Republicans

bralbovsky · Post by **bralbovsky** » Fri Oct 01, 2021 12:52 am

I have said this before, and it's not hyperbole:

I'm surprised we actually had a 2020 election, very glad of it.
But every move that does not hinder his efforts to regain power strengthens him.
If he is elected (or appointed) in 2024, that really will be the end of us.
Am I thinking Rwanda? In some local places, yes, only with guns instead of machetes.

My daughter in Idaho feels physically unsafe every day if she says anything she feels about anything: politics, covid, the environment, anything.
These people will erase the folks that threaten their view of reality.
If they get into leadership positions, they will use their influence to get more power.
This power has to come from somewhere, and that somewhere is citizens who disagree with them.
All my friends of color saw this coming. They are saddened that it wasn't taken seriously the first time.

It's a cult.
There will be (more) blood.
If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem.
What to do?
Support the other side, barely caring whether they have a pulse (although that has hazards of its own)
Call useful reps and officers and candidates to be encouraging.
I hate that money is part of it, but send money.
Volunteer.
Create safe spaces
Use safe spaces to promote collective action.

If you're surrounded, be quiet, but vote, help everyone vote, tell the fascists (and they're not even very good at fascism, they just like the cruelty parts) that voting is silly so they might not vote.
Stay safe, so you can vote.

There may be legal remedies and repercussions coming that make all this easier, but don't count on it.

Phoebe · Post by **Phoebe** » Mon Oct 04, 2021 7:10 pm

My oldest child can be rather out there and talkative amongst people, and she is definitely further left than I am, let's put it that way. So I always thought parenting challenge in this department would be to help her see the wisdom of toning it down or keeping mouth shut in certain occasions - say around other people's parents and whatnot. However, she was fairly discreet and chose her moments and audiences, and was able to maintain friendly relations with many very conservative parents of friends, and distant relatives and so forth.

Now it comes to pass that the second child goes among strangers and speaks with them. An incident has been created because when unjust and improper things were said, she made it known that they were unjust and improper. She's not wrong! But it is quite the surprise if you know the kid. She's usually quiet as a stone, and then goes off to chat with her small circle friends in private, introvert style. I did not expect that we would be having this conversation about how to navigate being trapped in a car with political extremists. The honesty is blunt and merciless from this one. It's like being judged harshly by a Barbie doll or cute forest animal.
I also discovered her favorite song is some ray of darkness called "soul reaper". I can't explain how this stuff emerges in one kid or another. It's like growing a plant and then you don't really know what type of flowering will pop out.
Anyway, I now have a challenge on my hands because there are angry ripples in the pond due to some people having nutter parents.

Phoebe · Post by **Phoebe** » Sun Oct 10, 2021 5:17 pm

Listening to a dude talk about how the Soviet commies were able to keep all the details of Karl Marx's life a secret until after the fall of the Soviet Union. Because, apparently, nothing was known of Karl Marx during the 19th century. These are the people who want to cause a financial crisis by threatening to let the US default on its debt, because so pro capitalism. I'm done being tolerant or polite about it; it's like being in a three-legged sack race with a partner who insists on laying down and screaming.

Phoebe · Post by **Phoebe** » Sun Oct 31, 2021 2:07 pm

Adam Kinzinger - resigning. Apparently he made the sadly accurate calculation that he would be primaried out now that the Democrats redistricted Illinois, and decided to do something else. But what? Will he run for Senate or Governor in Illinois, which seems unlikely unless they have primaries like California where any party registrant can vote for any candidate? Or is he thinking of mounting a challenge in the Republican presidential primary? It might be worth it even if he is roundly defeated by Trump because it would be an opportunity to get the name recognition to run and win later. He's a young guy and he should be what the Republican party is offering. Seven or Eleven years from now it might look pretty good to be the true-conservative guy who complained about Trump and lost.

What I can't figure out is whether the party's conservatives have simply gone silent and are still out there ready to choose a better alternative to Trumpism, or whether there really isn't any party left to salvage and Trump has wrecked the whole thing, with the aid of various media organizations and personages?

