The Evening Blues - 9-1-20
Hey! Good Evening!
This evening's music features Soul singer Johnnie Taylor. Enjoy!
Johnnie Taylor - Blues In The Night
"So, Americans, then. Self-appointed vigilante defenders of the world, kind of like Superman, if Superman was retarded and only fought crime when he felt like it."
-- Yahtzee Croshaw
News and Opinion
Trump incites vigilante violence against peaceful protests in Wisconsin
In the week since a fascistic gunman killed two protesters in Kenosha, Wisconsin and seriously wounded a third, the Trump administration and its allies within the media and political establishment have defended the killings and the murderer. The actions of Kyle Rittenhouse, a 17-year-old Trump supporter who had previously attended Trump rallies, are the direct outcome of the incitement by this administration itself. It occurred during the week of the Republican National Convention, as speaker after speaker railed against the “radical left” and demanded the restoration of “law and order” in response to the protests over the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha last Sunday. ...
Developments in Wisconsin have been followed by an escalating campaign by the Trump administration for a military-police crackdown in Portland, Oregon. Right-wing groups—including Patriot Prayer, which has ties with the Portland police—have been patrolling the streets of that city over the past week, firing mace and paintball guns against protesters and journalists. After a member of Patriot Prayer was shot and killed on Saturday, Trump demanded the deployment of the National Guard in the city and tweeted, “LAW AND ORDER!!!” Referring to the fascistic gangs, Trump wrote that the “big backlash… cannot be unexpected after 95 days of watching and [sic] incompetent Mayor admit that he has no idea what he is doing.”
There is nothing spontaneous about the parade of armed vigilante groups in Kenosha, Portland and other cities. They are no less coordinated with the White House than the armed protests of fascistic groups at state capitol buildings in Michigan, Virginia, Minnesota and other states in April and May to demand an end to restraints aimed at stopping the spread of the coronavirus pandemic. The strategy of the Trump administration is to wage the next two months of the election campaign under conditions of violence, military-police deployments and the threat of civil war. Its “law-and-order” campaign is being developed even as it is provoking violence and repression.
What is now taking place is an escalation of Trump’s efforts to develop a far-right, fascistic movement based on the police, sections of the military, and paramilitary-type organizations. The latest tirades follow his threat on June 1 to invoke the Insurrection Act to deploy the military against protests, effectively attempting a military coup, and the deployment of federal paramilitary shock troops to seize and beat protesters opposed to police violence in July.
Biden accuses Trump of 'fomenting violence' in US after Portland clashes
Joe Biden on Monday accused Donald Trump of fomenting violence in American cities as the president endorsed his supporters who fired paintballs at protesters in Portland, and ignored pleas to stay away from Kenosha despite high tension after police shot a Black man there. With accusations that Trump is encouraging a breakdown in law and order while labeling himself the law and order president, amid the ongoing reckoning over racism and police brutality nationwide, his Democratic rival declared Trump “a toxic presence”.
Speaking from the battleground state of Pennsylvania, Biden delivered his most direct response yet to the president’s misleading claims about his governing agenda and what he sees as Trump’s fear-mongering that if Biden wins the election unrest will be the norm and “no one will be safe”. In a speech in Pittsburgh, Biden said Trump has spent four years “poisoning the values this nation has always held dear, poisoning our very democracy”.
His remarks came as Trump escalated his attacks on Democratic-run cities and tweeted, “Rest in peace, Jay!” about a member of a right-wing extremist group who was shot dead in Portland, Oregon, after a procession of Trump supporters in trucks drove downtown, confronting Black Lives Matter supporters.
Biden responded to Trump’s dark warnings by pointing instead to the chaos ensuing from the untamed coronavirus, the economic crisis and civil rights protests prompted by racial inequality.
Kenosha Police Under Scrutiny for 2018 Case of Chrystul Kizer, Black Teen Jailed for Killing Abuser
Kenosha police say most arrested during protests were from out of town
Most people arrested during protests in Kenosha, Wis., have been from out of town, according to Kenosha police.
Kenosha police said they arrested a total of 175 people between Aug. 24, when protests erupted after the police shooting of Jacob Blake, and Sunday as of 12:30 p.m.
Of the 175 arrests, 102 listed addresses from outside of Kenosha, police said. Arrest numbers include people from 44 different cities, police said.
Police said many arrests were for curfew violations, while others were charged with carrying concealed weapons, burglary and possession of controlled substances. More than 20 firearms were seized, according to police.
