tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-40137052024-03-05T09:28:56.858-08:00HullabalooAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15686805789946047526noreply@blogger.comBlogger38977125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4013705.post-67374911185240553322020-01-12T09:00:00.000-08:002020-01-12T09:00:03.996-08:00<b>Change your bookmarks!</b><br />
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We are moving to a new Wordpress site. The url is easy remember:<br />
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<a href="https://www.blogger.com/goog_1700364218"><br /></a></div>
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<a href="https://digbysblog.net/">digbysblog.net</a></div>
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We are already posting over there so click the link and check it out.<br />
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Starting January 13 (the good Lord willing) this site will automatically redirect to the new site. But just in case, make a mental note.<br />
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Adios blogger. It's been real...<br />
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digby<br />
<br />dphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17088289159242476175noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4013705.post-15763082939729552282020-01-12T06:00:00.000-08:002020-01-12T06:06:46.574-08:00They can save the world by @BloggersRUs<p><b>They can save the world</b></p><p>
by Tom Sullivan</p><p>
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Climate activist Greta Thunberg, Time magazine's 2019 <a href="https://time.com/person-of-the-year-2019-greta-thunberg/">Person of the Year</a> has called on German industrial giant Siemens AG to reconsider supplying mining equipment a new Australian coal mine under development by India's Adani Power. Thunberg's demand is <a href="https://www.jpost.com/Breaking-News/Greta-Thunberg-calls-on-Siemens-to-halt-planned-Australia-coal-mine-613834">international news</a>. Thunberg is 17.<br /><br />
Australia's government approved the coal project last year. Today Australia is burning. The fires and drought, climate scientists insist, are driven by climate change driven, in turn, by burning fossil fuels.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">It seems that <a href="https://twitter.com/SiemensDE?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SiemensDE</a> have the power to stop, delay or at least interrupt the building of the huge Adani coal mine in Australia. On Monday they will announce their decision. Please help pushing them to make the only right decision. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/StopAdani?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#StopAdani</a></p>— Greta Thunberg (@GretaThunberg) <a href="https://twitter.com/GretaThunberg/status/1215919031494070272?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 11, 2020</a></blockquote>
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In a bid to fluff its environmental bona fides, Siemens offered German environmental activist Luisa Neubauer a seat on the supervisory board of newly created Siemens Energy. Suggesting instead they give the seat instead to a member of pro-environment Scientists for Future, Neubauer <a href="https://www.dw.com/en/thunberg-calls-on-siemens-to-nix-australia-coal-mine-project/a-51966937">declined</a>:
<blockquote>"If [Siemens] is honestly committed to fighting climate change and to Fridays for Future, they will respect my decision," she told the German DPA news agency.</blockquote>
Taking the seat herself would legally limit her ability to speak out against Siemens, she said in a statement. Neubauer is 23.<br /><br />
Neither Thunberg nor Neubauer can vote in U.S. elections this fall. But a lot of Americans of their generation who can, plus many of those up to 40-45, do not. At least not in numbers that would challenge the grip on state and federal decision-making held by us oldsters. I regularly mention this <a href="https://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2020/01/resisting-toxic-bait-by-bloggersrus.html">(click over for the graphic)</a> not to criticize, but to point out that if Americans under 40 vote this fall, in numbers rivaling voters from 40 to, say, 75, they might just SAVE THE WORLD. Literally.<br /><br />
And end Donald Trump's presidency in the bargain.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">How bad can the climate crisis get if Trump wins again? <a href="https://t.co/tMRIdqcakM">https://t.co/tMRIdqcakM</a></p>— Guardian Environment (@guardianeco) <a href="https://twitter.com/guardianeco/status/1216288588578447361?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 12, 2020</a></blockquote>
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U.S. emissions are up slightly over January 2017 when Trump began to roll back environmental regulations for the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/jan/12/climate-crisis-if-trump-wins-again?CMP=twt_a-environment_b-gdneco">oil and gas industry</a>:
<blockquote>Trump is still working to further weaken bedrock standards. This week he proposed to allow major projects like pipelines and highways to <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/jan/09/white-house-projects-permits-climate-impact-plan">bypass reviews</a> of how they will contribute to global warming. The draft rule is unlikely to become final before the November election, but it is yet another reason industries weighing climate choices might delay significant action.<br /><br />
“What they have done is created confusion within the business community and the environmental world as to what are going to be the standards,” said Christine Todd Whitman, who led the Environmental Protection Agency under the Republican president George W Bush. “Essentially every regulation the agency promulgates gets a lawsuit that goes with it, almost inevitably … that’s the only good thing you can say about it.”</blockquote>
Andrew Light, a climate negotiator in the Obama administration, told reporters Americans choosing Trump again would signal the world they don't care about the environment.<br /><br />
<b>To the victor go despoils</b><br /><br />
Meanwhile, Trump has populated the upper ranks of the National Park Service with "anti-public land sycophants," Jonathan B Jarvis and Destry Jarvis write at The Guardian. They administration's anti-NPS animus stems in part from the service reporting smaller crowds on the National Mall for Trump's inauguration than Obama's, they speculate. Next, NPS exiled career Washington staff to the field where they could less effectively resist <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/jan/10/us-national-parks-dismantling-under-way">Trump's agenda</a>:
<blockquote>Then came the decisions to leave the parks <a href="https://psmag.com/news/national-parks-suffered-irreparable-damage-during-the-shutdown">open</a> to impacts during the unfortunate government shutdown, illegally <a href="https://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/460151-federal-watchdog-trump-admin-broke-law-by-pulling-from-park">misuse</a> entrance fees, open park trails to <a href="https://www.nps.gov/orgs/1207/ebikepolicy.htm">e-bikes</a>, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/jul/25/trump-administration-climate-crisis-denying-scientist">suppress</a> climate science, <a href="https://naturalresources.house.gov/media/press-releases/the-trump-administration-proposes-to-roll-back-ban-on-extreme-hunting-tactics-in-alaskas-national-parks">kill</a> wolf pups and bear cubs in their dens to enhance “sport hunting”, <a href="https://www.outsideonline.com/2404058/interior-department-privatizing-campgrounds-plan">privatize</a> campgrounds, and issue <a href="https://www.nationalparkstraveler.org/2019/09/memo-prompts-concerns-national-park-superintendents-are-being-muzzled-regarding-resource">muzzle memos</a> to park managers. With a waiver of environmental laws, bulldozers are <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/464704-video-shows-cacti-being-bulldozed-at-national-monument-during-border">plowing</a> ancient cacti in national parks along the southern border in order to build a wall. Senior career park managers are likely to be replaced with unqualified political hacks.<br /><br />
These are not random actions. This is a systematic dismantling of a beloved institution, like pulling blocks from a Jenga tower, until it collapses. You ask, why on earth would someone want to do that to the popular National Park Service, the subject of one of Ken Burns’ acclaimed documentaries and often called “America’s best idea”?<br /><br />
Because if you want to drill, mine and exploit the public estate for the benefit of the industry, the last thing you want is a popular and respected agency’s voice raising alarms on behalf of conservation and historic preservation.</blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">The great dismantling of America's national parks is under way | Jonathan B Jarvis and Destry Jarvis <a href="https://t.co/GNC4AGkIrS">https://t.co/GNC4AGkIrS</a></p>— The Guardian (@guardian) <a href="https://twitter.com/guardian/status/1215648131397955587?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 10, 2020</a></blockquote>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Pres. Trump today announced another rollback of a major environmental regulation, this time affecting infrastructure projects. <a href="https://t.co/ndLrUPFT7r">https://t.co/ndLrUPFT7r</a></p>— MSNBC (@MSNBC) <a href="https://twitter.com/MSNBC/status/1215600684764188673?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 10, 2020</a></blockquote>
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The political class listens to two things more than people's voices: money and votes. Voters under 30-35 may not have the political-donation clout of their elders, but they have the numbers in raw population to seize not just the attention of their leaders, but control of the levers of power. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez may be a media phenomenon, but she was not a one-off. She turned out the heir-apparent to Nancy Pelosi by turning out underrepresented voters, <a href="https://www.cityandstateny.com/articles/politics/campaigns-elections/how-alexandria-ocasio-cortez-won-race-shocked-country.html">Latinos and younger white voters</a>.<br /><br />
Pew Research <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/05/29/gen-z-millennials-and-gen-x-outvoted-older-generations-in-2018-midterms/">reported last May</a> that voters from 18 to 53 cast slightly more votes than Baby Boomers in 2018. But voters over 40 are already joining their elders among regular voters. Including voters up to 53 obscures significantly less participation among younger voters. Voting among Americans 18-29 may have <a href="https://www.census.gov/library/stories/2019/04/behind-2018-united-states-midterm-election-turnout.html">jumped 79 percent</a> over 2014, but the question is 79 percent over <i>what</i>? <a href="https://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2020/01/resisting-toxic-bait-by-bloggersrus.html">See my graph</a>. <br /><br />
Younger voters can save the world this fall. Literally. Like superheroes.<br /><br />
Their futures and the world itself is in peril. It's dying to get better.<br /><br />
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gsKzZXtF2_U" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><br />
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<b>For The Win</b>, 3rd Edition is ready for download. Request a copy of my free countywide election mechanics guide at <a href="https://www.forthewin.us/">ForTheWin.us</a>. This is <a href="https://t.co/DQde4UbOSh">what winning looks like</a>.<br /><br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4013705.post-27117963127995186182020-01-11T17:30:00.000-08:002020-01-11T17:53:35.070-08:00Just drifting: R.I.P. Buck Henry By Dennis Hartley<div>
<i><b>Saturday Night at the Movies</b></i><br />
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<b>Just drifting: R.I.P. Buck Henry</b><br />
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By Dennis Hartley<br />
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Benjamin: Well, I would say that I’m just drifting. Here in the pool.<br />
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Mr. Braddock: Why?<br />
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Benjamin: Well, it’s very comfortable just to drift here.<br />
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Mr. Braddock: Have you thought about graduate school?<br />
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Benjamin: No.<br />
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Mr. Braddock: Would you mind telling me then what those four years of college were for? What was the point of all that hard work?<br />
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Benjamin: You got me.<br />
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– from The Graduate, screenplay by Buck Henry and Caldar Willingham<br />
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I was saddened to hear about the passing of Buck Henry a few days ago; screenwriter extraordinaire, droll character actor, occasional director and samurai deli enthusiast. He co-created the classic “Get Smart” TV series with Mel Brooks, and co-directed the well-received 1978 comedy-fantasy Heaven Can Wait (a remake of Here Comes Mr. Jordan) with the film’s producer/star/co-writer Warren Beatty (Henry also had an acting part).<br />
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Depending on your age, you may be thinking “Buck who?” or “Oh yeah…the bespectacled guy in all those SNL “Samurai Deli” sketches with Belushi back in the day.” Regardless of your Buck Henry touchstone, know that he brought a lot of laughter to a lot of people…and that’s a good thing. For me, I’ll always remember him for his acting work in films like The Man Who Fell to Earth, Gloria, Eating Raoul, Taking Off, Short Cuts, the Real Blonde, Defending Your Life, and The Player…even if a lot of them were bit parts, he had a knack for understated hilarity. And of course, I’ll remember him for his writing. Here are the Henry-penned films you need to see (alphabetical order).</div>
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<i><b>Candy</b></i> – As far as barely decipherable yet weirdly entertaining films go, you could do worse than Christian Marquand’s 1968 curio. Henry adapted the script from the novel by Terry Southern and Mason Hoffenberg. What I can say with certainty is that there is a protagonist, and her name is Candy Christian. (Ewa Aulin). However, disseminating what this film is “about” remains in the eye of the beholder. Semi-catatonic Candy whoopsie-daisies her way through vaguely connected vignettes awash in patchouli, bongs, beads and Nehru jackets, as a number of men philosophize, pontificate, and (mostly) paw at her.<br />
