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Wednesday, March 30, 2022

No One Is Coming to Save Us



2016: "Russia if you're listening..."
2019: "I'd like you to do me a favor..."
2022: "...So now I would think Putin would know the answer to that. I think he should release it."
-- Donald Trump, repeatedly imploring foreign despots to attack Americans


A few days ago, Fox Business News Stuart Varney asked Donald Trump what he would do differently from Biden when it comes to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

What would you do differently, Mr. Trump?

What indeed? 

Trump, a man who declares himself a military genius and who allegedly knows more than actual military generals, replied: 

“Well, uh, what I would do, is I would, we would, uh, we have tremendous military capability and, uh, what we can do without planes, to be honest with you, uh, without 44-year-old jets, what we can do is enormous, and we should be doing it, and we should be helping them to survive and they’re doing an amazing job.”

There you go, the vision of a military genius. 

It's like listening to some football player who's been hit in the head one too many times: Uh, well, I just wanna, uh, you know, get out there and, uh, you know, do the thing that we do, uh, you know, stuff with that is enormous stuff that we're doing every day, um, you know, with the thing, you know, that we do because that's how you do it and they're doing an amazing job! 

Even Varney couldn't believe the gibberish coming out of Trump's sagging ridiculous Big Mac hole. 

So he asked again, what would you do in Ukraine that Biden's not doing right now? 

I mean, you have to give Varney credit for hanging in there like a Russian general about to become yet another hilarious statistic in Western news media, but honestly I don't know how after all this time he couldn't see what was coming.

“I listen to him [Putin] constantly using the n-word [the what?] that’s the n-word, uh, and he’s constantly using it [wut? wut?] the nuclear word [OH] and we never talk of, uh, we say, ‘Oh, he’s a nuclear power,’ but we’re a greater nuclear power, we have the greatest submarines in the world, most powerful machines ever built, most powerful, and they got built under me [The only nuclear subs we're building are the Virginia Class which were ALL ordered and budgeted prior to 2014, Trump had literally nothing to do with it, but he's on a roll] most powerful machines ever built, and nobody knows where they are and you should say, ‘Look, if you mention that word one more time, we’re going to send them over, uh, and, uh, we’ll be coasting back and forth up and down your coast.’”

Get all that?

Trump's big plan is that since nobody knows where the submarines are (which is pretty much the whole point of submarines) we'll just go ahead and TELL THE ENEMY WHERE THEY ARE

We'll just tell the enemy where our secret weapons are. 

Genius.

While at the same time also, apparently, threatening nuclear war and basically daring Russia to do something about it. 

That's what Trump would do. 

I can't tell you how damn glad I am that he's not the guy doing it anymore.

Well, at least for the moment, but we'll come back to that. 

Because he's a fucking lunatic. 

He's nuts. Crazy. Barking mad.

This is Trump, literally saying in one breath that if he was in charge, he'd threaten nuclear war, global annihilation, and then minutes later openly begging political favors from the same guy he's threatening. 

He's insane. 

His gray spongy brain is a ragged tangle of cobwebs full of dead bugs and bad smells. 

If we are not as yet actually at war with Russia then it's the very next thing to it -- as Trump himself must believe, otherwise why would you threaten nuclear war?

And yet, here's Trump demanding Vladimir Putin produce some sort of compromising material on Joe Biden's son to somehow damage Biden himself solely in order to profit Trump. 

This isn't the first time Trump has done this. 

It's not even the second time. 


And at this point, if that isn't treason, it's the next thing to it. 


Yesterday, Congressman Matt Gaetz declared in apparent seriousness that if Republicans take back the House later this year, he intends to nominate Trump as Speaker of the House. There's nothing in the Constitution that would prevent this, and as ridiculous as it sounds I wouldn't put it past Republicans to do it solely in order to make liberals scream in rage -- because that's become the mean small ideology of the GOP in its entirety. 

Also, yesterday, we discovered there's a seven hour gap in White House phone logs, in Trump's records specifically, during the height of the January 6th Insurrection. 

Literally, at the exact moment Trump's supporters stormed the Capitol his official phone logs show no data. 

Yet, we know with absolute certainty Trump was on the phone during that period. 

We know this, because when you examine the phone logs of other Republicans during that same time, those records show calls from Trump

For example, Trump called Senator Mike Lee, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, and Vice President Mike Pence during that seven hour gap. This is not in dispute. He was on the phone, calling his own Vice President, calling members of Congress, and members of the media -- such as Sean Hannity. 

So, either Trump was using burner phones to avoid the Presidential Records Act in a premeditated violation of the law, or the official White House records have been deleted, altered, or forged again in violation of the law. 

