlying American economy) They're talking about being willing to risk additional inflation, but the real economic risk we're looking at is depression and deflation.
Telling people who're starving to death that it'll be okay to gain a little weight ain't exactly addressing the problem.
The biggest problem they seem to have with their new policy is that they only got a brief bounce in the stock market (and shoring up the stock market seemed to me to be the real intention of the announcement)
So, I don't think it'll have any effect in the real world (which is a good thing, 'cause it's generally a bad idea). And by the time it may actually, matter we can hope that we have a new administration and Powell doesn't still think that keeping his position as Chairman of The Fed depends on him pleasing Trump.
Had a rogue comma appear in there at "…may actually, matter…". Shouldn't be there.
"Word has it that Trump did not get the nice post convention
bounce in the polls."
Biden didn't get a bounce either. However, Biden did get a shoring up of his somewhat tenuous support. (I.e. Folks who'd been "leaning" Biden, unenthusiastically were quite a bit stronger in their support of Biden after he was clear-eyed and strong-voiced (and, more importantly, made sense to them) for 20+ minutes). He improved his standing with those who were already anti-Trump--which means they're much more likely to actually get out there and vote Biden.
The reason neither of them got the traditional "bounce" seems to be that nobody's undecided this year. Maybe 4% instead of 2016's double digit undecided at this point. And, Trump being Trump, it's likely to stay at 4% or less until the voting's under way and they voters have to decide at last.
"He [Trump] is planning to visit Kenosha."
I'd bet agin that comin' off. He'll want some adulation from the locals. With the exception of the Kenosha Chief of Police, I don't see that happenin'.
Those Illinois militia will probably be willing to adore him, but I don't think his campaign advisors will find that acceptable.
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
The weekend's over now and yet we haven't been treated to the Trumpkins' routine of blaming the dead victim and justifying the killer over the shooting of the protester in Portland, Oregon. They're a little slow off the mark on that one.
So, I don't think it'll have any effect in the real world (which is a good thing, 'cause it's generally a bad idea). And by the time it may actually, matter we can hope that we have a new administration and Powell doesn't still think that keeping his position as Chairman of The Fed depends on him pleasing Trump.
That would be the best case scenario. I hope the fellow in the video is being a little over the top.
The weekend's over now and yet we haven't been treated to the Trumpkins' routine of blaming the dead victim and justifying the killer over the shooting of the protester in Portland, Oregon.
It looks like that is because the victim was one of them.
After a man was shot and killed in Portland, Oregon, amid clashes between pro-Trump groups and left-wing protesters, the far-right group Patriot Prayer mourned his death.
"(H)e had a huge heart," group organizer Joey Gibson said on his Facebook page. "God bless the life he lived."
Police have yet to name the victim or identify him or any affiliations. The New York Times has reported the man was wearing a Patriot Prayer hat. The group has previously clashed with left-wing protesters.
The fatal shooting came after the "Trump 2020 Cruise Rally in Portland," in which supporters of President Donald Trump gathered in cars and drove in a caravan into Portland. Video footage from CNN affiliate KOIN showed pickup trucks with American flags, "Thin Blue Line" flags, and Trump 2020 flags.
Apparently the faithful came looking for a fight and this is the result.
Got a couple of articles on the state of Minnesota (yes, that was a pun intended). First one about the burned out downtown Minneapolis, and the second one, from a decidedly pro-Trumpkin publisher and viewpoint, suggesting the backlash from the BLM protests being overtaken by rioters might throw Minnesota to Trump in November.
Let's take a look at one story from Minneapolis:
BEFORE Peaceful Protests.
AFTER Peaceful Protests.
Those protesters are just good people.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
It appears that you are too stupid to differentiate peaceful protests from non-peaceful activities.
It would be surprising that this should be so, but you certainly make it look like that.
So, the question must arise: Do you have to pretend to be stupid in order to maintain support for Trump? Or do you dumb down merely because it's easier than trying to find an intelligent rationale for your political leanings?
Lee C.,
Um, can you find me one of them peaceful protests?
Hey, I read the Star Tribune article that you linked to a few comments above. It was even-handed and worth reading. It showed that there are no easy answers for the situation in downtown Minneapolis. Thanks for the link.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
"Um, can you find me one of them peaceful protests?"
There were BLM protests in approximately 2,000 U.S. locations just in the immediate aftermath of the murder of George Floyd. Most of them peaceful. Wikipedia has a list.*
You should have been able to find one on your own.
(I suppose your apparent inability to find one on your own is just another example of that eager embrace of what we'll call "active stupidity" (for now), for want of a better term.)
––––––––––––––––––––––––
* With any luck there'll be further compilations as the current protests progress. But next time you can do your own looking.
Maybe "motivated stupidity" would be a better description. I'll think on it.
Lee C.,
Are you going to vote for Biden?
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
So what's going on in Portland?
Ted Wheeler's Festive Birthday Party.
If the Star Tribune article represents one end of the journalist integrity spectrum, this stand-up piece holds down the other end. Yes, he really called it "festive."
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Lee C.,
Can you imagine being a tenant in Wheeler's building? I would be so effing pissed. I think you would be, too.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
I'm currently currently leaning towards calling it "Reactionary Acquired Stupidity", RAS for short.
So, according to the Biden camp: you support BLM, you support riots, Antifa is clearly in your camp. Anti rioters are Nazi.
And then: it’s Trumps fault we have riots!
I know that a vast pool of the American electorate are just plain stupid, but I refuse to believe they are THAT stupid.
Trump will win again, bc the opposition is worse.
The.Biden campaig basically said up onto a week ago that the riots are good, the folks rioting and burning are righteous and Antifa were just regular concerned citizen.
Then, then the polls came in. And low and behold a majority of Americans didn’t really like their towns burning. They did t see busines#es in their community looted and burned as a good thing.
And the ONLY protector from that, at this day in age, is Trump.
So Trump will win again, and you levelheaded, if there’s such a thing, leftists, will sit there in your dirty cesspit with Antifa and the rest of the radicals.
"Reactionary Acquired Stupidity Syndrome", as it appears to be a progressive disorder. RASS.
Marcus,
Lynnette and Lee C. are in too deep. There's no turning back now.
I also believe they're card-carrying NEVER TRUMPERS.
I think it's obvious that Biden is a once-in-a-century weak candidate. It's a shame the Democrats couldn't have fielded a better one.
Who knows? The Democrats may try a castle move, like in chess, with Biden and Harris suddenly occupying different squares a few weeks before the election. Is that legal? I'm not sure.
Lynnette, to her credit, has denounced the arson and looting. She knows there's a serious problem with the optics, as they say.
Lee C.? I'm not even sure if he SEES the arson and looting. Maybe he thinks it's just "festive" behavior, like the protesters burning a pile of garbage in front of Mayor Wheeler's apartment building and keeping an entire building full of people awake all night long with their peaceful protesting.
According to Lee's stats, the protests are mostly peaceful. Minneapolis, Kenosha, and Portland are not representative. Could be. The media does distort daily, as is their nature.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Lee C.,
Hey, dang. I think that charge of RASS is a "provocation," and thus Lynnette ought to cancel you. No provocations thereto, she states very clearly.
Well, it could be worse. At least it's acquired and not genetic.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Marcus appears to have once again confused us with his imaginary friends, Scooter and Nils.