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Oddly compelling, largely thanks to the cast: Marlon Brando, Richard Burton, James Coburn, John Huston, Walter Matthau, Ringo Starr, John Astin, Anita Pallenberg, Sugar Ray Robinson (don’t ask), and a host of others. Henry has a cameo as a mental patient.<br />
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Interesting sidebar: Director Marquand (also an actor) appeared in Francis Ford Coppola’s Apocalypse Now. His lengthy monologue in the “French plantation” scene originally ended up on the cutting room floor but was resurrected for the “Redux” and “Final Cut” versions that Coppola has assembled in recent years. He died in 2000.<br />
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<i><b>Catch-22 --</b></i></div>
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Yossarian: Ok, let me see if I’ve got this straight. In order to be grounded, I’ve got to be crazy. And I must be crazy to keep flying. But if I ask to be grounded, that means I’m not crazy anymore, and I have to keep flying.<br />
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Dr. ‘Doc’ Daneeka: You got it, that’s Catch-22.<br />
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Yossarian: Whoo… That’s some catch, that Catch-22.<br />
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Dr. ‘Doc’ Daneeka: It’s the best there is.<br />
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Anyone who has read and appreciated the beautifully precise absurdity of Joseph Heller’s eponymous 1961 novel about the ugly and imprecise madness of war knows it is virtually “un-filmable”. And yet…Buck Henry did a pretty good job of condensing it into a two-hour screenplay (although arguably some of the best exchanges in the film are those left virtually unchanged from the book). Of course, it didn’t hurt to have a great director (Mike Nichols) and such a fabulous cast: Alan Arkin, Martin Balsalm, Richard Benjamin, Art Gafunkel, Jack Gilford, Bob Newhart, Anthony Perkins, Paula Prentiss, Martin Sheen, Jon Voight, Orson Welles, Charles Grodin, Bob Balaban, et. al., with Henry playing the part of “Colonel Korn”. I think this 50-year-old film has improved with age.<span style="color: #27292b; font-family: "lato" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px; height: auto; line-height: 0; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial;"></span></span></div>
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<i><b>Day of the Dolphin</b></i> – “Fa loves Pa!” This offbeat 1973 sci-fi film marked the third collaboration between Henry and director Mike Nichols. Henry adapted from Robert Merle’s novel. George C. Scott is excellent in the lead role as a marine biologist who has developed a method for training dolphins to communicate in human language. Naturally, there is a shadowy cabal of government spooks who take keen interest in this scientific breakthrough. Unique and involving. I like to call this one a conspira‘sea’ thriller (sorry).<br />
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<i><b>The Graduate</b></i> – “Aw gee, Mrs. Robinson.” It could be argued that those were the four words in this 1967 Mike Nichols film that made Dustin Hoffman a star. With hindsight being 20/20, it’s impossible to imagine any other actor in the role of hapless college grad Benjamin Braddock…even if Hoffman (30 at the time) was a bit long in the tooth to be playing a 21-year-old character.<br />
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Poor Benjamin just wants to take a nice summer breather before facing adult responsibilities, but his pushy parents would rather he focus on career advancement immediately, if not sooner. Little do his parents realize that in their enthusiasm, they’ve inadvertently pushed their son right into the sack with randy Mrs. Robinson (Anne Bancroft), wife of his Dad’s business partner (the original cougar?). Things get complicated after Benjamin meets his lover’s daughter (Katharine Ross).<br />
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<i><b>The Owl and the Pussycat</b></i> – George Segal plays a reclusive, egghead NYC writer and Barbra Streisand is a perfect foil in one of her best comedic turns as a profane, boisterous hooker in this classic “oil and water” farce, directed by Herbert Ross. Serendipity throws the two odd bedfellows together one fateful evening, and the resulting mayhem is crude, lewd, and funny as hell. Buck Henry adapted his screenplay from Bill Manhoff’s original stage version. Robert Klein is wonderfully droll in a small but memorable role. My favorite line: “Doris…you’re a sexual Disneyland!”<br />
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<i><b>To Die For</b></i> – Gus van Sant’s 1995 mockumentary centers on an ambitious young woman (Nicole Kidman, in one of her best performances) who aspires to elevate herself from “weather girl” at a small market TV station in New England to star news anchor, posthaste. A calculating sociopath from the word go, she marries into a wealthy family, but decides to discard her husband (Matt Dillon) the nanosecond he asks her to consider putting her career on hold so they can start a family (discard…with extreme prejudice)<div>
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Buck Henry based his script on Joyce Maynard’s true crime book about the Pamela Smart case (the most obvious difference being that Smart was a teacher and not an aspiring media star, although it could be argued that during the course of her highly publicized trial, she did become one). A barbed and darkly funny meditation on the cult of celebrity.<div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 1.5em;">
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<i><b>What’s Up, Doc?</b></i> – Peter Bogdanovich’s 1972 film is an entertaining love letter to classic screwball comedies of the 30s and 40s (the most obvious influence is Bringing Up Baby), with great use of San Francisco locations. Ryan O’Neal and Barbara Streisand have wonderful chemistry as the romantic leads, who meet cute and become involved in a hotel mix-up of four identical suitcases that rapidly snowballs into a series of increasingly preposterous situations for all concerned (as occurs in your typical screwball comedy). Henry gets top billing on the script, co-written with David Newman and Robert Benton. The cast includes Madeline Kahn, Kenneth Mars, Austin Pendleton and Michael Murphy.<div>
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<i>--- Dennis Hartley</i></div>
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dphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17088289159242476175noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4013705.post-53005210803232381402020-01-11T16:00:00.000-08:002020-01-11T16:27:03.391-08:00It looks like he wants to take Iraq's oil money<b>It looks like he wants to take Iraq's oil money</b><br />
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by digby<br />
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It's not as if we haven't done enough to those poor people. If he can't "take" the oil itself, he's just going to steal their money:<br />
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The Wall Street Journal <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-warns-iraq-it-risks-losing-access-to-key-bank-account-if-troops-told-to-leave-11578759629?mod=mhp">reported Saturday</a> that the State Department threatened to cut off Iraq’s New York Fed account in a phone call Wednesday with Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi, according to unnamed Iraqi officials. The resulting cash shortage would hurt Iraq’s economy. </blockquote>
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Many countries maintain accounts with the New York Fed in order to store government revenue in the form of U.S. dollars. In Iraq’s case, much of that comes from oil sales.</blockquote>
Even Laura Ingraham gets a little squeamish over this stuff:<br />
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Here’s a preposterously spray-tanned President of the United States bragging about war crimes on TV tonight. This is normal now. <a href="https://t.co/jDYeNzYLeW">pic.twitter.com/jDYeNzYLeW</a></div>
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) <a href="https://twitter.com/atrupar/status/1215834911015428096?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 11, 2020</a></blockquote>
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dphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17088289159242476175noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4013705.post-26927480521637839542020-01-11T14:00:00.000-08:002020-01-11T16:08:15.350-08:00<b>Purple state blues</b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/proxy/AVvXsEg9XC2W9Ar1zjDA3k0JF1OhC38vEP3i-4jBndptLySsYRPAHofol1GLgqIVnHv2WXd87rfdz89ir-9OT6rnsNcWDl0sI9ZJJZnc4KEYu1j45cw3eulYrastbWhUfsjE4myJ8-xMMAjmCMUruyhpLp-VucxL_-P1I5M=s0-d-e1-ft"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/proxy/AVvXsEg9XC2W9Ar1zjDA3k0JF1OhC38vEP3i-4jBndptLySsYRPAHofol1GLgqIVnHv2WXd87rfdz89ir-9OT6rnsNcWDl0sI9ZJJZnc4KEYu1j45cw3eulYrastbWhUfsjE4myJ8-xMMAjmCMUruyhpLp-VucxL_-P1I5M=s0-d-e1-ft" width="400" /></a><br />
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It’s hard out here for a Trumpie. Doug Collins has a problem. He’s a hero to the far right. But Georgia’s going purple and he’s running for the Senate.<br />
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Via <a href="https://nomoremister.blogspot.com/2020/01/doug-collins-apologizes-pisses-off-rank.html">NMMB</a>, take a look:<br />
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Uh oh:</div>
<span style="color: #27292b; font-family: "lato" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px; height: auto; line-height: 0; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial;"><img alt="" class="CToWUd a6T" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/proxy/AVvXsEjiW7cX_QTQ90ezajC3hwChmSWtu7n0xQe4A8yCreEzlvF0ytCeymSMRTTnCOUc1-t1PMVEJeL60BPnb_n_JnTpSGc_61_Ij2ZfBRsVm36KKneFgrRsu6WqgX7UMdgKYoOq_o5AEqFOxGjvT41Mr0ZvT6qqL3JZjay_IbiGGqGbp_LNFTSmqcNC2dOyiG_0oJkmAcIr=s0-d-e1-ft" style="box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; height: auto; line-height: 0; max-width: 100%; outline: 0px;" tabindex="0" /><img alt="" class="CToWUd a6T" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/proxy/AVvXsEhcHfXVOblTHACVkZ9XC0U24o_7A0kuGavtEleyqVRyxcyRLjbZyqpkB66rMHe45Tb9LqZBkrvG4Y3eutFute8HIWTQ-SHDmYvRGKPKhqp-a_-RZ4NexmaPjlzmu8kB7XMBXn2THp7Gc2R5uEOBqZgC71u0P0OpDqnUFE3c0ef5YnvWEe9nDzglUY-zf_WmziexOBPCaAc=s0-d-e1-ft" style="box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; height: auto; line-height: 0; max-width: 100%; outline: 0px;" tabindex="0" /></span></span></div>
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Better be careful Dougie. You have competition for the seat from the right and from the left.</div>
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dphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17088289159242476175noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4013705.post-34223347292936101882020-01-11T10:00:00.000-08:002020-01-11T10:17:55.726-08:00Let's not forget who worked with Suleimani's IRGC<b>Let's not forget who worked with Suleimani's IRGC</b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDnZF8DI6eQYqpHSNMt_5wDm_2tCrKkCPkqcB6IhgxUchrBIky5ma9-Qf_Qsm12ouONLXo__jOqfk2AEcZ5USysKfDyHeyEsDDNjjgDoo6RQ0l-nw-m5Esmb8lsEF2vs5zXn97bg/s1600/170313_r29531.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDnZF8DI6eQYqpHSNMt_5wDm_2tCrKkCPkqcB6IhgxUchrBIky5ma9-Qf_Qsm12ouONLXo__jOqfk2AEcZ5USysKfDyHeyEsDDNjjgDoo6RQ0l-nw-m5Esmb8lsEF2vs5zXn97bg/s640/170313_r29531.jpg" width="640" /></a>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck">
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The IRGC air force shot down the Ukrainian airliner. <br /><br />The IRGC air force is THE entity that Ivanka and the Trump Org knowingly aided in money laundering and other illicit acts. <br /><br />It's all fact-checked and acknowledged by the Trump Org. <a href="https://t.co/i5fLaIxhiO">https://t.co/i5fLaIxhiO</a></div>
— Adam Davidson (@adamdavidson) <a href="https://twitter.com/adamdavidson/status/1216004137168654338?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 11, 2020</a></blockquote>
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<blockquote>
Before signing a deal with a foreign partner, American companies, including major hotel chains, conduct risk assessments and background checks that take a close look at the country, the prospective partner, and the people involved. Countless accounting and law firms perform this service, as do many specialized investigation companies; a baseline report normally costs between ten thousand and twenty-five thousand dollars. A senior executive at one of the largest American hotel chains, who asked for anonymity because he feared reprisal from the Trump Administration, said, “We wouldn’t look at due diligence as a burden. There certainly is a cost to doing it, especially in higher-risk places. But it’s as much an investment in the protection of that brand. It’s money well spent.” </blockquote>
<blockquote>
Alan Garten told me that the Trump Organization had commissioned a risk assessment for the Baku deal, but declined to name the company that had performed it. The Washington Post article on the Baku project reported that, according to Garten, the Trump Organization had undertaken “extensive due diligence” before making the hotel deal and had not discovered “any red flags.”
But the Mammadov family, in addition to its reputation for corruption, has a troubling connection that any proper risk assessment should have unearthed: for years, it has been financially entangled with an Iranian family tied to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, the ideologically driven military force. In 2008, the year that the tower was announced, Ziya Mammadov, in his role as Transportation Minister, awarded a series of multimillion-dollar contracts to Azarpassillo, an Iranian construction company. Keyumars Darvishi, its chairman, fought in the Iran-Iraq War. After the war, he became the head of Raman, an Iranian construction firm that is controlled by the Revolutionary Guard. The U.S. government has regularly accused the Guard of criminal activity, including drug trafficking, sponsoring terrorism abroad, and money laundering. Reuters recently reported that the Trump Administration was poised to officially condemn the Revolutionary Guard as a terrorist organization.
