"I’ll add one lament: Our elites—from Republican senators to business big shots to reputable civic leaders—seem less willing than the people to turn against Trump. Among the elites, accommodation is still outstripping resistance. The acquiescence of the powerful and the cowardice of the fortunate in the face of Trumpism are pushing me to my own version of Horatian disgust: Odi timidos electos. I do kind of hate the cowardly elites."
Yes. The only thing I would change in this paragraph is that I would delete the words "kind of".
Since money and its acquisition is the unofficial state religion of America, I am no longer surprised by the obsequious behavior of so many of the elites in our country. I hear that Elon Musk is soon to become a trillionaire.
Re: Parting Shots, I'm in some serious shit--I'm beginning to like Rand Paul for these extremely basic political criteria: a.) he's a Republican and b.) can sound reasonably sane when he wants to.
Rand Paul said: "Can you shoot a granade launcher at a truck? No! We arrest people because sometimes we're wrong". It's sad that you can count the number of Republicans who will admit to understanding this on one hand. MAGA no doubt thinks such a statement is treasonous.
As George Carlin said, "a person" is good. You can reason with a person. "The People" are not so good. They follow the crowd. Are led by emotion, not reason. Trump knew he could dupe enough of "the people" with lies and scare tactics.
But if all he offers is circus with no bread, "the people" will turn on him.
"America First" really does mean "America Alone," isolated, distrusted, hated everywhere -- but still intent on controlling the whole Western Hemisphere and meddling in the domestic politics of Europe.
I have been of a mind since March of this year, that is up to us voters to stop this. It has been quite clear that those with means are quite happy to go along to get along. It is therefore, no surprise to me that Trumps numbers are falling, some GOP congress people are starting to sing off key, and 7 million people took to the streets all across this nation. I think I remember my first protest sign read " It's up to us now!". Even some of the most jaded of voters can see the flim flam these days. $2000.00 tariff checks! 12 billion bail out for farmers! Eliminate the income tax! The math didn't work for the checks, so that went away. The farmers are out 28 billion this year....12 billion isn't going to cut it. Even the tariff money itself is not a sure thing, the US Treasury might have to give that money back! Whatever happened to the DOGE rebate checks, and free childcare for every family? So Trump got 1000 people out in the Poconos for a rally. Peanuts in that area of PA. Used to be people would drive in from all over this state to be in the same space as Donald J. Trump. I am pretty sure that Gov. Abbott in TX is going to be stunned when they actually lose the seats they have gerrymandered and also lose those seats they weakened. Say what you want about TX but they know how to judge the quality of a horse, and won't stand for BS from anybody.
Democrats should refer to the so-called "narco-terrorists" as "Marco-terrorists", after the guy who's apparently responsible for stirring up all this trouble with Venezuela in the first place.
All I want for Christmas is that the Republicans lose the majority in the House in January 2026. I want enough Republicans to call it quits after the Christmas break from states that can’t immediately appoint someone to fill the seat through the remainder of their term. I don’t know if my Christmas wish is even possible, but seeing Mikey J. vacate the Speaker’s office at the beginning of next year will do wonders for my mental health. Please, Santa, I’ve been good, I promise.
We can't sit around talking about the 2026 midterms as if Trump's people are not exploiting every possible avenue to control the outcome, whether it's by tampering with Dominion Voting Systems machines (that company is now owned by a Trump ally) or military force at the polls. They can also tie results up in court, or worse, overturn them in court if the judge or panel is captive (like SCOTUS). We cannot be indulging in a false sense of security. Should we vote? Of course. We also need to be doing everything we possibly can to secure free and fair elections so that our votes will actually matter.
So odd to be addicted to the Bulwark; Bill Kristol was one of my least-favorite commentators during the Bush (Jr.) Administration's embrace of terror, and Tim Miller struck me as smug when part of the Republican establishment. Now I eagerly read their analyses (along with many others).