But she slept like a baby while her husband fomented an illegal regime change war in #Syria that has murdered over 500,000 human beings to date. https://t.co/pGyuoMyWW1
— Sarah Abdallah (@sahouraxo) August 30, 2020
Worth a full read:
Voting in a De-Facto Military State
What are we in for on the foreign policy side come Nov. 3? Whoever wins this election, Joe Biden or Donald Trump, the answers before us are grim. For those who vote, the choice lies between a mentally impaired restorationist and a paralyzed captive of what some of us call the Deep State. Think about this. The illiberal liberals, the only kind there are now, advertise Nov. 3 as the most decisive election in generations. This assertion is questionable even in the domestic context, but that is another conversation. As to the direction of U.S. foreign policy, there is no question: Between Biden and Trump, we are at bottom offered no alternative to our anxious empire’s conduct abroad.
Lawlessness, war and more war, destructive interventions in the name of righteous humanitarianism: We have no one but ourselves to blame for what will confront us in the four years to come. The divisive, nonsensical distractions of identity politics, “intersectionalism,” and all such narcissistic preoccupations carry a cost: No word is spoken among “progressives” about America’s imperial adventures. The lives of our countless victims abroad do not matter. The structures of power remain unchallenged. This election is indeed of great significance, in my view. Given the absolute absence of any check on Washington’s projection of hegemonic power, known politely as “global leadership,” it will force a question upon us it is long past time to pose: Do Americans live under a de facto military government?
Anyone who thinks this suggestion is extreme should consider how tenuous civilian control of the Pentagon has been for many years. The defense industries bought Capitol Hill long ago — this is documented fact, however seldom acknowledged. The military-industrial complex’s power over the executive is just as real but less defined, and it has been especially apparent since Trump began his presidential campaign in 2015. Foreign policy took up several important planks in Trump’s platform, readers may recall. He campaigned promising to reduce the military’s presence abroad, end our wars of adventure, ease NATO into the history books, and make a constructive relationship with Russia out of the unnecessary hostilities Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, his secretary of state, left behind. These positions won him votes. ...
Unsurprisingly, we have seen virtually no progress toward Trump’s objectives since he took office in January 2017. The Pentagon and the national security apparatus have ignored, circumvented, or otherwise subverted his orders to withdraw troops from foreign theaters, notably Syria and now Germany. Relations with Russia have dramatically worsened. NATO still pretends it has a function in the post–Soviet era. ... More of the same under a second Trump term is my call — a muddled White House at odds with itself, no worthwhile shift in policy permissible. ...
iden promises a straight-ahead return to the policies that prevailed under Obama and Obama’s predecessors: a reclamation of “global leadership,” a renewed emphasis on interventions we justify, per usual, by casting ourselves as humanity’s archangels. The wars and occupations will grind on, the extravagant Pentagon budgets will remain, the reigning Russophobia will remain. Biden is already well on board with the emergent Sinophobia. ... This election could end up opening the way for the U.S. eventually to become in fact what it has long been in effect — a one-party state. The foreign policy consensus the Biden camp now represents could solidify to the consistency of granite. ... Is there somebody to vote for on Nov. 3? Is any vote a vote for generals?
You Can Have Peace Or The US Empire
Just in the last few days Israel has reportedly dropped cluster munitions and white phosphorus on southern Lebanon, bombed Gaza, and fired missiles on Damascus, because Israel is a nation whose existence depends on unceasing military violence.
In order for Israel to continue existing as the imperialist apartheid state that it is, it needs to wage war in all directions at all times, both against its neighbors and against the increasingly brutalized Palestinian population. If the bombings end, so too does Israel as we know it, because the regional population will never stand for its oppression, tyranny, and multiple illegal occupations.
Peace and Israel are therefore two mutually exclusive concepts. You can have peace or you can have today’s Israel; you can’t have both.
Over the last few days alone, Israel fired white phosphorus on South Lebanon; bombarded the open air prison of Gaza; and today dropped bombs on #Syria’s capital city of Damascus.
And as per usual, Western media is silent and the “international community” is nowhere to be found.
— Sarah Abdallah (@sahouraxo) August 31, 2020
A nation that cannot exist without ceaseless war is not actually a nation at all: it’s an ongoing military operation with some suburbs and schools mixed in. A nation that cannot exist without constant war is like a house that can’t exist without constant construction: if your house needed 24/7/365 construction work in order to remain standing, you’d either completely redesign the way it’s built or you would move.
This is true of Israel, and on a larger scale it is true of the globe-spanning, empire-like oligarchic world order that is loosely centralized around the United States.
