America

One More Thing: I Do Dare Call It Treason

by Tom Levenson| December 10, 20165:56 pm| 295 Comments

This post is in: America, An Unexamined Scandal, Election 2016, Trump Crime Cartel, Decline and Fall, Ever Get The Feeling You've Been Cheated?, Fucked-up-edness, Jump! You Fuckers!, Not Normal, Our Failed Political Establishment, Sociopaths

There’s no way to parse what happened in the few weeks before the election without recognizing that both FBI director Comey and Senate Majority Leader McConnell effectively colluded with Russia to throw this election.

Comey can’t not have known about the Russia connection to the emails, and yet chose to violate policy, precedent and explicit advice from Justice in his email letter ten days before the vote.

McConnell was specifically briefed on Russia’s efforts to influence the election, and he pressured (successfully, alas) the Obama administration to withhold that information from the public.

Both of them made choices that directly enabled Putin’s efforts. Both of them knew, to a virtual certainty, that this was the case.

Both of them are in my view traitors — both to our country as it is now, and to the idea of a representative democracy America is supposed to embody.

And one more one more thing: Elaine Chao, McConnell’s wife, is Trump’s nominee for Transportation secretary. It is unconfirmed at this time that this is payment for services rendered. It would, however, be irresponsible not to speculate.

Image: Andrea del Sarto, Study for a “Shame Painting” — In Italy, this form of execution was associated w. traitors. Before 1530.

One More Thing: I Do Dare Call It TreasonPost + Comments (295)

The Purges Begin

by Tom Levenson| December 9, 201612:36 pm| 195 Comments

This post is in: America, David Brooks Giving A Seminar At The Aspen Institute, Don't Mourn, Organize, Trump Crime Cartel, Decline and Fall

This is how would-be dictators work after they achieve office w. the veneer of democratic respectability:

Advisers to President-elect Donald Trump are developing plans to reshape Energy Department programs, help keep aging nuclear plants online and identify staff who played a role in promoting President Barack Obama’s climate agenda.

The transition team has asked the agency to list employees and contractors who attended United Nations climate meetings, along with those who helped develop the Obama administration’s social cost of carbon metrics, used to estimate and justify the climate benefits of new rules. [h/t TPM]

Step 1: identify expertise and any possible source of civil-service resistance to the illegitimate power grab.

Step 2: harass the key figures into resignation, or, failing that, post them to sheep-flatulance monitoring posts in the Dakotas.

Step 3: replace with loyalists. Consolidate long term holds over policy in the agencies. Capture government statistical reporting and the representation of reality.

Step 4: Rince. Repeat.

ETA: The Washington Post has more detail on the probe/purge-in-waiting at DOE:

The Trump transition team has issued a list of 74 questions for the Energy Department, asking officials there to identify which department employees and contractors have worked on forging an international climate pact as well as domestic efforts to cut the nation’s carbon output.

The memo provides the clearest indication yet of how Trump’s administration would begin to dismantle specific aspects of President Obama’s ambitious climate policies. …

One question zeroed in on the issue of the “social cost of carbon,” a way of calculating the consequences of greenhouse gas emissions. The transition team asked for a list of department employees or contractors who attended inter-agency meetings, the dates of the meetings, and emails and other materials associated with them.

The social cost of carbon is a metric that calculates the cost to society of emitting a ton of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere. The Obama administration has used this tool to try to calculate the benefits of regulations and initiatives that lead to lower greenhouse gas emissions.

Another question appeared to delve deeply into the mechanisms behind scientific tools called “integrated assessment models,” which scientists use to forecast future changes to the climate and energy system. It even asked what the Energy Department considers to be “the proper equilibrium climate sensitivity,” which is a way that climate researchers calculate how much the planet will eventually warm, depending upon the amount of greenhouse gases emitted into the atmosphere.

“My guess is that they’re trying to undermine the credibility of the science that DOE has produced, particularly in the field of climate science,” said Rob Jackson, a Stanford climate and energy researcher, in response to the question about the Integrated Assessment Models.

There’s lots more at the link. None of it good. These are f**king dangerous people.

