All over social media, I see his views have been simplified to the point of caricature. It does no one any favors when that happens. It's how we got Trump--because social media said Kamala was "pro-police" and "genocidal" and Hilary was, basically, Satan. It's pathetic and juvenile.
A little more nuance is necessary. Newsom has signed bills that established California as a "sanctuary state" for trans youth seeking gender-affirming care and prevented schools from requiring staff to notify parents about a child's gender identity. & He pledged billions of dollars for the homeless
Well, you could also trust the account of Moses Farrow, who corroborates what Soon-Yi says. It would be interesting if the two accounts you don't trust come from the two POC. mosesfarrow.blogspot.com/2018/05/a-so...
Important for accuracy in our statements--we'd want the same of us. He didn't help "raise" Soon-Yi--he never even lived in same house. He didn't have "children"--he had one child. Mia was Soon-Yi's adopted mother. This isn't to defend him--but inaccuracy weakens standing of his condemners.
Why do we even give their disingenuousness a second of indulgence? The only "sign" we need is the answer to this question: Are conservatives just as fine with a Democratic president invoking the unitary executive? Of course not. So it's not a "theory", it's something I like to call "bullshit."
Well, the nice thing about an ambitious weathervanes is that they'll do good things if they also think it'll make them more popular. Taking it to Trump? He's on it. My prediction is that he'll eventually come out strong for trans rights, and highlight the billions he proposed for homelessness.
Yeah but you called him "an empty shell." There are plenty of empty shells in politics. But the guy who immediately stepped up to get a resolution to redistrict California to fight Texas' redistricting? That's no empty shell--that's going on offense--the first substantive action in this battle.
Exactly! "Critical theory"?! The only ones talking ad nauseum about CRT are Republicans trying to score points.
A microscopic Tardigrade (water bear), walking across a glass slide. Extremely resilient, they can survive decades without food or water and can survive in direct exposure to space.
It's holding the mirror up. It's satire. Liberals know the difference.
it's truly wild and dismaying
Not correct. the Kochs, the Heritage Foundation--the list goes on--Dems haven't tried to turn back environmental protections like the Repubs, nor have they tried to pack court with corrupt christo-nationalists. Stop with the broad brush.
jfc
At least it seems like we're talking less about CRT these days. 🙄
RV is a seriously damaged man. And we're all paying for it.
It's complex, because it's the toxic destructive hypocrisy these folks are calling out. If you asked them, they'd say they were doing this on beHalf of the trans/queer community. The people of the GOP are broken--afraid, insecure, closeted. And broken people break people-we all feel threatened.
da fuq
I meant that it was the ghoster who uttered "I'll love you forever" in the past. But yeah--total agreement that ghosting is more-than-legit for those survivors of domestic abuse no matter how that's defined. I was only reacting to the broad brush.
look it up.
no. he didn't. axios reported that an "anonymous" dem said that, but they printed Hakeem's photo for the article, as a weasel way of associating Hakeem with the quote. Hakeem actually called strongly for the files to be released.
I wonder whether folks sometimes just find it easier to rewrite history, suppress,etc then actually doing the harder healthier work figuring how to readjust a relationship. At some point "I'll love you forever" was uttered sincerely. That isn't meaningless. Ghosting can be legit cope, or a cop-out.
Interested in topic, so curious--what if shoe's on other foot? i.e., what if they're "done" with you, but your heart is still full? Do you "turn off" the love? Do you hope going cold turkey will do the trick? Do you ever hope perhaps the relationship could transmute to something platonic/healthy?
Tom Waits comes close
maddening
god what a dumbass that J.D. is. what makes U.S. cool is that it's the one country that could move to the moon. That it's based on a creed (one that's about all human beings, btw), instead of dumb things like land or "race." JFC.
I definitely saw this in a Wes Anderson movie
They knew the image of shit dumped on their heads was going to be on the front page. So they purposefully wore suits to drive the narrative that the racists were the "savages." And it really worked. I think about this pic--CORE members practicing for sit-in by getting smoke blown in their faces.
Drew's point shouldn't be entirely discounted. MLK and CORE, etc., spent Countless Hours planning the optics of their activism events. They understood that optics was half the game, because public opinion is the power that truly moves the needle. Required Discipline & Vision--key ingredients.
If women in red states voted as a bloc in a way that prioritized women's rights, red states and blue states would have the same rights. But too many red-state women have other priorities (e.g. white privilege).
For a hot moment in 2009 it was "hiking the Appalachian Trail," after Mark Sanford used that as an excuse (lie) for seeing his lady
Surely no, but definitely understand the frustration--NPR went from clear-eyed to mealy-mouthed in order to appease, and the fact that it ironically helped seed the ground for their own dismantling is an important but painful object lesson.
fair enough
And don't forget--The Engineer was a total badass baddie and a woman. Critiques of "strong" female characters tend to forget/dismiss the villains--but thirty years ago, you wouldn't have had that character.
and crazy how that would actually be the best-case scenario. Because if all that money went into actual building and recruitment, it would be a thousand times worse.
It's the most maddening thing. And I'm very sorry for your loss.