This US-centralized empire, of which Israel is a part, is entirely dependent upon endless war for survival. If military violence ceased to be a tool which power structures could use to enact their agendas, this empire would necessarily cease to exist, because there’d be nothing to stop nations from exercising their sovereignty on the world stage. Currencies, resources and commerce would begin moving along completely different channels.
This would bring an end not just to the US empire, but to the United States as we know it. Without the ability to bully and punish the world into alignment with its agendas, the US, if it continued to exist at all to any extent, would be completely unrecognizable. Whatever remained would be forced to develop a completely different kind of economy, because the US attained its economic supremacy not by means of the “free market” as some capitalism cultists like to imagine, but by rivers of human blood.
The US “economy”, if you can even call it that, is upheld not just by an incomprehensible web of debt and bureaucratic fiat, but by a petrodollar agreement on arms manufacturing and military alliances, by endless acts of mass-scale brutality, and by the most sophisticated propaganda machine ever to exist. The United States of America is built on war, is made of war, and is sustained by war. If the wars end, America as we know it ends.
I point this out partly because those of us who live within any part of the US-centralized empire should probably be aware that the lifestyles to which we are accustomed are built upon a steadily growing mountain of human bones. I also point this out because I think it’s important for those who claim they desire peace to be absolutely clear about what it is they are asking for.
A sincere desire for peace means wanting the end of the slaughter of human beings who live in other parts of the world more than you want your personal status quo to be maintained. A lot of people who think of themselves as “anti-war” aren’t actually comfortable with the idea of the United States losing its position of unipolar domination over the affairs of our planet and taking a chance on a world without US imperialism. When it comes down to the brass tacks of what peace really is and what it really means, many of the people whose lives are floated by the deluge of human blood don’t actually want it.
But at the very least they should be real with themselves about that. At the very least they should admit to themselves that beneath their antiwar facades they are clinging tooth and claw to a paradigm whose brick and mortar are relentless acts of mass murder.
Uprisings Against Evictions Planned for September 1 in Cities Across US
Organizers and community members in at least 15 cities across the United States are set to mobilize Tuesday to "storm the streets in front of the homes and offices of Republican leaders, occupy eviction courts, and hold teach-ins on tenant protections for a nationwide day of uprisings to protest the Senate's failures to provide relief during the biggest eviction crisis the U.S. has ever faced."
The website of the #ReliefIsDue campaign, spearheaded by the Center for Popular Democracy (CPD), notes that "our rent and mortgages are due, our bills are due, homelessness is skyrocketing, small businesses are going bankrupt, and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Republican senators continue to sit at home and do nothing."
The Covid-19 pandemic has upended the national economy, with 57.3 million workers filing for unemployment over the past five months and millions of families struggling to meet basic needs. ...
"While our families are struggling to make ends meet, Republican leaders have turned their backs on us," Ashley Broshious from Charleston, South Carolina, said in a CPD statement. "We are coming together to fight against any evictions happening in our communities and demand that all rent be canceled until this crisis is over. It’s time for us to hold Republicans accountable for all the suffering our communities have gone through because of their inaction. Relief is due and the Senate must act now."
Organizers in at least 15 states have coordinated mass demonstrations targeting a variety of actors who participate in the eviction process, including banks, corporate landlords, marshals, sheriffs, and the courts.
Examples of specific protests include rallies and car caravans outside of housing courts; a march to McConnell's house in Washington D.C.; teach-ins on tenant protections and eviction defenses; and in Little Rock, Arkansas, tenants will serve eviction notices to U.S. Senators.
Throughout the nation, demonstrators will "call on eviction and housing courts across the country to remain closed and for evictions, rent, and mortgages to be cancelled for the duration of the crisis and a recovery period." ...
Sept. 1 will mark the fifth straight month of protests against evictions. While thousands of people have taken part in protests, CPD says that "anger and frustration are reaching a breaking point as the Trump administration and Republican-controlled Senate have failed to extend housing relief."
A full list of local events can be found at reliefisdue.com.
Meet the New Yes Man on Trump's COVID Task Force: Dr. Scott Atlas Wants U.S. to Adopt Herd Immunity
Coronavirus: US tops 6m cases as some states post record daily totals
The US reached a grim milestone late on Sunday, topping 6m coronavirus infections nationwide as some states posted record daily totals in newly confirmed cases. States such as Iowa, both North and South Dakota, as well as Minnesota and others in the midwest have emerged as the nation’s growing hotspot.
