The Evening Blues - 2-14-18
Hey! Good Evening!
This evening's music features Chicago blues harmonica player Mojo Buford. Enjoy!
Mojo Buford - Don't Go No Farther
"Even though we call this country a democracy it's turning out to be more and more a candy-coated dictatorship."
-- Frank Zappa
News and Opinion
Elizabeth Warren Votes for Massive Increase of War Budget
On September 18, Elizabeth Warren, the much beloved poster child of the “progressive” wing of the Democratic Party, voted for a bill that authorizes $700 billion in defense funds. This includes $640 billion for the Pentagon and an additional $60 billion for military operations in countries such as Syria, Iraq, and Afghanistan. This bill increased military spending by $80 billion, which far surpasses the increase requested by America First President Trump ($54 billion). There were 8 no votes (against 89 yes votes) and three abstentions, but Warren was not one of them.
The defense policy bill (National Defense Authorization Act or NDAA) has passed 56 years in a row, and this time the vote was nearly unanimous, with both Republicans and Democrats supporting S.1519 and the massive increase in military spending it sets forth. It may not be surprising that both capitalist parties would vote for pro-imperialist policies, but Warren’s yes vote definitely flies in the face of her image as “anti-establishment.”
Warren, member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and John McCain, chairman of the committee, are on the same side in ratifying a bill that takes more taxes from workers and funnels it into foreign wars, leading to more deaths of innocent people, sponsors Israel’s war against the Palestinians ($705 million), and invests additional hundreds of millions in anti-Russian military build-up in Ukraine and the Baltic ($600 million).
The senator attempts to minimize her incredibly reactionary decision by saying that the bill only authorizes but does not appropriate funds yet. She also claims that she will fight for non-defense spending increases later on when Congress votes on the entire budget. On her website, she boasts: "The defense bill has a long tradition of bipartisan cooperation and I was glad to join that tradition" and that “this NDAA will make a real, positive impact on the lives of Americans."
US destroys Russian tank in Syria, reportedly killing three
A U.S. drone, acting in self-defense, destroyed a Russian-made T-72 tank in eastern Syria over the weekend, the head of U.S. Air Forces Central Command told reporters Tuesday. News reports indicate that three people inside the tank were killed.
Air Force Lt. Gen. Jeffrey Harrigian said U.S. forces for several hours used drones and B-52 bombers to strike fighters after they came under fire from the tank. “We detected and saw a tank that took a shot at us,” Harrigian said via teleconference from Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar. ...
Harrigian refused to say if those inside the tank were Russians. “I don’t know who was driving it. … I’m not just going to speculate on that,” he said.
The strike is the second by U.S. forces against fighters loyal to Syrian President Bashar Assad since last week. U.S. forces on Wednesday killed “scores” of Russians in a strike east of the Euphrates River in Deir ez-Zour province, according to multiple reports.
Damascus warns Israel of 'more surprises' in Syria
Israel will face “more surprises” should it again attack Syrian territory, Damascus said on Tuesday, after Syria’s air defenses shot down an advanced Israeli warplane during the fiercest flare-up between the old foes in 36 years.
The F-16 jet was hit over northern Israel on Saturday as it returned from a raid on a Syrian position blamed for launching an Iranian-made drone across the border. Iran is supporting President Bashar al-Assad in Syria’s near seven-year civil war.
“Have full confidence the aggressor will be greatly surprised, because it thought this war - this war of attrition Syria has been exposed to for years - had made it incapable of confronting attacks,” Assistant Foreign Minister Ayman Sussan said.
“God willing, they will see more surprises whenever they try to attack Syria,” Sussan said during a Damascus news conference.
Ahed Tamimi trial: The conditions of detention of under-aged Palestinians
'54 Palestinians die' as Israel refuses medical permits
Israel was responsible for at least 54 Palestinian deaths last year as it rejected hundreds of medical permit requests it received from Gaza residents seeking treatment outside the besieged strip, rights groups have said.
In a joint statement on Tuesday, the Gaza-based Al Mezan Center for Human Rights, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP), and Physicians for Human Rights Israel (PHRI), highlighted the immediate need for Israel to end its decade-long siege of the Gaza Strip.
In 2017, Israeli authorities approved fewer than half the medical permit requests it received, which were tied to appointments and treatment sessions in hospitals across the occupied territories and Israel - the lowest level since 2008. More than 25,000 permit requests were submitted to Israeli authorities. Of those, 719 were refused, often under the pretext of security.