I asked Garten how deeply the Trump Organization had looked into the Mammadov family’s political connections. Had it been concerned that Elton Mammadov, as a sitting member of parliament, might exploit his power to benefit the project? How much money had Ziya Mammadov invested in Elton’s company? </blockquote>
<blockquote>
Garten noted that he didn’t oversee the due-diligence process. “The people who did are no longer at the company,” he said. “I can’t tell you what was done in this situation.” He would not identify the former employees. When I asked him to provide documentation of due diligence, he said that he couldn’t share it with me, because “it’s confidential and privileged.”</blockquote>
I think it's pretty clear they did not do it, don't you? Also, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/jan/09/trump-jr-ivanka-trump-condos-scheme-book">they wouldn't have care if they did. </a><br />
<blockquote>
Donald Trump Jr and Ivanka Trump took part in a fraudulent scheme to sell units in a luxury New York condominium-hotel and “knew they were lying”, according to a new book that explores how the current US president built his business empire.
Questions have long surrounded a criminal investigation into the Trump family’s dealings around the Trump SoHo that was dropped in 2011. Public disclosure of email correspondence revealed that Don Jr and Ivanka knowingly used figures that exaggerated how well the condos were selling in a ploy to lure more buyers.
The episode is re-examined with fresh reporting by the journalist Andrea Bernstein in her book American Oligarchs: The Kushners, The Trumps And The Marriage Of Money And Power, a copy of which was obtained by the Guardian.</blockquote>
I've written about this before although the new details sound like hey are even more devastating. It was first reported in the Pro-Publica WNYC series called Trump Inc, which I've been pimping on this blog since it first started. Ivanka routinely, knowingly committed fraud as the top saleswoman for all their fake condo developments. (they were just licensing deals although she didn't reveal that to buyers.)<br />
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N<a href="https://www.politico.com/states/new-york/whiteboard/2020/01/10/de-blasio-says-trump-organization-tax-practices-referred-to-da-1248913">ow they may actually be in trouble</a>. After all, if we're lucky they only have another year of the protection of he White House:
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<blockquote>
The de Blasio administration has referred findings from a review of the Trump Organization's property tax filings to the Manhattan district attorney's office, Mayor Bill de Blasio said Friday morning.
In October, WNYC and ProPublica reported that President Donald Trump's business portfolio cited lower income from one of its properties — 40 Wall Street — in an appeal of its property tax assessment, but reported higher values on a loan document for the same building.
In October, WNYC reported that President Donald Trump's business portfolio would cite lower income from its properties when reporting to the Department of Finance, which is in charge of levying property taxes, but would report higher values when speaking with investors.</blockquote>
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dphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17088289159242476175noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4013705.post-27559800055947275632020-01-11T06:00:00.000-08:002020-01-11T06:00:06.623-08:00You can't win if you don't show up to play by @BloggersRUs<p><b>You can't win if you don't show up to play</b></p><p>
by Tom Sullivan</p><p>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX9amAbNZ5ChKcvHDkVMXKeOEYS7iKA2ayWozFbnHaVzxFj64NWzYeOiSHUpnYVJ6pP9Eb1p6ue774PVqPJ75HYYTUUlWjklZgTn2GEMDylCQyWe3awNYylgzGo6tWGX8414an/s1600/Cover+shot+3rdEd.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX9amAbNZ5ChKcvHDkVMXKeOEYS7iKA2ayWozFbnHaVzxFj64NWzYeOiSHUpnYVJ6pP9Eb1p6ue774PVqPJ75HYYTUUlWjklZgTn2GEMDylCQyWe3awNYylgzGo6tWGX8414an/s400/Cover+shot+3rdEd.jpg" width="307" height="400" data-original-width="1227" data-original-height="1600" /></a><p>
Troublesome Gap is not just a place uphill from our farmhouse. It's the hole in Democrats' grassroots training. Candidates and campaign staff? There are multi-day seminars for them. At the precinct-level? State parties each year run new recruits through basic training: precinct organizing, canvassing, pulling lists from the voter file. <br /><br />
Fine. But now you've volunteered to run the county committee. My county is 660 sq. mi., 193,000 registered voters, with 2-1/2 weeks of early voting at 20 sites, 80 precincts on Election Day this fall, and maybe three dozen Democrats on the ballot. As chair, what is <i>your</i> job? Ask precincts to organize <i>harder</i>?<br /><br />
After <b>For The Win</b> rolled out in 2018, a woman emailed to say she'd never gotten off her couch before Donald Trump's election. A year later, she was party chair in a red county in a purple state and faced with organizing her first get-out-the-vote effort ... ever. The people she replaced left her with nothing. Her district chair was incommunicado. The state party wouldn't return her calls. I was the first person from the Democratic Party to offer her help to do her job.<br /><br />
That fall, I asked the former mayor of a major American city why so many Democratic committees across his state could not muster so much as a free Facebook page. Oh, they have them, the mayor said, brushing away the question. The aide standing off his shoulder lowered his eyes and shook his head, no.<br /><br />
There's that troublesome gap. Democrats out there have no "game." Other than learning by the seat of your pants over multiple election cycles, there is no training on how to coordinate GOTV efforts across an entire county. Well, almost none.<br /><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWd-uDdFL3AajYysqfw_CaIg0dl1dNB1vlnZshIzdbWHj40IcOOZtDunyV-khTWJEia4yOIBqqE_14jWDFJM8vI1nH5cTznZ8JjJwfjp4XMzy_4aoDKcK2WzLZMDcE71qgElq1/s1600/Map+reach.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWd-uDdFL3AajYysqfw_CaIg0dl1dNB1vlnZshIzdbWHj40IcOOZtDunyV-khTWJEia4yOIBqqE_14jWDFJM8vI1nH5cTznZ8JjJwfjp4XMzy_4aoDKcK2WzLZMDcE71qgElq1/s400/Map+reach.jpg" width="400" height="273" data-original-width="1600" data-original-height="1090" /></a><p>
Gov. Howard Dean hoped to address that gap with his 50-state plan.<br /><br />
“We’re going to be in places where the Democratic Party hasn’t been in 25 years. If you don’t show up in 60 percent of the country, you don’t win, and that’s not going to happen anymore,” Dean, then DNC chair, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/01/magazine/01dean.html">told</a> the New York Times. He meant to grow the party out of the boom-and-bust adolescence of presidential years and maybe <a href="https://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2017/07/and-im-all-out-of-bubblegum-by.html">build some enduring infrastructure</a>. His plan <a href="http://voices.washingtonpost.com/thefix/democratic-party/dean-to-step-down-as-dnc-chair.html">did not survive</a> Barack Obama's election.<br /><br />
Democrats lose in places they haven't been in (now well over) 25 years because training county leadership how to elect a full slate of local officials ... who become state officials ... who become federal officials ... is in no one's mission statement and no one's budget. National Democrats put money behind federal candidates. Candidates put theirs behind themselves. For state parties with limited bandwidth and budget, it's all they can do to manage precinct training.<br /><br />
County activists outside major cities must fend for themselves with minimal resources. They don't know what they don't know, and it's not their fault. "You can't be it if you don't see it," a community organizer told Netroots Nation last summer in Philadelphia. Out where the big campaigns don't go, locals never see how it's done. So, I'm showing them. <br /><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPMhy_ZrXJGILfKCX5NnZi1ZlMiQhKwYizCikq3aFzuce__iI3f9aS_YTFNTnYVQ4H9_xbsi1iZ_EaI3WChqUkxTnglubpezD_nLybfORzQVGPsruqQsS-QTM9oO9WFmrgBwOc/s1600/IMG_20190331_134733.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPMhy_ZrXJGILfKCX5NnZi1ZlMiQhKwYizCikq3aFzuce__iI3f9aS_YTFNTnYVQ4H9_xbsi1iZ_EaI3WChqUkxTnglubpezD_nLybfORzQVGPsruqQsS-QTM9oO9WFmrgBwOc/s400/IMG_20190331_134733.jpg" width="400" height="300" data-original-width="1600" data-original-height="1200" /></a><p>
<b>For The Win</b> (3rd Ed.) is now on its way to as many county committees as have any digital footprint. There are roughly <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/County_(United_States)">3,200 counties</a> or county equivalents in the 50 states, the territories, and the District. It's not a large market, and an under-resourced one. That's why <b>For The Win</b> is free. (I accept donations.) From planning to poll greeting, sample ballots to rides to the polls, the primer is field-tested to help even the smallest counties assemble a high-energy GOTV program with little money and limited computer skills. Because that's where most county committees are. No strategy, no messaging, no targeting. This is not a manual. It's a cookbook.<br /><br />
After them, I contact district and statewide candidates in key states. They have a vested interest in getting themselves elected. They need ground support and have leverage I don't with county committees. This is a census year. State legislatures are at stake and U.S. Senate seats. Texas and Wisconsin will get special attention. <br /><br />
Activists in Idaho wrote after 2018 to say they won two state legislative seats Democrats had never held. "Your book inspired us to get started in 2018 ... best Dem turnout in a decade," said someone on my digital tools webinar on Sunday. An activist in southeast Alaska wrote to ask about the update. There are many more users in Florida. It's enough to keep going.<br /><br />
For recipients reluctant to click a download link from someone they don't know (I wouldn't), this cycle I've launched a <a href="https://www.forthewin.us/">website</a> where they can request the guide.<br /><br />
You can't win if you don't show up to play. You can't compete if you don't have <i>game</i>.<br /><br />
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<b>For The Win</b>, 3rd Edition is ready for download. Request a copy of my free countywide election mechanics guide at <a href="https://www.forthewin.us/">ForTheWin.us</a>. This is <a href="https://t.co/DQde4UbOSh">what winning looks like</a>.<br /><br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4013705.post-62111544822155767042020-01-10T17:00:00.000-08:002020-01-10T17:00:00.589-08:00Friday Night Soother<b>Friday Night Soother</b><br />
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I know that the animal lovers who enjoy the Friday Night Soother are already heartsick over what's happening in Australia. I'm not going to feature any of the video because I know you've all seen it and it's horrifying. They are estimating that one billion animals have perished and untold numbers will be on the endangered species list if not actually extinct.<br />
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It is a nightmare.<br />
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Obviously, the most important thing all humans can do is work to ensure that this planet confronts the climate crisis<i> immediately. </i>We all have to vote for leaders that take the crisis seriously and are willing to put it at the very top of the agenda. Australia's Prime Minister is a coal fanatic who believes in the Rapture. He's certainly not going to do anything to mitigate this kind of disaster. You already know our own president is so daft that he incoherently claims that he doesn't think climate change is a hoax because he likes clean air and water --- as he's curtailing regulations that have been in place for more than 50 years to clean up our air and water.<br />
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There are some small direct ways to help the Australian wildlife:<br />
<blockquote>
In order to help injured and displaced animals, organizations need monetary support to meet new demands. <a href="https://www.wires.org.au/">WIRES</a>, an emergency fund for wildlife, has seen a spike in rescues since the bushfires started: “In December alone there were over 20,000 calls to WIRES 1300 line, a 14 percent increase on last year, and volunteers attended over 3,300 rescues,” WIRES wrote on their <a href="https://www.wires.org.au/">website</a>. You can make a donation to WIRES on their <a href="https://www.facebook.com/donate/1386120504919105/10158318179549750/">Facebook page</a> or via <a href="https://www.paypal.com/au/fundraiser/112574447199339912/charity/3562115">PayPal</a>.<br />
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The <a href="https://www.rspcansw.org.au/">RSPCA</a> is also accepting donations to help with their efforts of gathering and evacuating threatened animals, as well as assisting at evacuation centers. Their staff will also be entering affected areas to treat injured animals and pets. You can make a donation to the <a href="https://www.rspcansw.org.au/bushfire-appeal/">RSPCA NSW here</a>.<br />
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To help koalas displaced by the fires, you can give to the <a href="https://www.wwf.org.au/get-involved/bushfire-emergency#gs.q42ou9">World Wildlife Fund</a>, who will be using donations to help restore the “Koala Triangle," a portion of Australia’s east coast hit hardest by the fires. In addition, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/koalahospital/">Port Macquarie Koala Hospital</a> is installing koala water stations in burnt areas, as well as establishing the world’s first wild koala breeding program. You can donate to their <a href="https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-thirsty-koalas-devastated-by-recent-fires">GoFundMe here</a>.</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