In my limited personal experience - since I can't deal with a lot of my formerly well-known Trump people because they have turned so incredibly f****** hostile that it's not safe for my kids to be around them - there isn't much left to salvage. We have a few fundamentalist churches here and lots of mainstream Catholics who are making a valiant effort to resist the nasty side of right-wing politics today, and to be explicitly anti-racist and positive in tone. But I think they're fighting a losing battle at the moment. The reality is that most of these people prefer Trump to their church and would rather abandon their church if it means following Trump.

Mando · Post by **Mando** » Mon Nov 01, 2021 10:34 am

As the lone resident here who voted for Trump I will say that I hope he endorses someone else.
(He did his bit. I wish it had gone better and lasted longer. Let it go and move on, Don.)

This way the Only Trumpers and Never Trumpers can hopefully find common ground and have a Conservative Republican party.

Phoebe · Post by **Phoebe** » Mon Nov 01, 2021 3:44 pm

At this point there are people who disagree about policy issues and then there are people who want to tear down democracy, and that's really the line. For example, around here we have congressional reps who vary according to whether they consider January 6th events a terrible and shameful stain on the nation or the misguided effort of well-intentioned patriots. If it's the latter but you didn't do anything to support it, then you're not for America and should simply be voted out of office. But if they did something to help? If they gave tours to people they knew were planning an assault on the building? If they undermined the capitol police and their efforts to preserve the rule of law? IMO they're traitors and should have been expelled by Congress and put in prison long ago, or maybe should be if more evidence comes to light? For example look at the guy who is now under indictment from the FBI for taking illegal campaign contributions, Rep. Fortenberry. It is said that he made fake distress calls to the capitol police supposedly just to test their response times! If that's found to have anything to do with January 6th he should be in prison right now and stay there.

Post by **Mike** » Mon Nov 01, 2021 7:33 pm

Mando wrote: ↑Mon Nov 01, 2021 10:34 am As the lone resident here who voted for Trump I will say that I hope he endorses someone else.
(He did his bit. I wish it had gone better and lasted longer. Let it go and move on, Don.)

This way the Only Trumpers and Never Trumpers can hopefully find common ground and have a Conservative Republican party.

I agree with your conclusion, however...

Prediction: if Trump chooses not to run, he will not whole-heartedly endorse any other Republican for the office. In fact, he will speculate tepidly about candidates without risking the chance that he might back a losing horse, but then he will actively undermine whoever wins the nomination.

poorpete · Post by **poorpete** » Wed Nov 03, 2021 11:48 am

I want a trusted political observer who can give me the truth when it comes to whether a Republican is a moderate or conservative or off the wall crazy. What I get from my side, no matter the person it seems is, this person is off-the-wall crazy. I know people on the other side have the same issue. Hey it's center-left Obama... HE'S GOING TO STEAL YOUR GUNS. but for us it's HE'S GOING TO LET RACISTS RUN AMOK.

I get it. No one is going to do this because
1. they don't want the other team elected
2. SCARING PEOPLE WORKS

I do think that the swing-voters, for all that I think negatively of them -- their short term memories, their uncalculable whims -- tend to notice when people are super crazy or not. Maybe I'm wrong -- they definitely got Trump wrong. But like everyone is forgetting just like a month ago California had a recall and it looked like the GOP had a chance but then voters saw that the one guy was off-the-wall and they shut it down in a big defeat. Sometimes the swing voters sensed something was up and made the right decision.

Phoebe · Post by **Phoebe** » Wed Nov 03, 2021 2:25 pm

I experience this very vividly in red state America. If you tell people that you're going to support a guy because he has a long track record of being a decent stand-up guy and in his own possibly misguided way will be trying to make life better for everyone and also do his damnedest get rid of abortions, they will hate you and say that you are anti-woman and etc etc which is completely unhelpful. Less crazy and not an a****** is preferable every time over crazy a****** and it would in fact be very useful for people in the center or on the left to continue making those distinctions effectively.