The record 6m cases comes amid reports that officials within the White House coronavirus taskforce and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, released guidance, not intended for the public, that directly contradicts Donald Trump and senior officials’ statements on the outbreak.
For example, on 3 August, the president tweeted: “Cases up because of BIG Testing! Much of our Country doing very well. Open the schools!” But the taskforce’s 9 August report had actually “reported that 48 states and the District of Columbia were in red or yellow zones” for outbreak dangers. ...
Public health officials, including both Fauci and Birx have instead pinpointed the uptick as a result of reopening schools, colleges and businesses. In an interview with CNN, Birx urged Americans to “do the right thing” by continuing to wear masks and socially distance “because if [Americans] do the right thing today, we go into the fall with much fewer cases”.
But as states vary in their reopening plans, the latest data supports some health officials who say the outbreak may be slowing down in America. Nationwide, new cases, deaths, hospitalizations, as well as the rate of positive tests have all declined. New daily cases have continued their downward trend since late July. However, while the rate of daily reported deaths remain well below its spring peak, the total more than doubled in average since early July. The US is currently on track to reach a sobering total of 200,000 by mid-September.
DeVos Argues Pandemic Ultimately a 'Good Thing' for US Public Education
On the heels of two federal judges halting a controversial rule that allows private schools to get more Covid-19 relief funding than Congress intended, U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos said Friday that she believes the viral pandemic has been a "good thing" for the nation's education system, a comment that quickly drew criticism from Democrats and public education advocates.
"Betsy DeVos calling Covid-19 a 'good thing' for our schools just goes to show you how divorced this administration is from reality," the Michigan State Democratic Party—of Devos' home state—tweeted. "Let's not forget: Millions of kids are forced to stay home from school because Trump failed to handle the virus."
DeVos made the comment in a Friday interview aired on SiriusXM while discussing how the pandemic has affected the nation's schools. She claimed the pandemic—which caused teachers nationwide to switch to emergency remote learning plans—has shown that the U.S. education system is "static" and unable to adjust to changing circumstances.
"I think this [the pandemic] is a good thing because I think it's going to really force changes that should have happened many years ago, and most of that's going to happen when families themselves are empowered to make those choices and those changes and those decisions," DeVos said.
"I think the last six months have really revealed the fact that the system that most students have been a part of has been a very static, one-size-fits-all system that is unable in way too many cases to pivot, to be nimble and flexible and to adjust to new and different circumstances," she said in the interview.
International Flight Attendants Pres Sara Nelson RIPS CONGRESS 'They'll Bailout Banks Before People'
House Democrats to Subpoena Postmaster General Louis DeJoy for Withholding Documents
The Democratic chairwoman of the House Committee on Oversight and Reform revealed Monday that she intends to issue a subpoena to Postmaster General Louis DeJoy for documents he has been withholding from Congress about recent U.S. Postal Service delays, concerns about November election mail, and any communications with the reelection campaign of President Donald Trump.
Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) notified members of her committee about the subpoena (pdf) in a memorandum (pdf) that detailed the document requests and DeJoy's noncompliance. The postmaster general, a GOP megadonor appointed earlier this year by the Republican-controlled Postal Service Board of Governors, testified before the committee last week amid widespread condemnation of his suspended—but not reversed—operational changes to the USPS.
Maloney warned during the hearing that she would issue a subpoena if DeJoy failed to produce the requested documents by August 26. DeJoy responded with a Friday night letter (pdf) to Maloney that said in part, "I trust my August 24 testimony before the Committee on Oversight and Reform clarified any outstanding questions you had."
DeJoy also appeared before the Republican-controlled Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee on August 21. Maloney's memo on Monday explained that the subpoena, which she also shared with members, "includes in one place many requests previously made by Members of the House and Senate in writing and directly to Mr. DeJoy during his in-person testimony."
"The subpoena clarifies a number of previous requests based on information obtained to date in order to ensure that it captures all documents within the requested categories," she continued, "and it also makes clear as a legal matter that the production of these documents is mandatory." ...
Along with the memo about the subpoena, Maloney on Monday sent a document request to Robert M. Duncan, chairman of the Postal Service Board of Governors, who testified before her committee last week with DeJoy.
"The Board of Governors had been withholding documents and information from other Members of Congress by citing a Justice Department opinion claiming that the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) prohibits the disclosure of information to a Member of Congress who is not the Chair of a Committee—a baseless claim that has been thoroughly debunked by Democrats and Republicans alike," Maloney's office explained.
Writing in her capacity as chairwoman Maloney made "a number of requests for documents and information" previously sought by other lawmakers as well as additional documents sought during Duncan's testimony.
