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Reminds me of the ‘The Handmaid's Tale‘ the paramilitary unmarked vans and no ID not a good look.
Roger Stones comment,well I’m lost for words on that one....
He's actually denying he said it when it can be heard very clearly. I guess Trump will claim it was a hoax and fake news as usual.
Reminds me of the ‘The Handmaid’s Tale‘ the paramilitary unmarked vans and no ID not a good look.
Exactly my thought. Bloody scary. Currently looking more like Russia than the land of free speech.
Exactly my thought. Bloody scary. Currently looking more like Russia than the land of free speech.
Just read an article suggesting his aim is to get federal troops into all the left-wing hotspots ahead of the election. They saw it as voter suppression.
Very interesting investigation in the NYT this morning into what caused the failed COVID response.
I've got as far as Ivanka's wedding in the Mary Trump book. His comment that he hardly knew her is obviously bolx, unless she fabricated the whole thing.
https://play.acast.com/s/the-bunker/-aseasonofinsanity-republicansagainsttrump
Good listen is this week's Bunker podcast, Steve Schmidt, republican and Lincoln project mainman, going to a absolute town on trump and trumpism
Good to hear there are important GOP centrists left too
See that dystopian campaign vid of Trump's has disappeared. Thought they could get away with using a cover of a Linkin Park song? Nope. At this rate they're going to have to start composing their own music.
BLM protests have double-guaranteed a 2020 Trump-victory. Biggest unintentional backfire in modern US history? Left-leaning civil unrest is a gift to Trump’s regime and his RW/Nationalist/populist/racist platform. He won’t be simply poking this fire ... he’ll be feeding it with the exact amount of air and fuel required to further divide, suppress and conquer.
At this rate they’re going to have to start composing their own music.
That is painful. Someone got a cheap Casio keyboard for Christmas.
His little fat friend kim jong un has obviously being giving donald hints n' tips on how to do a rally.
Just watched the video in @maccruiskeen’s post – WTF!!!
that was from his election campaign (as in his campaign to get elected not his re-election campaign which believe it or not he actually started two and half years ago)
Just did that test, it's genuinely primary school stuff. Draw a clock, identify a lion, read a sentence. And when he says the last questions are so so hard, two of those are "what year is it" though it tells you it's a fluency test so it's really 10. You could definitely slip and drop a point or two but to think "you couldn't answer these questions, I am so smart" is just Trump in a nutshell. "What city am I in? Oh man, that's a hard one, I... uh, no wait, it's Washington! I am a genius!"
dudeofdoom
SubscriberRoger Stones comment,well I’m lost for words on that one….
You know how people say "I can't believe he's going to get away with that"? Well, Roger Stone knows he can get away with it- since he's already done much worse and got away with it. He has a note from his mum that says he can live life without consequence.
That Wallace interview condensed to 4 mins
Seriously, if you watch that and think 'that's my guy', what is wrong with you? His narcissism and ignorance is off the scale.
"just the sniffles" geez his ignorance! and still propagating that ignorance to the general population.
I’m not sure what it means if Fox have turned on him? Rats fleeing a sinking ship (hopefully) but will it drive his supporters to Infowars and OANN etc?
Either way, it’s deeply disturbing to watch and yet entirely in keeping with the rest of that POS’s presidency. Worst. President. Ever.
So how come it was Fox News who at last fact-checked all the nonsense he's been spouting for months?
https://twitter.com/ericawerner/status/1284837617188646912?s=19
Assuming he does lose (& who knows what happens between now & election)
Would he really refuse to leave if he lost, I can imagine law suits aplenty if it was close
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/jul/19/trump-joe-biden-coronavirus-polls
Assuming he does lose (& who knows what happens between now & election)
Would he really refuse to leave if he lost, I can imagine law suits aplenty if it was close
Law suits? He’s doing everything he can to disenfranchise voters, including using force and removing voting stations, and if he does lose, I can see open civil war; you only have to look at the behaviour of his acolytes when BLM protesters turn up, waving loaded weapons around, and the paramilitary-wannabes with their MAGA hats, they’re itching for the opportunity to use their weapons on ‘Antifa’ and all those goddamed Commies destroying ‘their’ God-given country.