There are no other options. 

Trump committed criminal acts. 

This not alleged. This is not speculation. This is fact. Trump committed criminal acts. 

Or, you know, more criminal acts. 

In fact, last Monday, Federal Judge David Carter in a case involving Trump crony and right wing lawyer John Eastman, formally stated: 

"Based on the evidence, the Court finds it more likely than not that President Trump corruptly attempted to obstruct the Joint Session of Congress on January 6, 2021."

"The illegality of the plan was obvious. Our nation was founded on the peaceful transition of power, epitomized by George Washington laying down his sword to make way for democratic elections. Ignoring this history, President Trump vigorously campaigned for the Vice President to single-handedly determine the results of the 2020 election ... Every American -- and certainly the President of the United States -- knows that in a democracy, leaders are elected, not installed."

Eastman was in court, suing to prevent having to turn over records of communication between himself and Trump which the January 6th Committee believes may show that he and the former President planned to criminally disrupt certification of the election, knowing they were committing crime. I.e. Trump's actions on January 6th were premeditated sedition. 

Unfortunately, neither the January 6th Committee or Judge Carter have the power to bring criminal charges against Trump. 

Only the Department of Justice can do that. 

And so far, the Attorney General has shown absolutely no interest in doing so. 

I know a lot of those on the Left would like to think there's some big secret plan afoot, that cases like this take time, etc, the DOJ is closing in and soon Trump will face justice. 

And maybe there is. 

Maybe Merrick Garland is a cunning and cagy general, scouting the enemy, gathering intelligence, moving his army into position, and perhaps one day he'll unleash a legal Blitzkrieg and those like me who are increasingly doubtful that Trump and his seditious cronies will ever be brought to justice,  yeah, well, maybe we'll have to hang our heads in shame and apologize. 

And if that day comes, if I watch them dragging Trump in chains to a traitor's just fate, well, then I'll certainly apologize for my lack of faith. 

But if it doesn't happen very, very soon, it never will. 

Because this isn't about justice. 

It's not about legalities. 

It's not even about what's right and wrong. 

It's about politics.

And politics are about perception

And there is no one -- no one -- who understands this better than Donald J. Trump. 

See those words up above. Trump's words. His big plan to defeat Russia. Gibberish. None of it makes any coherent sense. It's a brain full of spiders. Not one word of it makes any sense. It's disjointed mewling insanity.  

But Republicans don't care. 

Trump doesn't have to make sense. 

Trump knows this. Republicans know this. The mob doesn't give a shit what the words are or even if they make any sense. 

Look at the recent Trucker Convoy in Washington D.C. 

Big joke, right? You and I, we saw a joke, a ridiculous sad failure, a bunch of losers peeing on themselves and driving around in circles. They didn't even know what they were protesting. 

That's what we saw. 

But the other side? They saw defiance. Patriotism. Liberty. 

It doesn't matter if it made any sense, it's about what you see.

Because politics is about perception. 

And so, if the DOJ doesn't shit or get off the pot soon, they might as well not even bother. 

Because if Republican take back Congress this year, then just like those two impeachments, nothing the law does will matter. 

And Trump will not only have gotten away with it again, he'll likely regain the White House. 


Right now, right this very minute, Russia's official state media is calling for Russia's "Partner Trump" to be installed (their words) as President of the United States. 


That's where we're at.

Right on the cusp. Right on the edge of losing it all. 

So, in case I'm being too subtle here, in case you've read this far and you haven't figured out where I'm going, it's this: 

This is your 2022, 2024 CLARION CALL TO SHOW THE HELL UP. 

No more bullshit. 

No excuses. 

No more "both sides."

I don't want to hear about how disappointed you are with Biden or Pelosi or democrats. I don't want to hear any whining about how you don't like the choices. Any of this childish nonsense about how you want better choices. 

Too damn bad. 

This isn't about what you like, it's about your duty as a citizen.  

This is it. You can't depend on anyone else to save you, to save your country, to save your kid's future. 

You can't depend on Merrick Garland for justice, not in time anyway. You can't hang the future on some vague hope that somehow someone somewhere will keep these assholes from destroying what's left of this country. 

It's up to you. 

You have to show up. 

You have to keep them out of office. You. No one else. 

You show up. You browbeat your friends and family and strangers to show up. And you keep this lunatic and his lunatic party the hell out of office. Give the DOJ time to bring them to justice, if you believe that's what going to happen some day. Or at the minimum you just keep these assholes out of office and avert nuclear war and maybe that's the best you're going to get. 

