Folks, this will be the last feature for a while.
I’m destroyed.
by Alain Chamot (1971-2020)| 154 Comments
This post is in: On The Road, Open Threads, Readership Capture
Folks, this will be the last feature for a while.
I’m destroyed.
This post is in: An Unexamined Scandal, domestic terrorists, Open Threads, Bring On The Meteor, Decline and Fall, Looks Like I Picked the Wrong Week to Stop Sniffing Glue, Peak Wingnut Was a Lie!
Because this is the least intelligent timeline, Snopes has gone to the trouble of explaining:
Is ‘Antifa’ Planning a Civil War? – FALSE
Despite what random people might say in homemade YouTube videos, they offer no proof that any anti-fascist groups are planning even a skirmish…In August 2017, rumors began to spread on social media that anti-fascists (a name often shortened to “antifa”, which has become shorthand for a subset of protestors, usually clad in black and accessorized with bandannas and who are evidently unnerving bloggers and vloggers enough to be the pet topic of many an angry online rant) were planning extended unrest, riots, killing random citizens, or outright civil war beginning on 4 November 2017…
Depending on the source, “antifa” (always treated as though it is one homogenous, unified group) is purportedly planning extended riots, joint violence alongside Black Lives Matter and the Black Panthers, or a coup of the American government…
Of course, the Infowars faithful and other Trump voters automatically accept this as gospel (trans: good news), because they want to belief that the whole world is as fearful and doom-obsessed as they are. The Washington Post notes the hype, goes to interview the idiots on the other end of the political horseshoe:
… Infowars has warned “Antifa Plans ‘Civil War’ to Overthrow the Government.” The John Birch Society put out two recent videos warning Americans to “stay home and tell your children to do likewise” on Saturday. YouTuber “A Glock Fanboy” notched more than 400,400 views for a clip raising the alarm about “the first day of the revolution or whatnot.”
“Honestly, I’m happy,” the YouTuber told his followers. “Dude, we’ve been on the verge of the great war for what seems like forever and I’m just ready to get it going.”
While Nov. 4 has become a rallying point on the conservative landscape — complete with a hashtag “civilwar2017″ — down on the other far end of the political spectrum, the reality is equally significant. The left-leaning group Refuse Fascism is planning rallies across the country on Saturday, the first step in a large-scale, long game demonstration organizers hope will achieve nothing less than the unseating of the Trump administration.
“We formed this organization around two main points,” Andy Zee, one of the group’s organizers, told The Washington Post. “One is that the nightmare must end, and second, in the name of humanity we must refuse to accept a fascist America.”
Zee maintains that Refuse Fascism is committed to nonviolent protest, and scoffs at the ideas floating through the far right of antifa super-soldiers waging war on mainstream society. If anything, the jarring disconnect over Nov. 4 shows how easily facts are eaten alive by social media and regurgitated as conspiracy theory. The possible violence coloring that disconnect illustrates how truly ideologically isolated the two sides are from one another.
Zee’s group does have big plans for the weekend — and beyond. He tells The Post the group is organizing demonstrations on Saturday in more than a dozen locations, including New York City, Los Angeles, Seattle and San Francisco.
Tapping the same kind of energy unleashed in the Occupy Wall Street movement and Women’s March, Refuse Fascism hopes to spark regular protests against the administration, daily actions that will snowball until “every day there are tens of thousands of people protesting, creating a political crisis in the country with international repercussions, and where you do get a reaction from those in power that they have to do something about it,” Zee said…
Still, the online hysterics over Nov. 4 have put the potential demonstrations in the crosshairs of extremists…
And who are the people behind ‘Refuse Fascism’? This seems to be where the worst of 1970s extremist politics crawls undead from the Mausoleum of Fail…
The most bizarre story about the Nov 4th protests, from the mysterious Refuse Fascism, is the true story. My latest: https://t.co/pX9gfsVsQZ
— Jack Smith IV (@JackSmithIV) November 2, 2017
… Less than one year ago, as protesters flooded Washington, D.C., for President Donald Trump’s inauguration, Refuse Fascism materialized, seemingly out of nowhere, brandishing their now-iconic black and white “NO!” posters. Since then, the anti-fascist organization has become a mysterious yet omnipresent force throughout the past year’s wave of protests. As demonstrators have continued to spill into the streets with anti-Trump resentment, Refuse Fascism frequently emerges with signs, shirts, pins, and orators primed with a megaphone.
