Kind of puts into perspective just how crazy it is to worry so much about progressives renaming schools when you have GOP candidates posting ads about literally killing us in our own homes and state parties writing platforms about wanting to remove voting protections for minorities, putting gay people back in the closet and, oh yeah, seceding from the union.
The worst part of the arrival of explicitly fascist, culture war dominating reactionary conservatism on the national stage is how utterly fucking exhausting it is to have to keep pointing it out to "common sense" swing voters. There is a five alarm fire burning down the neighbor's house, and yet these "independent-minded" members of the electorate refuse to run for the hills because they're on the phone with Comcast/Verizon arguing over why the cable bill is five dollars too much.
File this under "If Democrats Did This" #5,000,000 ad infinitum - if the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Democratic party threatened secession or to ignore federal law (e.g. a national abortion ban or enactment of a state-level AR-15 confiscation and ban) the GOP die-hards, their allies in the press, and other "thought leaders" would be screaming for the establishment of martial law and trials for treason. Can one even imagine the T(f)ucker Carlson bombast if a Democratic Senate candidate released a campaign commercial to the effect of "when you look around today, its apparent we live in dangerous times with various far-right fanatics storming our Capitol, threatening peaceful Pride rallies, and shooting up schools and grocery stores. Therefore, we on the left should arm ourselves and exercise our Second Amendment rights."
The Texas GOP reminds me of a whiny teenager who threatens to move out of their parents' home because they don't like the rules. They wouldn't last ten minutes in the real world and be begging to come home after the electricity in their crap apartment got shut off (or in Texas' case after their power grid fails because it got cold in winter).
Dan Crenshaw was also attacked at the Texas convention. They were screaming "one eyed McCain" and "hang him for treason". And yet Crenshaw tries to pacify these fanatics just as Cornyn did. None of this is going to end well.
“ 'I may be a scumbag, but I’ll use my scumminess to punish your enemies.' Which is also the Trump bargain with Republican voters in a nutshell, no?"
This is absolutely right. While part of Trump-world said that Trump's amorality was simply irrelevant because it's all about "policy, not personality," a large portion saw Trump's amorality as a positive good. Thought-leaders have praised him for being "unafraid to challenge traditional norms," which is a flattering gloss on his disregard for rules and ethics. Then MAGA-land made Trump himself the lodestar of their moral judgment, over and above any policy.
Other aspiring politicians saw that Trump was idolized for being a cretin who tramples on rules and norms and common decency. They saw that it plays well with a big part of the base -- and it will be excused and rationalized by people who perhaps wouldn't sink that low themselves but will embrace whatever looks like a weapon against "the left."
Valorizing moral relativism and ethical indifference is a key element of Trumpism.
" Biden began to treat Saudi Arabia, not Iran, as the pariah he had declared it to be"
Saudi Arabia IS worse than Iran.
Nevertheless, Putin is a bigger danger than Mohammed bin Salman. We had to work with Stalin to defeat Hitler. Biden is having to pull a Franklin Roosevelt here.
Anyone who knew Greitens in the military isn’t surprised by this. This is who he always was and always will be: a charlatan masquerading as whatever you want him to be.
One day Americans will stop deifying the military and actually start holding us accountable.....
Now come the apologists. At the risk of sounding trite, I'm old enough to remember when a large number of folks defended those who were adamantly supporting TFG and his outlandish white supremacist, racist, homophobic rhetoric. When the "tough " talk from the Secret Service protected thug at the podium caused mayhem in the audience and on the streets. And who can forget those red hat wearing clowns chanting as they tore our Capitol apart on January 6? Weren't these assholes referred to as ardent supporters?
I'm anti-hyperbole and have been very hesitant to apply terms like "fascist" to American politcal actors, but that Greitens ad is the very definition of fascism. Murdering your political rivals? Or anyone with whom you disagree? This vile scum would be right at home as a Brownshirt in 1930s Germany. And he could be the next United States senator from Missouri. Good lord.
This is off topic of what you wrote Charlie, (which I am totally appreciative of!!!)
However, can pressure start being put on Mike Pence - he is now defending Trump and marginalizing January 6 - a "tragic day" Many want to call him a hero - but, really, is he? He was doing his job. Period.