Meanwhile, public protest too is under pressure from the Trump junta:

For the thousands hoping to echo the civil rights and anti-Vietnam rallies at Lincoln Memorial by joining the women’s march on Washington the day after Donald Trump’s inauguration: time to readjust your expectations….

The NPS filed a “massive omnibus blocking permit” for many of Washington DC’s most famous political locations for days and weeks before and after the inauguration on 20 January, said Mara Verheyden-Hilliard, a constitutional rights litigator and the executive director of the Partnership for Civil Justice Fund.

The National Park Service applied for the blocking permit on behalf of the Presidential Inauguration Committee — i.e., Trump’s donors and apparatus.

Again: this is how would-be dictators work, taking control of the bureaucracy and squeezing civil space.

We’ve a long road ahead. My small act of resistance today is to call my representatives (Warren, Markey, Kennedy) to urge them to publicly condemn the emerging civil service witch hunt. Whatever y’all can do, please have at it.

Image: Nicholas Poussin, The Destruction of Jerusalem, 1637.

The Purges BeginPost + Comments (195)

Thinking Security

by Adam L Silverman| December 2, 20168:00 pm| 204 Comments

This post is in: America, Domestic Politics, Don't Mourn, Organize, Open Threads, Organizing & Resistance, Politics, Popular Culture, Post-racial America, Silverman on Security

Several of you have asked in comments or by email if I’d write a little bit (a lot of bit?) about security. Specifically, personal security. I intended to get this up earlier in the week, but things went sideways on Tuesday, then did an inversion on Wednesday, then a triple lindy yesterday, so…

The first thing that I think is important is something I, and several others, have stressed here in posts and comments: freaking out is not a useful activity. I’m not stating that to pooh pooh anyone’s reactions to the elections, whether they be anger, fear, anxiety, stress, depression, or any combination thereof. All of these are normal and understandable responses. And, of course, if you are feeling really overwhelmed and are having trouble finding/regaining your equilibrium please go see a professional counselor or therapist.

The second thing is don’t do this!

CLEVELAND – Police are investigating the theft of seven guns swiped from a Cleveland home sometime early Tuesday morning.

A mom and her two children were asleep upstairs when she said the thief or thieves broke into the home and cleaned out two gun cabinets. “They’re ready for a war, we were ready for a war,” said Teena Brayen

Brayen and her family are doomsday preppers. “We’re preppers, we believe in preparing for what could happen,” said Brayen.

And:

The Brayens are part of the Three Percenters Club, a militia group that ‘exists to… protect and defend the constitution and our way of life’ by helping people ‘execute Military Strategies to defend against foreign and domestic enemies’.

But the items they wanted to use to defend against invasion in Rome made them a target for invasion in Cleveland.

On November 22, burglars – who, Brayen believes, spotted the weapons when she was moving into the home – took seven guns, 12 machetes, body armor, smoke grenades, more than $1,000 in ammo and some of their food.

Two gun cabinets were emptied of their contents: a high-powered, armor-piercing sniper rifle; five shotguns, and a pellet gun.

Leaving aside the Brayens and the Three Percenters Club, which is not the same as the other Three Percenters, what was missing here was a failure to think security.

Thinking security means to proactively consider what the potential threats might be in order to establish effective, reasonable solutions to them. This means to consider what the potential threats and dangers are to oneself, one’s family, and one’s property (home, business, etc) and what reasonable steps should be taken ahead of time to either deter them or, should deterrence fail, respond to them in the most effective and safe manner possible. This is not just for human threats like crime or terrorism, but also for preparing to deal with natural or man made disasters such as a hurricane or blizzard or earthquake or a gas main explosion or a fracking induced sinkhole or earthquake. To do this one needs to consider several questions.

Who or what is the threat? And what kind of threat is it?
Does the location, item, and/or person need to be secured against a potential threat?
What is the extent of the location’s vulnerability?
Does the potential security countermeasure need to be human, animal, technological, or a combination of them?
How far can I, and how would I go about, extending my secure zone away from myself, my family, my home, etc?
What effect will the potential security response have on me, my family, my friends, my neighbors, my employees, coworkers, and/or customers?