This has all led up to the group’s plans for Nov. 4, which have become shrouded in misinformation. This Saturday, Refuse Fascism will kick off its loftiest project yet: mass demonstrations in the streets — every day until Trump and Vice President Mike Pence are out of office…
For prominent thinkers and activists on the socialist left who spoke to Mic on background, and many reporters, scholars and activists over the past decade, Refuse Fascism is seen as nothing but a diversion, the latest front group for a scientology-like communistic cult of personality…
Ten years ago, another full-page advertisement in the New York Times declared that “Dangerous times demand courageous voices.” It was cosigned by prominent leftist activists like Cornell West and Cindy Sheehan; Slavoj Žižek later signed an online version. And who was this necessary voice? Bob Avakian.
“Chairman” Bob Avakian is a ‘60s-era radical who, in 1975, founded the Revolutionary Communist Party, also known as RCP or RevCom — a small group of Maoists that’s managed to survive for decades by embedding, some say parasitically, within nearly every major protest movement of the past 40 years, from the L.A. race riots to the anti-war movement of the Bush years. The RCP is often referred to as a communist doomsday cult that is obsessed with Avakian, its mysterious leader, and hastens unto a final emancipation of humanity through a populist revolution…
Chairman Bob (or, as usual, his latest batch of deluded recruits) versus Based Stick Dude (ditto). And here you thought Halloween was over!
This post is in: Activist Judges!, Dolt 45, Election 2016, Foreign Affairs, Open Threads, Republican Venality, Russiagate, Blatant Liars and the Lies They Tell
NEWS: Carter Page testifies he told Sessions about Russia trip; bound to prompt more Qs over Sessions' testimony. https://t.co/zk0k0yLhiR
— Manu Raju (@mkraju) November 2, 2017
Former Trump foreign policy adviser Carter Page privately testified Thursday that he mentioned to Jeff Sessions he was traveling to Russia during the 2016 presidential campaign — as new questions emerge about the attorney general’s comments to Congress about Russia and the Trump campaign.
During more than six hours of closed-door testimony, Page said that he informed Sessions about his coming July 2016 trip to Russia, which Page told CNN was unconnected to his campaign role. Page described the conversation to CNN after he finished talking to the House intelligence committee.
Sessions’ discussion with Page will fuel further scrutiny about what the attorney general knew about connections between the Trump campaign and Russia — and communications about Russia that he did not disclose despite a persistent line of questioning in three separate hearings this year…
Page told CNN after the interview that he informed Sessions about the trip during a group dinner in Washington, and that he mentioned it in passing.
“Back in June 2016, I mentioned in passing that I happened to be planning to give a speech at a university in Moscow,” Page told CNN. “Completely unrelated to my limited volunteer role with the campaign and as I’ve done dozens of times throughout my life. Understandably, it was as irrelevant then as it is now. If it weren’t for the dodgy dossier and all the chaos that those complete lies had created, my passing comment’s complete lack of relevance should go without saying.”
Page said it was the only time he met Sessions….
Sometimes I think Carter Page is actually trying to take down the Trump administration https://t.co/byIJjo4TLA
— Craig Harrington (@Craigipedia) November 2, 2017
Somebody on Team Trump should’ve made it their business to explain to Young Carter that discretion is very much the better part of valor, when it comes to criminal conspiracy. But then, if any of these mopes had the sense God gave a weasel, why would they have sold their futures to the mercies of Donald Effing Trump?