Another 11,281 applications are still pending approval - meaning thousands of people are in a state of jeopardy.
Samir Zaqout, Al Mezan director, told Al Jazeera that there is no "real rational reason" why patients in need of urgent medical assistance are denied hospital access.
Taliban publish letter calling on US to start Afghan peace talks
In an unexpected overture at a time of increasing bloodshed in Afghanistan, the Taliban have published an open letter expressing a desire for peace talks and calling on the “American people” and “peace-loving congressmen” to pressurise the Donald Trump administration into negotiations.
The letter, released by the Taliban spokesman, Zabiullah Mujahid, comes amid deteriorating conditions for US and Afghan coalition forces on the battlefield and after a month in which two major Taliban assaults on Kabul killed 150 civilians.
The Trump administration has sent mixed messages about its readiness to have contacts with the Taliban, but it has insisted that all substantive negotiations would have to be led by the Afghan government.
For its part, the Taliban refuses to talk to the Afghan government without first discussing the withdrawal of foreign troops with its powerful ally.
“If the policy of using force is continued for another one hundred years,” the letter reads, “the outcome will be the same ... as you have observed over the last six months since the initiation of Trump’s new strategy.”
Time is running out for US to confront 'existential' North Korea threat, Director of National Intelligence says
America will need to soon decide how to confront the threat of North Korea’s nuclear weapons programme, a top official said.
“Decision time is becoming ever closer in terms of how we respond to this,” US Director of National Intelligence Dan Coates told the Senate Intelligence Committee. “Our goal is a peaceful settlement. We are using maximum pressure on North Korea in various ways”. ...
Mr Coats warned that North Korea’s expansion of its military arsenal — both its burgeoning stock of ballistic missiles and nuclear warheads and its “longstanding” chemical and biological weapons initiatives — would “constitute a major threat to the United States and to our allies”.
“North Korea will be the most volatile and confrontational WMD threat in the coming year”, Mr Coats said, adding that North Korea posed an “existential problem for the United States”.
WikiLeaks founder Assange says he has three months to appeal UK ruling
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange said on Tuesday he had three months to appeal against a British court ruling that means he still faces arrest for breach of bail conditions if he steps out of the Ecuadorean embassy in London.
Rep. Pramila Jayapal: Trump’s Immoral Budget Punishes the Poor, Sick & Elderly
Intel chief: Federal debt poses 'dire threat' to national security
Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats warned lawmakers Tuesday that failing to curb the national debt could jeopardize national security.
Coats, testifying before the Senate Intelligence Committee, said he’s concerned that the U.S. government’s “increasingly fractious political process, particularly with respect to federal spending, is threatening our ability to defend our nation, both in the short term and especially in the long term.” ...
Coats, former chairman of the Joint Economic Committee and member of the Senate Finance Committee, said the U.S. fiscal situation “is unsustainable as I think we all know and represents a dire threat to our economy and national security.” ...
Coats is the latest national security official to warn of security risks posed by the national debt, which is now roughly $20 trillion. A slew of former intelligence and military leaders have insisted that a fiscal crisis involving rising borrowing costs spurred by the ballooning national debt could leave the U.S. vulnerable to attack.
Trump Proposes Eliminating Fresh Food For Poor People
The Vampire Squid doing God's work speaks:
Goldman Sachs boss on Trump tax plan: 'Odds of a bad outcome have gone up'
The Goldman Sachs boss, Lloyd Blankfein, has added his voice to the chorus warning that Donald Trump’s $1.5tn tax cut and spending plans could lead to an overheated US economy. “The odds of a bad outcome have gone up,” Blankfein told CNN on Wednesday.
Trump outlined a budget this week that could add $7tn to the nation’s debt over the next decade. Blankfein warned that over-stimulating an already healthy economy could prove “too much of a good thing”.
“Don’t forget, all of these deficits have to be paid for,” he said.
Blankfein said the current upbeat mood reminded him of the optimism that preceded the global financial crisis of 2007-8.
“What could possibly go wrong? I haven’t felt this good since 2006,” he joked. “If the economy starts to overheat, and the Fed feels that it’s behind on inflation, it will need to act,” he added. Blankfein stopped short of issuing an-all out warning. But “with the Fed raising rates, with the withdrawal of QE, with the budget deficit widening out, I wouldn’t say this is the time I would max out on my risk.”
Trump refuses to yield on immigration, causing more division on Capitol Hill
Donald Trump reaffirmed a hardline position on a prospective immigration deal on Wednesday, throwing a wrench into fraught negotiations over how to protect hundreds of thousands of young, undocumented immigrants known as Dreamers.