Phoebe · Post by **Phoebe** » Wed Nov 03, 2021 3:02 pm

I became distracted by your truth and forgot what I had intended to come here to say:
If the Democrats do lose in the midterms of 2022, I think much of the blame will be squarely in the lap of the media - and not just right-wing outlets like Fox and worse that are constantly peddling misinformation, but all the hysterical mainstream media outlets and commentators that have fixated on all kinds of pointless things in some giant effort to "both sides" the last decade at once while ignoring the fact that a significant chunk of the nation wants to completely undermine and reject democracy in favor of installing a mad dictator.

They have treated Trump and Trumpism as normal and only in this last year have I started seeing mainstream newspapers and media outlets say things like "Trump's false claim that...". Man has been lying in public constantly since 2015 and even long before and for some reason this couldn't be said or even hinted at until just now!

Phoebe · Post by **Phoebe** » Tue Nov 30, 2021 9:57 am

Latest developments: this arrived when my mind was in a slightly weakened, soft state and now I don't know how I'll stop myself from using this phrase as a regular comment on the vicissitudes of daily living. Note this is a description of an illustrated book for little kids:

""With Paws off My Cannon, we’re teaching the next generation to value the right to bear arms," Loesch told FOX Business. She said the book is "not just a platform for a political argument. It represents the need for self-defense in a fun way that kids will enjoy." "Paws off My Cannon" tells the story of Bongo, a gorilla who loves cupcakes. Yet when hyenas, armed with coconut cannons, come to steal the cupcakes, Bongo has to use a cannon of his own to chase them away. Half of the town wants to ban cannons, but Bongo insists on keeping his, and his heroism saves the day."

Apparently the publisher also has a story called the Island of Free Ice Cream by some other profound thinker, that will teach the children not to be dirty commies.

poorpete · Post by **poorpete** » Fri May 06, 2022 8:22 am

Can't ever be sure if this applies, but this article is definitely right about alot. It's a culture, and sure it's frat boys, but I've seen plenty of nerds who have skirted this line too.

Personally, the closest I've been to being sexually assaulted was from a straight guy who did what he did because he thought it was funny.

Phoebe · Post by **Phoebe** » Fri May 06, 2022 9:54 am

That is terrible, why do people do this? I haven't read Ward's book on straight men's aggressive playing with the boundaries of gay sex in order to reinforce their masculinity, but I suspect I would both agree/disagree. Yes, straight men do this type of thing all the time without being gay as we would normally define orientation, but I think most of those guys really ARE either bisexual or gay and this is the present-day patriarchy-approved way of working that out in their social groups. Wanting to be in this kind of all-male social group is already very weird and not much like counterparts in other cultures where guys do things in social groups. I feel like if we had a culture where masculinist, patriarchal identity could accommodate gay sex, these guys would just go ahead and be bi or gay according to those social constraints.
So, Cawthorn too - if he's not gay or bi now, he would be if he were in a culture where the dominant masculinist roles made that easier and permitted.

Phoebe · Post by **Phoebe** » Fri May 13, 2022 3:26 pm

I find myself unable to process the level of hypocrisy required for "outlaw birth control" AND "don't give any baby formula to the babies and moms detained at the border". It's at the level of comedic exaggeration reductio ad absurdum but these people are deadly serious.

Phoebe · Post by **Phoebe** » Sat May 14, 2022 8:41 pm

FYI Bo Duke AKA John Schneider turns out to be a looneytunes insurrectionist and his gradual descent into paranoid crazytown exactly parallels the slow but steady draining of the hotness right out of his face and body. Who are we, even, if Bo Duke is a maga loon? Plus they never should have named that other guy Luke Duke - that was simply wrong. I'm going to stop sliding into my car via the window now in anger and disappointment.

Phoebe · Post by **Phoebe** » Sun May 15, 2022 8:56 am

It's scary to contemplate what would happen with ectopic pregnancy under some of these policies.