And think of this, he still asked for legal advice. It's not like he just put his foot down and said "nope, not gonna do it".....he would have. If Luttig and Quayle had said "go fer it" PENCE WOULD HAVE.
And here is what is even more insulting to me - he possibly wants to ask me to vote for him for President in a couple years - what kind of effing nerve is that? He only cares about "1 set of Americans right now - the MAGA(T)S. Please, don't give him a pass.
With the Texas GOP Declaration of Insanity, it is now officially time to move past the customary outrage at their words and gestures and on to the stage of action. Clearly there is no redemption for these people and their adherents, both in Texas and elsewhere. They do not care what we or any other opposition think. No moral suasion will work, no reasoned arguments, no intellectual honesty, no talk of consequences. They are hell-bent on one thing only: owning the libs, and at any cost, and no tactic is out of bounds. It is an existential struggle to them, and like any cult, this new GOP is prepared to go to the absolute limits to achieve its goal.
So, what to do? What are their weak points, their vulnerabilities? Let's start with everyone's bottom line: money. How can we hit them in the wallet enough to make them rethink their choices and actions? On an individual level, it is time for an all-out boycott of any state that harbors these madmen and their schemes. No personal or recreational travel there. No buying, in person or online, from firms located there. No purchases of products made by businesses there. And so on. Send a message to the so-called job creators that if they will not take a stand against the madness, we will take a stand against them. It may be a small gesture in the eyes of some, but it is also just a first step. If enough people are willing to stand up and deny them the lifeblood of dollars and cents, eventually it will oblige them to protect their interests and turn on those who are aiding and abetting the insurrection. I'm betting that politicians facing a loss of vital campaign funds will start to see things very differently once there are personal consequences for their words and deeds. So far they have not been held accountable. It is our role to do that. So let's go.
This is why the national GOP refuses to put things on paper like platforms and legislative priorities. When they slip up and write something down it's a stark reminder of just how out of touch with the mainstream and how batshit crazy they really are.
Why the fuck isn't Greitens rotting in jail for kidnapping that woman?
Kind of puts into perspective just how crazy it is to worry so much about progressives renaming schools when you have GOP candidates posting ads about literally killing us in our own homes and state parties writing platforms about wanting to remove voting protections for minorities, putting gay people back in the closet and, oh yeah, seceding from the union.
Is there an online petition to support the secession of Texas?
The worst part of the arrival of explicitly fascist, culture war dominating reactionary conservatism on the national stage is how utterly fucking exhausting it is to have to keep pointing it out to "common sense" swing voters. There is a five alarm fire burning down the neighbor's house, and yet these "independent-minded" members of the electorate refuse to run for the hills because they're on the phone with Comcast/Verizon arguing over why the cable bill is five dollars too much.
File this under "If Democrats Did This" #5,000,000 ad infinitum - if the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Democratic party threatened secession or to ignore federal law (e.g. a national abortion ban or enactment of a state-level AR-15 confiscation and ban) the GOP die-hards, their allies in the press, and other "thought leaders" would be screaming for the establishment of martial law and trials for treason. Can one even imagine the T(f)ucker Carlson bombast if a Democratic Senate candidate released a campaign commercial to the effect of "when you look around today, its apparent we live in dangerous times with various far-right fanatics storming our Capitol, threatening peaceful Pride rallies, and shooting up schools and grocery stores. Therefore, we on the left should arm ourselves and exercise our Second Amendment rights."
The Texas GOP reminds me of a whiny teenager who threatens to move out of their parents' home because they don't like the rules. They wouldn't last ten minutes in the real world and be begging to come home after the electricity in their crap apartment got shut off (or in Texas' case after their power grid fails because it got cold in winter).
Dan Crenshaw was also attacked at the Texas convention. They were screaming "one eyed McCain" and "hang him for treason". And yet Crenshaw tries to pacify these fanatics just as Cornyn did. None of this is going to end well.
“ 'I may be a scumbag, but I’ll use my scumminess to punish your enemies.' Which is also the Trump bargain with Republican voters in a nutshell, no?"