I guessed wrong by the way, Trump headed out to Kenosha within the last hour, if his Twitter feed is to be believed. I figured his campaign staff would talk him out of that; but I was right about the Kenosha Police Department being in a welcoming mood, and that appears to have been all the "official" cover he needed to ignore his campaign staff and follow his own instincts on this one.
No time to check out all of the links, I will have to do that tonight.
But on the first one that Lee posted regarding Minneapolis, I had read that last night in the paper.
Minneapolis has various issues, not least of which is the effects of the Covid-19 shutdown. Quite a few of the smaller businesses were barely hanging on and then the rioting and arson hit in the aftermath of the George Floyd shooting damaging and destroying so many businesses.
Minneapolis, like other cities, will have to deal with the probability that many people will continue to work from home, perhaps forever. And, obviously, with less foot traffic there will be less demand for the supporting businesses, like restaurants.
After the rioting there are a couple of issues that are impacting any rebuilding decisions, that is the question of police presence and the simple function of demolishing the ruins left. Insurance isn't covering all of the demolition costs and many small businesses don't have the money to fund it themselves. The costs are higher because of the regulation that any burned building's waste must be considered hazardous.
It's not a simple matter, unfortunately. It was a perfect confluence of events.
...suggesting the backlash from the BLM protests being overtaken by rioters might throw Minnesota to Trump in November.
Well, there is always that worry. I haven't looked lately but recently the polling has narrowed the gap between Biden and Trump in Minnesota. Sad to say.
And the ONLY protector from that, at this day in age, is Trump.
lol! You've gotta stop listening to the Russian trolls who are out and about.
The reason our divisions are so great is at the encouragement of Donald J. Trump, President extradinaire. Putin is rubbing his hands together in glee at our situation.
Come November we will see if there are any American voters left who understand what democracy really is. Because Trump certainly doesn't have a clue.
Jeffrey,
Lynnette and Lee C. are in too deep. There's no turning back now.
I also believe they're card-carrying NEVER TRUMPERS.
I don't speak for Lee, but I can say quite emphatically that YES, I am a NEVER TRUMPER.
I have listened to many speeches on both sides and I can say, despite how well the Obama's spoke, that the comment made by the 95 year old WWII veteran who fought for our democracy stands head and shoulders above the rest, "Trump is the worst President ever". It's short, to the point, and accurate.
Hey, dang. I think that charge of RASS is a "provocation," and thus Lynnette ought to cancel you. No provocations thereto, she states very clearly.
Actually, that was Petes who put that there when he started the blog. I have never changed it. Nor have I banned or otherwise disappeared anyone, except for Zeyad, once.
Any thoughts on the fate of Social Security under another 4 years of Donald Trump?
His unilateral, unprecedented step of deferring the collection of payroll taxes, the backbone of Social Security, is the murder weapon he would use.
Trump has already ordered the Treasury Department to stop collecting Social Security's dedicated payroll contributions for the next four months pursuant to the Internal Revenue Code, which permits deferrals of taxes when a disaster is declared. Once re-elected, if he keeps deferring those taxes, all benefits will come to a screeching halt, with no Congressional involvement whatsoever.
According to estimates from the independent chief actuary of the Social Security Administration, if all Social Security contributions from payroll tax stopped on Jan. 1, 2021, the nearly 10 million people today getting Social Security Disability Insurance benefits, which averages about $1,125 every month, would see them stop abruptly in the middle of 2021. Those 55 million receiving Social Security Old-Age and Survivors Insurance benefits, which average around $1,440 a month, would see them disappear two years later. Social Security would be without money to pay benefits by 2023 (Congress could only stop Trump by enacting veto-proof legislation, a highly unlikely proposition).
"Any thoughts on the fate of Social Security under another
4 years of Donald Trump?"
Haven't spent any time worrying about Social Security after four more years of Trump.
Looking at the moves Trump has made since the Republican Senate refused to hear evidence against him in the impeachment case, I am convinced that there's another matter that demands my focused attention for the next four years under Trump. And that's trying to convince my compatriots that the United States still must hold an open election for President in 2024.
After that's secured (assuming it is secured), then I'll worry about little things like Social Security payments to the aged and to the disabled and infirm.
I've been noticing an increase in "conservative" references to "the mob" or "the Democratic mob". It's fast becoming a term in conservative digital and print as well as on FoxNews.
This is take-off of a Sean Hannity theme he'd been running with for at least four years now, longer I think. It used to be "the media mob", for the mainstream media. ("Main Stream Media" was losing its punch with his audience it would seem, and he was casting about for something that'd keep their interest. Plus the hard news journalists at FoxNews were finally beginning to abandon the "Praise Trump" bandwagon in favor of actual true facts and he needed a way to link them to the hated "MSM" without pissing off Lachlan Murdock by tying the term to FoxNews itself--Hannity thought the journalists could be individually tied to "the mob" separated from FoxNews--worked too. However, that last problem was taken care of by Lachlan Murdock's subsequent purge of FoxNews journalists who didn't go along with the company line. Anyway…)
The term "fake news" was originally applied by some traditional media personalities to the false stories originated in the Russian troll farm centered in Saint Petersburg (known publicly as the "Internet Research Agency") only to be morphed by the Trump campaign into a charge against the American media. So too has the supposed "media mob" of Sean Hannity's imagination now morphed into "the mob" supposedly controlling both the American broadcast media (FoxNews and Sinclair Broadcasting excepted--and now One America News as well) and also supposedly controlling Joe Biden.
Trump does know a punchy tag line when he hears one, and he's quite adept at adopting them away from whomever used them first.
So: "The Mob" is gonna be something we'll be hearing about on FoxNews and Breitbart and those fringe web sites that Jeffry frequents, so long as the BLM protests keep happening (doesn't matter if they manage to cull the violent elements or not--"The Mob" is gonna be the favored right-winger term for them now through November the 3rd). And, even if the BLM protests manage to clear their ranks of the violent elements, they'll still be "The Mob" on those fringe websites, and to a couple of the posters here. They think it works for them, as is obvious by their dedication to it even on these pages.
(Had some extra words appearing at the end of my post there. Couldn't figure out where they were coming from. Still don't know; they didn't appear in my text box where I type stuff. but tinkering around a bit finally managed to clear them out. So, that's the story behind the two successive "removed by Author" listings. It was posting stuff that wasn't in my version. But now it's not.
NBCNews: People not part of the Trumpkin universe are likely to miss this one entirely.
Trump has alleged in a Radio-Right-Wing interview hosted by Laura Ingraham that there was a whole plane-load of armed Antifa discovered winging their way towards his acceptance speech during the Republican National Convention last week, dressing in black, armed and armored and intent on gawd only knows what GREAT EVIL!!, and somehow in control of Joe Biden.
(Ms. Ingraham wisely did not ask the obvious follow-up questions about what happened to them, how they were thwarted from their evil designs, nor any potentially potentially embarrassing questions regarding the mysterious disappearing Antifa soldiers.)
From Lee's second link:
No one who knows much about Minnesotans could imagine that they would tolerate “systemic racism.” By endorsing the BLM “unrest” that wrecked Minneapolis, however, Democrats and their media enablers have in effect accused Minnesotans of complicity in depriving black people of their civil rights.
While I as a life long Minnesotan would like to say that he is right, that we would not tolerate systemic racism here, I don't think I can. There would be no need for protests here, there would be no need for lawsuits here, if there were no problems here.
Will we actually vote for Trump? I certainly hope not. Because he is not the answer. He is part of the problem.
