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I’m confident that no one who was on Trump’s Manhattan jury reads this site but if they do, I am begging them to stay anonymous. Maybe some day, if we ever get past this MAGA Madness and half the country recovers some basic sense of decency, they might give an interview. But not now. Don’t do it. As Josh Marshall writes: Trump supporters are trotting out any number of responses to Trump’s string of felony convictions last week. One of the most perverse and malign is the demand or “request” for jurors to come forward and explain their reasoning. Part of the idea is to suggest that the logic of the verdict is obscure or hard to justify and thus requires explanation. “Can you explain how you came to this very hard to understand verdict?” Neither is the case. The logic of the verdict is very straightforward. There may be some room for debate about how the judge interpreted the relevant law. But within those interpretations the jury verdict is elementary. The other part is to suggest something odd or suspicious in the fact that none of the jurors have yet gone public in the press.
We are economists, political-economists and policy specialists in related fields, writing to express our support for active measures to strengthen Australia's manufacturing capabilities and guide investment in critical infrastructure, including measures proposed in the Commonwealth government's Future Made in Australia policy framework [...]
The post Open Letter on Future Made in Australia appeared first on Progress in Political Economy (PPE).
Philip Bump noticed an interesting bit from Trump’s Fox and Friends Weekend interview: There was an element of the discussion, though, that hasn’t attracted much attention. It centered on a question from Rachel Campos-Duffy, co-host of “Fox & Friends Weekend,” the show on which the interview first aired. “Americans have lost a lot of trust in institutions, and I think there’s been a lot of discussion, especially online, especially with young people,” Campos-Duffy began. “How do we rebuild that trust in institutions — the CIA, the FBI — all those institutions?” “You’re right,” Trump replied — but before he could answer, Campos-Duffy jumped ahead. “Some people think that one way to build trust is to declassify things that everyone’s talking about,” she said. Then she offered a rapid-fire list of things he might be interested in declassifying, putatively to restore trust in institutions.
Well, the Houthis said they did. And it would seem unlikely, except that immediately after the Eisenhower withdrew north at top speed.
That’s a quote from an article in the New Yorker about people who are sticking with Trump even though he’s a convicted criminal. I love the fact that he cites Tony Soprano, the ridiculously fucked-up, penny ante, murderous gangster. It fits but I didn’t think anyone would want such a fool to run the United States of America. I don’t think it’s any accident that he didn’t pick a more standard right wing anti-hero like Dirty Harry. He was a cop and they’re not really sure about them anymore. Best go with the straight-up mobsters. These people don’t actually want a “shock to the system.” They just want somebody to punish their enemies, period. And that’s you. And me. Amanda Marcotte had a great piece the other day on this subject: As the trial progressed, Trump escalated far beyond his tired litany of claims that everything was “rigged” against him, though he kept that pattern up. He’s been experimenting by trying to cast himself as a rakish outlaw. He wants voters to imagine his crimes are about standing up to a corrupt system.
Opposition leader, Peter Dutton, was left fuming yesterday after an Australian journalist dared to ask him when his much feted nuclear policy would be released. After the Dark Lord promised to release the details over 12 weeks ago. ”The journalists... Read More ›
If it does, this country is lost It’s one thing if the conviction doesn’t change any votes. The two bases are pretty locked in on Trump and nothing seems to shake the right wing from their love and worship of their Dear Leader. But if it actually moves votes in his favor, we have bigger problems. These red state Senate candidates are obviously betting that it will help them, which is almost as bad: Republican Senate candidates released ads Monday savaging Montana Sen. Jon Tester and Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown, the chamber’s two most vulnerable Democrats this cycle. And top GOP officials are even going after former Maryland Republican Gov. Larry Hogan who represents the GOP’s best shot at winning a deep-blue Senate seat after he issued a statement calling for respect for the legal process rather than reflexive support for the former president. The conviction hasn’t meaningfully yet made its way into Senate races in purple states such as Arizona, Michigan, Pennsylvania and elsewhere, but the contests in Montana, Ohio and Maryland represent marquee opportunities for Republicans to eat away at Democrats’ Senate majority.