This is absolutely right. While part of Trump-world said that Trump's amorality was simply irrelevant because it's all about "policy, not personality," a large portion saw Trump's amorality as a positive good. Thought-leaders have praised him for being "unafraid to challenge traditional norms," which is a flattering gloss on his disregard for rules and ethics. Then MAGA-land made Trump himself the lodestar of their moral judgment, over and above any policy.
Other aspiring politicians saw that Trump was idolized for being a cretin who tramples on rules and norms and common decency. They saw that it plays well with a big part of the base -- and it will be excused and rationalized by people who perhaps wouldn't sink that low themselves but will embrace whatever looks like a weapon against "the left."
Valorizing moral relativism and ethical indifference is a key element of Trumpism.
I will do whatever is in my power to make sure the secession plank of the Texas GOP’s platform is a huge success.
" Biden began to treat Saudi Arabia, not Iran, as the pariah he had declared it to be"
Saudi Arabia IS worse than Iran.
Nevertheless, Putin is a bigger danger than Mohammed bin Salman. We had to work with Stalin to defeat Hitler. Biden is having to pull a Franklin Roosevelt here.
Anyone who knew Greitens in the military isn’t surprised by this. This is who he always was and always will be: a charlatan masquerading as whatever you want him to be.
One day Americans will stop deifying the military and actually start holding us accountable.....
The Confederacy has been reborn and it has risen from the ashes of the very political party that defeated it. We are doomed.
Now come the apologists. At the risk of sounding trite, I'm old enough to remember when a large number of folks defended those who were adamantly supporting TFG and his outlandish white supremacist, racist, homophobic rhetoric. When the "tough " talk from the Secret Service protected thug at the podium caused mayhem in the audience and on the streets. And who can forget those red hat wearing clowns chanting as they tore our Capitol apart on January 6? Weren't these assholes referred to as ardent supporters?
I'm anti-hyperbole and have been very hesitant to apply terms like "fascist" to American politcal actors, but that Greitens ad is the very definition of fascism. Murdering your political rivals? Or anyone with whom you disagree? This vile scum would be right at home as a Brownshirt in 1930s Germany. And he could be the next United States senator from Missouri. Good lord.
This is off topic of what you wrote Charlie, (which I am totally appreciative of!!!)
However, can pressure start being put on Mike Pence - he is now defending Trump and marginalizing January 6 - a "tragic day" Many want to call him a hero - but, really, is he? He was doing his job. Period.
And think of this, he still asked for legal advice. It's not like he just put his foot down and said "nope, not gonna do it".....he would have. If Luttig and Quayle had said "go fer it" PENCE WOULD HAVE.
And here is what is even more insulting to me - he possibly wants to ask me to vote for him for President in a couple years - what kind of effing nerve is that? He only cares about "1 set of Americans right now - the MAGA(T)S. Please, don't give him a pass.
With the Texas GOP Declaration of Insanity, it is now officially time to move past the customary outrage at their words and gestures and on to the stage of action. Clearly there is no redemption for these people and their adherents, both in Texas and elsewhere. They do not care what we or any other opposition think. No moral suasion will work, no reasoned arguments, no intellectual honesty, no talk of consequences. They are hell-bent on one thing only: owning the libs, and at any cost, and no tactic is out of bounds. It is an existential struggle to them, and like any cult, this new GOP is prepared to go to the absolute limits to achieve its goal.
So, what to do? What are their weak points, their vulnerabilities? Let's start with everyone's bottom line: money. How can we hit them in the wallet enough to make them rethink their choices and actions? On an individual level, it is time for an all-out boycott of any state that harbors these madmen and their schemes. No personal or recreational travel there. No buying, in person or online, from firms located there. No purchases of products made by businesses there. And so on. Send a message to the so-called job creators that if they will not take a stand against the madness, we will take a stand against them. It may be a small gesture in the eyes of some, but it is also just a first step. If enough people are willing to stand up and deny them the lifeblood of dollars and cents, eventually it will oblige them to protect their interests and turn on those who are aiding and abetting the insurrection. I'm betting that politicians facing a loss of vital campaign funds will start to see things very differently once there are personal consequences for their words and deeds. So far they have not been held accountable. It is our role to do that. So let's go.
This is why the national GOP refuses to put things on paper like platforms and legislative priorities. When they slip up and write something down it's a stark reminder of just how out of touch with the mainstream and how batshit crazy they really are.