Whatever way it goes, everything you care about, everything, is on the line. This is it. 

So I don't want to hear any infantile whining about how you wish it was different. No shit, we all do. But it's not and here we are. 

Time to adult, folks. 

You show up and you do your duty. 

You want a better nation, be a better citizen. 


The liberties of our country, the freedom of our civil constitution, are worth defending against all hazards: And it is our duty to defend them against all attacks.
-- Samuel Adams

82 comments:

  1. "Freedom is something you assume. Then you wait for someone to try to take it away from you. The degree to which you resist is the degree to which you are free."
    -Utah Phillips

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    1. A wise man was ole Utah. R.I.P.

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  2. Indeed, here we are. We can only make changes from where we are, not from where we wish we were. You are absolutely correct on every point. Now is the time, and this is the place. We either make those changes NOW or we will not have the opportunity, or the ability to make them later.

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  3. "It's up to you. You have to show up."

    Pretty sure you said that in 2016, too.

    I think my least favorite military joke is "MILITARY INTELLIGENCE IS AN OXYMORON HAW HAW HAW". The only response to that is: ...uh, dude? The problem ain't on our end. We told you ALMOST EXACTLY what was going to happen.

    And YOU DIDN'T LISTEN TO US.

    Didn't listen to us before. Probably won't listen to us again. But, at least there is symmetry.

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    1. I spent the anniversary of 1/6 reading columns from people being paid vast sums of money to write them saying "No one expected..."
      SOB, we were shouting at you continually from November 2016, screamed ourselves horse from November 2020 to January 2021, and you didn't listen. You just called us shrill and hysterical.

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    2. The thing about democracy is, you always have to show up.

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    3. This, rather quickly, brought to mind this song by a very good local band here: Reinforcements · Heathcote Hill Reinforcements https://youtu.be/zS5dmyVWCRA

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    4. @Huey
      Is...is that a Zathras reference? Bless you.

      Delete
  4. Thank you for putting it in plain, no tip-toeing around the issue words, sir.

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  5. Damn right! Show up and VOTE! Every.Damn.Time. Even if (like here in S.Dakota,Democrats have a snowball's chance in hell of winning anything) it probably won't change the outcome, but we need to use our voices, and our votes are our voices. Even when we know the outcome probably won't be what we want. It still matters.
    I'm 73 and I have only missed voting in ONE election: There was 30" of snow and I couldn't get out. And mail was on hold.

    I don't think Garland was the good choice for AG that many thought he would be. People say that he's dotting the Is and crossing the Ts, but I'm not convinced of that any more. It's like he got the consolation prize for not getting the SCOTUS slot, but I'm tiring of waiting to see "something" happen. Yes, yes. I know the wheels of justice grind slowly and all that. But I'm discouraged. Should I not be??

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    1. I tend to agree with you now. And I'm actually glad he didn't make SCOTUS, too. I eread he's concentrating on something with Hunter Biden.

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  6. Not only does Trump not need to make sense, he needs TO NOT make sense. That allows the conspiracy nuts, the religious, the angry ill-tempered and the privileged-feeling-threatened to project their own thinking, such as it is, onto him. Any coherent ideas would only get in the way; he just needs to get the emotional tone right.
    A projection screen needs to be sort of blank and featureless and reflect everything back.
    Trump probably understands this intuitively. Of course it does help to have a brain full of spiders.

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    1. Thank you, feralboy, for clarifying something that has been puzzling me for some time: What do Trump's followers think they hear when he spouts disconnected,ignorant, repetitious nonsense?

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    2. feralboy, what you've said makes perfect love sense. Thank you.

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  7. Amen. We know you are not a man given to hyperbole except in the service of a good joke, and this is not a joke. This is as serious as a heart attack. Which is what may happen to me if the GOP wins in 2022 and 2024. In the spirit of Molly Ivins and Ann Richards, I will fight like hell to keep that from happening.

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    1. Only autograph I ever asked for was from marvelous Ms. Molly and it was perfect.
      "Keep raisin' hell."

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    2. Molly was, and even in death remains, a national treasure!

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  8. As always, no pussy footing around and straight to the truth. Thanks Chief. I don't know what I like more about you, your knowledge, your ability to leave trolls in a puddle, or your photographers eye, but together, they make up a pretty awesome guy. Appreciate it as always.

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  9. I wish I knew how to make my MAGA-brained relatives come to their senses and realize what we are actually facing with the whole GOP. I almost said "GOP circus" but it's a hellofalot more serious than any "circus." I said back in 2015 that Trump represented an existential threat to the Republic and every time he opens his mouth, he confirms that diagnosis. We have to figure out how to keep the House of of GOP control and maintain a majority in the Senate. Otherwise, we're headed down a long, dark tunnel with no light at the other end.