The gift of food and supplies can go a long way for rescue groups and shelters in need. If you prefer to donate items rather than cash, <a href="https://therescuecollective.com/">The Rescue Collective</a>, a group based in Brisbane, is gathering food, medical supplies, bedding and more — you can check out their <a href="https://www.facebook.com/therescuecollective/">current wish list on Facebook</a>.<br /><br />Those who enjoy crafting, sewing or knitting can contribute to the efforts of the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/arfsncrafts/?__tn__=kCH-R&eid=ARBw55jub5tPm9A5shKfOVaGGqfIIF6QyhzBZwscQnEhOQj9375H4Y3RqnhoA1hc4nfxpKv_T6P-Wd_m&hc_ref=ARQP5W0AwiIFhu932jsR0w1DRK4k2OZKFjC7maYnd9n689r92bjvOevc_PaShDnwDHA&fref=nf">Animal Rescue Collective Craft Guild</a> by making bedding, bandages, joey pouches and more for injured or orphaned animals. Find out how on the guild's <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/arfsncrafts/permalink/2929892950396581/">Facebook page</a>.</blockquote>
<a href="https://www.thedodo.com/in-the-wild/how-to-help-animals-australia-fires">I got those links from the Dodo</a>. I'm sure there are others. And if you are a praying person, spare one for those critters.<br />
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.dphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17088289159242476175noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4013705.post-13589855583234186502020-01-10T15:00:00.000-08:002020-01-10T15:00:05.184-08:00I'm just going to leave this here.<div class="tr_bq">
<b>I'm just going to leave this here.</b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh10oFnCK7hlKaleDF48cO-rJrUto_jSV48TkU4P9QOgDxaN9abLL4rUvqZDYsilytnlH7FufC3MIFgDyYi_iroQQyXMIgM0YfAXcirPs19TjR9CxyWe4kO7ZV1AoQ4HUMDeEnOA/s1600/Screenshot+2020-01-10+at+1.22.03+PM.png" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" data-original-height="542" data-original-width="1259" height="275" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh10oFnCK7hlKaleDF48cO-rJrUto_jSV48TkU4P9QOgDxaN9abLL4rUvqZDYsilytnlH7FufC3MIFgDyYi_iroQQyXMIgM0YfAXcirPs19TjR9CxyWe4kO7ZV1AoQ4HUMDeEnOA/s640/Screenshot+2020-01-10+at+1.22.03+PM.png" width="640" /></a>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizZj_X7guyM3fu88bQhdvZ59icGVCLxvWOIfiYwRjhvFhxb-oO_StwG_xg6Ngn3hzXsuZg63dBO2usXtje0pJR_PWHl1UzwbjCGBrUPr848827rj4U-5QG58dlWllwc_GSU0jLkQ/s1600/Screenshot+2020-01-10+at+1.44.19+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="130" data-original-width="967" height="43" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizZj_X7guyM3fu88bQhdvZ59icGVCLxvWOIfiYwRjhvFhxb-oO_StwG_xg6Ngn3hzXsuZg63dBO2usXtje0pJR_PWHl1UzwbjCGBrUPr848827rj4U-5QG58dlWllwc_GSU0jLkQ/s320/Screenshot+2020-01-10+at+1.44.19+PM.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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<blockquote>
<br />
Building on the epic 13 year and 18 event legacy of The 21 Convention for men and fathers, The 22 Convention: Make Women Great Again℠ makes it debut in our founding city of Orlando, Florida. Women today are being taught to act more like men. Where has that led us? Skyrocketing rates of broken families, a documented decline in female unhappiness since the 1970s, endless social and dating dysfunction, and America at the #1 spot in the world for single motherhood. </blockquote>
<blockquote>
No longer will you have to give in to toxic bullying feminist dogma and go against your ancient, biological nature as a woman, the men have arrived to help #MWGA.
EXPERIENCE a miraculous three day (and night) event with iconic speakers gathered from the worldwide manosphere community to help you dramatically improve your life as a woman and total femininity.
Brought together to create positive media for women, make women great again, and to help supercharge your personal growth on the path to becoming your very own ideal woman.</blockquote>
Here's one of their videos from the Men's convention:<br />
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<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Oq8FAou_oGQ" width="560"></iframe>
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It's real.<br />
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.dphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17088289159242476175noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4013705.post-83971390806874349282020-01-10T13:00:00.000-08:002020-01-10T13:16:24.593-08:00Who wants to be the next Andy McCabe?<b>Who wants to be the next Andy McCabe?</b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicctWj1aMgrhqHCFZLDw6VuD2yl0dxegnOE3dTtBAZjz_5HSQeq-IGtE-QOjTGfXGDrXpkXLlTDn8XfMXgmlM0-dKgBx0BOkaAmUnYtAPbmBLZiM53AAWhrohU4qjSzklMCbtzJg/s1600/tenor.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="207" data-original-width="220" height="376" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicctWj1aMgrhqHCFZLDw6VuD2yl0dxegnOE3dTtBAZjz_5HSQeq-IGtE-QOjTGfXGDrXpkXLlTDn8XfMXgmlM0-dKgBx0BOkaAmUnYtAPbmBLZiM53AAWhrohU4qjSzklMCbtzJg/s400/tenor.gif" width="400" /></a></div>
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Via TPM, <a href="https://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/all-in-plain-sight-folks">here's one you won't believe:</a><br />
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The U.S. government is investigating whether Russia is targeting Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden in the run-up to the 2020 elections, <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-01-10/u-s-probes-if-russia-targeting-biden-in-2020-election-meddling">Bloomberg reports</a>.The probe reportedly focuses on whether Russia’s continuing U.S. disinformation efforts are aimed at damaging Biden’s candidacy. That investigation at least partly focuses on whether the allegations against Biden regarding his work on the Ukraine crisis as vice president were spawned by Russian intelligence.<br />
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Many of those allegations have been spurred by President Trump and his personal attorney Rudy Giuliani, who traveled to Kyiv in December to speak with Ukrainians who were propagating the accusations. Bloomberg’s <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-01-10/u-s-probes-if-russia-targeting-biden-in-2020-election-meddling">report suggests</a> that U.S. intelligence and law enforcement agencies are looking into whether the allegations were created and propagated by the Russian government.</blockquote>
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I don't know what to say. Of course the government should look into this. But how in the world is this going to work out in light of the fact that Donald Trump himself is largely responsible for spreading the Russian disinformation?<br />
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The mind boggles.<br />
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Stay tuned. This is going to get weird.<br />
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.dphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17088289159242476175noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4013705.post-51836914681394017512020-01-10T09:30:00.000-08:002020-01-10T09:30:03.238-08:00Will Trump bring the House freakshow into the Senate?<b>Will Trump bring the House freakshow into the Senate?
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtYF6wt-NiYnlIf1AeLgRr8QGp-6NI7zHIeFh9Ny11XrKzyAz9WkGZdrepXID25twn8Yq8EMdPu65HpwXuMx2il5OuHbKrnJoXev7K1HDvEFeZr7i0CpNs7JTWFO5We7wKpbNsig/s1600/collinsdoug_jordanjim_ratcliffejohn_121319gn_as.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="551" data-original-width="980" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtYF6wt-NiYnlIf1AeLgRr8QGp-6NI7zHIeFh9Ny11XrKzyAz9WkGZdrepXID25twn8Yq8EMdPu65HpwXuMx2il5OuHbKrnJoXev7K1HDvEFeZr7i0CpNs7JTWFO5We7wKpbNsig/s400/collinsdoug_jordanjim_ratcliffejohn_121319gn_as.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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It's not hard to understand why Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Vice President Mike Pence were able to persuade President Trump to dramatically escalate tensions with Iran by assassinating Gen. Qassem Soleimani. All you had to do was read Trump's Twitter feed over his long holiday break at Mar-a-Lago to see that he was nearly hysterical over the impeachment, stressed beyond his limits and clearly vulnerable to any suggestion that would give him a sense of control over his destiny. There’s nothing like military action to make a leader feel strong and in charge.<br />
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Unfortunately for the president, the turbocharged news cycle of this era offered him only a short respite from his troubles. Pulled back from the brink of war, mostly due to the restrained response of the Iranians, impeachment headlines returned the minute former national security adviser John Bolton made the surprising announcement that he would be willing to testify if the Senate subpoenaed him. (Before the Trump era, responding to subpoenas was not considered optional, but now we know that presidential VIPs can tell the Congress to go pound sand and basically that’s that.)<br />
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The stand-off between House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell over the conduct of the trial has been an epic contest of wills between two of the most formidable congressional leaders in American history. Of the two, Pelosi was dealt the weaker hand since she only has half of Congress while the Republicans have both the Senate and the presidency. But she’s kept her caucus together, which is no mean feat in itself, and has managed to squeeze quite a bit out of her delay in sending the articles of impeachment to the Senate.<br />
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Since the impeachment vote, we've had Rudy Giuliani <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2019/12/19/journalists-blast-one-america-news-series-giuliani-087893">running back and forth</a> to Ukraine, demonstrating for all the world that this scheme to smear Joe Biden and the Democrats with corruption charges and an alternate 2016 election interference scandal is ongoing. He attended parties at Mar-a-Lago over the holidays and bizarrely told the press that he would like to <a href="https://www.salon.com/2020/01/02/giuliani-offers-to-do-what-i-do-best-id-love-to-try-the-case-against-trump-in-the-senate/">“try the case” in the Senate </a>when the press asked if he would testify.<br />
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Since that momentous vote, there have also been revelations about Giuliani and Trump’s indicted “associates” Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman, with <a href="https://www.haaretz.com/us-news/giuliani-parnas-and-russian-money-the-other-scandal-rocking-trump-world-1.8293470">reporting</a> about hidden Russian money and hints that it might have been paying Giuliani’s fees. (He says he works for Trump pro bono.) Parnas is desperate to talk to the House Intelligence Committee and <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/lev-parnas-rudy-giuliani-associate-pushes-to-share-his-information-with-the-house-intelligence-committee">wants to make a deal</a>. It turns out Parnas and Fruman were involved in potentially <a href="https://apnews.com/7f97eac651e7ada92fed6480e70dce1b">lucrative side deals</a> to sell large quantities of liquefied natural gas from Texas to Ukraine in exchange for the firing of the former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, Marie Yovanovitch.<br />
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In a mind-boggling<a href="http://nymag.com/intelligencer/2019/12/a-conversation-with-rudy-giuliani-over-bloody-marys.html"> interview</a> with New York Magazine, Giuliani said in one breath that he has no business in Ukraine and then admits “I’ve done two business deals in Ukraine. I’ve sought four or five others.” So perhaps this was one of them.<br />
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Right before Christmas, <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2019/12/21/politics/emails-ukraine-aid-timeline/">new emails were revealed</a> under Freedom of Information Act requests that showed Trump political appointee Mike Duffey, the White House official in the Office of Management and Budget responsible for overseeing national security money, telling people that the hold on military aid to Ukraine was at the personal direction of the president.<br />
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And just before the New Year, the New York Times <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/29/us/politics/trump-ukraine-military-aid.html?action=click&module=Top%20Stories&pgtype=Homepage">published a deep dive </a>into what was happening in the White House last summer when Trump and Giuliani were pushing their plot. We learned for the first time that the Pentagon pushed hard for the money and that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Defense Secretary Mark Esper and Bolton met privately with Trump in August to try to persuade him that withholding the aid was not in America’s national interest. Trump was unmoved.<br />
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Just this week, as I mentioned above, Bolton sent a letter saying that he would testify if the Senate subpoenaed him. (He also mentioned that he’d talked it over with McConnell, which suggests to me that he is not on the up and up.) Nonetheless, if his intention is to cover for Trump he would have to call a whole bunch of people liars, since they all testified that he was extremely agitated about the “drug deal” that Giuliani and Trump were cooking up.<br />