As the US Senate scrambles to broker an agreement by the end of the week, Trump made clear in a statement that any immigration bill must include drastic changes to legal immigration in order to earn his signature.
The president also threatened to veto any legislation that did not meet the threshold of accomplishing the “four pillars” laid out in a framework released by the White House last month, and he endorsed a proposal authored by Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley, a Republican, that mirrors Trump’s preferred approach.
The Grassley bill would offer a pathway to citizenship for roughly 1.8 million Dreamers, provide funding toward Trump’s promised wall along the US-Mexico border, terminate a so-called visa lottery program for immigrants from underrepresented countries, and scale back legal immigration based on family reunification.
As Lawmakers Debate Future of DACA, What Will It Take for Democrats to Protect DREAMers?
Protestors with disabilities were handcuffed and dragged out of a House committee meeting
Disability rights advocates were dragged from Congress on Tuesday as they protested reforms to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Footage posted to social media shows U.S. Capitol Police forcibly removing demonstrators, several of whom had disabilities, in handcuffs from the House Rules Committee meeting, where lawmakers were debating a bill that would reform the decades-old law. ...
The changes to the bill, sponsored by Republican Rep. Ted Poe of Texas, would ease businesses’ responsibility to make themselves accessible for the disabled. Poe said the changes will avoid “unnecessary abusive lawsuits” against small businesses, while disability advocates contend the bill would essentially strip the laws requiring businesses to accommodate people with disabilities with equipment like ramps.
California launches investigation following stunning admission by Aetna medical director
California's insurance commissioner has launched an investigation into Aetna after learning a former medical director for the insurer admitted under oath he never looked at patients' records when deciding whether to approve or deny care.
California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones expressed outrage after CNN showed him a transcript of the testimony and said his office is looking into how widespread the practice is within Aetna.
"If the health insurer is making decisions to deny coverage without a physician actually ever reviewing medical records, that's of significant concern to me as insurance commissioner in California -- and potentially a violation of law," he said. Aetna, the nation's third-largest insurance provider with 23.1 million customers, told CNN it looked forward to "explaining our clinical review process" to the commissioner.
Squirrel!!!
Trump’s lawyer admits giving cash to Stormy Daniels — but claims it was his own money
Donald Trump’s personal lawyer admitted Wednesday that he paid porn actress Stormy Daniels $130,000 in the weeks preceding the 2016 election, the New York Times reported.
Trump has denied reports that his campaign paid “hush money” to the adult film star, with whom he reportedly had an affair in 2006.
But Michael Cohen, the president’s longtime personal attorney, conceded Stephanie Clifford (Daniels' real name) did receive the cash but said the money came out of his own pocket.
Cohen refused to explain exactly why he would hand over a large bundle of money to an adult film star with whom his boss, then running for office, had allegedly had an affair.
More squirrels!!!
House Russia investigation has 'abundance' of evidence against Trump, says top Democrat
Adam Schiff, the top Democrat on the House intelligence committee, said Wednesday that the panel had seen an “abundance” of evidence of collusion with Russia and obstruction by Donald Trump’s campaign and administration that is not yet public.
Speaking to reporters in Washington, Schiff said a lot of information was already in the public domain that pointed to extensive contacts between the Trump campaign team and the Kremlin, and later efforts by the Trump entourage to cover up those contacts. But Schiff said there was much more to come out.
He said: “There is certainly an abundance of non-public information that we’ve gathered in the investigation. And I think some of that non-public evidence is evidence on the issue of collusion and some … on the issue of obstruction.” ...
Schiff, from California, added on Wednesday that the intelligence committee had also seen evidence pointing towards money laundering involving Trump’s circle, but had been hindered by the partisan deadlock that has paralysed its investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 election.
He said: “It is a tried and true maxim. As a former prosecutor, you follow the money. We have not been able to adequately follow the money. And I think the allegations on money laundering are credible enough that we ought to, in the exercise of due diligence, see if this was one of the other vectors of the Russian active measures campaign.”
Candidate Thrown Out of West Virginia Legislature for Reading Off Fossil Fuel Donors Raises Historic Sum of Campaign Money
Lissa Lucas, a first-time Democratic candidate for the statehouse in West Virginia’s District 7, was outraged that the legislature was considering expanding the rights of gas drillers at the expense of property owners. So she drove 100 miles to the state capitol and read off the list of fossil fuel donors to lawmakers at a public hearing. The presiding official, Republican Delegate John Shott, equated this recitation of public information as a personal attack and promptly expelled her from the chamber. ...