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  10. "We know this, because when you examine the phone logs of other Republicans during that same time, those records show calls from Trump."

    How do they show those calls? As from his cell? From the Oval Office? I guess it can't be from a burning phone because then the call wouldn't show up as from Trump. They show as from some random number. Therefore, the WH logs must have been edited.

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    1. I'm not sure. If I call from Skype I can choose what number gets shown at the other end.

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  11. /waiting for the 'Burn It All Down' crowd to infest the comments...

    There are those who are so privileged that they can't even muster the imagination to comprehend how BAD it CAN be, because they've been insulated from the ReichKKKwing's predations their entire lives, despite *believing* they're 'brave' 'resisters'.

    I say they're just as bad as those on the Right in one way, their mindset of: "It's not a problem until it happens to ME, no matter who else, ally or otherwise, suffers."

    Also, nitpick": "We'll just tell the enemy w-H-ere our secret weapons are."

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  12. Trump as Speaker of the House. The job is more complicated than the Presidency, and requires a great deal of knowledge on how to get things done, including the art of persuasion and compromise. Trump? I say, go for it. Nothing the GQP will propose will get passed with him in the Speaker's seat. We'll have the House in session 3 days a week while he golfs the other four. Trump? Ha!

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    1. Since when are you under the impression they want to get anything passed? They had four years with him sitting in the WH, and the only substantive legislation they moved was a tax cut for billionaires. All they want is to gut regulation on businesses and pack SCOTUS with Federalists.

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    2. Don't forget, Speaker is second in line to the Presidency. Get rid of the President and VP (pretext or ...), and hey presto! Trump's an unelected President!

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  13. I got tears in my eyes. Not sadness, but anger. I will do whatever I can to avert that future.

    To trop out a recent quote, "Trump must go."

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  14. I will definitely show up, no doubt about that. BUT...the Dems already elected are not doing their duty to protect the constitution. They should be doing all in their power to pressure DoJ to move on this, but I'm not seeing it. Maybe they are behind the scenes, but I have grave doubts about that.

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  15. Spot on.

    At this point, I feel that America has already entered into the realm of Idiocracy. The fact that we're talking more about Will Smith's slapping Chris Rock than the carnage going on in the Ukraine is disheartening.

    And while the brave Ukrainians are fighting for their lives and their democracy we're just here bitching about gas prices because for some it's a crime and tragedy that it costs too damn much to fill the tanks of their big ass trucks that get 7mph to the gallon.

    And we can't even bother to lift a finger to defend OUR democracy.

    Our worthless Beltway Media just sits back a shrugs at the latest predictable Trump scandal while they're too busy trying to malign Biden with whatever.....because for these glorified stenographers, the corruption, chaos and incompetence of Trump was the Golden Goose of clicks, likes, retweets, book deals and celebrity. Having actual adults in charge, like the Biden Administration, is not good business.

    What scares me to death is that God-forbid the Orange Imbecile somehow gets to be elected President again. It would prove once again that we as Americans HAVE LEARNED NOTHING from his first reign of error and January 6th.

    And if these same MAGA imbeciles, who elected Cadet Bone Spurs again, start complaining about the endless corruption, chaos and incompetence brought forth under him, well don't say we didn't warn you AGAIN.

    You get the government you deserve.

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  16. There are those if us who KNOW what you are saying is absolutely correct, we see the end arriving. But i hope somehow we can break the ignorance of the general public! It was so close last election, and this time the idiot Trump will be shambling into the center of the stage again!

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  17. Fantastic writing, but a couple typos:
    “ as ridiculous as it sounds I wouldn't put it passed Republicans”
    “ we discovered there's a seven hours gap “

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    1. You missed at least five other ones

      :)

      It's fixed. //Jim

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  18. I show up every election and if I do not like the choice, I will vote for the lesser evil.

    As per Stonekettle:

    I want a better government so I try to be a better citizen.

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  19. Well, you've just scared the hell out of me, like I wasn't already freaking out about '22 and '24. Everyone I know hates trump and votes in every election, so I think I'm going to volunteer - and get them to volunteer - with our local Democratic party to do what we can to keep as many GOPers as possible out of office. I hope to hell the DOJ gets its shit together on this. But like you, I don't have a lot of confidence in that happening.

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  20. Trump will never be arrested, tried, convicted or jailed. He is and continues to be the real Teflon Don.