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All of this has happened since the impeachment vote and every one of the vulnerable Republican senators up for re-election this year has to wonder what other crimes they’ll be defending next fall if they vote to acquit now without even a semblance of a real trial. At least if they have witnesses, they can say they did their duty as they saw it.<br />
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Trump himself insists that he wants witnesses — but then, he also insisted that he wanted to talk to Robert Mueller and wanted to release his tax returns. One remaining question is whether or not the president will insist on sending in his henchmen from the House, like Jim Jordan of Ohio, John Ratcliffe of Texas and Doug Collins of Georgia, as part of his defense team in a Senate trial. <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/house-republicans-push-to-join-trumps-defense-team-in-senate-impeachment-trial/2020/01/08/3797e174-3230-11ea-9313-6cba89b1b9fb_story.html">According</a> to the Washington Post, the senators are not enthusiastic about the House riffraff making a scene. McConnell has supposedly told the White House that their histrionics might offend the moderates. But Trump still wants some kind of a show, so who knows?<br />
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On Thursday a number of news organizations reported that Pelosi is preparing to send over the articles as early as Friday, which suggests the trial will probably commence next week. McConnell has at least capitulated to the request that there will be a vote to call witnesses after the House presents its case, and there appears to be some openness to that among the so-called moderates. That was not a given in the beginning. Putting some distance between the hearings and the trial will make the evidence seem fresher and gives Democrats as opportunity to reframe the question around what the White House is hiding by refusing to allow Bolton, Duffey, acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney and others to testify.<br />
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As for the public, the latest Morning Consult/Economist<a href="https://morningconsult.com/2020/01/08/most-voters-want-more-impeachment-witnesses-as-senate-prepares-for-trial/"> poll </a>shows that 57 percent of registered voters think there should be witnesses. Even Republicans are split.<br />
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Still, according to <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2020/01/09/trump-support-impeachment-096606?utm_source=CNN+Media%3A+Reliable+Sources&utm_campaign=1efcb2b6dd-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_09_11_04_47_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_e95cdc16a9-1efcb2b6dd-84542205">this article</a> in Politico, Trump’s base simply doesn’t care what he’s done. They see him as an authentic man of the people who is being unfairly harassed by his enemies. One man is even quoted saying, “It feels like he is our O.J.” That sounds about right.<br />
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<a href="https://www.salon.com/2020/01/10/an-impeachment-trial-is-finally-coming-and-it-could-be-exciting-after-all/"><i>My Salon column reprinted by permission</i></a><br />
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.dphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17088289159242476175noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4013705.post-52062521942196277642020-01-10T06:00:00.000-08:002020-01-10T06:01:25.304-08:00Fine. We'll do it ourselves. by @BloggersRUs<p><b>Fine. We'll do it ourselves.</b></p><p>
by Tom Sullivan</p><p>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBsvRHfjg7Ci5beezXFGLeqbYSfvooTwge6RCLa9ze-7nEnvFlyWoLB7_TlqWDwWPBx8TEKEwHaUvkRVTcaBsbbakFu_RhS8pgpEAf-lzjyO1G2BhVdT_Y07aF3uMQbC7cF-j5/s1600/3lpv4y.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBsvRHfjg7Ci5beezXFGLeqbYSfvooTwge6RCLa9ze-7nEnvFlyWoLB7_TlqWDwWPBx8TEKEwHaUvkRVTcaBsbbakFu_RhS8pgpEAf-lzjyO1G2BhVdT_Y07aF3uMQbC7cF-j5/s400/3lpv4y.jpg" width="400" height="267" data-original-width="750" data-original-height="500" /></a><p>
Why don't Democrats create their own group health plan? my spouse has asked for years. Party members constitute over 30 percent of registered voters, after all — close to 50 million people. California Gov. Gavin Newsome today will propose something similar for <a href="https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/US,CA">12 percent</a> of the nation's population and the world's <a href="https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2020-01-09/california-generic-prescription-drugs-program-governor-gavin-newsom">fifth largest economy</a>:
<blockquote>SACRAMENTO — California would become the first state to sell its own brand of generic prescription drugs in an effort to drive down rising healthcare costs under a proposal Gov. Gavin Newsom is expected to unveil in his new state budget Friday.<br /><br />
A broad overview of the ambitious but still conceptual plan provided by Newsom’s office says the state could contract with one or more generic drugmakers to manufacture certain prescriptions under the state’s own label. Those drugs would be available to all Californians for purchase, presumably at a lower cost. The governor’s office said the proposal would increase competition in the generic drug market, which in turn would lower prices for everyone.<br /><br />
[...]<br /><br />
“A trip to the doctor’s office, pharmacy or hospital shouldn’t cost a month’s pay,” Newsom said in a statement. “The cost of healthcare is just too damn high, and California is fighting back.”</blockquote>
Newsome may have borrowed that line.<br /><br />
The California proposal could lower drug costs for non-Californians the way having unions <a href="https://www.epi.org/publication/how-todays-unions-help-working-people-giving-workers-the-power-to-improve-their-jobs-and-unrig-the-economy/#epi-toc-9">raises pay for nonmembers</a>.<br /><br />
<b>Stay in your lane</b><br /><br />
Spokespersons for the pharmaceutical trade group PhRMA and the California Association of Health Plans are withholding comment</a> until they <a href="https://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article239100603.html">see more details</a>:
<blockquote>Assemblyman Devon Mathis, R-Visalia, called Newsom’s prescription drug plans “unrealistic,” and criticized the governor for not saying how he would pay for them. Pharmaceutical policy at the scale Newsom is proposing should be tackled by the federal government, not California, Mathis said.<br /><br />
“The governor needs to stay in his lane and focus on the crises at hand,” Mathis said.</blockquote>
<b>A potential game changer</b><br /><br />
CalMatters reports the proposal nevertheless could help contain California's annual $100 billion in <a href="https://calmatters.org/health/2020/01/gavin-newsom-to-propose-california-manufacture-state-generic-drugs/">health care spending</a>:
<blockquote>Drug costs have become a persistent and increasing worry, both nationally and in California. Six in 10 Americans take a prescription and 79% say the cost is unreasonable, according to a recent survey by <a href="https://www.kff.org/slideshow/public-opinion-on-prescription-drugs-and-their-prices/">Kaiser Family Foundation</a>.<br /><br />
And prices can affect whether people take their pills. The same Kaiser survey found three in 10 Americans reported not taking their medicine as prescribed due to the cost of the prescription.<br /><br />
Governmentally, health care also consumes a sizable portion of the state budget. California’s Medicaid program for the poor, known as Medi-Cal, now tops <a href="https://calmatters.org/explainers/the-open-secret-about-california-taxes/">$100 billion</a> a year in state and federal spending.<br /><br />
[...]<br /><br />
In 2016, drug companies spent more than $100 million to stop a ballot measure that would have barred the state from paying more for prescription drugs than the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, which pays the nation’s lowest prices.</blockquote>
“This is a potential game changer,” consumer advocate Anthony Wright told CalMatters. Wright, executive director of Health Access California, added, “California has the capacity and the smarts and the scale to actually do it.”<br /><br />
Allowing government to manufacture prescription drugs at the federal level is an idea Sen. Elizabeth Warren <a href="https://www.politico.com/story/2018/12/17/elizabeth-warren-bill-drug-manufacturing-prices-1067916">proposed</a> in December 2018 and included in her presidential platform: an <a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/senate-bill/3775/text">Office of Drug Manufacturing</a>. The agency's goal: "to increase competition, lower prices, and address shortages in the market for prescription drugs, including insulin" as well as "reduce the cost of prescription drugs to Federal and State health programs, taxpayers, and consumers."<br /><br />
Under "Personnel," the Warren bill bans former registered drug company lobbyists and former senior executives of "law breaking companies" from serving as Director. But the bill has gone nowhere in "<a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/mitch-mcconnell-vows-to-be-the-grim-reaper-to-thwart-all-democratic-proposals/">Grim Reaper</a>" Mitch McConnell's U.S. Senate.<br /><br />
Newsome isn't waiting.<br /><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4Lw3RRKVXg-vqkJgsH5hYF1kynVAooXf6j0CRy6FeEbwqW6hEeig6No5q6YXL6mTpBVNMjpR1EjrSlytDq04tgeLXttcvyxmzYiigJvnaNC3M1R2n3hWGdlDjMNVKSh4iV8X-/s1600/3lpvpg.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4Lw3RRKVXg-vqkJgsH5hYF1kynVAooXf6j0CRy6FeEbwqW6hEeig6No5q6YXL6mTpBVNMjpR1EjrSlytDq04tgeLXttcvyxmzYiigJvnaNC3M1R2n3hWGdlDjMNVKSh4iV8X-/s400/3lpvpg.jpg" width="400" height="171" data-original-width="763" data-original-height="327" /></a><br /><br />
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4013705.post-32548892337792068392020-01-09T17:30:00.000-08:002020-01-09T17:30:07.648-08:00Nixon's the one<b>Nixon's the one
</b><br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP4rcllaX9knzwzs4kJaqgbKjSMlo9_VIs9adtFs3dVNZA9BFBbnSsmZvqhUzhOArH79wXoUp5GeDOT9yYWi-wkI3_PHkc0vJfpmlVqot51DdcK7UKqNa0zDujNzidJv34gxeHEQ/s1600/gallery_medium.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" data-original-height="398" data-original-width="600" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP4rcllaX9knzwzs4kJaqgbKjSMlo9_VIs9adtFs3dVNZA9BFBbnSsmZvqhUzhOArH79wXoUp5GeDOT9yYWi-wkI3_PHkc0vJfpmlVqot51DdcK7UKqNa0zDujNzidJv34gxeHEQ/s400/gallery_medium.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
Wow. <a href="https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2020/01/nixon-did-it-too-how-a-trump-aide-justified-secret-russia-contacts/">According to Mother Jones,</a> Trump's former national security adviser K.T. McFarland cited Nixon to justify Michael Flynn's back-channel shenanigans with Russia:<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrwNWUSk8k7uWVGZTPbzzHNLYVpjcfBBI1ICMrJv9T-tEwY1G13ow38VMlUA9ZdBzq3ezUk8vDNR6DEQjSIhLu8C7LFk-zOgLzShsxSDPAWwSZ4BffdogJx6HMmXp5rnf_RD9sWw/s1600/Screen-Shot-2020-01-07-at-12.27.45-PM.png" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" data-original-height="185" data-original-width="630" height="188" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrwNWUSk8k7uWVGZTPbzzHNLYVpjcfBBI1ICMrJv9T-tEwY1G13ow38VMlUA9ZdBzq3ezUk8vDNR6DEQjSIhLu8C7LFk-zOgLzShsxSDPAWwSZ4BffdogJx6HMmXp5rnf_RD9sWw/s640/Screen-Shot-2020-01-07-at-12.27.45-PM.png" width="640" /></a>
<br />
<blockquote>
To justify potentially illegal secret contacts between the Trump team and Russia [to the FBI], McFarland, who herself worked on Nixon’s National Security Council, cited perhaps the most notorious example in US history of a White House candidate undermining the diplomacy of a siting president. (McFarland’s comparison is also flawed because Nixon’s interference, and the Reagan team’s alleged actions, occurred prior to Election Day, not during the transition.)<br />
<br />
While allegations that Reagan aides meddled in hostage negotiations in Iran remain disputed, Nixon’s secret disruption of Vietnam peace talks is well-documented. Recently revealed notes show that in October 1968, Nixon asked H.R. Haldeman, who became his chief of staff, to “monkey wrench” talks between the United States, South Vietnam, and North Vietnam and to instruct an emissary, Anna Chennault—a prominent Republican and socialite in touch with South Vietnamese negotiators—to urge them to “hold on” and refuse to agree to a deal in hopes of getting better terms under Nixon. Nixon feared that progress in talks would help his Democratic opponent, Vice President Hubert Humphrey, who surged late in the race as he amped up his criticism of the war.<br />
<br />
Nixon’s skullduggery worked for Nixon. Encouraged by him, the South Vietnamese stalled the talks, and Nixon narrowly beat Humphrey. But the consequences were bad for everyone else. Nixon had suggested he had a plan for exiting Vietnam. Instead he expanded the war. Roughly 22,000 more Americans, along with far more Vietnamese, would die before the US finally withdrew from the country at the start of Nixon’s second term in 1973. Nixon’s initially secret bombing of sites in Cambodia in 1969 may have helped spur the rise of the Khmer Rouge, who went on to kill an estimated 2 million Cambodians.<br />
<br />
Nixon’s predecessor, Lyndon Johnson, knew of Nixon’s actions and privately called them “treason.” John Farrell, who discovered Haldeman’s notes while researching a 2017 Nixon biography, told Mother Jones that Nixon’s interference was potentially “worse than anything he did in Watergate, because more lives were at stake.”</blockquote>
<br />
The GOP is Nixon's party. It always has been.
.dphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17088289159242476175noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4013705.post-61137093508507769612020-01-09T16:00:00.000-08:002020-01-09T16:00:21.141-08:00One of Trump's war criminals wants the Distinguished Service Cross<b>One of Trump's war criminals wants the Distinguished Service Cross</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP-NiNcmzJpJRP1xHd5FnRGWe2wtP4ClooMOQLgcQT_rYLWXfiKgIKZGzoWkVqBMZiq6KWCf-fJACDx_dTt3dsziy3migeACQD8fxAe4H1j5Q6PcXa9fZbAdhosc54avWEmZ5r6w/s1600/maxresdefault-1-1-e1545178221102-998x718.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="718" data-original-width="998" height="287" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP-NiNcmzJpJRP1xHd5FnRGWe2wtP4ClooMOQLgcQT_rYLWXfiKgIKZGzoWkVqBMZiq6KWCf-fJACDx_dTt3dsziy3migeACQD8fxAe4H1j5Q6PcXa9fZbAdhosc54avWEmZ5r6w/s400/maxresdefault-1-1-e1545178221102-998x718.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/army-general-denies-request-by-officer-pardoned-by-trump-to-have-his-special-forces-tab-reinstated/2020/01/09/398a381a-332a-11ea-9313-6cba89b1b9fb_story.html">Will Trump intervene in this one</a>? Army Maj. Mathew L. Golsteyn, who had been accused of murder and was awaiting trial and was pardoned in advance by President Trump, had his request to reinstate his Special Forces tab denied by the commander of the U.S. Army Special operations Command. But the Army has now asked for an administrative board review. They are also considering to expunging a letter of reprimand and they may even give him the Distinguished Service Cross, which is one step below the Medal of Honor.<br />
<div>
<br />
Trump pardoned Goldsteyn before he even went to trial and I will be surprised if he stays out of this decision any more than he stayed out of the Gallagher decision. <a href="https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2019/12/trump-headlines-a-fundraiser-alongside-accused-war-criminals/">He knows him personally:</a></div>
<blockquote>
President Donald Trump’s took part in a Saturday night rally in South Florida, bringing two accused war criminals on to the stage as honored guests.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://www.miamiherald.com/news/politics-government/national-politics/article238150139.html">According to the Miami Herald</a>, during his speech at Florida Republicans’ annual Statesman’s Dinner, Trump brought Army 1st Lt. Clint Lorance and Maj. Matt Golsteyn in front of the crowd. Trump controversially pardoned the two—along with former Navy SEAL Edward Gallagher—last month <a href="https://www.militarytimes.com/news/your-military/2019/11/06/esper-will-ask-trump-to-reconsider-pardons-for-service-members-charged-with-convicted-of-war-crimes-report-says/">against the recommendations</a> of senior military leaders. Lorance was serving a <a href="https://www.armytimes.com/news/your-army/2019/07/01/army-officer-convicted-of-murder-in-afghanistan-to-get-another-look-by-civilian-court/">19-year prison sentence for murder</a> after ordering soldiers to open fire on three unarmed Afghan men in 2012, killing two. </blockquote>
<blockquote>
Golsteyn had been charged with premeditated murder after admitting to shooting a detained, unarmed Afghan man in 2010. Golsteyn killed the prisoner off-base and buried his body, only to dig it up later, bring it back to the base, and burn it in a pit used to dispose of trash, according to <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/checkpoint/wp/2016/12/08/army-reopens-investigation-of-special-forces-soldier-accused-of-killing-unarmed-detainee/">the Washington Post</a>.</blockquote>
That's the man our president thinks is a great hero. Which makes sense when you think of Trump's own lack or morals. Will he give this war criminal the Distinguished Service Cross? Why not the Medal of Honor?<br />
<br />
.<br />
<br />
dphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17088289159242476175noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4013705.post-70798079305598090512020-01-09T14:30:00.000-08:002020-01-09T16:23:38.814-08:00Dear Leader dispatch<b>Dear Leader dispatch</b><br />
<br />
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck">
<div dir="ltr" lang="en">
U.S. Cancer Death Rate Lowest In Recorded History! A lot of good news coming out of this Administration.</div>
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1215287261606051844?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 9, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async="" charset="utf-8" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>
<br />
The report said that cancer deaths have been trending downward for more than 30 years. But sure, Trump's curing cancer. With his bare hands.<br />
<br />
He also wrote this:<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<div dir="ltr" lang="en">
STOCK MARKET AT ALL-TIME HIGH! HOW ARE YOUR 401K’S DOING? 70%, 80%, 90% up? Only 50% up! What are you doing wrong?</div>
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1215299143066947584?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 9, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async="" charset="utf-8" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>
The stock market is not up 50% since 2017, much less 90%. There are going to be whole lot of disappointed Trumpies when they see their 401k statements.<br />
<br />
And here's the court jester:
<br />
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck">
<div dir="ltr" lang="en">
"The joint is hoppin'. There is sunshine on almost every face and our president is at the top of his game." You simply HAVE TO WATCH this edition of Dear Leader Watch. <a href="https://t.co/LZm8h1vnA4">pic.twitter.com/LZm8h1vnA4</a></div>
— Josh Marshall (@joshtpm) <a href="https://twitter.com/joshtpm/status/1172497357650444288?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 13, 2019</a></blockquote>
<br />
<script async="" charset="utf-8" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>That was from a few months ago but it's indicative of his daily output.His followers believe this. And there are tens of millions of them. They are allowed to drive cars, perform surgery and use heavy equipment. It's amazing any of us are alive.<br />
<br />
Oh and here's what your president is retweeting to his millions of followers today:<br />
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<br />
<b>Update:</b> Oy<br />
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<div dir="ltr" lang="en">
Mike Lee is full MAGA <a href="https://t.co/Zae8g66lnj">pic.twitter.com/Zae8g66lnj</a></div>
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) <a href="https://twitter.com/atrupar/status/1215370423556243456?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 9, 2020</a></blockquote>
<br />
Dear Leader can do no wrong. It's the Deep State that's failing him.<br />
<br />
<script async="" charset="utf-8" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>
dphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17088289159242476175noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4013705.post-65225653506303186392020-01-09T13:00:00.000-08:002020-01-09T13:01:24.379-08:00Wanting peace is now disgraceful? WWJD? <b>Wanting peace is now disgraceful? WWJD? </b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5zo_L2aHQmPrmimINHoAOtiCiMKpI4eMoT2khCk1-g28ZwNgjWxvXI7xvDm4-5l2zA4zTMqlsklhqNeovhI3MElzSUd7Z3MFEB7JFsSQwODXGFkuQURZHul8BX6nZknhF9k6FIA/s1600/images+%25284%2529.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="183" data-original-width="275" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5zo_L2aHQmPrmimINHoAOtiCiMKpI4eMoT2khCk1-g28ZwNgjWxvXI7xvDm4-5l2zA4zTMqlsklhqNeovhI3MElzSUd7Z3MFEB7JFsSQwODXGFkuQURZHul8BX6nZknhF9k6FIA/s400/images+%25284%2529.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div>
<b><br /></b>
<br />
Representative Jim Banks of Indiana seems to think that PTSD is something that only soldiers experience. He tweeted,<br />
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<div dir="ltr" lang="en">
Rep. Ilhan Omar complained she’s “stricken with PTSD” because of recent events in the Middle East.<br />
<br />
This is a disgrace and offensive to our nation’s veterans who really do have PTSD after putting their life on the line to keep America safe. <a href="https://t.co/twhZDuUDu0">pic.twitter.com/twhZDuUDu0</a></div>
— Jim Banks (@RepJimBanks) <a href="https://twitter.com/RepJimBanks/status/1215034549765312512?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 8, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async="" charset="utf-8" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>
She has good reason to feel that as she said when she responded to Banks:
<br />
<blockquote>
“War doesn’t have a reset button, I learned this lesson at the age of Eight. Lives will be lost, many innocent lives will be lost and the future of generations will be impacted. Let’s call for peace.”</blockquote>
Omar, the first refugee to serve in Congress, fled civil war torn Somalia with her family when she was 8 years old. She lived in a refugee camp for 3 years. But any decent person would agree with her sentiments. This congressman is obviously not a decent person.