Phoebe · Post by **Phoebe** » Sun May 15, 2022 9:06 am

White mom's version of "the talk": speak politely to police and say x if they ask you to step out of the car or if they can search. Also, replacement theory is utter b******* and the most pathetic possible thing on earth to be "proud" of is a false, socially constructed racial identity. Nobody is proud of this unless they are so vile and pathetic that they have literally nothing else to be happy about in their life. Don't do drugs.

poorpete · Post by **poorpete** » Mon May 16, 2022 9:47 am

A thought.
Russia is convincing their citizens that Ukraine are all Nazis because of a small stupid right wing group.
WWII Germany and cold-war USSR had a field day with tarring all of America with the sins of Jim Crow.
And today many, including Liz, is taking the whole GOP to task for allying with white nationalists.

How did a group, led by capitalism and big-stick foreign policy objectives, come to ally? Mainly as a ploy to stay in power.

How can they get out? Liz is pointing the way. She's creating an opening the same way she did post January 6th. We'll see if the leadership takes her up on it. Her statement gives hope, her track record less so.

Akiva · Post by **Akiva** » Thu May 26, 2022 9:47 am

During the January 6th insurrection, apparently at least one witness says that Trump "indicated support for hanging Vice President Mike Pence" (quote from a Washington Post article).

Think about that. Fucking monster.

Phoebe · Post by **Phoebe** » Thu May 26, 2022 9:55 am

There's little doubt in my mind he has had people killed in his past in the construction industry or at the very least knew and passively tolerated that mob killings went on, sometimes to his personal benefit. No idea why the media doesn't talk about that because there are all kinds of stories. We've heard about this stuff with Hillary Clinton for years and yet with Trump you actually have a situation where people he owed money to, who were threatening to sue or expose him, turn up conveniently dead. That's how this kind of guy does things; it's why they don't have any problem with the Khashoggi murder, why he loves people like Putin, Erdogan, Duterte, Bolsonaro... The fact that the North Korean leader seems to have had his own relatives killed is probably a feature for Trump - a reason to respect the man and take him seriously. It's still just blows my mind how many old dudes who are military veterans, church goers, the kind of guys who consider themselves and in fact always have been pillars of the community, don't look at this con man and see him for what he is. How gullible could you possibly be? Among family and friends who are extreme religious conservatives, support for Pence is an interesting litmus test, in much the same way that support for prenatal care for immigrant moms is a litmus test of their pro-life sincerity. Do you actually want to save lives, and do you actually want a person in government who represents your specific values, or is it all just hypocrisy and you are truly fueled by your desire for cruelty against people you hate and fear?

Phoebe · Post by **Phoebe** » Thu Jun 16, 2022 10:19 am

While I'm rolling with the same theme of "purity and shame issues", this is how the work of the January 6th committee strikes me. No expectation that it's going to lead to any real accountability of the most responsible parties, but the sense of shameful, disgusting offense to something held sacred is so powerful that it needs to be aired publicly. The specific nature of the crimes needs to be laid bare even if the proper authorities refuse to do anything. I feel like that is Cheney's motivation because she doesn't seem to expect that the justice department is going to do what she'd like, and her most pointed remarks or for the Republican colleagues who don't seem capable of acknowledging and purging the shameful impurity in their midst. I totally get this - the event was disturbing in a visceral way in the same way it would be disgusting when people tread on graves or spit on a war memorial. It's like the things we hold most sacred in the public sphere, the secure and peaceful transfer of power after free and fair elections, were pissed on by a foul, dirty man and his crew, and the filth of it somehow can be cleansed if we lay out under the cold light of Truth. Hopefully punishment also follows but that seems so unlikely.

Phoebe · Post by **Phoebe** » Fri Jun 24, 2022 9:57 am

Ordered my pack of plan b this morning.

poorpete · Post by **poorpete** » Fri Jun 24, 2022 10:19 am

Ugggggghhhhhh

Akiva · Post by **Akiva** » Fri Jun 24, 2022 10:36 am

Predictions re: 1/6:
No one of significance will be held accountable.

Trump will run in 2024 and win.