It has certainly helped her fundraising.
As of this writing, her campaign has raised more than $50,000. Lucas told The Intercept that this is a nearly elevenfold increase from the $4,000 she had raised prior to her address at the legislature. “I’m blown away,” she said.
The significance of this amount cannot be overstated. The website Ballotpedia tracks the total campaign contributions in District 7 for every campaign cycle going back to 2000. Lucas’s sum raised so far is more than twice the $17,498 raised by all three candidates in 2016. It is larger than the total funds raised during any cycle in the district in the 21st century. (The second-highest fundraising was $23,994, raised by four candidates in 2006). The current amount raised by the incumbent, Republican Jason Harshbarger, is not yet publicly available, but he raised just $9,300 in 2016.
Woman Dragged From Podium - Lissa Lucas Tells Her Story
Iceland’s bitcoin miners may leave the country without enough energy
Bitcoin mining in Iceland is sucking up so much energy that officials are worried they soon won't have enough power to run the country. In the last six months, miners have been flocking to the island nation, where abundant and cheap renewable energy and arctic air (to keep servers from overheating) make it a bitcoin miner’s paradise. But the energy-intensive process of mining cryptocurrency threatens to overwhelm the country’s energy infrastructure. If it continues apace, it’ll eat more energy than all of Iceland’s residents would consume before the end of the year. ...
The way bitcoin works, miners, as they’re called, task themselves with verifying bitcoin transactions on a global ledger, where all bitcoin transactions are recorded. In exchange, they’re rewarded in bitcoin. The way the currency is structured, there will eventually be a cap at 21 million bitcoin in circulation, which means there are about 4 million left to mine. The more bitcoins are in circulation, the more computing power it takes to verify the transactions.
As a result, miners are constantly seeking out cheap and reliable energy sources to power their computers. And Iceland has plenty of that. The country’s grid is powered entirely through its abundant sources of renewable energy, a combination of hydroelectric and geothermal power.
Bitcoin mining is using a ton of energy globally. A single transaction uses the same amount of energy as the average U.S. household in a week, and, as of November, bitcoin was using more energy than about 160 countries. It’s expected to use more power than the entire world does today by 2020.
Coal execs spent federal money to clean themselves, instead of coal
The Department of Energy agreed to spend $450 million in 2009 to fund a clean coal development from a Texas energy company. But the agency didn’t keep tabs on the cash, according to a report published Tuesday from the Department of Energy’s internal watchdog. Not only was the project never completed, but some of $38 million of federal money appropriated for the project was used on “social” expenses, like “catering on a private jet.”
The project, which sought to fund a coal plant that would capture 90 percent of its carbon emissions, was greenlit as part of President Barack Obama’s stimulus package. The funding was a big, early demonstration of the promise of “clean coal” tech. After years of missed deadlines, however, the Department of Energy’s Office of Fossil Energy pulled the plug on the project in 2016. It never even broke ground.
But that didn’t stop the company, Summit Texas Clean Energy, from spending the money before filing for bankruptcy last year.
Summit spent $2.5 million of the federal cash on “potentially unallowable” expenses, according to the watchdog’s report. Those include:
- $650,000 in charges from a consultant for spa services, booze, first-class travel, limos, and business meals that were either prohibited or not adequately accounted for.
- $325,000 in costs that “appeared to be social in nature,” like “banquet room rental expenses” and catering for the company’s private jet
- $1.2 million on three lobbying consultants for support for a project with federal grant money. (Federal law prohibits federal funds from being used to influence the government.)
The rest of the $38 million was spent on other questionable expenses. Summit spent $7 million on seven executives, “who held positions for multiple entities affiliated with Summit,” according to the report — all for a project that was never completed. Still, the Department of Energy reimbursed Summit for the entire $38 million.
President's proposed budget cuts Great Lakes restoration funding
President Donald Trump announced his 2018-2019 budget and it includes a 90 percent cut to the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative.
The new budget would cut funding from $300 million to $30 million.
Last year the Trump Administration proposed ending the federal support of the program but Congress fully funded the program for 2018.
The program has strong bipartisan support in Michigan and other Great Lakes states.
Also of Interest
Here are some articles of interest, some which defied fair-use abstraction.
