Hate Speech

March 8 : “ : Coronavirus is the Democrats new Russia , their new Ukraine .
And nobody will believe them except their zombies .
But know this : The Dems ’ strategy to defeat @ real DonaldTrump requires 100s of thousands of American deaths .
Will one of their nutjobs make it happen , a la Hodgkinson ?
” March 11 : “ There must be a national pandemic tragedy for the Democrats to win .They ’ re counting on it.
” March 14 : “ 100s of thousands must die and the US economy must collapse for the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ They ’ re getting so excited for the carnage .
Sick people.
” March 14 , doubling down : “ This Democrat strategy , echoed by their conjugal media , will fail .
Hoping your country fails and hundreds of thousands die so you can gain power is a sick and twisted strategy .
American will punish them.
” March 16 : In response to the Stock Market losing all its gains since Trump took office .
“ The Democrat celebration of the death and destruction will be held soon.
” March 17 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ always been adept at lying to cover their murders , What ’ s remarkable here is the UD Democrats and their conjugal media repeating CCP propaganda because they hate Trump more than they love America .
The Wuhan virus has exposed them.
” March 17 : Caputo tweets a conspiracy that implies economist David Rothschld is a member of the European Rothschild family calling him , “ an inbred elitist sphincter whose family craves control .
That ’ s one reason why he constantly lies about President Trump.
” Rothchild told CNN he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , which is frequently the target of anti-Semitic conspiracies .
( Andrew Kaczynski , Nathan McDermott and Em Steck : CNN March 18 : “ Nobody should let Democrats and their conjugal media popularize Chinese Communist Party talking points .
Democrats + Media=CCP.
” March 22 : “ Power .
It ’ s the Democrats oxygen and they ’ ll destroy Americans for it , ” .
March 22 : “ I ’ ’ m serious .
The Dem strategy for 2020 victory requires that @ realDonaldTrump fail in his fight against the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ deaths and economic collapse .
The only questions to ask a Dem are how many Americans must die , how many families must be destroyed ?
” March 22 : ( He can ’ t help himself . )
“ They are literally cheering on the deaths of Americans and the destruction of our economy .
They would rather see people die than see Trump successfully navigate this disaster.
” March 23 : “ The Democrats have one motivation for holding Americans hostage in a global crisis , HATE.
” ( Methinks he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : “ the Left hate normal Americans and they want us dead and replaced , act as if they mean it , because they do.
” Two weeks later he became HHS spokesman .
These are quotes Mr. Caputo unleashed over a recent three-week span , and they are not all he said , just a sampling .
But you got ta wonder : what ’ s he saying behind closed doors .
I ’ m a Democrat , and I don ’ t remember praying for a mass holocaust in order for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I don ’ t remember any of my Democratic friends voicing a desire for national carnage as a strategy to get their candidates elected .
And to be fair , if the shoe was reversed , none of my Republican friends would pray for body bags as a campaign blueprint .
I know this because I know their heart ; I know their goodness .
Although we disagree politically , their over-all humanity is what shines through .
So why are we so divided ?
On a fundamental level , we agree on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ justice .
We all desire for our children to have a better life than we had .
We connect on a human level .
So why are we so divided ?
We are all assaulted daily with a cesspool of disinformation , and depending on the recipient , some of it will stick .
We ingest this bile without examining the source or the motivation behind the message .
Disinformation and hate propaganda have been with us forever .
Now it is more sophisticated , laser focused , based on mathematical logarithms designed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , manipulates , and ignites dormant prejudices .
In the past , we would drop propaganda leaflets from planes over North Vietnam during the Vietnam War .
Today we use the internet , but it has always been a battle for the hearts and minds , not much different than it is today .
Today , there is a meme going around that portrays Bill Gates , George Soros , and Dr. Fauci as part of an evil conspiracy poised to take over the world through mind control and various other nefarious mechanisms @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The Gates Foundation Mission statement : “ THE PATH OUT OF POVERTY BEGINS WHEN THE NEXT GENERATION CAN ACCESS QUALITY HEALTHCARE AND A GREAT EDUCATION .
In developing countries , we focus on improving people ’ s health and wellbeing , helping individuals lift themselves out of hunger and extreme poverty .
In the United States , we seek to ensure that all people—especially those with the fewest resources—can access the opportunities they need to succeed in school and life.
” It ’ s hard to argue with that mission .
And it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Gates Foundation has proven track level of results .
Compare the Gates Foundation results to the Donald Trump foundation results .
And George Soros : he has dedicated his life to helping refuges , the forgotten , the disenfranchised .
And Dr. Fauci , he had the gall to introduce science to the administration ’ s response to the pandemic .
Disinformation divides us , it serves up scapegoats for whatever ails us .
Scapegoats acts as smokescreens to prevent us from seeing the real source of our anxiety , our poverty , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ we are not responsible for our condition , perhaps the vilest consequence of the propaganda .
“ And importantly , thus it has been possible to make poor and working-class white people believe that their interests lie in making common cause with their political leaders and economic betters .
Common cause in whiteness : the idea that they might eventually share in the spoils , and the understanding that the discomforts and anxieties of their own precarious lives were due to –are due to –those below them rather that those above them .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Walter Johnson p.7 .
Let ’ s be kind to one another .
Perhaps this pandemic can serve as a reboot for our culture , the first step in restoring grace .
Kindness is the superpower that can do this .

Hate Speech
Joseph Caputo, the recently appointed HHS spokesman:
March 8: “: Coronavirus is the Democrats new Russia, their new Ukraine. And nobody will believe them except their zombies. But know this: The Dems’ strategy to defeat @real DonaldTrump requires 100s of thousands of American deaths. Will one of their nutjobs make it happen, a la Hodgkinson?”
March 11: “There must be a national pandemic tragedy for the Democrats to win .They’re counting on it.”
March 14: “100s of thousands must die and the US economy must collapse for the Democrat 2020 victory strategy to succeed. They’re getting so excited for the carnage. Sick people.”