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If you live in Florida and you’re largely concerned with hurricane season (and the occasional Floriduh man and woman), the answers are going to focus on how to secure one’s home, business, and/or other property from high winds, driving rains, storm surge, and flooding. Your response is going to focus on ensuring that you and your family have enough supplies – food and water, medications, alternate power sources, other emergency supplies – to either shelter in place and ride the storm out or the resources to evacuate early or to evacuate ahead of the storm to an acceptable shelter. And don’t forget to think about what to do with your pets!

However, if your concern now is a response to the uptick and spike in hate crimes since the election, then your potential responses would be different. And this is where I want to change the tack of the discussion a bit. Personal security that arises from the fear of other people, even when that fear is or may be rational, is not the same thing as just making sure you’ve got a week’s worth of food, water, etc and a generator in case of a bad storm. While the questions above may still be applicable, the consideration of them needs to shift. The first thing that will need to be done is to grapple with whether there is a very real threat that needs to be deterred or that might need to be responded to. There’s no one size fits all solution because there are far too many variables for me or anyone else to just write: if you do X, you’ll be fine.

Keeping this caveat in mind here are a few things you can do to enhance your and your family’s personal security, as well as security at your business, congregation, or any other organization you belong to.

Invest in good locks: for under $200 you can put good quality deadbolts on your doors, as well as additional locking mechanisms on sliding glass doors/windows and window frames so you can open your windows a bit for ventilation and not have to worry about them being forced. You can also, for a reasonable price, harden your doors if you don’t have heavy duty/security doors.
Invest in some motion sensor lights if you live in such a place that would allow you to install them. I tend to use the solar powered ones. They’re not as bright, but I don’t have to worry about batteries or the electricity going out.
If you’ve been thinking about getting a dog keep in mind that many of them will make a good early warning system and decide if you want to include that consideration when you adopt.
If you have a garage, park your car/cars in it. (Yes, this means you have to get your stuff out of the way and no, I have no idea why builders in PA build 3+ bedroom homes with one car garages)
Install a video doorbell, preferably one with motion sensing tech that alerts you, via your phone or tablet, and gives you video when someone just approaches the door regardless of if they ring the bell.
Get a few, good, high lumen flashlights (I like the Anker ones). Carry a small one in your purse if you carry a purse or in your pocket and keep a larger one accessible in the car. Blinding light right in the eyes can work wonders. As can prodding someone with one if necessary.
Make sure your smoke detector batteries are good, your CO2 detector batteries are good (if you have one of these), and your fire extinguishers are also up to date.
Make a plan with your family, and if you and your neighbors get on well, with your neighbors. It should include who is going to contact and check in with who, where to meet up, who is responsible for securing or taking care of or picking up who, what to do in case of a natural or man made disaster such as a hurricane or flood or earthquake. Things like that. This should also be done for your business, congregation, and other organizations you belong to.
Make sure you and at least one other family member has CPR and first aid training. And make a first aid kit in something portable like a backpack. I like the Mayo Clinic’s suggestions for what to get.

This brings us to the final two things that I think need to be addressed. The first is fear or anxiety or stress. If you are having this type of response and its making you feel vulnerable, and you want to do something to prepare for the worst do not take a self defense course. People that take self defense courses go in scared and able to be hurt or killed. They come out scared and able to hurt or kill. These types of courses are not designed to get at the underlying issues in a systematic way. So if you feel you have to do something, and you’re willing to give it a try, skip right to a martial art taught by a legitimate and experienced instructor. The purpose of this training isn’t just, or isn’t really, the physical components of strike, lock, pin, but rather to use the psycho-motor skills training of learning them to access the internal energy, psychological, emotional, and mental components of those who study these systems and disciplines. It’ll take longer to be physically proficient, but you’ll start to see some of the internal benefits in a few months. Between myself and several of the other martial artists that comment here, we should be able to provide some suggestions in the comments.

The final one is firearms. To me this is an even more intensely personal question or issue. Guns, both handguns and long guns, are tools. In the right hands at the right times in the right places they can be tremendously effective. In other hands at other times and at other places not so much. As I mentioned in the comments to several questions about this, as well as to several emails from commenters/lurkers, I came to the use of firearms very late (I was 37) and for professional reasons (as part of my pre deployment training for Iraq). I had been doing martial arts for 24 years at that point and had some basic familiarity instruction with guns, but not a lot of practice or experience. Now, because I’ve been asked at least once a year for the past four years, if I would be willing to deploy, I go for regular training with a SWAT tactical training instructor to maintain my skills. I’m not recommending anyone get one and I’m not recommending one not getting one. I’m not advocating for anything here, nor should any decision I may or may not make in regard to firearms be an example for anyone else.