Intercepted Podcast: America’s Distribution of Violence
Honduras Nearing Ten Years of Stolen Elections, Neo-Colonial Rule
Are You Ready To Consider That Capitalism Is The Real Problem?
While the Media Panicked About Campus Leftists, the Far Right Surged
How Trump's budget would cut the safety net for the poorest Americans
'Declaration of war': liberals divided as California mulls housing push
Decline in krill threatens Antarctic wildlife, from whales to penguins
Corbyn's Labour Party Unveils Plan to Make UK 'World Leader on Animal Welfare'
A Little Night Music
Mojo Buford - Deep Sea Diver
Mojo Buford - Mean Old World
Mojo Buford - Jealous Of My Baby / Mo's Stroll
Mojo Buford - Watch Dog
George 'Mojo' Buford - Mo's Boogie
Mo-Jo Buford - Whole Lotta Woman
Mojo Buford - Gone and Left Me
Mojo Buford - Mojo Woman
Mojo Buford - Chicken Shack
Mojo & His Rhythum Quartette - Knockin' On My Door
Comments
Hello joe, bluesters.
Looks like Syria is encouraging a sort of California Gold Rush style international participation in retaking it's oil fields. Dangerous biz for us all.
You were right, looks like Zuma is going to step down. Next buffoon to step down DT? Heh.
We had planned to kayak again but it was raining so we used that as an excuse for a down day today to relax, edit some photos and write some travel stories to upload to our blog.
A truth of the nuclear age/climate change: we can no longer have endless war and survive on this planet. Oh sh*t.
Noticed some conflicting reports on Zuma but here is
a SA source
https://www.iol.co.za/news/politics/news-just-in-president-jacob-zuma-re...
A truth of the nuclear age/climate change: we can no longer have endless war and survive on this planet. Oh sh*t.
evening do...
what a nice, toothy grin! friendly-looking critters down there in c.r. sorry to hear that you guys got rained out today.
yep, i'm glad to see that zuma is toast. hopefully, by the time you guys get to s.a. there will have been an orderly transfer of power to somebody who is considerably less corrupt and more interested in helping out the people.
Check out Lissa Lucas' page
https://lissalucas.com/
Especially her letter to Frank Rich, under top posts.
Also Derf
Derf: http://www.gocomics.com/thecity/2018/02/10
And Rall: http://rall.com/comic
And Zippie: http://zippythepinhead.com/Merchant2/merchant.mv?Screen=PROD&Product_Cod...
edit: removed clunky link
Bon appetit!
Great link. Absolutely great rebuttal.to Frank Rich.
I hope it gets some attetion. Love the opening "Dear Frank Rich. Screw you."
Yep
Ms. Lucas is worth keeping an eye on. Her rebuttal was fantastic: "high moral ground" while wishing death and disease on poor people. I had to stop lurking on Dem sites when they started that evil crap, not good for blood pressure. They started sounding classic Thuglican: poor life choices, poverty their own fault, etc. FDR rolling in his grave.
evening pr...
that's a great response to the clueless frank rich, thanks for the link!
evening, joe. thanks for all the work
you do, compiling the days news, plus all the music links. I'm impressed at how you keep finding so many good musical themes, lots of blues artists I don't know. Plus - you add a descriptor to the gugletube links. I run NoScript, so all the tube links are black empty rectangles. That text you add helps a lot.
In a lot of threads, that makes it hard to follow a discussion if I can't see the name of a song, for example. Even if I click the link, all I get is a list of the spyware scripts that gugletube wants to run on my puter, so that doesn't help. Having a little text to say what's in the link, like you do, helps. Thanks.
I hope you also enjoyed the Derf link. He really nails it.
Friend just alerted me re upcoming vote on HR620 gutting the ADA
My first thought was, oh, it’s those nasty Republicans again — but I was wrong.
https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/search/pagedetails.action?packageId=BILLS-115h...
Check it out: it’s bipartisan. Three of the six sponsors are Democrats from California.
Michael Conaway is one of the worst, constantly felating
veterans 'for their service' rather than helping them and others in any useful way. Sickening to Californians on the same list but hey how bout them Callie Dems! /s
A truth of the nuclear age/climate change: we can no longer have endless war and survive on this planet. Oh sh*t.
evening lotlizard...
yep, the neoliberal screwing of americans is completely bipartisan. the trump/schiff outrage circus is giving them cover for whatever the dark overlords want done.
the closets are open and the skeletons are having an all night dance party.
More news to add to your jewels js
If AZ can do it, so can NM, TX and others!