I was speaking to a neighbor just this evening about the close polls. She suggested that like the Trump supporters in 2016 perhaps the Biden supporters are laying low. Yes, even she knows that may be wishful thinking. There is still a ways to go before the election.
Trump has alleged in a Radio-Right-Wing interview hosted by Laura Ingraham that there was a whole plane-load of armed Antifa discovered winging their way towards his acceptance speech during the Republican National Convention last week, dressing in black, armed and armored and intent on gawd only knows what GREAT EVIL!!, and somehow in control of Joe Biden.
Kind of reminds me of this.
Alternative reality, the cousin of alternative facts.
I see that China is still dealing with outbreaks of the virus. In the paper today they mention a rather severe lockdown in Xinjiang. It seems the lockdown affects half of the population of 25 million people.
"I see that China is still dealing with outbreaks of the virus."
That's to be expected. Even if the virus were under control here (which it most definitely is not) we'd still be having occasional outbreaks of the disease. It's a biological fact of life, the virus itself is semi-alive and its genetic imperative is to reproduce and expand its range.
"Under control" is not "eradicated". Until we get to "eradicated" the virus will occasionally be slipping through cracks in the containment.
Probably should acknowledge that Trump did get in and out of Kenosha, Wisconsin without inciting a riot. That's a good thing.
The collusion continues:
ABCNews:
The White House buried an early summer notice from the Department of Homeland Security that the Russians were going on-line with an attempt to attack Joe Biden's mental state, suggesting it has declined in the last four years to the point that he shouldn't be considered a viable option to lead the United States.
After burying news of the source of the allegations the Trump campaign then picked up on the charges themselves and have been using the allegation (and innuendo) extensively ever since.
(I notice that Petes and Marcus both have been champions of this angle of attack as well.)
Probably should acknowledge that Trump did get in and out of Kenosha, Wisconsin without inciting a riot. That's a good thing.
Perhaps that's more to the credit of the people who are peacefully protesting rather than Trump.
The White House buried an early summer notice from the Department of Homeland Security that the Russians were going on-line with an attempt to attack Joe Biden's mental state,...
Yeah, I saw that. More to the point would be to question Trump's, but obviously the Russians aren't going to go there.
Lee, Lynette:
- Those Antifa and them there angry blacks are just out there peacefully protesting.
* city burns *
- It’s Trumps fault!!!
Hey, y’all better get ready for 4 more years of Trump, BC y’all’s allies in the streets burning shit down ain’t sittin well w normal folks.
I’m telling y’all now: Trump will win again. Bet that.
Today is September 2, two months to go. It's going to be a nail biter.
I won't predict the outcome.
I had to correct my timeline...
I'm still looking for Biden to walk away with it. The late day protests will wane as the evening and overnight weather grows cooler and the afternoon skies get grayer across the north. Trump's rants about Antifa warriors on airplanes will grow stale.
The daytime protests have almost all been peaceful--it's the wingnuts coming out at night that've been the problem. They won't keep coming, and Trump will miss them.
So, I'll predict--Biden walks away with it, and the Republicans lose the Senate to boot.
Two months 'til ya'll get to check me on that one.
NewYorkTimes: The CDC has issued letters to the various states telling them to prepare for a vaccine available on or about November the 3rd.
Two months 'til ya'll get to check me on that one.
I sincerely hope you are right on that one! Even if Minnesota blows it perhaps the rest of the country will save the day...
I am seriously questioning the kind of people we have in this state right about now. Because Biden should be leading Trump by double digits here.
The CDC has issued letters to the various states telling them to prepare for a vaccine available on or about November the 3rd.
And people are already cautioning that vaccines won't be rolled out until they are safe. Trump's fingers are all over this, as usual.
"I sincerely hope you are right on that one!"
Surprisingly, "Public Safety" is not a winning issue for Trump. It's less of a loser for him than his handling of the coronavirus, but it's still a loser for him.
"In the CNN/SSRS poll, voters actually chose Biden over
Trump to keep Americans safe from harm by a 6-point
margin, and preferred Biden by a 7-point margin on
handling the criminal-justice system. That matched a similar
finding in this week’s POLITICO/Morning Consult poll, in
which more respondents thought Biden would do a better
job handling “public safety” than Trump."
Politico
If the violence continues into the fall that might change, but I don't think the violence will continue into the fall (except in limited specific locations, maybe--maybe Portland will still be seeing street fighting for instance).
I think Trump and his Hawaiian-shirted thugs will attempt to keep some violence going into the election, but it'll be harder than they think to pull that off without blowback onto Trump.
Turf Wars
Drama with Ivanka Trump was an issue from the start, according to Wolkoff.
Ivanka, whom Wolkoff says Melania referred to as "princess," wanted to play a more central role in the inauguration than the incoming first lady was comfortable with, according to the book.
"It was Donald's inauguration, not Ivanka's," Wolkoff writes. "But no one was brave enough to tell her that. Melania was not thrilled about Ivanka's steering the schedule and would not allow it. Neither was she happy to hear that Ivanka insisted on walking in the Pennsylvania Avenue parade with her children."
"The Dow Jones Industrial just closed above 29,000! You are so lucky to have me as your President. With Joe Hiden' it would crash" Wednesday tweet from Donald Trump
How's that working for you on Thursday?
Lynnette, Wednesday was the anniversary of the 1929 stock market peak. Call that an omen if you will. The stock market has decoupled from the rest of the economy, and tech stocks have decoupled from the rest of the market. Yesterday Apple lost $365 billion in value -- more than the combined value of 491 companies out of the S&P 500. Speculative money has poured into stocks, and a new breed of clueless Robinhood investors have fanned the flames. They are the folks who flocked to buy a new Hertz issue when the company was already bust.
Anyone savvy enough to wonder how an investment app can be commission-free will have noticed that Wednesday was also the day the SEC announced a fraud probe into Robinhood. There's nothing illegal in the fact that Robinhood sell their customers' data to high-frequency traders who make a packet by being able to anticipate market moves. The SEC's concern is that Robinhood weren't telling their customers this.
Anyway, that's all by the by. The stock market is borked. I can't tell when it will run out of steam, but it will. Outside of the tech bubble, market performance is lacklustre. And the tech bubble is at pretty much the same levels as when it burst in 2000. When a company can be worth a third of a trillion less today than it was yesterday, you know something smells. And it's not even the worst. Tesla is the most valuable car company in the world by a country mile, and it sells little more than carbon credits.
Trump better hope that the dream stays alive until November. Although the Dems are doing their best to hand him victory on a plate anyway by supporting lawlessness and racism. I fear for where America will be in four years time, regardless of who sits in the White House next January.
The stock market is borked. I can't tell when it will run out of steam, but it will.
Yes. I have been waiting for the other shoe to drop for some time. But we have seen people jumping in, either newcomers using investment vehicles like Robinhood or others who are escaping low interest rate savings vehicles. So it has still been rising. Even just between the end of July and the present. It really has little to do with the real economy which is still struggling with Covid-19 related shutdowns and the beginnings of bankruptcy's.
Strangely, I was thinking of Bruno the other day. He was the one who always touted investing in gold. Gold is around $2,000 an ounce now. It is the true reserve currency for those who fear an economic collapse.
It's probably time to take some more money off the table. Because the gamblers are out in force.
I fear for where America will be in four years time, regardless of who sits in the White House next January.
I think that even if Biden gets in, and I believe that to be the best case scenario, we will have much to deal with, not least of which is the damage from the Trump years. For America to stabilize and face her problems would be to the advantage of the entire world.