That said there are several questions that one needs to answer for themselves when considering getting a firearm, especially if its for self defense purposes

Do you, your spouse/SO, parent child/children, roommate, or anyone else that might be living with you think that if push came to shove you could bring the weapon to bear and shoot it if necessary (seriously injuring and/or killing what you are aiming at, whether person or animal)? If you all can not answer yes without qualifications, you shouldn’t get it. Having it and being unable to use it is as bad, if not worse, than not having it.
Are you,your spouse/SO, parent child/children, roommate, or anyone else that might be living with you willing to commit to proper instruction and training in the use and maintenance of a firearm?
Do you have a plan to secure the weapon, but in such a way that it is accessible when needed?
Does anyone in the home have a mental health issue? If so you may not want to bring a gun into the dynamic. And if someone in the home should develop a mental health issue, do you have a plan for securing the weapon away from him or her (offsite) and an alternative self-defense/security plan for once the gun is removed?
Do you want this only for home defense or are you planning on conceal carrying it?
Put your hand in your pocket. Now have someone run at you from 33 feet away while screaming at you. Try to remove your hand from your pocket and point it at the person running at you before they can touch you on the shoulder. If this exercise freaked you out, getting a gun for self defense may not be for you. Are you willing to commit to regular instruction from a professional to overcome this response? If not, then getting a gun for self defense may not be for you.
Do you want a long gun (rifle or shotgun) or handgun (self loading semi-automatic pistol or revolver)? If its a handgun, how is your hand strength? Are you able to rack the slide/charge a semi-auto pistol? If not, then a revolver might be better. How is your arm strength? Revolvers with barrels of four inches or longer will be quite heavy? As will be some rifles and shotguns?
Where do you live? An apartment? A Condo? A one wall attached house? A single family home? All of these are considerations in regard to firearm and ammunition choice.

I think that’s enough for now. I’ll be around in comments.

Thinking SecurityPost + Comments (204)

North Carolina Finally Limps Across the Gubernatorial Election Finish Line

by Adam L Silverman| November 28, 20169:41 pm| 122 Comments

This post is in: America, Domestic Politics, Election 2016, Open Threads, Politics, Silverman on Security

As we go to the judges scorecard it is important to remember we are scoring on a 10 point must system. The judges are looking for clean punching, effective aggression, and good ring generalship!

BREAKING: In NC Gov. race, GOP-controlled @NCSBE issues order re McCrory county protests. Congrats Gov-Elect Cooper! https://t.co/AIEwvsDmOc

— Marc E. Elias (@marceelias) November 29, 2016

What does this mean?

Counties that have removed voters from their counts based on the McCrory protests are instructed to add those votes back into their count. https://t.co/rpN5td6lOz

— Marc E. Elias (@marceelias) November 29, 2016

In short: the State Board has ruled that the McCrory protests about individual voters must all be dismissed. https://t.co/HgXXdnCwXx

— Marc E. Elias (@marceelias) November 29, 2016

Now we have to see if Governor McCrory tries some other tactic to maintain power despite the outcome of the North Carolina gubernatorial election.

Here’s the North Carolina State Board of Elections Statement:

STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA WAKE COUNTY BEFORE THE STATE BOARD OF ELECTIONS IN THE MATTER OF: CONSIDERATION OF CERTAIN LEGAL QUESTIONS AFFECTING THE AUTHENTICATION OF THE 2016 GENERAL ELECTION ) ) ) ) ORDER THIS MATTER CAME BEFORE THE STATE BOARD OF ELECTIONS (“State Board”) during a public meeting held November 22, 2016, upon the State Board’s own motion to consider certain legal questions affecting procedures and practices in the authentication of the 2016 general election. The State Board received briefing and heard oral argument from the Republican Party of North Carolina and Pat McCrory Committee, represented by Roger Knight, John Branch, and Brian LiVecchi; the North Carolina Democratic Party and Cooper for North Carolina Committee, represented by Kevin Hamilton (appearing pro hac vice); and the Southern Coalition for Social Justice, represented by Allison Riggs. After hearing from the parties, reviewing written briefs and public comment, and having reviewed relevant statutes and authorities, the State Board hereby orders the following pursuant to its authority under G.S. §§ 163-22(a) and 182.12:

1. The uniform application of law is necessary to ensure fundamental fairness in the administration of elections and to preserve due process for each voter.