March 14, doubling down: “This Democrat strategy, echoed by their conjugal media, will fail. Hoping your country fails and hundreds of thousands die so you can gain power is a sick and twisted strategy. American will punish them.”
March 15: “Are you kidding Soro’s political agenda REQUIRES a pandemic.”
March 16: In response to the Stock Market losing all its gains since Trump took office. “The Democrat celebration of the death and destruction will be held soon.”
March 17: “The Chinese Communist Party has always been adept at lying to cover their murders, What’s remarkable here is the UD Democrats and their conjugal media repeating CCP propaganda because they hate Trump more than they love America. The Wuhan virus has exposed them.”
March 17: Caputo tweets a conspiracy that implies economist David Rothschld is a member of the European Rothschild family calling him, “an inbred elitist sphincter whose family craves control. That’s one reason why he constantly lies about President Trump.” Rothchild told CNN he is not related to the banking family, which is frequently the target of anti-Semitic conspiracies. (Andrew Kaczynski, Nathan McDermott and Em Steck: CNN
March 18: “Nobody should let Democrats and their conjugal media popularize Chinese Communist Party talking points. Democrats + Media=CCP.”
March 22: “Power. It’s the Democrats oxygen and they’ll destroy Americans for it,”.
March 22: “I’’m serious. The Dem strategy for 2020 victory requires that @realDonaldTrump fail in his fight against the Chinese virus, Failure is measured in deaths and economic collapse. The only questions to ask a Dem are how many Americans must die, how many families must be destroyed?”
March 22: (He can’t help himself.) “They are literally cheering on the deaths of Americans and the destruction of our economy. They would rather see people die than see Trump successfully navigate this disaster.”
March 23: “The Democrats have one motivation for holding Americans hostage in a global crisis, HATE.” (Methinks he protests too much.)
March 31: “the Left hate normal Americans and they want us dead and replaced, act as if they mean it, because they do.”
Two weeks later he became HHS spokesman.
These are quotes Mr. Caputo unleashed over a recent three-week span, and they are not all he said, just a sampling. But you gotta wonder: what’s he saying behind closed doors.
I’m a Democrat, and I don’t remember praying for a mass holocaust in order for Democrats to win in November. And I don’t remember any of my Democratic friends voicing a desire for national carnage as a strategy to get their candidates elected. And to be fair, if the shoe was reversed, none of my Republican friends would pray for body bags as a campaign blueprint. I know this because I know their heart; I know their goodness. Although we disagree politically, their over-all humanity is what shines through.
So why are we so divided? On a fundamental level, we agree on basic truths: family, fairness, justice. We all desire for our children to have a better life than we had. We connect on a human level.
So why are we so divided? We are all assaulted daily with a cesspool of disinformation, and depending on the recipient, some of it will stick. We ingest this bile without examining the source or the motivation behind the message. Disinformation and hate propaganda have been with us forever. Now it is more sophisticated, laser focused, based on mathematical logarithms designed to ignite maximum efficiency. It targets, manipulates, and ignites dormant prejudices. In the past, we would drop propaganda leaflets from planes over North Vietnam during the Vietnam War. Today we use the internet, but it has always been a battle for the hearts and minds, not much different than it is today.
Today, there is a meme going around that portrays Bill Gates, George Soros, and Dr. Fauci as part of an evil conspiracy poised to take over the world through mind control and various other nefarious mechanisms, tinged with the usual anti-Semitism. The Gates Foundation Mission statement:
“THE PATH OUT OF POVERTY BEGINS WHEN THE NEXT GENERATION CAN ACCESS QUALITY HEALTHCARE AND A GREAT EDUCATION.
In developing countries, we focus on improving people’s health and wellbeing, helping individuals lift themselves out of hunger and extreme poverty. In the United States, we seek to ensure that all people—especially those with the fewest resources—can access the opportunities they need to succeed in school and life.”
It’s hard to argue with that mission. And it’s not just PR, the Gates Foundation has proven track level of results. Compare the Gates Foundation results to the Donald Trump foundation results. And George Soros: he has dedicated his life to helping refuges, the forgotten, the disenfranchised. And Dr. Fauci, he had the gall to introduce science to the administration’s response to the pandemic.
Disinformation divides us, it serves up scapegoats for whatever ails us. Scapegoats acts as smokescreens to prevent us from seeing the real source of our anxiety, our poverty, our disenfranchisement. Disinformation tells us that we are not responsible for our condition, perhaps the vilest consequence of the propaganda.
“And importantly, thus it has been possible to make poor and working-class white people believe that their interests lie in making common cause with their political leaders and economic betters. Common cause in whiteness: the idea that they might eventually share in the spoils, and the understanding that the discomforts and anxieties of their own precarious lives were due to –are due to –those below them rather that those above them. “ The Broken Heart of America by Walter Johnson p.7.
Let’s be kind to one another.
Perhaps this pandemic can serve as a reboot for our culture, the first step in restoring grace. Kindness is the superpower that can do this.
Curt


dailykos--2020-06-15--The Monuments to an Open Rebellion

The Monuments to an Open Rebellion

13 years ago I decided to ride my motorcycle across the country .
I was still young ( at 64 ! )
and doing something like “ getting lost ” on the road for a month or so was something I always wanted to do .
The notion of open roads and a canopy of fresh air and sky above appealed to me , as it still does .
And so off I went , starting off from Salem , Oregon .
Although I had spent plenty of time in the Deep South when I was in business , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ battle sites when time allowed , I never thought much beyond the fact that the Civil War such a meat grinder for soldiers on both sides .
But in 2007 , as a retired guy with plenty of time on this motorcycle trip , I had a chance to see more sites , including Appomattox , where the Civil War came to an end with the meeting of Grant and Lee .
Along the way , just outside the Appomattox National Historic Site , I came across a curious small graveyard , not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ gravestones on it , each with a Confederate flag plugged into the ground .
It was just off the highway , well tended , and oddly all by itself , so I pulled over to take a closer look at it .