"If there are any questions about whether you are legally authorized to produce these documents," Maloney wrote to Duncan, "please let the committee know, and we will issue a subpoena to resolve these doubts and compel their production."
Maloney's memo and request came shortly before a D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals panel ruled 2-1 that the House can't go to court to enforce subpoenas because there is no law that makes them enforceable. Although the decision "dealt a severe blow" to the lower chamber's investigative power, Politico noted that "the House is likely to ask the full bench of the appeals court to take up the question."
Jimmy speaks at the People's Party Convention 2020!
Krystal Ball: The Left Shoves Pelosi's Mistake In Her Face
Rising: People's Party Convention HIGHLIGHTS, Is This The Way Forward For The Left?
Trump weakens Obama-era rules on toxic wastewater from coal plants
The Trump administration is loosening rules for toxic water pollution from coal-fired power plants. Coal plants generate wastewater when they rinse the filters they use to catch pollutants from smokestacks. That wastewater is discharged into rivers and lakes and often ends up in drinking water.
Obama administration regulations required coal plants to upgrade their wastewater systems to treat arsenic, mercury, and other heavy metals. Electricity companies will now have more time and flexibility to meet those standards. Plants shutting down or switching to natural gas by 2028 will be exempt, according to Bloomberg News.
Steam-based power plants, including coal plants, are the third biggest source of toxic wastewater in the country, according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The pollutants they release into the water – either directly or from leaching from ponds where coal ash water is stored – are linked with cancer, heart disease, diabetes and developmental problems for children.
The EPA argues that even with laxer standards, coal plants will achieve the same pollution reductions. The Obama administration estimated that its rule would prevent 1.4bn lbs of pollutants from entering US waterways each year. Trump’s EPA says its rule will cut pollution even more, an additional 1m lbs per year. It says the changes will save companies $140m annually.
But Betsy Southerland, an Obama EPA water official, said the agency is counting the pollution reductions from some efforts it has made voluntary. The EPA assumes that about 30% of coal plants will use water treatment technologies that are more effective than those the agency has required, she said.
Satellite images show rapid growth of glacial lakes worldwide
Glacial lakes have grown rapidly around the world in recent decades, according to satellite images that reveal the impact of increased meltwater draining off retreating glaciers. Scientists analysed more than quarter of a million satellite images to assess how lakes formed by melting glaciers have been affected by global heating and other processes.
The images show the number of glacial lakes rose by 53% between 1990 and 2018, expanding the amount of the Earth the lakes cover by about 51%. According to the survey, 14,394 glacial lakes spread over nearly 9,000 square km of the planet’s surface.
Based on the figures, the researchers estimate the volume of the world’s glacial lakes grew by 48% over the same period and now hold 156.5 cubic km of water.
“Our findings show how quickly Earth surface systems are responding to climate change, and the global nature of this,” said Stephan Harrison, a professor of climate and environmental change at Exeter University. “More importantly, our results help to fill a gap in the science because, until now, it was not known how much water was held in the world’s glacial lakes.”
Research Reveals Ancient Peat Bogs Burning and Unprecedented Emissions From 2020 Arctic Fires
The latest data released by the European Union's Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service shows Arctic wildfires this year have emitted 35% more carbon dioxide than they did in all of 2019.
"What we have been seeing in the Arctic this summer is a significant number of wildfires in the Siberian Arctic that have been burning since about the second week of June with high intensity and producing large amounts of smoke pollution covering much of the region," Mark Parrington, senior scientist at Copernicus, told The Independent in early August.
Early August #ArcticFires continuing at similar daily total intensity to 2019 in #CopernicusAtmosphere Monitoring Service GFAS data https://t.co/eb31VObkdM. Latest CO forecast https://t.co/mK95ak81qV shows high values over #Siberia & residual smoke over NE Canada & N Atlantic https://t.co/uuDXHoxDYI pic.twitter.com/NF8oWb9cKe
— Mark Parrington (@m_parrington) August 6, 2020
"In some respects [the data] has been similar to 2019 in terms of the dry and warm conditions in the Siberian Arctic," Parrington told The Guardian Monday. "This year, the difference was a large cluster of fires that burned through July for many days leading to higher estimated emissions."
Data shows 245 metric tons of CO2 have been released from Arctic wildfires this year, more than the annual CO2 output of Sweden, Norway, and Finland combined, The Independent reported.