2. Article 8 of Chapter 163 of the General Statutes (“Article 8”) provides the means by which one voter may challenge the eligibility of another voter. No voter challenge may be entered after the deadline or made indiscriminately. A timely challenge properly sustained against a voter who has cast an absentee ballot will result in the exclusion of that ballot from the canvassed results.

3. Article 15A of Chapter 163 of the General Statutes (“Article 15A”) provides the means by which a voter may protest an election. A successful protest must prove the occurrence of an outcome-determinative violation of election law, irregularity, or misconduct. If a county board of elections (“county board”) finds a violation occurred affecting votes sufficient in number to change the outcome of a single-county contest, the county board must retrieve the ballots improperly cast and note the deduction in the abstract. If a county board finds a violation occurred that did not affect enough ballots to change the outcome of any single-county contest, the county board must forward its findings to the State Board. The State Board shall determine whether all ballots improperly cast are sufficient to change the outcome of any multi-county contest. If so, the State Board will order county boards to retrieve and discount affected ballots and revise its canvass.

4. A protest alleging the occurrence of an election law violation that affected votes sufficient in number to change the outcome of a single-county contest concerns the manner in which votes were counted or tabulated, and therefore such protest must be resolved prior to county canvass as required by G.S. § 163-182.10(a)(2). A protest that does not allege an election law violation regarding a sufficient number of votes to change the outcome of a single-county contest shall not delay the county canvass procedures since the county may not retrieve and discount such ballots. In no case shall the county board delay the timely hearing and decision on a protest timely filed.

5. A protest of election brought under Article 15A may not merely dispute the eligibility of a voter. Such a claim must be brought timely as a challenge under Article 8. Rather, a protest of election may include claims regarding the eligibility of certain voters only as evidence that an outcome-determinative violation of election law, irregularity, or misconduct has occurred.

6. The county board of elections shall dismiss a protest of election that merely disputes the eligibility of a voter. The county board shall instead consider the claim as a voter challenge brought under Article 8 after the election.

7. No county board may retrieve and discount a ballot cast by an unqualified voter unless a challenge was timely brought under Article 8, or the State Board or a county board has found that ineligible voters participated in numbers sufficient to change the outcome of the election. The latter finding may be based on a protest timely brought under Article 15A or pursuant to complaint or directive of the State Board under G.S. §§ 163-22(a) and 182.12.

8. County boards of election must preserve the due process rights of all voters, including adequate notice and a meaningful opportunity to be heard. If a protest brought under Article 15A includes claims regarding the eligibility of certain voters, the county board must provide notice of the protest reasonably calculated to apprise such voters of the pendency of the protest and afford them an opportunity to present their objections. Due process in the context of time-sensitive post-election protests may mean that county boards expedite notice mailings or reach out to affected voters by other means not ordinarily required under Article 8. At a minimum, county boards must provide written notice to affected voters by expedited delivery service, such that notice is received at least three days ahead of any such hearing.

9. If any county board of elections has retrieved and discounted any ballot in a manner inconsistent with this Order in its canvass of the 2016 general election, the county board shall amend its canvass to include the vote. No such re-canvass shall reset any statutory deadline otherwise associated with the canvass of votes.

10. Counties shall proceed to the canvassing of the 2016 general election consistent with this Order, which shall govern future elections unless otherwise directed by this Board.

This the twenty-eighth day of November, 2016.

_______________________________

A. Grant Whitney, Jr.,

Chair State Board of Elections

North Carolina Finally Limps Across the Gubernatorial Election Finish LinePost + Comments (122)

Saturday Morning Open Thread: Anthem

by Anne Laurie| November 26, 20165:19 am| 157 Comments

This post is in: America, Election 2018, Music, Open Threads, Proud to Be A Democrat

Goddess bless the Queen!