Well, okay, maybe not Russia.
The collusion continues:
WashingtonPost: The Russians are working to discredit the integrity of mail-in voting this November, along with their previously noted campaign to cast Biden as mentally impaired. Both of these are favorite campaign themes of the Trump campaign.
Peter Strzok, the FBI agent whom Donald Trump fired on the evening before the day of vesting of his retirement benefits (he'd already announced his retirement), has published his side of the story, entitled: “Compromised: Counterintelligence and the Threat of Donald J. Trump.”. He thinks there's still stuff to try to learn about Trump's relationship with Vladimir Putin. Politico
We already learned that Rod Rosenstein surreptitiously constrained the scope of the Mueller investigation to those matters which might constitute a crime (whilst insisting that the President could not be charged with a crime, thus excluding most any investigation of Trump himself). Mueller was, effectively, forbidden to follow the counter-intelligence investigation into possible collusion with the Russians by the Trump campaign in the 2016 election Now Strzok is saying that the FBI counter-intelligence investigation was also blocked.
Department of Homeland Security draft report: White Supremacist organizations constitute the single major domestic terrorism threat in the country today. Antifa is not considered a significant threat. Politico In fact, antifa didn't even rate being mentioned by that name.
The United States is fast approaching the Swedish level of deaths per million from covid-19 Statistics (They're eighth; we're ninth.)
The US Covid trajectory is disastrous. The daily death toll per million is nearly three times that of Sweden. In fact it's by far the worst of any rich nation. It's ten to twenty times much of Europe, even though the spike in infections occurred at roughly the same time and should, in theory, have been brought under control in a similar timeframe.
WashingtonPost: The White House has issued a "memo" under the letterhead of the OMB, at the request of President Trump (thus insulating him from the consequences so far as they can), directing all federal agencies to cancel all contracts for employee training (a/k/a training "seminars") which might delve into the subjects of "white privilege" or "critical race theory" (I don't really know what are the supposed parameters of that last term--I'd have to look it up).
Trump then disabled the attempt to insulate him from the memo, by beginning a long Twitter rant on the subject early this morning Trumptweets, including bragging on how it was done at his direction.
Good for Trump. Critical race theory is one of the most baseless pieces of pseudoscientific quackery ever devised. It basically says if you're white, you're a racist, and if you deny you're a racist it's because you're a racist. It culminates in utter nonsense like Robin DiAngelo's White Fragility. It's basically the reason America is descending into a race war. Maybe one way of curing it is to not vote for Joe Biden, as "if you don't vote for him, you're not black".
"It basically says if you're white, you're a racist, and…"
You're wasting your time with that bit of nonsense. I looked it up (said I's gonna).
Your inability to understand even the things you have looked up is well established around here.
Wasting your time with that bit of nonsense as well.
Why Trump Supporters Can't Admit Who He Really Is
To understand the corruption, chaos, and general insanity that is continuing to engulf the Trump campaign and much of the Republican Party right now, it helps to understand the predicate embraced by many Trump supporters: If Joseph R. Biden Jr. wins the presidency, America dies.
During last week’s Republican National Convention, speaker after speaker insisted that life under a Biden presidency would be dystopian. Charlie Kirk, the young Trump acolyte who opened the proceedings, declared, “I am here tonight to tell you—to warn you—that this election is a decision between preserving America as we know it and eliminating everything that we love.” President Trump, who closed the proceedings, said, “Your vote will decide whether we protect law-abiding Americans or whether we give free rein to violent anarchists and agitators and criminals who threaten our citizens. And this election will decide whether we will defend the American way of life or allow a radical movement to completely dismantle and destroy it.” And in between Americans were told that Democrats want to “disarm you, empty the prisons, lock you in your home, and invite MS-13 to live next door” and that they “want to destroy this country and everything that we have fought for and hold dear.”
From Lee's Politico article:
“Lone offenders and small cells of individuals motivated by a diverse array of social, ideological, and personal factors will pose the primary terrorist threat to the United States,” the draft reads. “Among these groups, we assess that white supremacist extremists – who increasingly are networking with likeminded persons abroad – will pose the most persistent and lethal threat.”
Funny you should mention that. In my paper today:
Federal Charges for 'Boogaloo Bois'
Two members of the Boogaloo Bois, including one from Minnesota, have been indicted on federal charges of attempting to provide material support to Hamas, a designated foreign terrorist organization, the U.S. Justice Department announced Friday.
The Boogaloo Bois is a loose-knit group of anti-government extremists. The heavily armed members often mobilize on social media and have garnered more prominence and law enforcement scrutiny this year. The term “Boogaloo” refers to a second civil war in the United States and is associated with violent anti-government uprisings, according to the complaint.
It seems that these guys were working with Hamas to get cash for their "movement".
The US Covid trajectory is disastrous. The daily death toll per million is nearly three times that of Sweden. In fact it's by far the worst of any rich nation. It's ten to twenty times much of Europe, even though the spike in infections occurred at roughly the same time and should, in theory, have been brought under control in a similar timeframe.
Yup, you can say that again. Just a symptom of our incompetent President and his administration. It would have helped if we had had a real leader in the White House.
It's actually much simpler than that, and rather more "base" as well. Although, the following part hits close:
"Trump supporters…believe the president is all that stands
between them and cultural revolution."
Actually, they figure they've already lost the culture war. Trump is the vehicle of their revenge.
"People will forget what you said, people will forget what you
did, but people will never forget how you made them feel."
Maya Angelou
The dedicated Trumpkins represent a slice of the American population that has felt terribly aggrieved for several years now. They've lost the culture wars. Queers are getting married, and showing up "out" in public and on their TVs. Their children and grandchildren are freely integrating with black folks.
Etc.
They just don't feel like they're on top of the social heap anymore, and they don't like that change.
Donald Trump makes them feel dominant again. He breaks all the rules, and gets away with it; and they like that.
He pisses off the Evil Liberals, and he gets away with it, and they like that too. It makes them feel dominant again. HE makes them feel dominant again.
He's offensive on purpose and unapologetic about that, and they like that too. That too makes them feel dominant again.
He's natively evil and wholly unapologetic about it, and they like that most of all.
Dominant again.
They ain't gonna forget any of that. They'll back him forever, hoping to get that feeling back.
Like Joe Biden...
;)
Ummm...Lee slipped in between my comments there. That last comment of mine was a follow up to my earlier comment on our lack of a leader in the White House.
"Why Trump Supporters Can't Admit Who He Really Is"
They know who he really is. They lie about it in public because that's easiest.
"That last comment of mine was a follow up…"
Yeah, that was fairly clear from the context.
They'll back him forever, hoping to get that feeling back.
Like lemmings going over a cliff...
"Forever" long as he's givin' them the that feelin'.
When he loses in November it's gonna be a whole new ball game in the remnant of the Republican Party. (Partly because Trump will think he can run again in 2024, and he expects to be ready this next time.)
They know who he really is. They lie about it in public because that's easiest.
And because they don't want people to know that that is who they really are.
Trump will think he can run again in 2024,...
No, this is his last shot. He's coming unglued at the seams.
He's having more and more trouble keeping up his interest in his hair I've noticed, may be an indication of that "unglued" thing you theorize. Some real sloppy work on that swirl job these past few months. (I sometimes think I may be the only one who's noticed, but it's true.)