Talk it, Jill ! After all the attacks from left, right and center, Stein is still leading for a better way. No regrets for my two votes for her. None.
Happy Valentines Day from jb and I to C99ers. More power to us all.
And some special luv fo you, joe, for all the many great tunes and digests. On on!
A truth of the nuclear age/climate change: we can no longer have endless war and survive on this planet. Oh sh*t.
thanks for the links, do...
and, as we used to say, "happy vd to you, too!"
:)
A truth of the nuclear age/climate change: we can no longer have endless war and survive on this planet. Oh sh*t.
Good evening
From the Also of Interest section:
In Leaked Chats, WikiLeaks Discusses Preference for GOP Over Clinton, Russia, Trolling, and Feminists They Don’t Like
You might see my comment over there: "This is not a good look for you, Micah Lee."
I couldn't make up my mind about that article
it felt like a smear piece, but had info in it that one can't ignore either.
Ah, no, one can ignore everything, if it's better for your own mental health. In this case I felt it's better to forget the whole article. for my own good.
These days I don't trust many site's articles that I used to trust. So, I think, I can skip reading, as it doesn't make sense reading stuff that might be not trustworthy, right?
https://www.euronews.com/live
evening mimi...
it is a smear piece. the author (micah lee) has an ongoing, long-running feud with julian assange.
this is an ugly piece of work, full of unsubstantiated assertions that the intercept is tarnished by publishing.
Heh, I saw that
Good job. Sheesh, ugly article. Micah said that he gave him time to respond to it and that Assange didn't. I said that I wouldn't bother replying to it either. Gah!
Was Humpty Dumpty pushed?
Thank you,
snoopydawg.
Assange
said in a tweet that Wikileaks was not contacted. Don't know on this. Seems likely they would have been, but hard to say in this case.
By now can JA even still be sane.
Like a canary in a coal mine cage he is trapped as an example. Hell, I dont even care if he said those things given what he has been through. Heh, some trust could the sickeningly transparent Republicans to do the predictable vs the traitorous corpadems lying and scheeming kabuku bull shit..
A truth of the nuclear age/climate change: we can no longer have endless war and survive on this planet. Oh sh*t.
evening olinda...
yep, that was a pretty nasty smear piece. i debated with myself about whether to include it - and the thought that folks needed to know what was out there won out. i expect that there will be considerable discussion about this steaming pile among lefty types as well as the reliability/bias of certain writers at the intercept.
i'm glad to see the ferment in the comment section and hope that it will get the attention of whatever passes for editorial oversight at the intercept.
the fact that the whole article rests on the dubious presumption that the material tweeted by wikileaks staff account is written by julian assange is indicative of the (lack of) concern for accuracy and substantiation throughout the article.
one of the comments included a link to a tweet demonstrating the despicable way that micah lee "developed" material from the leaked chat transcripts. it seems to be quite damning:
Whew, I was wondering why you included it
Glad to know that you're still sane... you had me worried there for awhile.
Was Humpty Dumpty pushed?
Good evening, I am very disappointed about Elizabeth Warren
and thanks for that link to the leftvoice.org. First time I have seen that site. It has an international network link on it and I found that quite interesting to browse through. Thanks.
Elizabeth Warren crossed over to me in the past as too careful and too easily scared over threats that I did not consider to be some. That was years ago though.
The intercept article about the leaked chats from Wikileaks are very "igittigit" (yucky). Changed my perception about Assange quite a bit. I hope they release him and he can get free and live somewhere a normal life, so that his mind can start to heal.
The other articles are all too sad or worrisome to comment on. No comment stories so to speak.
Thanks for all your work.
Good Night.
https://www.euronews.com/live
evening mimi...
yeah, i've been very disappointed by warren's performance as a senator. some of her populist stances (regarding accountability for financial institutions) are laudable, however, she is virtually indistinguishable from a warmongering neocon on some very important issues.
see my response to you above about the wikileaks smear piece in the intercept.
Warren
Way back when Warren was becoming a name among progressives, someone at TOP warned me she's not what she seems. I was skeptical but since then, Warren has proved it again and again.
Idolizing a politician is like believing the stripper really likes you.
Ugh I couldn't finish the Assange article
WTF? This seems to be more of a hit job on him than an unbiased opinion. I read the comments and it seems that others feel the same way. Wonder what the author's point was in writing it. It would go over well on ToP though.
Was Humpty Dumpty pushed?
Hit job
Yes, exactly. To me it was "I'll show him! Grrrr!"