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  21. I'm definitely planning to show up for the November midterms. Not just for the federal election, but to also vote to oust the waste of oxygen governor of my state who is trying to erase LGBTQ kids like my own child, instead of doing anything worthwhile like addressing the out of control spike in homeowners insurance rates.

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  22. Thank you Jim Wright for always expressing so well what I can't. I'm grateful you're here and that I found you. If it weren't for my having found you and Stonekettle Station, I would've lost hope here in Lubbock, Texas. Again, thank you.

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    1. ^ Agree !
      Thank You from Richmond VA !

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  23. I'm in Colorado these days, and every media outlet here left of Fox News is quietly gleeful at the way Eastman is getting spanked in court. And with 'good job Brownie' getting spanked in court too, after trying to interfere with the Marshall fire clean up.

    As for showing up, I do. My friends do. My family does, with the exception of my MAGA father. We've been showing up for two decades, and we're getting tired. We keep showing up and nothing changes; the status quo just keeps rolling on, or the rightwing assholes bent on reshaping the Republic in their own image win. We need everyone else to show up too. We'll keep showing up because we understand the price on the line, but we could really use a rotation off the front folks.

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  24. Not only do we have to show up, we need to ensure we're still properly registered! Remember, Republican-run state governments are looking for any excuse possible to push Democrats off the voter rolls, usually under the fig leaf of "voter fraud prevention."

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  25. My frustration lies in our own party who should be out there every day screaming about the constant stream of corruption coming out of the Trump administration, the most corrupt in our history. Every damn time they allow RepubliNazis to control the narrative with crazy conspiracies and fear mongering about stuff that doesn't even exist in a meaningful way (CRT,indoctrination, communism). They stupidly believe they are dealing with sentient human beings. They aren't. They hear RepubliNazis out there daily bragging about impeaching Joe, ending the Jan 6 commission, even rolling back laws on interacial marriage,FFS, WHEN they get power back. I truly believe the midterms will be our last chance. Apathy is killing our democracy. It's now or never. I am not holding out hope.

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  26. once again, sir, "bull's eye"...anyone who gives one damn about our country should read this...i'm doing my part to spread this far and wide...

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  27. I am not a physician, nurse, therapist, or psychologist, but I worked in a major hospital stroke / traumatic brain injury rehabilitation unit for five years, assisting nursing and therapy staff both, helping with direct patient care, and in doing so, if one has any intelligence, one learns things.

    The inability to walk down stairs without help and the need to support a hand holding a water glass with the other hand are evidence of physical trauma, as is that Mr. Trump's vocabulary has decreased from recordings of his speech in the '80s, he has fantastic obsessions (bugged by Mr. Obama, having voters bused in from other states to help Mrs. Clinton, that he won re-election by a landslide but had it stolen from him), his deflection into accusations about Mr. Hunter Biden's alleged finances and laptop computer, that he allows himself to be manipulated by Vladimir Putin, etc.

    He is not a "stable genius." Mr. Trump shows marked evidence of damage -- it would take a combination of CT, fMRI, and PET scans to determine exactly where the damage is and at what level, and what can be helped and what cannot.

    Unfortunately, the narcissistic psychological disorder he also evidences will prevent his willingness to ever be voluntarily examined.

    Frankly, he is a clear and present danger.

    I mentioned I am not a physician, nurse, therapist, or psychologist. These are a (an educated) layman's observations.

    I also am not a lawyer, so if what i'm writing here, despite my believing it to be true, crosses a line which in your opinion exposes either you or myself to an accusation of libel, I will understand if this doesn't pass moderation. It's your house, your rules.

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    1. Unless the Supreme Court reverses Sullivan vs New York Times or you live in the UK, you’ve got nothing to worry about.

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  28. Long time fan, Jim. Everything you do, you do well.
    I will vote, as I always have. This time, I also plan on working phone banks this year, a semi-courageous act in my deep red county in my deep red state. I plan on going to open halls presented by Democratic candidates so I can write about what I hear, in the local papers, and on Twitter and on Facebook (a place I rarely go these days). It's not much but it's better than doing nothing.

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    1. I'm doing the same! I desperately hope our efforts will pay off. Good luck.

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  29. Well said. If Republicans win the House a & Senate in the 2022 mid-term elections democracy in America is over.

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  30. Well said.

    The big orange elephant in the room, IMHO, is of course Trump.

    He spent years cuddling up to Putin and Russia. He's claimed on numerous occasions he's buddy with Vlad. He met with him multiple times, did his bidding, had Russians in the Oval Office, etc.

    Then why the fuck hasn't Trump done something to stop this war?