There was a plaque indicating that a group called the Daughters of the Confederacy had created and maintained this plot dedicated to those who defended “ The Confederate States of America.
” I thought then , how odd that there were groups who still consider that war as the great “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ defending “ states rights ” the most important of which was the right to own people .
Who were these “ Daughters of the Confederacy ?
A bunch of well-heeled , white , blue hairs who lived in the Virginia horse country ?
I left the site asking myself how that “ lost cause ” dynamic persists 150 years after the fact .
Then , a few miles further , as I parked my bike at the entrance to the Appomattox site , there was another a plaque near the entrance which talked @ @ @ @ @ @ @ unconquered ” conquered army that Robert E. Lee commanded .
Jesus Louise !
, I thought .
These people are still fighting that war .
Atlanta ’ s still burning !
Cemetery Ridge and Wilderness are still alive with the ghosts of the fallen soldiers of what was in truth armed rebellion , not a war .
There must be hundreds , if not more , such plaques scattered around the old Confederacy .
I ’ ve seen a pretty good number of them in my travels .
All of them talk about @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sacrifices the fallen made to vague notions of honor , freedom , and Confederate patriotism .
Above it all , was the imagery of the South being overwhelmed by a Union army superior in every way except in courage and dedication , not to mention generalship .
Of all the plaques I ’ ve seen and read in 11 confederate states , not one of them had the words “ slavery , ” “ slaveholder ” or “ enslaved ” engraved on those bronze markers .
It is as if the approximately 245 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the end of the Civil War had never existed .
It was denial on an epic level .
It ’ s taken another 150 years for Americans—north and south—to examine what is truth and what is fiction .
The symbols of the old Confederacy : statues to its generals , military bases named after them , battle flags and all the rest , are stark reminders to 15 % of our population , African Americans , that though the war was lost , people like the Daughters of the Confederacy still aren @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s time to put the Lost Cause mentality to bed .
We need to call it what it was and understand it in its entirety , not cling to some romanticized , Edna Ferber “ Gone With the Wind , ” or D.W. Griffith “ Birth of a Nation ” sappy recounting of the deadliest war in American history .

13 years ago I decided to ride my motorcycle across the country. I was still young (at 64!) and doing something like “getting lost” on the road for a month or so was something I always wanted to do. The notion of open roads and a canopy of fresh air and sky above appealed to me, as it still does. And so off I went, starting off from Salem, Oregon.
Although I had spent plenty of time in the Deep South when I was in business, and had casually visited some of the important battle sites when time allowed, I never thought much beyond the fact that the Civil War such a meat grinder for soldiers on both sides.
But in 2007, as a retired guy with plenty of time on this motorcycle trip, I had a chance to see more sites, including Appomattox, where the Civil War came to an end with the meeting of Grant and Lee.
Along the way, just outside the Appomattox National Historic Site, I came across a curious small graveyard, not more than an acre with a few gravestones on it, each with a Confederate flag plugged into the ground. It was just off the highway, well tended, and oddly all by itself, so I pulled over to take a closer look at it.
There was a plaque indicating that a group called the Daughters of the Confederacy had created and maintained this plot dedicated to those who defended “The Confederate States of America.” I thought then, how odd that there were groups who still consider that war as the great “Lost Cause;” a noble endeavor defending “states rights” the most important of which was the right to own people. Who were these “Daughters of the Confederacy? A bunch of well-heeled, white, blue hairs who lived in the Virginia horse country? I left the site asking myself how that “lost cause” dynamic persists 150 years after the fact.
Then, a few miles further, as I parked my bike at the entrance to the Appomattox site, there was another a plaque near the entrance which talked about “principles” and the “unconquered” conquered army that Robert E. Lee commanded.
Jesus Louise!, I thought. These people are still fighting that war. Atlanta’s still burning! Cemetery Ridge and Wilderness are still alive with the ghosts of the fallen soldiers of what was in truth armed rebellion, not a war.
There must be hundreds, if not more, such plaques scattered around the old Confederacy. I’ve seen a pretty good number of them in my travels. All of them talk about, or at least allude to the sacrifices the fallen made to vague notions of honor, freedom, and Confederate patriotism. Above it all, was the imagery of the South being overwhelmed by a Union army superior in every way except in
courage and dedication, not to mention generalship.
Of all the plaques I’ve seen and read in 11 confederate states, not one of them had the words “slavery,” “slaveholder” or “enslaved” engraved on those bronze markers. It is as if the approximately 245 years of chattel slavery which existed prior to the end of the Civil War had never existed. It was denial on an epic level.
It’s taken another 150 years for Americans—north and south—to examine what is truth and what is fiction. The symbols of the old Confederacy: statues to its generals, military bases named after them, battle flags and all the rest, are stark reminders to 15% of our population, African Americans, that though the war was lost, people like the Daughters of the Confederacy still aren’t buying it.
It’s time to put the Lost Cause mentality to bed. We need to call it what it was and understand it in its entirety, not cling to some romanticized, Edna Ferber “Gone With the Wind,” or D.W. Griffith “Birth of a Nation” sappy recounting of the deadliest war in American history.


dailykos--2020-06-16--The Supreme Court Just Punched tRump in the Gut - Good New Roundup, Bluesday June 16th, 2020

We are inching towards November .
For a lot of us , I think , we want this nightmare to be over so badly we are willing to skip over the summer entirely and start voting tomorrow .
We ’ re giddy about the numbers we are seeing and don ’ t want to give the forces of despair and division a chance to make a comeback .
After all , we know the media will try to orchestrate a horse race .
Their business model dictates they encourage that framing .
It takes a lot of clicks and eyeballs @ @ @ @ @ @ @ yachts .
If we don ’ t have a horse race , they won ’ t make as much money .
We know that tRump and his house servants over at the RNC will lie , lie and lie some more , until well past the time they all go blue in the face .
We know that Limbaugh & Fox & OAN & Jones & Breitbart & iHate Radio will push ever more ridiculous conspiracy theories just as fast as those thousands of monkeys they keep in the basement can pound them @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are still hundreds of years away from producing Shakespeare , but they ’ re doing a bang-up job pumping out brain fodder for the foil-lined Red Hat brigades .