Word leaking out of the Trump campaign is that this weeks' Hail Mary throw is going to be an attempt to "brand" Kamala Harris as a raging socialist/leftist cultural warrior. (Nothin' they slung has stuck to Biden yet, not with the American swing voters anyway--and getting Petes and Marcus to repeat Moscow's favorite lines of attack doesn't do them any good.
It seems to me that raging at the Democrats' veep selection is probably not gonna move the needle for 'em either. Seems kinda like a desperation move to me. Most folks leaning towards Biden won't think they're voting for Kamala Harris as the President in Disguise (not yet anyway, when she runs on her own, maybe next time is another question)
So, the Rage Against Kamala, may get significant air time on FoxNews (and maybe even Russia Today) for the next week or so, but I don't expect it break out into dominating the headlines in the main stream media.
Heather Digby Parton thinks the most dangerous man in America isn't Trump, but rather Bill Barr.
She may have a point.
LOL. Ole' Lee ain't never gonna see that he epitomises the rabid zealotry that he imputes to the so-called "dedicated Trumpkins". He fantasises that every Trump voter is a dumb cracker who hates niggers 'n' queers and is out for revenge. Ole' Lee loves the culture wars 'cos they make him feel superior. He dudn't need his guy in the White House, in fact that would be less fulfilling than ragin' against the Trumpkins. What would he then scream about several times a day as he's been doin' into the vacuum of these blog comments for years? I can't imagine his other fantasy -- that a Gael 'n' a Swede are apologists for Vlad the Poisoner -- would be sufficiently enraging. Nope, ole' Lee's most deep-seated need is to always have something to be hypercritical about.
"I can't imagine his other fantasy -- that a Gael 'n' a
Swede are apologists for Vlad the Poisoner…"
Your command of basic English appears to have failed you. Let me help ya with that.
apologist noun
apol·o·gist | \ É™-ˈpä-lÉ™-jist \
Definition of apologist
: one who speaks or writes in defense of someone or
something
I guess y'all's imagined nigger'n'queer-hatin' dumb crackers ain't the only thing that make y'all feel superior. Bein' able to look up a dictionary an' neatly format y'all's posts with non-breaking spaces does it for y'all also. Well they do say the simple things in life are the most enjoyable. Though I rather think y'all's fantasies are more simplistic than simple.
Long as we're on the subject of simple things….
You might wanna take note of the rather simple explanation I gave to Jeffry a little earlier (@ Sun Aug 30, 09:05 am ↑↑). It'll help ya figure out what's comin' next.
On the other hand, I might wanna take note of exactly what I decide for myself to take note of. Btw, his name's Jeffrey and I thought his reply to y'all was rather insightful.
He's having more and more trouble keeping up his interest in his hair I've noticed,...
It does appear he's rather flat and limp lately.
Heather Digby Parton thinks the most dangerous man in America isn't Trump, but rather Bill Barr.
I think we've known for some time that Barr is a Trump thing. And those who blindly follow a cult are dangerous to a democracy.
NewRepublic: A review of the available polling suggests that Trump's recent "LAW AND ORDER" campaign ain't doin' the trick for him. The "housewives" ain't buyin' it.
On the other hand, the "Black Lives Matter" racist thugs are doing a fine job of promoting Trump's law and order campaign. Here's a whole new restaurant full of Trump voters, not to mention the local residents who had their windows smashed and cars burned.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=q8QESv_t2Lk
Trump's anti-racist agenda with the banning of Critical Race Theory training of federal employees might also win a few votes. Obviously won't win any hard-core lefties who actually agree with CRT, nor the wilfully blind and ignorant like ole' Lee above who didn't know what it was and refuses to be educated. But fairminded individuals might be shocked into realising that this horseshit has permeated American educational institutions for some years before making it out into the open.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXA78x3ek-E
"‛Black Lives Matter’ racist thugs" and YouTube anecdote as evidence. Yep, looks like Petes has gone full-tilt Trumpkin alright. (He may not be "dedicated" enough to do the "Praise Trump" routine, but he's lookin' like he'll be a faithful follower at least until the November reckoning..)
I gotta kind of wonder how it is that Trump recognized that lowest common denominator that'd convert the Republican base into dedicated Trumpkins, draw in the neo-Nazis and Skinheads and Klansmen types who didn't actually support him the first time, but sure as hell do now (hence his rise in his floor from the 35-38% who were dedicated Trumpkins when he took office to todays' 42-44% floor), and also keep folks like Petes loyal, even though they know who he is and know who's their "bedfellows" in this Trumpkin electoral alliance.
If he had a genius that was it. He figured out that being openly evil and wholly unapologetic about it would keep the old Republican "base", the full-on racist bastards, and the anti-democratic forces--the admirers of autocracies (we can pretty much figure that's Petes' perching place) all willing to make common cause with one another.
Still, it ain't enough. He's running too far behind. The Republicans' embedded structural advantage ain't gonna be enough this time.
November can't come soon enough.
The real risk is that they'll take it hard and take to shooting up the streets. I ain't predicting, but it's a real risk.
Post Script:
…"Trump's anti-racist agenda"…
I got a real laugh out of that one. I's almost surprise that Petes was willing to abase himself to that, but it was funny as hell to see.
And here's some of Lee's heroes, the racist BLM thugs surrounding a defenceless woman in DC to coerce a black power salute from her. The woman, by the way, supported BLM and has been on marches before and since, but somehow didn't agree with the group going full-on Hitler Youth as they do here. She later cuts them a lot of slack -- more, I suspect, than a lot of the 12 million people who have viewed the video.
I notice there are remarkably few black faces in the BLM crowd, as these racist thugs are mainly white middle-class Biden supporters. (The guy screaming "put your fist up" sounds Australian). As I said, these people are doing Trump's job for him -- they may have to hold their nose while voting, but who the hell wants these fascist parades to continue? Well, quite a lot of people as it turns out ... but will it be enough to elect Biden? Who knows.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=ec9lIJLv0qQ
"And here's some of Lee's heroes…"
You don't get to pick my "heroes" for me. Your lust to power notwithstanding.
"these racist thugs are mainly white middle-class
Biden supporters…"
You don't get to decide that either.
"You don't get to decide..."
Nope, the polls do that. Post-Floyd, 90% of white Democrats supported BLM (though that has dropped back significantly after various riots). You do the math. Oh wait ... askin' Lee to do math ...
"90% of white Democrats supported BLM…"
And that somehow turns screaming Australians into American Democrats who support Joe Biden? Yep, you've gone full-tilt Trumpkin sure 'nuff.
Yep, figgered you would have a mathematical malfunction. No surprise there.
What does surprise me is the number of Americans in favour of turnin' the country into a lawless shithole. For me it's only an annual holiday. You idiots have to live there.
"…figgered you would have a mathematical malfunction…"
Damn. You're in even worse shape than I originally thought. This delusion you're entertaining about somehow having found a mathematical function in or around the Youtube video you describe. You're worse off then just "full-tilt Trumpkin".
Let me make it easier for ya. (Probably won't help you; you seem beyond reason or even marginal help, but…) Biden has denounced the riots and the violence that sometimes follows BLM protests. He does not support that.
Trump has defended, supported, Kyle Ritterhouse, who traveled from Illinois to murder two protesters in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Trump supports that. And you support Trump. "Do the math" on that one.
Yore definitely having accuracy problems tonight. The Kenosha shooter's name is Kyle Rittenhouse. I've watched the video of those unfortunate incidents from every angle available. I did not see any murder taking place. What's more, I've seen opinions from both left and right that the charge of first degree murder is very unlikely to stick.