Longish read for a (hopefully) quiet weekend morning… Greg Sargent at the Washington Post:

If you care about whether the Democratic Party can rebuild itself anytime soon out of the smoking wreckage left behind by the disastrous 2016 elections, something very important is happening a lot sooner than you think.

There are more than three dozen gubernatorial races taking place in the next two years. And they could do a tremendous amount to set the party on the path out of the wilderness in the Age of Donald Trump — with potentially significant national ramifications that could stretch well into the next decade, for instance by having a substantial influence over the redistricting of House seats, which could help determine control of the Lower Chamber in the 2020s…

… The vast majority of these races take place in 2018 (only two, Virginia and New Jersey, take place next year), so we’re really talking about the 2018 map here. It has big transformative potential for Democrats, since many of the states in which Republicans are defending seats are ones Barack Obama (and to a lesser extent Hillary Clinton) won.

There are four reasons why these contests are so important to the long-term prospects of the Democratic Party:

1) They represent a major opportunity to reverse the tremendous state-level damage done to Democrats in 2010…

2) Winning back gubernatorial mansions could have real impact over the redistricting of the House in the next decade…

3) These races give Dems a chance to turn things around in swing states and “blue wall” states that Trump won…

4) Winning back states could have a big influence on policy…

Interactive map & full details at the link. Remember, those of you on (other) social media — Sharing Is Caring!
***********

Apart from preparing ourselves for the next battle(s), what’s on the agenda for the day?

Saturday Morning Open Thread: AnthemPost + Comments (157)

Florida Woman! (Not BettyC!)

by Adam L Silverman| November 22, 20166:22 pm| 94 Comments

This post is in: America, Because of wow., Crazification Factor, Crock Pot Craziness, Domestic Politics, domestic terrorists, Enhanced Protest Techniques, Open Threads, Silverman on Security, Vagina Outrage, Not Normal, Somewhere a Village is Missing its Idiot, WTF?

Florida Woman strikes again:

Police have arrested a 24-year-old Waldo woman who they believe called in a bomb threat to the University of Florida last week.

Jessica Ward was charged with making a false report concerning planting a bomb, which is a felony, according to a news release today from UF police.

The threat was made against the university’s engineering building, and Ward worked in the building’s Java Hut Coffee Kiosk, the release says.

Students were evacuated from the building Wednesday after a note was found on the first floor of the building in a restroom, and classes in the building were canceled for the rest of the day.

Later, during an interview with police, Ward said she wrote the threat. She told them she wanted to leave work at the threat’s indicated time so she could have “me time,” according to the release.

Ward was arrested this morning and remained at the Alachua County jail on a $15,000 bond.

Open Thread!

Florida Woman! (Not BettyC!)Post + Comments (94)

The Republican Party is tearing itself apart. It’s about damn time.

by Soonergrunt| October 10, 20168:00 pm| 218 Comments

This post is in: America, I'm With Her, Politics, Stream of Consciousness, Assholes, Blogospheric Navel-Gazing, Both Sides Do It!, Schadenfreude

The following is from a Tweetstorm I composed yesterday in the hours before that shitshow of a “debate.” There are probably some spelling and grammar errors, because for the most part, I just copied and pasted from my Twitter account, @soonergrunt.

Someone asked me recently why I’m a dick to Conservatives who engage me on Twitter. I’m not to everyone. @RadioFreeTom is a notable example. There are others. But I’ll tell you the answer now. I came to political conscience in the age of Ronald Reagan. I liked him as a person, but I didn’t agree with him on much. But I respected him. He was my President, for one thing, but also my parents taught me that the other side were decent people who wanted what they saw as best for the country. They just happened to usually be wrong. And sometimes they were right. That kind of consideration is something I’ve rarely received in return. Rare enough that I remember a lot of those respectful interactions. They stick out due to their rarity.