We know that Putin and Co. are all in on tRump and will be throwing their extra-sticky , super-noxious faux shit at the walls as fast as they can crap it out .
There ’ s also the problem of republican governors suppressing the vote , Zuckerberg being Zuckerberg and the David Wohl school of dirty tricks to contend with .
Here ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ already working overtime and tRump is still tanking more than ever before .
tRump ’ s , and by extensions the republican party ’ s weaknesses are glaringly obvious and becoming more so every day .
They ’ ve screwed up every crisis so far and have made moves that guarantee they ’ ll continue to do so .
The pandemic and the economy are not listening to tRump when he incessantly brags about the great job he ’ s doing .
The whole blame everybody else schtick is not aging well .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ owns the fiasco he ’ s made with his incoherent half-assed response .
His promotion of racial division as a means of energizing parts of his base is coming back to bite him hard .
The national and international reaction to George Floyd ’ s tragic death ignited a backlash that puts tRump on the wrong side of the issue in the moment and cements his place on the wrong side of history .
He ’ s still wrong on climate change , immigration , healthcare , taxation , trade policy , consumer @ @ @ @ @ @ @ environmental regulations and any other policy issue we can name .
A majority of the country agrees .
He ’ s also an unlikable , whiny bully .
He ’ s earned his nicknames : Bunker Boi , tRumplethinskin , Putin ’ s Bitch , Mango Mussolini , Space Cadet Spanky McBonespurs , Hair Gropingfuhrer and on and on… There ’ s no bottom to his deceitfulness and a majority of the country agrees .
Between now and the election tRump will take direct hits from Bolton ’ s book , Mary tRump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ book , more Supreme Court rulings , congressional testimony from people like Lev Parnas , a lot more bungling on his part ( it ’ s who he is ) , the Lincoln Project , Republicans for Biden and us .
He ’ s not going to get a free pass to redefine himself .
That last bit is important .
A majority of the country thinks tRump and the republicans are doing a bad job .
55 % of the country disapproves of the job tRump is doing .
47 % of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ % strong disapproval is higher than the percentage of votes he got in 2016 .
The folks who strongly disapprove are the ones willing to crawl across broken glass to vote for Joe .
tRump ’ s strong support has dipped to 28 % .
Our job is not to get complacent .
We want to bury tRump and his enablers .
We want the racists to crawl back under their rocks .
We want them all to know their bullshit is not ok. We want our country back .
We can and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s great for two reasons .
First , it ’ s great because it ’ s the right thing to do .
It ’ s also great because it will demoralize evangelicals who supported tRump so he would put people like Gorsuch on the court to vote against stuff like this .
He wrote the opinion for the court .
That ’ s got ta sting .
The New Yorker : The L.G.B.T.Q.-Rights Movement Wins Its Biggest Supreme Court Victory Two of the three people at the heart of the landmark L.G.B.T.Q.-rights decision @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Monday did not live to know that they had won .
The fight to protect L.G.B.T.Q .
people from employment discrimination has been a long one—years for the individual plaintiffs , decades for the larger movement .
Until Monday , such discrimination was legal in more than half the country ’ s states .
Donald Trump ’ s Administration had argued that it should continue to be .
But , in a 6–3 opinion written by the Trump appointee Neil Gorsuch , the Court ruled that discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation @ @ @ @ @ @ @ VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 .
It was the single biggest victory in the history of the L.G.B.T.Q.-rights movement .
The court heard arguments in the three cases—two originally brought by gay men and one brought by a transgender woman—on October 8th of last year .
The stories , as Gorsuch writes in his opinion , are uncomplicated .
“ Few facts are needed to appreciate the legal question we face , ” he wrote .
“ Each of the three cases before us started the same way : An @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the employee revealed that he or she is homosexual or transgender—and allegedly for no reason other than the employee ’ s homosexuality or transgender status.
” The employers did not pretend that there were other grounds for termination ; in all three cases , they argued that the dismissals were legal .
The Civil Rights Act forbids discrimination on the basis of sex .
The employers in the Supreme Court cases argued—and the Trump Administration agreed—that sexual orientation and transgender status are distinct from sex .
The lawyers for the dismissed employees argued @ @ @ @ @ @ @ orientation constitutes discrimination on the basis of sex .
Pamela Karlan , the Stanford law professor who argued on behalf of Donald Zarda and Gerald Lynn Bostock , the two gay men , proposed a hypothetical : “ Two employees who come in , both of whom tell you they married their partner , Bill , last weekend .
When you fire the male employee who married Bill , and you give the female employee who married Bill a couple of days off , so she can celebrate the joyous event , that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ In other words , she argued , the salient difference between a straight woman and a gay man , who share the trait of being attracted to men , is their sex .
The Justices agreed .
Gorsuch reiterated Karlan ’ s scenario in his opinion .
“ Consider , for example , an employer with two employees , both of whom are attracted to men , ” he wrote .
“ The two individuals are , to the employer ’ s mind , materially identical in all respects , except that one @ @ @ @ @ @ @ woman .
If the employer fires the male employee for no reason other than the fact he is attracted to men , the employer discriminates against him for traits or actions it tolerates in his female colleague.
” ( Zarda died , in an accident , in 2014 ; Bostock attended the hearing in October . )
This an article from last April that explains just how the Civil Rights Act of 1964 came to cover LGBTQ+ rights .
The Atlantic : The Three-Letter Word That Triggered a Revolution Because of sex .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ single three-letter word has had momentous legal and social consequences for American life that the man who inserted it into the 1964 Civil Rights Act on a wintry Saturday morning could never have imagined .
And now that the Supreme Court has agreed to decide whether that landmark law forbids employment discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity , the adaptive power and enduring meaning of that plain little word is about to be tested once more .