Soon after pardoning everyone convicted of 1/6 crimes, Trump will announce that he’s running again in 2028, and almost no Republicans will object.

poorpete · Post by **poorpete** » Fri Jun 24, 2022 10:44 am

Hard truths. So to protect abortion in all states, must get the approval of

2/3rds of the House have to approve
2/3rs of the Senate have to approve
3/4 of states have to approve

So... let's say 100 years.

Reconfiguring SCOTUS, consistently electing Democratic presidents until there's enough justices to re-overrule this...

Let's say 20 years.

Either way, this sucks.

poorpete · Post by **poorpete** » Fri Jun 24, 2022 11:03 am

I grew up Catholic, my wife is Episcopalian. For a while I still called myself Catholic -- even though I disagreed with a lot of what they do, because change isn't going to happen if I leave. But after a bit it became clear, why not just be Episcopalian and feel part of a culture I support and supports me and others.

This is what comes to mind when I think, so what is keeping me in the USA? Wouldn't it be so much easier to be in Canada?

There's a lot more holding me to the USA, mainly, clearly, family.

Kyle · Post by **Kyle** » Fri Jun 24, 2022 11:45 am

Akiva wrote: ↑Fri Jun 24, 2022 10:36 am Trump will run in 2024 and win.

Soon after pardoning everyone convicted of 1/6 crimes, Trump will announce that he’s running again in 2028, and almost no Republicans will object.

I don't think that squares with the 22nd amendment, whether republicans object or not.

Akiva · Post by **Akiva** » Fri Jun 24, 2022 11:50 am

Kyle wrote: ↑Fri Jun 24, 2022 11:45 am
Akiva wrote: ↑Fri Jun 24, 2022 10:36 am Trump will run in 2024 and win.

Soon after pardoning everyone convicted of 1/6 crimes, Trump will announce that he’s running again in 2028, and almost no Republicans will object.
I don't think that squares with the 22nd amendment, whether republicans object or not.

I don't think they’ll care. Trump will argue that his first term doesn’t count because Dems wrecked it with hoax investigations.

Also, who’s going to enforce it? Trump and his people committed numerous crimes during his time in office and no one did anything.

Another prediction: Susan Collins will express concern about Trump running for a third term, and do nothing.

Kyle · Post by **Kyle** » Fri Jun 24, 2022 11:56 am

Yeah- that's not how it works though. The constitution is clear on it. I mean- just read the text. And I don't think the entire republican party and judiciary would just roll over and say that we don't enforce the 22nd amendment. I'm not saying Trump wouldn't say something like that, but I think that- barring a repeal of the 22nd amendment- that wouldn't happen.

Akiva · Post by **Akiva** » Fri Jun 24, 2022 12:00 pm

The U.S. went about 75 years of ignoring the 14th amendment. So it wouldn’t surprise me if we ignore the 22nd.

poorpete · Post by **poorpete** » Fri Jun 24, 2022 12:31 pm

It took Putin about a decade to repeal the law that kept him from being a forever-president. I think with a would-be-dictator the same thing will happen. They would hand-pick their successor, a sycophant or family member, until they can change the rules to be forever in their favor.

Anyways, even if there will never be a Trump again, his three picks in four years again will take at leat 20 years to combat.

Kyle · Post by **Kyle** » Fri Jun 24, 2022 12:49 pm

Akiva wrote: ↑Fri Jun 24, 2022 12:00 pm The U.S. went about 75 years of ignoring the 14th amendment. So it wouldn’t surprise me if we ignore the 22nd.

So I understand your position to be that there is no more rule of law and neither the constitution or our legislative branch matter anymore. But I think the results of the last election show otherwise.

I think there's a value in doomsaying. I think we need to be vigilant about these things. But I also think we need to be realistic, or our response to these threats will be similarly unhinged and terrible.

Akiva · Post by **Akiva** » Fri Jun 24, 2022 1:11 pm

I hope you’re righ, Kyle.

Kyle · Post by **Kyle** » Fri Jun 24, 2022 1:20 pm

I'm not just right. I'm Alt-right.

Wait! No! Joke! Joke!