This is Josh's post about Mamdani. The pull out quote is: "I’ve seen nothing at all that makes me think that Zohran Mamdani is an antisemite." Claiming Josh claimed Zohran is antisemitic is using the same toxic brush you're claiming Josh is using.Not helpful. talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/three...
As profoundly dumb as this is, also remember: TACO.
I'm imagining the town's middle and working class voting for Trump back in November. And I'm imagining them voting for whatever Republican is on the ballot in every damn election. And I'm imagining them blaming the Dems for all their pain. It's pretty easy to imagine.
Yeah, I guess you're right. I wish it would change, though.
okay okay. I believe that progressives ARE the center of the Democratic party--that's why I'm triggered. Messaging is important, and progressives are the future--they're the center. Billionaires paid for the ads you're talking about. I don't call those people centrists, I call them "under-taxed."
Not sure if "centrist" is more accurate than "establishment" (and maybe there's a better word than that) Plenty of middle-of-the-road Dems voted for Mamdani--it seems like it's more the entrenched, the wealthy, the ossified, who wanted cuomo. I'm just saying--the Dem center isn't the enemy.
ugh--except it just makes you want to wind back the clock 240 years and play the clip for the Framers
I mean seriously--who are these people who catch 15 seconds of a Cuomo ad before the youtube vid of dog hijinks they wanted to watch and think "that's all I need to know! I'm cuomo all the way!"
okay, but at the end of the day, each voter has perfect freedom to vote for whoever they choose. If these voters are influenced by a bunch of dumb ads or dumb endorsements, that's on THEM. The only ones who'd be stopping a Muslim from winning are the voters. Dumb voters.
NOPE. Take things out of context & you admit your point is weak. During that interview, she said: "Well, the question was if Iran were to launch a nuclear attack on Israel, what would our response be." She THEN says, "And I want the Iranians to know that if I’m president, we will attack Iran."
Duverger's Law!--I didn't know there was a tidy name for all the lengthy responses I used to do (especially on Twitter last year) to the folks talking about 3rd parties
indeed--Exercising your right to not make smart, clear-eyed decisions. (And the system isn't broke because there's no viable 3rd party--with winner-take-all, there can almost never be a viable third party. System is broke thanks to Citizens United, gerrymandering, etc.)
"ignorance is the parent of fear" said melville. all those folks fearing socialism couldn't even tell you what the hell it is.
And really--if people are going to base their vote on how Cuomo made them feel for a hot minute back in 2020, that's not even the political machinery--that's just people willfully overlooking the two dozen reasons Cuomo should be disqualified.
I guess. I mean, not for you and me though (and many others). So one can't really blame political machinery for being political machinery if people are so damned manipulable by political machinery.
Not sure why the system's to blame here. Every single person has perfect freedom to vote their conscience. It's just that for too many of them, Andrew F**** Cuomo is their conscience.
Yup. Because when you have a strong safety net--generous maternity leave, welfare for those who need it, strong government-funded childcare--all supported by the high taxes in Scandinavia--less family-busting pressure is put on the family. Socialism in action.
The highly functional and happy Scandinavian countries would like to have a word with you.
whatever dude. The modern primary system didn't even exist until after 1968, but I suppose you consider the U.S. a monarchy before that date?
Omg. Here's two lawn signs you could get--there was a million of these on lawns. And here's a union endorsement. See Harris' name?! That's referring to "Kamala Harris." BECAUSE SHE WAS ON THE TICKET.
The question was "Did you vote for Kamala in the primaries." The answer is: Yes. If you don't understand how the 25th Amendment of the Constitution works, which was ratified to supplement Article II of the Constitution, that's on you.
I voted for the Biden/Kamala ticket, yes.
WRONG. Kamala was the Vice-President on the Biden-Harris ticket. That ticket was elected through primaries in all 50 states. Biden then stepped down, and--as a democracy dictates--the Vice-President ascends to the top of the ticket. Start thinking for yourself instead of parroting dumb points.
true. We contain multitudes. funny but--some (most) people need certain circumstances to become their best selves. If this is what it takes for Gav to shine, not gonna discount it. In Rhetoric, Greeks talked about "kairos"--basically, "good timing." That's in play here. (and pathos and logos).
eh. i coulda pulled it from anywhere. John mentions "humor" so that put it at ifunny I guess. But it's actually a good point that gets missed. It's what my chum, activist and theorist Larry Bogad would call Tactical Performance. www.sierraclub.org/sierra/prank...
Both Gandhi and King were geniuses--Gandhi's Rules for Satyagraha Campaign was borne of decades of deep thought. This picture is of students PRACTICING for the sit-in. Practicing patience and forbearance to net the best Image in magazines once the day arrived. Because public opinion is key.
Sounds like Kulldorff IS a toddler--refusing to do the responsible thing for society because it inconveniences him. Such a baby.
Over and over in run-up to 2024 election, I saw SM posts from Left downplaying Democratic efforts and conflating the two parties. Not sure what the motivation is, if it isn't to ensure Republican rule. To say the Democrats "do exactly nothing" is incredibly unhelpful and incredibly untrue.