On February 8 , 1964 , as the House of Representatives debated passage of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ardent segregationist from Virginia , rose to propose changes to four pages of Title VII , the section of the bill barring hiring and firing “ because of ” race , creed , religion , or color .
“ After the word religion , insert sex , ” Smith drawled , urging his colleagues to rectify “ this grave injustice … particularly in an election year.
” The result was two hours of pandemonium on the House floor , because Smith ’ s amendment was seen by the frantic pro–civil-rights forces as a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bill at risk—a bill that would end Jim Crow segregation in public accommodations , help ensure voting rights for long-disenfranchised populations , and just more or less win the Civil War , only a hundred years too late .
It ’ s a story I recounted in my book An Idea Whose Time Has Come .
Hard as it may be to fathom a half century later , the notion that women deserved protection from discrimination in employment was as controversial in some quarters as the idea that racial minorities did—and , even @ @ @ @ @ @ @ laughable .
Things are not going well for impeached president Donald tRump People are saying he ’ s circling the drain .
A lot of people .
Donald Trump ’ s astounding incompetence in recent months — worsening the effects of the lethal COVID-19 pandemic , mishandling the ensuing economic disaster , and maliciously inflaming racial tensions — has affirmed that he is without question the worst president in American history .
None of the other contenders for the dishonor , including James Buchanan and most recently George W. Bush , can match @ @ @ @ @ @ @ or aggravating three devastating crises at the same time , any one of which might have ruined another president ’ s reputation .
And two incidents amid the turmoil suggest that Trump , having made a career out of shafting justice , might finally pay the price .
The murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis on May 25th , recorded on an anguished teenager ’ s cellphone , may prove the equivalent , for this generation , of the pictures from a half-century ago of police dogs attacking peaceful black protesters in Birmingham @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the tear-gassing and beating of black voting-rights marchers at the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma , Alabama , two years later .
Trump has skillfully exploited the bitterness and despair of the nation ’ s racial divide , thrilling his supporters with his undisguised invective , but after that grotesque incident went viral , public consciousness snapped .
The nationwide demonstrations that followed , to say nothing of those abroad , have amounted to the largest such protest of American racial injustice ever , far surpassing the protest gatherings of the abolitionists @ @ @ @ @ @ @ movement in the 1960s .
Then , a second event , the battle of Lafayette Square on June 1st , dramatized the authoritarian essence of Trump ’ s presidency , and may well be a turning point that leads to his downfall and repudiation .
Besieged by the protests over Floyd ’ s killing , removed to his White House bunker , and publicly accused of cowardice , Trump would not permit his humiliation to stand .
To “ dominate , ” as he put it , he assembled the press corps in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to unleash the entire U.S. military .
Then , he and his entourage — Attorney General William Barr , Secretary of Defense Mark Esper , the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley ( dressed in battle fatigues ) , and national security adviser Robert O ’ Brien — marched across the street to pose for a photo-op in front of St. John ’ s Church .
Ivanka Trump pulled a Bible out of her Max Mara handbag and gave the prop to her father , who awkwardly held it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ performance , workers constructed tall fences around Lafayette Square and the White House .
Trump finally had his wall — and Mexico still hadn ’ t paid for it .
This is what it ’ s really all about Aside from taking a firm grip on the moral high ground , this points out just how much humanity is embodied in the protest movement .
I would hope that the counter-protestors would do the same .
I am not confident that they would .
The Guardian : BLM supporter speaks out after carrying @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this for years , but now — holy guacamole , Batman .
Wonkette : Trump Reelection Campaign Now Just Flaming ‘ Everything ’ s Fine ’ Meme It seems highly unlikely now that Donald Trump will stink up the White House for another term , unless he somehow manages to cure COVID-19 and literally transform into Barack Obama , like when Steve Urkel drank some `` magic potion '' that made him cool .
( Was that a drug metaphor ?
I think it was a drug metaphor . )
Joe Biden is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ except for white men with Trump 's intellectual capacity ( sadly , a sizable portion of the electorate ) .
Still , if you work on Trump 's sinking ship of a re-election campaign , you probably want to keep him happy and upbeat so he does n't spike the nuclear football .
However , a Politico article revealed that Republicans across the country , at the state , district , and county level , are completely disconnected from observable reality .
They do n't just believe Trump will prevail in November .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ which he did n't even do in 2016 with Russia 's help .
Phillip Stephens , GOP chairman in Robeson County , North Carolina , is even thinking “ landslide , '' but not the one where Biden flips Arizona and possibly Georgia .
Jobs for ex-cons and recycling at the same time .
Did someone release us to start ethical businesses ?
Good News Network : They Recycle Electronics – And People ’ s Lives – By Giving Ex-Felons Good Jobs to Imagine a Better World Good News Network : Dogs Trained @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Diagnosis of Human Sweat Samples

We are inching towards November. For a lot of us, I think, we want this nightmare to be over so badly we are willing to skip over the summer entirely and start voting tomorrow. We’re giddy about the numbers we are seeing and don’t want to give the forces of despair and division a chance to make a comeback.
After all, we know the media will try to orchestrate a horse race. Their business model dictates they encourage that framing. It takes a lot of clicks and eyeballs to pay for those media mogul CEO yachts. If we don’t have a horse race, they won’t make as much money.
We know that tRump and his house servants over at the RNC will lie, lie and lie some more, until well past the time they all go blue in the face.
We know that Limbaugh & Fox & OAN & Jones & Breitbart & iHate Radio will push ever more ridiculous conspiracy theories just as fast as those thousands of monkeys they keep in the basement can pound them out on their typewriters. The monkeys are still hundreds of years away from producing Shakespeare, but they’re doing a bang-up job pumping out brain fodder for the foil-lined Red Hat brigades.
We know that Putin and Co. are all in on tRump and will be throwing their extra-sticky, super-noxious faux shit at the walls as fast as they can crap it out.
There’s also the problem of republican governors suppressing the vote, Zuckerberg being Zuckerberg and the David Wohl school of dirty tricks to contend with.