Depressing reading there. And alarmingly plausible.
Just did that test, it’s genuinely primary school stuff. Draw a clock, identify a lion, read a sentence.
Indeed - I had to do one to get my driving license back after suffering nerve damage and sat with my mum as she did the same test as part of a diagnosis of dementia. Its not the point that is difficult and you have to be clever to pass. The point is its easy - its looking for signs of brain injury - its not about what difficult things you can do well its about looking for what simple things that anyone can do but you can't.
They seem like simple questions but thats the point - they are questions you never get asked because its presumed you know the answer. You don't see the injury if you don't ask the simple questions or set the simple tasks. When I sat in with my mum - although there were all sorts of concerns about her memory it was still surprising. She couldn't answer the question 'what season is it?' and that was a real shock - she was living an independent functional life but she didn't know if it was winter or summer. But why would I have ever asked that question?
And even so... she scored really well in the test.
All the test proves is that Trump's failings can't be blamed on some sort of neurological damage - it clarifies that he completely owns his decisions and behaviour. It proves he's culpable.
People are starting to speculate that he took the test when he was mysteriously rushed to the hospital last November
It'd be typical Trump that his need to brag blew it all open
that interview is amazing viewing
The briefings will be little more than campaign rallies with acolytes fawning over his response to the pandemic
mehr
MemberPeople are starting to speculate that he took the test when he was mysteriously rushed to the hospital last November
It’d be typical Trump that his need to brag blew it all open
It makes sense... As I understand it, it's a test that you basically get given when you've had some sort of serious incident or injury, not something that you use to test normal functioning. So that'd explain why he did that particular test rather than something more suitable for just proving you're not a congenital idiot.
Malvern Rider.
The BLM movement began in opposition to racism, not in opposition to Trump. Trump just came along and fitted the description. BLM aren't a movement committed to seeing one or other particular party in power. They are not in the service of the Democratic Party.
I find the idea that those advocating for BLM should back off lest they offer a gift to Trump in the coming election absurd. It conforms to the fallacy that a Biden victory will bring about the promised land. If we ask BLM to hold back a bit so we can get Trump out of office then we are asking them to postpone their ambitions so that our primary objective, (removing Trump) can be achieved.
^ inkster - I didn’t say or think any of the things you seem to have extrapolated from my observations.
Current US politics/electorate is not nuanced. The belly of the business is starkly binary and wretched. In short:
‘Patriots/patriarchs/racists’ vs ‘Commies/feminists/dark-skinned hordes‘
For a better understanding read the scope of comments under this tweet:
https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1276205906338824192
That is the majority tone of political discourse today. Simply an observation, not my wish, my beliefs, or my recommendations. I’m just stating how I see that it is.
Same wretched and impoverished dynamic with Brexit.
Malvern Rider,
Sorry dude, I know that's not what you meant, I forgot to caveat that in my post.
As you say, this is how things are not what they should be and not what you think they should be either. We are just observing the reality of contemporary political discourse.
I shan't follow up on that tweet, I'll take your word for It! As you can see I'm advocating for social change rather than party political change and will seek to distance BLM etc from the ambitions of traditional political organisations whenever I can. I dont expect either the Democrats there or the Labour Party here to deliver the changes I would seek. I cant see a political silver bullet so I try to de-couple what I think about the protests from how it might aid Trump.
I guess the question for those oppressed in America is still 'what have we got to lose,' is it worth holding back right now in order to assist a Biden win or is it better to continue to apply pressure to the system in general. Is it wise to put your faith in Biden, the architect of mass incarceration?
I know it's a risk but surely now the genie is out of the bottle we have to advocate for something better than the usual political compromise.