11) Extended National Emergency on Foreign Interference; 12) modernized voting rights website; and new DOJ guidance on voter roll purges; 13) successful DOJ suits for improved voting access for voters with disabilities 14) see Murthy v. Missouri, a win regarding collaborating with tech companies
5) supported passage of Freedom to Vote Act 6) John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act 7) For the People Act 8) Electoral Count Reform Act (2022) 9) Election Threats Task Force; 10) Sanctioned Russian and Iranian operatives targeting elections; seized 32 internet domains tied to Russia/Kremlin
"Exactly nothing"? 1) 2021 EO Promoting Access to Voting 2) Appointment of Civil Rights Leadership (Gupta and Clarke) 3) $150 Million in '22 & '24 Budget for "Help America Vote" Act and Civil Rights Division staffing. 4) $5 Billion grants for election infrastructure improvement (cont'd)--
yep. but there's a reason why "you can't fix stupid" has been an American catchphrase for 60 years
Yeah, but look at the long game he played.
"Once the rockets are up, who cares where they come down? That's not my department," says Wernher von Braun. --Tom Lehrer
I'm good if they want to skip the airworthiness. I think more than half of america is good. so go on, save the money and skip it, we good.
I'm in too.
Good call
Came here to say the same thing!
I think it's the lead pipes in our aqueducts. Making behavior erratic. Somebody should look into that--might affect the empire.
The thing is: "Always existed" is an idea that should break every brain. And even if the (kinda dumb) answer is "God brought it into existence," well, where did God come from? And the thing before that?, and so on. My point is--SOMETHING weird is at the heart of everything. Can't we call that God?
the word "God" is always used in such an infantile way in these debates. obviously there isn't a god "watching over us" like a parent. BUT. How did the universe (multiverse?) get here? How does existence exist? No one knows the answer, but existence exists, so can't we call the answer "God"?
I know! For a moment I thought it was an old photo of Al Jolson.
If those 36% (36%!, smdh) got wrongly deported, I wonder how many of them would still be answering that way. I honestly think it should be treated like a mental illness--this profound lack of empathy, this inability to imagine oneself in a situation other than the one they're in.
helping spread this. Liz Cheney ain't wrong. georgiatoday.ge/former-us-co...
Please everyone, worth reading… georgiatoday.ge/former-us-co...
Yeah--that was...kinda incredible.
I'm sure they're fine people. But how do they have such strong opinions when they clearly don't know anything that's going on? It would be like me feeling like I can opine emphatically about Australia's rugby team.
These idiots aren't gonna be happy until they bring back segregated water fountains.
💯
Why stop there, Fox News. Black the other 2/3rds as well, and then you'll really be on to something.
It's not even a belief system. It's just the fact that we are required as citizens to vote. So we should make the best choice we can based on what we're imagining each of the possible futures will be. It's childish to say "I don't wanna."
I hear that. I guess I do think it's a different standard--because the minimum we are asked to do as citizens is Vote. To continue the analogy--if you were part of the movement, but didn't vote for the local candidate who was more amenable to stopping the plant, that would be counter-productive, no?
I mean....I imagine I would do both.
Novel? Of course not. Haven't heard of delayed gratification?, of course not. You're the one who said we can't keep choosing the lesser of two evils forever. That's all I was responding to.
ugh--Here's the thing--I guarantee you I care more about the welfare and future of the Palestinians than you. Guarantee I hate Israel more than you do. Guarantee it. I've been raging about them for years. The idea you think the non-voting strategy is the only moral one is whole effing problem.
Yeah, I mean, look--I get it, I totally do--I've been gutted about Palestine for the last year--hell, for the last two decades. I don't think non-voters are in any way bad people. I just disagree with the strategy. I think it was counter-productive.
That logic--it just doesn't follow. When you don't vote, you're literally exercising as much power as a dead person. SOMEONE is going to be elected, whether you vote or not. Pretending your non-vote is somehow preventing the most horrifying things...that's just not how it works.
Except voting requires each of us to deal with probabilities. Voting isn't about the past, it's about the future. Which candidate is going to make things worse for the world? You weigh what you know, and then you choose the other candidate. That's the only germane morality at the ballot box.
okay. but "lesser of two evils" doesn't mean the choice is practically the same. It almost never is. All I'll say is--As much as we'd like to, in chess we can't capture the king on the first move. You make a series of boring moves, compromises, until you're in the best position to kill the king.
I understand you're not being glib. Yes, of course I would vote for the one who nukes three. Because opting out honestly means you're helping the one who nukes five. Why wouldn't you try to save 200,000 lives?? Opting out isn't the same thing as a clean conscience, it's just giving up.
Well...yeah. The stand the 2024 non-voter took was "Harris and Trump are equal in my eyes. The only issue that matters is Gaza, and I couldn't care less who the President is concerning that issue." That's the stand. And I--sickened and horrified by Israel's actions--think that stand is dumb.
Nope. I saw plenty of people on social media actively working to depress Democratic turnout because of their anger re Gaza. Surely you can see how that might have helped Trump into office, right? And yes--everyone who abstains from voting is also responsible--they don't get to pretend they're not.
LawdyMsClaudy 