Phoebe · Post by **Phoebe** » Fri Jun 24, 2022 2:23 pm

Prediction: Trump will look and sound even more physically and mentally ill next year than he does right now, and about 10% of Republicans who supported him last time will have decided he's a bad bet for 2024, so people will actually start to get behind DeSantis, and once the polling adds up, half the rest of the Republicans will follow him.

bralbovsky · Post by **bralbovsky** » Fri Jun 24, 2022 3:53 pm

If we don't stop them, it's over. Full stop.
Short-lived faux legislature, gradual, continuing pollution of judiciary...
The problem is that I don't see a reliable path that doesn't involve felonies.
I guess we'll have to rely on the unreliable paths.
For now.

Phoebe · Post by **Phoebe** » Sat Jun 25, 2022 9:09 am

It gave me a lot of hope that people elected Biden and it wasn't close, but I don't have that same hopefulness about 2022 or 2024. A lot of what we see about 2020 seems designed to entrench the notion that libs are manipulating election results, so it will be justified for Republicans to do so going forward whenever they like. I don't think their voter base cares.

It has become scary to live surrounded by people who seem to think it's okay to use violence against people they don't understand or like, and the list of people in that disliked-enemy category seems to be constantly expanding. The raw hatred of "libs" is disturbing. One of the weirdest things I experience at work is the frequent affectionate overtures of lib-haters who seem to think I'm on their team, so I get to hear all about it. Gentle discussion sometimes can be accomplished in this space but sometimes not.

Phoebe · Post by **Phoebe** » Sat Jun 25, 2022 11:44 am

Having now fully read the Dobbs v. Jackson opinion, all I can say is that it's so much worse than I thought it would be if and when this happened. I thought they would at least prevent for example forcing a child impregnated by incestuous rape to give birth. I can't say anything else, I have to edit out the rest. I am too upset about it. It's 1868 and I'm no longer a free person and neither are any of our girls and it makes me physically ill.

bralbovsky · Post by **bralbovsky** » Sat Jun 25, 2022 2:49 pm

My anger on your behalf is indescribable.

I can't possibly fathom the violation from a woman's perspective, but hypocrisy is universal.
Two examples:
None of the credits for tax rebates, covid relief, NONE, include pregnant women, despite there having been discussion in that direction.
We know it's a lie that they care about children once they're born, but it's clearly also a lie that they think they're children in utero.

The phrase "domestic supply of infants" ....literally something out of Jonathan Swift's Modest Proposal.
I know it's a reference, but this is supposed to be the supreme court; we are allowed to presume that every word is purposefully chosen.

Here's my first felony:
I will aid and abet a woman who is seeking an abortion.

I wish I was more confident that blue states were "safe."
This kind of overreach suggests they're not.

Phoebe · Post by **Phoebe** » Sat Jun 25, 2022 6:42 pm

This is pretty much what friends have been discussing online today: for whom did it just become illegal (more like, for whose kids, since most of the ladies I talk with are older!), and who is willing and able to host a lovely camping or glamping trip in their area. I think this is weird territory for people my parents' age since they lived through what it was like before and know how very, very far the current culture is from what they experienced. The stigma of single motherhood was powerful, educational options for women were still curtailed, and there was, shall we say, no Tinder. Now we will go through this in a world where women are quite likely to accept being single moms, are going to school and working, and everyone is accustomed to a completely different set of norms around sex. It will be interesting, at the least, to see how any of that develops. Personally I have no idea why anyone of childbearing age would want to have sex with men again until this gets sorted, but I imagine that sentiment will be a minority.

Tahlvin · Post by **Tahlvin** » Sun Jun 26, 2022 3:09 am

My wife having had 3 abortions due to miscarriages, we worry about what those women suffering miscarriages in those states will have to go through. On top of the usual emotional agony they’re going through, now they may have to deal with questions about how the miscarriage happened (something we still don’t know for ours), or deal with doctors or pharmacists who are unwilling or unable to provide necessary treatment.

bralbovsky · Post by **bralbovsky** » Sun Jun 26, 2022 8:00 am

If it were only a matter of choosing medical staff one could trust, that would be bad, but now the likelihood that police are involved...we are in a very dangerous place. (Reference other conversations about police and honesty.)