I know it’s a risk but surely now the genie is out of the bottle we have to advocate for something better than the usual political compromise.
I think expecting that would be foolish. Obama said that when he became Prez he wanted to change the direction of the country by 45 degrees to make real change. He then realized that the ship of state doesn't move like that. A couple of degrees in the right direction is all you can accomplish.
He was the first black president; if anyone was motivated, it was him.
Since the pandemic / eruption of street protests I have seen a sense of desperation in the whole Republican party. I read US news outlets etc and I have the sense the handling of the pandemic and economic fallout hasn't played well for Trump and the Republicans among their less fanatical voters. If Trump loses by a wide margin it's the end of the Republican party in its current form.
Perhaps it's wishful thinking on my part but it looks like Biden could win with a clear majority. Trump is doing much of his work for him.
My fear is that Trump and the Republicans are not going to allow that to happen. I think the tactic to be deployed is to disenfranchise as many voters as possible and then initmidate the hell out of the rest with anonymous armed agents hovering around polling stations "checking papers".
The best outcome is for Biden to win by a majority which is beyond dispute on both the popular vote and electoral college. A narrow Biden win and Trump will refuse to stand down. A Trump win as a result of a blatantly rigged election then unprecedented civil unrest and violence.
Never thought I would see it but the US appears to be sliding towards failed state status.
I think you make my point for me boomerlives, I think your assessment is fair, Obama sought a 45° change in direction but the system would only allow for a 2° shift. The system as it stands will only allow for micro shifts, ergo the lack of faith in contemporary politics.
I am not foolish enough to believe that significant change can be achieved at the ballot box, I believe that the changes that can be achieved will be social and cultural and that in that we all have a role to play. The current climate hasn't changed who sits in power but you can't deny that significant change has been precipitated. Just look at the threads on here and how much more serious and enquiring they have become. I for one feel more able to say things on here that I've left unsaid over the last decade of posting. That's a cultural change.
Consider the kneeling before football matches, undertaken in empty stadiums. What happens when the crowds come back? We will witness another cultural shift. Same goes with Lewis Hamilton and his efforts within Formula One. He has been the lightning rod for middle class racism for a decade, He is taking advantage of the current restrictions to make his point more vigorously than anyone, Not sure if there's a GP in Italy coming up but if there is I hope he wins it and basks in the glory of a silent podium. When the crowds return to F1 we will see how the new owners will handle the boorish behaviour we often see. In many ways the culture of Formula One is a posher, Eurocentric version of Nascar.
People will say that the achievements of BLM up until this point have been merely symbolic and won't achieve significant political success, well I say symbolism matters and by challenging symbols and language we can affect a greater change than the 2° allowed within the conventional political system. Maybe not the 45° that idealists envisage but certainly more than the 2° currently permissible.
Shooterman,
Agree with that, things are looking so bad for the Republican Party that Trump is choosing to press the 'nuclear' button which could lead to America becoming a failed State.
Though I'd underline that with the fact that voter disenfranchisement and gerrymandering have been the principle tactics that the Republicans have employed for more than a generation. So it is unfair to consider The United States to be either a proper Democracy or the beacon of freedom that for so long it has been held up to be.
A month back I posted on this thread questioning what would happen when the disenfranchised turn up to vote only to find that they have been removed from the list or that their polling station no longer exists. Combine that with Trumps attempted mobilisation of nefarious militias and manipulation of Federal Forces and you truly have a recipe for disaster. I wonder what the Army are thinking?
@inkster I can't remember where I read it so can't link the article but I recall reading that the Pentagon has adopted a policy of nodding in agreement with Trump and then quietly ignoring his instructions. One ray of light then.
Inkster you are very generous, but I'm not sure we agree that fully. The mini-course corrections that happen with the two party system are the best you will get without a full blown revolution.
BLM is mobilising people to stand and protest, but they don't have a clear figure who can take them forward and they can gather behind. It's too diluted.
football matches, undertaken in empty stadiums. What happens when the crowds come back? We will witness another cultural shift.