Of course I like Kristol's reasoning on November elections but what keeps me up at night are the similarities between the treatment of cities targeted by ICE and cities targeted by the CPC after the Tiananmen Square Massacre. As an expat living in PRChina then, the crackdown was terrifying. Cities were flooded with armed soldiers - some of them masked - and "plainclothes" security who made sure their presence was known. At key times the numbers of armed soldiers to places deemed less loyal grew massive.
It seems that Trump may be sending ICE and National Guard to Democratic-controlled cities so that when he's supposed to leave office many are already desensitized to his use of armed, federal forces. He'll just send them out to put down protests and try to hold onto power (and the Supreme Court majority will find a twisty, fake way to justify that, too).
That is exactly what keeps me up at night. Honestly it makes me completely insane to see people completely glossing over the obvious fact that they are doing anything and everything to subvert the outcomes of the midterm elections and will use every tool in their toolbox to overturn any results they don't like.
Voters are getting us out *too fast* if they end up giving Dems control of the House before the midterms! If that happens we won't have the momentum for the kind of wave-year we will need to take the Senate. Ah Well with Crockett messing up our golden opportunity in Texas I guess that's slipping away anyway.
Johann Neem Schools and the case for fostering citizenship
https://www.cascadepbs.org/opinion/2019/10/bellingham-public-schools-and-case-fostering-citizenship-not-individualism/
Even if we turn the Titanic around, rescue survivors and chart a new, better course, America is still in for a long-term world of hurt. The things that the regime is doing have a half-life of decades. The damage to our government, to the people's trust in the importance of a democracy and the struggle we have to balance the obscene disparity between all of us and the richest 1% will take a life time, maybe more if we don't have an armed revolution. Worst of all, our standing on the world stage is shot. This post says it all. Read it and weep: https://www.readtheline.ca/p/matt-gurney-we-will-never-fucking?utm_source=cross-post&publication_id=70032&post_id=181065561&utm_campaign=16235&isFreemail=true&r=15favz&triedRedirect=true&utm_medium=email
"I’ll add one lament: Our elites—from Republican senators to business big shots to reputable civic leaders—seem less willing than the people to turn against Trump. Among the elites, accommodation is still outstripping resistance. The acquiescence of the powerful and the cowardice of the fortunate in the face of Trumpism are pushing me to my own version of Horatian disgust: Odi timidos electos. I do kind of hate the cowardly elites."
Yes. The only thing I would change in this paragraph is that I would delete the words "kind of".
Since money and its acquisition is the unofficial state religion of America, I am no longer surprised by the obsequious behavior of so many of the elites in our country. I hear that Elon Musk is soon to become a trillionaire.
Re: Parting Shots, I'm in some serious shit--I'm beginning to like Rand Paul for these extremely basic political criteria: a.) he's a Republican and b.) can sound reasonably sane when he wants to.
That way lies *madness*.
The hyper wealthy are not actually our elites. They are just our rich oligarchs.
Rand Paul said: "Can you shoot a granade launcher at a truck? No! We arrest people because sometimes we're wrong". It's sad that you can count the number of Republicans who will admit to understanding this on one hand. MAGA no doubt thinks such a statement is treasonous.
As George Carlin said, "a person" is good. You can reason with a person. "The People" are not so good. They follow the crowd. Are led by emotion, not reason. Trump knew he could dupe enough of "the people" with lies and scare tactics.
But if all he offers is circus with no bread, "the people" will turn on him.
The Trump administration is serious about killing off the tourism industry and turning the U.S. into one of the most inhospitable places on earth: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/trump-administration/foreign-tourists-five-years-social-media-history-customs-border-protec-rcna248337
"America First" really does mean "America Alone," isolated, distrusted, hated everywhere -- but still intent on controlling the whole Western Hemisphere and meddling in the domestic politics of Europe.
