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Created
Wed, 09/10/2024 - 06:00
This spoiled narcissist who had everything handed to him on silver platter by his rich father (after which he lost most of it because of his terrible business judgment) has always told people that he made it on his own. Nothing could be further from the truth. I’ve mentioned it before but once again, if you want to read one more book about this miscreant make it “Lucky Loser” by the NY Times reporters Russ Buettner and Susanne Craig. It shows the scope of Trump’s failures and how he was really rescued by reality TV which created the persona that brought him to the White House. He’s no more authentic than a Real Housewife of New York. Here’s the publisher’s note: Soon after announcing his first campaign for the US presidency, Donald J. Trump told a national television audience that life “has not been easy for me. It has not been easy for me.” Building on a narrative he had been telling for decades, he spun a hardscrabble fable of how he parlayed a small loan from his father into a multi-billion-dollar business and real estate empire.
Created
Wed, 09/10/2024 - 04:26
How Lack Of Aggression Cripples Resistance Orgs

Let’s talk about Corbyn and Hezbollah and Iran.

These three things aren’t the same in many ways. But all three are fighting an entrenched system.

When Corbyn was leader, he had the majority of the membership behind him, he took control of the executive committee and he only lacked control of the MPs, who were almost all neoliberals united in hatred of him and his program.

This was a simple situation to deal with: Corbyn had the power to force re-selection: to make MPs face elections in their ridings. Almost all would have been replaced by left wingers: they weren’t popular and couldn’t win.

He refused.

Created
Wed, 09/10/2024 - 04:00

Hello, I’m Carl, the custodian in charge of maintaining the litter box in your child’s public school classroom. Ask me anything.

Are there actual litter boxes in my child’s classrooms for student use?
Yes, we keep them there to support the needs of our youths who identify as a “furry.” Although we don’t discriminate, any child is welcome to lighten their load in front of the class as they see fit.

What about classmates who aren’t furries?
They will be soon enough, thanks to our dedicated librarians.

Who authorized this?
This inclusivity program came straight from our school board, composed of city-born liberal elites. It’s funny; they may all SEEM like local conservative business owners who sought election purely to fuel their own fragile egos. But they’re actually secret Democrat operatives sent to infiltrate our community with their extreme leftist agendas.

Created
Wed, 09/10/2024 - 03:00
Hey, remember when JD Vance weirdly went on about the Biden administration’s alleged censorship during the debate with Tim Walz in order to evade saying whether the 2020 election was stolen? Yeah. They’re all very, very shrill on the subject complaining about Democrats allegedly destroying the 1st Amendment. It’s one of their major memes. And yet … Get a load of this from Josh Marshall: Florida has become the state where elements of a future second Trump presidency America already comes into view. We’re seeing some of these things happening right now in Florida. The example I’m about to share with you legitimately shocked me. (That’s a high bar.) It’s about the pro-choice ballot amendment which would restore Roe protections in Florida if it reaches a 60% threshold. As in most other states, getting to 50% isn’t that difficult. 60% is much harder. To head off even the chance that the ballot initiative might hit that challenging high bar the state of Florida is already spending a substantial amount of tax payer dollars campaigning against the initiative.
Created
Wed, 09/10/2024 - 00:27

No one wants a nuclear reactor in their backyard. It’s an eyesore and a health hazard, not to mention the hit to your property values. And don’t forget the existential danger. One small miscalculation and boom, there goes the neighborhood! In the 1970s, in the southwest corner of Germany, the tiny community of Wyhl was bracing for the construction of just such a nuclear reactor in its backyard. Something even worse loomed on the horizon: a vast industrial zone with new chemical plants and eight nuclear energy complexes that would transform the entire region around that town and stretch into nearby France and Switzerland. The governments of the three countries and the energy industry were all behind the project. Even... Read more

Source: Ask (Not) What You Can Do for Your Planet appeared first on TomDispatch.com.

Created
Tue, 08/10/2024 - 23:25
“”My Lords, I was not on the committee and therefore would like to allow myself a few mild criticisms of a very thought-provoking report. I will touch on three aspects of its central problem: “Who watches the watchdogs?” First, a bit of history might be helpful. In its present form, this challenge was created by … Continue reading Speech in the House of Lords on Watchdogs 9th of September
Created
Tue, 08/10/2024 - 23:00

Oh no, everyone’s done eating, and the lady hosting this dinner party wants us to “retire” to the living room. Retire? There’s a turkey leg dangling from my mouth. I’m not done eating. Can I bring it with me? Because I don’t see any other food in the living room, just paintings of cylinders and National Geographics and a coffee table you definitely can’t put your feet on.

If I give up this real estate now, I will never get it back. The momentum will move from the living room to the coat room and then outside where there are no garlic mashed potatoes and mushroom gravy and bread I didn’t bring. Cannot be cast out of this culinary garden of Eden to have work by the sweat of my brow.

They’re moving. And they’re only bringing their drinks with them, not plates of food or the entire roast beef tray. What if the roast beef wants to retire to the living room as well? Who speaks for him? Must think fast, pretending to tie my shoes is not going to work much longer.