Those "protesters" you refer to were violent thugs, and yes, there is video of them being violent on the night in question. Rittenhouse has a strong self defence case. I'm not suggesting violent thugs deserve killing. But given yore stupid laws (which you have previously defended) allowing a deadly weapon to be openly carried at a riot, whatcha thinks gonna happen when the thugs attack?
Might wanna look at this one again:
"Trump has defended, supported, Kyle Ritterhouse, who
traveled from Illinois to murder two protesters in Kenosha,
Wisconsin. Trump supports that. And you support Trump.
'Do the math’ on that one."
Lee C. @ Sun Sep 06, 10:33 pm ↑↑
So, in response, Petes goes all-in. In his posting just above (Sun Sep 06, 10:33 pm) Petes skips past his support for Trump and goes into "defense lawyer" posture directly on behalf of Kyle Rittenhouse. By definition, this is Petes defending Rittenhouse. (Although, Petes probably wouldn't do it were it not for Petes' intention for the defense to help cover for Trump along with Rittenhouse.)
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
And then there were some tangents thrown in along the way….
"Yore definitely having accuracy problems tonight. The
Kenosha shooter's name is Kyle Rittenhouse."
Anc that is the second time Petes has descended into spelling attacks.
Always a tell against Petes when he falls back on makin' himself feel better with spelling corrections and typo attacks.
So now that's twice in one night. Means the fat boy's feelin' shakey.
And then he tries to suggest that he's seen me "defend" the expiration of the 1994 federal assault weapons' ban, which allowed people to once again purchase assault rifles and high capacity clips and magazines. This is an entirely imaginary event; it exists only in his own mind. It never happened. I don't think that I ever, ever looked favorably on the public carry of assault weapons or high capacity magazines. Certainly it's never happened where Petes might have witnessed it.
And, just for the record, I also didn't specify first-degree murder, which is usually understood to mean premeditated murder, although state laws do vary concerning those designations. I'm suspicious myself of proving premeditation against either of the dead. We do have Rittenhouse on film shooting at the back of man who was fleeing from him (fortunately Rittenhouse seems to have missed both those shots), but that doesn't necessarily supply premeditation against either of the fellows he did manage to hit.
All of which only serves as a mask for Petes' efforts to avoid dealing with the gist of my charge.
Biden has denounced the violence and the looting that sometimes (and in some places) accompany BLM protests. This is as it should be for a Presidential candidate. At least this much.
On the other hand: Trump has defended, supported Kyle Rittenhouse's murder of two protesters in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Rittenhouse crossed interstate lines to trespass on private property in Kenosha, Wisconsin for the purpose of showing himself off bearing an assault weapon. (The property they were supposedly "defending", without the owner's permission, had been burned out the weekend prior, but it did have a well lit lot, with enough open space to allow them to be conspicuous in their displays of their firearms, which seems to have been their chief purpose.)
Trump has defended this. Petes supports Trump. ∴ Petes supports this.
And even without the connection via his support of Trump, we see Petes very clearly defending Rittenhouse's conduct, right before our very own eyes. He even sounds like a defense lawyer. ("Defense" being the operative word here.)
(Hint to Petes: This is where the word "apologist" might actually be applicable, as in ‛apologist for Kyle Rittenhouse’.)
Maybe Lee watched a different video. His one was prolly shot through a leftwing lens, maybe even had some totally different guy called "Ritterhouse" as the main character. Anyway, I believe I'll decline to get drawn in by the numerous straw men, nasty insinuations, and various paranoid delusions that Lee's entertaining.
I've no intention of defending Rittenhouse. He's an immature idiot with a gun who shouldn'a been where he was. The guys he shot were idiots too, who I can only imagine thought they were in some kind of video game when they tried to rough up a guy carrying a lethal weapon. Oh yeah, and Trump's an idiot too. Which is why the BLM racist idiots might wanna rethink how they're driving middle-of-the-road voters into the Trump camp, when they see their cities burning.
The way I see it, the US is fooked no matter who wins in November. If Trump wins, the racist mob will continue their assault on the streets. If he loses, the culture war continues, with programs like the CRT brainwashing resumed. The US is a house divided. I reckon y'all hate each other too much to recover anytime soon. Ole' Lee is a prime example -- I've not noticed a single positive principle espoused here in his six years of ranting about Republicans, just a lotta hate.
"I've no intention of defending Rittenhouse."
Nobody accused you of defending Rittenhouse, but you were defending his conduct. Which is just how I phrased it.
Well, that's how I phrased after I'd had overnight to tighten up my perhaps too loose metaphor of a "defense lawyer" defending his client "by definition". Actually the defense lawyers are hired almost exclusively to defend what the client's done.
"Ole' Lee is a prime example -- I've not noticed a single
positive principle espoused…"
I suppose that's supposed to come out in the end to a complaint that I've not spoken positively about the Republicans as a political party in the last six years.
I would remind folks that Trump was not an overnight phenomenon. He did not spring forth suddenly and fully grown from the 2016 Republican National Convention.
They been on this downhill slide longer than the six years Petes mentions. And I've seen it comin' longer than his six year stretch.
"I suppose that's supposed to come out in the end to a complaint that I've not spoken positively about the Republicans as a political party in the last six years."
Nope. It's an observation that y'all have never spoken positively about anything. I reckon y'all's got an anger problem, maybe a touch of depression too. Lot of your countrypeople seem to be similarly afflicted.
In the Petes fantasy world…
"…the BLM racist idiots might wanna rethink how they're
driving middle-of-the-road voters into the Trump camp…"
Meanwhile, in the real world…
"A Fox News survey of voters in Wisconsin, the current
epicenter of unrest, found voters by a 5 percentage point
margin trust Biden to do a better job than Trump on issues
of policing and criminal justice. A CNN poll nationally found
voters favor Biden by 6 percentage points on the question of
who would keep Americans safe, and finding reflected in a
POLITICO/Morning Consult poll."
Politico
Odd then that you should specify me "ranting about Republicans" if you didn't intend to tie the observation to my view of Republicans. But, it's not like I care much about you being odd, so I'll just let that go.
I've no intention of defending Rittenhouse. He's an immature idiot with a gun who shouldn'a been where he was. The guys he shot were idiots too, who I can only imagine thought they were in some kind of video game when they tried to rough up a guy carrying a lethal weapon.
It's an odd thing about some of the males of the species. They think physical action is the only way to deal with situations.
Oh yeah, and Trump's an idiot too.
Yes, well, we've been trying to tell you that from day one. *sigh* Glad you finally noticed.
Which is why the BLM racist idiots might wanna rethink how they're driving middle-of-the-road voters into the Trump camp, when they see their cities burning.
Now, really, this doesn't sound like the Petes of old who actually looked at events a little more analytically. There are a solid core of BLM activists who are truly marching peacefully for equality and justice for people of color. They are worth supporting. Those who are riding on their coattails, the looters and arsonists, those looking to incite violence, are not. The trick is to separate the two and those who are encouraging each side.
The way I see it, the US is fooked no matter who wins in November. If Trump wins, the racist mob will continue their assault on the streets. If he loses, the culture war continues, with programs like the CRT brainwashing resumed.
I believe there is a third option, which will only come about if Biden wins. Because Trump has shown that he only cares about himself. To start real change in this country that will benefit everyone, yes, even those little Trumpkin supporters, we need someone in Washington who is actually willing to listen and work with everyone. That isn't Donald J. Trump. (See the video in my post.)