<br />
<br />
That is indicative of the bloodthirsty war cries that are coming out of he supposedly isolationist GOP this week. It makes me feel ill too, mostly that so many people said that Trump wasn't a president who would use the military for personal political advantage. Please. He's a vicious, vengeful conman who will do whatever it takes for him to survive.<br />
<br />
The only thing that's holding him back right now is personal cowardice and the mistaken belief that Tucker Carlson represents the thinking in his base.<br />
<br />
.<br />
<br />dphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17088289159242476175noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4013705.post-71984013059753810312020-01-09T11:30:00.000-08:002020-01-09T13:01:01.296-08:00Ivanka the potted plant<b>Ivanka the potted plant
</b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUwr8NK2yFnNuJLD6EYSJrDJpJuzZPC9SX9J_rakIcUxrqv4tkA2ZrftxUAWjsGcHhQcWL0T7fFVH2D7Tjswmr_NFyUE4kXxGOX5wBY5YSW90I4CgZmGWA_5coaFFUSPOwaGlx4g/s1600/024f34105e0d677bf382cb872d9c0c90.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="811" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUwr8NK2yFnNuJLD6EYSJrDJpJuzZPC9SX9J_rakIcUxrqv4tkA2ZrftxUAWjsGcHhQcWL0T7fFVH2D7Tjswmr_NFyUE4kXxGOX5wBY5YSW90I4CgZmGWA_5coaFFUSPOwaGlx4g/s400/024f34105e0d677bf382cb872d9c0c90.jpg" width="270" /></a></div>
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<br />
The Guardian <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/jan/07/ivanka-trump-ces-technology-las-vegas?CMP=share_btn_tw">reports</a> that Ivanka gave a keynote speech at the Consumer Electronics show on "the path to the future of work." She spoke from experience and told them how to be born into a family of con-artists and fame whores and then marry into a rich family of criminals. Tried and true. <br />
<br />
Actually, she apparently blathered about her father's great record on jobs and how she's working on an advertising campaign to encourage "all pathways to work."<br />
<br />
The women in tech were not amused by her appearance as a keynote speaker. The conference has been heavily criticized for its lack of diversity but it was pointed out that simply plopping this unqualified nepotism hire (who, by the way, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/jan/09/trump-jr-ivanka-trump-condos-scheme-book">is known to have committed fraud</a> as an executive in the Trump organization) on the stage when there are hundreds of women who are actual tech experts and have something useful to say. This wasn' it:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“I believe innovation is a net job-producer,” she said. “Innovation will allow for more inclusive growth.”</blockquote>
Just like her daddy, she is a very stable genius.<br />
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dphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17088289159242476175noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4013705.post-75756431337310953592020-01-09T10:00:00.000-08:002020-01-09T10:00:03.320-08:00Journalistic Tropes in wartime<b>Journalistic Tropes in wartime</b><br />
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<a href="https://www.cjr.org/politics/trump-iran-suleimani.php">This piece </a>in the Columbia Journalism Review calls out writers and commenters for their use of the term "blood on his hands" when referring to General Suleimani, which I noticed was being used almost as much as "off-ramp" in the last few days.<br />
<br />
He notes that Sulaimani, like any military officer from any country, would have "blood on his hands" and explains that this particular charge stems from the fact that during the Iraq insurgency, which was largely a religious, sectarian conflict, he was responsible for flooding the country with a weapon, the IED, which killed and maimed many people on behalf of the minority Shia militia. He was himself wounded by an IED as a journalist in Iraq. <br />
<br />
Anyway, his point is this:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
The invasion of Iraq is now widely seen as a disaster, resulting in hundreds of thousands of needless deaths. But few in the US political and media mainstream would describe former President George W. Bush, who started that war, or the American generals who waged it, as having “blood on their hands.” Nor would it be said of successive American administrations that have collaborated on covert operations in Iraq with the Mojahedin-e Khalq, a cult-like anti-Islamic Republic terror organization in Iran responsible for hundreds of civilian deaths. Nor would it be said of George H.W. Bush, who, while campaigning for president in 1988 ostentatiously refused to apologize for the killing of 290 Iranians aboard a civilian jet-liner that was shot down that year by the US Navy in the Persian Gulf.<br /><br />“Blood on his hands” is, clearly, a political cliché. For the right, it is an expression of their politics of grievance, an assertion that Americans are the victims of irrational, baseless Middle Eastern Islamic terrorism and hatred. The right is attempting to use conflict with Iran to assert the moral high ground of American military violence, despite decades of evidence to the contrary. For the mainstream media and what remains of America’s foreign policy elite, calling out Suleimani as having “blood on his hands” allows them to warn about the consequences of a war with Iran without seeming to sympathize with the enemy or ask deeper questions about the morality of American force. It calls out the killing as perhaps unwise, but legitimate, even inevitable. “Qassem Soleimani was never going to die peacefully in his bed,” Bobby Ghosh wrote for Bloomberg Opinion. </blockquote>
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"Inevitability" was all over the media in the wake of the assassination and it was deeply disturbing. They didn't cheerlead as enthusiastically as they did back in 2002, in the wake of 9/11, but you could see where this was leading.<br />
<br />
Trump chose to escalate the conflict by withdrawing from the nuclear deal and then imposing crippling sanctions. Then he turbo-charged it by assassinating Sulaimani based on dubious evidence (if any.) <br />
<br />
Read on to get some important context about the relationship between the US and Iran. There has been a concerted campaign on the right to demonize Iran based upon a sense of besmirched American honor from 1979. And Iran is also acting on "honor" in reaction to the US installing the Shah back in the 1950s. And the wheels go round and round. <br />
<br />
Trump brought up the 52 hostages from 1979, which means that the Iran hawks are pushing HIS "revenge" buttons. And we know that he considers revenge to be his primary motivating factor in life after money and fame:<br />
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<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/uuoRRDtdHbY" width="560"></iframe><br />
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<br />dphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17088289159242476175noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4013705.post-86460101276002531472020-01-09T08:30:00.000-08:002020-01-09T08:41:26.859-08:00Once, Again, He Got Away With It. (But Actually He Didn't) by tristero<b>Once, Again, He Got Away With It. (But Actually He Didn't)</b><br />
<br />
by tristero<br />
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He cheated on his wife, paid off the porn director he slept with, subverted an election, and only a disposable minion went to jail. Now, he just got away with the assassination of a major figure of a foreign government. They merely slapped his wrist. He never suffers consequences,<br />
<br />
But actually, that's not true. Iran's leaders are not stupid. Nor are they powerless, like the abject victims of Trump University.<br />
<br />
The base attacks were obviously mere theater that used relatively ineffectual weapons that did little damage. Trump and his thugs think that sent a signal that Iran doesn't want a war. But I suspect they're merely saving the serious missiles for a future conflict. The public statements saying that the retaliation would be "proportionate" are blatant deflections that only a Trump (and a wishful American media) would believe. It is very unlikely that the Iranians are serious when they say that they are not going to escalate. The real retaliations may take place months or even years from now. And they will be stealth, untraceable, and implacable.<br />
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No, I'm positive. He didn't get away with it this time.tristerohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05543846647130018086noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4013705.post-11533689129165259982020-01-09T06:00:00.000-08:002020-01-11T09:28:36.014-08:00Stop me before I vote Libertarian again by @BloggersRUs<p><b>Stop me before I vote Libertarian again</b></p><p>
by Tom Sullivan</p><p>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZzYGj8KzohrJIW35_LZ_cZHD2SmWaJhVej2QPRQdn5JGEiw_0UzA8Gm5nio_u5DWkm7fZ1YruBUIqy-uqmQlFfSST0tosJ1H7FCLm-Cke-2kqh6Hp_wmVbgz0q1V8Yxmxs26E/s1600/24509524302_9dede1ac37_c.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZzYGj8KzohrJIW35_LZ_cZHD2SmWaJhVej2QPRQdn5JGEiw_0UzA8Gm5nio_u5DWkm7fZ1YruBUIqy-uqmQlFfSST0tosJ1H7FCLm-Cke-2kqh6Hp_wmVbgz0q1V8Yxmxs26E/s400/24509524302_9dede1ac37_c.jpg" width="400" height="225" data-original-width="800" data-original-height="450" /></a><br/><span style="font-family: 'Open Sans', Helvetica, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 12px;">
<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/donkeyhotey/24509524302">Image</a> by DonkeyHotey via Flickr (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/legalcode">CC BY 2.0</a>)</span><p>
With under a month to go before the Iowa caucuses, polling shows Sen. Bernie Sanders and Mayor Pete Buttigieg <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/bernie-sanders-starts-2020-in-strong-position-in-iowa-new-hampshire-cbs-news-battleground-tracker-poll/">tied</a> with former Vice President Joe Biden. Sanders tops Biden as the first choice among likely Democratic voters in Iowa and New Hampshire. Polled on voters' enthusiasm for their favorites, Sanders and Sen. Elizabeth Warren top the list. Biden comes in fourth behind Buttigieg.<br /><br />
Sheila Bair is worried.<br /><br />
Bair was chair of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation from 2006 to 2011, appointed by George W. Bush. She sits on the boards of several domestic and international financial firms, says her Washington Post bio. She was advisor to <a href="https://doleinstitute.org/get-involved/programs/dole-lecture/sheila-bair/">then-Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole from 1981 to 1988</a> and a founding board member of the Volcker Alliance.<br /><br />
Please, oh please, Democrats, she writes (not in those words, exactly), won't you give people like me a presidential candidate who is less, um, <i>Bernie Sanders</i>?<br /><br />
Donald Trump had zero experience before taking office, she complains, part of a 40-year "downward spiral" in the qualifications of presidential candidates. His presidency is the result of "negative voting" by Americans wanting to punish the professionals and turned off by "highly pedigreed" Hillary Clinton's "perceived elitism and disinterest in the working class."<br /><br />
Bair derates Buttigieg for his youth, inexperience, and support among "moneyed interests who profit from the current system," <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/i-am-a-republican-and-i-hope-the-democrats-pick-a-candidate-i-can-vote-for/2020/01/08/3cbb0e5c-3171-11ea-9313-6cba89b1b9fb_story.html?utm_campaign=wp_main&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter">writing</a>:
<blockquote>I am a Republican who has never voted for a Democrat in a presidential election. But I share Democrats’ concern that our system is rigged to favor the wealthy and powerful over working families. I am tired of a loophole-ridden tax code that advantages investors over workers. I am tired of spending trillions in taxpayer money on health care and education only to see private profiteering of those programs as consumer costs continue to escalate. I regret to admit that I also voted negative in 2016, casting a protest vote for the <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/monkey-cage/wp/2016/05/31/this-years-libertarian-ticket-has-remarkable-political-experience-now-will-it-matter/?tid=lk_inline_manual_12">Libertarian Party ticket</a> because I didn’t think Clinton or Trump was really committed to change. I would prefer not to do so again.</blockquote>
So, please, not Buttigieg, Bair pleads. Wouldn't Joe Biden or Elizabeth Warren be preferable? Give us someone with more age and experience, just not Hillary Clinton's age and experience. Someone with a true interest in the working class, just not <i>too much interest</i>.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">I'm a Pat Boone fan, but I really hope Captain Beefheart's next album is something I can play at my church's ice cream social! <a href="https://t.co/Wdpla7Gmff">https://t.co/Wdpla7Gmff</a></p>— Seth Cotlar (@SethCotlar) <a href="https://twitter.com/SethCotlar/status/1215128480767066112?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 9, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script><br />
With Bernie Sanders positioned stubbornly at the top of the polls in Iowa, in New Hampshire, and unnamed in 750 words, somehow I don't think it's Buttigieg that Bair is really worried about.<br /><br />
Reporting by the Daily Beast adds to <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/losing-iowa-isnt-an-option-for-bernie-sanders">those worries</a>:
<blockquote>“For everybody else in the field, it’s a problem if Sanders wins the first two,” Jeff Link, a longtime Democratic pollster in Iowa, told The Daily Beast. “He’s going to have a head of steam going into Nevada and South Carolina and Super Tuesday.”<br /><br />
[...]<br /><br />
“No one is really showing their volunteer armies yet,” Sean Bagniewski, chairman of the Polk County Democrats in Des Moines, said. “It might shock the hell out of us.”</blockquote>
Sanders has a "massive volunteer base of grassroots supporters" and has learned from his 2016 mistakes. “If Bernie wins those first two states, I think the establishment will have a collective freakout the likes of which we have never seen before,” Rebecca Katz, a progressive Democratic strategist, told Daily Beast. <br /><br />
For Bair, there's always <a href="https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/lincoln-chafee-makes-an-unexpected-comeback-as-a-2020-libertarian-candidate">Lincoln Chafee</a>. Reason magazine predicts Chafee is "<a href="https://reason.com/2020/01/06/lincoln-chafee-former-republican-senator-and-independent-governor-seeks-libertarian-party-presidential-nomination/">the first in an eventual wave of former Republicans seeking the Libertarian presidential nod</a>."<br /><br />
<b>Update:</b> Corrected spelling of her name. Misread it and used it throughout. (h/t T.A. & B. A.)<br /><br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4013705.post-53994822012175772442020-01-08T18:00:00.000-08:002020-01-08T18:00:01.752-08:00On people ... and light by Dennis Hartley @denofcinema5<div>
<b>On people ... and light: a guest post</b></div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
by Dennis Hartley<br />
<br />
Note: Kermet Apio is a Seattle-based comedian with whom I had the pleasure of working with in my stand-up days. Not unlike foreign correspondents, road comics get a firsthand take as to what’s happening “on the ground” anywhere their job takes them. Kermet shared some thoughts regarding the current situation between the U.S. and Iran in a Facebook post today. With his permission, I am re-publishing it here. -Dennis Hartley<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmRGq0vz78JjI8EGZTdftzNnQTBFfWRGNtnvlQlvUufnRJcWR4gG1PbmbdRqGKQOFNEhG_bRmt853Q1hfbTC7flOSiY8bSOLHntn4pTNPYM79OhaF-k0-EcOr9sdRjqWvV7BCQIQ/s1600/unnamed+%25283%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="266" data-original-width="473" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmRGq0vz78JjI8EGZTdftzNnQTBFfWRGNtnvlQlvUufnRJcWR4gG1PbmbdRqGKQOFNEhG_bRmt853Q1hfbTC7flOSiY8bSOLHntn4pTNPYM79OhaF-k0-EcOr9sdRjqWvV7BCQIQ/s400/unnamed+%25283%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<br />
By Kermet Apio</div>
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I have been incredibly lucky to have performed in the Middle East twice in the last few years. Travel cuts through all the media sound bites. When you spend time with people and learn about their culture, their history, their foods, and their joys, THEY become your definition of that country. You shake your head at the propaganda because you saw with your own eyes human beings who were kind, funny, welcoming, and love their families and friends.<br />
<br />
Bombs don’t fall on a map. They fall on people. For one brief moment I ask you to look beyond the justifications and the talking points. Think about those that will lose their lives and those that will survive with the pain of loss.<br />
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I relate more to the everyday people I’ve met around the world than the people running my country right now. The war mongers and profiteers don’t want you to see people, they want you to see darkness. I am hoping we see people and light because that is what’s really there.<br />
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<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/70yFIz7tGUs" width="560"></iframe>
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<i>.</i></div>
dphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17088289159242476175noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4013705.post-41685690081936993952020-01-08T16:30:00.000-08:002020-01-08T16:30:03.518-08:00Meanwhile, the fetid Trump swamp boils and bubbles<b>Meanwhile, the fetid Trump swamp boils and bubbles
</b><br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMr9Tl-fgO_5SK2gJ00H-UGskacgqnEfE4DueuvjImCRxoisc7CZOB6Gn58DAUxAsk8E6f9rFB-cwixCkLJS8D2Ee4js2M0HfzoxszgFlP7nFZoMvM_JKxFQ8fFekRCNoDskuD6Q/s1600/lintonlouise_mnuchinsteve11152017twitterap.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" data-original-height="363" data-original-width="645" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMr9Tl-fgO_5SK2gJ00H-UGskacgqnEfE4DueuvjImCRxoisc7CZOB6Gn58DAUxAsk8E6f9rFB-cwixCkLJS8D2Ee4js2M0HfzoxszgFlP7nFZoMvM_JKxFQ8fFekRCNoDskuD6Q/s640/lintonlouise_mnuchinsteve11152017twitterap.jpg" width="640" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/mnuchin-seeks-delay-of-proposed-disclosure-of-secret-service-spending-on-presidential-travel-until-next-year/2020/01/08/8769ea28-30da-11ea-91fd-82d4e04a3fac_story.html#click=https://t.co/AUMOC4suiC">I wonder why they would want to do this?</a><br />
<blockquote>
The Trump administration is seeking to delay a Democratic effort to require the Secret Service to disclose how much it spends protecting President Trump and his family when they travel — until after the 2020 election, according to people familiar with the discussions.<br />
<br />
The issue has emerged as a sticking point in recent weeks as Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and key senators have been negotiating draft legislation to move the Secret Service back to his department, its historic home.<br />
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Mnuchin has balked at Democratic demands that the bill require the Secret Service to disclose the costs related to the travel of the president and his adult children within 120 days after it is passed, according to people with knowledge of the talks. Mnuchin has agreed to Democrats’ push for a requirement that the Secret Service report its travel expenses but wants such disclosures to begin next year.</blockquote>
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=4013705#editor/target=post;postID=4168569008193699395">Oh right:</a>
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<blockquote>
Steven Mnuchin, the US treasury secretary, requested the use of a government jet for his European honeymoon, it was reported on Wednesday.