I bet we won't. It's more likely that morons will throw coins at them. Football crowds are where they gather.
Anyway, Trump looks like he has had a reset. Calmer; more reasoned, and not agitated and sweaty.
Someone behind the scenes has hidden his coke and got him back on track.
I didn't notice anyone in the WH press corp askingabout the secret police in Portland; so maybe it's not a big deal to most of them?
Challenging symbols is useful but literally Quixotic, they are just symbols, even the Tories can go along with it because it makes little difference. Round the corner is mass unemployment, zero hours, homelessness, privatisation, Brexit, WTO and the LP has been neutered by Sir Pip Squeak and his big business backers. Any fightback will have to come from the workplace and the streets and it will require a bit more of a concrete demand and a semblance of organisation.
Just as we thought Trump was about to turn it up to 11 he dialled it back. The world expected him to use the resumed coronavirus press conferences as a substitute for his rallies and he comes over a bit more Presidential and sticks to the topic in hand. Could it be that he's realised that the numbers are so bad he has to change tack? Could it be that the Pentagon (as shooterman suggests) have read him the riot act, or could it be that he gets his hands back on his coke next week and we return to SNAFU. Who knows? What will be will be.
You can see why I don't put my faith in conventional party politics! I would advocate more for social and cultural change rather than change by the ballot box or revolution. There is a third way, evolution not revolution, we can improve things on an individual and local level.
Quixotic or not, symbolism is important. Over my (50 years) lifetime, I have witnessed societies attitude to race and equallity change more due to the influence of Arts and Culture that the influence of politics. Think music, think sport, think, Muhammad Ali, West Indies Cricket team, John Barnes and now Lewis Hamilton.
It is quite possible that morons will throw coins when the crowds come back to football. If they do then the players will walk off the pitch and there will be no football. The onus would then be placed on other crowd members, they will have to take sides. They will either have to call out, or distance themselves from the racist thugs if they want to watch any football. Or they, along with the racists can stay away, thus making football grounds a more pleasant environment for all. Social and Cultural change, not by decree but by collective consent.
It was interesting to hear what Lindsay Graham (yes, that Lindsay Graham!) had to say about Nascar and the flag, he said "The thing is, Nascar is a business that's trying to expand its audience and the Confederate flag is just not good for business." A clever pivot by a Sothern Republican stalwart helping to shift the argument away from the culture wars to focus on economics.
It's funny how snowflakes are mocked for demanding their safe spaces, football grounds have traditionally been a safe space for racists, as are the trains before and after a match (If you've ever had the misfortune to share a carriage where most of the occupants are football 'fans')
The fact that BLM "don't have a clear figure they can gather behind to take them forward and they can gather behind" is a strength not a weakness, that fact in itself differentiates them from conventional party politics, In not providing us with a figurehead to follow they are asking us to take the lead.
If they do then the players will walk off the pitch and there will be no football. The onus would then be placed on other crowd members, they will have to take sides
There has been many occasions were this could have happened and did not. Football has an ingrained history of racism and anti-semetism which will not be winkled out so easily. The clubs have had chances to stop coin throwers and monkey noisers but generally done nothing. The statue protests in London shows that the anti-BLM is alive and well in the UK, and a great deal of them wear football shirts while piddling on memorials
Still, back to Trump...
His UK ambassador was tasked with getting the Golf at one of his courses. Despite all that's going on he was trying to cash in using the office to do it.
This kind of corruption in another presidency would be a scandal that would dominate the news. It's barely getting a mention.
Tests!
When you get to the end of that video and the ‘watch again’ prompt comes up..... never have if felt so sure I’ve seen enough
When you get to the end of that video and the ‘watch again’ prompt comes up….. never have if felt so sure I’ve seen enough
You just know he spent all morning practising person-woman-man-camera-tv 😂 Plus they picked related words just in case he struggled.