My family is one of countless millions of those that have been profoundly disfigured by Fox News since it came along in the late 1990s. In particular, my well-educated and well-read mother, in her mid 70s at the time, started to imbibe many hours of this right-wing propaganda per day, and soon began to parrot it at the dinner table, to the shock and horror of all those around her.
The point here is that she told me, shortly before she died, “Obviously, I don’t have a single point of agreement with Bernie Sanders, but I must admit that he’s completely sincere in his beliefs and in what he’s telling the American people.”
]]>
Steve Martin may be the most talented person in any of our lifetimes. And, like many celebrities, he keeps his politics to himself, which is, of course, his right.
But ask yourself: Is there any chance at all that this powerhouse has the same political sensibilities as the white folks in rural Alabama?
]]>
If you want a good laugh, I highly recommend this short video, depicting some ICE agents trying to arrest a protestor on roller skates.
]]>
I met a guy today who does cyber security for dozens of military bases around the U.S.
Considering his career, I didn’t expect him to bring up his belief that the president of the United States is making horrible, unhinged decisions on our nation’s behalf. He’s especially concerned about the destruction of relationships with our allies, claiming that the stability of the free world is at stake.
He believes, and I hadn’t had this thought myself, that certain single-issue voters really don’t have a choice when it comes to voting. “Suppose your top issue is that you’re vehemently anti-abortion. You can’t vote Democrat, so you have to vote Republican even though you know that 99% of the rest of their policies are based purely on utter stupidity.”
IMO, this is a novel way of looking at the devastation of democracy in the U.S. and elsewhere around the globe, though I doubt it’s the controlling factor. In this case, the SCOTUS Dobbs decision allows states to do whatever they like re: abortion.
In any case, most of us are worried about our country’s future, and for good reason.
]]>
What kind of people are the celebrities in music and digital media as a whole? Not an easy question to answer.
Obviously, they’re talented. Most are well educated and many have the good looks that come from good genetics.
And yes, most of these people have the intelligence to see that Donald Trump is a criminal sociopath on target to destroy the U.S. while enriching himself beyond measure.
For every Jon Voight (see left) that are perhaps 100 Robert Deniros, Bruce Springteens, and Leonardo Dicaprios.
But why are there any Jon Voights at all? The answer is unclear.
I once met a Princeton grad to whom I explained that a guy from my prep school in Philadelphia went to Princeton, and now is all over social media shouting, “Close the Borders!” and “English Only!”
My new acquaintance laughed hysterically, and said with a smile, “Yes, we have grads like this, perhaps one in a few thousand. What a waste of hundreds of thousands of dollars. You can get that level of education by dropping out of high school and driving a truck.”
]]>
At left we see an example of a phenomenon that seems to be happening with increasing frequency: a life-long Republican saying “enough” and refusing vote for the current version of the GOP.
I applaud people who have both:
a) the intelligence to see where a party has crossed a moral line, and is now operating as a criminal enterprise.
b) the inner courage to do this, as it is hard for most people to admit they were wrong after a lifetime of kneejerk reactions, especially on a topic of such importance.
]]>
Someone commented on the meme here: “Don’t forget your jihadi prayer group meeting.”
Another: “And tomorrow we gotta organize to force government to seize the means of production.”
]]>
One would think that Republicans could see the stark contrast between John McCain (honest, sane, decent American hero) and Donald Trump (criminal sociopath and traitor to his country).
But alas.
]]>
To his credit, Trump is astute when it comes to the timing of his atrocities. Had he abandoned Ukraine in favor of Putin’s Russia too early, the American people would have been outraged.
Now, after Iran, detention centers, gas prices, farm failures, killing clean energy, years of support for white nationalism, gutting U.S. education, and so forth, Trump’s backing Russia seems perfectly normal.
]]>
It’s actually surprising that it took so long for Trump to favor Putin in Russia’s war with Ukraine.
Trump loves all the things that Putin stands for: brutality against dissidents, defying the law, war crimes, lies, and fascism.
If it were possible, Trump would enjoy the same absolute power that Putin has, and Kim Jong Un has in North Korea.
]]>