The treasury department’s inspector general is investigating Mnuchin’s request for a US air force plane – with a reported operating cost of around $25,000 per hour – to transport him and his wife, Louise Linton, on their honeymoon to Scotland, France and Italy this summer, according to ABC News.</blockquote>
<a href="https://www.politico.com/story/2018/03/15/steven-mnuchin-plane-travel-cost-421176">And...</a>
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<blockquote>
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin’s use of military aircraft has cost taxpayers nearly $1 million for eight trips, newly released documents show. That includes a one-week trip to the Middle East in late October, which cost $183,646 for flights on military aircraft to five different cities. That trip came on top of $811,797.81 in previously reported expenditures for government-funded military aircraft.</blockquote>
I don't think we have any idea yet how much graft has gone on during this Trump era. But you can imagine why Mnuchin wants to make sure it's covered up before the election. If Trump wins, they'll just tell everyone to go fuck themselves if they don't like the corruption. If they lose, they'll be out ,and they are counting on the Democrats to do what they always do, which is say they don't want to "play the blame game." Sadly, they are probably right.<br />
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.dphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17088289159242476175noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4013705.post-26239895632231672612020-01-08T15:00:00.000-08:002020-01-08T15:16:31.755-08:00About that briefing<b>About that briefing</b><br />
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<br />
The Secretary of State and Defense as well as the CIA Director and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs went up to the hill for a long delayed briefing on the Iran gambit. As you might imagine, the Democrats weren't impressed:
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck">
<div dir="ltr" lang="en">
I just left the administration's briefing on the strike that killed Qasem Soleimani. They tried, unsuccessfully, to conjure up a rationale for the president's reckless decision. <br />
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It was sophomoric and utterly unconvincing. I left the room more troubled than when I went in.</div>
— Gerry Connolly (@GerryConnolly) <a href="https://twitter.com/GerryConnolly/status/1214991751443832835?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 8, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async="" charset="utf-8" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>
But this might surprise you a little bit:<br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="338" src="//embed.crooksandliars.com/embed/cwjFkVRq" width="600"></iframe><br />
<blockquote>
I had hoped and expected to see more information outlining the moral and legal justification. The briefing lasted only 75 minutes whereupon our briefers left. This is not the biggest problem I had with the briefing, which I might add is the worst briefing I've seen, at least on a military issue, in the nine years I've served on the United States Senate. What I found so distressing about the briefing is one of the messages we received from the briefers was "do not discuss, do not debate the issue of appropriateness of further military intervention against Iran and if so, you'll be emboldening Iran." The idea we would be less safe by having a debate or discussion about the appropriateness of further military involvement.</blockquote>
Fox wasn't having it:
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none">
<div dir="ltr" lang="en">
....fox decided to cut away from the press conference <a href="https://t.co/etOlcFJ3iP">pic.twitter.com/etOlcFJ3iP</a></div>
— Andrew Lawrence (@ndrew_lawrence) <a href="https://twitter.com/ndrew_lawrence/status/1215025032914714624?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 8, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async="" charset="utf-8" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>
Again, the briefers were Pompeo, Esper, Haspel and Milli.
They are obviously lying through their teeth. There was no imminent threat. They did it because Trump was nearly hysterical about impeachment and the Iran hawks saw their opportunity to persuade him to escalate. That's really all there was to it.<br />
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Update:<br />
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Just asked Graham about the criticism from Paul and Lee over Iran briefing. “I think they’re overreacting. I’m going to let people know ..to play this game with the war powers act, which I think is unconstitutional, is that whether you mean to or not, you’re empowering the enemy” <a href="https://t.co/pnlISwkORb">pic.twitter.com/pnlISwkORb</a></p>— Manu Raju (@mkraju) <a href="https://twitter.com/mkraju/status/1215047709981380610?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 8, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<br />
Of course,
.dphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17088289159242476175noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4013705.post-27379465031170221032020-01-08T13:30:00.000-08:002020-01-08T13:30:07.011-08:00Once an ally, then an enemy, now a martyr<b>Once an ally, then an enemy, now a martyr</b>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<div dir="ltr" lang="en">
General Soleimani’s role in defeating ISIS vs ... <a href="https://t.co/1HqARV0tCR">https://t.co/1HqARV0tCR</a> <a href="https://t.co/txru3i2S8d">pic.twitter.com/txru3i2S8d</a></div>
— Chasity 🚩 (@AppleOfHeaven) <a href="https://twitter.com/AppleOfHeaven/status/1214352188643794944?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 7, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Interesting, no?
This sort of thing is not unusual, of course. The US allied with the Soviet Union in WWII, after all, and then engaged in decades of cold war once it was over. But from what I'm hearing, the ISIS problem is far from over, particularly since Trump precipitously and prematurely scrambled the decks in Syria and Iraq allowing it to reconstitute itself.<br />
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I guess we'll hope he got lucky on that one and that particular fever has broken. I wouldn't bet money on it.
Anyway, I'm sure the wingnuts will use that footage as evidence that Obama was a terrorist sympathizer or something, but they're doing that anyway.<br />
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What it illustrates is the complexity of all the changing relationships in the region --- and the fact that putting a reality star imbecile and 3rd rate tea party fanatics in charge probably isn't a good idea.<br />
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.dphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17088289159242476175noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4013705.post-91522316437896913282020-01-08T12:00:00.000-08:002020-01-08T12:00:00.424-08:00No rally round the flag effect --- yet<b>No rally round the flag effect --- yet</b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo76BLXurnCjjaSnay9b3RgroQs-XV7AUpYuUdhIF4TNepXRpry9GGLVppBnhHGKXzcgpl7VRKsG3Snn_BkNo4SW8wA0P9fJHcag6Ps5eGrITUpBTg9k_HdiXNzP9LnYs5sekhbA/s1600/giphy.gif" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" data-original-height="324" data-original-width="324" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo76BLXurnCjjaSnay9b3RgroQs-XV7AUpYuUdhIF4TNepXRpry9GGLVppBnhHGKXzcgpl7VRKsG3Snn_BkNo4SW8wA0P9fJHcag6Ps5eGrITUpBTg9k_HdiXNzP9LnYs5sekhbA/s640/giphy.gif" width="640" /></a>
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G. Elliot Morris of The Economist <a href="https://twitter.com/gelliottmorris">shares</a> some of the data from <a href="https://d25d2506sfb94s.cloudfront.net/cumulus_uploads/document/6s5t9qkjll/econTabReport.pdf">their new poll:</a><br />
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- 73% of adults are worried about a war with Iran - 45% say it's more important to avoid war with Iran than it is to "confront Iranian aggressions". 36% say the opposite. -52% think it was inappropriate for POTUS not to brief Congress about the original airstrike<br />
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- 41% think POTUS went ahead with the strike for political reasons, vs 40% who think he acted in the best interests of the US<br />
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It appears that both the "somewhat disapprove" of Trump's foreign policy and the "somewhat approve" have moved into the "strongly" categories:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaeaNoIfuw4MVp3XKMhGOUPK3goTMu5lfMrTXQpojjYrPMrMg2Y6e5NVeUK-G1jRgtSuy1wVYMZ1a4_Prik1JV0JtXEFgbFcKQ5pWAHQnpJuOKj2t-kqcPl0lUeiCKmckvCDtNFw/s1600/ENxiHV6WkAABUsv.jpeg"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaeaNoIfuw4MVp3XKMhGOUPK3goTMu5lfMrTXQpojjYrPMrMg2Y6e5NVeUK-G1jRgtSuy1wVYMZ1a4_Prik1JV0JtXEFgbFcKQ5pWAHQnpJuOKj2t-kqcPl0lUeiCKmckvCDtNFw/s400/ENxiHV6WkAABUsv.jpeg" /></a><br />
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- 36% of adults say they are confident in Trump's ability to handle international crises, vs 51% who say they are uneasy<br />
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- 54% of voters think it is "very" or "fairly" likely that Trump will get America into a war - This represents a large and immediate increase in the perceived probability of war versus last week.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgARw2wt4olFLOJlk6sjw1lJcB1JUo-epByb-K4VBWf_RElWls5KcVxVMAKe8S3DmUo7t2vnGV0HOeCvvRYhCEV-xwUCptZRjIhkRp99aBGqV2kglPKzhUF_vu2AwBLVCCl4-5Og/s1600/ENxkQzLW4AA3bLB.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="393" data-original-width="680" height="230" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgARw2wt4olFLOJlk6sjw1lJcB1JUo-epByb-K4VBWf_RElWls5KcVxVMAKe8S3DmUo7t2vnGV0HOeCvvRYhCEV-xwUCptZRjIhkRp99aBGqV2kglPKzhUF_vu2AwBLVCCl4-5Og/s400/ENxkQzLW4AA3bLB.jpeg" width="400" /></a></blockquote>
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If this kind of data intrigues you (I confess that it intrigues me), dig into the full poll at the link. I am most stunned by the gigantic gender gap on anything to do with Trump and his policies.<br />
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Or the fact that so many Republicans support him even if they think this:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6zlDN89YfLhxm2hFtH9-WqQFOSXsbueJLrL1vSDgYZVDqpvTuexfHvFJXPFTSA2D8yCq0TvB0cjEBbm8PQwZLe_EVB4A2MRPSVAJ5NkEGk31VU8YOZBELuDuKSjg8QppIko9crQ/s1600/Screenshot+2020-01-08+at+10.53.29+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="259" data-original-width="396" height="261" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6zlDN89YfLhxm2hFtH9-WqQFOSXsbueJLrL1vSDgYZVDqpvTuexfHvFJXPFTSA2D8yCq0TvB0cjEBbm8PQwZLe_EVB4A2MRPSVAJ5NkEGk31VU8YOZBELuDuKSjg8QppIko9crQ/s400/Screenshot+2020-01-08+at+10.53.29+AM.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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I guess that means they really believe he is a very stable genius. Either that or they think he's being guided by God. Either way, it's downright creepy.<br />
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.dphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17088289159242476175noreply@blogger.com0