Arctic tipping point now fueling even more warming
1. vanishing ice and open ocean absorb more co2
2. June and July, Arctic fires burning through rich carbon peat land released 204 megatons of c02, more carbon in 2 months than Scandinavia will all year https://t.co/dAaPn1RENL pic.twitter.com/i1DtNkjWSE— GO GREEN (@ECOWARRIORSS) August 5, 2020
According to an analysis by Dr. Thomas Smith, assistant professor of environmental geography at the London School of Economics, approximately half of fires in the Arctic Circle were burning on "peat soils," which contain carbon that has accumulated over thousands of years, The Guardian reported.
"Peat fires burn 'old' carbon," Smith told VICE in July, meaning that the carbon has taken thousands of years to accumulate. "So in a few weeks, a fire can burn through hundreds of years worth of carbon sequestration."
Biden Boasts 'I Am Not Banning Fracking'
In response to claims from President Donald Trump that Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden would ban fracking, the former vice president told voters in the swing state of Pennsylvania on Monday that he would not outlaw the practice—despite polling that shows the American public increasingly favors aggressive actions left out of Biden's campaign proposals and the official party platform.
"I am not banning fracking," Biden told a crowd. "Let me say that again. I am not banning fracking. No matter how many times Donald Trump lies about me."
During a Democratic primary debate in March with Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.)—who vocally supports a nationwide fracking ban and has introduced legislation in the Senate that would halt the practice—Biden said there would be "no new fracking" if he was elected, but his campaign later clarified that this would not constitute a full-fledged ban.
Polling continues to show American voters are in fact in favor of more ambitious climate proposals including the Green New Deal.
This whole "fracking will sink Dems" narrative has been around a while, but it was crystalized this January with this piece in the NYT and a painful Daily episode that made out fracking opponents as pot-smoking hippies (kid you not, just listen) https://t.co/46pHl0L5SM
— Jamie Henn (@jamieclimate) August 31, 2020
A new survey from Climate Power 2020, the League of Conservation Voters, and Global Strategy Group last week suggested voter opinion in Pennsylvania—a state with large-scale fracking operations—regarding climate policy "boosts Joe Biden."
"The research shows that not only are Pennsylvania voters supportive of climate action and additional regulations on hydraulic fracturing ('fracking'), engaging in a debate around fracking and climate clearly helps Joe Biden, strengthening his favorability rating and increasing his lead over President Donald Trump in the state," survey authors wrote, in a memo released August 27.
Survey results indicated 83% of respondents believe climate change is a serious problem, and 73% said they support the government "taking bold action to combat climate change." But with Biden's noncommittal attitude toward fracking in particular, and with the Democratic Party's refusal to commit to end fossil fuel subsidies, progressives and activists remain unconvinced.
Also of Interest
Here are some articles of interest, some which defied fair-use abstraction.
Doorbell Cameras Like Ring Give Early Warning of Police Searches, FBI Warned
Protect Yourself From Political Violence In The Age of Facial Recognition and Doxxing
Stage Set for a Venezuela October Surprise
Black power: the fists and the fury that shook America – and inspired generations
'A sacred spot': why goldmining threatens Nova Scotia's 'wildest' river
Keiser Report | Central Bank Vomit Fraud
Pushback: NBA All-Star David West on the walkout and standing up to racism, exploitation
A Little Night Music
Johnnie Taylor - Love Bones
Johnnie Taylor - Cheaper To Keep Her
Johnnie Taylor - Take Care Of Your Homework
Johnnie Taylor - Dance What You Wanna
Johnnie Taylor - Changes
Johnnie Taylor - Oh How I Love You
Johnnie Taylor - I'm Not The Same Person
Johnnie Taylor - Last Two Dollars
Johnnie Taylor - Woman across the river
Johnnie Taylor - Friday Night
Comments
Extremely interesting article at MOA
Biden was in Pittsburgh?
https://www.moonofalabama.org/2020/09/election-2020-the-color-revolution...
Election 2020 - The Color Revolutions Are Coming Home
Yesterday the presidential candidate for the Democratic Party Joe Biden was allowed to leave his basement for a "campaign event" in Pittsburgh.
I never knew that the term "Never Again" only pertained to
those born Jewish
"Antisemite used to be someone who didn't like Jews
now it's someone who Jews don't like"
Heard from Margaret Kimberley
The Trump campaign is outsmarting the Dems again!
Hear me out on this. I think what we're seeing is a clever twist on LBJ's "make the SOB deny it" tactic.
They know damn well Biden is not going to do any of the things the progressives (and really the base) want him to do. They know he's against M4A, Green New Deal and really changing anything at all. They also know this is creating a lack of enthusiasm for Biden, to say nothing of the schism it's creating in the party.