Here’s the thing. All these folks are already working overtime and tRump is still tanking more than ever before. tRump’s, and by extensions the republican party’s weaknesses are glaringly obvious and becoming more so every day. They’ve screwed up every crisis so far and have made moves that guarantee they’ll continue to do so.
The pandemic and the economy are not listening to tRump when he incessantly brags about the great job he’s doing. The whole blame everybody else schtick is not aging well. No matter what he says, he owns the fiasco he’s made with his incoherent half-assed response.
His promotion of racial division as a means of energizing parts of his base is coming back to bite him hard. The national and international reaction to George Floyd’s tragic death ignited a backlash that puts tRump on the wrong side of the issue in the moment and cements his place on the wrong side of history.
He’s still wrong on climate change, immigration, healthcare, taxation, trade policy, consumer protections, energy policy, diplomacy, environmental regulations and any other policy issue we can name. A majority of the country agrees.
He’s also an unlikable, whiny bully. He’s earned his nicknames: Bunker Boi, tRumplethinskin, Putin’s Bitch, Mango Mussolini, Space Cadet Spanky McBonespurs, Hair Gropingfuhrer and on and on… There’s no bottom to his deceitfulness and a majority of the country agrees.
Between now and the election tRump will take direct hits from Bolton’s book, Mary tRump’s book, Cohen’s book, more Supreme Court rulings, congressional testimony from people like Lev Parnas, a lot more bungling on his part (it’s who he is), the Lincoln Project, Republicans for Biden and us. He’s not going to get a free pass to redefine himself.
That last bit is important. A majority of the country thinks tRump and the republicans are doing a bad job. 55% of the country disapproves of the job tRump is doing. 47% of the country strongly disapproves. That 47% strong disapproval is higher than the percentage of votes he got in 2016. The folks who strongly disapprove are the ones willing to crawl across broken glass to vote for Joe. tRump’s strong support has dipped to 28%.
Our job is not to get complacent. We want to bury tRump and his enablers. We want the racists to crawl back under their rocks. We want them all to know their bullshit is not ok. We want our country back. We can and we will do this.
Up the Resistance!
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And there’s news too
This is great news
It’s great for two reasons. First, it’s great because it’s the right thing to do. It’s also great because it will demoralize evangelicals who supported tRump so he would put people like Gorsuch on the court to vote against stuff like this. He wrote the opinion for the court. That’s gotta sting.
The New Yorker: The L.G.B.T.Q.-Rights Movement Wins Its Biggest Supreme Court Victory
Two of the three people at the heart of the landmark L.G.B.T.Q.-rights decision handed down by the Supreme Court on Monday did not live to know that they had won. The fight to protect L.G.B.T.Q. people from employment discrimination has been a long one—years for the individual plaintiffs, decades for the larger movement. Until Monday, such discrimination was legal in more than half the country’s states. Donald Trump’s Administration had argued that it should continue to be. But, in a 6–3 opinion written by the Trump appointee Neil Gorsuch, the Court ruled that discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or transgender status is illegal under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. It was the single biggest victory in the history of the L.G.B.T.Q.-rights movement. The court heard arguments in the three cases—two originally brought by gay men and one brought by a transgender woman—on October 8th of last year. The stories, as Gorsuch writes in his opinion, are uncomplicated. “Few facts are needed to appreciate the legal question we face,” he wrote. “Each of the three cases before us started the same way: An employer fired a long-time employee shortly after the employee revealed that he or she is homosexual or transgender—and allegedly for no reason other than the employee’s homosexuality or transgender status.” The employers did not pretend that there were other grounds for termination; in all three cases, they argued that the dismissals were legal. The Civil Rights Act forbids discrimination on the basis of sex. The employers in the Supreme Court cases argued—and the Trump Administration agreed—that sexual orientation and transgender status are distinct from sex. The lawyers for the dismissed employees argued that discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation constitutes discrimination on the basis of sex. Pamela Karlan, the Stanford law professor who argued on behalf of Donald Zarda and Gerald Lynn Bostock, the two gay men, proposed a hypothetical: “Two employees who come in, both of whom tell you they married their partner, Bill, last weekend. When you fire the male employee who married Bill, and you give the female employee who married Bill a couple of days off, so she can celebrate the joyous event, that’s discrimination because of sex.” In other words, she argued, the salient difference between a straight woman and a gay man, who share the trait of being attracted to men, is their sex. The Justices agreed. Gorsuch reiterated Karlan’s scenario in his opinion. “Consider, for example, an employer with two employees, both of whom are attracted to men,” he wrote. “The two individuals are, to the employer’s mind, materially identical in all respects, except that one is a man and the other a woman. If the employer fires the male employee for no reason other than the fact he is attracted to men, the employer discriminates against him for traits or actions it tolerates in his female colleague.” (Zarda died, in an accident, in 2014; Bostock attended the hearing in October.)
Some background
This an article from last April that explains just how the Civil Rights Act of 1964 came to cover LGBTQ+ rights.
The Atlantic: The Three-Letter Word That Triggered a Revolution
Because of sex. Over the past 55 years, that single three-letter word has had momentous legal and social consequences for American life that the man who inserted it into the 1964 Civil Rights Act on a wintry Saturday morning could never have imagined. And now that the Supreme Court has agreed to decide whether that landmark law forbids employment discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, the adaptive power and enduring meaning of that plain little word is about to be tested once more. On February 8, 1964, as the House of Representatives debated passage of the bill, Howard Smith, an ardent segregationist from Virginia, rose to propose changes to four pages of Title VII, the section of the bill barring hiring and firing “because of” race, creed, religion, or color. “After the word religion, insert sex,” Smith drawled, urging his colleagues to rectify “this grave injustice … particularly in an election year.” The result was two hours of pandemonium on the House floor, because Smith’s amendment was seen by the frantic pro–civil-rights forces as a poison pill that might put the whole bill at risk—a bill that would end Jim Crow segregation in public accommodations, help ensure voting rights for long-disenfranchised populations, and just more or less win the Civil War, only a hundred years too late. It’s a story I recounted in my book An Idea Whose Time Has Come. Hard as it may be to fathom a half century later, the notion that women deserved protection from discrimination in employment was as controversial in some quarters as the idea that racial minorities did—and, even to some liberal Democrats, much more laughable.
