Thursday, July 10, 2025
Monday, July 7, 2025
A Somber Fourth Part II
Right now, the bad guys are winning. They have the presidency, the Congress And the Supreme Court. They also have a fatal flaw, the delusion that they can dictate reality. Climate change does not give a fuck about your feelings. Sure, go ahead and outlaw words, cut funding for the study of the climate and by all means run from so-called green energy! I hope it makes you feel better! Nonetheless, hurricanes, tornadoes, storms and wildfires are only going to get stronger and stronger. Better cut disaster relief too, too woke. The flooding disaster down in Texas over the last days is only a taste of what's coming our way. International relations is another area where your feelings and opinions don't matter.
We are gearing up for another game of Tariff chicken. It's the USA versus the world SmackDown made for a TV reality show! There's only one small problem. This is not how the world works. Great deals are complicated, messy and time-consuming. A trade deal is not something you do in 3 days. Depending on the countries at the table, a trade agreement can take months to years to complete. An on again off again threat of tariffs will not speed this process up magically. Economic relations are complicated enough and you know what, so are alliances. Being the big bully seldom works out well in international relations. If you think the Iran situation is over, I'd like to talk to you about my bridge in Arizona that's for sale! At best, we've delayed their program a few months with the more likely outcome being that we've only accelerated it. The issue has to be resolved at the negotiating table. We are just not up for a military takeover and an occupation of Iran. It took us far longer than 12 days to get here and these problems will not be solved by a 12-day conflict (which by the way can we start at any time). This may be immaterial compared to how crazy things can get here at home.
Call me naive but I never thought I would see masked cops throwing people into unmarked vans and taking them away to who knows where. We can either have a due process for all or due process for none, we can't have both. With their recent massive funding increase, I only see this getting worse. Don't worry, it is only a matter of time before they come for you and me as well. Some think we can fix this mess when the next set of elections rolls around. But before that happens there is a more fundamental question we need to ask, will the totalitarians allow elections at all? We might be doomed anyway but this would indeed be the last nail in the coffin of American democracy. If we go down, so would much of the rest of the world. Let's don't let that happen!
I can think of nothing more patriotic than attending a protest this past July 4th. There will be many more to come along with boycotts and hopefully a nationwide general strike. In short, we are going to have to become ungovernable. If we want to be free we must be willing to take personal risks. We can ill afford the old limousine liberals who talk a good game but run away at the first sign of real trouble. The struggle is going to be real and likely even bloody but the alternative is… Unthinkable. Let's see where we are next July 4th.
Saturday, July 5, 2025
A Somber Fourth Part I
Well, that was a somber Fourth of July unlike any other. The so-called big beautiful bill passed which basically cut an already bare bones social safety net to ribbons Just so the wealthiest could have a massive tax cut. Were billionaires really out there clamoring for tax cuts? Perhaps there still are a few people living under rocks who still buy the long debunked theory of trickle-down economics. It's really not hard, demand is what creates jobs, not generous billionaires! That's bad enough but there is another part to this bill, possibly even more sinister and terrifying. That would be the massive increase in funding for ICE, or Trump's Gestapo. Masked gunman are literally ripping people off the streets and throwing them into for-profit, so-called, detention centers (soon to be concentration camps) without due process. The notion of extraordinary rendition has been revived for others, including American citizens All without any form of due process. What the righties don't seem to understand is what's done the least of us can be done to any of us. It's only a matter of time. Say or do something the regime doesn't agree with and bam! you're on a plane to who knows where. The only thing you can be sure of is that it will be very dark. Totalitarians need scapegoats, isolation, fear and misery to thrive.
American Totalitarianism is different from what we found in the last century. Sure, there's still the scapegoating, a rising secret police force, a desire to erase history along with a heavy dose of faux patriotism. We've added a few very American twists. Hitler and Mussolini were many things but neither can compare to the outright graft and corruption of one Donald J. Golden Visa cards, golden cell phones, murky crypto deals and rapidly expanding for profit prisons just scratch the surface. Our current regime and their enablers allow mass protests because they feel they can ignore them. Our Free Press is mostly neutered by the mere threat of lawsuits. The same is true for many of our most esteemed learning institutions. In both cases, there are exceptions. One last uniquely American twist on totalitarianism is merchandising! Yes, you can buy hats and t-shirts blazed with the name of your favorite concentration camp! Hey, we cannot forget our trillion dollar military and its global reach. How bad will it get? I think that's up to us, each of us. Last year, we failed to prevent a totalitarian takeover of our government. That ship has sailed already. Our courts failed, Our media failed. The last line of defense, the voters, also failed. If you sat this election out for whatever reason, a part of this mess is on you. Here is the take away- history doesn't stop. Yes, we are in a bad place but remember all storms pass.
One day this regime will be gone. Then we will have to ask ourselves what do we want to replace it? Will we allow this nightmare to evolve into something even more scary and dangerous? Clearly, there are a number of Americans who are apparently fine with being ruled rather than represented. Then there's the group that believes as long as it is not happening to me, it is not a problem. There will always be some people who view some lives more important than others. The number of people who like rulers, the not my problem crowd and those who don't see all lives having equal value are a minority. If we fail to regain our vigilance, active civic engagement and concern for others, then it truly is game over. The Trump regime will only be the start of something much more dark and destructive. When you find yourself in a hole, the first thing to do is stop digging. Trump will not be around for long and we cannot let this be the first totalitarian state with a viable successor.