I've long thought their best strategy is not going to be selling Trump. People have their minds made up. I just can not believe a significant number of voters are going to have their minds changed about Trump at this point. I don't see anything they're going to do which will change that now.
So, how do you campaign to win? You take that already low enthusiasm people have for Biden and drive it into the ground lower. How does the already hated Trump campaign do that? They don't. They get Biden to do it for them.
It doesn't take a genius to see what people want. You also don't have to be paying too much attention to notice Biden has no policies other than being against all these things. In fact, the only time in numerous interviews he actually seems to have a pulse is when he's shooting down M4A or some other populist program. Just mentioning these things to him brings out the absolute worst in Biden.
So what does the Trump campaign do? They run ads claiming Biden is going to do these things. Biden simply can not help himself but to respond. He's going to deny these things, which aren't even negative accusations. He's going to forcefully deny again that he's going to do the stuff people actually want him to do!
Now, I'm not stupid. I know the playbook is for the Republicans to claim every Democrat is a closet Socialist and all that junk. I know that's standard issue stuff that plays well with the base, as dumb as it is.
However, I think it's too much of a coincidence to ignore that they also get Biden out there again stating he's not going to do any of the stuff people actually want him to do. The more times he's out there saying it, the more it's going to hurt him among people on the fence, people who think he can be pushed left or people who somehow think he's actually for this stuff.
Of course Biden could turn the tables really quickly and say "yes, this is what I'm for." The problem is, I don't even think they're self-aware enough to realize what a bad look it is to stand up there saying "I'm for fracking" or "I will veto M4A" or whatever else. Instead, they'll just keep punching left and trying to attack Trump at the same time, all the while doing nothing to impress anyone..
Idolizing a politician is like believing the stripper really likes you.
Yes I like your scenario, except for the fact they ain't that
they aren't that bright. Could it be the D's and Biden could care less if they win, after all they approve of everything tRump has and is doing. Picking Biden was the absolute worse choice they could've made to try to win back the WH.
IMO, they're throwing this on purpose, the donors are getting everything they want and the D's go extinct once tRump wins/declares victory/voids the result. Game, set, match, ameriKKKa
goes full Mussolini.
I never knew that the term "Never Again" only pertained to
those born Jewish
"Antisemite used to be someone who didn't like Jews
now it's someone who Jews don't like"
Heard from Margaret Kimberley
Valid point. Haha.
I'm still not totally convinced both aren't trying to lose.
Idolizing a politician is like believing the stripper really likes you.
Power. Intoxicating and addicting.
And there's no more powerful position in the world (at least for now) than POTUS. Both very much want to win. Absolute rubbish that HRC didn't want to win in '16 (and '08).
evening ggersh...
wow, that biden is just a campaign dynamo! they should let him out of the basement more often so that he can throw the election more blatantly.
Democrats’ social vaporware — “why Trump is likely to win again”
https://blog.usejournal.com/why-trump-is-likely-to-win-again-23e56ccff95b
evening lotlizard...
if loving oligarchs is wrong, the dems don't want to be right.
I forgot my header
Groan...
The Left Case Against Supporting Joe Biden in the General Election
evening snoopy...
heh, i guess biden, who mostly stays locked in his basement has an affinity for gamers who are said to mostly stay locked in the basement.
studebaker's case against biden is pretty fair and worthy of consideration. i suppose my quibble with it is that while trump is not a direct threat to democracy, the armies of brain-addled, knuckle-dragging, heavily-armed, right-wingnut trolls that he seems to stir up are an ongoing problem.
That's the rub, I think.
I really think "the armies of brain-addled, knuckle-dragging, heavily-armed, right-wingnut trolls" are a big problem. And I agree Trump pours gas on that dumpster fire constantly. The thing that gets me, and I know you're not suggesting this, is simply removing Trump doesn't make them go away. If anything, I think Trump losing is going to be like shaking the hornet nest.
That's the thing that aggrivates me so much about the "swallow and vote Joe" people. They are correct in identifying this as an issue, but they can't seem to explain how to fix it. Do they really think all these people are just going to start behaving because Trump is out of office? Do they realze Trump will still have Twitter and all his other media platforms even if he's not president?
And of course, it should go without saying that this undercurrent has existed for year, long before Trump. Yes, they've gotten bolder, but I'd also argue the MSM is paying attention now only because Trump is in office. Do we really want them to go back to the shadows, still doign what they do?