Opportunism, hypocrisy, manipulation, and deceit come quickly to mind when delving into the behaviour of politicians. Against this background, two Australian former prime ministers who have thrust themselves into the headlines over the genocide in Gaza, Julia Gillard and Scott Morrison, come to mind. Gillard was one of six former Prime Ministers (along with Kevin Continue reading »
“Extreme hunger is unfolding” as a civil war enters its second year and funding is slow to arrive, the agencies warned. A group of United Nations agencies and humanitarian groups sounded the alarm Friday that 18 million Sudanese are acutely hungry as a civil war that began in April 2023 continues to ravage the country. Continue reading »
Israel’s forced starvation has caused the deaths of more children in central Gaza where conditions have been made worse by Israel’s closure of the Rafah crossing, further limiting aid and trapping sick and injured Palestinians. Republished from Al Jazeera 3rd June, 2024 Continue reading »
University encampments invite us into a different way of doing education that defies institutional control. When you enter the encampment, you see colour: the red, green, black and white of Palestinian flags and posters and the red, yellow and black of Aboriginal flags, clusters of multicoloured tents and the vibrant hues of children’s artwork. If Continue reading »
How important is language? It’s a truism to point out that my “terrorist” is your “freedom fighter” or vice versa but sometimes the choice of words sometimes becomes so ridiculous that warnings should be issued. Beware the squishy grammar of a politician excreting nonsense. Be quite alarmed when the power of lobbyists and Party donors Continue reading »
Since my last report, the All-Ords share price index rose by 3.2% from Friday 3rd May to Thursday 16th May, but then fell by 2.2% to Friday 31st May. But for a 0.9% uptick last Friday there would have been no gain in the last four weeks. Market trends My technical models show: On short-to-medium-term Continue reading »
Paul Buitink talks to John Mearsheimer, a renowned American political scientist and international relations scholar who belongs to the realist school of thought. He is a Professor at the University of Chicago. John gives an overview of what offensive realism is. Furthermore he discusses the European Union’s foreign policy and how dependent it is on Continue reading »
I have been grieving deeply not just since last October, but ever since I woke up to the reality of what Israel is, and what it stands for. First came my human empathy for the Palestinian people and what they have been suffering. Empathy was what gave me the initial push to start to speak Continue reading »
Aaron Blake at the Washington Post took a look at some of Trump’s threats of violence: In his first interview since being convicted on 34 felony counts in Manhattan, Trump this past weekend addressed the possibility of being imprisoned or put under house arrest by saying, “I’m not sure the public would stand for it.” “I think it would be tough for the public to take,” Trump told Fox News. “You know, at a certain point, there’s a breaking point.” This is vintage Trump. He’s not explicitly advocating unrest. He’s not even explicitly mentioning unrest in this case. But he is suggestively pointing to something very bad around the corner if he doesn’t get what he wants. He’s good at that. And it suggests that he knows exactly what he’s doing. Consciousness of guilt. It’s just been demonstrated with his daft comment about never saying “lock her up.” He was usually cautious about not personally saying it, just smiling and nodding as his cult chanted it at his rallies. Being a criminal himself he knew that it could come back to haunt him. Consciousness of guilt.
“Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., refused to address Dr. Anthony Fauci as ‘doctor’ and called for him to be jailed during an, at times, explosive hearing before Congress on the origins of Covid-19—as Republicans continue to demonize the federal government’s former top infectious disease expert in their probe into the government’s response to the pandemic.” — Forbes 6/3/24
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The doom bell tolls, and I wake up from my vampiric slumber, ready for another day of cooperating with the global elite to take away the freedoms of ordinary, germ-ridden Americans.
For breakfast, I gulp down a vial of freshly harvested embryonic stem cells, which give me just the boost of energy I need to start the day. I may be retired, but that doesn’t mean I can’t work with the Deep State to manipulate the global population from my secret base.