Phoebe · Post by **Phoebe** » Wed Jun 29, 2022 12:57 pm

There's also a special place in hell for people who think that being pro-life requires forcing a child who has been raped to give birth.

poorpete · Post by **poorpete** » Tue Jul 05, 2022 6:44 am

Stop giving people access to war weapons.

Phoebe · Post by **Phoebe** » Tue Jul 05, 2022 3:04 pm

At this point do I need this for self-protection at the grocery store?

Tahlvin · Post by **Tahlvin** » Wed Jul 06, 2022 12:12 pm

Apparently the Highland Park shooter drove to Madison, Wisconsin, after the shooting, and considering shooting more people at an event in Madison, but decided not to since he hadn't had time to plan and prepare.

poorpete · Post by **poorpete** » Tue Jul 12, 2022 8:00 am

I'm not saying that sometimes people can overdue it when trying to be woke, but when you criticize discussing Jefferson's slave ownership as wokeness gone wrong, then you are showing your true colors.

Goodness everyone, treat each other with empathy, both empathy for the past wrongs, empathy for those currently struggling, and empathy for those trying to navigate changes. And sure some empathy for Thomas Jefferson and all great thinkers who struggled to live up to their ideals, but isn't the struggle to live up to ideals what America is all about?

Phoebe · Post by **Phoebe** » Fri Jul 22, 2022 11:49 pm

I had access to TV and was doing something so I turned on Tucker Carlson and listened to it for about 40 minutes. I have great difficulty even looking at his face because when he talks, he's so animated by hatred and venom that his face is twisted and strange, and there are weird spaces in his lower teeth that he keeps jutting out at you! When he listens to other people talking his whole face freezes and all of his features somehow migrate towards the centerline of the face, so all you can see is two little beady dots of eyes and some wrinkles and folds where his eyebrows and nose are. His tiny, lipless mouth hangs agape and he literally appears to be drooling a little. It's the most disturbing thing - it amazes me that this is a popular show simply because how can anyone look at his face? Like even if you like him and thought he was telling the truth, how could you look at his face?

The most disturbing thing of all, however, was the occasional outburst of maniacal laughter! No one has ever taken less actual happy joy in the act of laughing so it sounds like some kind of comedy movie villain. I seriously have to ask if this man had brain damage at some point that has left him impaired and this is why he is the way he is? I'm not even joking. He doesn't seem right in the mind, both in terms of insanity and in terms of lacking some part of the prefrontal cortex.

Tonight was a special treat because Bannon had just been found guilty but nevertheless he appeared on TV anyway! The only sense that could be made of it is that he wants to increase the drama of his circumstances by getting a longer prison sentence? Like maybe he went on TV to juice up his sentence so he could be more of a victim or work on his criminal networks from prison or something. Maybe federal prison is not such a bad place to be so he's okay with going there for a while for some reason? I can find no other logic behind what happened there.

At one point he went on a vicious tirade against Adam Kinzinger, who happens to have a relatively new baby boy and a cute wife and such, an honorable career as military and now elected official, and dude just lost it. It's like he cannot handle that this other guy actually achieved successful masculinity and has a nice little family, so he went off about how the dude is physically small and miserable and has a terrible personal life. Like, what? Um, something is wrong. The machine is not firing properly in there.

Phoebe · Post by **Phoebe** » Tue Aug 02, 2022 8:33 pm

But her emails... I struggle to understand the mind of the swing voter. Does it register with them that the very thing they apparently switched course over is committed in a worse way times a thousand by these people?

https://www.cnn.com/2022/08/02/politics ... index.html

Akiva · Post by **Akiva** » Fri Aug 05, 2022 4:07 pm

“So, the Minnesota Supreme Court ruled that indeed you can help an unlimited number of people vote if they are disabled or can’t read or speak English, which raises the question, should they be voting?"

Kim Crockett, favorite to win the GOP nomination for Secretary of State in Minnesota.