Marcy Wheeler, earlier this week, on the original indictment:
… Sessions has repeatedly testified to the Senate that he knows nothing about any collusion with the Russians. (Though in his most recent appearance, he categorized that narrowly by saying he did not “conspire with Russia or an agent of the Russian government to influence the outcome of the 2016 presidential election.”)
But the Papadopoulos plea shows that Sessions — then acting as Trump’s top foreign policy adviser — was in a March 31, 2016, meeting with Trump, at which Papadopoulos explained “he had connections that could help arrange a meeting between then-candidate Trump and President Putin.” It also shows that Papadopoulos kept a number of campaign officials in the loop on his efforts to set up a meeting between Trump and Putin, though they secretly determined that the meeting “should be someone low level in the campaign so as not to send any signal,” itself a sign the campaign was trying to hide its efforts to make nice with the Russians…
To be sure, Papadopoulos’s plea perhaps hurts Trump the most… But unlike Trump, Sessions’s claims about such meetings came in sworn testimony to the Senate. During his confirmation process, Sessions was asked a key question by Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn.: “If there is any evidence that anyone affiliated with the Trump campaign communicated with the Russian government in the course of this campaign, what will you do?”
“Senator Franken, I’m not aware of any of those activities,” Sessions responded. “I have been called a surrogate at a time or two in that campaign and I didn’t have — did not have communications with the Russians, and I’m unable to comment on it.” …
“Forgetting” one minion’s semi-illicit activities with a foreign government might be an accident; “not recollecting” a second minion’s reports might be coincidence; but when the third hopeful assistant chimes in… well…
Remember the hissyfit Sessions threw when Kamala Harris ‘impugned his honor’? What honor?
Russiagate Open Thread: Are We <em>Sure</em> Carter Page Isn’t A Mole?Post + Comments (116)
This post is in: Cat Blogging, Pet Rescue, Readership Capture
From commentor Newdealfarmgrrrll:
Last week my nephew found a kitten outside their detached garage, and by the end of my brother’s frantic phone call, four more appeared. And the next day, the mom, which my brother lured into the garage with the kittens.
I think the poor sweeties were dumped, as the mom doesn’t seem feral, and is desperately affectionate. All the no-kill animal shelters in the Minneapolis/StPaul metro are full and not accepting animals.
My brother and I are both maxed with pets and can’t take them on. My brother lives in the boonies, and they will be lunch for coyotes if they stay outside :(
The little gray cutie (top pic) is the bravest of the bunch, and was instantly out of the box to meet us. And, IIRC, was the first one to be discovered, hungrily mewing near the garage.
Mom is TINY. As you can see, she is a tabby, and has a lovely large orange splash on top of her head which doesn’t show all that well in the pic. She was desperately affectionate, and has been using the litter box, except for occasionally piddling in the middle of the floor. This adds to my suspicion that she is a frightened and distressed cat who was dumped by her dipshit humans.
The other kittens were very shy and huddled inside the enclosed box my nephew and brother cobbled together. Isn’t “Patchie” adorable? *muffles a SQEEE* There are two more gray kittens as well as the ginger. I didn’t want to stress them further by dragging them out of their box for pics.
Little ginger decided to come out and explore! Well, hearing the rattle of the kibble jar was what lured him out at first.
I’m in the Twin Cities (Minneapolis/St.Paul MN) outer metro area. I have several extra cat carriers so I could ferry cats to my place for pick up as I’m right on the freeway system on the western side of Minneapolis. My brother is in the boonies on the east side of the Cities.
Three years ago Easter, we acquire a Balloon Juice rescue kitten who looked a lot like that little gray muffin, after he walked up to Hillary R’s little dog and introduced himself. Piper is now a magnificent 15lb gentleman of great dignity, with the softest plush fur…
If you are interested in adding one of these sweeties to your household, know someone who might be interested, or have other suggestions, please leave a comment. Or contact me at [email protected], and I’ll forward your message to NDFG.