The US is a house divided. I reckon y'all hate each other too much to recover anytime soon.
I honestly don't believe that. We will still be able to find common ground.
Ole' Lee is a prime example -- I've not noticed a single positive principle espoused here in his six years of ranting about Republicans, just a lotta hate.
It may appear that way to those who don't really want to listen to his warnings. But you don't bother with warnings if you don't care. You just walk away.
Fellow from Hillsdale College (an avowed right-wing bastion) wrote an essay which basically accuses the Democrats and "the Deep State" of preparing a coup for after Trump wins his reëlection this fall. (The U.S. military is in on it, just in case that matters.) Gettin' the Trumpkins ready to go for their guns is my guess.
Well now, things seem to have calmed down enough for me to make a couple of observations here.
First one:
"I believe I'll decline to get drawn in by the numerous
straw men…" etc.
Petes @ Mon Sep 07, 08:06 am
Those "straw men" were there at the summons of Petes. (I'd called them tangents when I took up the points, but they were originally of his raising.)
Second one:
And, we should take clear note that Petes has denounced Trump as a bumbler (an "idiot" in this thread's idiom although he's used other, similar terms to describe it before; "moron", "bumbler", etc.) He's not noticeably concerned with Trump's clearly autocratic tendencies nor about Trump's manifold attacks on our democratic institutions. He's instead pissed that Trump is proving to be a bumbler, that's he not good enough to pull off the intended perversion and ultimate destruction of our democracy.
[Lynnette]: "Now, really, this doesn't sound like the Petes of old who actually looked at events a little more analytically. There are a solid core of BLM activists who are truly marching peacefully for equality and justice for people of color. They are worth supporting. Those who are riding on their coattails, the looters and arsonists, those looking to incite violence, are not. The trick is to separate the two and those who are encouraging each side."
Of course, when rightwingers maintain that racists, neo-Nazis, and Klansmen are riding on the coattails of Trump's ascendancy nobody wants to listen. And there's a hole in your argument. I've seen people at the heart of the organised protests and the BLM movement espouse shockingly violent and racist opinions.
The BBC interviewed one just the other day, in a typical soft-focus interview. This organiser believes that violent protest is absolutely justified because "the worst looting ever perpetrated was by America against indigenous lands and black bodies". That sort of cultist language can be heard very commonly when you are attuned to listening out for it. The interviewee wanted to defund police in order to pay for education and "reparations".
Sure, there are opportunistic looters and wanton arsonists masquerading as BLM sympathisers. There are also actual BLM people who believe that violence against law enforcement and government will usher in a new order. Just as Trump has been soft on the right, Biden has been equally soft on leftwing violence. Along with the liberal media he largely ignored it until very recently. (CNN hilariously reported on the spot from a "fiery but mostly peaceful protest" as cars and property were seen blazing in the background).
The leftwing Guardian newspaper in the UK reported in recent days that 93% of protests were peaceful "without serious harm to people or property". That's supposed to be good? What if we said 93% of planes arrive at their destination without serious harm to people? Nobody would fly. In fact, that missing 7% in the study they were citing represented well over 500 protests at which there was "serious harm to people or property".
Until last Monday, Biden's response was to witter about systemic racism. And no I am not claiming, as some rightwing screeds do, that Biden has not mentioned the violence at all in the last couple of months. But he has been curiously non-specific about it, in much the same way for which Trump was excoriated when he condemned violence "on the left and the right" at Charlottesville.
Last month Biden tweeted that "It’s been six years since Michael Brown's life was taken in Ferguson — reigniting a movement. We must continue the work of tackling systemic racism and reforming policing". If you recall, Brown's shooting was more or less coincident with the establishment of this blog, and you wrote a pretty fair summation in November of that year -- Judgement in Ferguson. Subsequently two state investigations and the Obama Department of Justice agreed with you -- finding that Brown was justifiably shot.
(cont'd ...)
(...cont'd)
So why is Biden fanning the flames of an argument that has been settled for years? And how come it took until last Monday for him to realise that American cities burning without a peep out of him is not a good look? Why did he tweet ten days ago that Jacob Blake "can't just become another hashtag" and that "it's time to reverse systemic racism"? Blake died while resisting arrest after a female caller alleged he had digitally raped her in front of her children. He was not exactly singled out because of his race -- he was singled out because he was a low-life slimeball.
Then again, maybe his arrest was justified but the cops shot him seven times from behind because he was black? Time will tell, but to me it looks like monumental ineptitude by the cops. Same with the George Floyd killing. Outrageous as it was -- and it looks like murder to me -- we've had no evidence that it was racially motivated. Any more than the killing of Justine Damond by a black police officer was racially motivated, though CNN did their best to allege that the jailing of Officer Mohamed Noor for her murder was racist, as his 12 year sentence was disproportionate. But then what about the jailing of white officer Michael Slager for shooting Walter Scott in 2015? That was a 20 year sentence. (The cases are not very comparable, and I don't want to suggest they are).
The bottom line is that American police shoot dead a horrific number of people -- 1,000 in 2017. They kill twice as many whites as blacks, though obviously this is still out of proportion compared to the racial composition of the population. However: "We did not find evidence for anti-black or anti-Hispanic disparity in police use of force across all shootings, and, if anything, found anti-white disparities when controlling for race-specific crime," concluded a 2019 study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Anyway, back to Biden and his condemnations. Here's his condemnation of violence in Portland, from his website. After an obsequious first paragraph it's actually all about Trump. There's certainly no mention of leftwing violence, which is what many BLM activists are promoting. What about his address a week ago in Pennsylvania? Again, all about Trump. No condemnation of leftwing violence, but plenty of mention of rightwing militias. In fairness, he also concentrates on Trump's handling of Covid which is a scandal and a disaster. Perhaps on that score alone, Biden deserves to replace Trump. But I wouldn't kid myself that he's gonna tackle the leftwing violence and hardcore racism emanating from BLM. To use a phrase that has oft been used in respect of Trump: That's his base.
[Chump]: "[Petes is] instead pissed that Trump is proving to be a bumbler, that's he not good enough to pull off the intended perversion and ultimate destruction of our democracy."
Yeah, because I really wanna see the perversion and destruction of your democracy because, uh ... reasons. Yore pathetic ad hominems are par for the course, but try not to be a complete moron.
Anyway, methinks it's time for a bit of a break. Been here too long already. So much toxicity in a short period ain't good for one.
Actually, you've been several years now consistently "cool" to say the least towards democratic government, and not just ours.
You've displayed some serious anti-democratic inclinations over the years, and not just against ours.
This is not news. I've flagged your unfriendly attitude about participatory democracy more than once over the years. You've never denied your lack of enthusiasm for it, and I notice you're not denying it now.
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
"I've seen people at the heart of the organised protests and
the BLM movement espouse shockingly violent and racist opinions."
People who are willing to "espouse shockingly violent and racist opinions" are way more likely to get both camera time on public media and heavy promotion by partisan YouTube promoters such as yourself. This does not put them at the heart of the protests, nor do their self-serving proclamations about their own importance make them important.
A couple of semi-professional left winger agitators were the first to get the bright idea to lock down ownership of the internet name of "Black Lives Matter Global Network"; that did not make them suddenly leaders of the movement. (Most of the marchers don't know nor would they give a damn about who was quick enough to grab a website name.)
"Blake died while resisting arrest."