Things are not going well for impeached president Donald tRump
People are saying he’s circling the drain. A lot of people.
Rolling Stone: The Disgrace of Donald Trump
Donald Trump’s astounding incompetence in recent months — worsening the effects of the lethal COVID-19 pandemic, mishandling the ensuing economic disaster, and maliciously inflaming racial tensions — has affirmed that he is without question the worst president in American history. None of the other contenders for the dishonor, including James Buchanan and most recently George W. Bush, can match Trump’s record of bringing on or aggravating three devastating crises at the same time, any one of which might have ruined another president’s reputation. And two incidents amid the turmoil suggest that Trump, having made a career out of shafting justice, might finally pay the price. The murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis on May 25th, recorded on an anguished teenager’s cellphone, may prove the equivalent, for this generation, of the pictures from a half-century ago of police dogs attacking peaceful black protesters in Birmingham, Alabama, in 1963, or of the tear-gassing and beating of black voting-rights marchers at the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama, two years later. Trump has skillfully exploited the bitterness and despair of the nation’s racial divide, thrilling his supporters with his undisguised invective, but after that grotesque incident went viral, public consciousness snapped. The nationwide demonstrations that followed, to say nothing of those abroad, have amounted to the largest such protest of American racial injustice ever, far surpassing the protest gatherings of the abolitionists before the Civil War or the civil-rights movement in the 1960s. Then, a second event, the battle of Lafayette Square on June 1st, dramatized the authoritarian essence of Trump’s presidency, and may well be a turning point that leads to his downfall and repudiation. Besieged by the protests over Floyd’s killing, removed to his White House bunker, and publicly accused of cowardice, Trump would not permit his humiliation to stand. To “dominate,” as he put it, he assembled the press corps in the White House Rose Garden and threatened to unleash the entire U.S. military. Then, he and his entourage — Attorney General William Barr, Secretary of Defense Mark Esper, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley (dressed in battle fatigues), and national security adviser Robert O’Brien — marched across the street to pose for a photo-op in front of St. John’s Church. Ivanka Trump pulled a Bible out of her Max Mara handbag and gave the prop to her father, who awkwardly held it up for the cameras. After this performance, workers constructed tall fences around Lafayette Square and the White House. Trump finally had his wall — and Mexico still hadn’t paid for it.
This is what it’s really all about
Aside from taking a firm grip on the moral high ground, this points out just how much humanity is embodied in the protest movement. I would hope that the counter-protestors would do the same. I am not confident that they would.
The Guardian: BLM supporter speaks out after carrying counter-protester to safety
The Black Lives Matter demonstrator who carried a counter-protester to safety during Saturday’s protests in London has spoken out about the moment he decided to intervene to help the man. Describing his decision to step in, Patrick Hutchinson said: “His life was under threat, so I just went under, scooped him up, put him on my shoulders and started marching towards the police with him.” In an interview with Channel 4 News, the personal trainer and grandfather said: “You don’t think about it [being scary] at the time, you just do what you’ve got to do.”
Republicans are delusional
We’ve known this for years, but now — holy guacamole, Batman.
Wonkette: Trump Reelection Campaign Now Just Flaming ‘Everything’s Fine’ Meme
It seems highly unlikely now that Donald Trump will stink up the White House for another term, unless he somehow manages to cure COVID-19 and literally transform into Barack Obama, like when Steve Urkel drank some "magic potion" that made him cool. (Was that a drug metaphor? I think it was a drug metaphor.) Joe Biden is currently stomping the president among every demographic except for white men with Trump's intellectual capacity (sadly, a sizable portion of the electorate). Still, if you work on Trump's sinking ship of a re-election campaign, you probably want to keep him happy and upbeat so he doesn't spike the nuclear football. However, a Politico article revealed that Republicans across the country, at the state, district, and county level, are completely disconnected from observable reality. They don't just believe Trump will prevail in November. They think he'll win big, which he didn't even do in 2016 with Russia's help. Phillip Stephens, GOP chairman in Robeson County, North Carolina, is even thinking “landslide," but not the one where Biden flips Arizona and possibly Georgia.
Green plus no longer orange
Jobs for ex-cons and recycling at the same time. Did someone release us to start ethical businesses?
Good News Network: They Recycle Electronics – And People’s Lives – By Giving Ex-Felons Good Jobs to Imagine a Better World
A San Francisco company on a mission to “re-imagine waste” is now providing meaningful work to ex-convicts, making them partners in building a more sustainable world. Brightmark’s main projects have included an innovative plastics recycling program, and developing “renewable natural gas” from food and agricultural waste. But now, Brightmark has partnered with the social enterprise RecycleForce to recycle electronics—and while RecycleForce certainly helps our planet, they also uplift the humans living on it, by training formerly incarcerated men and women transitioning back to society. “Our main mission is not recycling, at all. Our mission is to help people that are coming out of jail and prison with training, mental health, drug addiction, housing, and then help them get a job,” said program director Andrew King in the video below. “We do that through recycling.”
Who’s a Good Boy?
You are, you’re a good boy.
Good News Network: Dogs Trained to Sniff Out COVID-19 Score Near-Perfect in Diagnosis of Human Sweat Samples
Does sweat from someone infected with COVID-19 have a unique scent? Researchers in Paris, and elsewhere, believe it does—and we now know dogs can sniff it out. A new study from researchers at the national veterinary school in Alfort, outside Paris trained 8 Belgian Malinois shepherds to identify the smell of COVID-19 in the sweat of infected individuals. The dogs’ overall success rate was near-perfect, correctly guessing an average of 95% of samples. Four dogs successfully identified a positive COVID sweat sample 100% of the time. Many of the countries which have had the greatest success maintaining low numbers of Covid case numbers have done so with widespread use of testing. Using dogs, according to the scientists, would greatly increase the speed at which people could be tested, and they resolved to move forward with subsequent studies in case of resurgent numbers as lockdowns throughout the Northern Hemisphere end.