There's been an ongoing feud with Micah and Julian for awhile now. A Twitter feud, heh. Micah criticizes and Julian defends. Some of it sounds valid, but still not worth tweeting about in public.
One tweet by Micah said Julian hid at the embassy to escape rape charges in Sweden. That's the one that tore it with me. That facts on this point are correct in the current article, probably because it had an editor go over it.
Yes, I was glad to see a lot of pushback in the comments, too. Maybe now Micah will shut up!
Micah is an ass for saying that
Micah should have known the details of the charges against Assange. The woman who accused Assange of rape walked back their statements early on and they didn't want anything to do with the case. The charges were dropped then and then the prosecutor got pressured into charging him again. This was all because the USA wanted him locked up so they could get to him. Same with the U.K. judge not letting him leave the embassy. This country still wants him.
But once a false story is out it's hard for the facts to be known. Journalists everywhere should be writing about this case because one day they might be facing the same charges.
Was Humpty Dumpty pushed?
Did you read this from Assange?
Financial censorship. It's all about the money and how it's used to oppress. Sounds familiar.
I am too stupid, all I know is that nothing is not dirty in the whole Lee-Assange fight. I want to forget this crap.
All I know is that Assange needs to get released and live somewhere like a normal human being without being arrested or harassed.
https://www.euronews.com/live
FPF
Thanks, mimi. That was interesting. I saw this comment (that is included in your post) from Micah awhile back in the middle of their feud :
"Julian Assange is not a co-founder of @freedomofPress. This is
another lie. I know, I'm a co-founder";
No you aren't! I am! Brother. Now I see the rest of the story.
Sweden
snoopydawg, I don't think there were even any actual charges brought. Sweden opened, closed, then reopened and closed again an investigation. There was an arrest warrant for Assange as he was wanted for questioning. The Swedish prosecutor finally went to the U.K. and interviewed Assange there, and then closed the case for the final time after that.
His whole situation is sickening.
evening snoopy...
i got to the paragraphs where it says that they "assume that the wikileaks account is controlled by julian assange himself,' and thought, "this is bullshit." then i checked to make sure that i was really on the intercept site, that it wasn't a spoofed address. i read the rest of the piece shaking my head and trying to decide whether to include it, whether to rip it apart or ignore it. i wound up deciding to include it without comment so folks could make up their own minds.
i'm gratified to see that so many people read it in much the same way that i did.
You knew this was coming ...
US Intelligence Invites Citizens To Dismiss Dissent As Part Of Russia’s Efforts To Undermine Midterm Elections
We wanted decent healthcare, a living wage and free college.
The Democrats gave us Biden and war instead.
They are laying this on thick aren't they?
One person had the guts to question whether Russia changed any votes and boy did he get piled on for it. From there's always one person who has to throw crap at the wall and see what sticks, to there has been plenty of evidence released already that shows that Russia's actions had a huge effect on the election. The lie that all 17 intelligence agencies agree that Russia interfered with the election is still being repeated even though it's only 3 agencies and two of the people have stated that nothing happened. Clapper and Brennan have both been caught lying.
Was Humpty Dumpty pushed?
17 agencies
I still hear that all the time! We have 17 intelligence agencies?? Who the heck are they??
I meant to address the fear mongering about
the upcoming elections where the DNI is warning us about Russia being determined to muck them up. Apparently this propaganda attack is working so well that they are going to be keeping it going. And it's working. Numerous articles and discussions about appeared today and people are hyperventilating over it. They just can't see how anyone can not believe it. Oh and they're upset that Trump isn't doing anything about it. Thought that was DHS job?
Was Humpty Dumpty pushed?
heh...
just for grins and giggles:
office of the director of national intelligence
cia
nsa
defense intelligence agency
fbi
dept of state - bureau of intelligence and research
dept of homeland security - office of intelligence and analysis
dea - office of national security intelligence
dept of treasury - office of intelligence and analysis
department of energy - office of intelligence and counterintelligence
national geospatial-intelligence agency
national reconnaissance office
air force intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance
army military intelligence
office of naval intelligence
marine corps intelligence
coast guard intelligence
What, not NCIS?
Jethro would have solved this case in less than 40 minutes and still have time for a beer while working on his boat.
Was Humpty Dumpty pushed?
17 - thanks, joe! nt
evening azazello...
heh. get ready to be an agent of russian influence. i wonder if i'll have to turn in my jill stein yard sign to be used as evidence against me.
Good evening, Joe, funny thoughts come from nowhere sometimes...