It is commonly believed among autocrats and their supporters that "resisting arrest" justifies police use of deadly force against their suspect in order to overwhelm the "resistance".
Luckily this is still not the law in the United States, although way too many cops think it is, or should be.
Well, it's not the law if the victim is white and has money or family connections.
"We did not find evidence for anti-black or anti-Hispanic
disparity in police use of force across all shootings, and, if
anything, found anti-white disparities when controlling for
race-specific crime," concluded a 2019 study in the
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences."
You probably should have told them that the article you referred to was quickly "corrected" on that score, and not too long thereafter was retracted in whole by the National Academy.
Of course, when rightwingers maintain that racists, neo-Nazis, and Klansmen are riding on the coattails of Trump's ascendancy nobody wants to listen.
On the contrary, I do listen, and agree with this. That is part of the problem. The other part being Trump himself. These people are dangerous and it is playing with fire to encourage them. But Trump will use anyone, including these people, to remain in a position of power because to him "winning" is everything. Character is of no importance.
And there's a hole in your argument. I've seen people at the heart of the organised protests and the BLM movement espouse shockingly violent and racist opinions.
Oh, I am sure there are people like that out there too. Anger and bitterness can create a toxic reaction. But there are also many who believe in peaceful change. And it is imperative to support them if we really want to come out ahead of the mess we are in.
The interviewee wanted to defund police in order to pay for education and "reparations".
I believe in education but not monetary reparations. Everyone deserves a fair shot in life and education is a way to give them that. As for reparations, a civil war was fought that resulted in the end of legalized slavery. The reparations were paid back then in blood.
I do not support defunding police departments. I do support a different form of training for officers. But this can only go so far. What is needed is a change in the mindset of people who believe that people of color are somehow less than. Only then will police officers follow suit.
So why is Biden fanning the flames of an argument that has been settled for years?
He is trying to appeal to black voters. Why he would choose to bring up a case from so long ago when there are so many current cases that are questionable, I don't know.
Then again, maybe his(Jacob Blake) arrest was justified but the cops shot him seven times from behind because he was black? Time will tell, but to me it looks like monumental ineptitude by the cops.
Oh, I would definitely agree that the police work was inept in this case.
Same with the George Floyd killing. Outrageous as it was -- and it looks like murder to me -- we've had no evidence that it was racially motivated.
Personally, what I saw in both of these cases is police officers using excessive force to subdue a suspect. Because they could. Because they thought they could get away with it. Because in both cases the people being arrested were Black.
Any more than the killing of Justine Damond by a black police officer was racially motivated, though CNN did their best to allege that the jailing of Officer Mohamed Noor for her murder was racist, as his 12 year sentence was disproportionate.
How many White police officers are even convicted?
As for Michael Slager, he pleaded guilty to federal charges and regrets it. The murder trial at the state level resulted in a hung jury.
But I wouldn't kid myself that he's gonna tackle the leftwing violence and hardcore racism emanating from BLM. To use a phrase that has oft been used in respect of Trump: That's his base.
Actually, AOC said it best, in any other country she and Joe Biden would be on different sides. I suspect the same holds true for those on the left who espouse violence.
But the bottom line is that what we are seeing now in the US is the result of 4 years of Donald Trump's "leadership". I do firmly believe that another 4 years will not improve matters like he keeps claiming. So, that means we need a change, and the only change out there is Biden. Realistically speaking.
Petes has decided to not hang 'round and answer the charge that he was quoting from a "retracted" article published through the National Academy of Sciences. I s'pect ya'll be able to figure out why.
And, just for the record: That article was indeed quickly "corrected" and then, not much later, retracted in whole by the Academy. I wasn't making that up.
Look for the blue box announcing the initial corrections and the final full retraction, in bold faced lettering, just a little way down the page.*
––––––––––––––––––––––––
* The WashingtonPost (among others, The Wall Street Journal, et al.) carried an article on this retraction back in July.
It's highly unlikely that Petes didn't know.
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
"Why he would choose to bring up a case from so long ago…"
He was trying to illuminate that BLM protests are not a new or novel phenomena, nor are public demands for police reforms new or novel, and he was trying to argue that this time there was a chance to actually make some changes. This time didn't have to be like last time. Last time saw the election of Trump to follow and no progress has been made on these issues in the years since.
(We should probably not rely on Petes to interpret either Joe Biden's campaign speeches nor the campaign literature on behalf of the Biden campaign.)
Pete:
“ I fear for where America will be in four years time, regardless of who sits in the White House next January.”
So do I really.
I can see nothing good coming outta the next election.
If Biden wins then first of all the Trumpkins are gonna go ape, but worse is the albeit Communist ideas he’s gonna be forced to enact in the name of the Squad and more.
If Trumps win it’s gonna go just about crazy in the streets w BLM and Antifa and the like just burning this bitch down.
And of course then we will see where the Justice Department stands,bc they’ve done fuckall so far against leftist violence.
It’s all up in the air, and it’s actually quite exiting.
Barring a major surprise in the real world, the next significant event in the Presidential election will be the debates between Trump and Biden. The first one is scheduled for three weeks from now, beginning at 9:00 pm EDT on the 29th, continuing for an hour and a half.
If either of them backs out, best chance is it'll be Trump, but I don't think he can afford to back out now. On top of that being bad for him just in general, the first debate is being moderated by FoxNews' anchorman Chris Wallace.
I've always like Chris Wallace. Hopefully he will be more balanced than the network he works for.
Trump has no reason whatsoever to back away from a debate. Biden does, but he probably doesn’t realize it himself, but his handlers most likely do.
You get Trump and Biden up there off script and Trump is for sure gonna crush it, and Biden’s senility will be displayed to all. The man can hardly stay on script in an orchestrated speech using a teleprompter. In a live debate he will come off as a mumbling moron.
I can see nothing good coming outta the next election.
That really depends on the outcome, Marcus. Unlike you I believe we still have a chance to step back from the abyss if we can get rid of Trump and flip the Senate.
I don't fear left wing radicals as much as I do right wing. I will be willing to give Biden a chance to show he can run a government. Trump obviously cannot.
The man can hardly stay on script in an orchestrated speech using a teleprompter. In a live debate he will come off as a mumbling moron.
Yes, Trump is very painful to listen to...anyone can come across as more intelligent and articulate.
;)
@Petes
“ I'm not suggesting violent thugs deserve killing.”
I would agree. But, cmon, we both know that the both of us kinda enjoyed those Antifa scum who thought they could go out and destroy property and beat up on people for having a different mindset get pierced by hot lead. Right? I mean, I don’t wish them dead from the get go, but when they try and maim or kill a normal person (like Kyle) and they get shot I have to admit it’s satisfactory.
Lynnette:
“I don't fear left wing radicals as much as I do right wing.”
That’s because youre a fool Lynnette.
The right wing, as it is in the USA, is mainly conservative. Sure the more radical part wants to toss out a couple million Mexicans, but how does that hurt you? Otherwise their aim is that America should be what America used to be. And that America was pretty darn prosperous and is the reason you live with the quality of life you have today.
The left, however, wants to do basically an American Revolution based on the Russian Revolution. Disintegrate church, family, local society, etc. and bring it all under control of a politically correct Polit Bureau. Designate your status as an individual based on your supposed “privilege “ where you yourself, as a white woman, would be pretty low down the rungs for that matter. Lee, the fool, would find himself at the very bottom of the rung.. being a (I’m guessing) straight white male.
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