To be continued…
Friday, July 4, 2025
Saturday, June 28, 2025
What to Do?
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| Liberty and Justice for ALL |
Have we reached the conclusion of the Southern Strategy? Remember that? When the Republican Party gave up on just having better ideas and decided to sell their souls to the highest bidders. Ever since, they've only cared about two things- deregulation and tax cuts for the wealthy. These ideas are unpopular but they had to get them done somehow. Welcome to the age of the culture wars. Welcome to mass gerrymandering. And let's not forget to blame all of our problems on the most marginalized and vulnerable groups. Oh yeah, and to make this all possible we are going to need billions and billions of dollars. (And let's add a right wing media propaganda component.) The money poured in, enough to actually buy both political parties. Never forget the Democrats largely support the same systems and structures that keep the powerful powerful. Democrats are also on board with the Great American Empire. But to their credit, they hold back on the misogyny, bigotry and scapegoating. They are also more interested in at least the window dressing of democracy, whereas the Republicans have gone full authoritarian. We did not get here overnight and any possible solution or solutions will take time. With a climate crisis bearing down on us like an unstoppable freight train, “the fierce urgency of now” has never been more true.
The outcome is anything but decided already. Although much of the media tends to ignore it, we are seeing protests on a massive scale. We are starting to see effective strategies against the Gestapo like ICE. We are seeing more and more young people, who have a stake in the future, step up. The old guard leadership of centrist Democrats are fading away. Fortunately for us, it will be very difficult to undo 250 years of democracy in just two to four years. But unless we are vigilant, the bitter seeds of authoritarianism being planted now may morph into something far more dangerous than Trump and his MAGA movement. It's entirely possible our authoritarian streak will find a much younger, smarter and even more charismatic leader whose name we probably don't know yet. He or she will find fertile ground to nurture the seeds being planted today. If we are to have any chance of preventing this dark future, all of us are going to have to pitch in. What does that mean?
For me, it means this- writing. Speaking the truth as I see and understand it will not change the world but hopefully will create a ripple. Perhaps I can inspire you to add your own ripple and so on and so on. If enough of us act, we can create waves large enough to end any authoritarian movement. Here's the thing, don't rely on other people to do it for you. Reversing the effects of creeping authoritarianism will take all of us. We need to co-create a system that looks out for everyone, not just the wealthiest. We have to figure out how to build a better tomorrow than centerest, do nothing Democrats are offering. They basically want the status quo. I believe that's an expressway to authoritarianism. If you more or less agree, here are some places you can look to get involved:
https://www.immigrantdefenseproject.org/
https://bsky.app/profile/sonsofliberty.bsky.social
There are countless other things you can get into. You can also create your own. Remember, this struggle is going to take all of us. One last thing- be happy. Happiness is Kryptonite to authoritarianism.
Thursday, June 26, 2025
Good News 6.26.2025
Chicago Bicycle Refurbishers Pedal Good to the World for 26 Years With 150,000 Bikes Saved from Landfills
The good news from Kyiv: with or without a ceasefire, Ukraine has a newfound confidence
Something remarkable is happening with violent crime rates in the US
The good news is … people like to read good news
12 new breakthroughs in the fight against cancer
Sunday, June 22, 2025
... And We are at WAR
A few thoughts...
“I don't believe anything those Mutherfuckers say,” Uncle Bob said in the lead up to the Gulf War. Sadly, he is still right. I don't believe Israel, I don't believe Iran and I certainly don't believe the United States. So when Trump says the strikes went great, I don't believe him and neither should you. The Iranians are many things, they are not stupid. Most likely they've moved sensitive stuff long before this strike took place. It might be a temporary setback but that's about it. So what are some possible outcomes?
It may depend on how much actual damage was done. A little damage could mean a basically symbolic retaliation. Then, we are basically back to square one. They will continue enriching uranium while others try to get them back to the negotiating table. This is a Rosie best case scenario. I'm not sure they want to risk an all-out War and the US is certainly not up for that. A better possibility will be asymmetrical attacks all across the Middle East. It looks like we will be fighting the War On Terror 2.0. Remember, you cannot fight a tactic! This will be costly, messy and very expensive. The usual suspects will get rich and the poorest people in the region will pay the price. A large, full-scale war will only accelerate our demise. Maybe, we too, will become a failed state. But we will not be just not just any failed state, one with lots of nukes!
I think in the long run this doesn't do Israel any favors either. Sadly, they are almost universally despised in the region. I'm sure some of that hate is warranted. Weakening the United States also weakens them. There may soon come a day when we cannot rush to her aid every time she picks a fight. Being an international pariah is not a long-term solution for safety and stability. Leaders don't live forever and sooner or later change will come.
We must do more than just hope for a better tomorrow. We must do our part to make that a reality. If we can outgrow our own bullshit, we may one day live among the stars. The alternative? We can return to another dark age or perhaps end life altogether. That would be such a shame.
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