    I mean, do I want Trump involved in any way shape or form? HELL THE FUCK NO. But some guy who claims he's got a "big brain" and is an AMAZING business man and said he would have gone after the Stoneman-Douglas shooter hasn't stepped up to say: "Let me call him and see what I can do." "Let me go and meet with President Putin and broker a peace deal." "Let me use my business acumen to figure out how we can stop this war and stop this killing."

    I mean it makes logical sense...right? RIGHT?

    But we know Trump and we know that he's a lying chickenshit bone-spur having racist asshole who wouldn't know the right thing to do if it happened right in front of him (google the story about a man at Mar-A-Lago who fell down and starting bleeding and how Trump ran in the opposite direction).

    I mean this is the best way to "own the libs" and put himself in the running for 2024. Heck, why haven't Hannity and Tucker and Faux News badgered Trump to do something that could even be looked at as "brave."

    Because they know, too, that he'd make it worse. And make it all about him. And that deep down they know he's a lying chickenshit bone-spur having racist asshole.

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    1. He boasted about supposedly meeting Putin on various occasions, but those were in fact lies. He'd been almost completely ignored by Putin until he was President, despite Trump *begging on Twitter* for Putin to notice him, come to his Miss Universe party, be his new best friend! The only thing Putin ever said about Trump, when asked, was that he was a Russian word for "flashy"; Trump interpreted this as a compliment to his intelligence (though it was NOT) and went around for years telling everybody how Putin called him "brilliant" and also making up fictitious encounters where, according to Trump, they got along great!!! It was incredibly embarrassing to us as a nation because every Russian knew Putin gave him the massive cold should and then the dis, and Trump BOASTED about it.

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  31. I live in Texas (thank you for your sympathy, and Florida, back atcha) - we'll be electing a new governor this November and I am gonna make damn sure it's Beto or I'll die trying. I'm making phonebank calls and I'll be knocking on doors, both of which are so outside my comfort zone it's ridiculous, but Abbott, Patrick, and Paxton simply cannot be reelected if we're to have any hope of maintaining our democracy. Let's get 'er done, y'all!

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    1. Right on sister! Thanks so much for your good work. Lucky me, I live in Lubbock, a truly lost city. Sheesh.

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    2. Best of luck to you. I think, from what I;ve seen, you have a good chance.

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  32. So often I want to acknowledge the contribution you make, Jim, to my sense that people with integrity still remain in places where they can affect consequential outcomes. Your experience and rational narration are acute and valuable.

    Many of us quietly admire your perseverance. We can relate to health and personal issues to which you've alluded and to which we've refrained from offering our personal advice. That, plus your seeming ideological/geographical isolation out there in what we in the Northwest like to call 'The Deep South', places you as a credible, boots-on-the-ground reporter from inside a culture difficult to understand. Hard to imagine that was your plan all along. But I digress.

    I think we're all appreciative of your ability to assemble and convey a cogent sequence of thoughts. Consistently. And you do so with a prodigious output at which I can only marvel and applaud you, sir. Grateful I found you early, before you became the broadband influencer you are now.

    Thank you also for your spectacular images of instances in time we might otherwise never see, and for the technical skill and craft that has allowed you to capture them and show them to us.

    I trust you are in this with us for as long as you are able. Same here.

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  33. Voting is not enough anymore.

    If you can, serve as an election judge. Maybe serve on your local election board.

    Let your elected officials from dog catcher to senator know you will not stand for the GOP antics -- from election games to their anti-CRT propaganda to their renewed assault on LGBT.

    If you have it in you, run against them.

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  34. Machiavelli said something like "it's not what you are, but what you appear to be." Republicans and their followers cannot tell a cow from a helicopter. Their "leaders" tell them what it is and they believe it.

    Outstanding essay, as always. I think 2022 is our last chance.

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  35. What I find unsettling is in numerous PA House and Senate races there are NO democrats running against the Republican incumbents. I don't care if they lose, but Damnit you can't just let the "walk in" to the position without at least trying. If I lived in those districts damn well I'd write my name in.

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  36. Everybody in the country needs to read this. Unfortunately, the MAGA crowd either can't read or don't care, because those who can read see Trump as a means to an end. They know he's an idiot, but his incompetence helps them game the system while his corruption allows them to get away with it.

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  37. Sadly I saw something today that said less than 25% of 18-year-olds in Ohio are registered to vote. Considering the import of upcoming elections and their primary in May that is staggeringly bad.

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  38. Those who need to read this won’t, or (unsurprisingly) they’ll call it fake.
    Show the hell up. Talk to friends, family and tell them they must show up.
    Our country is at stake.

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  39. Has the Very Stable Genius threatened to give extremely sensitive material to the Russians if he is indicted?