Idolizing a politician is like believing the stripper really likes you.
good points ...
i haven't any good ideas for what to do about this group.
some folks suggest that it is trump's validation of their beefs and beliefs that is enabling them and causing them to act out.
while i recognize that these people are particularly deferential to power structures, i don't think that trump's losing power will settle their hash and make them crawl back into their caves to fondle their guns in private.
my best guess is that they will only go away when the circumstances that give them nurture go away, when society is reordered root and branch and the powers-that-be stop manipulating the people by causing scarcities of existential needs.
a tall order, i know.
Ima gonna add this part
This is a no brainer and people are warning about it. The 'Trump' that follows Biden is going to be much worse than the Trump that followed Obama.
Good evening, joe and bluzerz!
I guess Michelle Obama is now America's mother? WTF? Who is she to criticize people who are suffering? Oh, yeah, she doesn't suffer nor does anyone in her family or immediate circle. Silly me.
The hand wringing over the two non-choices is the political game is cracking me up. We'll see if the People's Party comes to fruition. As far as the duopoly goes, I'm not playing their game. If someone comes along with a better offer, I'll consider it. Otherwise, it's a non-choice with the oligarchy winning either way. I'm no sucker this go 'round.
Watching us transition to a new society is so much more fun to watch and participate in. Raising our collective vibration is what will win the day. Live in the present moment and reflect on your life and how you'd like to live it. Live within and not outside of yourself. Be grateful - everyday. Give as much love to everyone and everything so that we can build the community we want to be.
Enjoy the evening!
"The “jumpers” reminded us that one day we will all face only one choice and that is how we will die, not how we will live." Chris Hedges on 9/11
evening ra...
michelle obama should go off and share candies with her war criminal ex-president friends.
heh, i will not be voting for either of the duopoly candidates this year either. i just can't stomach it. i was willing to let biden earn my vote, but he has adamantly refused to do so. so fuck him and the horse he rode in on.
Did Trump just win the election?
If this survives the courts he might have.
wow...
that is a shockingly decent action. i can't believe that the trump administration might have conceived of it and will enact it.
if he does, it will no doubt go a long way towards softening the anger at his disgustingly incompetent handling of the pandemic.
Amazing
Can this be true? Trump promises flow pretty easily but then aren't followed thru.
NYCVG
We’ll see
But just think. Even though Trump has offered some type of help to people democrats still will not budge on legalizing marijuana or anything on health care besides the ACA. Biden hollered yesterday that he’s NOT GOING TO BAN FRACKING. This was after the DNC broke their energy pledge and Biden said that wasn’t true and he’s still honoring the deal. So many people are saying that "it’s almost like democrats want to lose." Yes it does.
Thanks for the blues and news
So many things you covered tonight that need further reading. Lots of good insights into how the election is shaping up.
I am hitting the road in the morning to head to Santa Fe and hope the fire outside Santa Fe is closer to coming under control. It has been 100+ for almost two weeks and looking forward to the cooler weather. It has not rained except once in the last two weeks and of course as I set out supposed to be getting rain as I head for Lubbock for my first stop along the way.
Thanks as usual for introducing me to some new to me blues and of course all the news I need to read in one evening.
Have a good evening all
Life is what you make it, so make it something worthwhile.
This ain't no dress rehearsal!
evening jb...
safe travels!
i hope that it cools off for you quickly and the fires get under control. we have had an abrupt cooling trend here with several days of on and off rain and temps down in the low 60's at night. what a blessed relief!
take care!
Trump has done it
In Unprecedented Move, CDC Halts Most Rental Evictions Until End Of 2020
But then this could be a setup for bailing out more corporations and banks in the future. Gawd I hate being this cynical.
Oops did it again
Wrong essay. Yes I’m having a really bad hair day. The news from last night and high pain and lots of funny drugs is my excuse.
sorry to hear (hair?) that...
you're not feeling well. i hope that it all gets sorted out and you feel better soon.
take care!
Thanks, Joe
I appreciate the support. I came from one of those broken families and my aunt and uncle stepped in to fill the void and offer love and support. His moving away right now is a gut wrench because I’m feeling abandoned even though I know why he needs to do it. For ever their house was a refuge I knew was there any time I needed it., but just like that it’s going away. My aunt died last year which hit harder than mom’s death did and my uncle really stepped up to be there for me. Now that the stepdad has gone my uncle was the only tie to the past. Anyone who spent holidays with lots of relatives knows what I mean here. Now when he leaves I’ll be left with ghosts where once people were. And yes the drugs are still in effect.