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Created
Sun, 01/12/2024 - 04:58
Draconian laws don’t discourage climate protesters. Hydrogen’s rainbow of colours. CCS continues to underperform. Clean energy investments increasing but so are investments in fossil fuels. Destroying lives v inconveniencing the public George Monbiot in The Guardian recently compared the draconian jail sentences legislated and imposed during the previous UK Conservative government’s term of office (and now Continue reading »
Created
Sun, 01/12/2024 - 04:19
Everybody’s rushing to kiss the ring: Corporate America is unleashing an unorthodox campaign to influence Donald Trump’s agenda in the weeks leading up to his second inauguration, a period that is emerging as a key stretch for shaping the next administration. To break into the unusual circle of influence that surrounds Trump, chief executives are discussing whether to try to secure an appearance on Joe Rogan’s podcast. They are buying the Trump family’s cryptocurrency token and emailing tips about spending cuts to Vivek Ramaswamy. Some lobbyists are instructing companies to scrub their websites and corporate policies of language that favors Democrats and instead tout GOP-friendly issues such as job creation. The moves are part of an effort by corporate interests to more strongly align with the Republican Party after drifting away from it in recent years.  […] Despite the populist influx among his base, Trump still cares deeply about markets and businesses, and he remains more accessible than most high-profile politicians.
Created
Sun, 01/12/2024 - 02:30
Grievances about imaginary enemies Thanksgiving is over (even if leftovers may not be). It’s time to pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and get to resisting what’s coming. Spocko has gotten after that message with both ears. False narratives that sold half the country on Trumpism were not born yesterday. It took time, billions of oligarch money, and repetition, repetition, repetition. Propaganda succeeded, among other things, in convincing people that illegal immigration (a misdemeanor, first offense) was a “crisis” best dealt with by a career criminal with 34 felony convictions, dozens of other grand jury indictments (including for inciting an insurrection and theft of state secrets), and a civil penalty for sexual assault. Courts liquidated Donald Trump’s charitable foundation as a fraud, dismantled his “university” as a fraud as well, and banned him from doing business in the state of New York. How the hell could Americans hire that guy as chief executive of the United States of America? A second time? The answer, says Andrea Pitzer of the new Next Comes What podcast, is simple: propaganda works.
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Sun, 01/12/2024 - 01:00
Give thanks Olivia Troye is now a regular guest on cable news networks not in the grip of the MAGA cult. Her experiences as Homeland Security and Counterterrorism advisor to Vice President Mike Pence during the Tump administration left her both changed and politcally homeless. Troye’s Thanksgiving message reminded me of another story of political transformation I once witnessed. View on Threads Troye writes: I’m especially grateful for the incredible gift of finding a new tribe. Taking a stand has often left me in political no-man’s land, but in that space, I’ve discovered something profound—a community of people like you. Your support, courage, and shared belief in doing what’s right have reminded me that I’m not alone. Together, we are building something stronger than partisanship: a tribe rooted in shared values, integrity, and hope for the future. Thank you for being my tribe. Gratitude is a powerful force, but its true strength lies in its ability to inspire us to be better—for ourselves, one another, and the country we love. That’s something we can all be thankful for. Before MAGA came the T-party.
Created
Sat, 30/11/2024 - 23:57
Last Wednesday I wrote about Democrats fear of fighting back. I linked to a video from my friend Cliff Schecter. We’ve been talking about what fighting back looks like. I’m going to share some examples here next week with specifics. Today Cliff shares an example, Gavin Newsom. Yes we were all horrified by Trump’s win. But at some point we get back up and fight. Newsom’s response has been chef’s kiss. No Trump congratulations. You accept the results, but rip him to cameras, point out it was a puny win, he’s no king and still an asshole. You call a special legislative session to bolster legal defenses and garner media coverage of your message! You go to D.C., meet with Democratic reps and President Biden–not Trump. You know it’ll piss him off and he doesn’t deserve the photo op. The coup de gras? Newsom’s using a Trump threat to justify harming Apartheid Man-Baby’s business, which should help kick the inevitable Musk vs. Trump clash into gear. Watch the video for that one and all the rest, as we learn to fight the tyrants.
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Sat, 30/11/2024 - 16:01

Saturday, 30 November 2024, marks the 17th annual Blue Beanie Day celebration. It’s hard to believe, but web standards fan Douglas Vos conceived of this holiday way back in ’07: The origin of the name of the holiday is the image of Jeffrey Zeldman on the cover of his book wearing a blue knit cap.[7][8][9] Over the […]

The post How to Join Blue Beanie Day: Wear and Share! appeared first on Jeffrey Zeldman Presents.

Created
Sat, 30/11/2024 - 05:30
If you have time to watch this talk by pollster Cornell Belcher, (assuming you have the stomach for this kind of analysis right now) I urge you to do it. Whether he’s right is beyond my ken, but I found it interesting. David Neiwert, an expert on white identity movements, takes a stab at why that might have happened: @davidneiwert.bsky.social: It’s one of the more popular lines of self-flagellation Democratic Party critics and strategists have taken in the wake of the disastrous 2024 election: Harris and her “identity politics” caused many voters, including minorities, to look elsewhere. 2/15 @davidneiwert.bsky.social: But as Tressie McMillan Cottom already observed, Harris in fact tended to deemphasize the racial aspects of her historic candidacy and worked hard to win over Republican voters—to little avail: 3/15 www.nytimes.com/2024/11/06/o… @davidneiwert.bsky.social: Nonetheless, the New York Times proclaimed that the results were about how “Identity Politics Loses Its Grip on the Country”—thereby erasing Trump’s obvious and pronounced white identity politics, which were they key to his victory.
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Sat, 30/11/2024 - 05:05

James Joyce: “Maaaaaam, oh, maaaaaaaaa…”

Albert Camus (to a concerned Big Lots manager): “Lost maman in home goods today. Or maybe it was yesterday.”

George Orwell: “Mom, The Party is holding me at checkout for thoughtcrime (throwing hangers at store security cameras).”

Herman Melville (to Costco employee): “When we find her, please don’t tell mom I said she’s my white whale.”

Emily Dickinson (scribbled on an old receipt and hidden under a dressing room bench):

Mom—ma—
Mother, come—quick, or I’ll be found—
by no one.

Ernest Hemingway: “I’m scared. That’s all.”

Created
Sat, 30/11/2024 - 04:57
From the Committee to Protect Journalists: “The Israel-Gaza war has taken an unprecedented toll on Gazan journalists since Israel declared war on Hamas following its attack against Israel on October 7, 2023. As of November 26, 2024, CPJ’s preliminary investigations showed at least 137 journalists and media workers were among the more than tens of thousands killed in Gaza, the West Bank, Continue reading »