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  40. "You want a better nation, be a better citizen."

    How many times has Chief Wright written this line in his career on the Innertoobs?

    Damn near every single time he sets words to screen on this blog.

    Look at those people in Ukraine expressing the duty of a good citizen when a revaunchist ex-spy with dreams of Empire decides it wants "peace" - a piece of Donbas, a piece of Crimea, and the rest of Ukraine. They stand to the colors. They fight and bleed and die and endure horrors and privation, paying for their freedom as a nation in the hardest of currencies.

    We Americans, who see ourselves as the living avatars of the Goddess Liberty
    Herself, have been spared such a deadly trial of our liberty in this generation. But between those Quislings who collaborate with traitors, who pollute our political discourse with a pay to play dynamic, who try to divide us against ourselves at the demands of foreign oligarchs, we are facing a stern trial of our very souls as a free people. Only an awakened, alert, reasoning populace will face it successfully.

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  41. So here we are. My short form version from 2018 on: "We are the ones we have been waiting for." Not sure my heart, or yours, can take this fecalmatter much longer, but we have to at least until after the first week in November. We -all of us who understand this, whether we figured it out today or years back- have to keep sounding the alarm loud and clear. Have to keep doing everything we can to get people to listen and then do. I won't reach anything the number you will, but I am in this with you.

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  42. When are the Democrats going to show up? They control the House, Senate and 1600 Pennsylvania and yet still manage to get nothing they promised across the finish line. Not student loan forgiveness, not socialized healthcare DURING A GLOBAL PANDEMIC despite showing that gratis vaccines work, and not even the lowest of bars with cannabis reform.

    Please remind us why they deserve any support from us when they cannot even agree that the 1/6ers need to at least be censured.

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    1. Please don't buy into that false narrative. The Democrats do NOT control the Senate. 50:50 with a VP tiebreaker means they get the gavel and committee chairmanships, but the Republicans refuse to allow any bills sponsored by Democrats to pass.

      The Founders set up a system which allowed for differences of opinion, but never envisioned that half the Senators would not negotiate in good faith. And it is nothing but bad faith when Republicans will not even pass something that was originally their idea, just because it is being proposed by a Democrat.

      Also - absolute, winner-take-all democracy is just mob rule. The point of a constitutional democracy is that the views of the minority should be taken into consideration. That WAS the way government ran, up until Newt Gingrich and his "Contract with America". Republicans learned they could win by being extremists and by demonizing the Democrats, and they have never looked back.

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  43. Nothing I can say that doesn't sound like I'm kissing a.. You are the greatest and smartest gentleman I have found on the internet and I'm glad I got in to your group fast enough. I'm ready to go, no matter what we do. We have to act because I government is not.

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  44. Even here in super-blue Massachusetts, we have to get out there and pound the pavement. The predominant pattern is that we have an almost all-Democratic state legislature and senate, and a Republican in the governorship. I'll grant that Charlie Baker hasn't been half-bad, and he's bucked the main current of crazy in his party the entire 8 years he's been in office. He did mostly right by this state early in the pandemic (his decision to open things up last year was a mistake, and we've seen the death rates spike from time to time because of it). But he's not running again, and the likely GOP nominee Geoff Diehl is a MAGAt, a walking disaster for Massachusetts. Our current AG, Maura Healey, is running for the governorship, and we had all better hope and pray that the unaffiliated in this state don't do the stupid thing and split their votes the way they usually do. I plan on pounding the pavement for Healey this year. I might even spare some time for Chris Pappas in NH, who just had his district lines gerrymandered under him by the GQP state lege. They hate him because he's 1) a Democrat and 2) openly gay and 3) got a conscience and heart. He's not as progressive as I would like, but he's on the side of the angels. And that's what matters.

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  45. There is an essay on that I recall reading.

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  46. I have a very religious friend, who is constantly reaching out to me about my faith; about my soul, about my after life. Which he sees as in dire peril. A few days back, I asked him why he kept doing this. Aside from giving me repeated opportunities to be pithy, or to throw quotes like farts in the wind, I get nothing out of it- not even irritation, we are friends, after all, and I understand the spirit in which he comes after me. He told me he did this because he doesn't believe any cause is lost- while there is still time. This reminds me of you, and of all of us, at this point. We keep banging our heads against the wall. A wall of reaction over reason, of reflection over rationality. A wall of anger at and reluctance to coming and inevitable changes. Often wondering, why bother? Let the slimy bastards have it and plan accordingly. And my friend's answer is, perhaps, the best one. No Cause Is Lost While There Is Still Time. Vote!