Musical Interlude
I’m addicted to Playing For Change
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WineRev’s History Lesson Here’s today’s edition of WineRev’s history lesson minus the nice things he said about me. For those you’ll need to read the comment section. Today…..140 days…...20 weeks. From here on to Election Day, every Tuesday is 5% closer. It might not seem like that much, but in the words of the later Senator Everett Dirksen of Illinois: “A billion here, a billion there and soon you’re talking real money.” I’ll have you know that after something of an historical flat spot last week that now it seems like everyone who wanted t be born and/or do and/or invent and/or discover and/or pull a Goofy on the historic scale has done so (although for today, the 16th, the sources I use didn’t have a composer; oh well, there are still, what, 37 of them left over from earlier in the month who all got born on the 1st? We will (or maybe pr0gressivist will make one or two of them honorary 16thers for today so they get a playing and hearing.) June 16th that have been Good and/or Goofy with News so that we have perspective, learn something and maybe get a chuckle, so we get through these next 20 weeks 1738 Southern Connecticut Birth of Mary Katharine Goddard, printer, publisher and bookseller. Her father was postmaster for New London, CT. An older brother, William, apprenticed as a printer and in the 1760s moved to Baltimore to begin printing a patriot newspaper, the Maryland Journal. Mary went with him and printed on her own during the American Revolution. At the same time she became postmistress of Baltimore and opened a bookshop connected with her printery. In early 1777 Congress moved the Declaration of Independence be widely distributed and Mary offered her press (despite this being possible treason against the Crown if the Americans lost the war.) The ‘Goddard Broadside’ (the second printed version) was the first printed version to carry all the names of the signers . In 1789, under the new Constitution, the Postmaster General removed her on grounds she was a woman (grrr!) despite petitions and demonstrations in Baltimore. Lived the rest of her life there as proprietor of the bookstore. 1858 Springfield, IL The Illinois Republican Party (2 years old!) puts up a prairie lawyer against favored incumbent, Democrat Stephen Douglas . The party stands against slavery and nominee Abraham Lincoln agrees. In his acceptance speech he warns the issue is serious and a national one: "A house divided against itself cannot stand.” (He loses to Douglas, but makes a national name for himself.) 1865 London. William Booth, ordained Methodist minister dissatisfied with his denomination, sets up a tent and preaches a gospel directed at the poor, calling his body the Salvation Army. From the beginning focused on practical help for the poor as a first step toward helping them become Christians. Fun stuff #1: Evangeline Booth (daughter of William) would drive a hay wagon through the streets of New York collecting alcoholics, offering a ride to the Mission for a hot meal and a chance to dry out. Alcoholics who accepted were said to be “on the wagon.” Fun stuff #2: John Lennon (Beatles) had several childhood friends he played with who were orphans at a Salvation Army orphanage. He tipped his hat to them and his childhood memories when he recalled the orphanage name in a song: “Strawberry Fields” forever…..sniff! 1884 Coney Island, NY America’s first roller coaster opens, to screams of delight…..ever since. 1890 Ulverston, England Birth of Arthur Stanley Jefferson, actor. Son of a theater manager and an actress, Arthur and family moved to Glasgow at turn of the century. He learned acting and comedy from several music hall stars and had his own premiere at age 16. Joined a touring troupe doing comedy as half of a pair of Romans looking at modern life. Caught on with an American tour in 1913 with another troupe that included Charlie Chaplin . Made several 2-reel comedies in the 1920s (all silents) and in 1926 signed on with Hal Roach studios. Having carried a stage name of Stan Jefferson , an actress friend suggested he change it since that had an unlucky 13 letters in it. He hoped to be a writer and director but instead was paired as Stan Laurel with partner Oliver Hardy. They made 107 short films, features and cameos together. Stan taught us how to carry the world’s longest board on a construction job all by himself…. 1893 Chicago, IL The World Exposition. Local candy and treat maker Frederick Wilheim Rueckheim packages his mixture of popcorn and peanuts held together with molasses (and thinned a bit with cooking oil to keep it from being too sticky, the secret ingredient!) in little boxes and touts it to Expo attenders as “Excellent”. He uses the slang of the day and says the taste is a “real Cracker Jack!” (Added “the prize inside” a few years later.) 1903 Making it formal, Henry Ford this day incorporates Ford Motor Company. 1952 Having earlier appeared in native Holland, on this day "Anne Frank: Diary of a Young Girl" was published in the United States. 1963 Aboard Vostok 6, the USSR space program launches 26-year-old Valentina Tereshkova into orbit, the first woman in space. Unknown if her great-great-great-great-great-grand nephew will be weapons officer aboard the USS Enterprise as Chekov, but it could be….. 1988 Santa Barbara, CA, a team of 32 divers begin cycling underwater on a standard tricycle, to complete 116.66 mi in 75 hours 20 mins. Why they did this…… May all your News be Good, comforting and inspiring. Shalom. On the Lighter Side Today’s Quote(s) A Rattlesnake, if cornered will become so angry it will bite itself. That is exactly what the harboring of hate and resentment against others is -- a biting of oneself. We think we are harming others in holding these spites and hates, but the deeper harm is to ourselves. — E. Stanley Jones A riot is the language of the unheard. — Martin Luther King, Jr. Accomplishments have no color. — Leontyne Price At the heart of racism is the religious assertion that God made a creative mistake when He brought some people into being. — Friedrich Otto Hertz For it isn't enough to talk about peace. One must believe in it. And it isn't enough to believe in it. One must work at it. — Eleanor Roosevelt I destroy my enemies when I make them my friends. — Abraham Lincoln I keep my ideals, because in spite of everything I still believe that people are really good at heart. — Anne Frank Required Pet Photo Pressley sez, “What are you waiting for. First, let’s go for a walk and then we can get back to working on getting rid of the tRump regime.” Closing Notes