Kitten Adoption Bleg — Minneapolis / St. Paul AreaPost + Comments (58)
by Betty Cracker| 211 Comments
This post is in: Goddamned Traitors, Open Threads, Politics, Republican Stupidity, Trump-Russia, Assholes, General Stupidity
It’s morons, all the way down. The ABC News scoop, via TPM:
The White House had no idea that Sam Clovis testified before the grand jury in special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election, ABC News reported late Thursday.
ABC News reported, citing unnamed sources with knowledge of the probe, that the White House learned Clovis had met with the grand jury from media reports rather than from Clovis himself.
Clovis was a co-chair on President Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign and served as the supervisor to George Papadopoulos, a former adviser on the campaign. Court documents unsealed on Monday revealed that Papadopoulos pleaded guilty earlier in October to lying to the FBI about his contacts with Russian nationals.
“The White House was surprised to learn Mr. Clovis had been contacted by the Special Counsel’s office as part of their separate probe of Mr. Papadopoulos’ activities,” an unnamed White House source familiar with the probe told ABC News.
So, in addition to a generally chaotic administration, the effort to control the administration’s response to the Mueller investigation is also a raging dumpster fire that can be seen from space. May it consume them all.
Open thread!
by Betty Cracker| 309 Comments
This post is in: Goddamned Traitors, Open Threads, Politics, Republican Stupidity, Trump Crime Cartel, Trump-Russia, Assholes, General Stupidity
CNN a short while ago:
(CNN)Jared Kushner has turned over documents in recent weeks to special counsel Robert Mueller as investigators have begun asking in witness interviews about Kushner’s role in the firing of FBI Director James Comey, CNN has learned.
Mueller’s investigators have expressed interest in Kushner, President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and a White House senior adviser, as part of its probe into Russian meddling, including potential obstruction of justice in Comey’s firing, sources familiar with the matter said.
Their questions about Kushner signal that Mueller’s investigators are reaching the President’s inner circle and have extended beyond the 2016 campaign to actions taken at the White House by high-level officials. It is not clear how Kushner’s advice to the President might relate to the overall Russia investigation or potential obstruction of justice.
Could investigators be spelunking for anything other than obstruction of justice if they’re looking into the circumstances of Comey’s firing? Of course, Trump’s conveniently on video blurting out a confession to Lester Holt. Maybe they’ll nail Jared for obstruction too?
From Vanity Fair yesterday:
“Here’s what Manafort’s indictment tells me: Mueller is going to go over every financial dealing of Jared Kushner and the Trump Organization,” said former Trump campaign aide Sam Nunberg. “Trump is at 33 percent in Gallup. You can’t go any lower. He’s fucked.”
[snip]According to two sources, Trump has complained to advisers about his legal team for letting the Mueller probe progress this far. Speaking to Steve Bannon on Tuesday, Trump blamed Jared Kushner for his role in decisions, specifically the firings of Mike Flynn and James Comey, that led to Mueller’s appointment, according to a source briefed on the call. When Roger Stone recently told Trump that Kushner was giving him bad political advice, Trump agreed, according to someone familiar with the conversation. “Jared is the worst political adviser in the White House in modern history,” Nunberg said. “I’m only saying publicly what everyone says behind the scenes at Fox News, in conservative media, and the Senate and Congress.”
Trump could try to slide several pardons under cover of the traditional commutation of sentence for the White House turkeys. Would be pretty weird if Jared ended up in a petting zoo.
The makings of an awkward family Thanksgiving…Post + Comments (309)
This post is in: Open Threads, Readership Capture
Just want to mention to the Balloon-Juicers here, a cross-note from the TNC Horde to y’all:
“My dad’s having some major health issues — TL;DR after falling a lot at home he’s been doing a hospital tour and is now in a rehab place. It’s kept him offline for more than a week and he’d like someone to let them know he’s still alive and doing fine and will be back eventually.
I talked to him on the phone just now and mentioned the Horde in passing when he asked about the layoff, and he asked if I could have someone in the Horde who still overlaps in both places basically post an “EFGoldman is ok” message so, here I am, checking in.”
So, to note: EFGOLDMAN IS OKAY!
Thanks to Paul Wartenberg for the news!