I have been of a mind since March of this year, that is up to us voters to stop this. It has been quite clear that those with means are quite happy to go along to get along. It is therefore, no surprise to me that Trumps numbers are falling, some GOP congress people are starting to sing off key, and 7 million people took to the streets all across this nation. I think I remember my first protest sign read " It's up to us now!". Even some of the most jaded of voters can see the flim flam these days. $2000.00 tariff checks! 12 billion bail out for farmers! Eliminate the income tax! The math didn't work for the checks, so that went away. The farmers are out 28 billion this year....12 billion isn't going to cut it. Even the tariff money itself is not a sure thing, the US Treasury might have to give that money back! Whatever happened to the DOGE rebate checks, and free childcare for every family? So Trump got 1000 people out in the Poconos for a rally. Peanuts in that area of PA. Used to be people would drive in from all over this state to be in the same space as Donald J. Trump. I am pretty sure that Gov. Abbott in TX is going to be stunned when they actually lose the seats they have gerrymandered and also lose those seats they weakened. Say what you want about TX but they know how to judge the quality of a horse, and won't stand for BS from anybody.
Democrats should refer to the so-called "narco-terrorists" as "Marco-terrorists", after the guy who's apparently responsible for stirring up all this trouble with Venezuela in the first place.
All I want for Christmas is that the Republicans lose the majority in the House in January 2026. I want enough Republicans to call it quits after the Christmas break from states that can’t immediately appoint someone to fill the seat through the remainder of their term. I don’t know if my Christmas wish is even possible, but seeing Mikey J. vacate the Speaker’s office at the beginning of next year will do wonders for my mental health. Please, Santa, I’ve been good, I promise.
We can't sit around talking about the 2026 midterms as if Trump's people are not exploiting every possible avenue to control the outcome, whether it's by tampering with Dominion Voting Systems machines (that company is now owned by a Trump ally) or military force at the polls. They can also tie results up in court, or worse, overturn them in court if the judge or panel is captive (like SCOTUS). We cannot be indulging in a false sense of security. Should we vote? Of course. We also need to be doing everything we possibly can to secure free and fair elections so that our votes will actually matter.
Referring to the opening lines and disparagement of immigrants, on the day of the Nobel Prize banquet please note today's NYTimes article https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/10/science/nobel-prize-immigrants-science.html Since 2013 The George Mason University Institute for Immigration Research has produced an annual report on immigrant Laureates. The evidence is overwhelming: https://iir.gmu.edu/publications/nobelprize
So odd to be addicted to the Bulwark; Bill Kristol was one of my least-favorite commentators during the Bush (Jr.) Administration's embrace of terror, and Tim Miller struck me as smug when part of the Republican establishment. Now I eagerly read their analyses (along with many others).
Of course I like Kristol's reasoning on November elections but what keeps me up at night are the similarities between the treatment of cities targeted by ICE and cities targeted by the CPC after the Tiananmen Square Massacre. As an expat living in PRChina then, the crackdown was terrifying. Cities were flooded with armed soldiers - some of them masked - and "plainclothes" security who made sure their presence was known. At key times the numbers of armed soldiers to places deemed less loyal grew massive.
It seems that Trump may be sending ICE and National Guard to Democratic-controlled cities so that when he's supposed to leave office many are already desensitized to his use of armed, federal forces. He'll just send them out to put down protests and try to hold onto power (and the Supreme Court majority will find a twisty, fake way to justify that, too).
That is exactly what keeps me up at night. Honestly it makes me completely insane to see people completely glossing over the obvious fact that they are doing anything and everything to subvert the outcomes of the midterm elections and will use every tool in their toolbox to overturn any results they don't like.
I wonder if it’s ever occurred to the President that we don’t take in people from Norway and Sweden because they are pretty happy where they are.
No sane citizen of any Nordic country would move here. I know an American expat who has lived in Norway since the 1990s. I envy her deeply.
As do I.
It's all that woke brainwashing.
Of course. Because only losers and suckers consider the common good actually GOOD.
Voters are getting us out *too fast* if they end up giving Dems control of the House before the midterms! If that happens we won't have the momentum for the kind of wave-year we will need to take the Senate. Ah Well with Crockett messing up our golden opportunity in Texas I guess that's slipping away anyway.