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What I’ve heard most of my adult life is that as a Democrat and a Liberal in particular, that I didn’t love my country. Liberals in the Army get used to this kind of thing very, very quickly. We learn to keep our mouths shut. The same NCOs and officers who are telling you that ppl like you should be killed for treason are the same people writing your NCOER. They are the same people who are supposed to risk their lives for you. Even after serving as a combat infantryman, some of the guys I served with, and a LOT of civilians still would say things like that. This kind of thing was pushed a little bit by Reagan, but a LOT by Newt Gingrich. And it’s burned into the modern Republican Party’s DNA. FOX News monetized this. Tune in, anytime day or night, and you’ll see what I’m talking about within a few minutes. Millions watch daily. The typical Conservative is so incredibly vicious because s/he has been raised on a steady diet of vitriol and hate for 2 decades now.

It’s to the point where Conservatives who aren’t calling for a Liberal to be killed, who aren’t calling for a Liberal’s daughter to be raped who aren’t calling for a Liberal to lose his employment are the atypical ones. You spend 30 years hearing this kind of thing, and maybe you aren’t quite so open minded and accepting anymore. It’s hard to take people at face value, because you’re just waiting for the other shoe.

There’s probably more than just the 4 or 5 Cons that I follow that are worth following. There’s a lot of people on Twitter after all. But they’re very hard to find in this bitterest of election years.

@SopanDeb had a couple of tweets yesterday about talking to Establishment Republicans who were, in his words, shocked at all of the hatred directed at Hillary Clinton from the right. That they considered her just another cynical politician. I RT’ed that with a hearty ‘fuck you’ or some such attached to it. Today’s ‘establishment Rs’ came up on that attitude and behavior. They are the principle actors and benefactors. Well, right now we’re watching the Republican Party self-destruct. Where it is because the party and intellectual leaders on the right have, for decades, sold them on the idea that they are the only true patriots and that anyone who opposes them is aligned with the enemies. And now, as was inevitable, they’ve turned on the Conservatives who aren’t complete assholes. Well, I’m not really sorry for them. They are reaping what they have sewn.

When I was a kid, there were Conservative Democrats & Liberal Republicans, and most people held views that occasionally crossed ideological lines. I tend to believe in a much stronger military and more robust foreign policy than many of my liberal brethren. It is essential to the health of the Liberal movement and the Democratic Party, and most especially to the political health of the Nation for there to be a functioning, engaged Conservative movement and a center right party. I don’t know if the Republican Party will survive or if something else will rise in its place, but it’s going to take a while. It took decades to get here, and it won’t be changed one way or the other overnight. I take some small consolation that many Conservatives are now experiencing what people like me have for decades. But schadenfreude isn’t something I should be proud of.

It’s going to be interesting to watch, but I really am worried for the near-term future of the country. I do believe that in the end, things will be OK. I believe that most people are essentially good and decent in their hearts and that my kids will see a better country and a better world. If you’ve made it this far, you sure are a glutton for punishment, but I thank you for reading.

The Republican Party is tearing itself apart. It’s about damn time.Post + Comments (218)

Republicans don’t trust women.

I’m just a talker, trying to find a channel!

There is one struggling party in US right now, and it’s not the Democrats.

Sitting here in limbo waiting for the dice to roll

After dobbs, women are no longer free.

Polls are now a reliable indicator of what corporate Republicans want us to think.

Motto for the House: Flip 5 and lose none.

Usually wrong but never in doubt

I’m sure you banged some questionable people yourself. We’re allowed to grow past that.

You come for women, you’re gonna get your ass kicked.

Black Jesus loves a paper trail.

The Supreme Court is corrupt. Democrats must win in November and force court reform.

Marge, god is saying you’re stupid.

A thin legal pretext to veneer over their personal religious and political desires.

Republicans: slavery is when you own me. freedom is when I own you.

People are complicated. Love is not.

Can we lighten up on the doomsday scenarios?

You don’t get rid of your umbrella while it’s still raining.

I’m more Christian than these people and I’m an atheist.

fuckem (in honor of the late great efgoldman)

Tide comes in. Tide goes out. You can’t explain that.

Republicans are radicals, not conservatives.

Let’s not be the monsters we hate.

Republicans got rid of McCarthy. Democrats chose not to save him.

One More Thing: I Do Dare Call It Treason

The Purges Begin

Thinking Security