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  47. So much this. I very recently became a grandparent, and I worry about the world my new grandchild will inherit from us. I vote Democratic every time, all the time because of this.

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  48. Regardless of where you live or how red the area may be, there is always and sometimes unexpected hope. I have a friend who lives in a very rural, very red area. The Republican mayor has been in office since Christ was a corporal. The Democrats rarely even ran a candidate. My friend had zero money with which to run a campaign. Nevertheless, she signed herself up as the Democratic candidate, expecting to garner a mere handful of votes but at least show the Flag of Democracy.

    To everyone's shock and surprise, she won the office in a close race and is now Madam Mayor and shaking things up (In a good way) and building a real constituency that could lead to lasting change.

    Lessons I learned:
    1. You will never win if you don't try.
    2. Complacency is deadly (Ask Martha Coakley).
    3. Your opponent may have the resources to outspend you. But you can use your social networks to both raise money AND, more importantly, OUTWORK the other side.
    4. People seem to notice when you work hard for their votes.
    5. Even small donations can make a big difference. Put some money where your vote is. Can't donate at all? Volunteer. Be part of a "phone bank". Knock on some doors. There's ALWAYS a way to help out.
    6. As Jim sez, VOTE! Bring your friends and family to the polls. Offer a ride to the polls for someone. But VOTE! ALWAYS VOTE

    Thanks, Jim. You ROCK, as always.


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  49. The Justice Department remains committed to holding all January 6th perpetrators, at any level, accountable under law — whether they were present that day or were otherwise criminally responsible for the assault on our democracy. We will follow the facts wherever they lead.

    Because January 6th was an unprecedented attack on the seat of our democracy, we understand that there is broad public interest in our investigation. We understand that there are questions about how long the investigation will take, and about what exactly we are doing.

    Our answer is, and will continue to be, the same answer we would give with respect to any ongoing investigation: as long as it takes and whatever it takes for justice to be done — consistent with the facts and the law.

    I understand that this may not be the answer some are looking for. But we will and we must speak through our work. Anything else jeopardizes the viability of our investigations and the civil liberties of our citizens.

    - Merrick Garland, January 5 2022

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  50. Since 2016, I have shown up at every election. Every primary. And every time the choice was between D and R, I chose D. I'll vote Biden/Harris in 2024. I'll vote for the D candidate to try to oust David Rouser in NC's 7th. I'll vote for the D candidate to fill Burr's senate seat. I'll vote for the D candidates for NC's state legislature as well.

    I'll do my part.

    But it's incredibly exhausting to be told, over and over again, that we have to do our part by voting, giving money, etc, when the fucking DNC can't get their shit together and put forward inspiring candidates.

    Virginia is a great example. The governorship was the DNC/VA Dems' to lose. They did well under 4 years of Ralph Northam. And then what happened. Terry motherfucking McAuliffe. It's no wonder they lost.

    So yes, I'll show up. I'll do my part. But it's long past time that Schumer and Pelosi and yes, Biden/Harris too, start doing theirs. What's to stop Biden from cancelling student debt tomorrow? What's to stop the House from impeaching Thomas (symbolic, but symbols are not inherently worthless)? What's to stop Schumer from overriding the senate parliamentarian, or using other maneuvers to avoid the filibuster? What's to stop the dems from taking any number of other executive and legislative actions that make it look their leadership actually gives a shit?

    You said it yourself - politics is about perception. Dem leaders are obsessed with perception. Ironically, the only perception that seems to matter to them write op/eds for the Wall Street Journal and/or get stupidly high salaries to foist that third way bullshit on the rest of us.

    It's unsustainable.

    So yes, I will show up and push the button for the least bad candidates. But I will never stop being critical. I won't shut up about how fucking disappointing a Dem unified government has been so far. And I will never stop expressing my disappointment in schumer, pelosi, et al.

    Because they're complicit.

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    1. And I think that's fair.

      I'll show up too, because it's my duty to do so. But, like you, I'll never stop being critical. And I would love a leader that inspires.

      I'm not a democrat. I'm not a republican. I'm an American citizen who might not expect better government, but that doesn't mean I won't keep working to build that better nation.

      //Jim

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  51. Trump would say the invasion didn't happen, and I quote him directly; 'the best Ukrainians want to be Russian" is what he learned to say to please the third-tier oligarchs who came to Miss Universe ahindigs. His current resentful comments like "people forget I gave them the missiles" are solely the result of Zelenskyy and Ukraine's popularity in America, which Trump can't resist trying to associate himself with somehow, to grab some credit for his brand, It's utterly predictable.

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