Recall "How can you tell he's king?" Now that the US of A has one, he wallows in it.
Strange culture our country is. Or is it the meaning of is is off?
Life was simpler before these robed people, ... maybe.
Thanks for the news and blues and have a good evening!
evening smiley...
heh, this gives me a mildly amusing thought of my own:
i vaguely remember (a possibly attributed) confucius saying, a warning against malign gossip, "in order to spit poison, one must first have it in one's own mouth."
perhaps to reword it for the trump era, "in order to fling poo, one must first get it on one's own hands."
The whole Bitcoin/energy consumption
Pretty much sums up the world today.
Arrogant assholes doing their thing... screw everyone else.
Gëzuar!!
from a reasonably stable genius.
evening bollox...
yep. it also demonstrates the nasty, ill-considered side effects of some economic systems and how their built in incentive structures can collapse a culture if left to run without regulation.
Capitalism Is The Problem
Great opinion piece at Fast Company about the growing popularity of socialism and spot on conclusion:
The also of interest link:
https://www.fastcompany.com/40439316/are-you-ready-to-consider-that-capi...
"They'll say we're disturbing the peace, but there is no peace. What really bothers them is that we are disturbing the war." Howard Zinn
evening mm...
glad you liked it. it's a great piece.
have a good evening!
Good news out of Virginia for a change.
[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XK4IatenLws]
Modern education is little more than toeing the line for the capitalist pigs.
Guerrilla Liberalism won't liberate the US or the world from the iron fist of capital.
evening ac...
it's great to see the progressives in virginia giving big energy a run for its money and at the same time defeating the unprogressive democrat governor, who would have signed the law if the progressives hadn't stopped it.
Looks like Oregon Congress dem delegation farily consistent.
They voted against the defense bill and I think they voted against the FISA bill. This is on both Senate and House side. Several supported TPP but can't get it all right all the time. They many times are on a small list of representatives who voted Nay on stuff all the other democrats went in on.
evening mr w...
yep, oregon goes progressive on a lot of issues. unfortunately, ron wyden is a free trader, though on the good side, he is a stalwart on privacy issues.
Good evening, Joe and everybody else. Happy Valentine's
Day to all, and all like that. FWIW, back before there was an ADA, there was a very contentious fight throughout CA over instituting assorted state and local laws and regulations regarding the same issue. Center for Independent Living (Berkeley) was a tireless force for change.
That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --
Thanks and hope all is well with you el.
We met a gay couple from SF on the beach one night in Isla de Mujeres in early 80s. One was a great storyteller, abd we remained friends through his death from HIV in the 90s. He was vivacious and at heart quite sypatico. He did tend to go off on the other abled in Berkeley who would come into the Paris Blues outlet just to rag on the clerks for the lack of access. Funny in his telling but understand how Californians were pioneers. People in Austin did great things for the ' deaf' and ''blind' as far as signage aslerys, Braille, etc but always behind CA.
A truth of the nuclear age/climate change: we can no longer have endless war and survive on this planet. Oh sh*t.
evening el...
yep, it is worth mentioning that california, for all of its difficulties, often leads the nation in promoting and implementing progressive ideas.
The link to the *Senate* roll call
for the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2018 from back in September...if you want to look up how your PINO most recently sold you out.
https://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cf...
Compensated Spokes Model for Big Poor.
Thanks! After the fiasco in Oregon where they let those idjits
A truth of the nuclear age/climate change: we can no longer have endless war and survive on this planet. Oh sh*t.
evening gls...
thanks for digging that up! not a progressive to be found in my "blue" state.
poor and medical expenses..
So much to get angry about in the evening blues tonight but thanks for your nightly report. Thinking about how close to the edge some people exist. Viewed theuour utility bill online for our cabin this past month after the city ownedutility rate increases today . Ours was highest in 10 years of summer or winter. Whatspurred us tocheck was seeing Locals in the littlecity had posted on FB shock at no way they could pay thehugeincrease.
Life is what you make it, so make it something worthwhile.
This ain't no dress rehearsal!
evening jb...
sorry to hear about the energy rate increases in your area and what they will do to people with limited finances. it seems like public service commissions everywhere are in the pockets of the utilities and despite the drop in energy costs, utility bills only seem to rise while infrastructure rots. gosh, i wonder where those excess profits are going?
The "New Improved SNAP Program!!"(c) has just released
its theme song.
That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --
heh...
time for me to go out into the kitchen and make a cool water sandwich.